What every marriage needs

My wonderful mother came out from Spokane last week to watch the boys while Aaron and I took off to post-celebrate our 11th wedding anniversary and pre-celebrate my birthday. Couldn't have asked for a better get away.


Starting our trip on the Victoria Clipper....3 glorious hours of quiet sleeping and reading.


Aaah, beautiful Victoria, BC. The weather was perfect, the food was delicious and the company even better.


My parents are real "do-ers" when it comes to vacations. We always had exciting, adventure packed vacations growing up where we got to see everything and do everything. Loved it! Yet it's taken me a while to realize that as an adult on vacation with no kids it's okay to not see everything and do everything. My life right now calls for trips of sleeping late, lots of reading and slowly enjoying each meal. Within a few city blocks of Victoria there are a hundred different tours you can take (whale watching, sea plane, zip line) and a hundred different museums (Bug Museum, Underwater Museum, Miniature Museum, Wax Museum) but our choice was just to sit by the water and read, listen to the street musicians and just unwind. We took naps, went to a late movie and had fish and chips while we watched the sunset. We watched a pro life protest down Main Street, ate breakfast at 11 in the morning and bought chocolates to eat on the afternoon.


We did make it to Craigdarroch Castle. Basically a mansion built in the late 1800's. We made the 40 minute walk out there, stopping by antique shops and getting cold drinks. I'd say worth the trek. We walked a ton those 3 days since we took the ferry and had no car but with the weather as perfect as it was, we loved it.


The entire place (all 25, 5200 sq ft of it) was paneled with beautiful wood but was much too dark for my liking. It would make me go nuts. (yet in this picture I sure look happy about something.)


Contemplating who knows what in the library.

Devouring gelato was perfect on the way back to town.



We rode out to Buchart Gardens one afternoon. Beautiful and peaceful.


This ginormous tree made we want to take the kids down to the Giant Redwood Forests in California. Put that on our to-do list before Lucas leaves home.


Sweet man.


Wonderful weekend with my honey.

Thanks, Mom!!