When is a Holiday Not a Holiday?

When you have kids.We were away last week and I didn't have any work I had to do but I did imagine that in my 'down time' I might blog a little, work a little on my book, edit some pictures.. and I ended up doing absolutely nothing. For the first time in years I took a legit week off. It was aided by the shoddy hotel internet and the very close quarters which gave zero space to escape with my laptop but whatever the reason, I took a vacation.The kids, however, are never off duty. They fought like cat and dog 70% of the time (and I'm being generous) and so although I am physically well rested from the bizarrely fantastic sleep I experienced while away, I am very much happy to be home where we can put some space between us and our bickering offspring.It was our first time in an all inclusive resort and our first family holiday to anywhere in Europe outside of Disneyland, so I had no idea what to expect. After a gruelling budget flight, I over-indulged in the limitless beer on the first night, like the rookie that I was. The next morning did not feel all that relaxing as a result. Heat + Hangover + "Mummy! Mummy! Mummy" = Horrible. I learned from that mistake pretty swiftly and rediscovered Lemon Fanta in between my alcholic beverages for the rest of the week. Since we are usually city-breakers and I am well known for being incapable of relaxing I didn't really know what to do with myself, so I lounged.. and I ate, and I lounged, and I ate, and I burned, and I covered myself in Aloe Vera, and I ate... I'm home now and have no foundation that matches my face, have to bathe in luke warm water and my jeans are a little tight. If I had my time again I'd have arranged an excursion or two.Because we didn't do the Spanish holiday thing when I was a kid I never thought to do it as an adult and for years people have been telling me I'm 'doing it wrong' and we'd all 'love a pool holiday'. In actual fact I don't think any of us loved it. Part of me did think the kids were missing out on something and that was part of the motivation for booking but I missed getting up every day knowing I had a full itinerary of things to do. I got a great tan and a lot of sleep and it was really inexpensive (because we didn't leave the hotel) but I feel like I've ticked the box now and I'm not going to be wondering whether our family holidays would be better spent closer to home.