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Every year, Alex and I try to take a short trip alone — no noisy children allowed. :) So, this past weekend, while my mom stayed with the boys, Alex and I went to Ocho Rios, Jamaica. It was such a treat to spend a few days relaxing together. Here are a few photos, if you’d like to see…
We stayed at the Jamaica Inn, a lovely old-school hotel (Marilyn Monroe and Winston Churchill went there) with a pool, snorkels, kayaks and a sandy beach.
On trips, I usually want to run around and explore, but after settling in with a Red Stripe and a book, I remembered the mind-clearing magic of… just chilling.
On the meditation app Headspace, my friend Jenny heard a great analogy: Think of your mind as a glass of muddy water. Let it sit and do nothing, and you’ll get clarity. Rings so true, right? Alex is naturally laid-back, so he got right to it. :)
We were psyched to find that our hotel room had a gorgeous terrace right on the water. It felt like being on a boat.
We settled in and just hung out the whole time — swimming, chatting and playing Gin Rummy. The beach bar was run by Teddy, a sweet man who had worked there for over 50 years (!). He still rode his bike to work every morning, and when I asked about his favorite drink, he said, “I’m not picky, I’m not picky at all.”
Another evening, we chatted with a lovely woman, who had worked at the hotel for 18 years. She told us about some of the weddings they’ve hosted over the decades. “Has anyone ever called one off?” I asked, since I had recently read this article. “Well, a groom once called us and told us to cancel the whole wedding,” she told me, “And then five minutes later he called and said, no, wait, it’s back on!”
The hotel also had a dog named Shadow, who would walk around the grounds and play catch with a mango.
Needless to say, Alex fell head over heels for her and launched yet another campaign for us to get a dog, haha.
It was a really wonderful, relaxing few days, and such a treat to do absolutely nothing with Alex, who made me laugh more than ever. And we were so grateful to my mom for taking care of Toby and Anton! When we got home, they showed us this very cool photo series they had created, featuring cars around the neighborhood…
THUMBS UP, BOYS!
Thank you so much for reading. We love you, Jamaica. xoxo
P.S. Another awesome Jamaican hotel, and our first getaway without kids.
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