Family Vacation

After Ella was born, we did a lot of traveling with her.  We went to weddings, to the beach with friends and family, and even on a 1800+ mile roadtrip through the midwest to visit family.  What we didn't do much, though, was take trips solely for relaxation and new adventure.  That means not combined with business, not to visit friends or family but just somewhere to relax and have fun with our little family.  We remedied that situation in January 2010 when we took Ella to Key West for a long weekend.  We found a lovely resort with beautiful pools and a private beach that was nice enough to feel like a well-deserved vacation for Josh and me, but was kid-friendly enough that we didn't feel bad bringing an 18-month old along.  Without a car, we just walked everywhere on the island, enjoyed that every restaurant has outside dining, and reveled in watching Ella talk to the roaming roosters and cats in Key West.  This was a trip that stayed with us for a long time after we got home.   In the busy days of that year, the lovely memories of traveling with our new family, enjoying the pace of a child in a new location, and of course the perfect weather, were something we both drew on to remind us that sometimes there is more than diaper changes and dishwasher emptying.

Key West, 2010

Let's fast forward a year and a half, and now we have two children.  We keep talking about how we want to go back to Key West.  We talk about this for months.  We look into flights and balk at having to pay for a seat for Ella.  We think about all four of us sharing a hotel room and we balk.  We think about all of the gear we'll have to schlep along (car seats, pack and play, stroller, and so on) and we don't just balk, we completely abandon and say we'll plan to go with the kids are older and need less stuff.

But then a month or so later, Josh decides he hasn't lost the dream, figures out a way to get us into two connected oceanfront rooms without breaking the bank, finds a shuttle service with carseats that will take us from the airport to our hotel (the only time we actually need the blasted seats), and determines that the hotel has cribs.  Suddenly the sleeping situation and the gear-lugging problem have been resolved.  The trip is on!

The fall and winter fly by and we stumble out of the Thanksgiving-Dash birthday-Hanukkah-Christmas-Sarah Birthday-New Year craziness to discover that we're leaving on vacation in just a few weeks.  I briefly panic about all of the packing and then remember that I detest the airline checked baggage fees and therefore will be packing ONE, yes that's right ONE, suitcase for the four of us.  If it doesn't fit, we'll buy it there or live without it.

Early, oh very early, on a Wednesday morning, we pack up the car and our sleepy kids and head off to the airport.  We've gone totally practical - instead of a cute tote for me or one of his nice business travel bags, Josh and I are both sporting overstuffed backpacks dug out of the closet from our grad school days, stashed with snacks, coloring books, and diapers.

The highlight of the flights was landing in Key West.  The lowlights were much of the time between take-off in Raleigh and said landing.  Notable low moments included Dash deciding to be the baby who doesn't nap on planes and the giant barf from Ella during the Raleigh to Atlanta portion of the trip.  We're not sure what happened - excitement, too much water, motion sickness - but it was a giant mess, and worst of all, in all of my packing parsimony, I had elected not to bring a change of clothes for Ella on the plane.  As Ella rightfully said "Mommy, throwing up doesn't smell very good."  While Josh walked Dash around the Atlanta airport to get him to take a catnap in the Ergo, Ella and I went in search of replacement clothing which came in the form of a giant pink Atlanta t-shirt.

So we arrived in Key West looking a little less polished and smelling a little more rank than I would have hoped.  And the rooms at the resort weren't ready yet so we spent the first hour by the pool with Ella wearing nothing but her giant Atlanta t-shirt.

Poolside in pink

Fortunately, everything looked up from there.  Our rooms were lovely with a view of the ocean and balconies where Josh and I could relax after the kids went to sleep.  Even better, in the early morning when the children woke up, we could watch the sunrise and then watch the diggers drag around the sand to make everything picture perfect for another day in paradise.

  Early morning art while the sun rises

Diggers on the beach!  Such excitement for the kids

One thing that we have learned about traveling with our kids is that everyone will be happier if we stick to their schedule.  So rather than give in to the temptation to stay up later for a nice dinner or to skip a nap for more beach time, we dutifully put Ella and Dash down for naps and bedtime at their normal times, ate meals at their normal (read: early) times, and generally let their needs guide our activities.  Of course since Dash naps from 9:30-11 and 1:30-3:00 and then goes to bed at 6 pm, we had short increments of time to work with.  Unlike our previous trip where we explored the entire length of Duval Street, this time we barely made it a third of the way down on any given outing.

One of our favorite places to go is Blue Heaven, a funky restaurant with a huge outdoor courtyard (I don't even know if they have inside seating) with roaming roosters and cats.  I suppose some people might find this mixing of food, fowl, and feline offensive, but I choose instead to focus on how much these animals entertain my children.  We have never seen Dash so happily occupied at a restaurant.  The happier he was, the longer I got to linger over my lobster benedict and that is a good thing.

Dash: Ey-yah!  Cack!  Cack! 

Translation:  Look, Ella, there are roosters!  Roosters!

We spent a lot of time at the pool and on the beach and on the lawn just exploring.  I know we spend time just being present with the children at home but there is always the lingering need to run a load of laundry or check work email.  On this trip, we just got to enjoy long stretches of playtime which made the all of the challenges of traveling with the kids feel really worth it.

Water baby

Playing in the sand on the beach.

In the yard with Daddy

At home, our kids don't share a room so it was entertaining to see how they handled being in the same space during naptime and bedtime.  We don't even really notice it but in his own room back home, Dashiell often wakes up about 6 a.m. and just talks and plays in his crib for a good hour.  Unfortunately for Ella, he did this on vacation, too, and it woke up her up every day.  One of the things she told everyone when we got back was that "Dashy woke me up when we slept in the same room."

 

 

So was it relaxing?  Only a little.  Was it fun?  Very much.  Would we do it again?  Absolutely.