We were looking for something to do outside of the resort and the local library had many great reviews so we decided to check it out.
They had an amazing sea shell collection. This was like 1/12 of it. I have never seen so many cool sea shells! (Another example of how many seashells are around - as you were leaving the library there was a basket full of gorgeous shells and a sign inviting you to take one. They have plenty and are happy to share!)
This library had an amazing kids section of toys. So many different kids of toys (hands on, interactive, and educational toys not just electronics or super hero figures). It was such a cool library with a great set up that catered to tourists. Cool fact - you can check out kitchen pots and pans at this library!
Stacking cups with dad
Now playing with magnet toys (which I thought were so cool I ended up buying them for Christmas 5 months later)
The kids section had this fun stage that the kids played on. (Luckily the library was nearly empty this morning so I didn't worry about them being too loud.)
Video - My kids "performing" on the stage.
After lunch and naps, we were ready to go hit the pools!
We were in the pools forever. We pool hopped to a couple different pools. We brought a new float for Emmalyn and she liked it for a little bit but then was done so Peter got out with her while Maxwell and I kept swimming. He was a total fish and didn't want to stop. We were all wrinkled when we were done.
The view for one of the pools, right on the edge of the ocean. There was another one that was even more gorgeous but obviously I don't have my phone on me when I'm swimming. :)
Sometimes, I forget how awesome it is to have a child that has reached the age where he can do many things independently, like put on his own shoes.
All this time in the water has helped Max's swimming skills improve even more. He's just swimming like crazy. He can dive down for the sticks on the bottom of the pool, can swim really far with just one breath, and can really swim without us at this point.
We had crappy, expensive pizza at the pizza joint and then hopped back on the trolley to go back to our room.
Maxwell had been asking to play tennis so we rented some racquets and balls. It was late by the time we got out of our room and nearly bedtime but we decided we'd play for a short time so that Maxwell didn't miss out on something he wanted to do.
Ready to play!
He thought it was so awesome! (I wish I was a better tennis coach - I wasn't sure how to help him "get" how to hit the ball. We had lots of fun trying to figure it out, though.)
Emmalyn had fun wandering around, grabbing balls, and gathering lots of attention whenever people would walk by.
Holy moly. It was SOOOOO hot and humid. We were all dripping in sweat. My hair didn't stand a chance. Who knew it could look that bad?
Eventually Emmalyn was super tired and so I had to run around the court trying to hit balls back to Maxwell while I held her.
We had an awesome time and ended up playing much, much later than we had planned. The lights were turned off on our court and we weren't ready to be done yet so we moved to another court. It was a late night under the moon and so much fun!
A normal morning with cereal, milk, and the ipad
Both kids slept in the front room. Max slept on this big bed all by himself and didn't fall off!
Our screened in balcony with a view of the marina
I was rocking some pretty bright orange toes. (Max told me wanted me to get orange nail polish.)
Her left canine and her left molar on the top have now popped through. So many teeth so early (at least that's what it feels like).
Handsome dad coming back in from spraying on the bug spray - a must!
Max's selfie that I found on my phone later.
Cute girl at breakfast. This girl can EAT!
Even though Maxwell didn't want to, I wanted to hit the beach again on our last full day in Florida. I was like, "don't you want to go and get more seashells?!" and he bent down by the side of the road, picked up a random seashell and said he didn't need any more, that would be enough. HA! I think if he could walk on the sand without getting sand in his sandals, he might not dislike the beach so much.
Playing with dad in the ocean
Wearing his goggles so the salt water wouldn't get in his eyes
Trying to catch a wave on his boogie board
Emmalyn was happy to play in the sand (and not eat it!)
I don't see any baby in this picture, it's all boy. :(
We were so lucky to have pretty much great weather the whole time we were there. When we were getting close to heading to FL from TX, the weather looked like it was going to be rainy a lot of the time...I'm so glad it wasn't!
This sweet boy was so knocked out from being in the sun and ocean that he took one REALLY long nap.
And this is him an hour later...still sleeping (I managed to free my arm - whew)
For dinner, we again wanted to go somewhere outside of the resort. (That was the worst thing of the resort - I didn't much like the food choices and they were horrible over-priced.) It was hard to find a place where we wouldn't wait forever, with good reviews on the food, and fair prices. We ended up finding an Italian restaurant that had good reviews and decided to go there. When we got there, there was *ONE* car in the parking lot. That was it. One. We wondered if it was even open but then we saw some of the kitchen staff out on the patio watering the plants. Yikes, bad sign when a place is vacant but at that time we were all starving and decided to check it out.
We went inside and were warmly welcomed by the owner and the manager. They were excited to see us, gave us great service, and coo'd over the kids. The food ended up being PHENOMENAL and it was nice to eat in an empty restaurant because we didn't have to worry about the kids misbehaving.
Peter and I keep wondering what was going on...the food was great, the reviews were great, the service was awesome. Why in the world was this restaurant completely empty???
Grabbing daddy's nose
Yum! Dessert
When we got to dessert, the restaurant started filling up with patrons. (We later learned that this is common because #1 - we were in town during the off season so traffic was lower and #2 - most people on that side of the island are on the beach watching the sunset and so once that happens, the restaurants fill up.)
Best meal of the trip!
I wish I had taken more pictures of the main road on the island. On both sides of the road there were beautiful homes and cottages with so much personality. Each one had a unique sign out on the road with the name of the property like "Mermaid Dreams" and "Banana Cabana". It was so lush and tropical that if I didn't know better, I'd think we were on a Caribbean island.
My favorite part of the drive
Max and Peter did some late night swimming since it was our last chance before flying home in the morning. Maxwell had such a great time with all the time he got to spend in the pool. Each time he made friends with the other people in the pool (especially the cute women - they loved him and he wrapped them around his finger...cracked me up).
Helping me close the suitcase
Sweet baby taking a nap on the plane.
What a wonderful vacation!
Maxwell loves going potty in public bathrooms whenever we are out. He especially loves pooping which, as a parent, can be frustrating because he takes forever to poop! So you are standing there in the stall or the bathroom just hanging out for like 15 minutes while he does his business. There was one time during this vacation where he was in the stall and I was waiting by the sinks and he came out with his sock in his hand and goes, "I accidentally got my sock wet". "Max, how did you get it wet?!" And he goes, "I dropped it in the toilet." What?! and I just have to shake my head because you never know what you are going to get with kids... right? :)
Maxwell has been saying "you know" a lot. For example, he'll say, "I like winter, you know." It's been really fun spending a lot of time around him without breaking our time up with school and work.
