just another day in paradise 12/31/12

This past week has left me wondering if being here is paradise - hanging with my guys, enjoying an extra week and a half off, all things Christmas, wiping hineys and tears, sleeping in, and birthday party planning -

or being here.

Our vacation was amazing.  First-time plane rides went great other than a few tears from pressure in their ears.  We spent an extra two hours in the airport than we expected to because of a mechanical error (they finally swapped us to a whole new plane and departure gate), but even that was bearable thanks to a little foam football throwing and angry birds on the iPad. 

We made it to Nassau safe and sound and cruised right through customs.  We caught our bus, had a ride to remember (Wow!  Besides driving in the opposite lane than we do here in the U.S., they honk at everyone for every.little.thing.  Definitely an experience.) and arrived at the place we wouldn't leave for the next five days.

The resort was stunning inside and out.  

I still don't think we saw it all.  And I know we didn't do it all...like the casino (we needed every penny we took, so there was none to gamble away) or the movie (even though they had great ones playing, we just never made it in from the pool on time), and I missed a slide or two...intentionally (Jim and I took turns riding the big ones that the boys weren't tall enough to do.).  But Jake, Parker, and I did play a few games in the arcade, and we all painted a Christmas ornament - a dolphin that says Atlantis.  As for the rest, we walked and walked, taking it all in.

We spent our days wiping the sand off our feet, watching the manta rays and feeding seagulls and pigeons from our balcony, looking for seashells, and riding waterslides over and over and over again.

Jim snorkeled and played the round of golf that was complimentary with our booking.  Jake and I did a dolphin encounter - we hugged and kissed Echo (one of the dolphins rescued after Hurricane Katrina), and Jake gave him two high-fives (The coolest part about it was the command he had to give him...a karate chop and a "Hiiiyah!"  He lept right out of the water with his flippers stretched out for Jake to slap.). 

And Parker took his nightly walks through The Dig so he could see the "ish! ish!"

We ate breakfast in our room - granola bars and Dunkin' Donuts.  We ate lunch by the pool (the warm pretzels were out of this world).  And we ate dinner every night at one of the restaurants along the water where the cruise ships and yachts dock.

We danced.  Music was everywhere.  They had a band that played every afternoon at two o'clock as they walked all the way around the water park area.  They had musicians that played at night around the waterfront restaurants, and when they weren't playing, there was always Christmas music coming through the speakers. 

We relaxed.  Naps were optional, but we took them on most days whether they were by the pool or in our room with the balcony door cracked so we could hear the seagulls.  We never had the time unless we asked for it, and we used my phone just one day to capture some video.  Even my camera stayed in our room off and on.  

Our time really lingered on, but we still hated to go.  In fact, Jake shed a tear or two while we waited to catch our bus back to the airport.  I think that says a little bit about how we all felt.  We left wishing we had at least one more day.  Perfection!

And definitely paradise!