STOLEN MOMENTS & SNEAKY GETAWAYS.

My husband is pretty clever. He's open-minded, and thinks outside the square. I call it his special gift. It was one of my biggest attractions to him. And during our 10 years together, I've been continually amazed at his ability to think through absolutely all options to make a well-thought-out decision. It never ceases to amaze me.

That, and his ability to prioritise really, really well. One of the many things he manages to do very cleverly is juggle his work/life balance. His day job takes him travelling everywhere - and I admit, when he does it, he does it well.

When we lived in outback Western Australia for 4 years, he barely travelled. But on the rare occasion when he did need to, he always made sure his work trips involved a legitimate way to have me come along, and it was timed around a weekend where we could have a little break. Living pretty much miles from anywhere, this was a real treat. And the closest getaway was about 6 hours away by car. So, if we needed to buy essentials for work, we always went together and had a mini-break while we were at it.

Then we lived in Papua New Guinea. And although taking trips by plane was very, very expensive, there were some chances for me to see some gorgeous places - all in the name of work. And when I couldn't come, Hubby always made sure (mostly) that he was home by the weekend. And anyone who has a partner who travels, knows the weekends can be the loneliest.

My husband's latest family/work juggle happened last week. In a nutshell, Hubby was asked earlier this year to play music at a big function in Brisbane. But because he knew I would have a new baby, and it wasn't his core business, he felt he could better use the time in the office and being nearby for me.

That suited us well, until last week when an opening came up again for a guitarist. But this time there was a carrot: we were invited too.

So, off the whole family went to Queensland for my husband's work trip. And even though he worked every morning, and afternoon until the evening, we booked a place where I could relax, and where we could spend a couple of hours on a few of the days together as a family.

So, one day we had a picnic in the playground; a paddle on the bay; a swim in the pool; a run on the beach; chips and gravy by the ocean.

It was a juggle to coordinate children's sleep times with hubby's work times. But it was the stolen moments together that made it all so special.

And the benefit for me? A change of location, warmer weather, a place where I could just chill with my beautiful boys, a chance to catch up with some old friends, the boys saw their dad every day, and we were together as a family every night.

A win-win situation for everyone really...