Happy birthday to me!

Vacation.

I’ve come to a new understanding of this word over the past two days. When I was younger, the annual family “vacation” to visit relatives in Utah or Washington was not really a vacation to me. Especially not the hours in a car with my bothersome brothers (they probably felt the same about me). After Bruce and I got married, we couldn’t afford a real “vacation” to Hawaii, or even the Pacific Coast. And with kids, even when we do something fun like camping, it is far from a vacation for me.

So in January when Bruce sent me an e-mail with an invite from the federal employees in Casper inviting him to a meeting on March 11, my birthday, he jokingly asked if I’d like a vacation to Casper for my birthday. I laughed out loud when I read it, but then I reconsidered and surprised Bruce with my answer: “Actually, yes.”

So here I am, spending my birthday afternoon riding into the sunset across the brown Wyoming plains, having the time of my life. Or at least, the time of my past few months. This trip has fulfilled my expectations and has been a true vacation.

We left Sammy and Riley with friends in Layton, and drove to Casper yesterday. Zeke has been great in the car, crying only when he’s hungry and smiling and sleeping the rest of the time. We got to Casper for a late dinner at a local steakhouse, where the food was even tastier than we expected (sweet potato pie!). The hotel was clean; we lounged in our room and watched movies until we were tired. Free hotel breakfasts are amazing compared to 20 years ago—waffle bars, (fake) scrambled eggs, yogurt, granola. Then I let Zeke nap, packed, read the paper, and had my own nap while Bruce went to his meeting. We had a good lunch in cute downtown Casper, Bruce dropped off one last award at the (tiny) airport, and we headed out. We even stopped for a tour of the Martin’s Cove visitors center, but it was too cold and windy to make the two-mile hike out to the cove itself.

In short, a great vacation. I feel refreshed and rested, and it’s been short enough that I don’t miss Sammy and Riley too much. Who knew I’d have so much fun on Bruce’s CFC road trips? And while it wasn’t as much of a vacation for Bruce, he’s had more fun because I’m here. How often do we get 6 uninterrupted hours to talk to each other?

If only next week’s trip to southern Utah and Colorado promised to be so restful. But Sammy and Riley demand a little more attention than Zeke. Oh well, today was for me (great birthday present), and we’ll have a great time next week too, as long as the hotel has a swimming pool for the boys!