vacation all I ever wanted

Lisa called me out on my last post about being a lazy blogger. And it's true - I think after my 31 day marathon, I feel like I don't have that much more to say! I know I'm supposed to be posting about my five favorite vacations and five favorite holiday movies, but truthfully - I kinda HATE holiday movies! They are always sad to me for some reason. So instead I will attempt to write about vacations.

I haven't been on too many fabulous vacations. Lately, the bulk of my vacations have taken place right at home. But here is my list:

1) Hawaii, 2004. Greg and I went here for our honeymoon. We went for 12 days and split the time up between the islands of Kauai, Hawaii (the Big Island), and Maui. Each island was wonderful in its own way - Kauai was very lush and serene, Hawaii was super cool because of the volcanoes, and Maui was fun in a touristy kind of way. It was like being on another planet, honestly.

2) San Diego, 2005. Greg and I went here because U2 fanboy Greg wanted to see U2 kick off their Vertigo world tour, and San Diego was the first stop. Considering it was gross March, it was the perfect time to go. This trip was when I decided that San Diego was the most perfect place on earth, and not because Bono was in town either. But between the concert, the San Diego Zoo, La Jolla and the sea lions, I never wanted to leave.

3) San Diego, 2007. This is what dorky parenting websites call a "babymoon" (GAG). I was about six months pregnant, and my doctor said that if we were going to take a trip, we'd better take one now. So we basically replayed the previous vacation because we both loved it so very much (without the U2, of course). Once again, I never wanted to leave.

4) Ireland, 1999. I went to Ireland for a trip with three of my friends. We went all over the country and, like Hawaii, it was like being on another planet (in a much less tropical way). I would love to go back again to spend more time in the Dublin area, because I loved it so much and I wish we had more time there.

5) Family summer vacations at Connecticut shoreline, all through my childhood. Since my parents owned a Dairy Queen, there wasn't really opportunity to take far-away summer vacations, because they had to be relatively close to the business, in case there was an issue. But each summer, we rented a cottage with my grandfather down in Old Lyme, and spent our days at the beach, getting Italian ice, and having cookouts. When I think of my father, my mind instantly shoots to these vacations, because like me, he absolutely loved the beach.