There are milestones after separating that I didn’t think would hit me as hard as they have, and others that seemed to pass without making me feel much.
This summer, one of the hardest things I did – that I’m happy to say I can check it off my milestone list- was take the kids on an overnight staycation on my own.
Well, not entirely on my own. My mom came up to help. THANK GOD. And actually, Scott had dinner with us one night, too.
But, organizing this short trip (just down the road into downtown Austin) fell on me. And the mere act of taking them all, on my own, into a beautiful & historic rental was quite the test of my anxiety and patience. There’s a whole part of the story that I won’t tell that culminated in the teenager being sent home with his dad the first night.
Parenting teens can be brutal under the best circumstances. Thank goodness for good co-parenting relationships.
This trip wouldn’t have happened if my friends at Lodgewell hadn’t asked me if I could take some photos of The Stanley in exchange for a couple nights. I enthusiastically accepted, knowing that my budget is way too stretched to pull off any kind of escape on my own.
And we managed to keep the rest of the adventure fairly low cost because we never had to leave! The kids spent the days swimming in the pool…
And the nights watching TV, playing games, and bunking up with NaNa on the top level of this 3 story home.
This was the precursor to my last post- the one about showing up imperfectly and uncomfortably as a parent. There was a lot about this adventure that I struggled through. Let’s be real, this didn’t feel much like a vacation for me. What it was, though, was a trial that proved I could handle more on my own than I gave myself credit for.
I’m learning that leaning into these trials is an exhausting confidence booster, even when things don’t go perfectly. And maybe the confidence comes from things being stressful and hard, and STILL getting through it, STILL finding moments of joy.
Hard things make a great foundation.
Huge thanks to Lodgewell for putting us up at The Stanley for a couple nights. If you’re looking for a gorgeous, HUGE vacation rental in South Austin that’s walking distance to restaurants and even bat-watching, The Stanley is for you!
This historic home with original stonewalls and woodwork, PLUS an actual basement (which was the highlight for my Texas kids who know basements just don’t happen ’round these parts), has 10 beds and 4 bathrooms, and yes, an epic yard!
Check out the rest of Lodgewell’s vacation rentals, too!
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