Babymoon bliss...and some other stuff

Well, we just returned from five days in Palm Springs, California, and I'm still feeling blissed out by the experience. I guess we went on what I've now learned is coined "a babymoon," our last vacation before Mackie's arrival this spring. In almost every way, this was a perfect vacation. Despite the fact that I live in Seattle, I absolutely love the sun. And the palm trees. Sometimes I still wonder what possessed me to leave Southern California. As I lay by the pool staring at the cloudless blue sky in the consistently perfect 80-degree weather, I took an emotional snapshot of how I felt so I could remember that feeling of bliss later this year when I'm dead tired and covered in baby barf (and other things). In addition to the perfect weather, I was surrounded by Colin, Jenn, and Chris...three people who make me incredibly happy. So, now that I've described the perfection of this babymoon, let me tell you about some of the not-so-perfect parts.

We arrived at the Viceroy, easily the most beautiful hotel I've ever stayed at, and I sat down as Colin checked us in. As I stood up to be escorted to room, the attendant handed Colin two glasses of the most crisp, delicious-looking champagne I'd ever seen. Colin said "None for her, she's pregnant" and the attendant looked at me with a mixture of "how cute" and "ha ha." Bummer. I also noticed at that moment that I had paint on my tank-top from painting the baby's room. Definitely not SoCal-chic.

This trend continued as we laid out by the pool all day. I watched longingly as my pals and husband ordered drink after drink of the most fantastic-looking tropical frozen concoctions. Not to be completely outdone, I ordered quite a few virgin concoctions for myself thinking this would make me feel better. The three of them got nicely buzzed. I got an extra 8,000 calories.

Moving on from alcohol-related "poor-me's" to food-related "poor-me's." Without exception, every single meal I ate ended with the same result. A large dent across my upper stomach where my maternity jeans were practically cutting off my circulation. I felt more stuffed in Palm Springs than I've ever felt in my life. And then I would be hungry again. In like 30 minutes.

Our first night in town, I was so excited to get back to the hotel after dinner and relax in the awesome hot tub. I quickly checked my "What to Expect" book to make sure that hot-tubbing after the first trimester was safe as long as I didn't overdo it. Was it? No. Of course not. Sitting next to a hot tub and not being able to get in doesn't sound so bad, but it is truly one of the worst forms of torture out there. Try it sometime.

My last and favorite memory happened right after the most relaxing hour ever spent laying on a raft in the pool. That's right. I had to get off of the raft and out of the pool. Man! It was embarrassing. I ever-so-ungracefully anchored my leg on the side of the pool and then completed a full-on whale roll to the safety of our chairs. It was truly so ridiculous that I couldn't do anything but laugh.

Perfect and not-so-perfect, our 'babymoon' was the best vacation I've ever had! I've never laughed harder or felt more relaxed in my life. We had such a good time that we plan to make it a yearly tradition. So look for me at the Viceroy, Palm Springs, in 2010. I'll be the girl who stylishly sips her glass of champagne upon arrival then gracefully exits her pool raft and orders another deliciously alcoholic pina colada. I'll eat a perfectly-proportioned dinner and when I come back to get in the hot tub, you won't catch me with a jean dent across my stomach. Okay, well, that part I can't promise.