Tell any parent you’re going on vacation with your kids and odds are they’ll question your use of the term.
They’ll say something like, “that’s not a vacation, it’s a trip,” or “that’s just parenting with a view.” And they’re not wrong.
I was on one such trip when I missed the last couple of newsletters, and for that, I apologize. In my defense, I wasn’t exactly taking it easy. As anyone who’s taken one knows, family vacations can be grueling.
Which isn’t to say we didn’t have fun. We had a lot of fun, with and without the kids (but mostly with, because while Detective Munch is on the cusp of teenhood, his little brother is only 7 and still requires a level of supervision that prevents the sort of relaxation one would typically hope to achieve when staying at a resort or going to the beach or traveling to a foreign country, and for about 7 days at the end of July we did all three of those things.)
Mom and Buried and I partnered with the Hotel Paradisus in Cancun, an all-inclusive resort complete with a variety of amazing restaurants, multiple pools, various entertainment options, insane views, and a kids club that my kids mostly ignored in favor of hanging out with us for some quality family time. Yay!
We ate grasshoppers and ants (they weren’t bad), we visited one of the seven wonders of the world in Chichen Itza (Detective Munch is crazy for ancient cultures and mythology and it totally delivered), we beach hopped around Tulum (gorgeous), we conquered an escape room that is housed within the resort itself (largely thanks to Mom and Buried - once she shouted enough for us to hear her and realize she was right, as usual), we drank pina coladas, we got caught in the rain, we didn’t each much health food, and my wife had plenty of champagne, and we listened to Taylor Swift on the balcony of our gorgeous hotel room while our kids slept (laugh all you want, she’s got some bangers!).
I also lost a few pounds because oh my god it’s hot down there, especially when you’re wandering around ancient ruins in the middle of the jungle with zero shade and 8 million percent humidity.
We ate extremely well, drank extremely often, and treated our kids to an experience they’ll never forget - I mean, look at this place! I also hurt my neck and back from playing with them in the pool the entire trip, and I’ll never let them forget that either.
Social Media Round-Up
The Dad and Buried Podcast
It’s back! It’s been a bit since the last episode, but my podcast has returned.
In our latest episode, Mom and Buried joins me to recap what we’ve been up to during the show’s hiatus (we went to Disney - and I had fun!, our son changed middle schools - he was not having fun!, and I cleaned the fridge!) and to preview what’s to come, including our youngest’s outgoing front tooth, our oldest’s impending transition to teenager, and my efforts to finally clean the junk drawer. (Somebody’s gotta do it, honey!)
We also recorded an episode on location at Hotel Paradisus, stay tuned for that episode!
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We’ll be recording consistently this fall, so if there’s anything you want to hear us discuss on a future episode - marriage stuff, life with an ADHD kid, life with a teenager, the five-year age gap between my kids, my Taylor Swift fandom - let me know via the button below!