LifeintheFastsLane: July 2015

We just got back several days ago from our family vacation to the all inclusive resort, Hard Rock-Riviera Maya. It was Alex's first "big" vacation and my parents came as well. Riviera Maya is located about 45 minutes south of Cancun, so we flew into Cancun.

Our flights were direct, but fairly long (4 hours) with a baby that napped for the first 5 minutes or so, BOTH WAYS. She never cried or fussed, but we just had to constantly entertain her, so I was glad I brought a backpack of toys, snacks (Puffs FTW) and books. These were vital to our sanity, which was still borderline gone because she is the squirmiest thing ever. Shewanted to pull up on the seat in front of her 1000 times, flip the tray table back and forth and even pulled someone's hair (oops!). My mom would say that in this way she is just like me, and I definitely know what she means. I remember on road trips as a kid, continually messing with the seat in front of me (my mom's seat) I wouldn't pull hair, I would just drop pieces of paper, random objects in my mom's hair when she was sleeping and then laugh when she was oblivious and we stopped somewhere. I think I'm starting to get paid back...Anyways, I don't have too many miraculous baby traveling tips other than we use ear drops from our pediatrician that numbs her ear drums. I also nurse her on ascent and descent and she used to then sleep (when we flew at 3 months) and try and get up once to change her. She now likes looking out the window and I always get a window seat anyways so Brandon can cover me more when I nurse. We also push our stroller through the airport and gate check it.

I would definitely recommend our resort. Our room was very nice and modern (see pictures below) and they provided us with a crib, which was essential. Service was for the most part PHENOMENAL. Basically meaning, you had someone waiting on you hand and foot at the pool and the beach everyday, bringing you food, drinks, water etc. The restaurants were all pretty good as well. Brandon really liked Ipanema, place where you get your sides from a buffet and then they bring different cuts of meat around (about 10 different kids). The hibachi place was also tasty, but my favorite was the Mexican, go figure. They had delicious guac and killer mango margaritas. On the adults only side of the resort, there were a few other restaurants, but we only went to the steakhouse, which was average, but had an amazing view. The best part of being at an all inclusive with a baby was the convenience. We literally had no wait at any restaurants, we could eat earlyish and everything was a 5 minute walk or less (if you have kids you know the unloading-loading annoyance)

Our days were mostly spent at the pool or beach, which were really beautiful. The pool was the perfect temperature, had an awesome slide (and I mean awesome for adults- it was legit),it had shaded areas, lazy rivers, pool volleyball and a great swim up bar. The beach was in a enclosed rock area, so you didn't get the huge waves of the ocean, but you did get water that was the perfect temperature and great for snorkeling, relaxing and swimming with a baby. We didn't do too many excursions, but my dad and Brandon did golf, which they definitely enjoyed and Brandon and I parasailed. Parasailing has been on my bucket list for awhile now and it was definitely a worthwhile experience. It was memorable vacation indeed, but I will let the pictures do the rest of the talking.