When I met Tate twelve years ago I vividly recall him telling me that he was laid back. Of course now I know that this was a bald-faced lie. Laid back is exactly the opposite of how I’d describe him. His complaining and pessimism are legendary, so much so that while most couples fight about money or sex, we regularly fight about his constant complaining and pessimistic outlook on life.
He’s quit using phrases like, “this is a disaster!!”, because I’ve threatened to run away from home if I he ever uttered it again.
I’m by no means (completely) perfect, but I do try to look at the bright side of things. I try very hard not to complain too much, I try to stay positive. I’m practically Miss Merry Sunshine!
That’s why I feel so awful about what I’m getting ready to complain about.
My vacation could have been better.
It pains me to even utter those words. SERIOUSLY. Poor me! Me and my first world problems! ¡Que terrible! It must be so awful to get to go on vacation and have it not be perfect. So many people in the world without food and my beach vacation “could have been better.”
So yeah, I feel ridiculous complaining about my vacation. Nonetheless, I can’t help myself.
1. My children acted like total a-double-s-holes for the vast majority of the time. They freaked out over things like getting Sprite instead of chocolate milk when we went out to eat and having to ride on a horse drawn carriage through Savannah. What horribly deprived children! The constant need to correct their behavior ON VACATION where we were supposed to be having FUN completely drained me.
2. Ella and I got stung by jellyfish the very first day of vacation. We then learned that August is prime jellyfish season on Tybee Island and this year has been particularly bad. Perfect!
3. Our vacation rental wasn’t exactly what I thought it would be. The “summer house” with a bed in the backyard was really an unairconditioned shed with a cot from 1940 that held a moldy thing on top masquerading as a mattress.
4. Despite the beach house being advertised as “fully stocked,” we ran out of toilet paper less than 24 hours after arriving. (It REALLY pains me to complain about that, yet there it is.)
5. MOSQUITOES the size of Montana.
6. The sheets on our bed were satiny and stuck to our feet like velcro.
7. The water tasted like what I’ve always imagine dirty feet to taste like.
I’m so ashamed by these petty complaints. If I were a priest, I’d assign myself 4,000 Hail Mary’s and an order to volunteer my time at a homeless shelter or donate the equivalent cost of the vacation to a women’s shelter.
I’m no longer a practicing Catholic. I guess I dodged that bullet.
Instead, as soon as I download and edit the bajillion pictures I took while on vacation, I’ll repent by writing about the good things.
I can understand your frustration. And getting stung by jelly fish…ouch!
.-= Heather-Domestic Extraordinaire´s last blog ..Fifteen years =-.
I am so like you. I try to look on the bright side – but a good vent FEELS SO GOOD sometimes!
Sorry vacation wasn’t what it could have been. xo
There’s no shame in stating that traveling with children is frequently less than perfect. When my boys were 2, we took them on a weekend beach trip to see how we would all do for an entire week. It was so terrible that it’s taken two years and two more weekend trips for us to finally book a full week there with kids. Even though you’re on vacation, you’re still on vacation with small children!
.-= LauraC´s last blog ..This post is so TMI Dont eat before reading Youve been warned =-.
we went to disney today and it felt EXACTLY like that. in fact, most of this summer has felt EXACTLY like that. i *hate* complaining, we absolutely live a charmed life and my husband woes enough for our entire flipping neighborhood, but SERIOUSLY. ENOUGH ALREADY WITH THE CRAPTASTICNESS OF IT ALL.
.-= MommyNamedApril´s last blog ..My Little Matchy Matchertons =-.
Feel free to complain. As long as you can recognize there are lucky problems to have, then I say you deserve it. Your hard earned, paid for vacation should not suck.
Can’t wait to see pics. Esp of the house and “bed” in the back.
.-= Shelly Overlook´s last blog ..Discovery =-.
Vacation location letdowns suck.
Maybe this will make you feel better – the moldy cottage we stayed in for a week gave all three of us lung infections…now get to those Hail Marys while I hack up a lung!
.-= Neeroc´s last blog ..I knew recycling was a bad idea! =-.
Bad vacations suck. I’m sorry it wasn’t what you hoped!
Kids on trips! Ahhhh…pure bliss! We went to the Dominican Republic once and we were fortunate enough to take a Jeep tour through the towns. My kids saw poverty at its finest! Kids running up to us asking for a dollar. Kids riding their donkey or walking to school in extreme heat for long distances without shoes. One classroom for grades K-6 in the AM then the same room for grades 7-12 in the PM. Houses that did not have power. Bathrooms way in the back woods. Houses that have 3 rooms in total. Entire houses that could fit in my living room…the list goes on! We get back to the Ginormous hotel with a bar, marble bathroom, balcony, huge bedroom and a living room after we discussed how very fortunate we are and how we should thank God for all the blessings he has given us. What do the little bastards do? FIGHT OVER WHO GETS TO PLAY WITH WHAT GAME FOR THEIR GAMEBOYS!!!! (This was when Gameboys were WAY cool). Are you effin kidding me?
Sorry you had such a rough trip and you have every right to vent about it!!!!
.-= Nicki´s last blog ..Rumblings and Ramblings =-.
I love Savannah! It’s so charming! Kids can have a hard time traveling. Some kids don’t deal with change very well. And vacations are never perfect…but they provide great material for blogging–I know. I just got back from a cruise and had a blast blogging about it!
Nah…you have every right to complain. To be honest, we find it hard to travel with our kids, and at the end, we complain, too and rarely feel rested, but then once we get back to the grind, we realize that it was quite nice after all!
.-= LZ´s last blog ..I don’t move in mysterious ways =-.
Traveling with kids, can really be the pits! It’s a huge expense, and then they turn into d-bags, which in turn, turns you into an a-hole…it’s just not cool. You spend all this money, and to find out that what you expected to be a nice beach house, is more like a shanty is total crap.
My husband and I have never traveled “alone” with our kids (3.5 and 4.5…we do the family beach trip every summer) and don’t think we will for a few more years…I just don’t think I’d consider it a true vacation!
Hope the pictures remind you of the good times you did have on your trip!
VENTING is good for you, it is saving you from beating your kids or abusing your husband or running your neighbor over !!!
.-= triftimom´s last blog ..waking up late =-.
Are we married to the same person?
.-= burghbaby´s last blog ..I Support the Park 51 Project =-.
I’ll be honest with you…I totally heart the beach but beach vacations with really young kids can suck. Now that my girls are older they are mucho better.
We have good friends who spend summers on Tybee…if you decide to go back again I should put you in touch with my girlfriend so you can get the scoop on where to stay!!
.-= Jamie´s last blog ..Sunday- Bloody Sunday =-.
I have had the same experience myself. (I even found things to complain about when we went to Disney World in January!) Now I always try not to have any expectations at all, so that my vacations are bound to exceed them.
Contrary to popular belief when your kids are younger, vacations will, someday, be vacations again. For moms, they’re just the same old crap but in a different location where we worry more about staining carpet that isn’t our own.
Vent all you want, sister.
.-= Headless Mom´s last blog ..Just Curious-Pet Peeves =-.
Don’t feel bad. I think the degree of vacation suck is directly correlated to how young your children are. Ours have gotten progressively better over the years!
.-= Rima´s last blog ..Yup- I Blogged It =-.
Umm…I’ve got you beat. My HONEYMOON could’ve been so. much. better. But I’ll never write about that, b/c that’s just opening up a whole can of worms.
.-= Gail´s last blog ..Charlottes Birth Story =-.
Sorry your vacation was not the best. The reasons it was not great would be all reasons that would make my vacation not the best. Can’t wait to see your pictures.
.-= Lisa´s last blog ..Wordless Wednesday =-.
You are allowed to complain about a not great vacation. Just because we can go on them…doesn’t mean we aren’t allowed to complain about them sucking at times. I’ve had some horrible ones myself.
I remember when I was a kid, we had everything go wrong on a trip. Illness, ER trips, broken down car, someone ended up lost. Anyway, we were in Arizona and this one aunt of mine says to my mom, at least we can say, we had a freaking horrible trip to this gorgeous location…so at least a few photos will be pretty. I couldn’t have been more than eight years old and it stuck in my head.
You find the good in it later. It’s human nature.
.-= Issa´s last blog ..I like cupcakes =-.
Vacationing with kids isn’t really vacationing. I’m currently ‘on vacation’ with a 2yo and 5yo, a little north of where you were, in South Carolina. Since we’ve arrived, they’ve both been in full freakout mode. The pool, beach, pool, beach routine really requires a lot of work and running around. And, yes, the jellyfish. The caution flags have been up all week on the beach.
.-= Cara´s last blog ..Vacation 2010- Part Seven =-.
no, i totally get it.
and i’m so terrified of jellyfish—- i’m so very sorry!
funny how tate’s word is disaster. The Mr. likes to tell me about the “nightmare!” he’s encountering. which drives me crazy. recent example was being stuck in a lot of traffic on the way to visit the g’parents… littlebean was being perfect in the backseat. it was not the nightmare it had been just about a year beforehand!
can’t wait to hear about the good of the vacation.
i’m glad you had some.
now you need a vacation w/o the kids!
and here’s believing that your next family vacation will be even better……
.-= mpotter´s last blog ..appreciation =-.
I once heard of someone who was so sick of their kids acting up on vacations that they planned a “fake” vacation. They told their kids if they did not behave they were turning around and going home. Of course I cannot count the times I have used that one only to NOT follow through because I am wimpy that way and wanted my vacation! Well 5 mins into the trip their kids acted up, they turned around and went home. They told their kids they could try again next time (the next month was their “real vacation”) and they when they went on that trip their kids had never behaved better! Of course I am just not that smart to figure that out or I just really like to live in Hell – haven’t figured out which one yet. Better luck next time though!!
.-= Jennifer´s last blog ..PRESCHOOL TACTLESSNESS =-.
Wow, you sound just like I did about two months ago! I did all I could to counter hubby’s negativity by being chipper and excited, but I was half-way to miserable when we took our girls to Disney World, primarily because of the miserable, oppressive heat. When we returned, I practically begged for a do-over!
You’ll find the joy in the photos, I’m sure!
[...] our vacation wasn’t ALL bad. There really was a lot of [...]
After reading so many “Our Perfect Summer Vacation” posts on sooo many blogs this summer, THIS is a breath of fresh air and so real!
.-= Mandy´s last blog ..Avery-The Organization of Moms =-.
I am so sorry your vacation bit. I have to say, mine did too – and I felt too guilty about even being able to take a vacation that I just couldn’t bring myself to write about it. Plus, it would have involved copious amounts of bitching about my father-in-law, whom I love dearly, but holy shit, if I ever have to be trapped in the mountains with him 24/7 again for days upon days, I will go out and seek the bears, begging them to eat me alive. And I would hate it if he ever found out I said that. So I didn’t blog it. I just hijacked your comments. Again. Sorry.
.-= marty´s last blog ..Open letters to some of my recent Facebook blockings =-.