Corgimum, the service was fantastic! Unfortunately husband ended up in the ER there shortly after we arrived due to his ticker. However, for the first time ever they brought him back in rhythm with some sort of Mexican ckt drug. We had such good care! Never ever has drugs worked in the states to bring him back around he always needs a cardio version (sp?). We carefully enjoyed the rest of our vacation and husband was so happy not to make any decisions. He has since had an operation to fix his problem and so far so good. We did take out the extra insurance before that trip and was reimbursed. That worked so well I will never travel to another country again without it. Joanie, just do it! Life is short! When my kids were young we could only afford one big trip the whole time to France and England and some mid trips to the Carolinas and mid west. The trips they enjoyed the most though were trips to the Florida Keys on the Gulf side. Those trips were just a few hours south for us though. And I have to say that they were not as much fun for husband who worked so much and had to do the long drive and then go to a NON all inclusive where decisions on where to eat and how to amuse the children were nonstop. Once the kids were grownâ¦we have been doing some traveling as itâÂÂs a piece of cake with two.

I'm not familiar with Aruba, but my brother & wife just got back from a week in Jamaica and, although they enjoyed their resort ok, they were more than a little turned off by the crime everywhere outside the resort, it seemed. I've heard the same thing from many people and so we've never gone there. What about looking into renting a condo of private vacation home instead of just a room? There are some great deals out there and more so this year. We like this route instead because it gives us more room to spread out, a living room to relax in and a kitchen for at least some of our meals. I like having a fridge to keep snacks, drinks and breakfast things in. It may run a bit more than a room, but the savings you get from breakfasts and even lunches in can make up for the difference. For me, though, the biggest advantage would be the extra space and not having to get little ones ready for restaurant breakfasts. Plus, when somebody needs a nap, there's abedroom or bedrooms with doors for quiet and the everyone else can be elsewhere in the home/condo enjoying themselves. Although not the Caribbean, we just reserved a condo for a Spring trip to Galveston Island, and found the selection to be priced very near or the same as that of a single room. The choice was a no-brainer for us. As for specific Caribbean resorts, I don't have many to suggest as, like I mentioned, we tend to rent homes or condos, but I can comment on some of the islands. Peter Island is nice, but was on the expensive side. It has a reputation of being very safe, though. Tortola, which is nearby in the British Virgin Islands is lovely, with a rain forest and mountain in the middle of it. I don't think there's a traffic light on the entire island, just roundabouts, but it's got beautiful beaches and is very laid-back. We especially like the north shore area, which has great vacation homes on the beach to rent. This would be the Long Bay, Apple Bay to Cane Garden Bay area. It's a very safe place to vacation. For a resort there, my choice would be The Sugar Mill, but probably not for small kids. The food is fabulous there, though! St.Thomas is fun and easy to get to. It's congested, though, and the traffic -and parking!- can be daunting at times. We rented a home there in the Peterborg Estates area overlooking Magen's Bay and it, like most there, came with its own gorgeous pool. The Coki Bay area is especially congested as is it's public beach. The two times we went, the air was redolent with the strong scent of pot . . . but the people are very nice. For resorts, the Marriott Frenchman's Reef Resort was very nice, although we didn't stay there. We had two lunches at the outside restaurant on the beach at Belongo Bay. It looked like a nice place, as well. St.John is flat-out gorgeous. Lush, green, tropical and it's very safe, from what we've seen and heard. We lovew it! The beaches are lovely and the water crystal clear. St. Martin/Sint Maarten: it may have just been us, but we weren't very impressed with this island. It came across as too crowded and a bit too commercial, but we did run across some pretty views and places. Puerto Rico, outside the cities you can find some nice places, but I wasn't crazy about it myself. Hope you find someplace that works for you. Let us know where you end up going. Lynn

Congrats! We have a new one baby coming in 2010 also! It is still very early for our DD...but they couldn't keep it a secret! LOL We are Nana & Papa! When the girls got bunnies years ago, they said we were grandpa and grandma....nope, don't like that so we went with Nana & Papa! Only prob, the other grandmother is called Nana also...and long before the kids met. :/ Oh well, they will figure it out quick! DH has a VHS to DVD gadget that he bought last winter. He has all of our old tapes now on DVD and we sent many to the neighborhood kids...that now have their own kids...from years ago when there were 15 kids in our neighborhood! Great fun, then and now! We haven't had our family Christmas yet, until the 9th then we will have all the kids together....to me, that is the best gift of all!!

Wow, JTerri, that does look nice. Looks like hotel developers noticed the same thing I did ... the hotel stock in most of the Keys is a little long i n the tooth and they need some new investment. OTOH I am reluctant to choose an unopened hotel and the last time I did so it was not finished in time! Anyway, the Eau Palm is booked already for the dates I want!? And my family thinks I am crazy for planning so far in advance.Hrmmph. Now I have my heart set on something with a fun, hip PB vibe like that. Which I find more on Air BnB. I don't care so much that they won't be oceanfront (we see plenty of that already) but worry they will flake on me in high season! Funny, Bonnie Ann, I remember being in KW and being told ... its only 90 miles to Cuba and it seeming soooo exotic. ETA ... OMG, look at this listing! I thought there was a person in the family room. I would never rent this unless it was dipped in Lysol first. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/12782884?guests=8&s=EQGRvyCN