We’ve been
home for a week & between playing catch up plus catching up on sleep, I
just haven’t been able to compose an articulate post…the longer I leave it, it
doesn’t get easier & more things continue to happen that I want to share so
I must tackle this 1st…
It was an awesome
trip! For the most part…& that’s where I’m stuck…I don’t want to come
across as Cathy Complainer because we really did have an awesome trip & the
good stuff was superb…but the bad stuff was really awful…to give an honest
account of our vacation, how can I leave out that awfulness? I don’t want you
to think that the awfulness consumes my memories, because it doesn’t…
How about we
cover the best parts first…Elena was AWESOME on the plane rides!! No major
meltdowns tho I am sure the man in front of us wanted to strangle us both…I did
my best to keep Elena from kicking, banging, knocking & pushing his seat
but she’s a kid so I’m sure in his eyes I failed miserably! On the way down,
she fell asleep during takeoff & slept for just over an hour & the rest
of the flight was spent entertaining her…she watched some videos, played some
games, walked up & down the aisles charming the other passengers, going to
the washroom for no other reason than for something to do.
On the flight
home, she fell asleep on the bus ride from the hotel to the airport & slept
thru check in (only about 45 minutes total) & was awake the entire rest of
the trip right up until when we got to our car…with no major meltdowns!!! On
her part anyway, I was so damn tired I wanted to stab myself in the eyes!
Thankfully with the extra legroom seats we’d purchased, she played on the floor
for a bit pretending to sleep & watched videos but due to turbulence, didn’t
get to walk the aisles much.
I learned that to
head off meltdowns, the more info I gave her of what to expect & what was
expected of her, the better she did. Like warning her that when we got to the
airport after landing, she’d have to stay in her stroller the whole time, she
put up a bit of a fight but I reminded her that this was how it had to be &
she complied. Especially after I let her carry our backpack on her lap (the
girl likes to be helpful!). Tho it was awkward for her, it made her happy…so if
you’re ever out & see a small kid doing something strange like carrying a
backpack half the size of them or 2 giant pillows (we did this in the mall
once) don’t judge!! If the kid’s not crying, then it’s a good thing!!
We stayed at the Barceló Huatulco Beach Resort…what a spectacularly beautiful place! The weather was
beyond perfect, 36 degrees & sunny the ENTIRE time!! We had a very spacious
ocean view room with large balcony that included a hammock where we enjoyed the
sunrise every morning…yes, Elena was up at sunrise EVERY MORNING!
The grounds were
spectacular! They had a large children’s pool that was waist deep for Elena
plus a large pool that was chest deep for me…this is where Elena & I spent
our mornings. Between the 2 pools we had tons of fun & had them practically
to ourselves most of the time.
After all that
swimming & sun, Elena would sleep all afternoon, 2 hours or more! Then we
usually would venture out on a walk around the resort, to the park or the beach…Elena
was less than impressed with the beach! She does not like things on her feet or
between her toes so the sand drove her nuts & she didn’t like the surf
breaking on the beach, since she doesn’t like loud sounds, I think that
contributed to her dislike. I was only able to convince her to dip her toes
once & tho she had a good laugh, refused to ever do it again. The funniest
was her trying to “stop” the ocean from coming up on the sand by waving her
arms frantically! She actually got mad at me for not stopping it! So funny!
There was also a
really great park with slides, swings climbing apparatus…plus Elena’s favourite…a
trampoline! Elena usually doesn’t get the opportunity to use a trampoline since
there are always older kids & I don’t let her for fear she’ll get hurt…but
there, she was the only kid! She was able to master the art of jumping & had
a ball running & falling & bouncing on the trampoline. They also had
little easels she could colour on & little tables to play at.
Sounds perfect,
right? An ideal vacation! For the most part…
Even with the
perfect children’s pool & the awesome park, this resort was not a toddler
friendly place…at least not Canadian toddler friendly. The resort is really
more a Mexican vacation destination than tourist-y places like Cancun or Acapulco.
There were very few other Canadian (& even less American) families. There
were very few children’s choices at the buffet. Some days the best Elena could
hope for was French fries. They had hot dogs but this is not something I’d
usually offer Elena…not that it mattered since she wouldn’t eat them anyway.
Even the days pasta was offered which Elena would happily eat usually, it was
often spicy or seafood sauces. Thankfully she did eat a decent breakfast most
mornings (bread & jam, pancakes, yogurt) since lunch & dinner would be
hit & miss…she didn’t have much of an appetite & I’m sure her tummy
wasn’t feeling great a lot of the time plus I know now that she’d been teething
(her 2 bottom molars are breaking thru already!!).
On top of that,
navigating a buffet with a toddler is challenging at best…with all the people
around carrying plates of hot food, I couldn’t let Elena wander so had to carry
her. Imagine carrying a child plus plates plus serving food…not easy. If Elena’s
patience would allow me, I’d often make two trips, once to fill my plate &
the 2nd to fill hers but this strategy only worked some of the time
so just as often I would fill 1 plate for both of us to eat off. This is the 1st
all-you-can-eat vacation I’ve ever been on that I actually lost weight!!
The other
challenge of the buffets…they were closed
between 11am-12:30pm & 5pm-6:30pm…exactly when Elena would usually eat!
Since she would wake up at 6am & play in the pool all morning, she was
ready for lunch about 11-11:30 & nap by noon! And since she would be ready
for sleep about 7-7:30pm, going to a buffet or a la carte restaurant at 6:30pm
just didn’t work out so well!! I started stealing food from the buffets (very
frowned upon) so we could eat in our room…I ordered room service once which made
for a great night but I just couldn’t afford to do this every night.
Speaking of
nights, they were a nightmare! We arrived Tuesday & had two peaceful nights.
Then on Thursday the resort was invaded by a conference & the floor Elena
& I were on was filled with 20-something partying idiots who were yelling,
screaming, squealing, laughing, singing etc from 7pm until 5am with only brief
respite while they were at dinner & the disco. This went on Friday,
Saturday & Sunday nights!! Elena, once I got her to sleep every evening,
thankfully slept thru the shenanigans. I did not have this luxury &
remember Elena was up every morning at 6am!
Now I know what
you’re going to say! Why didn’t I complain? Why didn’t I ask to be moved? Well,
I didn’t ask to be moved because I knew the hotel was full due to the convention
so nowhere to move me to. I didn’t complain because I was afraid. Afraid the
drunkards would retaliate…I had visions of them jumping onto our balcony (very
easily done since they were separated by low walls with vines & flowers) or
banging thru the flimsy wooden door connecting our rooms. If I was without
Elena, be sure I would have raised holy hell! But I’ve been at enough drunken
debacles & witnessed them degenerate into careless violence that I was too afraid
to take any chances that something could happen to Elena. Be sure I had my own
passive aggressive revenge by encouraging Elena to laugh & squeal as loudly
as she liked when she woke up at 6am until we left for breakfast at 8am!!
I was working on
2-3 hours sleep max a night!! I am ashamed to admit that it took its toll on me
& I lost my patience with Elena more than once…it makes me feel just awful,
especially since Elena really did the best she could under the circumstances of
being in a new place with a new ever changing schedule, new foods, being
hungry, tired & teething to boot!…It all got to me, the lack of sleep, the
frustration with getting Elena fed, how hard it was to navigate the buffets
alone with a toddler…It broke me…I felt defeated & demoralized & like a
complete failure as a parent. Elena deserved better than I gave her.
On Sunday, after
a particularly rough day, while waiting at the front desk to cancel our dinner
reservations (I wasn’t going to brave another a la carte restaurant alone with
a cranky toddler) we ran into a woman who’d been on our flight & whom
we’d chatted with a few times thru the week. We exchanged pleasantries then she
said to me, “You know, I’ve observed you & your daughter a lot this week. I
need to tell you that you are such a good mother.” This woman must be an angel
because those are words I needed to hear at that moment. I tried to hide them
behind my sunglasses but my tears were obvious along with my shaking shoulders
as I wept in front of this kind stranger & everyone in the lobby! It brings
tears to my eyes even now when I remember the moment. Once I caught my breath
& could speak all I could whisper was, “Thank you. It doesn’t always feel
that way.”
It is that moment
of kindness that encapsulates the trip for me…yes, there were challenges &
yes, I am not proud of losing my temper with Elena more than once…but they
really are small when compared with the joy & fun Elena & I shared together…her
uninhibited laughter & pure sweet smile…after being home a week & having
caught up on my sleep, it is our days in the pool, the squeals of delight at "pushing" me into the water, Elena's comical reaction to the ocean, dancing to the Mariachi Band, her excitement at walking up & down "The Big Stairs" & her jumping on that
beloved trampoline that call to mind when asked, “How was your trip?”
