No, you're not alone. DH and I have been married for 21 years, and haven't been on a vacation without the kids since our first was born, 16 yrs. ago. We do take family vacations; I just love hitting the road with the whole family in the car!
Hubby and I just started taking regular weekends aways this last year. We realized that we had lost some of the "personal connection" we use to have. Our conversations all had to do with kids, bills, home repairs, work...but nothing interesting or just fun any more. We didn't want to get to our empty nest years..(approx. five years away) and discover that we had nothing in common any more. It has been a huge blessing! We try to go at least every other month and just have a great time. It doesn't have to cost a lot and it's worth the effort!
Seems I'm about the same as everyone else here. We had a nice long week long honeymoon alone long ago (Feb 2003) We took one weekend away for an anniversary (Feb 2007) and one family weekend vacation (summer 2009) after hubby got laid off and we cashed in his 401k and profit sharing. We do what we call 'daycations' though, but it's not the same LOL but it's better than nothing....
Well this isn't a vacation but because of a friend's birthday I get another date night with the husband tonight! Woo Hoo! The high school football game Samantha performs at is tomorrow afternoon in Houston so I get tonight off which just so happens to be an old friends birthday. So dh and I are going out to dinner ALONE and then heading to this karaoke bar for the party. We aren't staying long or out late because I have to get up and get Sam to the school to ride the bus to the game and dh has to be up early to go to work. But I am happy to just have some time alone with him again tonight!
Dh and I celebrated... our 25th wedding anniversary this past spring. We spent six days in Bermuda without the kids. It was our first trip alone together since before our oldest child was born more than 18 years before, with the exception of one overnight trip 12 years ago to attend an Andre Rieu concert in a city which was 3 hours away. When dc#2 was 21mo, dh and I took dc#1 and my teen sister to Walt Disney World for a week. Dc#2 got so sick that my in-laws took him to the emergency room. The doctor couldn't find anything wrong with him. All that anyone could figure out was that he was homesick/missing us. My in-laws didn't tell dh and me until we got home from our trip. I decided I would never leave my little ones again. I probably over-reacted :lol: -- especially considering the fact that two years later dc#2 would go to his grandparents and happily spend a full week at a time with them, and not miss dh and me at all. During most years of our marriage, dh and I didn't go on vacations. They were just too expensive, and there were so many other things to spend money on. We have been taking a yearly family vacation the last six years, because now we can afford it. Most of our vacations include lots of educational experiences (museums, aquariums, historical sites, etc.). Dh and I are soon going on a cruise to the Western Caribbean -- without our children. We decided during our Bermuda trip that we should take a nice trip once per year by ourselves. Dh scheduled one for only eight months after the Bermuda one.
I am glad to hear that there are so many others who don't take vacations without their kids. My SIL took a two week cruise/trip when her little one was not quite a year old. It freaked me out. Then everybody has been telling me and ds that we should plan a celebration vacation when we pay off the house, without the kids. I am puzzled, if I am going to celebrate I can take the kids too, they gave up just as much as we did. I also like my kids and want them to have fun like me. I am not one who thinks that I always have to be around them, and we do take time with just adults ( I think we might need more but that will come when ds gets a little older he is only 2) at least once every two months my mom keeps them over night. We have busted it and worked hard to have everything debt free, after the house is done ( in DEC!!!! God willing of course) it will all be done and we plan on taking more time to vacation and enjoy life a little.
The only vacation my husband and I have ever been on alone was for our 10th anniversary. All other "vacations" are either with family or spent at home together. In 2 weeks we will finally go on vacation as a family for only the second time since my 9yo son was born that does not include visiting people.
