Mallorca - Day 1

 After two years of no travel, I was desperate for any kind of vacation. Just before the kids' school break in May, I went online looking for a last minute getaway, and I found an all-inclusive holiday in Mallorca. We typically do city breaks, seeking out culture and history, but I found myself looking forward to relaxing by the pool. 

Our flight out was on a Sunday, and I had seen articles online about the difficulties at UK airports due to staff shortages. Long queues, canceled flights, missed connections - I was nervous about getting to our destination.

We arrived at the airport around 6am, which was 3 hours before our flight. We had paid for fast track through security, and that line was about half the length of the regular line. However, as time passed, the regular line started moving more quickly than fast track. When any flight was preparing to board, workers would walk around saying, "Dubrovnik, anyone going to Dubrovnik follow me," and then deposit them at the front of the fast track queue. Things were moving so slowly that eventually they jumped us to the front of the line so we could board our plane. Thankfully the kids had behaved really well through this ordeal. 

The flight was uneventful, besides the time Clara sang She Loves You by The Beatles at the top of her lungs.

Upon landing, we had a bus ride of about an hour to get to the resort. Lily and I fell asleep, so it went quickly for the two of us, ha.

It was nice to finally arrive at the hotel and deposit our luggage. I immediately broke the flusher on the toilet in our room, so we explored while they sent someone up to fix it. We started with a light snack, and wandered the grounds. The weather was sunny and perfectly warm. Matt and I started exploring the included bar menu with beer and cocktails.

The kids took their first of many dips in one of the pools. Matt and I had more drinks.

We went upstairs to change for dinner. All of the meals were buffet, so there were plenty of choices for everyone. Matt and I had more drinks. There was a mini disco scheduled at 8:00, but Clara said she was too tired, so we headed up to get the kids to bed. Matt and I followed soon after (maybe it was all of the drinks we tried).

View from our room

Dusting Off the Keyboard

 Hello, is this thing on?

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I didn't really have the motivation to keep up with this blog during the beginning (2 years) of the pandemic.  After the novelty wore off, it was depressing and incredibly boring. While the kids were off school, I spent my days immersed in virtual schooling, which is not my strength at all. When they went back to school, there were still restrictions, mask mandates, etc. All restrictions have since been removed in England, so we can move around freely, get our hair cut, and attend events. And more importantly, we can travel again!

For our first trip since 2020, we decided on a short break to Glasgow during the kids' Easter break. However, plans were changed when Lily and I both got Covid. Although we missed our holiday, thankfully we weren't extremely ill. 

We have since been able to leave Yorkshire, yay! Details will be coming on that trip soon.

 

We did have a few exciting things happen in the past couple of years.

 Last year we bought a house! Going through lockdowns in an apartment without a yard was so difficult. We knew we didn't want to do that again- plus there was a nice tax break going on. It's still smaller than what we could have in the US, but it's been really great to have our own place, no downstairs neighbour, and a backyard for the kids. 

We love the door to the backyard!

Living room

Kitchen/dining room

Utility room!

During this time, we also had another exciting addition to the family - Matt got a plot at an allotment (community garden)! He enjoys the planting and being outside, and I enjoy the food he brings home. Last year he grew onions, garlic, rhubarb, peas, lettuces - just to name a few. 

These next photos show the beautiful handmade raised beds he built. I was very impressed with his hard work!

And here are just a few shots of some of our harvests!

Different kinds of beets

Purple potatoes

I think those are the two major things that have happened. Stay tuned for a relaxing island vacation!