After a lovely and relaxing week in the Dominican Republic, D and I are back in Toronto and (hopefully) ready to face real life again. Our first vacation without Littleman was bittersweet. It was wonderful for the two of us to spend some time away together. And, what’s not to like about white sand, turquoise water, sleeping in, drinking pina coladas and lying in the sun? But, of course, the reason for our getaway was always in the back of my mind. If I was still pregnant (I would have been 19 weeks!) we wouldn’t be there.
For now though, I want to reflect on the positive aspects of our week away.
In the last three years, I have spent 12 months being pregnant and 14 months breastfeeding. That leaves 10 months, eight of which we spent trying to conceive. Due to those circumstances (and to having an infant/toddler to care for) I haven’t had much alcohol in the last little while. I’ve never been a huge drinker, but I do enjoy a nice glass or wine (or two) every now and again. It was lovely to have a week of no responsibilities, where I was free to drink as little or as much as I wanted. I enjoyed the mimosa I was offered on the plane on the way down (great way to start the trip!) and I happily sipped the tropical drinks that were available to us any time of the day at our all-inclusive resort.
We also slept more in the last week than we have in the last three years! I never slept well during pregnancy (except for the first trimester of my first pregnancy, when I went to bed before dark every night). Littleman has never been an amazing sleeper, so it’s rare for us not to be woken during the night. After checking into our resort, we took advantage of the comfortable king sized bed and had ourselves a nice three-hour snooze before dinner. We slept through the night every night (with the exception of hearing some rowdy neighbours arrive home from the disco) and went alarm clock-free for a whole week. It was heavenly.
And then there was the food. I don’t generally have high expectations of the food at an all-inclusive resort. I know that there will be plenty to eat, but I never expect it to be very good. This resort surprised us, with delicious food and a huge variety of restaurants. Of course, my favourite part is always the breakfast. I ate bacon like it was my job (OMG, I would kill for a job like that required me to eat bacon!) and the fruit was fresh and delicious.
The beach in Punta Cana is amazing. We’ve been there a few times before and we love the fact that we can walk for hours in either direction. The pools were beautiful too, although we both prefer to spend our time on the beach. The grounds of the resort were lush and tropical.
All in all, it was a great holiday. D and I really needed to get away from everything and to spend some time alone. And we were lucky enough to be able to do that in a warm and beautiful setting. Getting back to reality will be a little tough, but I feel strengthened by our time together.
Another bun (in the oven)? 