Babymoon to the Bahamas

A lot of memorable things happened at the end of 2012 for our family.  One major thing was hubby starting a new job.  During the transition, we decided to take a 8-day vacation/babymoon to the Bahamas with the grandparents.  We stayed at the Atlantis Resort, and had a super relaxing and indulgent vacation.

We loved vacationing with the grandparents.  We had adjacent rooms with an internal connecting door.  In the mornings, the kids would scurry next door as soon as they woke up.  Luckily grandma and grandpa are early risers and would entertain the kids while hubby and I slept in.  And they would play with the kids at the pools, during which time hubby would run off to try one of the many adult water rides.  While we actually thought we would take more advantage of having the grandparents with us, by the evening I was so tired that hubby usually went out on his own to visit the casinos or watch free movies at the resort's theatre.

The kiddies loved vacationing with the grandparents

The Resort:
One of the neat things about the Atlantis are the marine habitats and aquarium exhibits.  Literally everywhere you go on the resort, you are walking through tunnels of predators and fish or walking by open pools of sharks or manta rays.

underground aquarium

pool of nurse sharks

Dining:
We bought a meal plan at the Atlantis. And while it gave us access to several restaurants, we usually hit one of the buffets.  It suited everyone's different palates and cravings.  By the end of the trip though, I felt awfully gluttonous and just wanted salad.  "L" of course loved the chocolate fountain and ice cream every night for dessert.  It is vacation, after all.

One gluttonous dinner and "L" passed out after a long day of playing

Activities:
Conveniently, right outside our room was a beach, so each morning we would take an early walk or play in the sand before breakfast.

Another favorite activity that was right outside our room was the Lazy River, which was slow enough even for my little 2 year old "P".  Hubby said he could just float around for hours.

The resort offered various free activities, some which we took advantage of.  We took a guided tour of "The Dig", an archaeological journey through sunken city of Atlantis.  We also did some crafts and participated in a sand castle building contest.  We won only because grandpa built a replica of "The Current", one of the river rides in the park. 

Family craft time

We spent every day at Aquaventure Waterpark, which boasts over 20 swimming areas and 3 kid pools that were perfect for young toddlers. 

"L" loved the slides at "Splasher's" water playground

The shallow waters at "Mayan Temple Pool" were perfect for "P"

"Ripples" pool with mini slides

I enjoyed my fill of pina coladas and daiquiris (virgin, of course!)

Even though it was December, it didn't quite feel like Christmas-time despite all the decorations at the resort, especially while sitting in 80 degree weather.  Nonetheless, we felt it only appropriate that we take a picture with Santa.

Day Trip to Downtown Nassau:
Seven of the days we stayed on the resort, but one day we did actually get off the resort.  We took a private tour of Nassau and visited some historical places.  We also stopped by the famous Straw Market to buy souvenirs like straw hats, straw bags, t-shirts and hand carved dolphin and sharks. While we wanted to eat at the famed Poop Deck, it was so tiring to get around that we just took a recommendation from our tour guide and still got our fill of fried conch and conch fritters.

Fort McHenry

The base of the Queen's Staircase

Every time we passed by this Atlantis throne, which was pretty much daily, we posed for photos.

After 8 full days, I was ready to go back to reality, ten pounds heavier, tanned and completely relaxed.  Everyone had a memorable and amazing time.  As we were leaving the kids kept saying they wanted to stay in the Bahamas and "L" was heard talking in his sleep the next night at home saying, "I don't want to go back to NJ, I don't want to go back...."