Take the Trips, Take the Pictures, and For the Love of God, Take it Easy on Yourself!

Soooo yes, I am here on a Friday writing a blog post that was due on Monday and that's a very special kind of emotional journey for me. IYKYK One I do not recommend, especially when you're just crawling out of the magical, sun-soaked haze of vacation. But here we are. And we've got some catching up to do.

First of all: VACATION!!!!!!!!!!! Yes, it FINALLY happened! After initially wrestling with the idea of being trapped at sea with thousands of strangers and a buffet line I swore I'd never love (spoiler alert: I did), I caved. It was, in no uncertain terms, unreal.

We cruised with FIFTEEN of our favorite humans. Ages ranged from "we still throw the occasional temper tantrum" to "I came, I saw, I conquered" and somehow, it worked...flawlessly. No one got thrown overboard, and we came back with full hearts and probably all sporting a few extra pounds. Totally worth it!!

I'll paint a little picture for you: crystal clear turquoise water, world-class service that made us feel like royalty, cocktail hour(s), silent discos, shows that gave Comedy Works a run for its money, and dinners so long and decadent we needed a nap, and a pep talk to get through dessert. The ports (Bimini and Nassau) - eh, not quite the highlight reel (we nearly got stranded in the middle of an island, but that's a story for another day). The experience though - oooooh the experience - absolutely top shelf! It wasn't about the stops. It was all about who we were with and what it meant to all be together. The magic was in the people, not the places.

A typical day on the ship: Brad working out like a responsible adult, while I slowly caffeinated into existence. Brunch. Poolside people-watching or an off-boat excursion that usually ended in us saying, "Welp, that was unexpected." More food. More drinks. A nap by the pool (don't judge). Then beautification, cocktails, laughter, dinner shows, nightcaps, maybe a silent disco or some heartfelt convos about life and love and how long Brad will run in place the next morning. Rinse. Repeat.

I won't spill ALL the memory tea because I already did my makeup today and I'm not about to cry it off. Just know - it was EVERYTHING!!!

Soul food. Marriage fuel. Family magic. We needed it more than we even realized.

And then...re-entry into society.

We landed one week ago today and it's been a sprint ever since. Not even a warm-up jog. We're talking Usain Bolt energy the minute we hit the ground. Email waiting for us? New buyer. Boom. Met him this week and we're pumped to work with him! Phone call on the shuttle to our car? Another buyer ready to make a move. We were still trying to find our toothbrushes when we were touring homes and yet, we got that client under contract by Sunday.

Since then we've:

~ Attended a Ladies of Parker wine night (wine = networking fuel)

~ Filmed FIVE new Parker Insiders SBS videos (yes, FIVE)

~ Attended a Rotary sponsors appreciation event

~ Ran a CO4NU networking event

~ Closed on 1.5 properties (because life gets weird and sometimes buyers and sellers don't close on the same day

~ Showed more homes

~Took a listing appointment

~ And are still staring down a weekend to-do list that looks like a CVS receipt

Oh, and there's been some heavy stuff going on in our personal world, too. Because, why not? We're well-rested and ready for it!?

Running a business with your spouse is basically the Olympic triathlon of relationships. Add real estate, and now you're playing it on expert mode. But we CHOSE this life. And we choose it again and again, every day, even when we're exhausted, running late, and wondering if we remembered to move the laundry from the washer to the dryer (doing that as soon as I push the "post" button).

Was it easy to take a vacation right now? Absolutely not.

Was it the best decision we've made in years? 1000% YES!

To our incredible clients, friends, and the absolute dream team that held it all down while we were gone - thank you isn't even close to enough. Mandy Brynn Preston - y'all gave us the gift of space, rest, reconnection, and meals eaten at normal speeds. We're better because of you and we appreciate you more than you could ever know!

Life is full! Our calendars are wild. But we are blessed and grateful beyond words.

Take the trips. Take the pictures. Take the PAUSE.

You'll never regret the memories you made, only the ones you didn't.