I’m back! Mike and I successfully escaped (ran away?) for five days and five nights. We treated ourselves to a Caribbean cruise to mark a successful decade of marriage. It felt incredibly indulgent, but I reminded myself over and over again that we deserved it. We earned it. We needed it. Last Monday morning, I abandoned my to do list at home for a to do list at sea. Here’s what I accomplished while we were away:
I read 2 books in 4 days. If this were a Runaway Mama word problem, the answer would be: Hallelujah!
I spent time with my husband. What a concept! We even talked about stuff other than our kids. Crazy!
I took the stairs. As much as possible. Elevators are for chumps…and for parents with strollers, which thankfully wasn’t me! Speaking of which…
I missed my boys because I love them enough to eat them whole, but not enough to wish they were there. No way. I watched the Mamas and Daddies on the pool deck with their little ducklings and they looked exhausted. I got tired watching them (when I wasn’t busy reading one of my books).
I didn’t use the hand sanitizer. No matter how much pressure there was at every entrance to every dining room, every theater, and every lounge. Allergic Mama! Seriously, I’m allergic to propylene glycol and a laundry list of other chemicals that are difficult to spell (and thus aren’t listed here) and are in many skin products, including hand sanitizer. Sigh. My protest wasn’t because I aspired to take down the entire cruise ship with my germy hands; rather, it was because I didn’t want to have to search for a cortisone shot at sea…or in Jamaica (dear God).
I didn’t watch the news (mostly). I’m a news junkie, so this was a good thing. If I’d been home all week reading about and watching coverage of Sandy Hook funerals, I would’ve been a hot mess. Funny, though, even in the middle of the ocean with limited access to the Internet and TV, it came up in conversation. A lot.
I said goodbye to IBS…temporarily. (Editor’s note: I once vowed to speak of digestion – especially mine – if, and only if, it was relevant to the story.) As soon as the carpool lines, lunch boxes to pack, gifts to wrap, teeth to brush, homework to decipher, dishes to clean, bills to pay, whining to endure, groceries to buy, and cars to clean (I could go on and on here) faded into the distance, my perpetual digestive discomfort totally and completely disappeared. Until the day before we came home. Interesting.
I cruised, therefore I “bingo-d” (therefore I wasted a lot of money). I played bingo with a glass of Chardonnay every afternoon on the ship.
Those are my very unlucky bingo cards. I remember playing and winning Bingo on previous cruises, so my misfortune this time was difficult to handle. This one kid, Aidan (I’ve changed Adam’s – oops – Aidan’s name for security), won Bingo, like, every day. On Thursday, he won twice in one session. After his second win, no one cheered or clapped. We all kind of wished he’d graciously pass on his second win (over $180!) so someone else could have a bleeping chance, but we all really just wished we were Adam Aidan.
I didn’t take a lot of pictures. Surprise, surprise. But the few we took are evidence that we really, truly got away.
Free at last! Glass of wine in right hand!
That’s me impersonating Dylan’s swagger.
We took a picture just like this about a dozen years ago. It felt good to recreate it.
We’re home now. The boys were fine without us for 120 hours, my parents are (exhausted) angels, and Christmas Eve is upon us. There are presents to wrap, food to cook, and cookies to bake. On top of that, the house is a mess, laundry is backed up, and my tummy hurts again. But, I’m a Grateful, Fortunate, Happy (Tired) Mama for the great gifts in my life – my kids, my husband, my family, my friends, and my tan. The best way to describe the feeling is that it’s a lot like…winning bingo.
Despite these blessings, I have a new and unfortunate health crisis to tend with. I have a really bad case of PVSD. You can read all about it here.
Merry Christmas Eve!
The Runaway Mama by Jen Gregory 