Summer Vacation Part II

From Las Vegas, we hitched up with Grandma and Grandpa Hanks and drove an additional 4 hours to L.A.  We spent the night in a hotel near LAX.  The next morning we leisurely ate breakfast, packed up our gear, and headed for the airport 2 1/2 hours before our scheduled flight.  We found it odd that the agent who checked our bags and passports personally escorted us to security, but we soon learned that our plane was boarding at that very moment.  Somehow, the time of our flight was changed without us knowing it!  Can you imagine a family of eight (four of them children) frantically taking off their shoes, belts, and watches, and shoving all of their belongings onto the conveyor belt to be X-Rayed?  Of course, Ava's cast had to be specially inspected along with Nicholas' sippy cup full of juice.  This kind of stress would put anyone in a frenzy....especially my Dad!  And, to make matters worse, Simon had to go the bathroom.  Despite all of this, we made it on the plane just in time!

Brahm playing Angry Birds.

Grandpa slept while Simon watched a movie on Jess' phone.

The city of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico greeted us with a wave of heat and humidity.  This definitely wasn't the 60 degree, rainy weather that I was used to in Boise.  My hair suddenly became big and curly, and beads of sweat began to drip down my back.  A taxi shuttled us to our hotel where we were met by the friendly staff members of the Grand Luxxe.  We spent most of the first day familiarizing ourselves with our beautiful residence and the hotel property.

Grand Luxxe lobby

Lobby/waiting area

One of the bedrooms in our hotel suite.

 One of the bathrooms in our hotel suite.

The dining and living room.

Simon and Brahm snacking in the kitchen.

Ava relaxing on the 2nd balcony.

Jess and Nicholas on the balcony.

Ava posing near a hotel restaurant.

The walkway to one of the many pools.

It's not hard to relax near the pool on a canopy bed.



Sunset on the beach.

Everything about this resort was absolutely amazing!  We had a personal concierge at our beck and call, twice daily maid service, a man at the pool with the sole responsibility of cleaning our sunglasses, and a host of other services and amenities.  The outdoor public restrooms were the nicest of any that we have ever seen (indoor or outdoor). The kids especially loved our very own pool on our private balcony.  More to come....