Hating You Was My Full Time Job

CHAPTER 13: THE FAMILY VACATION

*Grace is 15 Months. James is 4 Years Old.*

They said don't travel with two kids under 5.

They said it would be chaos.

They said we wouldn't relax.

They said we would regret spending the money.

They were right about the chaos.

They were wrong about everything else.

Because this trip was the first time in 2 years

that I saw Adrian Blackwood truly breathe.

And I got to breathe with him.

*3 WEEKS BEFORE - THE IDEA*

Adrian came home at 6 PM. Which was early.

He dropped his briefcase, kissed James, kissed Grace, kissed me.

"We need to go somewhere," he said.

I was folding laundry. "Where?"

"Anywhere," Adrian said. "With sand. And no emails."

James looked up. "Beach?"

Adrian smiled. "Yeah, buddy. Beach."

For the next 3 weeks I made lists. Adrian laughed at me.

"Babe, it's 7 days."

"It's 7 days with a 4 year old and a 15 month old," I said.

"That is 47 outfits and 82 snacks."

*DAY 1 - 4:00 AM - THE AIRPORT*

We looked insane.

Stroller. 2 car seats. 6 suitcases. Diaper bag. Snack bag. Toy bag.

Adrian carrying Grace and 3 bags. Me dragging the rest with James asleep in the stroller.

"Where are we going, Dada?" James asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Vacation," Adrian said.

"Beach?"

"Beach."

Grace was chewing on Adrian's tie. "Baba. Up."

The flight attendant looked at us and said "Bless you."

Adrian: "We need it."

*DAY 1 - 9:00 AM - THE FLIGHT*

2 hours to Hawaii.

First 20 minutes: Grace screamed. Full volume.

Adrian walked up and down the aisle rocking her. Singing badly.

I gave James snacks and put on Paw Patrol.

Then Grace passed out on Adrian's chest. Drooling on his suit.

Adrian looked at me over her head and mouthed: "Worth it."

*DAY 1 - 11:00 AM - THE RESORT*

Beachfront villa. 3 bedrooms. Ocean view.

James ran straight outside. "SAND!"

Grace touched the tile floor like "what is this?"

Adrian dropped everything and collapsed on the couch.

"We made it," he said.

"Barely," I said, dropping next to him.

We sat in silence for 5 minutes. Just breathing.

*DAY 1 - 2:00 PM - FIRST BEACH TIME*

Swimsuits. Sunscreen. Hats. Floaties.

James in a shark floatie. Grace in a baby float with a canopy.

Adrian looked like he belonged on a magazine.

I was 80% sure about my one-piece.

James ran into the waves.

Grace crawled to the edge and splashed.

For one hour, there was no Adrian Blackwood CEO.

Just Dada building sandcastles.

*DAY 1 - 4:00 PM - THE MELTDOWN*

Sun. Hunger. Overtired.

James: "I DON'T WANT THE SANDWICH!"

Grace: _throwing crackers_

Adrian and I looked at each other. Tag team.

He took James for a shower. I took Grace for a nap.

30 minutes later both were asleep.

Adrian and I sat on the balcony.

"That was..." Adrian started.

"Chaos," I finished.

"Best chaos," he said.

*DAY 2 - THE LUCAU*

Traditional Hawaiian luau. Fire dancers. Pig roast. Hula.

James wanted front row. "Best view, Dada!"

Grace lasted 20 minutes before falling asleep on Adrian.

At the end they called families up to dance.

Adrian looked at me like "no." I looked like "yes."

We went up. All four of us.

James dancing like crazy. Grace asleep on Adrian. Me laughing. Adrian trying not to trip.

A woman filmed us. "For memories."

*DAY 3 - THE HIKE*

Adrian's idea. "Family hike to a waterfall!"

Me: "With two toddlers?"

Adrian: "It'll be fun."

1 mile uphill.

James ran ahead. "I'm fast!"

Grace in the carrier on Adrian's back. "Up! Up!"

I carried the backpack with everything.

Halfway up, James got tired. "Carry me."

Adrian, with Grace on his back, picked up James too.

At the top: waterfall and pool.

James screamed "WE MADE IT!"

We sat for an hour. Feet in water. Snacks. Pictures.

"Worth it?" Adrian asked.

"Every step," I said.

*DAY 4 - POOL DAY*

We didn't leave the resort.

James had swimming lessons with Adrian. "Float, buddy. I've got you."

"I'm swimming, Dada!"

Grace and I stayed in the baby pool. Splashing.

At 3 PM, all four of us napped. In the big bed. In the middle of the day.

Adrian woke up first. Looked at us and smiled.

*DAY 5 - SHOPPING DAY*

"We need souvenirs," Adrian said.

James picked: 3 sharks, 2 shells, 1 ukulele.

Grace picked: everything within reach.

Adrian bought me a necklace. Shell on gold chain. "For my wife."

He bought himself a stupid hat. "For the dad."

*DAY 6 - THE LAST FULL DAY*

We slept in. For us that meant 7 AM.

Breakfast on the balcony. Pancakes. Coffee.

James: "Can we stay forever?"

Adrian: "I wish, buddy."

We went to the beach one last time. Built a huge sandcastle.

When the wave knocked it down, James just laughed. "Build it again!"

*DAY 7 - THE FLIGHT HOME*

Easier this time. Kids were exhausted.

James slept on Adrian. Grace slept on me.

"We did it," Adrian whispered.

"We survived," I whispered back.

"And it was good," he said.

*DAY 8 - HOME*

Unpacking. Laundry. Jet lag.

James: "Remember the beach?"

Grace: "Wawa!"

Adrian: "We should do this every year."

Me: "Let's sleep for a week first."

*WEEK AFTER*

Adrian made a photo album. "Blackwood Family Vacation 2028"

He put it on his desk at work.

His assistant: "That's nice."

Adrian: "That's my family."

*THE HARD PARTS:*

1. Grace screaming on the plane

2. James refusing to eat

3. Sunburns

4. No sleep

*THE GOOD PARTS:*

1. James learning to swim

2. Grace eating sand

3. Adrian laughing for real

4. Family dinners with no phones

5. Watching sunset with my husband

*ADRIAN AT WORK:*

"How was Hawaii?"

"Chaotic," Adrian said. "Perfect."

*ME AT HOME:*

I made a scrapbook. With sand and ticket stubs and pictures.

Messy. Tired. Happy.

*JAMES TODAY:*

"Can we go back?"

"Soon, buddy."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

*GRACE TODAY:*

She points at pictures of the ocean. "Wawa!"

*ADRIAN LAST NIGHT:*

He was on the balcony alone.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Hawaii," he said. "For one week I wasn't CEO. I was just Dada."

"You can be both."

"I know. But I like Dada better."

*ME LAST NIGHT:*

I thought about how scared I was to take this trip.

And how glad I was that we did it anyway.

Because now we have memories.

Not just pictures. Memories.

*TODAY:*

Adrian is already looking at Disney for next year.

Me: "Let's survive this month first."

Adrian: "Deal."

*THE TRUTH:*

Vacations with small kids aren't relaxing.

They're work. They're loud. They're expensive.

They're also the best thing we've ever done.

*ADRIAN TO ME THIS MORNING:*

He was making James' lunch.

"Thank you," he said. "For saying yes to the trip. For handling the chaos with me."

"Thank you," I said. "For carrying all of us."

*LAST THOUGHT:*

Hawaii was hot.

Hawaii was hard.

Hawaii was ours.

Because home isn't a place.

Home is wherever the four of us are.

Together. Even if we're covered in sand.

James.

Grace.

Adrian.

Me.

The Blackwoods.

On vacation.

And back to real life.

With 400 pictures and 0 regrets.

END OF CHAPTER 13