vacation from work ?

Vacation: (definition) leisure time away from work; devoted to rest or pleasure

For the last few weeks, my computer was down and we took a 2 week “staycation” where we enjoyed vacation time at home in our city with our visiting family members…

Staycation was awesome! Less expense, kids get their own beds, we could get out of the house for a whole day for fun activities, then stay home the next day to recoup, quality conversations, normal routines, but with less stress, no airports, or roadmaps.

God helped me not to obsess over laundry and floors and picking up toys. My family helped a lot and at the end of the two weeks, I had at least 8 loads of folded, yes clean laundry in my bedroom, ready to be put up. There were many times I could have put up laundry or mopped my floors, or windexed the fingerprints on mirrors and doors that seemed to yell at me when I would walk by, I could have swept everyday, but didn’t. The house was fine. The kids were fine. It was great. God helped me repent, rest and relax. I enjoyed my family, my home more, and feel refreshed!

As most mothers know, you really don’t get vacation, even if you are away from home. Vacation to me is someone else makes the meal and cleans it up, someone else cleans the house, someone else does the laundry, etc. And even if all of that is done, my sweet children still need bathed, wiped, dressed, combed, brushed, sanitized, held, loved, talked with, played with, kissed, hugged, and all of that from 7am until 8pm. A mother’s job is constant and it is never vacation.

I wouldn’t want that kind of vacation. So, what I am blessed with are small moments of vacation and alone time. 1 hour of reading outside. 20 minutes in the shower. Errands without the kids. Dinner out. Date night with Mike always feels like vacation!

Our staycation did include much work. Yet, my heart is refreshed. Mike was home, comforting me with his presence. Our parents were here and we enjoyed them and made a lot of memories. Vacation for me is becoming an annual time in July where we break from normalcy, still doing work, but with a different approach, to have fun, to engage our kids more, to take a ton of pictures, to plan summer outings, to take family naps, try out new recipes, play in the yard, no make-up, and no email… My heart is refreshed!

Why do people crave vacation? I struggle to not feel entitled to have a break or a vacation. If I am exhausted, the last person I tend to tell is God..

Do I view breaks or vacations or those small moments to refresh myself as gifts? Often, I think I am owed the time.

Why do I need an occasional break from my house, my kids, my husband? For me, it is an opportunity for my heart to be refreshed. I feel this way after church and listening to a sermon, a good chunk of time in the Bible, a date night with Mike, or family reading time. I feel the vacation feeling when I have talked with a friend or sipped coffee looking at the lake. The moments are there, I don’t have ride an airplane to be energized. The destination for vacation is Jesus Christ in my heart, I can go there and worship him and enjoy the pleasures of Christ anytime!

Thankfully, God faithfully refuels my heart when I go to him with an empty tank!

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