The Reflection and a Reflection

I feel like it has been forever since my last post. As you might know, my husband and I took a cruise last week to the Caribbean. It was a trip that had been planned and booked for a year and a half. I was so excited (I even counted down the days when the trip was 80 days away). With a little boy in preschool (and a germ magnet) I even pulled him out of school the week before our trip so that he wouldn't bring any kind of illness home to us. I was so paranoid about being sick for my trip.

I think things happen for a reason. I started feeling ill the Wednesday before we left. I was so mad that I was getting sick despite my every attempt to stay healthy. By Friday (the day we left) I felt horrible. I sat in the airport in Atlanta feeling quite sorry for myself. As I sat at the gate bound for Miami (pouting) I noticed a commotion on the airport TVs. I couldn't really tell what was happening because it was so loud in the terminal so I texted my mom to find out. I learned about the massacre in Connecticut and was completely humbled. I couldn't believe that I had been sitting there, feeling sorry for myself, when so many families were suffering.

I think the shooting put a lot of things in perspective for me, and probably for a lot of people. As a mother to two little boys, I know how frustrating it can be sometimes. I told myself that I would stop being so hard on my sons. Of course I will continue to discipline them, but I won't freak out so much when I see one jump on the couch, or when the 15-month-old unloads every cabinet in the kitchen. I am so lucky to have them. Unfortunately we don't know how long we have on this earth and I plan on taking every moment to cherish my sweet boys.

I did manage to start feeling better mid-way into our trip. I actually spent quite a bit of time reading and relaxing (read 2 whole books!). Here are a few pictures from our trip onboard the beautiful Celebrity Reflection.

Our stateroom

Spent many hours out on the balcony reading

A live tree suspended between two elevators

A little cabana out on the lawn of the ship

Pulling into port next to a few cruise ships

The area where we swam in St. Thomas

Sailboats in St. Thomas

I'm so glad that we had a chance to get away but nothing beats coming home to my two excited little boys. I hope you guys have a fabulous day!