Club Med Insider

A Birthday to Remember!

Ixtapa 2006/2007

It was October 2006. Our baby daughter was turning one. After much debating about how we would celebrate this special occasion, we happily decided that Club Med, Ixtapa was the best way to go.

Fast forward a few months to December 30th. It is the end of the year. We are tired, we feel burnt out, we need a recharge. We arrive at Club Med, late in the evening, the day before New Year’s Eve. We are quickly greeted by two smiling GOs who get us checked in. We check out our room, (so nice! Two separate bedrooms and there’s a crib for Chloe), get cleaned up, and see what is for dinner. I have been to many Club Meds, so I am anticipating the fresh salads, delicious Mexican fruits, and cheeses. My husband has never been. We walk in to the main dining room, and are immediately welcomed with the aroma of sizzling, grilled fish, and chopped spicy peppers. My husband is pleased. Gabriel, our older son, spies the soft-serve ice cream machine. “How much can I eat?” he asks with big eyes. “Can I have seconds on ice cream?” he asks. “Sure thing,” (wink, wink). We’re on vacation. Life is now good for Gabriel. We sit down, Gary is poured a glass of red. Life is getting better for everyone.
After dinner, a moonlit walk on the beach. The sands are soft. The ocean is warm and smells amazing. We go back to the room and sleep deep.

The next morning we rise early, have a great breakfast, and get acclimated. Gabriel gets checked in to the kids’ club in time for Circus School. Chloe meets the sweet women who take care of the babies. They prepare fresh foods for the babies, take them for walks in a huge stroller, sing and play with them, and tuck them in to their own little cribs for naps. We were nervous, but our minds are immediately put to ease.

Gary and I grab a margarita and put on our ‘splorin’ shoes. I grab the yoga schedule. (You have got to try yoga on the beach..mmm….), pass someone getting a massage under one of the palapas on the way to the sailing shack, make a mental note to take a kayak out the next day. We are definitely unwinding, and fast. Someone tells us to reserve a spot at the pajama party for our kids so we can enjoy New Year’s festivities.

New Year’s Eve is fun. Our baby tries her first lobster tail (grilled, beachside, dipped in butter) and Gabriel eats his weight in ice cream. There is festive music, champagne toasts, and dancing. On New Year’s Day, the next day at noon, the entire club is given white balloons to launch for the new year. Spectacular!

The week creates special memories for everyone. There are crazy Club Med traditions (Hands Up Baby, everyone?), and funny characters (I cannot leave without mentioning “Al Papaya,” who looks like Al Pacino, but wears the teeny, tiny “banana hammock” and eats HUGE plates of papaya everyday for breakfast and lunch!) Gabriel loves the kids’ club so much, he wakes up, rushes everyone through breakfast, saying “I’m gonna’ be late. I don’t wanna’ be late.” We see him mostly in passing during the day; at the pool for pool volley ball, at lunch (though not at the same table), measuring the progressing days by noting his skin getting more and more tan. I intercept him for some table tennis and to take him out in a kayak. Chloe is adorable at the beach, fearlessly crawling towards the waves, over and over and over. She looks radiant, and is having a blast. On Thursday, Chloe is crowned “Miss Ixtapa” by the baby club. Gary is spending much needed quality time with his daughter on the beach, and in the pool, playing turtle taxi dad. We discover the island across from the club, take a water taxi over, and enjoy a Crazy Pineapple and some fresh fish tacos with our feet in the sand. I love seeing my family so happy and having such a wonderful vacation together.

Wednesday is Chloe’s birthday. It is January third and we are reflecting on what an incredible year this has been. The wonderful chef makes Chloe her very own leche cake for her birthday. On the count of three, the entire restaurant sings “Happy Birthday” to our little daughter. Chloe digs in to her delicious first cake. I cry.

Saturday greets us entirely too quickly (the true sign of a great holiday). It is time to say good bye. All four of us are silent, we don’t want to leave. This is the best family vacation ever and will be talked about for years to come.

Fast forward now. It is February 28, 2009. We have been blessed with a new baby boy this past year. And, guess what? He will be turning one at the end of March. As Ethan’s birthday approaches, we begin deliberating over what we should do for his first milestone birthday. We would love to do something as special for him as we did for his big sister Chloe. One idea comes to mind…Club Med anyone?