On Thursday morning, Mike and I escaped reality for a few days to celebrate our 8th wedding anniversary. We flew into Cancun around midday and headed straight for our resort in the Riviera Maya region. It was our first time in Mexico and our first time staying at an all-inclusive. Our room was very nice and we could see the pool and the beach from our window. We stuck around the resort that day and got our bearings and attempted (and mostly failed) to adjust to a vacation pace.
The resort had five restaurants but we were there too late to make reservations for the first night, so we were stuck eating at the buffet. Meh. For Mike and I, it always comes down to the food, and while I think all-inclusive would be a great option with the kids, it probably isn’t something that the two of us need. Neither of us drink our weight in alcohol and all-inclusive food is fine, but not spectacular. When I’m on vacation, I want amazing food – not food I can make at home. Now we can at least say we’ve tried it though. Overall, the feel of an all-inclusive resort reminds me a lot of a cruise ship.
Because of my work, I was up every morning around 4 while Mike slept. Yes, this did suck, but at least then I was able to enjoy most of the day out and about. I typically worked a bit once we were back in the room after dinner too. You’d think I’d be used to all of this by now, but there is still a part of me that longs for a “normal” job with off days.
On Friday morning, we took a cab into Playa Del Carmen and spent the morning perusing the beach shops (just like any other beach town but with a few less emeralds). Many of the shop owners stand in front of their store in an attempt to entice people to come into their stores (if anything, it makes me less likely to want to enter!) but one shopkeeper said to me as we passed by, “You look like chicken!” I guess my extra white skin wasn’t appealing to him. 
This has become one of our new running jokes. Oh well – I guess I’d rather “look like chicken!” then have skin cancer. We walked down to the beach (which was much prettier than at our resort) and ate fish tacos in town (yesterday’s picture is from our lunch) before heading back to the resort in the afternoon. On Friday evening, we ate at the Mexican restaurant and the food was good but not memorable – as was most of the food we ate during our stay.
On Saturday, we didn’t have any plans, so we attempted to relax. We ate breakfast (probably the best meal of our vacation – quesadillas, refried beans, chips, guac, and pico along with yogurt with fresh mangos, coconut, and granola) and spent time exploring the beach. We spent a bit of time reading our books by the water (Mike was covered in SPF 70), read some more on the deck outside of our room, played cards, and looked at each other numerous times with the realization that we no longer have any idea how to relax (or be bored) now that we have children. Saturday evening we ate at the French restaurant and met a retired English man who is staying at the resort for a month. He was interesting to talk to and gave us his email. Apparently he travels the entire month of February each year and offered to have us stay for free at his home in Cornwall. Sounds intriguing…
Realizing on Saturday that another day sitting at the resort was going to make us lose our marbles, we booked tours for Sunday and Monday. On Sunday, we did a tour called Tulum Extreme. In the morning, a guide took us through the Tulum ruins. It was beautiful. If we decide to go to Mexico again, I want to spend some quality time at the beach in Tulum. It was just breath-taking. We also saw several Mexican chickens – aka iguanas. Our guide suggested we have a snack before heading to the second part of our tour, so we had a couple of tacos. I think I’m currently in pico withdrawal.
The second part of the tour was scary but neat. We were able to snorkel in a cave-type cenote. There weren’t a lot of fish, but a few, and the cenote itself was a neat experience. The water was a bit brisk, but we quickly adjusted to it.
Next up was rappelling, which I had never done before. I’m pretty afraid of heights, so I was freaking out a bit, but still managed to do it. I kept thinking of Kate Gosselin and that motivated me not to be a wimp. <Have you seen the episode where she freaks out about jumping off a building for 2 hours?> It was scary, but really neat too! 
After rappelling, we did three zip lines. They were actually super easy after the rappelling. The tour concluded with a buffet lunch (more pico, guac, and chips) before we headed back to our resort.
Sunday evening, we ate at the seafood restaurant and Mike watched the Super Bowl in our room while I worked. I did see the end of the game, but since we weren’t really rooting for either team, it wasn’t that big of a deal that we missed part of it for dinner.
On Monday, we headed to Chichen Itza. It was a long drive from where we were staying, but we were on a charter bus and watched movies. I actually really enjoyed the ride and since we rarely watch movies any more I hadn’t seen either of them – watching two full movies felt indulgent! The first was “Just Go With It” with Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston and on the way back we watched “Real Steel.” Having children has made me much easier to amuse…
Chichen Itza itself was very neat to see. By our tour choices, our true colors as history nerds are apparent, but we did enjoy seeing the ruins and learning more about the history. Our guide was very knowledgeable and interesting. After a two hour walking tour of the area, our group headed back to a hotel that was very close for lunch (did someone say pico?) and then a small group from our tour went to another cenote. I thought it would be just like the one we swam in the day before so I wasn’t really thrilled, but figured it would be better than sitting in the hotel waiting for everyone to be ready to head back. This cenote was not a cave, but just a sink hole filled with the fresh water. The plants, vines, and water were beautiful. Part of the fun of this cenote was jumping off the ledge into the water – which also freaked me out, but Mike and I held hands and I did it. Mike jumped a few more times, but once was enough for me to experience it.
Apparently we were on the Midwestern tour, as everyone we were with was from Wisconsin, Iowa, or Illinois. The couple sitting behind us on the bus were from Joliet and became engaged before plunging into the cenote. I had my Canon around my neck, so I ended up snapping about 15 pictures of their engagement. It was very sweet to witness and a perfect place for a special engagement. It was her birthday too! Definitely a moment they will always remember and I was glad I was able to capture it for them.
We had a late dinner that night at the Italian restaurant and had everything mostly packed so we’d be ready to go on Tuesday morning. After breakfast on Tuesday, we spent a little while out on the beach, soaking in the last few moments of our vacation. On every trip, I try to pick one moment that I can go to in my mind and from this trip it is from that morning on the beach. I can see the pier, hear the waves and the birds, and feel the sun on my skin. Hopefully that memory will help me make it until spring! While there are many things I love about the Midwest, the grey winter days are not one of them!
We had a quick bite at the airport and made it home in time to see the kiddos for a few minutes before bed. While we both missed the trio, it was nice to have a brief taste of what it was like when it was just the two of us. It was nice to not have to worry about all of the meals, snacks, laundry, clean up, dressing, teeth brushing, school rushing, for a few days. It was enjoyable to eat in peace and be able to have moments with actual conversations. Hopefully it refilled our tanks for the coming months as marriage with three small children is definitely not a Mexican vacation. 
Next on our travel list – being brave and staying with the kiddos in a hotel – we’re actually thinking we may be extra cautious and spend a night at Grand Bear (about 5 minutes from home) to see how the hotel experience goes. If that goes well, Disney will be happening at some point this year. Mike and I are thinking the next time we can get away sans trio, we’d love to go to New York. It’s probably a year away, but I’ll start dreaming about it now…
On Thursday morning, Mike and I escaped reality for a few days to celebrate our 8th wedding anniversary. We flew into Cancun around midday and headed straight for our resort in the Riviera Maya region. It was our first time in Mexico and our first time staying at an all-inclusive. Our room was very nice and we could see the pool and the beach from our window. We stuck around the resort that day and got our bearings and attempted (and mostly failed) to adjust to a vacation pace.
The resort had five restaurants but we were there too late to make reservations for the first night, so we were stuck eating at the buffet. Meh. For Mike and I, it always comes down to the food, and while I think all-inclusive would be a great option with the kids, it probably isn’t something that the two of us need. Neither of us drink our weight in alcohol and all-inclusive food is fine, but not spectacular. When I’m on vacation, I want amazing food – not food I can make at home. Now we can at least say we’ve tried it though. Overall, the feel of an all-inclusive resort reminds me a lot of a cruise ship.
Because of my work, I was up every morning around 4 while Mike slept. Yes, this did suck, but at least then I was able to enjoy most of the day out and about. I typically worked a bit once we were back in the room after dinner too. You’d think I’d be used to all of this by now, but there is still a part of me that longs for a “normal” job with off days.
On Friday morning, we took a cab into Playa Del Carmen and spent the morning perusing the beach shops (just like any other beach town but with a few less emeralds). Many of the shop owners stand in front of their store in an attempt to entice people to come into their stores (if anything, it makes me less likely to want to enter!) but one shopkeeper said to me as we passed by, “You look like chicken!” I guess my extra white skin wasn’t appealing to him.
This has become one of our new running jokes. Oh well – I guess I’d rather “look like chicken!” then have skin cancer. We walked down to the beach (which was much prettier than at our resort) and ate fish tacos in town (yesterday’s picture is from our lunch) before heading back to the resort in the afternoon. On Friday evening, we ate at the Mexican restaurant and the food was good but not memorable – as was most of the food we ate during our stay.
On Saturday, we didn’t have any plans, so we attempted to relax. We ate breakfast (probably the best meal of our vacation – quesadillas, refried beans, chips, guac, and pico along with yogurt with fresh mangos, coconut, and granola) and spent time exploring the beach. We spent a bit of time reading our books by the water (Mike was covered in SPF 70), read some more on the deck outside of our room, played cards, and looked at each other numerous times with the realization that we no longer have any idea how to relax (or be bored) now that we have children. Saturday evening we ate at the French restaurant and met a retired English man who is staying at the resort for a month. He was interesting to talk to and gave us his email. Apparently he travels the entire month of February each year and offered to have us stay for free at his home in Cornwall. Sounds intriguing…
Realizing on Saturday that another day sitting at the resort was going to make us lose our marbles, we booked tours for Sunday and Monday. On Sunday, we did a tour called Tulum Extreme. In the morning, a guide took us through the Tulum ruins. It was beautiful. If we decide to go to Mexico again, I want to spend some quality time at the beach in Tulum. It was just breath-taking. We also saw several Mexican chickens – aka iguanas. Our guide suggested we have a snack before heading to the second part of our tour, so we had a couple of tacos. I think I’m currently in pico withdrawal.
The second part of the tour was scary but neat. We were able to snorkel in a cave-type cenote. There weren’t a lot of fish, but a few, and the cenote itself was a neat experience. The water was a bit brisk, but we quickly adjusted to it.
Next up was rappelling, which I had never done before. I’m pretty afraid of heights, so I was freaking out a bit, but still managed to do it. I kept thinking of Kate Gosselin and that motivated me not to be a wimp.
<Have you seen the episode where she freaks out about jumping off a building for 2 hours?> It was scary, but really neat too! 
After rappelling, we did three zip lines. They were actually super easy after the rappelling. The tour concluded with a buffet lunch (more pico, guac, and chips) before we headed back to our resort.
Sunday evening, we ate at the seafood restaurant and Mike watched the Super Bowl in our room while I worked. I did see the end of the game, but since we weren’t really rooting for either team, it wasn’t that big of a deal that we missed part of it for dinner.
On Monday, we headed to Chichen Itza. It was a long drive from where we were staying, but we were on a charter bus and watched movies. I actually really enjoyed the ride and since we rarely watch movies any more I hadn’t seen either of them – watching two full movies felt indulgent! The first was “Just Go With It” with Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston and on the way back we watched “Real Steel.” Having children has made me much easier to amuse…
Chichen Itza itself was very neat to see. By our tour choices, our true colors as history nerds are apparent, but we did enjoy seeing the ruins and learning more about the history. Our guide was very knowledgeable and interesting. After a two hour walking tour of the area, our group headed back to a hotel that was very close for lunch (did someone say pico?) and then a small group from our tour went to another cenote. I thought it would be just like the one we swam in the day before so I wasn’t really thrilled, but figured it would be better than sitting in the hotel waiting for everyone to be ready to head back. This cenote was not a cave, but just a sink hole filled with the fresh water. The plants, vines, and water were beautiful. Part of the fun of this cenote was jumping off the ledge into the water – which also freaked me out, but Mike and I held hands and I did it. Mike jumped a few more times, but once was enough for me to experience it.
Apparently we were on the Midwestern tour, as everyone we were with was from Wisconsin, Iowa, or Illinois. The couple sitting behind us on the bus were from Joliet and became engaged before plunging into the cenote. I had my Canon around my neck, so I ended up snapping about 15 pictures of their engagement. It was very sweet to witness and a perfect place for a special engagement. It was her birthday too! Definitely a moment they will always remember and I was glad I was able to capture it for them.
We had a late dinner that night at the Italian restaurant and had everything mostly packed so we’d be ready to go on Tuesday morning. After breakfast on Tuesday, we spent a little while out on the beach, soaking in the last few moments of our vacation. On every trip, I try to pick one moment that I can go to in my mind and from this trip it is from that morning on the beach. I can see the pier, hear the waves and the birds, and feel the sun on my skin. Hopefully that memory will help me make it until spring! While there are many things I love about the Midwest, the grey winter days are not one of them!
We had a quick bite at the airport and made it home in time to see the kiddos for a few minutes before bed. While we both missed the trio, it was nice to have a brief taste of what it was like when it was just the two of us. It was nice to not have to worry about all of the meals, snacks, laundry, clean up, dressing, teeth brushing, school rushing, for a few days. It was enjoyable to eat in peace and be able to have moments with actual conversations. Hopefully it refilled our tanks for the coming months as marriage with three small children is definitely not a Mexican vacation.
Next on our travel list – being brave and staying with the kiddos in a hotel – we’re actually thinking we may be extra cautious and spend a night at Grand Bear (about 5 minutes from home) to see how the hotel experience goes. If that goes well, Disney will be happening at some point this year. Mike and I are thinking the next time we can get away sans trio, we’d love to go to New York. It’s probably a year away, but I’ll start dreaming about it now…