My last post shared the cancellation of our European vacation. That was the bad news. The good news came when we learned we could transfer our funds to a less strenuous trip to Bermuda. On such short notice, we were lucky. We got back yesterday and had a wonderfully relaxing time. Before leaving, I consciously made the decision to put the blog on break. I thought about announcing this, but I still don’t fully trust social media and didn’t want to publicly reveal that we’d be away. Despite having a great neighborhood watch (remember my stealth Pokémon attack team?), I still feel funny about sharing too much about our vacation getaways online.

I did dabble just a bit with a few photos on Instagram and one on Facebook, but other than that, I was happy to unplug.

In fact, doing that was one of the biggest pleasures of my vacation. It got me thinking about why vacation getaways like this are such a good thing, even though I’m an unwavering homebody.

My Travel Pros:

Time to read a book or magazine – Ever since I began writing, I read less. Magazine flipping is what first got me into writing and now I never seem to have time for it. I so enjoyed going through my daughters’ Glamour and Vogue this past week and “The Silent Sister” by Diane Chamberlain was a page-turner.

Dining out – I have decided that if I ever win the lottery, my first indulgence will be a personal chef. I just love having food prepared for me.

A good swim – The warm water of Bermuda was so inviting, I floated in it for hours. I love the therapeutic quality of a long, salty swim, but here at home, the ocean is just too cold! Our vacation getaways aren’t always to someplace warm, but when they are this is one of the things I most enjoy.

See the world – I may be the queen of stay-cations, but even I know that seeing new places is a must. I’ve been to Bermuda before, but this trip we saw the Crystal Caves for the first time. It was my vacation highlight. Not only were the natural formations spectacular, but the story of the cave’s discovery was fascinating – learn more.

And what would the pros of our vacation getaways be without just a few cons:

I missed my baby – Ever since Oscar came into my life, I find leaving him terribly difficult. I’m so grateful to my sister for taking exceptional care of him, but I worried about him every day.

Dining out – The flip side of how much I love dining out is that after several days, I felt full. After a week, I was about to explode.

Did I mention I missed my baby!

Back to reality – the adjustment back from vacation mode is never easy. The empty refrigerator and mounds of laundry taunt me. But, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t glad to be back. I like my routine and I love my space.

While I’m often conflicted about travel, what I know for sure on this first day of August is that, whether I’m home or away, I’d better make the most of it, because summer will be gone before we know it.