The Honeymoon We Never Had

My husband and I have been together for 11 years, married for 8.  We have never been on a vacation together.  How is that possible, you ask? Well, allow me to explain...

Both from working class families and myself coming from a single parent home, our families were unable to provide a lot of financial support for our wedding, and we ourselves, were just getting started.  I was just graduating college and beginning a job in social services working with families affected by Alzheimer's disease, a job which was dear to my heart but not to my wallet.  

We had a small, economical wedding and reception, memorable and special, but nothing fancy.  A honeymoon was not even a consideration at that time, as we were just trying to scrape together enough to marry and begin our lives together.  We will go on one soon, we thought, once we have the money.  

Six months later, we found out we were having our first child, a little girl.  Our daughter was born three months premature for unknown reasons, weighing only 2 lbs and in respiratory distress.  She spent 57 days in the hospital NICU and came home hooked up to an oxygen tank and heart monitor.  Our daughter's health led me to have to leave my job to care for her full time.  Needless to say, a honeymoon was not in the cards then, either...

It's hard to believe it's been seven years since we brought our daughter home from the hospital.  She is finally caught up developmentally now and thriving in second grade.  It's been a long journey and an incredible struggle.  We have worked so hard, eventually able to get a mortgage for a modest home for our family, but still live pretty much paycheck to paycheck...and still waiting for that honeymoon.  

We are both in school trying to create a brighter future for our family, my husband going into the real estate business and myself, getting my master's in public administration, where I am specializing in nonprofit management, hoping to continue my lifelong goal of leaving the world a better place than I found it.  

I am not one to ask for money.  In fact, there's almost nothing I dislike more than asking for money. But I am doing this anyway, for my family.  I love my husband.  And I miss my husband.  We've been through so much and worked so hard and there's never been a time that we've been able to get away and just be together.  Ever.  Without worrying about bills or our daughter's upcoming medical evaluation.  Without being weighed down by all the burdens of daily life.  We haven't been more than 2 hours from home in over a decade.  I would love to be able to give my husband, and my family, this gift, with your generous support.