Nia and I decided to take advantage of our relatively-close South American location and join the family for the annual trip to Puerto Vallarta. My parents have owned a time share there for 3 years and visit each year over spring break. This is the first time I’ve been to the property and boy was I wowed! First off, it was MASSIVE. Seriously, this photo shows a quarter of it. There was a lazy river, a wave pool, 20 pools, 10+ on-site restaurants, a golf course and much more.
The trip got off to a rough start though. I’d flown solo with Nia before, but not since she was 6 months old. Infant vs. newborn on a plane = a VERY DIFFERENT flying experience. Our transit time was about 10 hours (7 in the air, 3 for a layover). Nia decided that she was not interested in sleeping. Nor was she interested in the TV, ipod apps or the toys that I brought. What she did want to do was walk down the aisle and touch all the people that were sleeping. Guess how that went over? When I shut that activity down, the screaming began. I tried everything to get her to stop, but after an hour I couldn’t handle the glares anymore and retreated to the bathroom where we spent the next 2 hours sitting on the toilet while she continued to shriek (until she passed out exhausted in my arms). And did I mention the blowout or the two outfits she soaked? Definitely in my top 3 worst parenting experiences. Sadly, the way home wasn’t much better – only difference was I was prepared for it to be awful.
All the painful memories of the flight were erased by the beauty of the resort and the joy of seeing my family for the first time in 10 months (except Jenna, who visited in January). Nia was in heaven, hamming it up to milk all the possible attention she could get from them.
Unfortunately, Nia was still not into sleeping. She didn’t want to miss a bit of the action and woke up ready to go at 4 AM each morning (no matter what time we put her to bed). It was quite painful and I am immensely thankful for my parent’s help in the early morning hours…
Nia was known all over the resort by guests and staff alike. She’s very fond of strangers and doled out hugs, kisses and waves like candy. I was amazed by all the people that seemed to know her. I was not amused, however, when someone asked me if I was her Nanny!?! Seriously people.
Pool time was on the agenda every afternoon. While hesitant at first, Nia grew braver and braver by the day. And with all the pool options, things never got dull!
One night my Dad offered to stay home with Nia so the rest of us could go to dinner & a show called Rhythms of the Night. The evening started with an hour boat ride to a beautiful island. Hundreds of candles and a picture-perfect setting awaited us for dinner. Our meal was served sea-side and honestly, I think we got the best view in the place.
Surprisingly, the food was superb as well. Since it was a special night, I decided to double-plate it and enjoy all that the island had to offer. Yes, it was totally worth the sick feeling I had later – YUM! A cultural show with dancers and fire twirlers followed. I highly recommend this if you’re heading to Puerto Vallarta anytime soon.
As Nia and I settle back into Lima life, we’re missing the wonderful family and friends (our old neighbors & the girls’ boyfriends) we spent the week with. Here’s our entire classy crew (all 11 of us)!
