Mauritius

Where do I start? This was by far the easiest and most relaxed trip we've had. I also felt the most organized thanks to the discovery of travel cubes! Practice makes perfect:) 

We took advantage of the new at home service Emirates Airlines provides where the pick up your luggage from your home the day before you travel so all you have to do is go through security when you arrive at the airport. Avoiding juggling between luggage trolleys and 3 kids first thing in the morning was AMAZING. 

We flew 6.5 hours to Mauritius and the kids did great. Rayan was glued to the TV and discovered Paw Patrol and Dora The Explorer (and is now obsessed), Riya enjoyed each and every activity and craft that I brought for her, and Reina was happy to bounce around from lap to lap and walk about the plane. I couldn't have asked for a better start (and finish) to our trip. 

We spent 8 nights on the southeast part of this beautiful island. We were also only a 15 minute boat ride away from another, very popular, island Il Aux Cerf. I thought our private beach was gorgeous but when we visited Il Aux Cerf, the water was crystal clear mixed in with a dreamy blue. The sand on these beaches were so nice and soft. I am pretty sure it has been groomed to be that way, not irritating at all, which was a major concern considering Riya has eczema. Another pretty cool thing about this slice of the island was there were no threatening animals that inhabited the area. 

The kids thoroughly enjoyed all the amenities at the hotel, boat rides, beach fun, searching for sea life, and cooking. We did a cooking class together with Riya and Rayan and made ravioli and pizza. YUM. The food there was also so delicious. Fresh seafood mixed in with Asian and Creole French influences made it very hard not to try everything!

The fact that Ram and I actually got some kid free time during the day, made it feel like a real vacation. If you have young kids, you know exactly what I mean. We were getting some much needed R&R and did not want to leave by the end of our stay. The farewell BBQ and Magic show we lined up on our last night was the left ending to our trip. We had a feast! And Riya and the magician magically made candy appear out of a box! The kids loved it. 

I am so happy we got to check out a new country and I cannot wait to go again! I have way too many videos and pictures in my album, so here is a snapshot of our vacay: 

Hong Kong and Macau

We took on our first long haul trip of the year to Hong Kong and Macau over the kids Spring Break. We chose a nighttime flight because I did not want to entertain 3 kids for 7 hours (can you blame me?!). And luckily we tired them out enough so that they slept pretty soon after take off and stayed asleep until we reached Hong Kong 6.5 hours later. Best.Flight.Ever.

We arrived in Hong Kong with an ambitious schedule. For our first outing, we went to Ocean Park, a large theme park for children of all ages. For our buckaroos, we focused on the panda exhibit, aquarium, toddler rides, and a themed play area they designed inside. Ocean Park is so big that you can take a submarine "train" or sky cable car to take you from one end to the other. The mountains were a gorgeous backdrop for the park and it was lovely. We were off to a good start!

The next day we went to Disneyland. Originally we were planning to stay at their hotel but that would have been our second hotel move within just a few days, making our overall stay at 3 hotels during a week long trip, which we decided was too much moving around. I think next time we may stay at the resort just because we will probably go for more than half a day since the kids will be older and we could cover more ground.

Riya enjoys her princess books and loves Minnie just because (can't say I blame her) so we tried to tie all that in for her to prepare her for this trip. We were especially excited about visiting Sleeping Beauty's Castle and hyped that up for her. At the last minute I remembered to pack her Beauty and the Beast dress that she is obsessed with for the trip. Of course she asked to wear it that day (phew, crisis averted!) and off we went to Disneyland! I was surprised at how big the area was and luckily for us, there was really only one area we needed to focus on because our kids are so young.

Fantasyland had all a toddler could want: Its a Small World, Fantasy Gardens where you could meet and greet characters, Minnie Mouse's Garden, Sleeping Beauty's castle, and toddler rides. We tried to save the best for last, that being the Castle, and did everything else. The kids loved Its a Small World and it definitely brought back childhood memories for me. Too bad Reina was snoozing during the ride but she woke up just in time to snag a picture at the end:)

Sadly, we didn't get to meet any characters, the line for Mickey and Minnie Mouse was insane and we were encroaching on cranky hour. So we rushed to the Castle only to find out that it was under repair and CLOSED. Our hearts sank and Riya was very disappointed but thankfully she handled it very well.

The next day we set off to Macau. We took a 60 minute boat ride to the island of Macau. A city that was created to be the Vegas of Asia. And boy did it deliver! We visited both Wynn properties (in old town and new) and instantly felt transported to Vegas. Unfortunately, all the American slots (ahem Sex and The City) were not transported there, but everything else (decor and restaurants) were the same. It was nice to get a bit of gambling in since I haven't been since I was pregnant with Rayan. Macau is definitely not a place for little kids although all the hotels have nice indoor play areas for toddlers. Apart from shopping, dining, and gambling, there wasn't much else to do or see. This part of the trip was just for the adults:) It was a special treat to get to spend my birthday in Macau.

All in all it was a fun and memorable trip and the kids are still talking about it!

Ras Al Khaimah Road Trip

Last week the kids had a week off from school and since I was still recovering from their 3 week Christmas break, I urged Ram to consider a family vacation. We were still too nervous to fly with all 3, so we decided to drive to a beach resort at another emirate for the week. ROAD TRIP!

We loaded up the car with only 2.5 suitcases (thank you), a pack n play and some bags of food and drove one hour to Marjan Island in the Ras Al Khaimah emirate. It was the perfect initiation vacation as a family of five. We arrived late Sunday afternoon and spent those first few hours getting all the rooms set up and then it was dinner and bedtime.

We had the entire ground floor of this tower of the hotel (no one but staff could get past the lobby door to our rooms). Our set up allowed us to actually have some adult time while the kids were sleeping that didn't involve us staring at our phones in the darkness from 7:30pm till bedtime. WOOHOO! So after the kids went to bed, it was nice to sneak into the kitchen/dining area to share a bottle of wine while playing games or sitting in the garden and enjoying the view.

The rest of the week was a blur of swimming, walks along the beach, park fun, and tasty meals. One night, I took Riya out to dinner for the first time since we moved to Dubai and she was SO happy, and sweet. She later told me it was one of the highlights of the trip for her. HEART.MELTING. I have to remember to work that in once in awhile!

The week was coming to a close and no one wanted to leave, so I would say that this was a huge success! So we decided to fly for our next family vacation over Easter Break (just in time for my birthday) and go to Hong Kong and Macau. Can't wait!!!!!

Rayan turns TWO

Its so crazy to me that my middle child is just barely two years old. These last few months has been an explosion of him starting to talk and then forming complete sentences within weeks to him now counting to 10 and singing along to every song I play. This kid catches on really quickly!!! It doesn't hurt that he has a bright older sister whom he adores and tries to copy every chance he gets!

My little Rayan has quite the personality and is known to charm the pants off of everyone he meets. If it isn't his charm, he wins them over with his enthusiastic laugh and smile. His entire nursery adores him. Paging Mr. Congeniality...

I love that he wakes up either singing or requesting (very loudly) to give him something to eat (lately we have had a lot of "Mommy....I WANT GUMMY BEARS!"). This kid cracks me up.

We decided not to have a party this year. We took him to the new Chuck E Cheese out here but it didn't have a lot for his age. But he still enjoyed eating pizza. Thank goodness we only have 1 picky eater in this house (jury is still out on Reina)!  On his actual birthday, we sent him to class with cupcakes and then had cake and presents at home. He really enjoyed opening gifts this year which was cool to see although he is afraid of his new big boy bike and remote control car:/

I am looking forward to seeing what my little man gets into this year!

Here are a few pictures from his birthday weekend:

Riya was equally excited and lent a helping hand opening gifts :D