Mommy Meltdowns: Two more stamps in the passport

I feel like among my many accomplishments in life (being Bat-Mitzvahed, graduating college, getting and staying married, having two children, running a marathon), taking this recent trip to England and Portugal with my girlfriends ranks right up there. Even though I had a countdown app from 150 days out, planned every little detail in advance and spent 10 fantastic days on the trip, I am still in awe that this event even occurred. I believe I outdid even myself in taking a vision and making it a reality.

It was a magical 10 days spent with friends, exploring new countries, and having wonderful adventures. We must've laughed non-stop for 10 days. I truly believe laughter is chicken soup for the soul and does wonders for your mental being.

I could not have asked for better traveling companions. I met these women when our sons started preschool 8 years ago. We bonded and stayed close over the years despite everyone going to different elementary schools. Our boys are good friends and the girls born a few years later inherited instant best friends. There is a saying in Judiasm, "Beshet", meaning it was meant to be. That's the kind of friends these women and their husbands and kids are.

After 10 days of being with each other 24/7, we were not tired of each other. We meshed well when traveling and found humor in most everything. From proving the rental car guy wrong in Portugal that yes, we can fit in the size of a Prius with all of our humongous suitcases, to walking around Covent Garden in circles looking for a place to do tea, to attempting to check into the wrong hotel at 11:30pm at the end of a very long day, there was nothing that could dampen our spirits and not have us treasure each moment of the journey. Even getting my legs and feet covered in Stinging Nettle (crazy!!!) made me be in the moment and appreciate the opportunity I was taking a part in.

And we had adventures! Many wonderful moments from speeding down the Thames river at 35 mph feeling like we might tip over, to seeing the play "Kinky Boots" and sticking around after the show to meet the cast. Imagine our delight when all the performers turned out to be really nice and stayed to chat with us. We held our breath while Susanne expertly navigated the windy, steep, crazy roads in Portugal. We all tried something new by taking a big leap of faith at the Spa in Lisbon and immersing ourselves in the Float thingy capsule in complete darkness and silence. We were in awe of the performers doing acrobatics right in front of our eyes while we ate dinner at Circus in London. We managed to see the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace just as it was beginning, standing in the exact place where all the action happens. Serendipitously, we participated in a live radio show for a Portuguese Fado station and we crashed a cocktail party for an art gallery, complete with meeting the artist. Cambridge, Cotswold, London (in England) and Lisbon, Sintra, Costa da Caparica (in Portugal) were among our destinations, absorbing the environment and taking it all in.

Azenhas do Mar in Portugal

In Cambridge. I absolutely love this photo.

We made the most of each day and would summarize the final minutes before sleep with "Our husbands and kids would've hated today." It's true, this trip was not to please everyone, just us. And boy, did we have amazing weather in England. Everyone kept saying the warmth (high 70's and sunny!) was not typical for London. It made the experience all the better.

We now have the travel bug big-time! It was all we could do to not start planning our next adventure. We hope to return to Europe in two years and take the boys to Spain and Greece. And of course, if the boys get a trip, then the girls deserve one too a few years after that. Oh what fun to think of the possibilities that lie ahead.

None of this would've been possible without my husband. If Jeff wasn't as great of a father or one of my biggest cheerleaders, I couldn't have gone and enjoyed myself as much as I did. He not only held down the fort and kept things moving along smoothly, but he did it with gusto and his usual sense of humor.