I never fully appreciated how appealing a girlfriend getaway could be until I became a mom. This weekend, as I struggled to keep my infant daughter fed, changed, and shielded from the sun on our first family getaway at the Fontainebleau in Miami, I was surrounded on all sides by groups of women who seemed to be having loads more fun than me. (Not that I wasn't having fun. Simply being with my husband and daughter that much was a thrill…But still.)

To my left at the pool one day, a group of women from New York struck up a conversation with me about my daughter. They had all left theirs at home. They told me this as they flagged a pool boy to order another round of frothy, fruity cocktails, before heading to the spa. They said they thought they would miss their babies more than they did. But in fact, they were having a ball, and not thinking twice about it, thank you very much.

I was thrilled to see the resort, just having completed its much-touted $1 billion restoration, overrun with all types. Young families, fabulous big-spenders from South America (bless them and their cash)—and most importantly, groups of women realizing that in these crappy times, ordering a couple cocktails from a hot pool guy seriously serves its purpose.