It is officially summer vacation in the household. All our quizzes and exams are finally over. Although, we are practicing the Charlotte Mason method, hence our learning never really actually ends. Each day will still have study time, reading time, math games, etc. We actually finished all our deliverables weeks ahead of time. This meant that we can chill and relax while waiting for the moving up ceremony on June.
It has been years since we last went out of town since we've been confined inside the house since the pandemic began. This out of town has really made the family excited since we confirmed our reservation in the resort. We chose the beautiful Crystal Beach in Zambales. My husband wanted the sound of the waves crashing into the shore, I love the sunset by the beach and our daughter is very much excited about building sand castles.
Days before our actual trip, we ran into a few problems. You see, this is the first time our family will ever have a trip out of town with just the three of us. Usually we would join in on a barkada outing or we'd invite some of our friends to join us. But this time, we decided to try to have our first ever family of three out of town vacation. Originally, we planned on travelling by bus to the resort. But then due to some restrictions, we weren't able to book a ticket for the bus online. We almost had to cancel this trip. It's a good thing we didn't.
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We arrived at 12nn on a Wednesday where there's only a handful of guests. The first thing we did after a 4-hour commute from Manila to Zambales was take in all the beauty of the glistening sea under the hot sun and feel the wind touching our cheeks, trying to blow away Aya's crochet hat. If the sand wasn't scorching hot under the heat of the sun, I'd have run barefoot all the way to our hut.
Crystal Beach did not disappoint. We chose to have our vacation on weekdays. We feel we would enjoy the days of quiet away from the city without having to feel like we have to fight our way into the beach. We'd like to take in the beauty of the place while there aren't much people around. And that, we did! My daughter most especially.
She requested that I make her a Moana costume a little over a week before our trip. As soon as we got settled in our home for the next 3 days, she went ahead and tried on her newly finished Moana costume. There are lots of picture perfect spots for a photoshoot in the resort. As a matter of fact, there was a couple having their prenup shoot when we arrived. We had our fun taking photos under the pine trees, in the middle of the open sandy area, and in the beach itself.
The waves that Wednesday afternoon was quite a bit scary for the little one so we did not have a dip just yet. I figured we'll be staying there for a couple of days so she'll have lots of time warming up to the sea.
Crystal Beach resort has lots of activities one can do. We saw a few people practicing some surfing moves although the waves are not that strong to really be able to surf, beginners can try to learn in the not so angry waves. We chose to mostly just stay by the shore, watch our little girl have fun building sand castles.
It was also a perfect opportunity for our nature studies. I particularly love the sunset. In the afternoons, we would just sit by the sand. I lay a blanket for us to sit in while we wait for the sun to hide by the horizon. It has been a while since I last watched the sun say goodbye. This vacation gave me another way to let my kid experience the beauty of nature up close and personal. Listening to the soothing sound of the waves whilst sitting beside each other, watching the sun slowly set into the horizon, enjoying the show of colors while letting her imagination run wild with all the shapes and sizes of the clouds above us. It was the very meaning of relaxation.
At night, we just sat idly under the stars. Trying to count the twinkling lights while my kid either imagine shapes or give each stars their own names, ones she made up. Then once the bon fire started, we danced as the fire also starts swaying to its own rhythm. It really was a great idea to go on that trip on a weekday. We almost had the place completely to ourselves.
As a mom, I wanted to make sure I caught every moment on camera so that my daughter will see photos of our experience to make her remember this trip. And I did. But on most parts of the vacation, I chose to just be in the moment and enjoy Mother Nature's beauty.
I mentioned that this was the first time our family went on a trip all by ourselves. Here's a few things I'd like to share with parents who are planning on bringing their toddlers and young kids to out of town trips.
- Bring toys. Lots of toys. Not just sand toys, but also any toys that would encourage them to run around, jump up and down and get really physically active.
- If your kid is a bookworm, make sure to pack books in your bag. It was a good thing I brought extra books during this trip because our night time reading book was finished on the second night. It would have been an uneasy night if we didn't have backup books.
- There may be lots of waiting on trips like this so be sure to pack things that will keep the kids busy while they're sitting down. Books will do, but it wouldn't hurt to bring some drawing materials too.
- Spray on sunscreen is a must! Kids get too overexcited once they see the possibility of fun. When I was a kid, I dislike how sticky and icky the sunblock lotion felt on my skin. Spray ons are not only easier to apply, they don't have the sticky feel too.
- Be in the moment. Kids will forever remember how they felt while playing in the sand with their mom and dad. They will forget when or where they went but that feeling of happiness will remain with them forever. So be there with them. Take a photo or two, but make sure to enjoy the experience with them.
I can really say that the little one enjoyed our vacation because as of right now, she has plans on having swimming lessons and now has established that we will visit Palawan next. She's very much interested in finding the rare species of birds only found there, plus she really did enjoy our time at the beach.
