How a Weekend Getaway Changed My Perception of Getaway!

My husband and I had the opportunity to get of town for a few days last week leaving the kids behind in my parent's capable hands.

When P first offered to take me along on a business trip, I scoffed. I thought of the huge responsibilities I'd be leaving behind; mainly the kids and their schedules. While the thought of getting away from it all really appealed to me, the destination really didn't. You see this wasn't a trip to NYC or San Fran. We weren't going to an all exclusive destination where we'd be pampered and dined.

My husband had a meeting in Central Indiana. Let that sink in a minute. It is in the middle of nowhere. No beach, no beautiful shopping centers, or romantic bed and breakfast spots. The weather would be the same as where we were leaving and, to top it off, we'd be driving.

Because of logistics and location, it made more sense on all levels to drive.

Until about three weeks ago, I wasn't even excited. While I'd give anything to get away with my honey without the kids, I thought the "other factors" such as the scenery, the destination, the fun were more important.

The closer we got to the actual trip, the more God started changing my perspective. I began to see this as time where we could talk uninterrupted for hours on end. No one would be vying for our attention, no listening ears trying to hear what we were talking about, no time constraints or "life" to deal with in between. No to do list that needed our attention or project that was waiting for us.

It was just us together in the car for 1600 miles (round trip). It was awesome. We talked, planned, laughed, and forgot about anything else but us and our family's future. It was just like the days when we were first married and nothing else got in our way of just hanging out together.

Sure, I would have loved to have gone to the beach or taken in the sights of an exotic location and, maybe soon, we'll get that chance again (like we did pre-kids), but for right now, it was perfect to drive along the highways of Illinois and Indiana and just lose ourselves in the harvested fields and red roofed barns.

We got to take one of our favorite nieces out to dinner as her college campus was a short distance away, we celebrated my father-in-law's birthday in person just one day before the actual date, I got a whole day to myself to sit at Panera and write, shop at the "mall," and just be alone. On the way home, we even got to see some sights in Chicago including IKEA and Land's End.

Did I mention that I knitted all the way along. I finished a quick scarf for a college aged friend, worked on the blanket I'm making Miss A and almost finished a scarf I'm making for my mother. In days of old I used to read in the car, but that doesn't make "talking" easy, but knitting on the way does! Love that P loves to drive!!

This weekend getaway with my husband was just what we needed.