Mexico

It was our year for a vacation with my parents so we just got back from Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico! We decided to stay at the resort where my parents have their time share, the Grand Mayan, because it was perfect for kids. I've been here once before a long time back and it's changed quite a bit, but it's one of my favorite places. So beautiful, and so much to do there!

 My parents were so generous to take us there and help so much with the kids. They even let us go walk on the beach, go for ice cream, and go to the fiesta one night kidless! Not to mention them hanging out in our room while Deacon napped numerous times. There was some sickness going around, which was really sad. Each of us besides my dad had a day where we couldn't do much, as we weren't feeling well. I had a bad cold which turned into a fever and one night of sweating it out, but it actually went away super quick which was a blessing. My mom was sick a lot of the time though, which was really too bad. She was still so helpful but I was really wishing we were all healthy. It's not all relaxing bringing the kids along on a vacation, but it was so fun to see them experience new things. Most of all, Bentley learned how to swim on her own with a life jacket! That may seem easy and like it's no big deal, but for Bentley that is truly amazing since most of her life swimming has meant her digging her nails into my neck in fear while I hold her the whole time. Thank goodness for swimming lessons weeks before Mexico, she has finally discovered a new found freedom! She even got all brave and jumped in the water without us even prompting her, we were all shocked! The Grand Mayan has some amazing pools. There's so many to pick from and Bentley loved playing in the fountains one of the pools had, and the beach wave pool where they had some shallow parts and tiny fountains for Deacon to play in. There was a kid pool with water slides but the water there was really cold so Bentley wouldn't go in there. The other pools almost felt like hottubs, it was so nice!!

One day we were swimming in the wave pool area and my mom starting walking over to the pool next to it and discovered a pool party starting up. The music started blasting, balloons and beach balls were everywhere, and then the bubble machine started pumping out tons of bubbles. It was so cool!! The kids were a little bit overwhelmed by it all, but got used to it after a while.

The first day there was a Sunday, so it was hard to keep from swimming but we managed okay. We walked along the beach and took a few photos, and we even had a mini church lesson. My dad taught Bentley about Obeying, and asked her to find O's around the room. So for the whole week she would randomly point out O's she saw! Then Jeff shared an adult lesson and we had a small discussion about it. 

The food there was really great and there were lots of places to pick from without leaving the resort. We did the breakfast buffet a couple times, which was my favorite! It literally had everything you could ever want. For dinners we picked a new restaurant each night and the kids did pretty good. One night our restaurant choice fell through so we ended up going to an Italian place that was a little more fancy, and it was pretty stressful trying to keep the kids quiet. Mostly we chose pretty casual places to eat at and did room service one night. We also shopped at the little grocery store they have there so we made breakfast ourselves a few times and mostly put sandwiches or something together for lunch. The Mexican Fiesta Jeff and I went to one night had the most amazing food! It was all very authentic Mexican and so much to choose from. Our favorite was the pork carnita place shown in the picture, Jeff and I went back 3 times to get another one of those. After the feast there was some entertainment which was really fun. Lots of dancing, some audience participation, and fireworks at the end. There were also some carnival games where Jeff and I won a bunch of candy to take home to Bentley. We had a great date night.

Other than swimming we didn't do a whole lot! We literally never left the resort. They just have everything there, and it's too hard to leave with kids. They have some activities there and Bentley really enjoyed the art/crafts they supplied where she did some painting and some decorating with sparkles. My dad and I entered the ping-pong tournament where he won second place one day and first place the next day! I lost my first game...apparently she was the winner of the last tournament, but I at least gave her a run for her money. We went on lots of walks and we shopped at the market on the beach a little bit. My mom bought Bentley an adorable bracelet and a pen. Bentley also really enjoyed riding the "bus" (golf cart) around the resort. We had so much fun, but I think what took the cake was the lazy river! I can't even count the number of times we went around. Bentley and Deacon would both sit on one of our laps as we sat on the tube. Deacon would constantly be pointing and showing us things and loved the waterfalls we would pass. It really is a dream place. Such a fun holiday!! It was so hard to come home and get back to reality. 

Grandpa's shoulders was Deacon's favorite place!

 But the big feet in the entry was not his favorite..

Thank you Mom and Dad for creating these memories with us! It was a trip we will never forget, and we really enjoyed spending time with you, playing cards, and seeing how much our kids adore their grandparents!! We sure are lucky!