mirror mirror on the wall

Who's the fairest of them all?


I'm pretty sure the hair stylist was not too psyched about getting a one-year old to sit still for half an hour...

peep the croc

He was big, ugly, scary, and luckily sequestered behind a chain link fence. Gotta love Mexico!

all the world's a playground

The resort we stayed at in Ixtapa pretty much defined the phrase "family-friendly". There were endless things for Sadie and Sophie to explore, and no one so much as batted an eyelash when one of them started screaming or throwing food during dinner. Sure, it's never as relaxing to vacation with kids as it was as a couple, but at least places exist where everyone can let their collective hair down.


(I'm too tired to think of captions for the photos...any suggestions?)

sand + tortillas = good

On our last full day in Mexico, the whole crew hopped a boat for a day trip to Isla Ixtapa. It's a beautiful island just a mile off the coast of the Ixtapa hotel zone, but light years away in terms of quaintness and character. Here, the seafood came fresh off the boat, into the fire, and onto our plates. Or tortillas, as it were. Sadie opted to take hers to go---apparently a little salt and sand makes everything taste better.

I think Isla Ixtapa was, hands down, my favorite part of the trip. There were shallow reefs for snorkeling, pristine beaches for lounging, and a seemingly endless supply of cold beer. And the boat ride was just scary enough to make things exciting!

senorita

The first of many Mexico favorites...

first day jitters

Although we'd been anticipating this day for weeks, we didn't actually think it would be today.
It all started when the nanny called in sick (the day after St. Patrick's Day? Hmmm....) and neither Reid or I could take the day off to watch Sadie. But wait! Little did you all know that just before leaving for Mexico, Miss Sadie Rain became officially enrolled at Small Wonders Learning Center. That's right, everyone: daycare.
It's been a glorious run having Sadie here at home with us for the past year, but we figured it was time for her to start learning some social skills and hanging out with kids her own age. We just weren't planning on making the leap quite yet. But hey, everything happens for a reason. So this morning we called Small Wonders and set up a 9:30 dropoff, packed a tote bag full of diapers, snacks, and blankets, and got Sadie all dolled up in her first-day-of-school outfit.

All schoolkids need a cell phone, of course.

Everybody in the bus!

Did I say jitters? If so, ours---Sadie took off like a shot the minute she saw all of the other kids and toys. She waved bye-bye and happily went about her business securing her spot as new acting boss of the Wobbler Room. And us? We were sad as we pulled away from the parking lot, and miss her already, but feel lucky to have had her at home with us for the past 13 plus months. I think we'll eventually get over it.

sun, sea, sand...and sickness

We're back! Mexico was amazing---we had a great time, enjoyed beautiful (hot!) weather, and consumed decadent amounts of delicious food and beverages. All was well until the last day, when Sadie came down with the Mexican stomach bug (I don't need to go into details here, you all know what I'm talking about). Let's just say that projectile vomiting in the airport security line was our final indelible memory of the trip.

We took 1100+ pictures, so it may be a while before we get them downloaded and sorted for your viewing pleasure. Stay tuned!