⁣ SPA @ HOPKINS BAY⁣⁣ 🧖🏽‍♀️⁣⁣ The spa at Hopkins Bay is a little haven of peace and relaxation. ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Ava and I received a treatment there and left feeling at peace and perfectly relaxed!⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 💆🏽‍♀️ I did the 45-minute collagen facial, which included a lower leg and foot massage, while Ava got a 30-minute back massage. ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 👧🏽 Spa treatments are usually reserved for kids 13+. Talk to the spa when you get to the resort to see if they’ll allow a younger child to receive a massage. The treatment was customized for a child and Ava loved it!⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 🌊 It is 100% relaxation, with spa music on a background of crashing waves. ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 👩‍❤️‍👨 If you get a couples massage, I believe it will be done on the pier over the water! How cool is that?⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ I am so happy that Ava and I took some time to get pampered. I loved the 1-on-1 time we had together and it makes me realize just how quickly they are all growing. ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 💕 We need to be more conscious of it and start doing things like this at home. Focusing on one kid at a time is a wonderful thing, that does not come very natural to us. ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 𝐃𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐞 𝟏:𝟏 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧?⁣ ⁣ [hosted] by @hopkinsbaybelize , a @muyonoresorts

JUNGLE HORSE RIDING⁣ 🐎⁣ The kids love horse riding so so much! It’d been a year since our last trail at Theodore Roosevelt NP, since we couldn’t make it work during our California or Kentucky visit. ⁣ ⁣ 🤠 When @muyonoresorts asked if we wanted to go on a horse riding jungle adventure with river swimming, we were beaming!! ⁣ ⁣ The whole excursion lasted about 5 hours, with 3.5 hours on the horses and in the water! ⁣ ⁣ 🐴 The horses were amazing for all ages! Elin (7) was on her own horse and every animal was super docile!⁣ ⁣ 🥥 The guides stole the show. They were incredible from beginning to end. They pretty much gave Elin a private riding lesson, taught the kids to skip rocks, then opened coconuts for everyone to drink and eat from!! ⁣ ⁣ 🦟 Please wear long pants / long sleeves and cover every inch of exposed skin with bug spray. I forgot a few inches on my ankles and got bitten by the Black Flies (Botlass Flies) - I will leave it at that, it’s not pretty! Protect yourselves! ⁣ ⁣ 👙 Pack a swimsuit! It’s hot out there and the river was heavenly good! ⁣ ⁣ Thanks @hopkinsbaybelize for organizing such a beautiful excursion! [hosted] #belize #belizewithkids #kidswhotravel #hopkins #hopkinsbelize

HOPKINS BAY RESORT⁣ ☀️⁣ We are spending the next 4 nights of our Belize adventure at Hopkins Bay Resort, in Hopkins, Belize! ⁣ ⁣ Located in southern Belize, right on the water, we love all the beach and pool vibes! ⁣ ⁣ Hopkins is a super cute and laid-back beach town. Think beach bars, homemade ice cream places, palm trees and the Caribbean Sea! ⁣ ⁣ It’s about a 2.5-hr drive from the airport - soon to be a lot quicker once the direct highway is paved! ⁣ ⁣ We’re loving:⁣ ⁣ 🏠 The large accommodations! The 3-bedroom villas can be booked on their own, or split in 2 or 1-bedrooms, or even a hotel room. ⁣ ⁣ 🌴 The beautiful grounds! House are spread apart and it feels like a little beach-front community in a gorgeous garden! ⁣ ⁣ 👙 Two ocean-facing pools!!⁣ ⁣ 🍤 Belizean food at the Rhum Shack and super kind, kid-loving, staff. ⁣ ⁣ We’re looking forward to unwinding and adventuring in the next few days! The weather is hot and it is the start of the rainy season…. So let’s see what we get!! ⁣ ⁣ @hopkinsbaybelize @muyonoresorts [hosted]

CHAA CREEK⁣ 🌴⁣ We spent the first two nights of our Belize trip at The Lodge at Chaa Creek. ⁣ ⁣ The property was started by a young British couple traveling Central America, over 40 years ago. From farm for backpackers, to adding a spa, and now a luxury jungle lodge with infinity pool, Chaa Creek has come a long way and is a gorgeous property! ⁣ ⁣ 🍆 The food is cooked from local ingredients from their own organic farm⁣ ⁣ 🦜 Every morning, a free 6:30AM bird tour is given (you may see this exact parrot!!)⁣ ⁣ 🦋 And then you’ll see this exact butterfly (the blue morpho) and two other species, at the butterfly farm. Free tours are offered on the hour every day⁣ ⁣ 🦦 There are several forest trails, and the river you can hike down to ⁣ ⁣ 💲 The stay is expensive, and each room is very unique, with traditional thatched roofs. There is no A/C but the fans work well and while you can only book 2 adult + 2 kids, they have free rollaway beds if you have more kids. Put your party size in the comments section at booking!⁣ ⁣ 🛖 Wait for a deal on nightly rates! We paid just over $300 a night (which is 3 times our budget…) instead of rates between $500 and $1,000! Be patient and snatch a deal! @chaacreek

RIO ON POOLS⁣ 🦦⁣ Located in the Mountain Pine Ridge and about an hour’s drive from San Ignacio, it feels like a whole world away. ⁣ ⁣ 🛣 The main road leading to the forest was financed by Taiwan and of incredible quality! The end of the road is still being worked on, and will likely connect the main road to the tallest Mayan ruins in the country when finished. Once you hit the unpaved road, it is in great shape. Only the parking road by the pools, could require a higher-clearance vehicle… ⁣ ⁣ 💦 The Rio On Pools is a fantastic swimming hole on the Macal River. Think small waterfalls, natural slides, warm water in several pools! ⁣ ⁣ Actual heaven on Earth! And entirely free to enter and enjoy!

XUNANTUNICH MAYA RUINS⁣⁣ 🛕⁣⁣ If you’ve seen Maya ruins in Cancun and weren’t impressed… Xunantunich will change your mind!! ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ ⏳ History starts long ago, here. Early Belize Maya settlers set up a small village in 600-300 BC. While the ancient city rose and declined between 700 and 1000 AD!⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 🎭 The plaster friezes on both sides of the largest temples are a beauty of their own, and as you get to the ruins, you are greeted by two plazas surrounded by ruins. ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ The size of the site is mind blowing! ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 🥾 You can carefully climb to the top of the largest ruins (watch for fear of heights and there are no safety rails at the top) - second tallest in the country, for incredible 360 views above the canopy!⁣⁣ ⁣ 🚗 You will need to hop on a 5-minute hand-powered ferry crossing of the river and make sure to have $5 USD / $10 BZD (per person 5+) 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐡 to enter the site. ⁣

WILDERNESS LODGE⁣⁣⁣⁣ 🦬⁣⁣⁣⁣ Disney’s Wilderness Lodge is one of our favorite Disney resorts. ⁣⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣⁣ 🤱🏽It is also the resort where we ate our last meal as non-parents. A few hours after that delicious bison steak at Artist Point, little Ava changed our lives forever! ⁣⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣⁣ Why we love Wilderness Lodge:⁣⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣⁣ 🦌 The lobby is fabulous and our favorite at Walt Disney World. Jambo House at Animal Kingdom Lodge is a close second⁣⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣⁣ 🛌 The resort is 3 resorts in 1, with 2 DVC properties and 1 Disney hotel, all in the same building but creating 3 different experiences⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ ✋🏽 ⁣The Boulder Ridge deluxe studio sleeps 5!!⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣⁣ ⚓️ The free boat to the Magic Kingdom and Fort Wilderness make for a really fun excursion, even on a non-park day!⁣⁣⁣ We love to visit some MK resorts, like Grand Floridian when staying at Wilderness Lodge⁣ ⁣⁣⁣⁣ 🐉 At night, the electrical water pageant (think electrical parade on the lake) is super fun to watch⁣⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣⁣ 🍔 Geyser Point is one of our favorite restaurants at Disney. Super chill, dress down, no reservation needed, lake-facing finger-licking food!⁣⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣⁣ 🍿 The kids will love the movie on the lawn while you finish your dinner in peace right next door ⁣⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣⁣ 🏊🏽‍♀️ The 2 pools are beautiful, with views of the lake, and a nice place to spend the day on non-park days ⁣⁣ ⁣ 🚴🏽‍♀️ You can ride a bike (or jog) to Fort Wilderness⁣ ⁣⁣ 𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐧𝐞𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐭?

ANIMAL KINGDOM LODGE⁣ 🦒⁣ The rig is in the shop for maintenance and we have two nights before flying to Belize, so we are using some of our Disney Vacation Club points to stay at Disney Resorts. ⁣ ⁣ We spent the first night at Animal Kingdom Lodge’s Kidani Village. ⁣ ⁣ 🦓 We love that resort! ⁣ ⁣ There is something so special about walking out onto the savannah and watching giraffes, zebras, gazelles, birds we can’t name, and other African savannah animals.⁣ ⁣ 🛖 Animal kingdom Lodge is divided into two resorts - ⁣ 𝐊𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐧𝐢 𝐕𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐠𝐞 has a smaller lobby, is home to Sana’a (awesome restaurant with views on the animals), has an awesome pool with splash zone in the back. ⁣ 𝐉𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐨 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 had a very large and stunning lobby, is home to Boma (an extraordinary breakfast and dinner buffet), and a large pool. ⁣ ⁣ While we prefer Jambo’s House’s lobby, we like the Kidani pool better. And of course, this is one resort and you can use the facilities as you wish.

AD: STEM SUMMER⁣ 🧪⁣ We’ve partnered with @smartlabtoys to try out two of their science kits and we’re totally in love with both sets!! ⁣ ⁣ 🛍 Both are currently $10 OFF! If you have kids interested in STEM experiments, stock up now, ahead of birthdays and the Holidays!⁣ ⁣ We’ve loved:⁣ ⁣ 🧬 𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐌 𝟏𝟎𝟏: with 35 experiments, kids explore and learn about physics, chemistry, optics, biology, and more. They can even get to extract their own DNA!! ⁣ ⁣ 🌱 𝐎𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐜 𝐒𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐋𝐚𝐛: this one stole Ava’s and my heart! It is the only organic science kit on the market, combining organic science and STEM. The packaging is compostable and the plastics are eco-friendly. We made milk bioplastic and will be experimenting with other plastics and paper making this summer!⁣ ⁣ #experiments #stem #science #toys #smartlab #sustainable #organic #eco-friendly