Weekend Getaway

Our plans for a tenth anniversary getaway never materialized and we just at the chance for a quick weekend in Seattle at the end of October. Stephen called Chadwick about a month ago asking if he would be willing to make a run from the lighthouse at Discovery Park to the one on Alcai Beach. Chadwick replied in the affirmative without hesitation and now had another reason to continue his training - the run was approximately 15 miles along the shoreline.

The original idea was to take the kids and make a road trip. This quickly turned into a husband-wife roadtrip when Nancy offered to watch the kids for us. And that morphed into flying as our time frame was limited.

I left Sunday morning by myself and met up with Chadwick at his brother's house after dinner. While packing, I mentioned that I wasn't entirely sure I was capable of actually packing only one single suitcase. With a smile, Chadwick noted that people did it all the time. Yeah, but....I am not sure I have actually ever done that! The mission was accomplished and I was proud to travel with one purse, one coat, and a small suitcase that didn't need to be checked.

Two and a half days of not having to answer to "Mama," two and a half days of visiting family and friends, two and a half days recharging my mom batteries and not having to make many decisions. It was refreshing.

Sunday was spent with my best friend from college, Dessa, at her house with her sweet son, her husband, a childhood friend Ande and an assortment of their friends who randomly showed up at the house that afternoon.

As the adults sat around her kitchen table chatting, munching on nuts and pringles and drinking beer, it occurred to me that this was a very different kind of afternoon and not one I had experienced since Morgan made me a mom. None of these adults - Dessa and myself excluded - had children. Majority had at least a master's degree, a firm opinion of politics, and had known each other for years which made the banter flow easily and insults fly freely. Not once was there talk of children, schools, temper tantrums, diapers, teething, snotty noses, or pregnancy. The mention of a naked child's bottom sent one of the men scurrying out of the room in search of his companions downstairs watching the Seahawks game. Even when my children aren't present, their presence is still felt, communicated, and noted.

Dessa's friendship is one of those I hold most dear and I'm glad for the chance to have spent time with her and her family for a bit. Our visits are never long enough.

We awoke Monday morning to the sound of Chadwick's nieces and nephew preparing for a day of school and the smell of french toast wafting down the hallway (which is probably one of my favorite breakfast foods of all time). After a quick shower, Tara and I left our men sitting in the living room, in their pjs, lost in a deep discussion neither of us wanted to break into. When there is a spare 2 hours, why not run to Ikea? I love the idea of that store, she needed a few things, so off we went. Luckily, my suitcase was not big enough to return home with much and since the store is snobby and doesn't ship to residential addresses....so I did a lot of looking. The guys were ready when we returned to the house and the four of us took off for a tour of a Seattle chocolate factory called Theo.

There is no better way to spend Halloween than sitting on a bench in a warm, humid room, listening to a younger African American man dressed in a judge's robe discuss the finer points of where chocolate originates, how it is processed, and freely handing out samples of high quality dark chocolate. He intended to come across as Sonja Sotomayor, the Supreme Court Justice. And he giggled when we called him "Your Honor." I wanted to take a photo with him but chickened out at the end of the tour. We saw the area where the cocoa beans were brought in hulled and then processed to create "amazing, delicious, and mind-bendingly wonderful chocolate."

We bought four 70% dark chocolate bars to take home. I can't wait to hit up Fred Meyer for a few more.

Our men were left, in the wind and partial sun, at the lighthouse at Discovery Park in Seattle. Tara and I drove home, picked up her son from kindergarten, and hung out at the house for the afternoon.

Oh, and did I mention that their dog, Enzo, had kennel cough? Goose-honking, vomit-inducing wrenching kennel cough that kept us all up for a good chunk of the night. He had an appointment at the veterinarian for some meds. Chadwick and Stephen finished their run about 2:45 later...and while my hubs was in decent shape after - aside from being super cold - Stephen was not faring as well. Some beef soup and several slices of toast improved his color and by the next morning he was moving and feeling more normal. The kids went trick-or-treating in the rain while Chadwick and I played games in the warmth of the living room and we hit the sack.

My alarm went off Tuesday morning at 4:00. Ugh. We made it to the airport for our 6:20 flight on time despite my best efforts to get us lost and having to return the rental car. Once back home, Chadwick showered and went to work and I started mentally re-packing...Friday the five of us were boarding a plane for San Antonio.