Now retired, my husband wants us to travel - I will miss Grandchildren!

Don't be "sad" about grandparents who centre their lives on their GC - it is a valid lifestyle choice - not for everyone, but is it nothing to be sad about! That implies that they are rather pathetic. I do not think they are - we all have the right to choose. The problem for the OP is that she and her partner are not at one over this and she is faced with a difficult decision. There is no relative value attached to either option. As with many things in a marriage a compromise is likely to be needed.

I agree with Jamila. It is a good time to go, before they start school.
Have you not got friends who could give support? I have good friends who live about 300 miles away and their daughter lives near me- we are sort of extra grandparents and available in an emergency. A win/win situation for everyone involved.
What does OP think after all this discussion?

I do a lot separately from my husband and we are very family orientated, but thankfully we still have romantic notions of coupledom!

What interests me are the logistics of all this. What happens when your children and grandchildren live in different places? Which ones do you choose? Do you love the ones who are nearby more than the others?
We have one family in Spain, one in the UK and us in France. It seems like a reasonable compromise, we love them all very much, work hard at keeping in contact by Skype etc and have an especially lovely time when we see them.
There have been times when it would have been helpful to them to have us nearby but life is a messy compromise, isn't it?

Indeed leticia and in some ways the romantic coupledom bit becomes more important as you get older.
People can be very lonely within marriages sometimes. That comment is not aimed specifically at anyone on the thread, just a general
observation .

I have just commented on another thread about 60+ women just putting up with a marriage for convenience. If OP wants to give her DD a 'date night' - I can't see why she doesn't want the same for herself. It is all too easy to just take a relationship for granted- you are never too old for a bit of romance!

Jane10 It will soon be St Valentine's Day - surprise him

If OP wants to give her DD a 'date night' - I can't see why she doesn't want the same for herself
Yes! Good suggestion.

FFS. We're grown ups. We have better things to do than try to pretend life is full of sunshine and lollipops and prop up the Hallmark card industry. Its the hard times and working together through lifes ups and downs that bring you together as real couples! There's no substitute for that.

You can have both! We shall send Valentine cards. An odd idea that one is a substitute for the other!

I think that for a lot of people they are.

You could make him a , pick him a rose from the garden (mine are still going strong), give him a kiss, a bottle of - it doesn't have to be a Hallmark card!

I usually forget it myself.
Although I did buy a card last year.
And forgot to send it.

Ha. Don't bake, no roses, no garden. He drinks red, I like white.
We're Scottish. None of your Southern sloppy nonsense for us.

Southern?

Oh yes, I suppose most places are south
Are we allowed to a Burns Supper tomorrow night?
Bearing in mind that DH has Scottish blood?
(he likes whisky)

Burns was an equal opportunities poet. I'm sure it would be OK with him. No nonsense though!

Reading your last but one posting jane10 I can see why you invest so much in your grandchildren. Do you and your partner actually have anything in common? Is that the norm for life over the border?
BTW ... I'm a red wine-loving cordon bleu , with a garden , and I'm free.... send him over ! Then you can devote 100% of your time to your GC.Problem solved!

No willsmadnan there is so much more to our relationship than that sort of facile nonsense. We have a lifetime's shared experience. That forges the best kind of relationship. It means that we are in agreement over most things including holidays and the importance of our times with our family.

As you're free willsmadnan perhaps you'd like a singles holiday. Better than going after married men.

Oh dear... t'was a joke jan10. I can think of nothing more boring/depressing than a singles holiday. Such a shame some GNers have lost their sense of humour with advancing years.

I wonder where Minalta's gone, and what she thinks about how her thread has progressed. I'm still intrigued as to what plans she and her husband have for their travels, should they go ahead. Why Mexico? Wei love travelling, but as I said earlier, our Mexican friend strongly advised us against going it alone out there. There were around 22,000 homicides alone last year. An estimated 70 kidnappings per day, most not reported. Of course, if the plan is to stick to the tourist areas, there shouldn't be a problem.

Doesn't sound an ideal place to go Maggiemaybe.
The thing about jokes willsmadnan is that they're meant to be funny. Yours wasn't. I think you may have revealed the reason for your other thread btw. Hmmm?

Who let the meow cats in?

I can think of nothing more boring/depressing than a singles holiday
Well, it depends if you're single or not - if you're widowed, divorced and all your friends are in couples sometimes it's difficult to find someone to go away with. A widowed friend recently plucked up the courage to go on a singles holiday despite misgivings, met up with some other older ladies and thoroughly enjoyed herself. It has renewed her confidence.

I too wondered why Mexico

Perhaps he is a brickie?

Jalima

I'm with Jane10 and I didn't pick up your "joke" either (Friday 21.10) Willsmadnan .

Maybe that's because I live so close to the border though