Taking a break

I've always been slightly ambivalent about vacations.

Growing up, my family went to visit family. I have good memories of hanging out at Grandma and Grandpa's house, playing with cousins, building card houses, and playing lots and lots of board games. Later memories are at the lake with the mingled smell of sun screen and camp fire at the end of long, lazy days.

During my first year of teaching in Houston, Texas, I lived with two close friends. Since we were teachers and had our breaks at the same time, Jenni suggested going to San Antonio for a few days as a vacation. It was a novel idea for me. I didn't know anyone in San Antonio. We stayed in a classic, old hotel with small rooms and did what you do when visiting lovely San Antonio for the first time--the Alamo and the River Walk. Though I don't have memories of it, we likely ate really good restaurant food.

Many of our family vacations over the last few years have been visiting family/friends kinds of vacations, which I think is still my favorite kind. This is what we did last week.

My very good friend and her daughter (Anna's best friend since she was  four) just moved to Paris this August. Initially,  I figured that Anna and I would head up during this fall break and spend some time with them. It turned into all four of us, and we stayed with another good friend.

On some days, we split up, Scott and Justin going the way of air and space museums and the like while we did other things, like letting the girls roll on the grass by the Eiffel Tower. On others, like the days when we went to Euro Disney for free (woo hoo), we stayed in contact with our cell phones and touched base or traded parents when necessary (like when Justin was ready to try roller coastering-- I am the roller coaster parent).

Our time in Paris was very kid-centered. If I were to go to Paris on my own, I would include a lot more café time, a trip to the Orsay Museum, and probably more time just sitting and chatting. As we did it, it was physically tiring, and filled with lots of activity.

But even though it wasn't necessarily what I would choose to do on my own, I have returned feeling refreshed and more ready to tackle what comes my way in the next few months.

I think I've undergone a shift in the way I view vacations, whatever form they take. I have seen the idea of vacationing as a modern extravagance, which is probably true in some ways.

But, people throughout history and cultures have had their festivals and times where normal life stops for a few days or weeks. I think of the Israelites going up to Jerusalem for yearly festivals, where they walked, talked, sang, and camped out on the way and back. It wasn't only a spiritual time to focus together, but a real break from the routines and pressures of their everyday lives of cooking, fishing, selling, etc.

I also think having vacation time when it is not ridiculously hot is very, very nice.

Exciting Piglet Chasing Footage

So here's some video of various Irish children and Justin chasing piglets at the farm.  The first video is short, but I love the quick standoff between Justin and the Mama Pig.  Mama pig definitely won.

The second video is longer.  Listen for Anna cheering Justin on.  Then listen to the parents laughing as our children ran away from the Mama Pig.  This was excellent entertainment for all involved.

And no one caught a piglet.

Park

Justin and Anna have been out of school for a week and a half, and we have settled into a vacation rhythm. We wake up deliciously late at 9am. I love the fact that my children don't wake up with the sun! Then we trek many blocks up the street to spend the morning at the park. We help water the plants in the garden together. Justin and I play badminton while the little kids bop around. We've met some new friends--a mom from Colombia and her two kids. Her son and Justin squirt each other with water guns at some point every morning.

Anna loves the play equipment and is a fearless climber.

The kids are enthusiastic about volleyball (much more so than I ever was). It's fun to see them be so much more sporty than I. And, at least at this point, I can keep up with their skills.



We leave for Ardeche Sunday where I'll join some other crazy people to sing hard but lovely music for a week. We did this two years ago and had a fabulous time. We stay in a small village set in a valley. Ah, France...
We'll have just a couple days back before flying to the States. We'll be in Texas, Colorado, and Indiana. Lots of driving in between.