My Top Five Holiday Getaway

There are times I bounce back and forth between loving home for the holidays and wishing I could getaway to some fantasy destination!

Here are 5 Places I wish for during the holidays:

5. Ireland - The ambiance, the Emerald Isle, pubs, taverns, oh, the accents!!  Celtic Christmas Carols, the looks on my children's faces and maybe some Irish Stew made with Jameson and perhaps some Bailey's in my hot cocoa ... I'll take it.

4. The Beach - Whether Jamaica, Mexico or the finest beaches in Puerto Rico, the beach is where I long to go someday. I can hear it now, my kids surfing and laughing, our toes in the sand and we live in our swimsuits! Perfect.

3. Vermont - Once of my favorite, all time Christmas movies is Christmas in Vermont with Cary Grant and Barbara Stanwick. Horse and buggy rides, sipping hot cocoa by the fire and maybe even a first attempt at skiing! I'd love to be tucked away there for a few weeks vacation and free time for my girls and I to shop, paint, sculpt and just have snowy-fun downtime.

2. New York City - The opposite of downtime, I'd love to see it! Macy's and what it looks like all decorated, the shopping, the shows, the subway music (ah...with someone to help us navigate where the safe places are!), ice skating at Rockefeller Center and New Year's Eve at Times Square!

1. Home Sweet Home. As long as I get to be with my girls and family/friends, I can be content with time together. As much as I long to travel, and hopefully will someday, home is truly where my heart is. We can sip hot cocoa and enjoy many things together, right here in the Quad Cities. Ice skating, Christmas Caroling (which we will probably do in our neighborhood) and decorating our tree, sounds just as nice.

Do you want to go home for the holidays? Tim McGraw is gonna send you! No kidding! You can fly anywhere in the continental U.S., get $500, win a signed guitar from Tim McGraw and a copy his latest CD "Damn Country Music."

2. New York City – Shopping at Macy’s, ice skating in Rockefeller Center, Christmas Mass at the historical St. Peter’s, New Year’s Eve in Times Square!

1. Home with my family and kids. Opening home-made gifts, decorating our tree, caroling in our neighborhood, donating to our food pantry (:’-) Nuff said!