[null, {"document_url": "http://growingalife.blogspot.com/2007/06/not-vacation-or-where-id-have-been-this.html", "unformatted_src": "http://bp3.blogger.com/_VmZeNCaWzJ0/Rnb0-EfDaXI/AAAAAAAAAJw/y33EI9v2B74/s320/livesteam.jpg", "src": "http://bp3.blogger.com/_VmZeNCaWzJ0/Rnb0-EfDaXI/AAAAAAAAAJw/y33EI9v2B74/s320/livesteam.jpg", "formatted_filename": "livesteam"}, null, {"document_url": "http://growingalife.blogspot.com/2007/06/not-vacation-or-where-id-have-been-this.html", "unformatted_src": "http://bp3.blogger.com/_VmZeNCaWzJ0/Rnb06EfDaWI/AAAAAAAAAJo/J6y6zBmL8VI/s320/hotrod.jpg", "src": "http://bp3.blogger.com/_VmZeNCaWzJ0/Rnb06EfDaWI/AAAAAAAAAJo/J6y6zBmL8VI/s320/hotrod.jpg", "formatted_filename": "hotrod"}, null, {"document_url": "http://growingalife.blogspot.com/2007/06/not-vacation-or-where-id-have-been-this.html", "unformatted_src": "http://bp1.blogger.com/_VmZeNCaWzJ0/Rnb02kfDaVI/AAAAAAAAAJg/DH4pwqtOwWQ/s320/shirts.jpg", "src": "http://bp1.blogger.com/_VmZeNCaWzJ0/Rnb02kfDaVI/AAAAAAAAAJg/DH4pwqtOwWQ/s320/shirts.jpg", "formatted_filename": "shirts"}, null, {"document_url": "http://growingalife.blogspot.com/2007/06/not-vacation-or-where-id-have-been-this.html", "unformatted_src": "http://away.com/images/outside/200402/chill_10.jpg", "src": "http://away.com/images/outside/200402/chill_10.jpg", "formatted_filename": "chill"}, {"document_url": "http://growingalife.blogspot.com/2007/06/not-vacation-or-where-id-have-been-this.html", "unformatted_src": "http://dnac.org/autonomic-networking/images/Paris_Effel.jpg", "src": "http://dnac.org/autonomic-networking/images/Paris_Effel.jpg", "formatted_filename": "Paris Effel"}, {"document_url": "http://growingalife.blogspot.com/2007/06/not-vacation-or-where-id-have-been-this.html", "unformatted_src": "http://www.sacred-destinations.com/australia/images/uluru/sunset-cc-timmy-toucan-400.jpg", "src": "http://www.sacred-destinations.com/australia/images/uluru/sunset-cc-timmy-toucan-400.jpg", "formatted_filename": "sunset cc timmy toucan"}, {"document_url": "http://growingalife.blogspot.com/2007/06/not-vacation-or-where-id-have-been-this.html", "unformatted_src": "http://www.aniko.ru/hotelimg/4796.big.jpg", "src": "http://www.aniko.ru/hotelimg/4796.big.jpg"}, {"document_url": "http://growingalife.blogspot.com/2007/06/not-vacation-or-where-id-have-been-this.html", "unformatted_src": "http://www.world-guides.com/images/new_york/new_york_skyline2.jpg", "src": "http://www.world-guides.com/images/new_york/new_york_skyline2.jpg", "formatted_filename": "new york skyline"}, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, null, {"document_url": "http://growingalife.blogspot.com/2007/06/not-vacation-or-where-id-have-been-this.html", "unformatted_src": "//2.bp.blogspot.com/_VmZeNCaWzJ0/SprnOlGPxSI/AAAAAAAABkE/0gDUAoxqZ8E/S220-s80/wethree.jpg", "src": "http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_VmZeNCaWzJ0/SprnOlGPxSI/AAAAAAAABkE/0gDUAoxqZ8E/S220-s80/wethree.jpg", "formatted_filename": "wethree", "alt_text": "My Photo", "rendered_width": 50, "rendered_height": 80}, null]

The not-vacation, or, Where I'd Have Been This Weekend if I Could

So, this weekend was all about Father's Day and doing fun things around town in place of going on a real vacation this year. Did you see my previous pictures? Here are a few more. One-eighth-scale real working train ride for JP and Flybaby Enjoying quality reading material at a local bookstore And yes! Those matching shirts I told you I sewed as one of JP's Father's Day gifts. I know they are ridiculous. But that's the whole point of a Hawaiian-style shirt, right? (Don't worry, he also got a scrapbook of photos of just himself and Flybaby, plus some "real" clothes and an ice cream cake.)

Yesterday, we went to the nearest zoo for the first time ever. It's amazing how a whole new world of things to do appears just because you have a child! But we quickly got rained out, so, no pictures from that excursion....

Now that I got those pictures out of my system ....


Doing a not-vacation is better than not doing a not-vacation. But it's still not a vacation.

I don't want to complain because we had fun, but everything we did on our not-vacation was something we could have done on a typical weekend. And because it was Father's Day weekend and I'm a mama, I probably did more work to give JP a nice weekend -- rather than relaxing like on a real vacation.

In fact, because this weekend was our not-vacation, our attitude was "We are going to have fun if it kills us, dern it!" which is really not the way to not-travel. Or to travel. We just went from one activity to the next -- pausing only to breastfeed, really -- and it was tiring.

So now I'm weighing it out: screaming baby as we take a few hours to go somewhere and have a real vacation, or shuffling around town in the name of having fun on a not-vacation? Screaming baby for a few hours ... shuffling around town? Hmm. Excuse me while I think about it.... Labels: Damselfly chronicles, travel

posted by Damselfly at 4:10 PM 
Those are wild shirts!! You almost need sunglasses to look at them.
 
So jealous! I can't even sew on a button!
 AmandaD said...

Curses, I've never yearned for a vacation until now. Who knew people did that stuff.

I LOVE the shirts, particularly the color. Limetastic
 Mama's Moon said...

Are you kidding??!!! Those shirts rock! And so do YOU for sewing them for your guys! Hmmm, I'm still with ya thinkin' about luggin' the kiddies around town or just doing normal everyday things (that would seem like an adventure on a weekend) and not dealing with the 'tired' part...I'll get back to ya!!
 
Here's my stand on vacations with small kids: for me, it would be much easier to just do ordinary things around the town you live in. I cannot imagine packing and hauling all the stuff Isabella needs at this point in her young life to a vacation destination, as much as I WANT a vacation right now. I tip my hat to any parent that can manage it. I certainly couldn't.

And those shirts? So cute.
 
loving the shirts!
i am in need of a good vacation!
 Guinevere Meadow said...

Ahh, a vacation would be so nice.

Wouldn't it be great if we could press the "pause" button on our children, go away for the weekend, and come back right where we left them? No harm, no foul...lol!
 Dayngr said...

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh.... relaxing
 
Love the shirts...

We're about to start our own "not vacation". It was going to be a "real" vacation until we found out how much heating oil would be for the next year AND that it all has to be paid IN JULY to get the discount price.

Of well, tent camping, here we come!





 Name: Damselfly
Location: Neverland, United States
