Between the “terrible three’s” (since it seems to happen at three for us and not two) and having a cold, cough and ear infection, Meera has been visting Tantrum city regularly. Owen expressed it perfectly. Translation below.
For Meera
You drive us nuts… but we
Still Love [you] like baby cake[s]
I will read you a book!
Love, Owen
And that’s exactly what he did after dinner; went up stairs, and after getting ready for bed, read her The Berenstain Bears: Thunderbolt
Left: Owen’s proclamation on scrap paper— “cool craft table. but if you make a big mess you have to clean it all up. so you be careful.” Right: the craft table, after I made them clean it all up last night (Owen’s proclamation carefully placed front and center for all to see)
Thursday night my graduate seminar was devoted to discussing Weber’s The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism. The students always dread the assignment when I give it: read the whole thing, cover-to-cover, every-single-word-please, in two weeks, and then be ready to discuss in depth, no-holds-barred. But they usually thank me later (sometimes much much later). It is hard work to read that book. But the pay-off is well worth it. This time around, there was a new spin to the discussion as we talked a lot about analogies that can be drawn between the “work hard, play hard” motto of certain spheres of life today and the cultural ethos that Weber articulates in The Protestant Ethic. It was an interesting discussion, and it got me thinking, again, about the “work hard, play hard” mentality.
However, on my drive home that night, after stopping to pick up a prescription for Meera (another ear infection), and a load of groceries (to prepare for a weekend at home with my hungry boys), and knowing I was going to get home long after my bambinos were in bed, I was thinking only of how to ensure that my family could properly unwind from the work hard week we had just experienced.
It was a killer week. Of the week-nights last week, I was not home in time for dinner once. Not once. I had work meetings-events-dinners-classes that ran late on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. It is not often that my work schedule is this insane, but lately it has been. And it takes a lot out of me (and Braydon; and the kids). It isn’t just the missed time at the dinner table… it is also the coordinating, and planning, and strategizing that is required to pull it off (the scheming on the part of Braydon and I, just to make a week like that possible, is unbelievably involved). It takes a lot of work – on the part of all five of us – to get through a killer week like that. By Friday, we were all done with working so hard, and were more than ready to play.
The motto “work hard, play hard” was big at Colby while Braydon and I were in college there. And it is big, now, at Lehigh (and lots of other places) too. I’ve posted before about it (click here, for three examples), and I’ll probably post again about it too. The thing I’m thinking about today, though, is the piece that is missing from the balance. Amidst all the hard work and hard play, I think that people like me (and families like ours) often neglect the critical importance of total down time. In arenas of ambitious people and in cultures of drive-for-success (and let’s be clear: I’m not just talking about financial success, I’m talking about cultures of drive-for-success very broadly defined), due respect is not paid to the art of chillaxing (as K & O are fond of calling it). Whether you’re a student (or professor) at a top-tier university, or a worker in an NGO or non-profit, or climbing the corporate ladder, or a missionary in the field… chillaxing is not (generally) encouraged.
chillax: (verb) (intransitive, slang) Etymology: blend of chill out and relax. Pronunciation: chĭlăksʹ. Definition: to relax; to be laid back; to calm down.
What I’ve come to believe is that in the ‘work-life balance’ of “work hard, play hard,” to chillax is just as important as to play hard. In the balance has to hang not just the duo of work-and-play, but the perfect trifecta of the three: work-play-chillax. And so… after a killer week (work)… along with the First Friday (play), there must also be time purposefully devoted to sitting on the couch and watching a movie and cuddling with the kittens (chillax).
Left: Meera and Mommy had a rockin’ night on the town Friday for our First Friday (she insisted that we go back to the same place we went last time— the “chips and salsa and queso restaurant,” and given my own love of that perfect trifecta, there was no way I was going to insist on otherwise). Right: Owen, Hudson, and Quinn chillax.
SATURDAY: After a long work hard week, there’s not much that we enjoy more in the fall than blowing off some steam at a Lehigh football game. This is play hard at its best!
(Lehigh played Georgetown, and beat them badly, winning the Patriot League Championship)
But then, when we came home from the game, all pink-cheeked and wind-burned from being outside all day, it was time for purposeful and devoted time to chillax. After a play hard day, our chillaxing evening was dinner (Middle Eastern Beef Stew from the crock pot!) and a movie (Joseph: King of Dreams!) and kitten love—
SUNDAY: And amidst a Sunday morning devoted to some pretty serious yard work (note— this is simply work hard for Braydon; this is also play hard for K & O)—
It is just as important to chillax with a hot-chocolate-picnic break—
If taken in moderation, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with hot-chocolate-and-marshmallows-and-store-bought-ginger-snap-cookies (even when they are non-organic and probably laden with all sorts of evil things). In fact, if enjoyed on blankets in the yard together with your family on a Sunday, hot-chocolate-and-marshmallows-and-store-bought-ginger-snap-cookies are pretty dang good. And despite all the mega-bombardment with research articles and expert opinion and media coverage (isn’t that ironic) telling us how terrible “screens” are for our children (and yes, of course, to some degree screens certainly must be terrible), I’m going to force myself to not feel any mother-guilt whatsoever about the fact that quite regularly, on a Saturday afternoon, I’ll forcefully tell my kids (Kyle and Owen especially) that it is time for a “Mandatory Movie.” It is not unusual for us to drag them in from the non-stop-sports-in-the-yard to make them take off their sneakers and “sit on the couch and watch something!!!” I’m not going to feel bad about that, because it is part of the work-play-chillax balance that I’m conscientiously trying to instill.
And so, after all this time (20 years for Braydon and I) of thinking about “work hard, play hard,” I’m now officially changing our own family’s take on this motto to: “work hard, play hard, and chillax.” And now, we move on to another work hard week.
It is a good thing that it is almost Thanksgiving, because here in the J-M-home we are just about all-pumpkined-out. It has been a lot of pumpkin this fall! What started out as a long-held pumpkin obsession on the part of Kyle, has somehow morphed into a pumpkin obsession on the part of all 3 bambinos. In the end, even Meera became pumpkin crazed (thanks to the glazed “cookies” pictured above). Here are 3 of our favorites from this fall season:
1. Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting! This recipe came from a blog reader, Kendall, who gave us her mom’s amazing cupcake recipe in response to my blog post asking for pumpkin recipes. Thank you Kendall!!! I chose to try her recipe because it looked super easy. And it was! I had made the cheater-box-mix-add-can-of-pumpkin recipes in the past… and they were alright… but this version is an amped up one (more added ingredients, but still cheater/easy)… and let me tell you: THEY ARE GREAT!!! Super moist and delicious, and of course anything with cream cheese frosting is sooooo goooooood! I made these just before Halloween when my parents were coming to visit. Everyone loved them! Kendall’s Mom’s recipe for Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing can be found at the bottom of this post.
2. Iced Pumpkin Cookies! One day earlier this fall, the boys each came home from a school bake sale with a zip-loc bag containing “pumpkin cookies.” I put this in quotes because these are actually some sort of crazy-delicious cross between cookies-&-scones-&-muffin-tops. Kyle and Owen had already sampled them on the bus ride home, and were declaring that these were the “best cookies in the whole wide world!” These things were so precious to them that they only let me taste one tiny bite each. But that tiny bite was enough for me to know that these things were indeed something extra special. Through a lengthy interrogation process I was finally able to discern from them who had brought these cookies to the bake sale. I contacted the girl’s mother and asked for the recipe, which she told me she had made on a whim after finding it on the internet. I’ve copied and pasted the recipe below. But, here’s the original link: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/iced-pumpkin-cookies/detail.aspx. Last Friday, Owen and I doubled the recipe to have these cookies on hand for the weekend of Maggie and Eric’s visit. I am not kidding when I say that the entire FIVE DOZEN “Iced Pumpkin Cookies” were completely gone by Monday morning. I have fond memories of Maggie and Eric eating them for breakfast with their coffee, Kyle and Owen eating them for dessert after dinner, and Meera eating them allll daaaaay loooooong. Seriously… best pumpkin “cookies” ever!
3. Spinach Salad with Warm Squash! Last, but not least… have you tried the Spinach Salad with Warm Squash recipe that I posted last December? If not, for the love of squash, try it!!! Braydon and I had this for dinner one night last week and we were reminded of just how really, really, really good it is!!!
Kendall’s Mom’s Recipe for Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting:
One yellow cake mix
3 eggs
1/2 cup oil or substitute 1/2 cup apple sauce
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 can pumpkin (20 oz)Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Blend all ingredients, fill paper lined muffin cups (24 regular, 100 mini) 2/3 full. Bake for 15 minutes. Cool, then frost with icing.
Frosting–
one 3 ounce package of cream cheese
3/4 cup butter softened
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon milk
2 cups powdered sugarCream together butter and cream cheese. Beat in vanilla and milk, gradually add powdered sugar until frosting is desired consistency.
Iced Pumpkin Cookies:
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1 1/2 cups white sugar
- 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 3 tablespoons milk
- 1 tablespoon melted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, and salt; set aside.
- In a medium bowl, cream together the 1/2 cup of butter and white sugar. Add pumpkin, egg, and 1 teaspoon vanilla to butter mixture, and beat until creamy. Mix in dry ingredients. Drop on cookie sheet by tablespoonfuls; flatten slightly.
- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven. Cool cookies, then drizzle glaze with fork.
- To Make Glaze: Combine confectioners’ sugar, milk, 1 tablespoon melted butter, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Add milk as needed, to achieve drizzling consistency.
Maggie and Eric came to visit us for the weekend. They came all the way from Wisconsin. They flew in, and then blew us all away with their sweetness, lightness, and loveliness. Maggie was a very favorite (and best) student of mine at Lehigh (both BA and MA). We’re still in close contact (both personally and professionally). Eric is her adorable and wonderful fiancé. They are both PhD students, writing their dissertations. They are getting married this summer. I’m officiating! We can’t wait for our big trip to Colorado for their wedding!!!
(Some other blog posts where Maggie is mentioned: Maggie gets into her PhD program!; I say “hi” to Maggie re: kid-centered-qualitative-methodology!; We see Maggie in Atlanta at a Sociology conference!)
Favorite memories of the weekend included:
We had a good time. I am so proud of Maggie. And I could not have chosen a better guy for her. We had such a truly fabulous weekend together! I know, I know, I’m gushing… but really… Gosh, we love these two!
And Greg… gosh, we love him too! [Greg: WE LOVE YOU!]
P.S. “Dear Maggie and Eric: Thank you for coming to visit. We can’t wait for the wedding in Colorado. Thank you for the football. Thank you for the water bottle. Thank you for playing with us. Love, Kyle, Owen, and Meera.”
P.P.S. Dear Maggie & Eric: FYI—after you left, they continued to stay glued to the football (“a championship football!!!!”) and the water bottle, respectively. Just a small sign of their love for you. Thanks for coming to visit! We miss you! Love, Heather and Braydon
When Kyle and Owen were 3 (and younger), we’d often feed them dinner early, get them to bed, and then Braydon and I would eat later. After a long day of work/school/daycare, it is hard (sometimes impossible) for a 3-year-old to wait for dinner. Meera, just like Kyle and Owen when they were her age, is often hungry/cranky/whiney by 5:30. But, unlike when Kyle and Owen were her age, she doesn’t have the rest of the family catering to her schedule and working our lives around hers. So, pretty often, Meera will stand on a stool at the counter by the stove while I cook, eating a “Pre-Dinner Dinner” of her own. I’ll often give her whatever is already ready (some rice from the rice steamer, or some plain pasta that’s just come out of the pot), and she’ll eat that and some raw veggies (that haven’t been cooked for dinner yet). This will usually completely ruin her appetite for dinner. But it helps keep everyone sane. Then she’ll often play in her little “kitchen” right next to our dining table while the rest of us eat dinner.
Halloween 2011 was, by far, the weirdest Halloween of my life. Just to reiterate: it was the weirdest Halloween of my life. Two days before Halloween, in an unprecedented record-breaking-early freak nor’easter, it snowed 8+ inches here in Pennsylvania. That is weird (especially given that we’ll sometimes have whole winters go by in which we never have a storm that big – let alone in October). My parents were visiting, making a 5-day-“long weekend”-of-Halloween, and the storm effectively wiped out nearly every single plan that I had devised. It became, for example, our first year ever to not go to Traugers Farm pre-Halloween (breaking these sorts of traditional rituals is not easy for me). The hayride was cancelled— a sleigh ride would have been more appropriate. The school Halloween party was cancelled (because school was cancelled). But there we were, digging our pumpkins out from under the snow drifts. It was hard for me wrap my mind around how to proceed with a snowy Halloween. It felt more like Christmas. Except that trees were falling down all around us, power outages were surrounding us (amazingly, we were somehow spared), we had to frantically dig our winter boots out from storage, and the whole world seemed to be going berserk. Adding to the drama, Lehigh was shut down (for the first time ever in my 10 years there classes were cancelled—and for three days in a row no less!—the campus just re-opened today); neighbors have been filling water jugs from our faucets and taking showers in our bathrooms; and both Kyle and Meera have been sick (and are now on all sorts of meds for pretty serious head/sinus/ear/throat/respiratory infections). Blah. Humbug.
Now that I’ve had a couple of days to step back from it, I can see that it was not a bad Halloween. It was just a weird Halloween. Given that preamble… here are our Top Ten Highlights from Halloween 2011:
1. The Snow. Yes, it has to be on the list. It is what made Halloween 2011 the unique (weird) experience that it was.
2. MorMor & MorFar were with us. When all heck broke loose, they did what they do best: they were our anchors in the storm. They went to the grocery store, stocked up, and then cooked us a full blown roasted chicken dinner, complete with stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, about 50 different vegetables, apple pie and ice cream. While this definitely added to the Thanksgiving/Christmas-esque ambiance (and contributed to the difficulty in trying to be in the Halloween spirit), it was most definitely fully appreciated by 5 J-Ms who don’t usually get to eat that kind of a meal (what a treat!!!). And the leftovers from that meal fed us for the rest of our snow-bound days (including an awesome chicken-and-rice soup that MorMor made for Halloween night). They also played several rounds of Uno with us by the fire while the snow poured down; MorFar helped us shovel out; MorMor did about 1,000 loads of laundry; MorFar played baseball with the boys in the midst of a nor’easter (no joke! God love him!); MorMor read 12 Berenstein Bears books in a row to Kyle (no joke! God love her!); MorFar roasted pumpkin seeds; MorMor made “Jack-o-lantern Jars” with Meera and me (see photo at top); they both witnessed us at our very worst (and somehow made us feel not-so-bad about it); gorged on Halloween candy with us; they laughed with us (and at us); and they were – as usual – our tried and true most beloved and steady companions on this crazy-journey-in-Never-A-Dull-Moment-land. This picture doesn’t do them justice, but I love it nonetheless:
3. Meera’s Daycare Parade. On Friday, before all heck broke lose, when things were proceeding along as planned, Meera had her First Ever School Halloween Event. MorMor and I had the pleasure and privilege of cheering her and her friends on at their daycare “Parade.” Meera was so cute.
4. Kyle and Owen’s School “Show.” Also on Friday, before the freak snowstorm and aftermath, we all attended a potluck “Dinner and Show” at Kyle and Owen’s classroom. Their 1st/2nd grade class put on a performance of some “book adaptations” that they had been working very hard on all fall. It was very endearing, and just a tad bit amusing, and we (adults) worked hard to take them (the kids’) oh-so-seriously. It was a special Friday Night Out. Afterwards, K & O got to stay up until midnight watching Game 7 of the World Series with MorFar and Papi (that was a high of their life-to-date)!!!!!!!!
5. The Carving of Jack-o-Lanterns. I don’t care how hard it snows, we will never abandon that Halloween tradition.
6. 3 Skeletons! They insisted early on in the costume-discussions that they all wanted to be “the same.” After weeks and weeks of deliberations and negotiations the three of them finally settled on “glow in the dark skeletons.” By the grace of God I was able to make that vision come true (thanks to Chasing Fireflies).
7. 2 Pumpkins! Hudson and Quinn in costume:
8. Trick-or-Treating (in the snow).
9. The Loot. Yeah, they gave it right up (see #10), but for the 24 hours that they kept it, they delighted in it. Just the thrill of having it is… just such a thrill.
10. The Candy Witch. Oh dear God. The Candy Witch strikes again. Seriously? This kills me. After all the Halloween hoop-la, I then I have to go work my magic as The Candy Witch. As if Santa, The Easter Bunny, and The Tooth Fairy weren’t enough. But, once again, much to my chagrin, they insisted on the whole Candy Witch thing, and were absolutely dead-set against keeping their candy. And so, when they adamantly declared that they were “leaving all the candy for The Candy Witch,” I was left with no other option (I mean, unless I wanted to break their three little spirits)… and so, despite snow and ice and everything else, our Halloween graciously ended with a jolly old visit from The Candy Witch herself (turns out she flies through the night, even over snow banks!).
Last night, as I took down the Halloween decorations from our house, and stored them back in their boxes in the basement, I was glad to have Halloween 2011 behind me. All is well that ends well. But really, it was weird. And now we head into the hard-core holiday season. (I have mixed emotions about that fact… oh the mother-load-of-work-the-holiday-season-is… I’m looking down the pike with genuine excitement mixed with sincere fear and trepidation.) Hopefully Thanksgiving and Christmas will be less weird than Halloween was. We can only hope.
Over and out!
One of Braydon’s favorite things to eat in the whole wide world is Tom Kha Gai (Thai Coconut Chicken Soup). We have a favorite Thai restaurant near us, and their Tom Kha Gai is one of the only foods on earth that Braydon craves and can’t resist; he just loves the stuff. Recently I became bound and determined to figure out how to make Tom Kha Gai, and –specifically—to try to replicate the specific version of it that Braydon loves so much at our favorite Thai restaurant. After meshing and molding and tweaking from a whole bunch of different recipes I took from cookbooks and online, I finally am pretty sure that I’ve mastered it (or at least come as close as I think I will to mastering it). It is still not as good as at the restaurant, but when we can’t go out to eat (which we rarely can), this will surely do the trick in place of it! My recipe below.
One of my favorite Thai dishes is Thai Salad with Peanut Dressing. I especially love Thai salads made with Napa cabbage. I also really love the combination of nut or seed dressings over roasted cauliflower and/or broccoli (for example, roasted cauliflower with Tahini sauce is one of my absolute favorite Middle Eastern dishes!). So, I set out to combine all these things into one all-encompassing Thai-esque salad. It turned out great—and the roasted veggies made the salad warmer and perfect for a fall supper! My recipe below.
This Soup & Salad dinner was a big hit this week at our house—especially with Braydon!
Heather’s Thai Coconut Chicken Soup
- 1 can coconut milk
- 1 32 ounce container reduced-sodium chicken broth
- 6 quarter-size slices fresh ginger
- 1/2 medium-sized onion, sliced very thin
- 1 pound boned, skinned chicken breast or thighs, cut into 1-in. chunks
- 2 cups sliced mushrooms
- 2 cups bite-sized pieces of broccoli and cauliflower
- fresh juice of 2-3 limes
- 2-3 tablespoons Fish Sauce
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1-4 tablespoons Thai Chili Paste (depending on how spicy you want it)
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
In a medium saucepan, combine coconut milk, broth, ginger, and onion. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Let simmer about 20 minutes. Add everything else except the basil and cilantro. Continue to simmer until chicken is cooked through, 5 to 10 minutes. Discard ginger pieces. Add basil and cilantro. Cook for just a minute or two more. And serve! (Braydon and I add more Chili Paste to our soup just before eating— the kids do not!)
Heather’s Thai Salad with Peanut Dressing
Dressing:
- 3/4 cup smooth creamy peanut butter
- 1/3 cup soy sauce
- 1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons Thai Chili Paste
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- fresh juice of 2 limes
- 1/2 cup hot water
Combine all ingredients in a jar, cover with tight fitting lid, and shake until combined.
Roasted Cauliflower and Broccoli:
Place clean, dry cauliflower and broccoli florets on baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 400 degrees, turning once or twice, for about 20 minutes, or until vegetable pieces are slightly soft and lightly browned.
To Assemble Salad:
Combine whatever salad ingredients you like with roasted veggies. Toss with dressing. Serve sprinkled with chopped peanuts. Salad ingredients can be any combination you like—such as Napa cabbage, red peppers, shredded carrots, etc.
Meera continues to create masterpieces of art each and every day. Never does a day go by that she doesn’t draw, paint, color, stamp, or smudge. Besides playing outside on the playground, anything artsy crafty is always her favorite activity at preschool.
Last week Braydon and I indulged in three whole luxurious nights away from our children. It was glorious. Since becoming parents we have rarely left our kids overnight. We can count on two hands the number of nights we’ve ever not slept under the same roof as Kyle and Owen. And prior to last week, we had only ever left Meera overnight once (when we took K & O to the DR).
Five years ago, to celebrate our 5th anniversary, Braydon and I went away to a fancy shmancy hotel/resort in Naples Florida. It was supposed to be a lovely wine-and-spa get-away, but it turned into a pathetic-3-days-of-wallowing-in-the-misery-of-terribly-missing-our-bambinos. All we could talk about was K & O. All we could think about was how much we wanted them there with us. It was ridiculous. We came back from that trip vowing we would travel more with them, and never leave them again. The only good thing about that trip was that – fortunately!!!!! – we both felt the same way about it (thank God for that!!!!!!!!!).
However…
A lot has changed in the past five years. We now have three kids. Our careers are more demanding than ever. And life is faster paced now than we ever could have even imagined five years ago. As we approached our 10th anniversary we could not wait to get away for an Adults Only Retreat From Our Reality.
We picked a wine-and-spa trip again (we are nothing if not determined!). And we picked the Finger Lakes Region of New York (a place we’d never explored). Our only plan was this: we would only do things that we could never do with our kids in tow. And that, precisely, is what we did.
Yes, we talked a lot about our bambinos. But we talked a lot about other stuff too. And yes, we missed them (because we’re pathetic like that), but we enjoyed our time alone together.
We got massages. We sat in hot tubs and saunas. We did wine tastings. We admired vineyards. We went to bed early and slept late. And played many hours of Boggle (yes, we’re geeks like that). One of us read the newspaper. Another read Bon Appetit. We watched t.v. And ate steak frites for dinner. And croissants for breakfast. And drank whole cups of coffee from start to finish without forgetting where we set the mug down halfway through. We spontaneously went to the movies one night. And drank champagne at least once a day. And talked and talked and talked and talked, without interruption. These are things that we don’t normally get to do. It was phenomenally fun.
We’re already planning our 15th anniversary. We can’t wait!
MorMor and MorFar graciously took care of the bambinos and kept up things on the home-front while we were away. Three nights doesn’t sound like long, but believe me… it involves a LOT around here. Kudos to my parents for being able to pull it off so graciously and gracefully. They are the best. And they gave us the best anniversary gift by agreeing to take care of K, O, and M. The bambinos not only survived, but they loved their “alone time” with their grandparents.
Now it is back to reality. Laundry and dishes and cooking and kids-waking-up-with-fevers and insane-work-calendars and soccer games and toddler tantrums and, basically, generalized chaos 24×7.
(at left: the kitchen floor, upon arrival home after work and school today / at right: their most recent driveway trick (and please refrain from lambasting us with nasty comments about what horrible parents we are because our kids don’t always have helmets on)
The three nights of wine-and-spa are a distant memory. But one that will not be forgotten— and those three days will keep us chugging along for quite some time. Amazing what a little Adults Only Anniversary Retreat can do.
* * *
p.s. This is not a paid advertisement, by any stretch of the imagination, but nonetheless I want to plug LuxuryLink.com (/Family Getaway/Vacationist). This is an online auction site for vacation destinations. We bided on and purchased our 3-night-stay in the Finger Lakes on LuxuryLink for a fraction of the price it would normally cost.
Recent comments