Vacation Fun Together

The economy has hit the vacation savings of Americans. And if you are wondering if you will be able to afford a vacation this year or not, remember you don’t have to go somewhere exotic to rest and enjoy yourselves.

During ‘slim times’ for us when we’ve had to put on our creative hats of what to do for vacation, doing everything from going camping, to staying home and doing ‘day trips’ to fund places nearby, one of the things we’ve enjoyed doing is to go through pictures albums of vacations past. Reality is, while the places and activities may have been nice, the thing we remember the most is the time together with each other and family.

So, this year we will be remembering the exotic places we’ve been, rather than visiting them, like…Hawaii has got to be one of the most beautiful places on earth. The weather, the beaches, the water life, the fragrance in the air, the atmosphere, the food …

It has been the choice of destination for our ‘special’ anniversary years. And when we go we make the most of it. Being married to what Myers-Briggs describes as ‘the most adventurous personality,’ my husband, Duane, sees to that! And I love it.

The picture above is of one such adventure. After a couple of days of snorkeling Duane thought of a way we could feed the fish, by purchasing raw bait at the local market, putting it in plastic bags and stuffing them in our bathing suits, keeping our hands free to swim and feed the fish. We would simply each pull out our bag, unseal it, grab a few small pieces of bait, reseal the bag and put it back in our suit.

The fish were not shy and were quick to take our offerings. As you can see I made friends with a puffer fish which repeatedly swam up to me, taking the small fish from my hands, until it let me touch, and then hold, it as it ate. What fun!

I’m so glad Duane got my encounter with the puffer on film in order to convince our friends and family who had a little trouble believing my story. There’s another picture he took that others had trouble believing when they saw it. At one point there got to be so many fish swarming around us, that I could hardly see Duane, and it was all we could do to keep up with their appetites.

There’s another picture that I wish Duane could have caught…and that was of when he and I realized the plastics bags had broken and the remaining raw fish was loose in our suits! It was hilarious as we tried to empty our suits in the water, me being less than happy with what was loose in my suit! Both of us laughing and laughing, and trying to keep our heads above water. Needless to say, it is one adventure we will continue to talk about for years to come.

There’s something about having fun together as couples that almost mysteriously draws you back to the honeymoon days of your marriage, when there was just the two of you, before the responsibilities of family, growing careers and life came your way. Any stresses and burdens you carry seem to be more quickly lifted off as well.

Don’t let summer end without having at least one fun adventure with just you and your husband. It is the time of year for re-creation after all, no matter where you go.

And don’t forget to take some pictures!