Travel Day

Travel days are always stressful, but as the kids have gotten older, they’ve definitely gotten easier. That said, a 4:30 a.m. departure is still rough — especially for some of us. Bryce had been the designated driver for his friends the night before and didn’t get home until around 2:00, so sleep was minimal. For me, it wasn’t quite as bad since that’s about the time I’d get up for an early shift at work anyway.

Travel days are always stressful, but as the kids have gotten older, they’ve definitely gotten easier. That said, a 4:30 a.m. departure is still rough especially for some of us. Bryce had been the designated driver for his friends the night before and didn’t get home until around 2:00, so sleep was minimal. For me, it wasn’t quite as bad since that’s about the time I’d get up for an early shift at work anyway.

Thankfully, everything was packed and loaded into the vehicles the night before. All we had to do was roll out of bed, get dressed, and go. We’ve officially reached the stage of life where two vehicles are required especially when luggage is involved.

We flew out of Omaha at 8:00 a.m., with our first flight taking us to Dallas. After a couple-hour layover, we boarded our second flight from Dallas to Puerto Vallarta, arriving around 4:00 p.m. From there, we made our way through customs and found our transportation. We had also rented a car, so Robb, Bob, Andy, and Aaron headed off to pick that up — with plans to stop at Costco to stock up on snacks. Unfortunately they found out the the Costco in Mexico is not open on Jan 1 since it is a holiday.

The drive to the house took a little over an hour, thanks to rush-hour traffic. I was very grateful not to be the one driving, because traffic in parts of Mexico is… an experience. A little chaotic, a little terrifying.

When we finally arrived at the house, vacation could officially begin. And wow the villa was amazing. Every adult had their own room with a bathroom and balcony. The girls shared a large room with a bathroom, and the boys had a big room of their own as well. The weather was perfect, the view of the pool was beautiful, and it immediately felt like we had arrived somewhere special.

The chef had even left dinner warming for us, which was such a thoughtful touch. However, there was a small moment of stress when the food wasn’t labeled gluten-free. After a full day of airports and very little real food, Abby had a breakdown trying to figure out what she could and couldn’t eat. At that point, you could tell the long travel day had caught up with everyone.

What we all really needed was a good night’s sleep and some sunshine the next day. Despite the exhaustion and a few bumps along the way, we were finally there together, settled in, and ready for vacation to truly begin.