Raise your hand if you’ve wanted to run screaming from your house during a few too many days of being cooped up with your kids, husband and pets. I have a feeling I’m not the only one sitting here looking silly with my hand in the air. We’re all about to get our tax refunds (hopefully not tax bills) in the next couple months so maybe, just maybe, we should consider socking some of that cash away for a girls’ getaway. Here’s why.
I took a Moms’ Trip with seven of my lovely neighbors last summer to Seaside, Florida, and it refreshed me in a way I didn’t think possible. It was a short trip. But those three days and three nights of being surrounded by seven other women who are faced with very similar stresses and challenges every day was exhilarating. Sure, we talked a lot about our kids and our husbands. But we also shared some cocktail-fueled advice and cheered each other on for doing the daily things that only other moms realize are really hard work. Not only did we divulge our parenting tips, secrets, successes and failures, we also learned a whole lot about each other that we usually don’t have time to talk about because there are little ones grabbing at our legs, demanding to be held, wanting a snack or just generally right up in our faces.
For example, one fellow mom, who will not be named, apparently was a bit of a wild child back in middle and high school. And let me tell you, she is one you NEVER would have guessed did some of the things she told us about. My stomach hurt from laughing so hard at her stories. I also quickly discovered who I can get into trouble with. Yep, there were a couple girls who joined me a little too late at night in the ocean for a tipsy swim or who wanted to stay out just a little longer at the pool or who convinced me to walk around to meet the loud neighbors to see what they were up to.
It was a snapshot in time I will always cherish of a circle of moms who were nothing but supportive and non-judgmental. Want to start drinking at 9 a.m.? Let’s do it! Want to ride a bike at midnight? I’m in! Want to discuss politics and not be hateful? Let’s dish! It was a safe zone and, equally important, a fun zone.
We made memories on those white, sandy beaches that we will never forget. We bonded in a way we’d never had time to before. So now, when we are strolling down the street with kids in tow, we almost give each other a silent head nod and virtual fist bump to let each other know that we remember the beach. We remember the trip. We remember the fun, the bonding and, most of all, the friendship that came out of those three amazing, uninterrupted days.
