Cabo San Lucas: Days 1 & 2

Hello from Cabo!

First, may I say how wonderful it feels to be someplace warm. No coats! Sunny skies! 80 degree days! It's heavenly here.

Day 1 - Wednesday
Andi, Grandma Janie, the kids and I spent Wednesday traveling to Cabo San Lucas and overall, the journey was a smooth one. There was one hiccup right when we arrived at the Minneapolis airport. Andi attempted to add "infant in arms" to one of our tickets when the airline informed us we were suppose to have purchased an international infant travel ticket for Aden. The cost was around $40 and essentially covered Mexico's taxes for entrance into the country. Except, policy dictates international tickets cannot be purchased within two hours of a flight's departure time. It was 7:32am when we discovered  this and our flight departed at 9:30am. Long story short, Andi worked his powers of persuasion and was able to successfully purchase an international infant ticket, but pleaded with several ticket agents before someone agreed to bend the policy for us. So, we were thisclose to missing the only daily flight.

Fortunately, we made it and the rest of our trip was smooth sailing. Gone are the days of traveling light; this trip, we brought two big suitcases, two strollers and two car seats. Not that Andi and I brought more clothes; just an UV-blocking tent for Aden, breast pump, beach blanket and boatloads of diapers added to the mix. We opted to bring Tory's car seat onto the plane because it was a 5 hour flight and we thought she might be more comfortable (aka: may fall asleep). Carrying extra baggage onto the plane was more of a hassle, but it was worth it. Tory sat in her car seat the entire flight, watched her iPad, colored with Grandma and slept for about half the flight time. Aden slept for most of the flight as well and was content to sit on my lap the rest of the time. I chatted with Janie and Andi worked and watched a television show on his computer. Dare I say our flight was even enjoyable? It really wasn't too bad at all.  

We rented a condo for the week at Marina Sol. It's a bit different than the places Andi and I usually stay on vacation (read: not as luxurious), but this is a different type of vacation than we usually take. When we pulled into the condominium's parking lot on Wednesday, Andi and I both gave each other an "eh" look, but this place has proven to be perfect for our needs this trip. Our condo itself has just been remodeled and is really beautiful inside. It has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a main living area, kitchen, patio and washer/dryer. We're within steps of the pool and there's a shallow part just the right size for Tory. Most of the people staying on the property are older and there's another family with a 2 1/2 year old girl which is great for Tory to have a play mate. Marina Sol is located in the central part of Cabo, so there's tons of restaurants within walking distance and Medano Beach is a half of a block away.

Within minutes of arriving, we hightailed it to the pool to catch the last bit of sunshine for the day. I wondered how Tory would react to her new surroundings and I think she was a bit awe-struck at first. She seemed excited to be outside after so many months of being cooped up indoors, but was a little apprehensive in the swimming pool. As she became friends with Isabella, the other little girl staying on property, she warmed up quickly. For the most part, Andi and I usually keep to ourselves on vacations but we naturally struck up conversation with Isabella's parents while the girls played together, and really enjoyed chatting with our new Canadian friends.

Later, Janie offered to stay back at the condo with Aden so Andi and I took Tory to visit the beach. It was a quick five minute walk and the perfect ending to a day of travel. Once again, Tory was a little unsure of her new surroundings; she seemed excited to walk along the street with just Andi and I but once we arrived at the beach she had no interest in walking in the sand. With a little coaxing, she dipped her toes in the ocean for the first time since she was nine weeks old.

 

We strolled along the beach for a while, then picked up fajitas to-go at El Guero Restaurant on the way back to our condo. A big day of travel and playing in the pool finally caught up to Tory. She plopped down in the sand and stared onward toward the water in a trance. It took some major convincing to get her to walk back the rest of the way.

Day 2 - Thursday
Bright and early Thursday, Andi, Janie and Tory left Aden and I back at the condo to sleep while they walked around the area and took a stroll on the beach. A certain little girl had lots of excitement and energy to burn off while a mama and baby up throughout the night did not, so it was nice to have plenty of help on hand to divide and conquer.

We had breakfast together back in the condo, then Andi and I took Tory down to the pool to swim while Janie stayed back with Aden. We spent most of the morning chatting and playing with Tory's little friend Isabella. Luckily, Isabella's mom brought an entire suitcase full of toys (ahem, I did not) so Tory and Isabella had plenty of dolls, water toys and floaties to keep them entertained.

 

 

 

 

After a morning walking on the beach and swimming in the pool Tory was very ready for a nap, so Janie stayed back at the condo with both sleeping kids while Andi and I snuck away for a few hours together. Have I mentioned how great it is to travel with Grandma? Andi and I walked back to the beach and hopped a water taxi out to Lover's Beach. It's a neat little island where one side meet the Sea of Cortez and the other side the Pacific Ocean. The current is pretty strong in the water here and just as I hopped off the boat, the current grabbed the boat and I lost my balance in the water. Ta-da! A full submersion into the ocean - good thing I was wearing my swimming suit!

 

Andi and I laid on the beach for a while and watched the massive waves roll in before walking back to our condo. By then, the kids were up from their naps so Andi and Janie took Tory to the pool and I stayed back with Aden. It's  nice having breaks from the sun throughout the day and some isolated time with each kid or just Andi and I.

For dinner, we hopped into a taxi and ate at La Dolce, a family-friendly Italian restaurant. The food was excellent and the service was fast and friendly. We split a bottle of wine and cheers-ed to a fabulous vacation so far.

 

I know the kids are just wiped by the end of the day and so far, Andi, Janie and I have been, too. We called it an early night and hung in the condo the remainder of the evening. Excited to see what the next few days of vacation will bring!