Puerto Vallarta..."Journey of a Lifetime"

Bryan and I joined a group of Edward Jones employees from all over the U.S. for an all inclusive vacation last week. We left from Atlanta on Monday morning, and stayed for seven days, six nights. We arrived Monday afternoon to this beautiful sight!

We were hungry, so we ate as soon as we got there, then walked around the resort to see what was in store for the week.

We had perfect weather, with the lows in the upper 60s, and the highs in the low 80s, which was definitely warm enough with the hot sun.

We absolutely LOVED hanging out on our balcony, which had a perfect view of the resort, the ocean, and the sunset.

We didn't plan on doing much during the week, except relax, read, and eat good food.

The first night, Edward Jones hosted a dinner on the beach for the 65 employees and their families. We quickly got to know a few other couples, several of whom had kids Brylee's age they also left with their parents.

As the sun set that first evening, I thought about how much I missed Brylee. But the week was so relaxing, and I knew she was in good hands, so I was able to enjoy myself without missing her too badly.

I didnt' carry my camera with us very much, but we enjoyed spending every day by the pool or beach. One morning we went on a bike ride around the bay our resort was in. Another morning we took kayaks several hundred yards off the beach and saw several dolphins all around us.

I took pictures each night before we went to dinner. Of the six nights we were there, three nights we ate with the Edward Jones group, and the other three nights we ate at three different restaurants on the resort. We tried things like duck, veal, scallops, and ate a lot of guacamole, chips, & salsa.

We also ordered room service for breakfast several times and for a late night snack/dessert. Eating on the balcony was wonderful!

Some of the friends we met over the week.

Edward Jones sponsored another dinner on the beach the last night we were there. It was a great day following a relaxing massage at the resort spa.

We had such a great, relaxing vacation. It was the perfect amount of time away. One day less, I would have been sad to leave. One day longer, I would have missed Brylee too much. Here's to hoping there are many more trips in our future!

Brylee's First "Vacation"

Friday, March 16, we loaded up the car at 4:45am to head to DFW airport for a 10 day trip. Our vacation began with flying to Atlanta to spend the weekend with my family. I was worried about how Brylee would do waking up so early for our 7:10am flight. We got her dressed & ate breakfast once we got to the airport, and just like clockwork, she fell asleep with me as the plane took off and woke up about 15 min before we landed. She was perfect! (Seeing as this is her 6th round-trip flight, she's getting used to the flying process). The weather was perfect, and we spent a lot of time outside with my family. My brother is getting married in May, and they are having a garden wedding in my parents backyard. Needless to say, there is a lot of work to be done!

Brylee absolutely LOVED being outside! My dad had a lot of dirt around the yard he is using for the garden, but Brylee thought it was her perfect sandbox!



It may not have been the best idea for my mom and I to be doing heavy yard work all day Saturday. We walked our 4th annual Atlanta 1/2 marathon Sunday morning. I love this time with my mom, and we plan on continuing this tradition as long as possible. 

Bryan and I were leaving for our Mexico vacation early Monday morning, so we had to say goodbye to our baby when we put her to bed Sunday night. I will admit I shed a tear or two, but knew Brylee would be in good hands with my parents for the week. We have left Brylee overnight before with Bryan's parents, but we were always within driving distance if she needed anything. Being out of the country with limited communication was going to be a challenge!

My mom did a great job of updating me daily through email, and sending me some sweet pictures of Brylee's day.

They had breakfast together every morning.

She loved playing this little piano.

And she enjoyed washing her hands (or playing..) in the kitchen sink.

My grandmother, (mom's mom) was staying with my parents, and Brylee loved playing babies and singing with her.

Again, she spent A LOT of time in the dirt...

...and the sink!

My parents were so smart to keep some of our favorite toys when we were kids.

I brought a few of Brylee's favorite DVDs with us, which she liked watching when my mom was preparing dinner.

I was so excited to see my sweet baby at the airport Sunday night when we returned.

Brylee had so much fun with her Meme and Gramps for the week. She slept like a champ, got spoiled with good food, and got a lot of attention. We were told we were going to have to take a vacation each year just so my parents could have her all to themselves for a week again. We flew home from Atlanta back to Dallas Monday morning, and Brylee did great again, simply playing in our laps. I had to work as soon as we got home, so Tuesday morning we jumped right back into our "normal" routine. More on our Mexico vacation...