When I was growing up, we had a family business. It was a cabin rental business. It was located in a resort high in the mountains of New Mexico. Cool in the summer. Skiing in the winter. Sounds fantastic, doesn’t it?

You may think that living there must have been like a continual vacation…

And, over the years many people have asked me: “Why did you ever leave a place like that? Why did you move away?”

My unhesitating retort to that question has always been: “What vacation? Maybe it’s a vacation for you, but it’s work for me!”

And there were no holidays for my family, only extra work because it was a holiday. More cabins to clean, more firewood to chop, more dirty sheets and towels to launder.

So, when I graduated from high school and left home to go to college, I never went back to the family business except to spend a summer or a holiday visiting my parents. And even visits weren’t very relaxing because you spent much of the time cleaning cabins. Because, if you were in our family by birth, adoption, marriage, student visa or otherwise, you cleaned cabins when you were at my parents’ house!

Now, I’m off on a Thanksgiving holiday vacation with the kids and that old “what vacation” feeling is starting to creep back in after all these years.

Our friends Brenda and Jimmy let us use their condo at a resort for the week of Thanksgiving at no charge.

We’ve had a fantastic time. It’s been especially fun for the kids, but at the same time it’s been a lot of work for me!

Besides being the concierge and chauffeur for all vacation activities, I’m also the one who has to pick up, clean up, put up, and pack up (not to mention meal planning and preparation)!

In fact, I’m not so sure that this vacation isn’t actually more work than not being on vacation! Sure, I don’t have to wash clothes for a week. But, I’ll be washing clothes for a week when we get home just to catch  up on all the clothes I didn’t wash while on “vacation.”

And, at home I have someone to help me clean up the house and help out with the kids. On vacation I’m on my own, I have to be all of these myself–maid, butler, and nanny!

I almost feel like I need a vacation to recover from this vacation. Wait a minute! Then that vacation might be more work than this vacation and then I would need even another vacation and then…

Don’t get me wrong. I’m really not complaining. I’ve had a lot of fun, also. Especially seeing the kids having some fun times and having some new experiences.

And, if our best friends (did I mention they were our new best friends?) ever want to let us use their vacation condo again, we would be more than happy to accept their offer!

But, I have to admit that after being here for almost a week, I’m sorta looking forward to getting back home and not being on vacation.

Yet, the kids keep telling me they don’t want to leave; they want to stay here on vacation for awhile longer.

So, now I’m starting to understand why this feeling is returning: “It’s a vacation for them, but it’s work for me!”

FIRST TRAIN RIDE…	“WELCOME TO THE POLAR EXPRESS” SAID CONDUCTOR RUDY!
SANTA CLAUS CAME TO TOWN (BEST SANTA I’VE EVER SEEN, I THINK HE’S THE REAL SANTA CLAUS)	THAT HORSE’S NAME IS CONNER!
ALL THEY WANT TO DO IS GO TO THE POOL…	…OR THE WATER PARK
WHEN YOU’RE ON VACATION YOU GET TO WATCH SPONGE BOB AND WEAR YOUR PJ’S AND NITE-NITE ALL DAY…AND YOU DON’T HAVE TO FIX UP, EITHER!

P.S Seriously, thanks, Brenda and Jimmy for giving us the opportunity to make these memories. We really, really appreciate it!