The funny thing about romantic vacations is that I spend months impatiently getting excited about the prospect of spending quality time with my husband while getting a break from Cy, and then the moment I’m gone, I miss him like crazy.

That being said, when my husband and I were offered a complimentary staycation as part of a promotion for brand new site jaunt.ca, we were out the door faster than you can say ‘taxi!’

Taking Cy with us is not always a vacation – the whole idea of packing ‘lite’ goes out the window, and spending all our time running around making sure he’s not jumping off the dock, poking beehives, and eating sand is anything but relaxing (yes, my son voluntarily shoves sand in his mouth. I blame my hairspray fumes.) 

So we packed our bags and took a little jaunt to the beautiful and culturally rich city of Toronto, Ontario. Yes, the same city we live in. 20 blocks from our house, to be exact. While Cy hung out with babcia for the night, we checked in to the hip Soho Met on Wellington, booked a gallery tour, and dined on fancy chinese fare. I know the idea sounds kind of silly – why spend money on a hotel in your own city when you can sleep for free at home? But you know, there’s something about treating yourself to such a luxury (though it wasn’t nearly as expensive as you’d think!) that the moment you’re doing it, it makes perfect sense. Everywhere I went I tried to take in the city from a tourist’s perspective. Seeing everything again for the first time gave me a whole new appreciation for my city.

And well, the king size bed, fancy 500-thread count sheets, and not having to get up at the crack of dawn with Cy was worth the price tenfold. It was the perfect getaway without having to get away. I feel horrible admitting this – but I didn’t miss Cy or worry about him for more than a minute. Knowing I was going to see him the very next day meant I could truly enjoy my night. I had the best time and would do it again in a heartbeat.

Sadly, I think we’ve officially maxed out our free babysitting passes from family and friends, so it’s going to be a while before we jaunt anywhere – near or far – in the next little while.

But at least we went out with style!