Vacation!

So this has been a terrible winter, as everyone who is reading this knows. Terrible. It is so cold, so windy, so icy and snowy and white and gray and just blah. I am SO SO SO over it. I'm tired of being cold, I'm tired of preheating my car, I'm tired of bundling the kids and myself up every time we leave the house, but I'm definitely not tired of complaining about it. Jamie is always begging me to complain about the cold more, he never gets tired of it- what a sweetheart! I knew I married him for a reason.

In order to get out of this gloomy mood, I've been busy planning vacations. My first vacation is coming at the end of March, when I'm flying out to Denver to visit with my best friend for a while. Jamie is also flying out with some of his friends to go skiing in Breckenridge, but I'm flying out a night earlier and coming home two days sooner so I'm not messing with his guys ski weekend at all (I know you were worried.) We will probably spend most of the time on the couch, at IKEA, at the mall or in the car driving to these places, and I CAN. NOT. WAIT. My ideal vacation is where I spend a LOT of time relaxing, reading, watching crappy TV, whatever, and AK's house is the perfect place for all of that. Plus she lives much closer than I do to Beau Jo's Pizza, which is the best pizza ever.

As you all know, my birthday is in April, and as I'll be turning 26 this year (which makes it my Golden birthday since my birthday is April 26th and therefore very, very special) I feel the need to do something big. Like going to the Lake for the weekend with another birthday girl (she's turning 26 too, but I am younger than her by one day and that's really what's important), and doing whatever we want for two-and-a-half glorious days. Our kids are friends, and most of our social engagements are constantly interrupted by our darling children and meeting their basic needs (so overrated), so it will be really, really nice to be able to visit without interruption. Or do anything without interruption actually. Like eat. Pee. Sleep. Think. Read. Stare into space. Is it my birthday weekend yet?

Then May comes and I got nothing going on. =( Who wants to take me on vacation sometime in May?

In June I'm going back to Colorado, but this time with everyone. Everyone. My parents, my niece and nephew and possibly my sister. No comment. My (step)dad lived in Colorado Springs for part of his early adult life, so Colorado has always been a vacation destination for my family. About three years ago we went to Manitou Springs, which is right at the base of Pike's Peak, and we're going back to the same place this year. Manitou is such a neat little town, and absolutely gorgeous, and the place we stay is just perfect for our family. They have a creek in the front, a swingset, a hiking trail that leads to a bigger playground in the back, AND the most delicious coffee outside the office every morning. It is my happy place. I'm very excited to take the kids back to all the places we went when they were so young, now that they are at a much more fun stage and age and they may actually remember something. Plus I think taking the Cog Railway up Pike's Peak will pretty much be the highlight of H's life thus far, and I can't wait to do that with him. I grew up going to a church camp right outside Manitou every summer with my family, and haven't been up Pike's Peak since then. I'm sure it will be just as thrilling as an adult, right?

July takes us to Branson. I'm sure none of you are surprised, if there is one thing you think of when you think of me it is 'She is truly a Branson girl.'  But you would be wrong. So very, very wrong. I am kind of like the opposite of Branson. Nosnarb. (See what I did there?) BUT, this particular Branson trip is going to be super fantastic and wonderful because we are going with friends! And I love friend trips. I am a very social person by nature, so the thought of staying in a house with a bunch of my friends for a couple nights is very exciting. Plus the place we are staying is amazing, and I already want to move in there for good after just looking at the pictures. It's not set in stone what we'll be doing there, definitely Silver Dollar City at least one day, but I also feel compelled to Ride the Ducks. And make Jamie take the kids to the Live Noah's Ark show while I shop at the Outlet Mall. Because if he really loved me he would. And if there is one thing that is holding our marriage together, it is these tests of love that I like to spring on him. And I'm not even worried about this, because he doesn't read my blog. Love test fail. Love. Test. Fail. Who wants to be my new husband?

And in August, I want to go to Michigan to visit friends (surprise Courtney!), go to the beach,  and go blueberry picking, but we haven't officially set that up yet. Lamie (HA! I can do that because he doesn't read my blog), thinks we are taking too many vacations but I told him that is quitter talk. Our president wants us to stimulate the economy and it is our patriotic duty to do so. And he works hard for the money so I might as well enjoy it, right?

Is it March, April, June, July or August yet?