Writer’s Workshop – Rekindling the Love
Our last stay in a hotel was during our trip last month to Taichung, Taiwan. It was to be a couple trip but since Tiger girl is still too little to be left with the grandparents we let her tag along. The holiday was my valentine’s day treat and I was having it in advance before R gets too busy with his work schedule and starts flying off on his business trips all over Asia.
It had been a long time since I’ve been on a trip with R. The last trip back to Hong Kong with the three kids doesn’t count as we were so busy handling the kids that there was little time to interact with each other.
This trip to Taiwan was more relaxing as we planned to visit only a few places. We would go off on day trips and return back to the hotel at night. I wasn’t interested in shopping and visiting the city area as with a toddler in tow shopping is something really difficult to do. We opted to visit the scenic places of interest like Sun Moon Lake and went to view the Dragons at the Lukang Lantern Festival.
I also indulged in some yummy foods which are not commonly eaten here in Singapore and had fun tasting the different drinks just to keep warm as the temperature dipped to a chilly 12 degrees while we were in Taiwan.
It was great to be able to stroll hand in hand with R instead of having our hands full holding on to the 3 kids whenever we go out. We were also able to talk about anything under the sun without having the older kids eavesdropping on us and starting a session of 101 questions. It really felt like we were back to the days when it was just us as a couple starting off with only 1 kid in tow.
When was the last time you went on a holiday with your partner/spouse?
Do you plan for vacations in advance?
March 22, 2012 @ 7:14 am
Hi Dominique! First of all, I love reading your blog and visit daily to read about your life.
How nice to go on a trip and spend some quality time with your husband. You get so busy when you have children that you forget about the two of you. I’d love to go on a trip with my husband, sadly we haven’t been anywhere for a long time. Partly because we do not have anyone to look after our kids over night (or few nights) We do try and go out for dinner or lunch together once in a while. Like you say, it’s great to be able to have a conversation together without children there.
March 22, 2012 @ 9:41 am
Sounds like a great trip. My husband and I –well, I cannot remember the last time we did something without our two children. This post reminds me that we need a date.
Erika
March 22, 2012 @ 9:45 am
It`s always great to have couple time. We have`t gone on a vacation just the two of us… but we always go out on Saturdays –just us, sans kids. It`s our time to reconnect and just talk, like you said, without the kids eavesdropping and asking a million questions. 🙂
March 22, 2012 @ 11:11 pm
@Buckeroomama,
It’s great that you have your couple time. For us it’s not the possible to do it weekly as yet with the 3 kids. Hopefully when the girl is a bit bigger we can drop all off at the grandparents during the weekend and have a good time dinner.
March 22, 2012 @ 10:07 am
Hi,
Nice to meet you. I couldn’t tell you when the last time I went on vacation was. Pro’lly more than ten years ago. ‘Course, I’m retired an’ every day feels like I’m on vacation. What a cutie your kiddo is. 🙂
March 22, 2012 @ 10:08 am
It has been way too long since I have been on a vacation. I am planning a beach trip this summer, but just my son and me! I am hoping to plan something for the entire family this fall! That seems like a really long way off, but I know it will be here before I know it! 🙂
March 22, 2012 @ 10:17 am
We go away for our anniversary every year!
March 22, 2012 @ 11:09 pm
@Mudpies and Tiaras,
It’s great that you get to go away each year.. it really helps to maintain the relationship that way with time as a couple.
March 22, 2012 @ 10:22 am
Hubby and I have never gone further than a few hours away and never more than a day. Our income is limited and we have a large family we are forever helping with their financial crises. Hubby is retired and my vacation time is generally used to catch up on household chores and attend family affairs.
March 22, 2012 @ 10:52 am
My husb and I went Italy during my first trimester of 2nd pregnancy last November. It was quality time spent with each other but I missed my son terribly!
But I guess we will need some couple time every now and then. Short trips maybe!
And yes, we plan our trips in advance cos I need to make sure all arrangements are in place first.
March 22, 2012 @ 11:23 am
@Candice,
Whao.. Italy ..it such a lovely place. Haven’t visited the place with hb yet. Mine forbids travel during pregnancy so we had to wait till our #3 was born before I could do any travelling.
March 22, 2012 @ 12:29 pm
Hi Dominique, I came over from SMB on FB. It’s been six long years since we’ve travelled alone as a couple. We did quite a fair bit of family trips and it’s been exhausting but special in its own way.
Would love for a romantic vacation but guess it’s not possible in the near future as we have no one to help us take care of the kids for an extended period.
I’m dreaming of Europe. I even have the itinerary planned! Who knows when it’ll be a reality … bringing 2 kids along will break the bank!!
March 22, 2012 @ 11:09 pm
@Joce,
It has been a really long time since I went to Europe..more then 20 yrs!! However I’ll wait till the kids are much older before bringing them as I don’t think I will last the long flights with them. I know how expensive it is to bring the whole family out..each time we travel as a family it’s easily $10K spent!
March 22, 2012 @ 1:13 pm
I always plan vacations in advance. This gives me time to make the necessary arrangements on transportation, accommodation and more. Besides, it is to look forward to a nice getaway, right?
March 22, 2012 @ 1:29 pm
She is so precious! I enjoy your stories. We take trips together, and sometimes apart…mostly with all the family around together! Or sometimes it’s just the girls!
March 22, 2012 @ 7:35 pm
What a wonderful trip! We haven’t really gone on a trip just the two of us since JDaniel was born. We so need too.
March 22, 2012 @ 11:07 pm
@Jdaniel4 Mom,
you should get away on a trip..it does wonders for yourself and your relationship. We try to take one every few years if possible.
March 22, 2012 @ 8:12 pm
Sounds wonderful! It is great to re-connect like that! I don’t think we’ve been away alone in 2 years or so.
March 22, 2012 @ 10:12 pm
Oh, what a fantastic trip, it is great that you show your kids the world and enjoy your time with them. We are doing lots of day trips in the area where we live, and it is so much fun, as long as one doesn’t do the shopping part… 🙂 Have much fun!
March 22, 2012 @ 11:06 pm
the last time we went on a trip together alone? 10 years ago or something like that. We have been on many trips with the kids, and the last one was on a cruise during Labor Day. We all cramped into a little cabin but it was a lot of fun.
March 22, 2012 @ 11:32 pm
The last time we went on vacation was in 2004. Wow, that’s a long time ago! We went to Bar Harbor, Maine for our 25th wedding anniversary. We had a joyful time as a couple and as a family with our three children.
Vacationing is a rarity for us, so whenever we think it’s going to work out for us then we do begin planning months in advance – finding the best deal on accommodations, sites we want to see, best route, etc. There is always so much fun & excitment behind the preparation. By the time we’re actually enjoying the fruit of our research, it feels so surreal.
From the sound of things, your trip is very enjoyable. You should feel refreshed and ready to go back to your normal routine now.
March 23, 2012 @ 12:04 am
Glad you were able to have some fun together. My hubby and I haven’t been on a trip for a while, but we are leaving on one Monday…to Maui.
=)
March 23, 2012 @ 1:25 am
My boyfriend and I are old people whose children are all grown up so we take off pretty much whenever we want to and that is usually quite a bit! You will get to that stage in your life where you can travel alone again, I know it’s hard to visualize that right now, but the day will come!
March 23, 2012 @ 5:02 am
Glad you had a little getaway! Your little girl is so adorable. I love the photo you posted of her!
March 31, 2012 @ 1:02 pm
She is Ridiculously adorable… It sounds like you had a wonderful, relaxing trip!
I try to let Mr. Jenny do all the planning for our little vacations… Just Recently we went up North to Prescott for the weekend…
Great post for the letter “R”!
Thanks for linking.
A+