5 years is a good chunk of time but not crazy long yet, somehow, I feel as though this has been our life for much, much longer. Like life didn't really exist until it was ours and we were doing it together.
My mom was gracious enough to come stay at our house to watch the girls for the 4 nights we went away to celebrate. We left last Wednesday, closer to 8:30pm once everyone was fed and either in bed, or heading there. We drove down to Ft. Lauderdale that night where we stayed at a modest Courtyard Inn and continued our journey to Miami Beach the next morning.
The drive down I was tense. The days leading up to our departure I was feeling anxious. I was somewhat nervous to leave the girls and also frantically trying to do as much prep-work for my mom as I possibly could. I was a frazzled mess pulling out of the garage that night but the drive there and back was something I was actually looking forward to. The quiet time alone with Matt. I looked forward to the simple car conversation and it's so incredible how different the conversation was on the way there than it was the way back.
So, why Miami? Well, it's no secret that Matt travels a lot for work. It comes in spurts and lately it's been more often than not. He's always home every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, but has often been leaving Monday through Thursday nights as of late. Needless to say he has a lot of hotel points saved up. 5 years ago we stayed 10 days in Hawaii for free, flew free courtesy of frequent flier miles as well. This is our 3rd trip to South Florida on hotel points, we've also stayed at Disney twice with points, and a few other times on the beach. Traveling husbands are rough, the accrued points help the sting hurt just a little less at times, which is why we ended up in Miami. In using points we're limited to Marriott hotels and we wanted to be on the beach which left us with 2 reasonable options. The other option we stayed at last time, so check-in at the Eden Roc Renaissance Thursday morning we did.
At the front desk, Matt casually mentioned we'd wait around for a nice room if an upgrade were available. A glance at his "status" and we were granted one immediately. The "executive suite" she told us, "nicest room in the resort." I started giggling. Literally giggling I was so excited. Matt's expression was so easy to read, that perfect mixture of blushing that told me he's so thankful I'm the kind of girl who appreciates this, but with the slightest tinge of embarrassment that I was acting like a school-girl. It was cute.
We were shown to our room where we both proceeded to giggle in amazement. Corner unit on the 20th floor overlooking Miami Beach. Lots of windows, lots of views, even Aveda toiletries that I made sure to collect each day. From there we went to our spa appointment where we each got 50 minutes massages to kick-off our stay. My therapist commented on how much I needed it, that my back and neck told the tale of caring for 2 small children, lots of knots.....lots of them.
We ate lunch on the spa deck and I opted for a nap while Matt walked around the property. Rested and refreshed we decided to go to South Beach for dinner to a place a friend recommended. Now that is real Miami. Many of the restaurants don't even open until 8pm and many people don't eat until after 10pm. You find yourself on "Miami-time" without even really meaning too and before we knew it, we were getting to bed very late. Good news though, we got to sleep in! I guess that's how Miami works. Stay up late, sleep in late. Reminded us of ourselves before kids. It was fun. It made us feel old and young all the same because late to us wasn't late to anyone else. I was shocked to learn bars and clubs stayed open until 5am!!!!! Seriously?!?!
We shopped the shops, ate the food, got the sand between our toes. Because of our great accommodations we even ordered dinner in our room 2 of the 3 nights because our view beat just about anywhere else we could have eaten. We heard of famous people sightings and saw extravagant yachts and cars I'd never even heard of. Everything down there was elaborate, over the top, sparking and beautiful. Yet the city, in all of it's hustle, bustle and everything glamour, could not hide it's emptiness. It's facade. It's lies. The way it coaxes and lures, only to spit back out. It's got more lights at night than almost anywhere I've ever been, yet I'd venture to call it the darkest city I've ever visited. It made me so appreciative of the simple comforts of home.
Our resort was incredible. The rest, relaxation, time with Matt, not cooking a meal, wiping a bottom or cleaning a mess I absolutely loved. The city of Miami.....not a fan. BUT.....I am grateful. So grateful we had the opportunity to do it. I did't realize how tense I really was until the drive home. I felt like a different person entirely. I don't know that I'll ever truly get used to a traveling husband. I'll always support him and as a family we will continually need to adapt, but our goodbye today felt different, lighter and I'm so thankful for that.
I've scrubbed our shower, did 3 loads of laundry, a trip to the grocery store, so business as usual happened without missing a beat. Matt stayed home until his 6pm flight for the week so the additional time he had to give to the girls was great. They were both fast asleep by 7:30 tonight so this extra "me" time is a huge bonus to help me keep my charge.
So, what does an executive suite look like you ask? I got this pic from their website but this was exactly what our room looked liked upon arrival. Just under $800 a night is what this place (after taxes and fees) goes for. That's insane to me.
Not sure grandma is ready for the kids again, but hopefully one day!
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I just found this post I never completed that I wrote just days before we left.
"Turns out Elyse has swimmer's ear (as I suspected) and Adley's is an actual ear infection. No one has slept through the night in 3 days which, in this house, is insane. I love sleep. I love 8 hours of sleep which is what I usually get.
I've been invited, through these infections, back to the fog reminiscent of having a newborn baby. My patience wore thin and I wasn't okay with how I was handling things.
At one point Adley was taking cups of water and dumping them out of the bathtub while I was getting Elyse dried off. I was so depleted at that point I didn't have a rational bone in my body. I walked out of the small bathroom into the hallway, hid just around the corner, and cried.
I'm emotional, but not THAT emotional."
Wow. I was definitely depleted.
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