Happy Spring!

Signs of spring are beginning to pop up everywhere. First off, Happy Birthday sweet Sister!! To my beautiful, young at heart always, generous sibling . . . we wish you a year full of surprises, successes, and joy! We love you sooo much!

We are heading straight into holiday season again, and my plate is ALWAYS full this time of year. I'm inundated with birthdays and holidays, and this year, we're celebrating a baby to come for my sweet cousin and her husband. My head is swimming in keeping track of all the parties and get-togethers in the coming months ahead. Throw in some wedding planning assistance for my sister, and getting our summer vacation plans ready, plus weekly playdates, and training for a half-marathon, this CEO of the household needs to be uber organized! I'm looking forward to all these things, and really, the only things currently stressing me out are getting our taxes done and getting over this annoying flu/cold that has descended on my poor clan. Oy vey!

Unfortunately, Micro came down with a bit of cold last week, which Mr. Fliz caught, and then Micron, and I held out for a few days, til I, too, succumbed to some flu symptoms that hit me like a brick wall on Monday. Suffice to say, our St. Patrick's day included cancelling some Children's Fairyland plans with friends, and hanging out indoors on a majorly nice day. Hello Spring! No luck of the Irish was bestowed on us. 

That's ok, I know things will look much better once we've all recovered. And here I thought we were lucky enough to escape this flu/cold thing going around. Oh well, can't win them all! So I'm in the middle of planning our summer vacation and we are doing it this year! I'm talking about the big D!!
That's right, we are going to visit Mickey & Minnie. Since CARS Land opened, it's been on our radar because Micro has always been a Huge Fan of the movies and has a serious collection of most of the cars and toys. I'm completely overwhelmed with planning, because if you read my last post, I take my vacation planning seriously. A few years ago, I wrote an article about some Disneyland tips (I need to heed some of my really smart advice), some things have changed I'm sure and there are several resourceful online tips out there. I'm scrounging around for advice on where to eat (some fairly healthy options would be nice, but I'm not counting on it) in the park (we are willing to splurge on one meal and the rest, reasonably affordable decent food). Of course, I plan on bringing my own small snacks, etc. However, if there's a place I need to book in advance, that's worth going to, please lmk. This is our first venture there with kids, so there's not too many expectations to do several things, as our kids are still very young, and know this isn't our last trip there. I'm sure Disneyland will become a vacation favorite for years to come because it's so accessible. Any information you give is much appreciated!

In the meantime, hope Winter is withering away and Spring has sprung!









 

Family Travel: Picking the right hotel

Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe 

It's almost Spring and travel sites are in full swing to make sure that the masses take advantage of travel deals and getaways. I just received an email from TripAdvisor for the 25 Best Hotels for Families. I was pleasantly surprised that Italy and Florida appeared 7 and 6 times on the list. That's pretty much half the list right there. But those destinations make sense as, Italy, with its metros and trains, make traveling around easy. And what kid wouldn't like to visit where "pizza and pasta" came from.  Florida has sun, beaches, and Disneyworld. Enough said. Lucky for me, I've been to both destinations. Just not yet with my kids.

It got me thinking as to what makes a hotel ideal for families.  I have my own personal requirements when it comes to choosing hotels when I'm traveling with my kids. But those requirements will change as time passes and the kids age. I've written about travel several times on this blog and in my other travel blogs, so I feel I have some credibility to give guidance and feedback on what makes hotels and destinations family-friendly. 

Whenever we all travel together to a new destination, Mr. Fliz and I research for the best value of our money, and not necessarily, the best hotel/resort. We, like many families out there, want to get more with having to pay as little as possible. Makes financial and practical sense. Both Mr. Fliz and I research destinations and lodging as best we can. This provides guidance to see what the average hotel/resort charges and helps us develop our lodging budget. Once we've established that, I begin to compare amenities against what we ideally want in a hotel/resort. Sometimes, we'll use reward points or a combination of both rewards and cash at certain lodgings. Pretty sweet, because most of these places are Starwood Properties. Get perks like that, here.

We've been blessed to have had the opportunity to stay at some great properties that allowed Mr. Fliz and I separate sleeping quarters from our kids---or at the very least, a big enough space where we can tuck a crib or bed in a corner where the little rugrats won't wake up, and the adults can still stay up to watch T.V., enjoy a bottle of wine on a balcony, etc. Those things matter, to us, at least. Because it's OUR vacation too. I've used TripAdvisor several times (probably every single time we need to research lodging, actually) and really appreciate the user reviews and photos. Just like Yelp, be wary of who is reviewing. I'm an avid reviewer there and pretty honest about how I view the property. I do my best to upload photos when I can so that others can benefit from our stay. We've stayed at budget hotels and at 3-4 star properties. 

Depending what we want out of our vacation, we look for properties that are centrally located to public transportation, banks, grocery stores, restaurants, etc. We don't always like to eat at the hotel and like to venture out and about. My youngest is still too young to take advantage of any kid-specific programs at most hotels, so having a pool or having beach access is a plus if we're doing a beach vaction. If there are nearby parks or large open spaces where they can run around and explore safely, is a luxury. 

I prefer having a small kitchen (fully-stocked ones are very much appreciated when you travel with kids, because it means less packing) or kitchenette, a washer/dryer in the room or on site (hey, some Starwood Properties offer that!) is a BONUS. That means I can pack less clothes and it's just comforting knowing I can clean our clothes before we leave so I have less crap to do when we get home. Sometimes we get lucky where the hotel/resort staff are so accommodating that they'll give us freebies to use for our kids, like a discount or free meal at one of their eateries or stores. Preferably, an ideal hotel is where the staff understands the needs of parents. Babysitting services, in-room entertainment for kids (like movies or giving complimentary toys/books), special eating times where there's entertainment provided for little ones, certainly go a long way in helping that property stand out among others. 

What are some of your lodging needs when traveling? For more information on my reviews on TripAdvisor, lookup "better3rd."

St. Maarten/St. Martin (Caribbean) at The Westin Dawn Beach & Spa
View from our balconyMicro was only 9 months old

Cancun, Mexico Westin Lagunamar 
Micro was 20 months old and I was 6 months pregnant

A Girl Full of Curls

Micron, God bless her! When I try and escape for 10 minutes of peace, I curl up in my bed and put the covers up to my chin every afternoon. In 5 minutes, I see this little head of curls bobbing into my room and instantly, I know my "me" time is over. This bobbing head of curls is my rambunctious, feisty as sriracha chili, two-and-a-half year old little girl. 

She is the other precious jewel in our lives. The spunkier, too much attitude she packs a punch, "baby girl", as we so lovingly refer to her. She is unmistakeable with her tight ringlets that frame her face, and everywhere else. We don't really know where those awesome curls came from. My hair is naturally wavy and thick(which, I often straighten). Mr. Fliz's has a slight wave, but generally, pretty straight. Micro has stick straight hair (but with a cow lick we can't get a handle on). Then comes my spitfire, Micron, with boingy-boingy's all over. 

I get plenty of compliments about her hair and questions up the wazoo of where they come from, etc. As beautiful as it is to have a full head of curls, they are a nightmare to handle! Mamas with similar kids, I know you feel me. Keeping it looking from a birds' nest (which was from 10 months til about six months ago), is really hard. Like, really. I rarely combed Micron's hair. Poor, poor girl. 

It's gotten to the point, where I wonder if I should use product on my two-year old. Sheesh, I didn't use hair products willingly til I was in high school, or rather, ahem, more like, college. But whatever! Her hair is getting longer and more difficult to manage. Just last night, I sent Mr. Fliz to buy a wide-tooth comb after researching online what other Mamas do to handle fellow curly-surly kids. Combing her hair is a process, and putting it up--forget it! I'm lucky if I can get a headband to stay. I know it's common for little girls to not be into getting their hair brushed or putting it up in cute pigtails, ponytails, braids, etc..As parents, especially Moms, we can't stand the "hair in the face/eyes/mouth" issue. So we tie it back with whatever we can. 

Micron, however, has really cute curls, that can look like two birds went at it in her hair after a nap. And when I see it after she gets up, I either get too lazy to comb it properly and leave it in a state of disarray (bad Mama, I know) or put up with an ensuing 5 minutes of complaining about sitting down and combing. We LOOOVE her curls, and she hasn't gotten a haircut yet because my fear is that the curls will disappear, poof! Gone! As much as we dread the combing process with our baby, the loss of curls feels even more despairing. It's become such an iconic part of Micron. It helps to define her--bouncy, full of life, and craaaazy! I freak out a bit when I give her baths and see how truly long her hair is when it's weighed down with water (it's way past her mid back). So that's what she would look like with straight hair, I think to myself.

I don't know if the ringlets will last, but if they do, it won't matter, because, either way, she'll love and hate them at some point, like all women feel about their own hair.

Micron's Hair Diary

Bird's nest