Finally! Over the 9 days we spent in Puerto Rico I took over 500 photos. I’m a little bit of a camera nut 😉 Each day we spent on our incredible island was better than the last. I know Lucas won’t remember much of this trip but I hope when he is old enough to look back on the pictures he will understand the magnitude of love that we shared on this trip. I plan to make this a yearly trip – nothing would make me happier than to watch him nurture the bond with his family as well as instill a love so great with this beautiful island where his ancestors are from.
This post is a bit of a photo dump. I narrowed down the images the best I could but there were so many favorites!
Our getaway to Puerto Rico was so very sweet. Beautiful memories were made that I will cherish forever. I am beyond grateful for the the moments where I literally felt like rainbows, butterflies, and glitter would burst from my happy heart. I promise my next post will be a photo overload of the beauty that was our #llvgoestopuertorico adventure. I actually started uploading all the photos when I stopped and realized that I wanted to be honest. I don’t know about you but I like to receive bad news before someone gets to the good stuff. It just makes me feel better. So here we go.
> Lucas is a born and bred city kid and we walk or take the train just about everywhere. My mom lives in the suburbs and we keep the car seat with her for trips and such. The poor boy could not get used to being strapped in for long periods of time. My phone was ready with fun and exciting apps. Nope. He would shut them off and hand the phone back to me. Not even Siri, his main squeeze, could save the day. Disney dvd’s on rotation? Ain’t nobody got time for that. To be fair, he was content most of the time. But at a certain point, usually the 20 minute mark, the only thing that would help was a bottle of a milk and a little prayer for a nap. Oh yea, then there was the one time I forgot his bottle and we drove 30 minutes with a screaming toddler. Good one mom.
>You have to carry a lot of shit. Everywhere you go. At home I’ve stopped lugging around everything we own and only pack the essentials. But on our daily vaca adventures? At times I had no idea where we’d end up and was nervous I wouldn’t be able to get what we needed in case a of a toddler emergency. So the most logical idea seemed to be to chuck everything in a bag. Most of which we never used. Go figure.
>Another shocking revelation? Toddlers don’t care if their mommies get a tan or sit poolside with a cocktail. The nerve! I don’t even know why this came as a surprise to me but it did. Don’t get me wrong. I loved splashing in the baby pool with my boy and watching him kick and squeal. It truly melted my heart. But every now and then as I was sitting in an unflattering indian position in 12 inches of water I’d see a childless woman strut by with a fruity concoction and stare her down with an evil/envious glare.
>Lucas is in a “mommy only” stage which is understandable since I work from home and we spend every waking moment together. I’m pretty fond of the kid myself. But sometimes I need a breather and daddy is an acceptable stand in. My hubby had to sit this trip out because of work and he was missed. I longed for our goodnight kisses and sleeping snug in his arms. But most of all I missed his help (we’re being honest here, right?). I missed having my teammate. Inconsolable toddler? One taps out and the other jumps in. I thank the heavens my beautiful mother was there to help change poopy diapers, sing songs, and dish out hugs when needed. I really am grateful, believe me, but there is nothing like having your partner with you. Someone who knows when you just need 5 minutes alone without ever having to utter a word.
>I love the feeling of sand beneath my feet. A luxury for this city mama. Lucas on the other hand hates it. Apparently this is common among toddlers (or maybe everyone was just trying to make me feel better). What did this mean for our beach trips? A baby cub clinging to me for dear life. He loves the water, but sand? No cigar.
> I bet you didn’t know that toddlers DON’T CARE that a vacation must is sleeping in. Shocker, I know. Lucas normally goes to bed around 8:30pm and wakes up anywhere between 7:45 and 8:30am. For 9 days Lucas refused to go to sleep until he decided he was good and ready. Usually around 10pm. For 9 days Lucas woke up at 6am. 6am people! His nap schedule was also all out of wack until our fourth day in. He was clearly ignoring the angry messages I was sending him via mommy brain waves to go the f to sleep.
>Something Lucas was really, really good at: sleeping on a plane! Don’t hate me for this one. I don’t want to rub it in but he slept both ways from take off to landing. Throw me a bone, ok?
In conclusion, traveling with little ones is hard. You need help. Lots of it. Things don’t always go as planned and you need to roll with the punches. BUT. It’s worth it. I got to witness the joy in my sons eyes as he met new family members, was showered with love, experienced new foods and adventures, and for goodness sakes, went down a water slide for the first time! I wouldn’t change a thing. Except for maybe smuggling Ivan into my suitcase. So tomorrow get ready for a post full of photos of one very cute boy on a Caribbean island and a few tips that I hope will help on your travels with the kiddos. I’m pretty sure you will agree that I saved the best post for last 😉
Hello from Puerto Rico! We made it! As excited as I was for our getaway, I had been dreading the trip over here. Our flight was scheduled for 5:40am which basically meant no sleep for mama. I’m an insomniac and knew I wouldn’t be able to go to bed at a decent time, no matter how hard I tried. The luggages, carry-on bags, stroller, and car seat were all set to go packed neatly by the front door. I put Lucas to bed in his fancy pajamas so he was all set outfit wise (monkeys are fancy, right?) and he was snoozing by 9pm. I showered, read for a while, but alas, like clockwork, I didn’t fall asleep until midnight. The alarm was set for 2am. Fun! When the dang thing finally went off (which felt like 5 minutes after I had closed my eyes) my mom and I scurried to gather the bags, get dressed, and seamlessly transfer the prince to his carseat. Btw – the hubby had to skip out on this trip but I’ll talk about that in another post. I already miss that man of mine so very much. Our car was already waiting for us downstairs and off we went. Once we arrived at the airport, check-in and security check were surprisingly easy. In less than 15 minutes we were inside and enjoying a coffee. Lucas was wide awake at this point. Equal parts confused, cranky, and energetic. Once we got to the gate it was packed – we were on a full flight. And by full flight, I mean a crap load of kids. Cryingkids. All very pissed off at the parentals who decided an early flight would be a good idea. After watching 2 ladies traveling with 6 kids combined struggle to get to the front of line, I started to feel less sorry for myself. Heck, I only had one munchkin AND a grandma with me. The kicker? This little army wound up sitting directly in front of us. Curious George (ahem..Lucas) just had to see what was going on so instead of fussing, he spent the first 10 minutes of the flight creaking his neck in between the seats to check out all the kids. I swear he gave me a look that said “mom, what in the world is wrong with these kids. maybe their mamas should have dressed them in some monkeys. sheesh!” He drank his bottle and drifted off to sleep. No sleep sheep for this boy! Crying babies would have to make do 😉 Three hours later, a stiff neck for mommy, and nothing short of a miracle, he woke up just as the pilot announced our landing. Moral of the story? I was worried for nothing! Our little adventure went off without a hitch (I’m currently tossing some salt over my left shoulder). So now here we are. After a fabulous first day of exploring and swimming my boy is currently snoozing, and hopefully I won’t be to far behind.
Finally! Over the 9 days we spent in Puerto Rico I took over 500 photos. I’m a little bit of a camera nut 😉 Each day we spent on our incredible island was better than the last. I know Lucas won’t remember much of this trip but I hope when he is old enough to look back on the pictures he will understand the magnitude of love that we shared on this trip. I plan to make this a yearly trip – nothing would make me happier than to watch him nurture the bond with his family as well as instill a love so great with this beautiful island where his ancestors are from.
