Hogar Dulce Hogar

Home Sweet Home!  We are back!  Mexico was beautiful and we had a blast...

On Monday we dropped Bentley and Hurley off with their respective sitters and headed for the Logan Hilton in the snow & rain.  We hit the bar immediately for dinner and our first margaritas of the week.

Tuesday we headed out early for a 7:45 flight and landed in Cancun a little early.  It was raining when we landed but by the time we got outside to wait for our car the sun was out.  We immediately hit the "Welcome Bar" (why doesn't every airport have one of these...?!) for some Coronas to go.  It was about a half hour ride to the resort.  We got champagne and some desperately needed cool towels while we checked in, then we walked around for a little while and our room was ready early for us.  The room was gorgeous - everything down there is stone/marble with dark wood accents.  We had a jacuzzi in the room, an ocean view, and a soaking tub on the balcony.  We hit the pool and continued with some cocktails in the HOT HOT HEAT.  It was SO nice!  For dinner we went to the Italian restaurant which was really good (In addition to two grill restaurants, a central lunch restaurant, and a buffet restaurant, at night three restaurants were also available - authentic Italian, French, and Mexican).  They bring out a massive wheel of cheese - MASSIVE - and you get fresh breads with oil, balsamic, and freshly ground cheese.  HEAVEN in my mouth. 

On Wednesday we were up early for the breakfast buffet and to stake our claim for pool chairs.  The buffet was AMAZING.  Fresh local fruits and juices, crepe station, omlet/egg station, local cuisine, FRESH PICO DE GALLO, incredible mini donuts...we were clearly Americans with huge stacked plates of food.  OH, and a Bloody Mary for me & fresh pineapple juice w/Grey Goose for the hubster at 7:30 AM...it's never too early on vaca.  We went for a walk along the beach to check out the other resorts...it was quite the sightseeing adventure!  In a short walk we saw...a Papa Joe look-a-like, several topless sunbathers - who should have kept their tops on, and a little overweight Euro boy in a teeny speedo and pink swimming goggles across his forehead with a very splotchy sunburn.  We hit the pool for awhile and the hub went to play 9 holes at the resort course in the afternoon.  I drank Coronas (which I also learned are not a true Mexican beer...) and baked in the sun.  For dinner we tried the buffet.  We grabbed a cab after dinner and headed to downtown Playa to meet up with our friends.  IT WAS A GLORIOUSSSSSSSSSSS REUNION - I got so excited when I saw them I accidentally threw my phone, it split in pieces and we made a scene, naturally - but some nice man found the back piece of my phone for me and saved the day.  :)  We walked around for awhile to check out the local scene and stopped for some drinks and snacks.  Then what was supposed to be a night of a couple of drinks downtown turned into a "hijacking" and we got home at 3AM...after the hookah bar, lots of people watching, and a crazy bar on the beach with a fireshow, MO-Javi, balloons...and let's just leave it at that. ;)

Thursday my Mexican mami was allllllllllll mine for the day!  The resort issues guest passes so Alis arrived and we had prime seating at the pool.  Larson and Chris went golfing at the one-and-only Mayakoba PGA course.  My lady and I enjoyed a lovely breakfast buffet, drinks, and the pool.  The hubster came back early afternoon and took a much needed nap after we all got lunch together.  Alis ended up staying for din and Larson came over after work - we hit up the Italian place again.  The food was delicious but we ate a late dinner and were all exhausted.

On Friday Alis came back for the day.  The hubster and I got breakfast and then we all sat poolside for the day.  We ate and ate and ateeeeeeeeeeee by the pool, in the pool, around the pool...we just kept grazing.  In addition to multiple restaurants that are open at lunch, servers  bring passed hors d'oeuvres around the pool area; plus there is a taco cart and an ice cream cart.  OHHHHHHH, and the soft serve station at one of the bars!  The pico de gallo is out of this world - I literally had it with every meal, and I would just eat it by the forkful.  Alis headed home late afternoon and the hubster and I got ready for dinner.  Since it was a Friday night they had two reastaurants open out by the pool that hadn't been open yet during the week - we ate at the seafood restaurant and had a delicious dinner, nice wine, then went to bed early. 

Saturday morning we had our last massive buffet-style breakfast, hit the beach for a bit, then packed and waited for our personal chauffer to pick us up. ;)  We dropped our bags at Alis and Larson's and headed to downtown Playa for lunch on the water.  HOLY GUACAMOLE were those fajitas goooooooooooood!  Muchas gracias, Manitas.  Then we were on to Tulum.  I wasn't sure what to expect but let me tell you, if you ever go to Mexico it is a MUST SEE.  Amazing, gorgeous, unreal to think what went on there 800-1600 years ago.  It was truly incredible to see!!!  And lucky for us, we had our own personal tour guide..."Tour #5"...instead of having to join a huge group of people for an organized tour.  PLUSSSSSSSSSSS...MINOR DETAIL...I GOT TO HOLD A MONKEY!!!!!  From there we headed back to the 'homefront' for a dip in the pool and to eat some actual dips made by the one-and-only chef Alisa.  We got ready for our dinner outing and a night on the town.  We hit this amazing Mayan restaurant for dinner.  Mayan cuisine is a bit different than Mexican and it was freakin' incredible.  Unfortunately, I didn't feel so great and I think we were all pretty cooked...so what was supposed to be our crazy night out turned into walking a few blocks and then home to bed.  Next time we will plan that better!!!!

Sunday the chef made us a gourmet breakfast before we headed out to the airport for a sad goodbye...don't cry for me Argentinaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa...

Overall we had a blast and it was great to travel someplace new for us.  Beautiful weather, beautiful scenery, amazing food, a new culture, ohhhhh and of courseeee the happy Mexican couple Alis & Larson!!!!!  Although we were homesick and really missing our boys, it was a much-needed getaway for us and we got to spend some QT with Alis & "Jack."  We will surely be back...and I already have my list of "must-sees" for the next trip. 

For those of you falling into the hype that it is not a safe place to travel...I can only speak for where we were, Mayan Riviera/Playa del Carmen...it is beautiful and there was not a single time I questioned our safety...and yes, we left the resort on our own.  The locals were friendly and it felt very safe.  It was certainly a different perspective to drive through some parts of town and see such poverty, then a few blocks over is the center of town with amazing restaurants and stores, crawling with both locals and tourists.  And yes, you will see armed Policia, but they are there for presence and to keep order - if you aren't doing anything wrong they aren't going to bother you.  The stores carry some beautiful things - local art, pewter, hand-painted pottery, Day of the Dead items, some really beautiful and interesting cultural/religious pieces.  And the food is SO good.  After traveling there, I realize the "Mexican" we are accustomed to getting up here is "Tex-Mex" ~ not true Mexican food.  You can't find a single burritto anywhere down there!!  The foods are simple but with amazing sauces and flavors ~ and lots of flank steak, which I never would have thought heading down there, but it was SOOO good and one of my favs.  Now I'll be spoiled and have to find authentic recipes to try at home...or through "Crash's Cocina" blog maybe?!!!!!! (HINT HINT...DO ITTTTTTTTTTTTTTT.)

Overall, I would recommend a trip...the culture and history, the activities, the food, the beautiful weather, and it's only a short flight from Boston...

Thanks to our local tour guides...miss ya already. ;)

Pics to come!!
~E

Happy Birthday, Soph!

Happy 5th Birthday to our sweet Sophia!  We love you!

XO

~Auntie Erin, Uncle Chris, Bentley, & Hurley

GONE FISHIN'

Leavin' on a jet plane...yadda yadda yadda...but we'll be back again.  Like my song?  If you miss us for the next few days please refer to the following...

FIRST, if you need a laugh...a Mexican-style laugh to keep with the theme of our trip:

SECOND, if you want to be jealous...just a reminder, WE ARE HERE:

Bentley & Hurley we love you!!  We will miss you!!  Be good boys while we are gone!

Adios, Amigos!!!  Catch ya in 6 days!

~E

The Many Faces of Bentley...

This kid makes the funniest faces.  Too bad I don't have audio to accompany, but this is what transpired in ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh about 30 seconds the other night...

Check out those cheeks in the third pic above!!

~E

EIGHT MONTHS OLD!!

Today Bentley is EIGHT MONTHS OLD!  Check out this bod - he's built like his Daddy!!

He "blames his parents"...OBVIOUSLY...have you met us?!

I was lucky enough to get an action shot of one of his raspberries ~ look at the dedication and intensity in that face!

And last, a small update from yesterday's update ~ we have graduated to juice in a sippy cup, at least we're working on it! 

And here he is kinda-standing...

Have a good day!

~E

ERIN GO BRAGH

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

My little (part) Irish lad had his first St. Patty's Day dinner at Grammy & Grampy's.  Although his father doesn't like the traditional corned beef boiled dinner, hopefully Bentley will take after me in that department and LOVE it.  He sat like a big boy at the table and entertained himself with some puffs while we all chowed down our boiled feast!

He rocked a fabulous sequined bowtie...

He showed off his standing skills...

And just looked ADORABLE in his "Kiss me I'm Irish" shirt!

Hurley dressed for the occasion, too...

We had a fun day!  Bentley got to visit with Grammy & Grampy, his Great Aunts & Uncles, and a couple of his other Aunties.  He got plenty of TLC and looked adorable doing it!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!  ERIN GO BRAGH!

~E

EIGHT MONTH UPDATE!!!

Baby Bentley is EIGHT MONTHS OLD this week!  He's doing GREAT ~ so happy!  He really is such a happy, chill little guy.  He's growing and changing so much now!

He's eating lots of different foods and he's up to three solid meals a day.  He's even eating proteins now...some gross mashed up turkey and chicken stuff.  And you saw that he's enjoying his apple flavored puffs.  He's actually improved a lot in terms of picking them up & getting them into his mouth in just a few days.  He is always very excited once he knows its mealtime!

He's enjoying all of his organic foods - fruits, veggies, mixes, proteins now, and his oatmeal/cereal.



He actually seems to enjoy his little Exersaucer gym thing finally.  It's hilarious when he gets going screaming up a storm while he's in there.

And now he seems to have found himself in the teeny mirror...

He also likes his jumpy swing more now and can stand in it; and we're working on his standing skills!  He's got tree trunks for legs...like someone else I know in his direct gene pool...and he's really getting strong.  He can stand leaning against the table or couch...with a "spotter" of course...and will stand for awhile if you're supporting him.

We are still swimming ~ starting a new session which will go through April.  He's getting more used to the water and loves playing with his cousins.  He'll splash and kick around now!

His teeth are coming in at a rapid rate!  It is NOT safe to put a finger in his mouth ~ he bites!  (Fitting that he has on his "Chomp" bib here...).  His two bottom teeth are in so he looks like a little beaver; he has his two top middle teeth that have broken through, plus an eye tooth.  He's been fussy & extra mucusy so I think his other eye tooth isn't far behind. 

It's so fun waking up...OK, when he wakes me up...to this every day...

Overall he is doing SO well ~ a very happy baby and healthy as well.  He LOVES to eat his solids so I'll be curious about his weight at his 9 month appointment in April.  He is so cute and a joy to be around!

~E