2017 has been pretty epic for us, vacation-wise. We didn’t really set out to go quite so big this year, but gosh, when your brother asks if you want to join him and the family for a few days at a lovely house on the Hood Canal, or when flights to Paris drop to $500, or when your friends scout a deal at a beautiful all-inclusive Mexican resort, you seize the day.
So then, HOLA, MEXICO!
Our flight landed in Puerto Vallarta last Thursday evening and we wound our way through the hoards of eager cabbies to the friendly shuttle driver that awaited us curbside. It was a quick drive to the resort, where we were ushered into the sparkling lobby and handed a round of margaritas before we’d even checked in. This all-inclusive thing was looking promising!
We ate dinner at the rooftop bar and then headed back to the room to get settled and tuck in the kids. Juliette begged to take a dip in the pool that adjoined our back patio and I told her she could put her feet in the water for a minute while I unpacked a few things. She stripped off her clothes and grabbed her swimsuit as I was rooting around for her pajamas – I protested for all of thirty seconds and then shrugged my shoulders in happy surrender. We were on vacation! It was 9 pm, but it was 80 degrees outside!  Go nuts, kiddo. Â
And then…this. (Funny how a four-year-old can occupy an entire King bed!)
We rolled out of bed to discover a beautiful breakfast buffet set up just steps from our back patio, so we headed down to pile up our plates and dine pool-side.
This celery-cactus-pineapple concoction became a morning staple (and Juliette’s daily dose of veggies).
Shane headed out for a morning bike tour after breakfast while Juliette and I hung back and laid low.
I got out for a jog along the beach before lunch, thrilled to discover that our resort sat on a miles-long stretch of wide open shore.
And then, having all gotten our exercise, there was nothing left to do but…lounge.
And drink.
And swim.
We wrapped ourselves in our towels around 4 pm and walked over to the beach to catch the sunset and feel the squish of sand between our toes.
Shane and Juliette assumed their typical beach stance, hands held while the waves broke at their feet.
Juliette was delighted to discover how much warmer the ocean water is down in Mexico.
There was a lovely pool perched just over the beach, so we took a quick dip to compare pool temp with ocean temp.
And then the skies got golden and the clouds got all purply-blue so we jetted back down the shore. Juliette met up with a couple of girls that she had befriended at the pool earlier that day and chased the tide with them, running and splashing and giggling, adding a whole other layer of glow to the magic occurring on the horizon.
MEXICO! You are so, so bueno.
We went back to the room to change out of our swimsuits and check on poor Nico, who had come down a terrible cold the day before. Shane, Juliette and I ate dinner at the beach club and took our time meandering back to our room, reveling in the warm breeze and the glittery lights and the absence of any reason to hurry. This. was. vacation.
La Verne and I kicked off Saturday with a beach jog, in preparation for a full day of all-inclusive gluttony.
Breakfast was chilaquiles and pancakes and mimosas and some of the sweetest, juiciest pineapple I’ve ever tasted.
Thankfully, N was on the mend and ready to romp, so all hopped in the pool after breakfast.
We spent much of the morning in the oversized hot tub, tucked into an idyllic little enclave off the main pool.
“Mango Tangos”:Â the beverage of champions!
Juliette was a total fish, paddling up and down the pool in her little purple floaties.
We lunched pool-side, luring the kids out of the water with plates of burgers and fries.
And then, more swimming! This girl was insatiable.
We all dozed in the afternoon and then strolled over to the beach for another sunset show.
I tell you, this Mexican tide was magnetic.
Gah! She was just SO HAPPY. It was just SO GOOD.
Juliette’s new buddy appeared on the scene just as we were heading for our lounge chairs, so Juliette about-faced and was back at it again, chasing waves and being chased.
I keep trying to put words to just how magical this particular sunset was, but I’m coming up short. So I’m just gonna let these pictures speak for themselves…
Once the last hues of orange had faded to gray, we all walked back toward the lobby to watch the 7 pm tree lighting. It felt a little strange, listening to a guy in a Santa hat belt out Jingle Bells while we sat around in tank tops and sipped champagne, but we rolled with it, certainly feeling merry through it all.
Each of the kids got to light a candle (flip a switch) for the lilies floating in the lobby fountain. Juliette took great pride in her task, smiling shyly and placing her light just so when the MC called her name.
We cleaned up a bit and then walked back over the beach club for fajitas and cocktails and ice cream.
La Verne and I were on our way out with the kids when we turned around to find that the guys were missing. This is where we found them (this bar serves cocktails to go!).
By the end of the day, we’d lost count of how many pools we’d swam in or how many margaritas we’d drank. We only knew that we had lived large and laughed hard.
Up next: more swimming, more sand, and a little adventure!