Spain was FANTASTIC!! Mallorca was a beautiful place and the weather could not have been more amazing.
Traveling there was a breeze. Elliott was great on the two hour plane ride, and actually slept most of the time. We hopped off the plane and into a cab and met my dad and Reagan lounging poolside - which is exactly where we spent most of our time.
Elliott loved the water ... he could have swam all day if it wasn't for his extreme need for an afternoon nap.
The view from our pool ... our hotel was a renovated Spanish castle ... oh la la ... it was a super fancy place.
Taking a swim ... Elliott loves his Poopy and Rae-Rae ...
We tested out the swim vest. It was a nice safety device, but E was still a little small for it. By the end of the trip he was kicking and doing little arm strokes though!
Another view from the pool ...
The front of the hotel ... the concierge was great here. Seriously, I don't think I ever touched a bag. We called for an iron, and it was there in minutes. Breakfast was one of the greatest events of my life ... we're talking two rooms full of whatever your heart desired. Mimosas, omelets, fresh fruit, bacon, croissants with Nutella, crepes ... it was everything that dreams are made of ...
Elliott's hair took a turn for the worse on the trip ... he had a nice little Jheri curl going on - thanks to the humidity ...
Views from our balcony ...
When we checked-in with Ramon at the concierge desk he was very confused about our German address with our American passports. I made mention that Vic was in the military ... well that must have struck a cord with ol' Ramon because he got on the phone and seconds later we were upgraded! Our room was awesome. Perfect view, very spacious, and it even had heated floors in the bathroom ...
View from the bathroom ... you could see through the window and out the balcony.
Ohhhh our very own bidet!!! I never tested this baby out, but Elliott was positive that it was a tiny sink that he was supposed to wash his hands in ...
Another view from our balcony ...
On our second night in Mallorca my dad and Reagan kindly watched Elliott for the night and we were set free to explore the island on our own!!!
The Cathedral in town - which we ended up exploring the next day ...
The little streets and alleyways ... there were a ton of restaurants and shops to choose from ...
We decided on a little place called La Bodega ... we were both starving at this point and too scared to try anything authentically Mallorcan with the fear theat we may not like it and die of hunger, so we settled from chicken and lambchops ... with a side of beer ... it was great.
After dinner we knew we wanted to listen to live music of some sort, so we asked the waiter for a suggestion ... he pointed us next door to a jazz bar, and it was one of the coolest places I have ever been. We sat for a couple of hours and listened to some great bands ...
Afterwards we walked along the pier and did a little shopping ... we found this awesome lady selling these hand-painted signs, so we picked one up for E ...
Then we found a levitating man ... I think this was probably a lot cooler after a dozen beers.
The next day we hung out by the pool again, and decided to head into town and explore a little more ...
Posing in the lobby of our hotel ...
Walking through the gardens ...
Under the entry way to the hotel ...
Waiting for the bus ... which proved to be the best source of transportation - although we could never quite figure out the route home, so we just grabbed a taxi!
Poppy and E ...
Drinking Sangria at dinner!
In front of the Cathedral ...
Prince Elliott getting carried up the steps ...
Inside the Cathedral ... we walked in during a service which was pretty cool to see. The stained glass window is actually the largest in all of Europe ... even bigger than Notre Dame! We have been on a lot of churches in our travels and this was, by far, the coolest ...
View from the outside ...
Just hanging out on the streets of Spain ...
View from the Cathedral ...
I love this picture!!
The restaurant where we ate ... Elliott had a minor meltdown here, so we all had to take turns walking him around to see the birds ...
Getting ice cream after dinner ...
Letting it ALL hang out ...
The next day we got up early to head to the beach. Dad and Reagan rented a car and we drove about twenty minutes to an awesome little cove. It was a great day, and E had a blast.
The beach ended up being topless ... like most places in Europe ... and we definietly saw a few sights that we did NOT need to see!!
The water was great, and Elliott was not scared one bit. He loved going out with Poppy and Rae-Rae to see the boats ...
I love this picture .... Vic was teaching Elliott ... 'Mama had a baby and her head popped off" ... E thought it was absolutely hilarious ...
After a long day at the beach and a vicious sunburn for me we did a little shopping and found an awesome little British restaurant. The owner was great and the music was even better. We had a hilarious car ride home which involved a near panic attack from my dad as Reagan steered through the streets of Mallorca.
Rae Rae and Elliott dancing to the 80s ...
Outside of the British restaurant ...
It was a great vacation ... I love seeing Elliott around family and just having normal people to hold a conversation with ... we miss normal people. We really can not thank my dad and Reagan enough for planning this trip and letting us be a part of it ... it was a once in a lifetime kind of place!! We are hoping they can make one more stop in Germany before we leave so we can have more adventures and funny stories to tell ...
Side note ... the countdown is officially on ... we have 16 months here, but no more visitors after next October (our house will be in the process of being packed up and close to being emptied ... and nobody wants to come when we have that government rented furniture) ... that gives you all about a year to figure out how to get to Germany for a free place to stay and the most amazing tour guides to ever grace this beer-filled country. Do it.
Elliott had his first dentist appointment the day after we got back, and the dentist had rave reviews. He said everything looks great, and if he can guess - we probably won't ever have to see an orthodontist! We celebrated with ice cream ... which seems counterproductive, but, whatever ...
Yesterday we checked out the Nuremburg Zoo ... and E loved it. It definitely wasn't the best zoo we have been too, but it was a nice little day ...
Seriously, this kid has no fear. He was running around from goat to goat ... feeding, petting, and hugging these things ...
I think we're having a conversation about not poking this guy in the eye ...
He did NOT want me around ... he wanted to, very independently, feed these goats ...
This zoo opened in 1912 it was closed after the Nazis seized power and completely destroyed during WWII ... pretty crazy ...
Summer is officially over ... E goes back to daycare on Tuesday and I am back to work and school. We don't have much planned for the next couple of months as we are saving for our big cruise!!
