What do you think about part of your family going on one vacation and the rest on another?

I am hitting the road with the boys this week. After a too good to be true offer from Shades of Green, we are off to Disney once more! This time the trip will be a little different…..my husband can’t join us so we are traveling with friends….a co worker from school and her two boys.

The boys who will be heading to Disney together

Every other year we head to Disney with some friends from Ohio, but we have never visited with Sara and her kids. They have never been to Shades of Green either so I am excited to show them what a great resort it is. Throw in the fact that their last visit was nearly three years ago and her older son is Jake’s best friend and we are in for a great time! If we can only survive the 10 hour car ride with 4 boys all 8 years old or younger

While I feel bad that my husband can’t make it, I am thrilled that Sara was able to join us. Taking the trip with friends makes it feel different. We have been to Disney World many times and sometimes people ask me why we go so often. My reply is that we love it, but we also make it different each time. We stay at a new resort or visit different parks. This time, we will be experiencing it with friends who we have not vacationed with before. With 4 boys who are all almost tall enough to ride just about anything and another mom to help keep it all under control, I think we are in for a wonderful trip!

Have you vacationed with friends and their kids before? How did it go?

A couple of weekends ago we took a short trip to Asheville. We have lived here in eastern NC twice and we had not yet seen Biltmore…I decided it was time to go. As a bonus we were able to stay at the Grove Park Inn as members of the Disney Vacation Club (who knew that would be part of that deal!?) It was a much needed trip and we had a wonderful time.

The boys and I at Biltmore

Many of you already know that we have had some stress around my husband and his job. He was very undecided about his future plans and it had begun to really wear on me and our family. A couple of weeks ago he made a decision and that allowed us to finally relax a little. It just so happened that this new job security news came right before our trip west. That really allowed us to focus on having fun with each other and being ourselves again.

The Inn was beautiful, the tour of the house was great (candle light Christmas tour) and we even got some snow our last morning there. I had booked the trip months in advance before I had become so stressed and worn out over job issues. I really thought I might even need to cancel the trip just days before we were supposed to head out. I guess sometimes things happen when they do for a reason. We got some peace and the trip was saved. Sometimes time with those closest to us is all we really need to feel better and this trip was exactly that.

Have you ever taken a trip to just “get away” and relax? Where did you go?

With school right around the corner, my husband and I decided on one last day trip…all four of us. We settled on Myrtle Beach since we could go and head back the same day. The difference between this and most of our trips is that we did not tell the boys what we were doing or even where we were going. We weren’t sure if we could pull it off, but yesterday, as we pulled into Ripley’s Aquarium….they were still clueless

One of our earlier trips this summer to DC

Jake has been wanting to take his dad to see Medieval Times for awhile now. I took both boys during the last deployment and ever since Jake has been asking for a return visit. Sam and I weren’t so keen on round two of the show, but Sam is never one to turn down a trip to Build a Bear. With our respective “dates” in mind, we set off for lunch in Wilmington and that was all we told the boys…..just lunch then home.

They really thought they were on their way home until we were about five minutes from Broadway at The Beach. I am pretty sure Sam got out of the car and thought he was in Jacksonville It was a fun way to end our summer and even getting home at 11PM was OK. We had time as a family and everyone got to do something they enjoy. We’ll have to make those memories last a couple of months now. School, football, tennis…….back to reality and back to work.

Did you take any last trips before school started? Have you ever surprised your kids with a getaway?

We just got back from our last trip of the summer and I am quite happy to keep my car here in Onslow county for awhile. We had a great time, but we drove a lot of miles this summer and I think we are all done with 10 hours plus on the road. We have been to Virginia and Florida and this most recent trip took us to Ohio and DC. The boys were good, but even they are happy to stay put for awhile now.

Jake and Sam enjoying the Ohio weather

Our time in Ohio was wonderful…we got to visit with family and the weather was perfect. We left humidity and 90s behind and traded it for 80s and sun. We were able to play outside without melting in the first five minutes and it was great! The boys love spending time with their grandparents and like any visit with them, they were spoiled rotten. After a few days in the Buckeye state we headed for DC and a visit with my brother and sister in law.

My parents went to DC with us so it was a family affair. My husband had to sit out the OH portion due to work but he made it to DC. It was just a weekend but it is rare that all of us are in one place like that, so we truly enjoyed it. We took in some sights like the Spy Museum and a few memorials on the mall. Throw in some great meals in places like Georgetown and it was a perfect end to our summer travels.

Have you taken any trips this summer? Any great memories to share?