It's a Great Big Beautiful World! Let's Discover it Together

Monday, July 16, 2012

stopher's stuff

Vacation.  


Such a beautiful word it is.  No matter if means a cabin in the woods, a timeshare on the beach or a ship setting sail for the majestic splendors of the Inside Passage - rest and relaxation should be what drives you to take a vacation.


I have fond memories of vacations past when I was a child in Mammoth Lakes, California.  The eastern Sierra Nevada mountains are just so beautiful, so tranquil, and so majestic.  They have somewhat of an alpine feel to them, and are just so special in my heart.  That little slice of heaven - God's country as we called it - will always represent rest and relaxation to me.  


We would go every summer to the same places.  Some years when I was really small we would camp in a tent trailer or a tent, until my parents began to rent a little cabin in the woods from one of the three lodges in the area that provided housekeeping cabins.  My grandparents would come along as well, and we had such a good time together.  Fishing, hiking, horseback-riding, bike riding and so much more were all part of our regular routine on those jaunts into the woods.   Some summers we would go just once, others we would go twice - closer to both Memorial Day and again at Labor Day.  


Over time we switched from one lodge to another, and had our favorite cabin in each  lodge that we would always try to secure when making the next reservation.  My grandmother and mother would eagerly put aside money each week into the vacation fund, so that we could all have a great time together once more.  We didn't mind that there was no tv reception (except in the Olympic years, such as this year). We didn't mind that the town itself was small, and there were no large grocery stores, or movie houses.  We enjoyed being together as a family.  


As I grew older still, and became a teenager, my parents decided to purchase a townhouse there in town.  (Eventually they even sold the home I grew up in and relocated to that beautiful little town).  It was wonderful to be able to get away to our favorite destination even more often throughout the year, having our own vacation home right there.  Suddenly we were able to be there in all seasons.  I even took a group of friends for an extended weekend getaway to Mammoth during my Senior year of high school.  That was awesome!


But that whole being together thing - that's really what a vacation is all about, isn't it?  It's not so much the destination (sure that is a NICE part of it all), but really, a vacation is about spending time together with those you love.  And getting some rest, and relaxation while you're at it.  


As an adult, my lovely bride and I have had a variety of experiences with our children - including one time taking our kids to Mammoth Lakes, where my eldest caught his first fish.  Sometimes we've gone with their grandparents, other times not.  Many times we were invited along on trips with our parents, other times we asked them to come along.  But for us - since we relocated out of California and to the Midwest, not once, but twice - the majority of our "vacations" have been treks back home to visit family in California and the west.  We haven't always gone to the same place each summer, but we have enjoyed going places together with our kids.  Making memories, and spending time together.  It wasn't until we made the decision to join Disney Vacation Club (DVC), that we knew we would have a place to return to time and time again much as my parents did with that little cabin in the woods.  Going to Walt Disney World often is something we've enjoyed, so owning a little piece of the magic just made sense to us.   


And now that's exactly what we're doing once more - going somewhere together with our kids, making memories and spending time together.  This week we're spending time at one of our favorite destinations, Walt Disney World.  But we aren't going in to the theme parks.  We're simply enjoying a couple of our DVC home resorts.  We're at Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas for several nights, and then we'll move over to Disney's Saratoga Springs for some nights.  It's been a very busy year for us (we have teenagers!), and we really needed to capture this time together with them before life changes in a dramatic way in just two more years.  Yep, the oldest will be off to college soon, and we will never again have quite the same experiences together as we do now.  He'll have a life of his own, and mom and dad might not fit back in to his schedule for a few years or more.  And of course number two will follow suit about three years after the eldest does, and then we'll be down to a family of three at home.  Events that were SOOOOO far off in the future when the boys were toddlers are now very close to reality.  


So we stop the crazy busy-ness at home for a brief period and get away from it all.  We knew early this year that the summer of 2012 would be full and busy and crazy.  We saw that of the entire summer, there was really only one week-and-a-half period where we would ALL five of us be in the same house at the same time with no distractions, visitors or "things to do."  And we also knew that if we did not take the time as a family to get away from all of the myriad of possible temptations that might take one family member away (friends, activities, movies, etc, etc, etc) - so we knew the only way to stifle those temptations was by getting away from the temptations themselves.  By pausing and transplanting our family for the week-and-a-half we could actually slow down, pause and enjoy our time together.  


It'll be a week of nothing much.  Sleeping in.  Eating in and a little eating out.  Cards.  Video games.  Pool time.  Talking.  Board games.  A little exploration.  Laughing.  Perhaps the beach.  And other general silliness.  Time to pause and reflect on where we've been as a family, and yes, where we're headed.  Just spending time TOGETHER.  


It might not be in the still quiet of the mountains with babbling brooks nearby... but it will still be very nice, and very enjoyable.  And very much needed.  Memories are at stake you know.  Someday my kids will be the ones remembering back on their mom and dad making sure that we had this time together.  


Until next time,





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