Bad Mom?

I don't think I can properly estimate the number of times people asked me on vacation if I missed Alex. Joey asked me at least twice a day, and it was the first question out of nearly everyone that I was introduced to.

"I love him, but I do not miss him," was my repeated response. Queue big, blank looks in response as if to say, "Really?? I don't believe you."

By about Thursday, Joey didn't believe me, either. He was having a bad case of the "Missing Alex Blues" and really didn't get why I didn't. And I really, really didn't. Like, at all. And here's why:

1. I got to sleep in every.single.day. Oh, and nap whenever I wanted.
2. I got to have many, many margaritas by le campfire and not have to worry about getting up the next morning (see #1).
3. I was able to be in and around open water without the constant, heart-stopping panic of "Where is my kid?!?"
4. I was able to slowly chew and properly digest ALL of my meals. Including dessert.
5. I only had to bathe myself.
6. I only had to wipe my own ass.
7. I spoke in a normal, adult voice for a week straight.
8. My literary selections for the week did not include sentences like, "Where's my belly button?" and "Baby loves puppies!"
9. No strollers. No highchairs. No carseats. No squeaky toys.
10. What was that? Oh...that was the sound of SILENCE. Bliss.

Don't misinterpret the above - I love my kid more than Jimmy Choos and MAC Lipglass, but it was SO lovely to just be MYSELF all week. And not that I'm not myself when I'm in Mommy Mode, but it's just different. Not better or worse, necessarily. Just different. And I will openly admit that the squeals of delight and sloppy kisses I received upon our arrival home were pretty much the best thing, ever.

So in summary, it was nice to be away and it was nice to come back...and you can bet the farm that I will be participating in at least 1 kid-free week of vacation a year. It's necessary for my survival.