we went to Spain! it was a trip we had planned when I was pregnant with Danny. two of our closest and dearest friends decided to tie the knot in the bride’s hometown of Toledo and there was no way we were going to miss it. mainly because papa was the best man too.
you can now fly directly to Madrid from Larnaca with Cobalt, which is great and one of the main reasons we decided to take this trip with the two older kids. Switching flights with kids in tow is not my idea of fun. Danny stayed behind with our family who was fully equipped with 81 bags of frozen breastmilk! more than he would go through in one week but I wanted to make sure he would not go without.
so we flew to Madrid on a Tuesday morning. I wasn’t worried about how Georgie would handle flying because he’s already been to London and Vienna. But it would be James’s first time and he’s two years old so there was a bit of stress on my part as to how we would deal with any meltdowns or tantrums. We made sure they both got a good night sleep the night before and also ended up purchasing this tablet for James to which we downloaded his favourite Netflix shows and a movie. Best decision ever! we didn’t give it to him until the very last minute so it was a complete novelty and he was uncharacteristically quiet for most of the five hours we were on the plane. Another step we took to ensure the ride would go as smoothly as possible was booking the bulkhead seating of the plane so the kids would have more room to move about without disrupting other passengers. It comes with an extra cost but papa and I both agreed that it was worth it.
we spent two nights in Madrid, before heading to Toledo for the wedding, and two nights after. we booked apartments instead of hotel rooms because we knew that even though their bedtime and routine would be impossible to keep we still wanted to be able to offer space for them AND us with a couple of early nights. we were thrilled with the options we chose. both apartments had two bedrooms and came with an extra bed for Georgie and a cot for James and even some toys ! both apartments were super central too which was convenient as we didn’t have the options of having breakfast in a hotel.
so one of us could pop down to a Starbucks or coffeeshop and grab something before heading out for the day. and when I say one of us I mean me and James.
Madrid was lovely. It was our first time in Spain so there were a million things we wanted to do but obviously we had to consider the kids. so we went to the zoo…
… and Retiro Park.
On Thursday afternoon, we made our way to the Atocha train station -which was conveniently across the road from our apartment- papa was wheeling two big suitcases, Georgie his own little one and I was pushing James who we were all jealous of. The train station is one of the biggest so we spent some time looking around before catching the train to Toledo. It’s a train station with a tropical garden in the middle.
That’s me pumping milk in the corner of a train station.
And that’s my boys trying to buy me some tampons from a vending machine because of course I got my period for the second time, since having Danny, on the day we arrived.
Toledo is AMAZING! Such a beautiful, graphic and inspiring place. Truly felt like we were living in a different age at times.
That Friday evening, we all put on our best and went to a wedding. It was the first time in a long time that I spent more than two minutes applying actual makeup. I wore a beautiful polkadot dress by Ganni and was escorted by my three handsome boys.
the wedding was held at an estate on the outskirts of the city. it made sense to stay in one of the rooms that there that night so we did. and thank God we did. i left the party at 12,30 with James asleep in the pram and Georgie begging me to go to bed after we had also danced our asses off together, which he said was so much fun. it was!
Breakfast the day after…
Georgie has been playing on his tablet more than usual since we got back but in all fairness to him he used it as a camera too when we were away.
I loved seeing the pics he took. On one occasion when we were at dinner with some friends he took an individual photo of all of us! I had no idea. He also went nuts when we visited El Greco’s house which is also a museum. I did too. The place was utterly gorgeous.
On our last day in Toledo we celebrated papa’s birthday with a piece of carrot cake in a little local cafe.
That afternoon we took the train back to Madrid where we spent a day and a half eating, shopping and walking around.
One of the places we really wanted to visit was the San Miguel food market. Heaven!
The paella at the market was to die for. I had never tried a chicken and bean version and I may have become a little obsessed even going as far as purchasing local saffron to make some here at home.
on our last night, we put the kids down early – 10,30. seriously – finished packing and relaxed with an assortment of cakes we picked up at the market. I was buzzing slightly from the Caipirinha I had for dinner and was feeling that life was particularly good at that moment. glad papa captured that moment.
And then, after what seemed like an eternity, baby Danny and I were reunited.
Despite being on the move every two to three days, staying in four different accommodations, taking planes, trains and taxis and walking for hours, both boys were golden. They enjoyed every minute and it made me realise just how excited I am about traveling with them more in the future. even if there will be three of them. ha!
For more tips on traveling with kids check out these links:
I wrote a post about traveling while pregnant / what to pack and what to carry.
Tips for traveling with little ones.
