Letters For Lucas

Wonders, Mishaps, Blunders and Joy.. commentary on my life as a mom in the form of letters to my son

How I Beat The Post-Holiday Blues

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Our first Christmas in our new house was a memorable one and the 75+ degree temperatures have been weird and wonderful. I loved having my in-laws, sister and her boyfriend staying with us and still can’t believe all of my recipes turned out exactly the way they were suppose to. I think spent more time in the kitchen over the last week than I have all year (more on this in another post)! And nothing can compare to a child’s excitement over Santa’s arrival. Lucas was a ball of energy all week!

But now it’s over.

Just like that.

For me the worst part of Christmas is the aftermath: the tree has been taken down, most of the gifts have either been exchanged, returned for the correct size or put away, the last of the pie has been eaten, family and friends have gone home, the mailbox is no longer bursting with greetings and thank you cards have been started.

It’s sad.

So much excitement and anticipation goes into prepping for the holidays and then all at once, it’s over and the warm fuzzy feelings disappear.

Here are some ways I like to combat the post-holiday blues:

  • Create a scrapbook or fun collage to commemorate holiday memories.

PicMonkey Collage2

  • Begin (or in my case, resume) an exercise program. I went for a walk this morning and it was mind clearing and felt great.
  • Daydream about summer and our next family vacation. We’re thinking Mexico and yes, with a new baby!
  • Do something productive… as if I haven’t been productive the last few months, making a baby and moving, etc., but I spent some time getting Lucas signed up for swim lessons, soccer and researched karate classes. I also packed a bag for the hospital and renewed my domain name. All of these tasks have been on my To Do list for weeks and I’m glad to have them behind me.
  • Treat myself. Like me, chances are you have been cooking and baking for family and friends and buying for others, so now is the time to schedule a massage or hair appointment, or some quiet time alone to curl up with a good book (or my brand new Kindle Paperwhite!!).
  • I know I’m not the only one that feels this way, so I reached out to a friend and we had a great phone call recapping the last few days and planning for the upcoming weeks.

How do you avoid the post holiday blues?

Whatever you do to get through this time, know that these feelings will soon pass and more good times are in store!

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Labor Day Weekend: Signs Of A Great Vacation

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We love San Diego and have missed it desperately since we moved from North County to Orange County almost three years ago. We made a lot of wonderful memories (not to mention friends) in our little beach town of Leucadia and life in general is a lot more laid back in San Diego, so anytime we can get back there, we do! Luckily it’s only a one hour drive south.

We just spent four days in La Jolla as an end of summer, Labor Day weekend getaway and it was just what our family needed.

Our hotel room was steps from the beach, everything we needed was within walking distance and the sand, surf, sea life and sun were in abundance.

More signs of a great vacation:

1. I took a book that I didn’t open once because there was too many other things to do, like people watch, lounge in the sun, follow guitar fish up and down the beach and practice writing our name in the sand.

IMG_4845name

2. The only shoes I packed were flip flops, there was no make up worn and I left my flat iron at home.

3. When we unpacked, sand was everywhere, and I do mean everywhere, but I didn’t mind a bit.

4. The majority of our dirty laundry consists of bathing suits, towels and cover ups.

5. Tan lines.

6. We took the long way home just to make it last a little longer.

7. For four days someone couldn’t be dragged off the beach if his life depended on it. 

IMG_4920joy

8. That same someone fell asleep in the car on the way home.

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9. We’re already planning our next visit.

10. We brought home good memories, great photographs and huge smiles.

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Have You Ever?

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Have you ever felt giddy over getting another stamp in your passport?

Have you ever been approached on the street in Yaletown and asked if you needed help with directions, restoring your faith in the kindness of strangers?

Have you ever been caught in the rain on Robson Street and laughed so hard you cried?

Have you ever seen a twinkle in your husband’s eye as he points out the building he used to live in on Georgia Street?

Have you ever sang karaoke to a room full of strangers at Hollywood North and it made your heart do cartwheels inside your chest?

Have you ever tasted the tomato soup with goat cheese at Cardero’s in Coal Harbor and swear you could eat it every day this winter and never grow tired of it?

Have you ever felt as though your problems at home really were a million miles away?

Have you ever pushed your son’s stroller through Stanley Park?

Have Aurora and Qila, the beluga whales at the Vancouver Aquarium ever smiled at you?

Have you ever walked across suspension bridges 230 feet above the Capilano River while your knees quaked with fear?

Have you ever taken a photo of your husband and son swimming in the hotel pool from your 22nd floor window?

Have you ever celebrated Thanksgiving with filet mignon and chocolate cake at Hy’s Steakhouse?

Have you ever written the top 10 items you are most grateful for on the back of a wine list in crayon?

Have you ever watched your child experience something as magical as snow for the first time and it completely took your breath away?

Have you ever been in 32 degrees, worn four layers of clothing and still couldn’t get warm?

Have you ever heard the delicate sound of snow melting off of tree branches?

Have you ever watched the pastry chef at Chateau Whistler masterfully assemble a life-sized gingerbread house in the lobby?

Have you ever bought souvenirs at Granville Market?

Have you ever been to a place that you just couldn’t describe in words?

Have you ever been to British Columbia?

During our week in Vancouver and Whistler I had all of these sensations and experiences. My senses were truly on overdrive and it was an amazing week. We are already planning our next visit.

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Uno Mas Cerveza, Por Favor

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While everyone is giving three cheers for surviving their child’s first day of school today, I’m cracking open a cold one, sighing heavily and praising God that I survived my first day back from vacation.

Today started way too early and made me wish I had slept more while I was in Cabo San Lucas over the long weekend.

It was the longest I had ever been away from Lucas without hearing his voice or seeing his sweet face… four days and three nights and it was agony, even though I did have a lot of fun and was able to relax like I haven’t been able to in a long time and I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with my girlfriends and laughing like I was 15 again.

Almost as soon as it began, it was over.

I thought of this view at least a dozen times today.

The dog was up three times last night; 2:00 AM, 2:30 AM and then again for good at 6:00. Lucas, on the other hand, slept in until after 7:00. Go figure!

After that, I was in full throttle…. I spent half an hour on the phone arguing with the Tucson Water Company, another 20 minutes pleading with AT&T to reverse $800+ in international roaming charges I did not incur because my phone was out of commission for the four days I was away, I unpacked, did six loads of laundry, picked up and dropped off dry cleaning, made a visit to the super market with meal plans for the entire week, (what can I say, when I can’t sleep, I make lists) took Lucas to swim lessons and a toy store to buy a birthday present (was I gluten for punishment, or what?), played umpteen rounds of Go Fish and read dozens of books while Lucas sat on the potty and lastly, I made a pile of back to school items my little preschooler needs for his big day tomorrow.

There truly is nothing like coming home or being reunited with your family and routine. I live for all three. 

Hugs and kisses, catching up on my weekend and theirs, sharing photos and presenting souvenirs as gifts, shaking sand out of travel bags and wringing out swimsuits and stowing away suitcases, followed by more hugs and kisses.

I couldn’t stay away from these three if I tried.

As a side note, I am very proud of Lucas, he (almost) made it through the entire day today in underwear. My head is of course pounding from hearing myself ask, “Do you have to use the potty?” 900 times and I’m only mad at myself for his one accident.

I’d say I earned uno mas cerveza.

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$1000

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1. Gas up.

2. First stop: Starbucks for iced Chai tea latte for me, iced latte with extra shot for my husband and a box of apple juice for Lucas.

3. Drive and hour and a half northeast and check into La Quinta Inn & Suites for one night.

4. Unpack and then head straight to the hotel gift shop. Purchase new swim suits, magazines, water toys, and sunscreen.

5. Head to the pool and enjoy a fun-filled family day complete with lunch, laughter and lots of water play, all while soaking up the hot desert sun.

6. After showers, greet babysitter, who has been booked for four hours.

7. Date night dinner at Las Casuelas, where the best chips, salsa, guacamole and skinny margaritas on the planet are served.

8. On the way home in the morning, stop at toy store for a Cars movie car Lucas has been missing for days, Max Schnell.

9. Return home rested, full and happy.

10. Have photos from the weekend actually printed (who does this anymore?) and the best one(s) enlarged and framed. Photos like this one:

No where near the desert!

Any money left over (yeah, right… hotel gift shops are highway robbery!!) goes into Lucas’ piggy bank.

How to spend $1000 in 10 steps.

How would you do it?

Linking up with Stasha’s Monday Listicles, a linky right up my alley, because I LOVE lists!

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Vacation Highlights

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Trust me, I hate hearing about other people’s vacations just as much as the next gal, so I’ll just share the highlights from ours….

In case you missed it, we spent last week in North Carolina attending a wedding in Lake Lure and stayed at the inn where parts of Dirty Dancing was filmed.

Johnny's Cabin (and no, we did not stay here).

We were expecting it to be muggy and gross but instead it was mild and gorgeous, but as with all vacations there were ups and downs. I’ll let you decide which is which.

  • Four hotels in six days is a lot of work with luggage and a three year old.
  • I forgot to pack a hat, towels, beach toys, but was able to purchase all for $40.00. Grrr.
  • Those mountain ranges are beautiful, but the winding roads led to Lucas’ first experience with car sickness, which led to me washing out his soiled clothes and newly acquired towels in a public fountain. It was awesome. My husband took pictures.
  • None of us ever adjusted to the time difference so we didn’t make it to breakfast once (not even the free kind). Dry cereal in our hotel room does not count!
  • Speaking of eating, Lucas ate mac ‘n cheese for all but one meal. Can you say: super embarrassing and not always easy to accommodate?
  • I came home with two mysterious bug bites.
  • Reading the same three children’s books over and over and over again gets old really fast.
  • Over the course of three days, we were in a swimming pool, a lake and a splash pad.
  • One Lightening McQueen was thrown into a fish pond at the lovely Charlotte Airport Sheraton. Luckily, it was retrievable.
  • One of us (ME) missed the wedding ceremony because another one of us (LUCAS) was napping (see bullet point above about time difference adjustment).
  • Too much BBQ, hush puppies and sweet tea were enjoyed.

One of the many reasons I adore traveling is meeting new people and learning something unexpected each day I’m away from home. I suppose I don’t have to travel to do that, but I seem to be more open to it when I’m living out of a suitcase. Here are those highlights:

  • An iPhone can be thrown 20 feet across a room (don’t ask, it was not one of my finest moments) and still work 24 hours later. Those 24 hours were touch-and-go and there was nothing but a black screen and a few tears on on my part, but it came back to me stronger than ever.
  • Brazil has the second largest population of Japanese people (next to Japan, of course) in the world. [wedding reception convo]
  • The most visited winery in the United States isn’t located in Napa Valley. It’s at Biltmore Estate, in the mountains of North Carolina, where approximately 1 million visitors stop by to sample award-winning estate wines each year. Grapes can be imported for processing and bottling to a place that has perfect climate or making wine.
  • A couple having a dinner at a table next to us made a point of coming over to our table to welcome us to North Carolina after overhearing us talk about our home. Southern hospitality truly exists.
  • Once you get home from a vacation and look through all the photos you took, there won’t be a single shot of the entire family together.
  • There is no place like home!

Me completely geeking out on the audio tour at Biltmore Estate.

One of the best parts of our trip for me was of course being together as a family but I also thoroughly enjoyed (as exhibited in the photo above) visiting Biltmore House and Gardens in Asheville. Completed in 1895, George Vanderbilt’s 250-room chateau is as impressive today as it was more than a century ago. Biltmore House is truly an architectural and historical wonder.

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The Perfect Vacation

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When I think of vacation, I picture quality time spent in a poolside lounge chair with a great book, a pile of magazines and being served too many cocktails.

I also associate vacations with letting my hair down, uninterrupted conversations, new experiences, sleeping in and room service.

Costa Rica, October, 2005

I envision escaping it all: laundry, bills, TV; the mundane of my every day existence at home.

Vacations are meant to be memory-making adventures sprinkled with a little more indulgence than usual and hopefully some decent photos to bring home and frame.

Cabo San Lucas, April, 2001

My perfect vacation [and only because it has been so long that I’ve had one quite like this] would be somewhere sunny and coastal and alone with my husband.

Grand Canyon, Summer, 2008

My perfect vacation would also include:

1. Someone to pack for me, first class tickets and a limousine ride to and from the airport would all be wonderful, but I honestly don’t mind shuttles or coach seats (just so long as I don’t get stuck next to a screaming kid or a stinky fat man).

2. The ability to enjoy the vacation without any mommy guilt!

3. Having been rained on, snowed in and caught in a hurricane, the perfect vacation would include perfect weather upon arrival and for the entire length of our stay.

4. The ability to pack everything I might need and nothing I won’t, in other words, as many shoes as I want without any questions from my traveling companion and no emergency stops at a mall or drug store for something stupid I forgot at home, like a bathing suit. Yes, I have done this before. More than once!

5. Souvenirs. In the form of a special trinket, new friends or the rekindling of an old relationship with a true BFF. 

Visiting my BFF, Sophie in New Caledonia, May, 2010

6. The ability to truly relax. This is so much easier said that done, especially for my husband when confined to a lounge chair. For me, if in a beach or pool setting, I could hang out in the sun all day every day, breaking only to eat, sleep and shower, but for him, it’s not so easy. I’m open to water sports and boat rides.

7. The ability to indulge in sweet treats and pretty drinks without gaining a single pound.

8. The ability to NOT get sick. I have had some of the nastiest colds in my life while on vacation. 

9. Spa services. Enough said.

10. Returning home to a clean home, fresh sheets on the bed, mail sorted and someone to do the mounds of laundry.

Hawaii, August, 2011

This post was inspired by Stasha’s Monday Listicles, a linky right up my alley, as I LOVE lists! This week’s topic: 10 Things That Make A Vacation Perfect (selected by Hopes@StayingAfloat)

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Two Weeks From Today

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I can’t wait! 

Two weeks from today, we are going to be in…

And yes, Lucas is coming too. 

Happy happy! Joy joy!


This post was written for Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop, Prompt 5.) On a piece of paper write down something that makes you happy…take a photo of your paper and voilà…there’s your post.

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