Vacations as a Single Mom

Every once in a while I get a wild hair to jump in the car and take a vacation with the kids while Zak is working. (Lets face it, when is Zak not working?) Every time I do it I have visions of relaxing days by the pool or time filled with fun activities with the kids. Usually by hour 2 those fantasies have crashed and burned!
We have these amazing friends that have a gorgeous home in St. George who have offered us a weekend there. Zak is traveling over the weekend so I figure we could head down there for a few days for some family time, well for some reason, my children tend to fight even worse when their dad is not there. I don't know if they are scared of him or maybe I am less ornery because I have someone there to help me so I don't notice the fighting as much. I am not kidding, on the ride home the 14 year old, the 10 year old and the 5 year old are all fighting over the same Santa Claus blanket! We couldn't go anywhere without Ethan running off, the older girls trying to meet boys, and Chloe whining that something wasn't fair.
Anyways, if you are considering doing this please make sure you are either going to visit family or talk one of your friends into going with you because it is sometimes not worth it. Obviously, I am not cut out to be a single mom, that is for sure! Maybe when they are MUCH MUCH older, we will try it again, but probably not anytime soon!