Last month towards the end of our time in Spain, Nacho and I took a little trip within a trip and headed south to the coastline of Almeria. It was a perfect spot for two beach lovers who wanted something rocky and remote without all the noise of a typical beach town. We've picked a new place each of the three summers we've done this, and each time we leave the kid(s) with his mother and aunts, uncle and sister who are all staying in one house outside Madrid. Knowing that his brother's family is also nearby makes us feel better too, since you can never have too many helping hands. It wasn't easy to take off the first year we tried this, mostly because Elisa wasn't exactly easy to read, but each time it's gotten better. The nerves have lessened and my enjoyment of the trip has grown exponentially. This year was by far the best and it made me so appreciative of the opportunity to do this--to go away and be the couple that we were for so many years before all hell broke loose. Even this year with Carolina being so little, I found it wasn't at all like leaving Elisa that first summer. Now we have spent more time with Nacho's family letting them see us as parents, and therefore they understand the girls and their routines better. Elisa knows so much more Spanish and is really trying to communicate in it which also made it easier to give her that space to try. We came back to a girl who was using phrases and expressions we'd only hoped to hear from her. It was awesome.
I know we don't get these kinds of getaways the rest of the year because we don't have family nearby. There is a lot to be said for living in a city we love with amazing friends just blocks away. But at the end of the day, there is also a lot of pressure to cope on your own and to be mom and dad 24/7. Taking 4 days off for the whole year might not seem like much, but it really was heaven. The fact that our trip coincided with our 9 year wedding anniversary made it all the more special. Nacho and I aren't big romantics, but I think even we were impressed with the hotel and our beach destinations. It felt very indulgent to be doing whatever we pleased, and it was. There were lazy mornings spent lounging poolside eating an array of wonderful breakfast foods, followed by days of hiking and exploring pristine beaches, capped off with evenings in a whitewashed village enjoying our food and conversation as if we were dating again. I joked that it was so peaceful to have no one scream at me or cry in my presence all day--something I still find shocking about parenthood. Ugh, the noise. I just want some time to relax, some quiet. And I got it. It's rare to have the time to listen to each other now and let our thoughts wonder and talk of the future. But there we were planning ahead for when we will take these trips as a family and share our passion for traveling with the girls. Because even though we loved our time away, our time to be just Ann and Nacho, we are still mom and dad to some pretty terrific kids. And we want to show them the world. But this year was just for us. And that's okay too.
I know we don't get these kinds of getaways the rest of the year because we don't have family nearby. There is a lot to be said for living in a city we love with amazing friends just blocks away. But at the end of the day, there is also a lot of pressure to cope on your own and to be mom and dad 24/7. Taking 4 days off for the whole year might not seem like much, but it really was heaven. The fact that our trip coincided with our 9 year wedding anniversary made it all the more special. Nacho and I aren't big romantics, but I think even we were impressed with the hotel and our beach destinations. It felt very indulgent to be doing whatever we pleased, and it was. There were lazy mornings spent lounging poolside eating an array of wonderful breakfast foods, followed by days of hiking and exploring pristine beaches, capped off with evenings in a whitewashed village enjoying our food and conversation as if we were dating again. I joked that it was so peaceful to have no one scream at me or cry in my presence all day--something I still find shocking about parenthood. Ugh, the noise. I just want some time to relax, some quiet. And I got it. It's rare to have the time to listen to each other now and let our thoughts wonder and talk of the future. But there we were planning ahead for when we will take these trips as a family and share our passion for traveling with the girls. Because even though we loved our time away, our time to be just Ann and Nacho, we are still mom and dad to some pretty terrific kids. And we want to show them the world. But this year was just for us. And that's okay too.
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