10 Years...

When R and I planned our honeymoon, 10 years ago, we chose a location that had everything we wanted: golf, tennis, skeet shooting (we didn't seek this out, but thought it might be fun to try), hiking, beach time with all the water sports and spa treatments. We wanted active yet serene. We wanted casual but elegant. We were so excited by our choice.

Less than 2 weeks before our wedding, the eye of a hurricane went through our resort and blew it pretty much off the map. When our travel agent called us and said, "Your resort is completely destroyed. How do you feel about Jamaica instead?" We both responded the same way, "Jamaica sounds great" We really didn't care where we went, as long as we were together. But we promised ourselves we would go to our original honeymoon resort at our 5 year anniversary. As 5 years approached, we postponed our plans because I was pregnant with Hannah, Ryan and Abby. 10 years. We decided we would go at 10 years.

Our ten year anniversary is October 31. We will take the kids out to trick or treat, then drop them off at my folks because on November 1st, at the crack of dawn, we will board a flight to our honeymoon resort.

I'm excited. We plan to play tennis, scuba dive, lounge out on the beach, relax and unwind. We will play all day and dress up for a nice dinner at night. We will go to bed early. Or not. It won't matter because we can sleep in, if we choose too. Although I will miss the kids dearly, I know that this is a much needed vacation for R and me. It will be our first "couple" vacation since before we conceived Joey-over 4 years ago. Our last "couple" vacation, although wonderful, was wedged between our grief over Hannah, Ryan and Abby and our anxiety over whether or not we would bring children into our lives.

The timing of this vacation isn't lost on either of us~yes, it's our 10 year wedding anniversary, but we depart on Saturday, 5 years to the day of our Memorial Service for Hannah, Ryan and Abby. It also comes just a short time after we made the final decision to donate our embryos for training purposes, therefore ending our fertility journey.

But rather than feeling sad about the timing, R and I both feel as if this vacation signifies a new beginning for us, as if we are walking through some imaginary door to another side of our life together and when we return, we will be ready to start living that life.

Corney? Perhaps. But I am ready...