After the redemption {Sequel}

9 Vacation

"Mama, Daddy, wake up! Move it! Let's go! Can we go now?" I heard Aiden excitedly say as he and his sister started jumping up and down on our bed.

"Daddy come on. Wake up!" Alice joined in.

I groaned and slowly opened my eyes and looked at the alarm clock. It was just 5:30 in the morning. I turned to Adam and saw him sleepily rubbing his eyes. We were going to leave early, but that was a little too early for our taste.

Our two little hurricanes seemed to think that we had slept enough. The anticipation of the vacation apparently robbed them of their sleep.

"Okay okay we are awake. Please calm down. We'll eat breakfast first, then we'll get freshened up, and then we'll be on our way," I told my children, who then jumped off the bed and stormed out of the room. They probably already sat down at the dining table.

I rolled over to Adam and gave him a quick kiss.

"Good morning darling. It looks like we've slept enough. I'll get breakfast ready," I said to my husband before reluctantly leaving the warm and comfortable bed.

I tied my hair together and then went into the kitchen. First I turned on the coffee machine. Caffeine was now really necessary. Then I prepared cereal with fresh fruit for the kids. For Adam and me I only made some scrambled eggs. Nothing fancy.

Aiden and Alice ate their food, but their enthusiasm was really noticeable. They practically bounced in their chairs.

After we all ate and then got ready, it was finally time to go.

"Do we have everything?" Adam wanted to know from me.

"Yeah, I think so. If we did forget something, it can't be that important. Besides, in case of emergency, we can still get it. But I don't think that's necessary. And we already have the groceries for the first two days with us," I said.

"You are right. Okay everyone...ready?" he asked, looking in the rear view mirror to see the reaction of the kids. Both threw their arms in the air and answered with a loud 'Yeah'.

Since the children had gotten up so early in the morning, we were lucky that they fell asleep after only 20 minutes. While we left the narrowness and traffic of the city behind us, we spent most of the time talking or listening to music. The drive alone was totally relaxing for me. I asked Adam several times if I should switch over to driving, but he denied it every time. He would tell me if he needed a break.

We were only about half an hour from our destination when Aiden and Alice woke up from their nap. I didn't expect them to sleep for most of the drive. Still, it was a good thing that we didn't have to take any breaks and reached our destination faster than expected.

The cottage Adam had rented was located on a farm surrounded by woods and fields. It was so beautiful here and I knew right away that our two little ones would love it here. As we drove up the long driveway, the kids looked out the window of the car completely mesmerized. Eyes big and mouths wide open at the sight of the herd of cows and the horses standing in their paddocks.

"My goodness, Adam, this is amazing. It's so beautiful here!" I said enthusiastically.

"It really is. I can't wait to see it all. Everything looked so perfect in the photos. It seems that this was no exaggeration," he replied as he parked the car in front of the cottage.

We were just getting out of the car and helping the children out when a young woman came towards us.

"Hello everybody. Are you the Cole family? My name is Summer. How was the trip? Did you have a good time getting here?" she said cheerfully.

"Yes, we are. I am Adam, this is my wife Y/N and our children Aiden and Alice. It's nice to meet you Summer," Adam said and shook her hand.

"Same here. So... let me show you your home for the next two weeks. Please follow me," Summer replied, walking ahead of us up the steps to the entrance of the cottage.

The cottage was so lovely and tastefully decorated. With much love for every detail. One immediately felt like at home. It was equipped with everything you needed. From a small kitchen to a washing machine and dryer.

Summer took the time to explain everything to us. You could feel that she had a lot of experience in dealing with guests. We hardly had to ask questions. She answered them before we could even utter them.

"All right. If you don't have any more questions, I'll leave you alone for now. So you can arrive in peace and unpack. I left you fresh milk and eggs in the refrigerator. Of course everything here from the farm. And please, if you need anything, just come to me or my husband Stephen and we will be happy to help you. I hope you enjoy your time with us," she said after showing us around. I liked her already. Summer radiated such positive energy and ease.

After Summer left, we started unloading the car while Aiden and Alice were busy in the little playground area next to the cottage.

We were all looking forward to the many new things that we would certainly experience here.