K & O head out to the massage huts with one of the Masseuses!
Owen jumps right up-- ready for his first massage!
Kyle sooooo happy after his first (but surely not last!) massage
A dream: a catamaran sail on the wide open Caribbean
Playing with Papi at the pool
Our favorite, the "Jungle" Restaurant, for dinner
Tic Tac Toe at lunch
Tic Tac Toe at Dinner
Papi reads Swiss Family Robinson at the pool
Papi reads Swiss Family Robinson at bedtime
Exploring, exploring, exploring -- here, there, and everywhere
Never a dull moment-- even flying home is a blast for K & O (somehow they always charm their way into the cockpit!?!!)
DR 2010
Fantastic blog post. Wonderful pictures of a very beautiful family! xoxo
Ahhh, heavenly. I love it. I hope nobody jumps me for asking this, but here goes anyway. Do you have to use sunscreen on the boys? Are they apt to burn like white people are? I know that my times in the Caribbean, I had to slather sunscreen on all the time to keep from blistering. I am glad to see that you guys had such a great time. My kids are getting old enough to enjoy in the same way. It's rewarding, right??
Melissa
Nobody's going to 'jump you' for that question!
Ok, so I'm not sure what, exactly, should be the correct answer– because I've talked to black people and white people and brown people about this (including –amongst many others– several close black friends of ours, our white pediatrician, and our Puerto Rican nanny), and everyone seems to have a different opinion on the subject— but I'll tell you what *we* do. Every time we have gone to the Caribbean with the boys we put serious sunscreen all over them first thing in the morning before heading out. We're talking waterproof, sweatproof, SPF 70 sunscreen ALL OVER them. The sun is so strong and their skin is not used to it (especially since we usually go in May after a long, relatively sun-less winter). Usually we do not re-apply on them for the rest of the day. This is a contrast to Braydon and Meera and I who have to re-apply several times throughout the day (even with the waterproof, sweatproof stuff!). Twice we have seen K & O get minor sunburns– last year in Mexico both of them had peeling on their noses/cheeks… and again, this year in the DR they both had the same thing. I've also seen them both get a tiny bit of sunburn/peeling on their shoulders. Each time it was very minor, but definitely some peeling from sunburn (although neither of them mentioned it or seemed to notice it). When we are at home, in the U.S., we've never used sunscreen on them and have never had any problem.
So, now, people will probably jump me for this answer (because, like I said, everyone has a different answer to that question)…. but it is what it is.
Thanks for reading!
Heather
I don't know about Kyle and Owen but yes, we used sunscreen on our 3 kiddos when we took a recent cruise to the bahamas. They still came home with a tan and had a few spots that peeled a bit. Our kids have similar coloring to K & O.
What a fabulous vacation! I love the underwater pictures… the boys look so much older in those!
Hope you all recharged your batteries and enjoyed your time in paradise. Welcome back.
Beeeeautiful vacation pictures! Your family is extremely blessed.
I'll chip in the sunscreen discussion. I'm African American and a huuge sun lover. I hardly break a sweat in 100 degree weather. I start sweating when it gets 105 degrees. (smiles) Growing up, I didn't use sunscreen. I was told my brown skin has a high melin (sp??) content so I won't sunburn as easily. So I naively assumed I was exempted from wearing sunscreen. A few years ago, I made the personal decision to start applying sunscreen; SPF15 or higher because I care about my skin. I tan easily, but I've never peeled or experienced any intense burning, even after my 5 years living in the desert. My mother on the other hand, who worships the sun, has experienced peeling for the first time in her life a few years ago in Vegas. She pretty much refuses to use sunscreen but loves using those oils. My mother was the first brown skin person I've saw actually peel. I didn't know our skin COULD peel like t hat. All the more reason why its important to me (and everybody, regardless of ethnicity) to wear protection.
Now … SPF70?!? I didn't even know they make them that high. Where do you find such a product at?
Thank you for weighing in on that one 'TravelJonez'!
re: SPF 70 — CVS, Rite Aid, the grocery store… pretty much any place where sunscreen is sold!
Here are our two trusted favorites for the boys:
1) spray-on for their bodies —- http://coppertone.com/coppertone/products/sport/d…
2) tear-free lotion for their faces (Kyle cannot stand it if sunscreen gets in his eyes– it will ruin his whole day!) —- http://coppertone.com/coppertone/products/kids/de…
beautiful pictures!
Heather,
It's mid-May, still rainy and cold in Portland. I would KILL for this trip. You did it again!
I'm rethinking my approach to Richelor's re-introduction to Haiti. I bet your boys have a much more positive view of their 'home island' than they would have if they went to PAP.
Thanks guys! This is one great thing about the private blog setting. I always tell my 2 kids that if you don't know, ask. I was just afraid that someone would take my (clear!) ignorance about raising black children offensively and come to Heather's rescue, thinking I was being ugly. Soooo glad I was wrong!
This vacation looks amazing! So much fun!