I just returned home from a mini vacation with the hubbs (sans kids). My mother-in-law & mom took turns staying with the kiddos, while I went with my husband (and his boss) on a 3-day business trip to St. Louis. And when I say vacation, I mean true vacation, in the sense that I did not even take my laptop with me. Of course, once I saw that the hotel offered free wi-fi, I kicked myself. But I reminded myself once again, that this was a vacation for me to unwind and completely relax. And in order for that to happen, I would have to stay away from technology. So instead of taking my laptop, I brought a bag of books to read.
The drive from KC to STL is only a few hours, but it allowed me to do something I haven’t been able to do since I was a kid: read in the car, without getting nauseated. While hubbs and his boss had to get up Monday morning to go to the school where they were presenting, I got to sleep in 
It’s kind of fun to leave the bed unmade, when you know housekeeping will come in and make it for you! I seized the opportunity & did some reading in the jacuzzi tub, and I still made it down for the free hot breakfast before 9:30. Then, I hit the mall for some shopping, which was a surreal experience. I didn’t have a time limit. Nobody called me to see when I’d get home because the kids were hungry. My mom texted me, and after I told her I was in a kids’ clothing store, she texted back to make sure I enjoy some me time at the mall. Which I definitely did. I bought some cute new clothes and a book to add to my bag of books back at the hotel.
I had meant to go back to the hotel, and hang out at the pool until the guys got back. However, they beat me to the hotel by about ten minutes. We went down for dinner, and then hubbs & I walked over to The Cheesecake Factory for dessert. Then this morning, we just relaxed (I got some more reading in), and then headed back to KC. The greeting from the kids was wonderful when we got home. And then tonight, we took the girls to a screening of the 3-D movie, Cats & Dogs II. It was their first time going to the movie theater & they had a blast! Since it was a screening promotion, each girl received a Cats & Dogs mask – which they thought was so cool (and kept them occupied until the movie started). Miss Cakes kept taking her 3-D glasses off, but Miss Boo kept hers on for most of the movie. I was a little worried about Miss Cakes, because she is always sooo loud, but they both did really good and were very quiet. It was the perfect ending to the past few days.
