Last weekend J and I went to the Berkshires all by ourselves. All by ourselves, guys. J's parents kindly agreed to take Nora for three nights so we could drive a couple hours to a bed and breakfast for a relaxing weekend away before the new baby shows up. I decided I wanted to go away on this blessed weekend before I got too much further into the third trimester...before I got really huge and basically gave up on everything besides being pregnant. March. That is what is happening in March.

This weekend was awesome in a way that I can't quite put into words. It was one of those rare occasions where the vacation was truly relaxing in all aspects. Like, neither of us was worried about any work commitments, Nora was safe and sound with family and the place we stayed was exactly what we'd wanted, complete with a great big sitting room with a huge fireplace. We spent our hours exploring little towns and talking to fellow travelers and reading.

One of the days I took a nice, hot shower and when I got out I decided, "I am just going to sit here and dry off for a while." And that's exactly what I did. It was all about having plenty of time on this vacation - the kind of time you simply don't take for yourself when you're enveloped in home life - and right here and now I'd like to urge all parents to plan their very own weekend away. And do it every year. Really!

Anyway, the very best moment of this particular weekend occurred when I was slowly waking up from a nap in our room, and I received a text from J, who was in the main house reading by the fire, explaining that I should come on over because the innkeeper had just served mulled apple cider and cupcakes. I was pulling on my boots within two seconds.

Before you chide me for describing this as the best moment of the trip, please recall that I'm pregnant.

When you wake up from a great nap and then someone is serving you apple cider and cupcakes, well, THAT is a vacation.

It was a little sad coming home, although great to see Nora, of course. I was starting to think that I wasn't going to have another truly great moment for a very long time. But then MSNBC announced this week that on Friday, Oprah is going to be a guest on "Morning Joe," the morning news program we watch fairly religiously. I have to admit, I got pretty excited. It might not be vacation-worthy stuff, but that pairing on a weekday morning, along with a good cup of coffee? That's gold, baby.