The Grandparents Visit: time to spoil the kids

Each year, working families across Germany scurry to find ways to take care of the kids during summer vacation. The answer for most: Grandparents. We were no exception, with my folks coming in to help out for 2 of the 3 weeks that kindergarden / day care was closed.

We have it relatively easy as Kindergarten and day care is only closed for 4 weeks throughout the year (between Christmas and New Year for a week plus a 3 week summer break). Working families with school aged kids have it tougher: a 6 week summer vacation plus 4+ weeks during the school year.

If you can figure out why Emily likes wearing Quinn's helmet backwards, please let us know.

Quinn still likes getting pulled.

We tired the kiddo out so bad that he really didn't wake up after we parked the car in the garage. I took him out of his carseat, and I sat him down next to the tree.

A super cool geocache near Nürnberg that we found while taking a field trip on Brombachsee with my mom.

The boys went to a soccer game. We had actually planned to go to a baseball game, but the game got postponed to another city at the last minute.

Geocaching with Emily in Rothenburg ob der Tauber while my mom is checking out the Christmas shops and my dad is in the Museum of Medieval Criminology.

Quinn helping my dad open his birthday gifts.

A great pic of my mom in Fränkische Schweiz.

In general, the weather was super crappy while my folks were here, but we did have a few good Biergarten days, where we could eat outside and enjoy the casual atmosphere of a Biergarten.

Like I said, the weather was kinda poor...never thought we'd have to put on the long rain pants and rain jackets in August.

Tree climbing.

What kid doesn't love splashing in puddles.

A great shot of my mom and Quinn picking flowers near our house.

There was lots of spoiling going on.

Quinn on the zip line.

...and my mom tried it as well...

Here's the ship that took us around Brombachsee. It rained the whole time :-(

After the ship docked, the sun (thankfully) peeked its head out a bit...and we went on a hike and did some caching.

Father and son wondering why the weather is so bad.

It is really hard to summarize how great it was to have my parents here for almost 3 weeks. The kids are at a great age: Quinn already remembers other visits with his Grandparents from America, and Emily is now old enough to realize that my parents are not some sort of TV show (we do a lot of videoconferencing via Google Chat).

For my parents, it was probably challenging, and they were as tired as the kids when the day was over. But, as with most grandparents, when it starts getting tough, they can always go out for ice cream and spoil the kids. I also think it is interesting for my parents to see Eva and I work through the challenges of parenting, which brings them back to the days when they were our age, raising my sister and I.

For me (and Eva), my parents were a huge help, and it was a pleasure to have them around. Time with parents is wonderful...as it gives a different perspective and a chance to see things in a different light.

Most importantly, it is important for the kids. I never realized until I had kids how important Grandparents are. Since I am the only chance for my kids to get English (Eva and I chose the OPOL - One Parent One Language - methodology for raising kids bilingual) - and Quinn KNOWS that I understand German - it is extremely important for their language development to have another person that speaks that 'other' language. Quinn was forced to speak English with my parents if he wanted something. That provided the positive momentum and confidence he needed...and he is now speaking significantly more English with me.

The kids had a blast with their Grandparents. They got to spend a lot of QUALITY and QUANTITY time with them. And, this is one of the greatest gifts a loved one can give to a child (other than love): TIME.

Aruba & Curacao: Big Family Vacation 2010

After almost a year and a half of planning, it was finally here: our big family vacation for 2010. Almost 2 1/2 weeks of fun and sun in the Caribbean. A week on Aruba and a week and a half on Curacao.



Yes...we booked the flights before Emily was born. One of many complications of the trip.

I took the Thursday before our Friday flight off to help Eva get everything packed and ready. Since I wasn't bringing my laptop, I (of course) had to do some last minute things for work. But then, when the alarm went off on Friday at around 4am, we were up and ready to head to paradise.

We were still in deep winter in Germany, so getting dressed for the flights was a challenge. The kids did a GREAT job on the flights. We flew into Curacao for a few days before heading to Aruba to meet up with my parents (who decided to spend the next 2 weeks with us).

Above: Emily putting here feet in the sand for the very first time.

We picked Aruba and Curacao so that the flights could be easier: direct to the islands from Amsterdam, which is only a short flight from home. The first 2 days by ourselves as a family were great, but we were all looking forward to meeting my folks on Aruba.

We spent much of our time in the pool or in the sand. Quinn never got tired of jumping in and out of the water with his floaties.

There was one time by the pool where this girl (maybe 8 years old) said that Quinn was really cute (as we were throwing a ball around in the pool...what could be cuter). She wanted to know his name and tried everything to get his attention. To no affect. Despite my attempts to encourage Quinn to at least be friendly, he ignored the girl. Then the girl left her lounge chair.

...Quinn stopped everything (he was in the pool with his floaties) and followed that girl with his eyes until he couldn't see her anymore...

We also learned that mosquitoes really like Quinn (see the huge bulge on his forehead). Then, it was off to Aruba. We were on a super tiny puddle jumper. Room for about 14 people.
Quinn loved the plane. Since it was so small, he could see everything so much better. But, it was way past his naptime. He tried valliantly to stay awake the whole time, but the result was obvious.

After landing in Aruba, I dropped Eva and Emily off at the resort, and Quinn and I went to pick up my folks.
The resort was VERY nice. Very family / kid oriented. The pool had this waterslide. As we climbed up the stairs, there was an attendant as well as a sign saying that Quinn had to be 4' (approx 1,2m) tall to slide down.

As a kid, I hated these stupid height restrictions, mainly because I was always too short to go on the cool stuff. But, with the attendant watching, I did my best to explain to Quinn why he couldn't go down the slide. He didn't buy it...thankfully the attendant saved me by allowing Quinn to slide down with me.

Quinn loved the slide...and wanted to do it again. The second time down, the attendant said that Quinn would be her best 'customer'. She was right. We must have gone down the slide a few hundred times...

My dad also went with us...

Having my folks around was also super great for Eva and I ... allowing us some time to ourselves. I think if my parents had their way, they would have had our kids the whole time...but it was also lots of fun to have some good quality (and quantity time) with Quinn and Emily.

Quinn was a bit more apprehensive in the ocean. But didn't mind the sand.

Here's another view of our plane that took us to and from Aruba / Curacao. On our trip to Curacao, my Mom asked the pilots if they were old enough to fly. The youngest looking of the two didn't even miss a step with my Mom's attempt to be funny: he said that he got his license to fly yesterday. My Dad didn't think that was funny.

(Editor's note: please forgive a bit of the fast forwarding of the vacation...the next pics are from Curacao...taken from our small digital camera. For some reason, blogger isn't allowing me to easily rearrange the order of the pics...causing a bit of a time shift in the story).

I'm a huge fan of 'odd' signs: especially in foreign countries. I loved this one above: apparently the internet closes on the islands from time to time.

Emily and Eva at a very cool, open air restaurant on Curacao. Below is another great sign that you saw all over on Curacao. Who goes to a foreign country and eats an unknown 'fruit'? At least the sign is written in three languages. Oftentimes, such signs are only in english (are english speaking tourists the only ones that do stupid stuff?)

(Editor's note: the next pics are with our 'big' camera...so the story goes back to the beginning on Curacao (2 days), Aruba (7 days), and Curacao (7 days)).

The view from the lobby from our hotel in Curacao (first 2 nights)

I really like this pic of Eva and Quinn!

More of the same: jumping in and out of the pool. Quinn was exhausted by the end of the day. The sun was super intense on the islands. Even with my super brown skin, I was using SPF30. With Quinn, Eva, and Emily's super light skin, we were being extra careful in the sun. Thankfully, no one burned (Quinn had a bit of a tan line between his swim trunks and his shirt (which was a bit too short)).

Platsch! I'm surprised I didn't burn my head. Oh, the signs of aging.

(Editor's note: now we are on Aruba for days 3-10).

Aruba's capital, Oranjestad is very, very colorful, but it is very geared toward the cruise ship tourists. How many expensive watch, jewerly, or clothing stores do you need on a few square blocks on a relatively poor island of 80,000 inhabitants?

Unfortunately, the over the top capitalism dimished the very pretty capital a bit.

This is the typical pic that you see in the tourist mags...with the cheesy signs photoshopped out. Of course, I didn't have any shades, and buying shades in the winter in Germany is a bit difficult. I though it would be easy to get some on the island.

I was very disappointed by the options: High End (300 dollar, super designer shades for which I am too cheap for) or Low End (10 dollar, super fashionable knock offs for which I am too old for...have you seen these things? The fashion now is super huge shades that make 70's genre Elton John shades look small).

So...I squinted a lot. I was hoping for some middle of the road 70 buck Nike or Arnett shades.

Here's an action shot of the slide. My dad would often slide after us. After Quinn and I landed, he would immediately turn around and wait patiently for my dad. Very cute.

One of my favorites of my dad and Quinn. Quinn looks like a grown up here, and my dad really reminds me of my grandfather here: happy and stately. Quinn is feeling super important carrying his oversized green plastic shovel.

Sunset on Aruba. Eva took this on one of our nights 'out'. We were back in by around 10, which seemed super late. We had a blast, but I think my parents had more fun taking care / spoiling their grandkids.

Eva and I also took some time to do some touring - like we used to prior to children. We did a pretty good beating the tour buses to the main attractions on Aruba.

These stairs were a reminder that even good guidebooks like Lonely Planet are sometimes wrong. The book said that the climb to one of the highest peaks on Aruba was only 160 STEPS. This was BS. There were over 500 steps, which we covered in the blazing heat of the afternoon. I think this was a type, since the peak is 160 METERS above sea level.

My dad watching over Emily.

Our trusty Lonely Planet did guide us to a great, local restaurant: a rib joint on a busy corner of a non touristy part of Oranjestad. The place had a lot of locals in it (a good sign), and the ribs were grilled on an open charcoal grill right in front of you. A full rack of (pork) ribs was about 6 bucks and tasted great! These are the finds that Eva and I love on vacation.

The resort complex had all sorts of cool things for kids to do. It is obvious after this trip that Quinn is a 'ball' kid: he played every sort of ball sport that the place had to offer. He would play in the heat of the sun and come back (normally with my mom) completely tired and sweaty. Then it was off to the pool to cool off.

Chilling out in the lazy river. Quinn had it best in the 'river' since he had his floaties.

(Editor's note: the final pics are on Curacao: days 11 - 17)

On Curacao, we got to celebrate Quinn's 3rd birthday! Our place on Curacao was more 'European' than our US style beach resort on Aruba. We were on a much more remote part of the island. We had a sweet bungalow to ourselves, the guests were mostly Dutch, and we had AC only in our sleeping rooms (which also cost extra). This final week way VERY low key.

The kitchen in the bungalow was pretty weak, so we couldn't cook / grill like in Aruba. But, we made the best out of the situation, and found some great local restaurants for dinner.

On Quinn's birthday, we went to an aquarium (which had a dolphin show!)

3 generations of Robert Gould's.

Quinn knows how to make my dad smile. (Below), the aquarium had a 'petting zoo' where you could touch starfish and sea cucumbers (which look like big pieces of poop).

The obligatory family pic. Don't I look pregnant here? Must be a bad camera angle.

The pool at the bungalow was small (and kinda nasty), but it didn't stop Quinn from wanting to jump. He always tried to drag me and my dad into his fun.

One of the beaches up the street from our bungalow.

This was a huge cactus.

While the capital of Curacao, Willemstad, also had its focus on the cruise ships, it was a notch less obvious, was much more colorful, and even had an open air fish and vegetable market (with goods coming in daily from Venezuela).

There seemed to be a bit more nature on Curacao...and we even went on a short hike. Quinn did a great job, walking the whole way.

Emily slept.

Sometimes I wonder if Emily ever thinks: hey, where are my old folks schlepping me around to now?

Walking on an old coral reef.

The gal at the gate said that there were calm waves today. Looked pretty rough to us.

Feeling like a small fish in a big ocean.

There were lots of these cactuses...whose stems looked like asparagus (Spargel).

Our first night on Curacao was a Sunday, so a lot of places were closed. The dive shop recommended a restaurant run by some American's called 'Soul Food' (please keep in mind that this was spoken word, so I didn't see how the name was written...but the 'Southern' in me heard 'Soul Food).

I thought it was a bit odd to have fried chicken and mustard greens on Curacao (I was thinking of Soul Food like it was a place in Atlanta)...but it sounded good anyway.

The place was called 'Sol Food'...the Sol for sun. The food was great, but there was no fried chicken on the menu.

The view overlooking Sol Food was great. We were literally eating on their back porch.

Quinn taking care of his sister.

Dad reading to Quinn on our last night on Curacao. Eva and I really love how Quinn is holding on to my Dad's arm. Quinn loved getting read to by my dad...and he does a great job with reading the Aristocats.

My mom being Grandmom!

So it was at least 90F on the island (35C) and super humid...and these guys are playing soccer in the heat of the day on a dirt field. That's dedication. Even for locals, it must be hot...

Eva and I stayed in the car and had a fruit shake from this stand on the side of the road...a great find from Eva.

This is our bungalow on Curacao...and the view from the side of the bungalow complex to the nearby (100m) beach.

Same basic position, but looking out of the lagoon.

Anyone who denies that the children look like Eva can look at this pic: my vs. Emily's skin. To be fair, we kept Emily's skin pretty much covered the whole trip, but I am significantly darker than the rest of the fam. Also keep in mind that I was wearing SPF 30 just about the whole time.

All in all, it was an amazing trip. While both islands were great, I definitely enjoyed Curacao better. It seemed more 'local' and less overrun with tourists. The food was great, albeit simple, yet hearty. The locals seemed more 'honest' and didn't look at the tourists like dollar bills.

I also got to go on my first dive on Curacao, making my experience on the island even better.

Travelling such a distance (10+ hours one way on a plane) with two small children seems daunting, but our kiddoes did great...hardly crying a peep on any of the flights (for which we are very grateful).

Due to the distance and due to the fact that there are so many places that we wish to see, I'm not too sure that we'll get to go back to the ABC's anytime soon (Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao), but I can see heading back to Curacao when the kids are a bit more 'independent'. Hopefully, the island won't have changed too much.

The vacation was also more enjoyable because I left work in Germany: no laptop, no Blackberry (I don't have one), no calls, no telcos, and I only checked my voicemail 4 times.

The best part of all, was that my wife, my kids, and my parents could spend over two weeks together. One of my coworkers always had the same reply when somone would mention 'quality' time with the family. He would say: yes, QUALITY time is good. But, QUANTITY time is even more important. For these 2+ weeks in paradise, we had both!