Our Turks & Caicos Family Vacation

We just got back from 'heaven on earth'.  No joke.  Turks & Caicos Islands (Providenciales) to be exact.  With its turquoise waters, white sandy and never crowded beaches, no traffic lights, no fast food chains....... ahhhh, it was pure paradise!!!  Why did we choose Turks & Caicos out of all the Caribbean Islands?  Being that it was mine and the little boys' first time vacationing in the Caribbean (Brad's been to the Bahamas), we didn't want to fly too far (we are traveling with TWO toddlers lets not forget!), we wanted a very family/ child friendly and safe island, and the most amazing turquoise warm ocean to play in.  After researching and reading reviews online, Turks & Caicos was hands-down the winner!  We booked a nice modern 2 bedroom condo on the world-famous Grace Bay (with a babysitter referral!), a rental car to zip around the 20 mile long island, and scored a good price on airline tickets!  We had an AMAZING tropical vacation!

Traveling with 2 squirmy toddlers, on a plane, to an exotic island, for a whole week..... how did we do it?  Easy peasy!  If you follow these tips, you will have the BEST family and R&R vacation! Really!!

-Let's be honest, flying with little ones is stressful and tiring.  If you know this and expect it to be difficult, you will do just fine and best case scenario, you will be pleasantly surprised! Choose flights during the wee ones' typical nap time or evening flights.  We've learned that the maximum length of flight that a toddler can sit and squirm through is around 4 hours..... you don't want to push it (for your own sanity's sake.)  Having a stopover is also great because between flights the wee ones can go hog wild and get all their energy out at the airport (and you can sit down for a meal) before getting on the last leg of the flight.  We have always done just that.  For our TCI trip we had a little under 2 hour flight from Buffalo, NY to Charleston, SC then a 1 hour stopover, then another 2 hour flight to Provo (Providenciales, Turks & Caicos).   Bring books, the kids' favorite DRY snacks, lots of sanitizing wipes, and a portable DVD player (the portable DVD player and Thomas videos is something we will definitely do next time to help pass the time and wear them out!)

PS..... expect to have at least one funny (not at the time it happens though) story to tell about your air travel!  Ours was on our way to Turks and Caicos.  Taj announces he has to go poop, so I rush him to the airplane bathroom.  You know how tiny those plane potty cabins are for 1 person, so 2 of us in there was tight.  The funny part is that I put Taj on his potty seat over the toilet seat and he got pee/ poop shy!  I encouraged him to "push" and we made the scrunchy face together.  Taj pushed so hard that he not only pooped but he also peed so hard he sprayed me and got the bathroom floor all wet!  Oh Boy!  Makes for an adventurous plane trip, don't you think?!  When things like this happen or when the boys act like little monkeys I always think it could be worse.  At least Taj didn't fall into the toilet and thankfully we weren't that lady whose cat crapped all over cat carrier on the plane and she had to wipe it down in the airport restroom.  So glad I wasn't that lady (saw her in the restroom) and more relieved we weren't on her flight or that our kids didn't crap in their carrier! LOL

-Carseats.  Leave them in the car or check them!  Not having to lug around those heavy things will also save your sanity. Taj was so much more comfortable sitting on the plane's seat because during the flight he could squirm about and both boys had space to roam and perform acrobatics on our 3 seats (Jax still passed as a lap infant) and they also had the little floor space to sit and stand about.  A double umbrella stroller that you could check at the gate could also prove to be useful to contain the kiddos when walking from one terminal to another.  We didn't bring one since we didn't need a stroller on the island. When we rented our car on the island, carseats were complimentary!  Bingo!  It doesn't hurt to ask, but if a car rental company provides carseats why not take advantage?  As long as you check to make sure they are installed properly.  Remember, traveling with as few baby gear as you can get away with is the key to an easier travel!

I found this great portable high chair that I also recommend!  You can use it for travel or even at restaurants, and folds easily into its own little pouch!

-Book a 2-room hotel suite (we like Embassy Suites) or a vacation rental, bring the baby monitor, request a pack n' play and extra pillows, and ask for a babysitter referral.  When you travel with a family, you need family accommodations.  And a rinky dinky hotel room is not going to allow you to enjoy your free time as mommy and daddy.  We've always booked suites or vacation rentals (especially those with kitchens) and taken the monitor with us so when the boys nap or go to bed for the night, mommy and daddy can have a life of their own!  In TCI we were lucky that while the boys napped we could take our monitor down to the pool area (since our balcony overlooked the pool we had good reception!) The extra pillows were for converting a regular queen or double sized bed into a toddler safe bed.  I stuck the pillows under the sheet around the edges of the bed, creating a barrier so Taj would not roll out of the bed during the night!  I also brought our own sheets for the boys (for the pack and play), their ocean sound machine, and their lovies of course.  Our boys sleep like angels every where we have traveled because they always have their comforts from home.
This is the exact 2 bedroom condo unit we stayed in:
The babysitter referral idea is something new I have stumbled upon, and we were fortunate to have one from a trusted source in TCI.  I suggest wherever you travel to check with friends first to see if they have family or friends with kids who have babysitter referrals at your vacation destination.  We are so lucky to have friends all over the country and the world, so using their resources and referrals is the way to go.  We got our Turks & Caicos babysitter referral through the lady we booked our condo with, who has a child of her own and has been using the babysitter for years every time they vacation there.  As a mom, you go with your gut feeling and feel out the environment and culture where you are vacationing.  Both nights that we used a babysitter, we put the boys to bed ourselves, and did not dine far from where we were staying.

-Don't forget a first aid kit!  We learned quickly (say..... on the very first day of vacation HA!) that toddlers are clumsy and accidents are waiting to happen.  When we stepped out for breakfast on our first morning, and were walking in our flip flops (on the travertine tiles outside, which are the WORST for little ones), poor little Jax tripped and slid face down on the tiles.  As he fell, his sunglasses pierced his forehead OUCH, and caused him to bleed.  We had no ice, benzoyl peroxide, or bandaids!!! I had to use cold pita bread to ice and apply pressure on his injury.  That same day we ran out to the grocery store and stocked up our first aid kit with benzoyl peroxide and bandaids (and filled the freezer ice cube tray with water to make sure we had ice on hand for the next "booboo".)  I recommend packing your own ice pack, bandaids, Neosporin spray, and benzoyl peroxide.  After that first incident, Brad and played defense on our whole trip, doing what we could using our cat reflexes to prevent falls and bumps/ bruises!


Okay, so back to our AMAZING Turks & Caicos vacation....... In a nutshell, we lived in our bathing suits and flip flops, and explored the island by car the British way (steering wheel on the right, drove on opposite left side of the street!) We stumbled upon breathtaking beaches and beach coves (yes, also perfect for photo opportunities!)  We celebrated Valentine's Day on one of the world's most beautiful beaches. We shopped the locals' handmade jewelry, shells, and handmade helicopter for Taji.  We found a playground on practically every beach, and had wonderful family meals in family friendly restaurants right on the beach!  The boys ate Conch (a shell fish that lives in a Conch shell) for the first time and loved it.  We played in the ocean, in the sand, and in the pool...... the boys have the cutest tan lines to prove it!  We met new friends (from Montreal, Canada), and Taj met a new little girlfriend.  Brad and I went on not one, but TWO dates, after we tucked the boys into bed.  We wined and dined in fabulous restaurants in the fabulous hotel resorts.  Jax learned to say "flip flop"and Taj learned to pee standing up!  What big boys we have!!!  All in all, it was an incredible, relaxing, FUN family time!!  We made some awesome memories, have crazy stories to tell, and amazing photos to show.  We loved it there so much that I am certain we will be back!  The NY Winters are not only for playing in the snow, but its the best time to fly a few hours south to beach paradise.  Because the winter can often times be the longer season, many Northern East Coasters (and Canadians) escape the cold by heading to Florida, Mexico, and the Caribbean.  Maybe Turks & Caicos will be our respite from the cold, and the gateway to exploring the other islands in the Caribbean.  Maybe one day we will have a Turks & Caicos condo (and rental income) and make it our island home away from home.  You never know :)

Just as in the song "Kokomo" by the Beach Boys, PROVO (the nickname for Providenciales, Turks & Caicos) is our "Kokomo" !!! "

"Everybody knows a place like Kokomo..... it's where you want to go..... to get away from it all..."   

A [Crazy] Day in the Life of a Supermom

It started out like every other day, oh wait, hold up..... lets just cut to the chase.  Today started out crazy and ended crazy.  Just another day in the life of what I would hardly call myself a "Supermom" of two stinker winker toddler boys.  Days like these, I ask myself....why did we multiply our offspring by two? (kidding!) It was a day that started out sober, but ended tipsy...... moms of small children raise your wine or beer glass up and let's toast to that last ounce of patience we have in our bodies, and lets hope the trials and tribulations of the day doesn't produce any gray hairs.  This may just be one of my most raw posts yet.......

I wake up with every muscle in my body begging me to take a "sick" day.  A "sick" day?  Not in this stay-at-home mom world of mine!  At least my boys sleep in until 8am, and the hubby gets up to greet them in their beds and bring them into our family bed.  I'm also lucky enough to get my "me" time in every morning in the bathroom.  But after the hubby jogs off to work, thats where the buck stops, and its "go" time.  I check-in with all my necessary assistants: Patience, Energy, Creativity, and Humor..... "You guys there?" (I ask them)  "Ok good, because I'm gonna need you the whole day..... so don't slack off!" Ummmm, apparently Patience is about to take his sick day! HA.  Getting back to my morning, first we start with breakfast...... nonchalantly sneaking in homemade carrot & broccoli cream cheese on waffles, then picking up the waffle pieces off the floor from my youngest professional food thrower.  The dishes piling in the sink and on the counters glare at me, but I just glare back.... I remind myself my priority is playing with my children and not worrying about messes until way later in the day.   Jinxed it.  Yep, the messes just got meaner as the day went on and wouldn't cut me any slack.  No matter what the play activity or art project was, those pesky little puzzle pieces and millions of crayons found their way all over the house.  The youngest is also notorious for pulling everything off the shelves and out of bags.  And the funny thing is, that i'm that OCD that I actually attempt to pick up and clean up every time to only find the same mess seconds later! We play with trains, watch Little Einsteins, puzzles, blocks, make Valentines, draw, race cars, playdoh...... and then, it's finally our pre-nap lunch....saved by the bell! Literally!  We have our town's fire station siren that goes off at noon every day, and I've named it our "Nap" bell.  Works like a charm!  As lunch goes off without a hitch, and the accumulation of dishes continue to glare at me, I release the toddlers from their chairs to burn their energy off right before we sit down for story time. Surely, only to discover within minutes that the youngest sat in the Lego box and as he proceeded to climb out of it, it came flying at his head so much that it "burned" the right side of his cheek.  Injury #1.  There were loud screams, tears, blood, scratches, and a bump.  I seriously cannot leave them alone to play for a minute!  After lots of consolation, hugs, kisses, ice, and spray of Neosporin, Jax was ready to retrieve to his bedroom.  I was ready to fall back on the couch but I kept going full force.... story time, potty time, teeth brushing, the whole nap time routine with Taji, nursing Jax, and putting him in his crib. Finally, the crickets sounded, and the whole house was quiet...... for a whole 30 minutes!  Isn't it funny the days you plan to get the 4 loads of laundry folded, the dishwasher loaded, the dinner prepped, the packing started (for our vacation in 2 days, hallelujah!), are the days your toddlers decide they don't feel like napping (their usual 2- 2 1/2 hours!)
Yep, hilarious!
I was just in the middle of folding the first batch of the boys' laundry... please don't let that be the sound of Taji calling for me!  I try to trick my brain in pretending I didn't hear him calling for me over the monitor.  Doesn't work. Taji keeps yelling.  So I make my way up the 4 flight of stairs from where I was in the game room, and luckily get Taji back to his nap.  As I sprint back downstairs, my grumbling tummy reminds me that I'm hungry and forgot to eat lunch.  I quickly make my lunch in the kitchen, and the dishes keep glaring at me, then cuss at me.  I hiss back.  I'm just about to finish my last load of laundry folding, when stinker #2 starts crying.  I scan the clock...... it's only been an hour!!!  Why oh why, do they pick the days I have the most to do, to not nap?  I have learned from experience that its virtually impossible to get any clothes folding, organizing, cleaning, food prepping, or dishwasher loading done without little hands and fingers grabbing at everything and making a mess.  I go back upstairs to rock Jax to sleep, and whisper sweetly "please give me another hour." He complies.  But not the older one.  Taj begins to cry and scream that there are monsters in his closet, and when I comfort him and show him that there aren't, I discover he is laying in droplets of blood.  Injury #2.  Taj must have scratched the inside of his ear and then while sleeping he continued rubbing it, so needless to say, he had one bloody ear and finger nails.  There goes the laundry hamper staying empty for half the day!!!  I clean him up, soak the sheet, change his sheets, and by then, he's fully awake and ready to party.  I try to get him to play independently while I get some things done.  Impossible.  Taji follows me around, touches everything, pulls everything out, and asks me hundreds of questions.  By the time Jax wakes up from his nap, Patience quits on me and leaves for the day.  I hate yelling.  But tell me, how do you not yell when your two little toddlers knock each other over purposely, push each other, and scream when the other takes the other's toys?  I totally feel like I have twins.   Wherever they go, trouble follows them.  Like... my bedroom closet: clothes pulled off the shelves. Our bathroom:  toilet paper roll unrolled. Taji's room: clothes and books pulled off the shelves.  Kitchen:  spices and plastic bags taken out of cabinets and drawers. Living room bathroom: spice container thrown in the toilet, plugging it up (that happened 2 weeks ago). It's like the Taj-manian Devil X2.   I guess this is my pay-back for deciding not to baby proof every single cabinet, drawer, and door in the house.  Say hello to Double Trouble!  Most of the time, Jax is the ring leader, and you would think Taj would be the responsible, mature one....... Oh, NOOOO.  He loves to egg his little brother on and really stoops down to his level.  My yelling, several time-outs, and even a couple smacks on the bottom don't seem to be the solution.

Its 5 o'clock in the evening now.  Patience ran out of the house at lightning speed hours ago, and Energy, Creativity, and Humor all have their foot out the door as well.  What to do?  I leave the toddler trouble-makers behind as I seek refuge in the game room, and I make the call.  What call, you ask?  Oh you know, the call to the hubby, letting him know what a "crazy day its been, and if he doesn't come home soon, I'm going to 'snap'".  LOL  For all those men who have ever watched the show "Snapped", you never ignore when a woman makes that threat! (kidding!) There.  I admit I was weak.  I could't control the children, because the children took control of me (and the household).  I climb back up the stairs, defeated.  I walk in on Taji sitting in front of the opened refrigerator (that he opened) shredding and ripping his YMCA Valentine he made last week, that was hanging on the refrigerator.  Jax is to his right, dumping out the billionth puzzle piece all over the kitchen floor.  And the pissed dishes in the sink are now madly giving me the finger.  My last assistant, Humor, that stuck around (he gets a raise!) took over the situation as my mind went to auto-pilot.  Leave it to Humor, to turn on the boys' favorite Thomas the Tank Engine song (and put it on repeat), pop open a bottle of wine, and pour me a glass.  I sure needed it after a day like this.  And after a couple sips, I immediately feel more relaxed.  Relaxed enough to have a heart-to-heart with Taj explaining to him that he needs to listen, and be a good boy, and help mommy.  I also readily apologized for yelling at him and explained to him how tired and frustrated I felt.  Kids need to know their parents are not perfect, and that we are only human. Immediately, he became the perfect child and walked up to his little brother and told him it was time to clean up the puzzle pieces, and began to put each one in the bag.   A couple more sips of wine later, the dishes were gloriously loaded in the dishwasher, dinner started, kitchen cleaned, boys dancing and singing happily to their song.  Then, on the 50th repeat of the song, the hubby comes home to a clean kitchen, dinner ready, children laughing, and mommy with an auto-pilot wine smile.  Of course, the timing couldn't be more perfect, right?

Did I get the things done on my list that I set out to do?  Hardly to none.  No follow-up phone calls, no packing, no errands, no work-out, or that home pedicure I was going to give myself.  Oh, well.  Another day.

Ahhh, it's just another day in the life of a not-so-super and very worn out mom.  Thankfully, not all days are like this, and unfortunately, some days are even more challenging when we are out in public or heading out the door to go places.  Fortunately, my boys ARE very well-mannered most days (especially in public) and play really nicely.  I think its when they sense stress and a jam-packed day of things that need to get done, they get really spruced up to torment me.  Good thing I have my wine and Nutella to go to for therapy after they go to bed for the night!

Sleigh-Ride Sunday!

 Dashing through the snow....

 in a 2-horse open sleigh...

 over the hills we go, laughing all the way!!! 

 After a wonderful breakfast out at Chatterbox, and the boys' naps, we relished the pretty sunshine and blue skies and drove over to Chautauqua Institution for a horse drawn sleigh ride!  Here is what we saw on our sleigh ride:

We weren't sure if we were going to make it on the sleigh ride because the day before Taj woke up from his Saturday nap with a fever.  

 He rested and snuggled with daddy, took medicine, 

got his appetite back, and luckily we were able to enjoy the rest of the beautiful weekend.

After our sleigh ride, Daddy took Taji out on a walk ON the lake.  The frozen lake.... but look at how trippy that is.  My boys are walking on [frozen] water, yikes!

And we captured some pretty fun sledding! 1st video is off just Taji, 2nd video is of both boys, and the 3rd video is Jax by himself!!

Ski Season is here!

 I've skied Mammoth, Big Bear, and Lake Tahoe (in California), even the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Spain....... and now, New York!  Skiing: yet another reason Winter is fun!  We happen to live between 2 big ski resorts, Peek n' Peak in Findley Lake (30 minutes away) and Holiday Valley in Elicottville (45 minutes away).  There used to be another (smaller) ski resort, Cockaigne, only 15 minutes away in Cherry Creek, but it closed due to a fire 5 years ago.  In the last two weekends, we have visited both Holiday Valley and Peek n' Peak.  The last time I skied was probably 5 Winters ago, so I was a little nervous how my body would do post 2 babies, but since I have been a skier all my life, they say its like riding a bike..... you never forget.  So, when we got to Holiday Valley, we dropped the boys off at daycare (both boys had fun and didn't even miss us), rented equipment, and hit the slopes!

 YIPEEE!  It was a blast!  I did not forget a thing, my legs were so excited to be on skis again!  

Brad and I had a great time on our "ski date"!

 Here is me again, the speed demon :)  The look on my face says it all..... major adrenaline rush!

 Brad snowboarding

Peak n' Peek Resort and Spa: 

Ski Season 2013 has officially begun with the great white powder that keeps falling!  Since the boys had such a good time at the resort's daycare, we look forward to skiing on the weekends as much as we can!  And the nice thing about Peek n' Peak (the closer ski resort), is that they have a fun indoor heated pool, baby pool, and play area, so after a few hours of skiing we can decompress and splash around with the boys :)

This time next Winter, our 3 1/2 year old Taj will be attending his first Cub Kadet ski school..... so excited for Taji to learn to ski!  Then a year after, his little bro Jax will also step foot on his first skis!  Oh the fun we will have!

Backyard Paradise: Winter Snow Play

A little sunset sledding in our backyard!

With mama on the back of the sled..... Ready, Set, ...... (Jax now yells out "GO!") 

and we are off....... we did this a bunch of times, each time going further and further down the hill!

Baby, It's Cold Outside!

BRRRRR!  Grab your warmest jackets, mittens, hat, and face mask, because baby, we are in cold February! Good thing we get to leave the snow for some fun in the turquoise waters on the island of Turks and Caicos next week!!!! Good planning on our part, eh?!
Mid January got very, very cold.  Like 17 degrees BELOW (with wind chill) cold!  The schools around here all had a "snow day" so kids got to stay home due to the winds and visibility.  Daddy Brad took a snow day too :)  Due to the lake effect, we can have a warm day (meaning 40-50 degrees) and then a freezing 1-digit day the next!  We frequently get patches of sun and blue skies amidst snow storms and windy conditions!  Sometimes, looks can be deceiving when you are in a toasty 72 degree home looking out at the beautiful white wonderland glistening in the sun!  But really, whats not to love?  This is what January and February are supposed to be.... its Winter, people!  I personally don't mind!  We really have nowhere to be.... especially when it is snowing hard and poor visibility.  Just another excuse for us to stay home, cuddle, play, and be lazy.  (That includes Brad too, since he can essentially work from his lap top).  We have lots of indoor activities, and 3 different levels to play on.  And on the days we have music class or Taj's YMCA pre-preschool, we bundle up just enough to get into the car and drive over to another warm indoor destination.  You only really feel like your face and fingers are going to fall off when you are walking or hanging out in the cold outside longer than 10+ minutes, ha!

Where's the lake? Its there.... its just frozen, covered with snow and fog!

our snow covered tree lined street

Icicles!! (view from Taj's bedroom)

This photo is priceless...... here is my little one wearing a sweater I WORE when I was little! Dug this up amongst my old dolls and toys, and I just had to wash it and put it on Taji!  He loved it!  This was my favorite sweater as a child, and my mom actually knit it!

When its a wintery, wintery day, what do we usually do?  Let us show you........

Story time with Taj:

 Taj reading one of his favorite Thomas books: "Thomas and the Monster under the Shed".
Oh, is story time a favorite in this house or what!  We must read over an hour every day (divided into two different story times, one right before nap time and the other before bedtime.) Lately, Taj has been the designated reader.  Instead of us reading to him, he loves to read to us and Jax.  Since we go to the library every week, we check out plenty of books, and he memorizes these after we read them.  Its incredible how much vocabulary he learns, and the best part is listening to him read it verbatim "Thomas snapped", and "said Gordon, pompously"  He even acts out the stories, using sound effects!

Jumping in our Bounce House

 The boys jumping in their bounce house (this video was taken the day after Christmas)

Karaoke Time!

 Jax is our resident DJ :)

 And when daddy takes a Snow Day from work (LOL), the boys get more play time with him!

Play dates at Museums!

Buffalo Children's Museum, with Taj's buddy Addie.

And just when you have gotten used to looking at all the beautiful white snow, we all of a sudden get a random 60 degree day and the snow completely melts!

This happened last Wednesday!  The boys and I seized the opportunity and walked..... yes, we actually strolled over to the park pushing Jax in the blue car and got some swinging in!  The boys were ecstatic to swing!  You can see the lake was still somewhat frozen.  After swinging, we walked over to the post office and picked up some calzones on our walk back home...... and we got home just in time before the next snow storm arrived.  This snow storm brought us over a foot of snow.....and its still snowing!