Babymoon: Taking a pre-baby vacation

If you haven’t heard the term just yet, listen up because it’s catching on fast. Babymoons seem to be the latest pre-baby indulgence and celebrities are jumping all over the trend so it’s starting to pop up more in magazines and online.

Sienna Miller told InStyle about her babymoon plans a few months ago, then she and beau Tom Sturridge were snapped in Portofino, Italy in early May. Celebrity bloggers noted that Vanessa and Nick Lachey spent some time at an uber-chic resort in St. Lucia a few weeks ago for their babymoon. “Just wrapped up an incredible babymoon at Jade Mountain. Awesome place, even better people,” tweeted Nick. Other recently-reported celebrity babymoons include Kourtney Kardashian and boyfriend Scott Disick, who soaked up some sun in Mexico a few months ago and Jessica Simpson and fiancé Eric Johnson, who spent a long weekend at a spa in California before daughter Maxwell was born.

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But don’t be fooled, babymoons aren’t just for the Hollywood set. Even us average moms-to-be can get in on this. The idea is to simply take some time away from the stress of preparing for baby and reconnect with your partner. It’s the “last hurrah” before you become parents. A chance to sleep in, eat some great meals and just spend some time together. Of course, you don’t need to be at an expensive resort or travel to a chic destination to do it. Like most vacations, I will say that it probably works best if you can get away from home, though, and better yet out of town. Staycations can be great but when it comes to really relaxing, I’ve found that you need to get away to really get away. You could keep it on-the-cheap by borrowing a friend’s cottage or driving to a B&B.

I was lucky enough to be able to spend my babymoon in serious style at a tropical locale. My babymoon met my every expectation. Sure, the amazing hotels and crystal blue ocean waters helped, but what really sealed it was the relaxation and alone time with Barry. We honestly haven’t spent that much quality time together in a while. Between work, renovating our house and preparing for baby there hasn’t been a lot of “us” time, so this really was the perfect chance to connect and feel close. The best part was that we finally got to step back and look at each other — and my growing belly — and say, “wow, we’re really doing this!” It was a very special time that I’ll remember forever.

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Also, as a side note, I didn’t really start feeling baby move until last week — at least not consistently. Maybe it was because I was so relaxed and just focused on being in the moment, but suddenly I could feel her every flutter, wave and kick. We’d be lying on the beach and I’d say, “Hey, I think I’ve got something!” and Barry would run over and put his hands on my belly so he could feel her, too. It was an amazing thing for us to experience together. And, in the end, I think our babymoon was actually good for all three of us!

Have you taken — or will you consider taking — a babymoon? Tweet me @KarenRobock.

Originally published in June 2012.