Two of our best vacations were spent at all inclusive resorts in Guam and Thailand. We attempted to recreate them, European style with an extended holiday weekend at the island of Mallorca. We stayed at the Cala Mandia resort about an hour from Mallorca's major city, Palma. It was definitely a resort catered to Germans, Spanish, or Europeans in general, but we made the most of our time and the beautiful weather. Prior to leaving, the weather forecast included 40-60% chance of rain each day with temps in the upper 70's. Thankfully, that wasn't the case. The temperature held steady at 78-80ish the first 3 days with bouts of full sun.
We lounged at each pool--kids splash pad, family pool, and water park, rotating among them. Each pool had appeal to each of our children. Thankfully, Gavin was able to access the pools independently with Chris & I with an arms reach.
The resort had beach front access as well. It was perfect. Mya discovered sand gets EVERYWHERE, while Gavin learned that sand is not tasty. Both were tough lessons ;) Claire loved jumping the waves. Interestingly, Mya, who is typically the risk taker, was a bit more timid, requiring some coaxing from Chris. She too enjoyed all the ocean had to offer.
We took a snorkeling excursion on Saturday. Gavin and I stayed in the boat, while Chris and the girls snorkeled around the cove. They loved it.
The girls had their hair braided with string woven in. Each was so excited to choose the design and color combinations.
On Sunday, we took a taxi to Porto Cristo where there was a market. I bought some football (aka soccer) jerseys for our soccer loving nieces and nephew, a jewelry dish and the kids picked a beanie boo. Gavin clutched that doggie the entire day, despite not feeling well. The poor guy was conjested and simply wanted to snuggle. Sadly, I didn't bring the Tula, so we were stuck lugging him all around that market. Our arms were tired, but we soaked up the snuggles. In Korea, there were nail salons offering Dr. Fish. I did it a few times, with our girls sticking in their hands. They thought it was so funny. We found a little place in Mallorca too. Chris and I decided to let them relive the fun. The girls giggled and giggled, thinking the fish sucking off the dead skin was so crazy. It was.
All around the resort are stores selling already blown up, inflatable rafts. Mya was especially convinced that we should buy one, but for the hefty price tag of 7+ Euros each, Chris and I refused. We held strong. While at the pool, a little boy from England came up to us with two of his rafts and asked if the girls would like to have them as he was leaving the following morning. The girls were elated. Mya swam for hours with that thing, despite dropping temperatures. She was in heaven.We even allowed them to bring one home. You would have thought we had just hung the moon, they were so excited.
The flight home was not so easy. Gavin was extremely fussy. He was difficult to console and Chris and I wanted nothing more than to get off that airplane. Thankfully, it was only a 2 hour flight. Painful, but brief.
Our Labor Day weekend was lovely, filled with great memories with our littles. Looking back at all the things we did this trip that were replications of previous experiences, it is bittersweet--knowing full well that they are not, in fact, so little any more. We are trying desperately to savor each day, expression, smile. We love, love, love our littles.
**My camera was stolen a few days after writing the post, therefore most pictures are gone. I am heartbroken. So many snapshots of memories were stolen. I did manage to capture a few pics on my phone, so will include those. Far from perfect, but better than none.
We lounged at each pool--kids splash pad, family pool, and water park, rotating among them. Each pool had appeal to each of our children. Thankfully, Gavin was able to access the pools independently with Chris & I with an arms reach.
The resort had beach front access as well. It was perfect. Mya discovered sand gets EVERYWHERE, while Gavin learned that sand is not tasty. Both were tough lessons ;) Claire loved jumping the waves. Interestingly, Mya, who is typically the risk taker, was a bit more timid, requiring some coaxing from Chris. She too enjoyed all the ocean had to offer.
We took a snorkeling excursion on Saturday. Gavin and I stayed in the boat, while Chris and the girls snorkeled around the cove. They loved it.
The girls had their hair braided with string woven in. Each was so excited to choose the design and color combinations.
On Sunday, we took a taxi to Porto Cristo where there was a market. I bought some football (aka soccer) jerseys for our soccer loving nieces and nephew, a jewelry dish and the kids picked a beanie boo. Gavin clutched that doggie the entire day, despite not feeling well. The poor guy was conjested and simply wanted to snuggle. Sadly, I didn't bring the Tula, so we were stuck lugging him all around that market. Our arms were tired, but we soaked up the snuggles. In Korea, there were nail salons offering Dr. Fish. I did it a few times, with our girls sticking in their hands. They thought it was so funny. We found a little place in Mallorca too. Chris and I decided to let them relive the fun. The girls giggled and giggled, thinking the fish sucking off the dead skin was so crazy. It was.
All around the resort are stores selling already blown up, inflatable rafts. Mya was especially convinced that we should buy one, but for the hefty price tag of 7+ Euros each, Chris and I refused. We held strong. While at the pool, a little boy from England came up to us with two of his rafts and asked if the girls would like to have them as he was leaving the following morning. The girls were elated. Mya swam for hours with that thing, despite dropping temperatures. She was in heaven.We even allowed them to bring one home. You would have thought we had just hung the moon, they were so excited.
The flight home was not so easy. Gavin was extremely fussy. He was difficult to console and Chris and I wanted nothing more than to get off that airplane. Thankfully, it was only a 2 hour flight. Painful, but brief.
Our Labor Day weekend was lovely, filled with great memories with our littles. Looking back at all the things we did this trip that were replications of previous experiences, it is bittersweet--knowing full well that they are not, in fact, so little any more. We are trying desperately to savor each day, expression, smile. We love, love, love our littles.
**My camera was stolen a few days after writing the post, therefore most pictures are gone. I am heartbroken. So many snapshots of memories were stolen. I did manage to capture a few pics on my phone, so will include those. Far from perfect, but better than none.
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