Playa Costa Verde

I need to live in the past just a weensy bit more before I let go of our Cuban adventure. I've never been good with transitions. After such an incredible week of family time in such a beautiful place, it is difficult to come home to the reality of going back to work on Tuesday. So for now, I'm going to enjoy our trip for just a little bit more.

Sophie did so well travelling. I was quite anxious about it, and she was great. We were well equipped with lots of books and snacks, which helped a lot. On the way there she slept on the hour long bus ride to the resort (we arrived at the resort at 10:00pm). On the way home she slept the entire way on the plane (we landed in T.O. at 1:00am). That made it easier. We also got given a portable DVD player from Brett's dad. WOW--what a fantastic little invention. It was a little piece of heaven. My favourite moment was when we were in the TINY Cuban airport for two and a half hours (well past S.'s bedtime). We popped her in her stroller, and she (read WE) had 30 minutes to truly zone out (toddlers aren't that interested in looking at tacky, over-priced jewellery). I quickly got over the fact that I would have been disgusted by this gadget pre-Sophie. How much humble pie can a person eat??

Here is a picture of my two favourite people. It makes me very happy to look at this picture. It captures everything that our vacation was--relaxing, simple, easy, full of family time and lots of breathtaking views.

Another really special thing that happened on our vacation was that we got to see a baby hummingbird in its nest. Someone showed it to us. It was right on a very busy path, but it was tucked away and difficult to see. Apparently a few days earlier there were two little ones, but the first had flown. I was able to take this picture and then zoom it in. Each day we could watch it getting closer to leaving the nest. The last day we saw it she was standing on the edge. What a scary task it is for a baby bird to take that leap of faith. To have to fall and trust in order to learn how to fly. It was somewhat emotional sharing the week with this creature. I can only imagine when my baby bird leaves the nest.

There were so many gorgeous flowers. Everywhere. This tree was right outside our room (the building on the right). By the end of the week Sophie would say 'flauw-flauw' to request a fallen flower. She was so gentle with the flowers. Holding them carefully and examining them.