The Grand at Moon Palace

Extra sunshine in November never hurts right? Especially before the crazy, busy holiday period, it’s definitely appreciated and welcome. As a mom of 3 boys, well 4 since I’m counting my husband, sunny gateways and warm vacations are much appreciated, in order to get that reboot that we all need, at different period of the year.

As you’ve seen in my post and numerous stories in November, we had the chance to travel to the luxurious Grand at Moon Palace, in Riviera Maya, Mexico a few weeks ago. We didn’t go on only a vacation or trip, we lived an TOTAL EXPERIENCE. I’ve shared with you previously the reasons why we love to travel with Air Transat and why it’s been our carrier of choice for years now.

So our Mexican experience started when we arrived at this breathtaking and luxurious hotel, that just opened past March 2017, which is definitely on my top list for traveling with our little family and here is why I totally recommend it and why we would go back any time:

• Food: definitely on my priorities when I travel, I love when we can enjoy quality food, eating in beautiful restaurants where you have an amazing service, great wine selection and endless menus to choose from. This one has it all. From their 16 restaurants, 10 bars, food trucks and kids section buffet, the food was beyond amazing. Our favorite restaurants were the Vino and tapas, a very welcoming lounge were you can enjoy great tapas, good wine and chat with the little ones. We also really loved the Jade asian restaurants, where all the fish plates were more amazing to the other, all with such taste and fineness presentations. The kids really liked the special ramen and Udon soups on the menu. I love the fact that they want to try either the local food or just enjoy the selection of the menu. If your kids are more picky, there’s always the kids menu or the buffet, where they will enjoy their own section.

• Beach: definitely on my top priorities too, the beach has white, powdery and silky, soft sand,   which had facilities such has different areas where you definitely want to relax in the cozy sectionals, have a little afternoon nap on their comfy padded long chairs , watch the kids build sandcastle on beach beds or just enjoy the view under a palapa or umbrella, all located on their beach! The service at the beach was totally amazing too, and really fast!

• Resort: We all loved the layout of this resort, it’s so huge and  gorgeous, surrounded by gardens, luxurious and also connected to the 2 other sections, Nizuk and Sunrise, where you can visit and enjoy some more kids activities, restaurants…The design is gorgeous and the cleanliness of every spot is much appreciated… and it smells great everywhere you go!

• Pools: We had the chance to enjoy all of the 7 pools of the resorts from the kids pool, the vibrant and playful one, to the olympic and Peruvian one, our favorite was the half-moon one. The kids really enjoyed the swim up bar, where they could go and order themselves a “smoothie no-alcohol for favor”. The service at the pool is totally amazing, as soon as you think sitting down, there’s already a friendly staff member to get your cocktail order.

• Rooms: We had a family suite for this trip at The Grand at Moon Palace and I totally recommend it since you have a much more spacious room, and plenty of space for the whole family, with a closed bedroom, 2 bathrooms, which leaves one for the parents and the kids, or the girls and the boys!! We even enjoyed aroma therapy in the room, where you can choose many fragrances from by calling room service or even enjoy it on your pillow! The beds were soooo comfy and the kids woke up after us every single morning. Total BONUS right?

• Kids Club: Since we have 3 boys aged in different age ranges, we were totally amazed with what this resort had to offer in terms of kids activities, entertainment, installations, parks and amusement of any kind. Our 3 boys are really 3 water kids. They love it as soon as an activity involves water. So we spent a lot of time playing in the numerous pools, at the waterpark where they enjoyed slides, the lazy river, the wave pool, and even the wave surf simulator. It was amazing. They had such a blast. My 2 oldest boys also really enjoyed the arcades games located in a special room, with the coolest and trendiest games you can find.

• Staff: The staff in every. single.area of this resort is SO friendly and patient. As soon as we would stop in a restaurant or by the pool, the kids would do high fives to everyone which they really liked. It was fun to see that the language barrier was not for this week. The boys even started an amazing collection of sculpted balloons, braided animals with palm leaves and domestic mouses made out of napkins, all done and created by this lovely staff.

• Kids and food: If food is a worry you have when traveling with your little ones, this resort has it all for the little ones. We’ve been traveling with the kids since they are babies and always want them to taste and eat local food, so they can explore more of what the world has to offer. We’re lucky that our kids like to try new selections from the different places or restaurants we visit. The kids really loved the special ramen and Udon soups on the menu, that was prepared for them less spicy, that was filled with veggies, shrimps and chicken at the Jade restaurant. They totally loved it, and reordered it a few times! They also really like the Italian restaurant where they had a feast with the different pastas and pizza selection. We had this fun tradition after every diner to stop at the cafe where they would prepare the kids a thin pancake garnished with Nutella or Dulce de leche. They also loved the great macaron selection. If your kids are more picky, there’s always the kids menu in every restaurants or the buffet, where they will enjoy their own section.

Highlights of our trip

• Jade Asian and Vino & tapas  restaurant
• Cleanliness of the rooms and resort
• Waterpark area and kids club
• The family suite with the jacuzzis
• Lounge section on the beach
• Friendly and smiley staff
• Option plus and kids club advantages at the airport and during the flight

Air Transat has such a great selection of hotels in the Caribbeans, that you will definitely find yours that will answer your family tastes. But let me tell you that The Grand at Moon Palace is definitely a resort that I totally recommend to every family, with all kids ages, or even as a couple, if you travel “sans kids”.

Coming back in Montreal 2 weeks ago, with the first snow storm of the season, let me tell you that we are already shopping our winter trip. Where should we go? With or without the kids?

Can’t wait to share with you our next Transat adventure!

Stephanie xx

( LA VERSION FRANCAISE SUIT PLUS BAS )

Holidays and kids vacations also means extra time with them, cuddles, hot cocoa, family time and games and of course, cooking with the little ones.

We did those FUN DIY Melted snowmen cookies and the kids really enjoyed doing them so I thought I would share them with you.

Ingredients:

1 box of La Petite Bretonne Oatmeal or Choco-Quinoa cookies.

1 pack of large marshmallows

Orange gumdrop candies, cut into small carrot-shaped triangles ( for nose )

1 pack of red string licorice ( for scarf )

1 pack of miniature reeses ( for top of hat )

1 pack of miniature Oreo cookies ( for bottom of hat )

2 tubes of icing ( black and white )

chocolate sprinkles

mini chocolate chips

Steps:

1. On La Petite Bretonne cookie, use decorating tip to draw a “snow puddle” with white cookie icing. While the icing is still wet, immediately place a marshmallow to one side of the cookie.
2. Arms. Once the icing and marshmallow has set, using a decorating tip or toothpick draw 2 branches onto each cookie using black frosting. Add fingers with chocolate sprinkles.
3. Face. Using a small dot of white icing, stick 2 chocolate chip eyes and an orange gumdrop nose onto the marshmallow. Draw a small dot for the mouth with black icing.
4. Scarf and buttons. Pipe icing along the base of the marshmallow and wrap one piece of licorice around the neck for scarf.
5. Hat. Remove cream from mini Oreo cookies, and attach miniature peanut butter cup to one halt of the Oreo cookie with icing to stick.

Allow cookies to dry about 1 hour before serving.

Enjoy and happy holidays! XX

RECETTE de BISCUIT de Bonhomme de neige fondu

Le temps de fêtes et les vacances de Noel des enfants signifient également du temps supplémentaire avec eux, des câlins, du chocolat chaud, du temps en famille, des jeux et bien sûr, la cuisine avec les petits.

Nous avons fait ces biscuits bonhommes de neige fondu et les enfants ont vraiment aimé les faire ainsi j’ai pensé que je les partagerais avec vous.

Ingrédients:

1 boîte de biscuits à l’avoine ou de choco-quinoa La Petite Bretonne.

1 paquet de grosses guimauves

jujubes orange, coupés en petits triangles en forme de carotte (pour le nez)

1 paquet de réglisse rouge (pour l’écharpe)

1 paquet de reeses miniatures (pour le haut du chapeau)

1 paquet de biscuits Oreo miniatures (pour le bas du chapeau)

2 tubes de glaçage (noir et blanc)

mini pépites de chocolat

ÉTAPES

1. Sur le biscuit La Petite Bretonne, utilisez un cure-dent pour dessiner une «flaque de neige» avec le glaçage blanc. Lorsque le glaçage est encore humide, placer immédiatement une guimauve sur le biscuit.

2. Les bras. Une fois que le glaçage et la guimauve ont figé ensemble, utiliser un cure-dent pour dessiner deux branches sur chaque biscuit en utilisant le glaçage noir. Ajouter les doigts avec des “sprinkles” de chocolat.

3. Visage. En utilisant un petit point de glaçage blanc, coller 2 yeux de pépites de chocolat et un nez de jujube orange sur la guimauve. Dessinez un petit point pour la bouche avec un glaçage noir.

4. Écharpe et boutons. Étendre du glaçage le long de la base de la guimauve et envelopper un morceau de réglisse autour du cou pour l’écharpe.

5. Chapeau. Retirer la crème des mini-biscuits Oreo et fixer le mini moule de Reese à l’un des côtés du biscuit Oreo avec le glaçage.

Laisser les biscuits sécher environ 1 heure avant de servir.

J’espère que vous allez aimer!

JOYEUSES FETES À TOUS! xx

 

Selecting the best sunny destination, trying to find a competitive rate, looking for the best service pre boarding and onboard the flight, hoping for the best hotel and the most beautiful beaches and the most yummy restaurants and food, is definitely a challenge and sometimes worrying when it’s time to book a trip. Let me share with you, that when you choose to book with  Transat, you get a handful of advantages and it’s definitely stress free because they choose their partners at destination really carefully.

We had the chance to leave, last Novembre 27, with  Transat, to the beautiful Mayan Riviera destination, in Mexico, the 5 of us, so we could spend some quality family time, take advantage of the sun and get an extra dose of vitamin C and treat ourselves in this amazing and luxurious, all inclusive, The Gran at Moon Palace.

We’ve been traveling with  Transat for years now, because of it’s service, great quality hotel selections in various destinations around the globe, for it’s kids club, Option Plus, and so many other positive points that I’ll be sharing with you.

Let me first start that when traveling with  Transat, it’s just not a destination or trip, it’s a TOTAL EXPERIENCE, wether that you’re a toddler, kids, teen or parent, and I mean, it really is.

Reservation

It all starts in front of your computer, when you register to the Option Plus ( for the parents ) with your destination, that you’ll start seeing all of those advantages of traveling with them. I totally recommend that you register your mini-globetrotters aged 2 to 11 to the KIDS CLUB, for them to become members and where you’ll benefit from a handful  of awesome advantages.

Kids Club

The goal when traveling with kids is definitely to make the trip easier, more fun and hassle free of course, for all family members, and us parents! So here are some great perks of registering your little ones to the kids club, at the airport and during the flight:

·  Dedicated family check-in counter

·  LIMO! Courtesy stroller in main Canadian airports

·  Priority boarding, for members and their families

·   On-board surprises to make air travel fun

·  Free seat for kids*

·  Priority baggage retrieval*

* these are only for Kids Club members

Link to the Air Transat Kids club: https://www.airtransat.com/en-CA/kids-club

 

Can I tell you that when we woke them up at 4h30, to catch our 9am flight on Novembre 27 and tell them that it was finally the time to leave to Mexico, they were beyond excited.

Option Plus and Flight

Since our Journey started at the airport very early that morning, Air Transat also thinks about us parents, so we registered to Option Plus, which gives us privileges in the Economy class, like complimentary seat selection, supplementary checked baggage allowance ( BONUS if you ask me, I can bring more shoes!! haha ), priority boarding and baggage handling, little extras on board like a soft blanket, a glass of wine ( BONUS if you ask me, I can start to relax earlier haha) etc…all from just 109$ on south flights to get all that comfort. The kids for themselves, enjoyed all the onboard perks all while watching movies of their choice, since they all had earphones ( included with the Kids club ) and their own television! Bonus if you ask me: no fight or arguing on the movie selection.

Transat has flight departures daily to the Riviera Maya, from November to April if your departure is from Montreal or Toronto, and has 2 flights a week from December to March if you leave from Ottawa and 3 flights a week if you leave from Quebec.

Here is the link so you can start living the dream, right in front of your computer, selecting your best experience you will have with Air Transat:

https://www.transat.com/en-CA?search=package&origin=YUL

Here is the link of our hotel we stayed at : The Grand at Moon Palace

 

The Grand at Moon Palace Resort

·       From $2,369 per person (departure January 6, 2017)

Let me know what selection you make, I love to see where people go and most of all, their recommendations too.

Safe travel,

Stephanie x

Every year I like to get myself a new pair of reading socks, or two! I literally live in them during fall and winter time, and sometimes in summer when nights that the air gets more fresh!

I like to pair them with either jeans or preferably  leggings, a soft tee and of course, a comfy and warm cardigan, aka my mom outfit when I stay home or work from home!!

These reading socks also makes a perfect gift for any girls, moms or grandma… because you don’t need to be reading to wear them right?

I even bought my teen boy a pair ( he loves books, comfy socks and cocooning too ) but he wears them as soon as he gets home from school or sports and feels like he needs to warm up. It’s much more easier now to find cute models for men and I think they make a great gift for teachers and educators too… if you’re still looking on what to buy! They could be fun stockings too!

Here’s the link for mine:

https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/fr-ca/mode/northern-cable-knit-reading-socks/882709352983-article.html?ikwsec=Fashion&ikwidx=15

Also, if you have great shops or boutiques that have great selection of reading socks, let me know in the comments, I need one more pair… or two! 😉

good night,

Stephanie

The first snowflakes have fallen, the air is starting to become crisper, the days are shorter, the countdown to the holidays has already begun and the TO-DO list is still enormous with so many things yet to be checked in order to be ready for all of the Christmas and New Years parties and to also be ready to host our guests.
Year after year, I always tell myself that I will start to plan the holidays earlier, get my lists ready, buy my stuff in advance, decide on my menu, on everyone’s outfits, on the kids gifts, on the Christmas cards etc… and every year, I find myself starting in advance and then stressing out a week prior to the big parties because I’m still not ready, or missing lots of pieces to my puzzle, because I of course want to make sure that everything is magical in the eyes of everyone…
Here are some recipes that are on my LIST, and they include one of my favourite ingredients, coffee. If you’re feeling stressed out and running on empty in all the holiday chaos why not try it before you host?  So, here are some yummy caffeinated holiday drinks for the Holidays made with the Nespresso limited edition VARIATIONS Confetto collection!

PEPPERMINT LATTE
Who said that candy canes are only for kids? Why not give your boring old coffee a peppermint kick!
All you’ll need is the Nespresso limited edition VARIATIONS Confetto Peppermint Cane, warm milk (I like to use whole milk), whipped cream and a candy cane to garnish.
•1 cup 2% warm milk
•1 capsule of brewed Nespresso (Peppermint cane)
•1/2 teaspoon of peppermint extract
•1 candy cane
You can get the caps here:
https://www.nespresso.com/ca/en/order/capsules/vertuo/vertuo-variations- confetto-
peppermint-cane- coffee-capsule
EGGNOG LATTE

What are the holidays without eggnog? And so I tried to put a twist on my favourite festive drink and add coffee to it, of course. All you’ll need is milk, eggnog, Nespresso (I used the limited edition VARIATIONS Confetto coconut- snowball), and a pinch of nutmeg.
•1/3 cup 2% warm milk
•2/3 cup warm eggnog
•1 capsule of brewed Nespresso
•1 pinch ground nutmeg
You can get the caps here:
https://www.nespresso.com/ca/en/order/capsules/original/variations-confetto- snowball-
coffee-capsule
If you want to try the Nespresso limited edition VARIATIONS Confetto holiday collection, you will find that they all have their own unique sweetness to please the coffee amateur or connoisseur in you. Nespresso never stops impressing us with their limited edition collections.
What is your favourite holiday coffee recipe?
Wishing you all yummy food, delicious coffees and cocktails, lots of love and happy holidays!
Stephanie x

C’est aujourd’hui qu’avait lieu le vol annuel d’Air  Transat de la fondation REVES d’enfants!

Étant maman de 3 garçons en pleine santé, lorsque l’on me parle ou m’approche pour des événements tel, c’est évident que ca me touche profondément! Avoir des enfants en santé, c’est ce qu’il y a de plus précieux à mes yeux! Certaines familles n’ont malheureusement pas cette chance!!! Donc, lorsque certaines fondations mettent sur pied des collect de fonds, des événements afin de pouvoir amasser des sous et de permettre de soit prodiguer des soins supplémentaires à ces enfants malades ou bien de permettre a certains enfants de vivre des rêves, je crois profondément que nous devrions tous y contribuer, sans avoir à hésiter!

Donc, l’événement consistait à des activités dans le terminal Transat, tel que maquillage, photoboot, coin lecture de comptes de Noel, coin coloriage au thème des fêtes et ce, en présence de plusieurs mascottes pour tous les petits présents.

123 enfants, accompagnés de leurs frères, soeurs et parents, étaient à bord du gros Airbus 330 qui nous a propulsé vers le ciel en direction du nord, à la recherche du père Noël. Bien haut en altitude, le pilote a soudainement aperçu une traînée d’étoiles pour que quelques minutes plus tard, voir la grosse poche du père Noel. Opération délicate, le père Noël devait se poser sur une aile mais sans ses rennes, l’espace étant restreinte!

En l’espace de quelques secondes, le père Noel faisait son apparition dans le corridor, tout près du poste de pilotage! C’était un moment totalement magique et surtout bien touchant.

Les festivités se sont poursuit à bord et le père Noel a pris le temps de parler avec TOUS les enfants!

Transat a mis sur pied le programme PETITE MONNAIE, GRAND COEUR, qui consiste donc à faire des dons, soit lors de nos voyages avec ces derniers ( donc on donne notre monnaie que nous avons sur nous ou bien la monnaie du pays dont nous venous de visiter, qui de toutes façons, risque de finir ses jours dans le fond d’un tiroir à la maison. Honnêtement, je trouve que cet idée est tellement géniale, et qui aime avoir du petit change de toute façon? En donnant tous notre petit change, ca s’accumule et ainsi, peut faire de gros changements dans la vie d’enfants malades.

La nouvelle façon d’effectuer des dons est également lors de la réservation de nos voyages, sur la page d’achat, il est maintenant possible d’effectuer un don de 1$, 2$ ou 5$ par personne au moment de compléter l’achat sur le site de Transat.

Donc, les fonds amassées servent donc aux programmes suivants:

Fondation Rêves d’enfants

Transat aide à réaliser les rêves d’enfants qui ont confié un souhait à la Fondation canadienne Rêves d’enfants, un organisme sans but lucratif dont la mission est de permettre à des enfants atteints d’une maladie qui menace leur vie de réaliser leur souhait le plus cher.

SOS Villages d’Enfants

Transat s’est associée à l’organisme humanitaire international SOS Villages d’Enfants afin de contribuer au mieux-être des enfants dans ses pays de destination, où très souvent les besoins, même les plus élémentaires, ne sont pas comblés. Fondé il y a plus 60 ans et présent dans 132 pays, l’organisme SOS Villages d’Enfants s’occupe de plus de 70 000 enfants orphelins ou abandonnés qui sont accueillis dans 500 SOS Villages. Ciblant plus de 700 000 enfants, ses programmes visent à combler leurs besoins fondamentaux en matière de santé, d’éducation, de formation professionnelle et d’encadrement personnel.

Avec l’aide de ses clients et de ses employés, Transat apporte notamment un soutien financier important à cet organisme qui procure aux enfants démunis un milieu familial chaleureux, affectueux, sécuritaire et permanent. Transat collabore avec SOS Villages d’Enfants au Canada, en France et au Royaume-Uni.

 

Vraiment touchant! J’ai adoré mon expérience et surtout, c’est certain que c’est fini la monnaie que je rapporte à la maison, même que lors de mon prochain voyage, j’apporte toute cette monnaie de devises étrangères qui ne servira plus jamais chez moi et j’en ferai un don à PETITE MONNAIE, GRAND COEUR.

Et vous?

Je joints les liens si voulez avoir plus de détails.

https://www.airtransat.com/fr-CA/Info-voyage/Services-en-vol/Collecte-de-monnaie-a-bord

Traveling is so fun, and when I’m getting ready for our beach vacations or anywhere around the globe, I always pay extra attentions to what I bring in my luggage, especially with my little family.

Since we spent our last week in Riviera Maya, Mexico, where the sun was really present  and strong all week, I wanted to share with you my favorite skin care protection and post sun care as well after getting lots of messages, dm’s and emails from you. I’m lucky enough to say that I have traveled a lot in my life and as well, with 3 boys, I had the chance to try, love and hate a lot of sunscreens and skin care products.

So here are the skin care products we used during our beach vacations:

For my body:

I really like the smell of this SPF60 lotion, perfect for the face too. What I really appreciated was that I applied it on my dry and wet skin and it gave me the same result, so no wait when you get out of the pool. One last point I really liked about it is that it’s an ultra-light and refreshing lotion was  formulated for an active lifestyle and outdoor activities, so perfect if you need to run after the kids.

https://www.vichy.ca/en/ideal-soleil-cream-spf-60-3337871319472.html?cgid=Sun-Cream-Lotions-SunCare#start=4&cgid=Sun-Cream-Lotions-SunCare

For my face:

This stick was made for sensitive zones with SPF 60, is so easy to apply, and the small and compact size is easy to carry on. I like to apply it on all my face but you can limit the application on sensitives areas such as ears, lip contour, eyes and nose and mix it with the body and face lotion too. I also really liked the non greasy texture.

https://www.vichy.ca/en/ideal-soleil-stick-for-sensitive-zones-spf-60–3337871320270.html?cgid=Sun-Stick-SunCare#start=1&cgid=Sun-Stick-SunCare

For my lips and kids lips:

I really like this soft, buttery lip protection. I like to use it as soon as we have an outdoor activity and it’s totally perfect for the whole family, even baby Axel.

https://well.ca/products/nivea-sun-lip-balm-duo_96738.html

For the kids ( face ):

This Mustela Sun Stick that I use provides a SPF 50+ protection for the face and body of babies and children. I prefer to use it for the face since it’s size is perfect to cover the kids face. It’s not greasy at all, but you need to spread it a little bit.

For baby:

I discovered this Shiseido’s Ultimate Sun Protection when Axel was just past 6 months and since then, it’s my favorite one for the kids since it’s formulated especially for sensitive skin and children’s skin. I really like that it’s, fragrance, alcohol and parabens free and has a texture gentle enough for my kids delicate skin. Another fact that I like about this product, it’s that it’s really powerful even after being exposed to water, perfect for our little boys.

After Sun for adult:

I really like the formula of the after sun body milk. It’s really light, non greasy, absorbs fast and helps to soothe skin after a day under the sun. I like the smell a lot.

https://www.vichy.ca/en/ideal-soleil-after-sun-milk–3337871322724.html?cgid=Sun-AfterSun-Care#start=1&cgid=Sun-AfterSun-Care

After Sun for kids:

This baby and kids sunscreen from Mustela instantly hydrates, soothes and refreshes immediately the skin, the fragrance is really delicate, which i love for my little one’s sensible skin.

https://www.mustela.com/en/content/After-sun-spray