Jamaica Here We Come - My Weekend Getaway with Xavier

So I haven't made it home for Christmas in three years. Our wedding accounted for year one's absence, then came Xavier on year two, and last year we thought we would have seen my family during our November vacay in Negril but hurricane Sandy had other plans.
I needed some mommy time. As in time with my mom, two grandmas and other family/friends so I decided to sneak in a quickie getaway with Xavier in tow. I mean, going without him would have been akin to treason so I pulled on my big girl panties, loaded up three suitcases full of clothes, food and other goodies (my Caribbean/Latin American peeps understand the need for this kind of luggage debauchery) and off we went. 
Traveling with three bags and an active 14-month old aint NO joke. That was a first and a last time.  Hubby dearest you MUST always be there for these trips!
Anyways, I survived - of course - and spent some quality time with the fam. Xavier's soul belongs to that island because it was as if the kid knew everyone and everything (we'd taken him there to visit when he was a mere four months old).
Here's a recap...

 He sat still for a few minutes to learn some words on the tablet, but once he spotted another kid he was out of that child in record time. The wonderful Pierre was gracious enough to share his game.

Yay! We're finally at grandma's! Hanging with his favorite cuz, my niece, Deja.

Okay, so I'm from Kingston which is not the tourism mecca you see plastered around for every ad featuring Jamaica. It's the city life which means no ultra fab beaches to saunter right on over to. But there is one nearby indulgence that us city folk must do, even if we're only in town for two days. Go to Hellshire beach, just a few miles outside of the city. 
Now most of us don't go for the beach. We go for the ridiculously tasty heaps of fish, lobster, festival and bammy that is cooked by the gazillion vendors who have set up shop there.

Hmmm, I didn't know my dearest Cuban friend Sophia had snuck into the island and set up a stall? This explains why she's always missing on the weekends. hehe.

This is my favorite spot. Well organized and pretty freaking budget-friendly.

Hi there, you want a lobster?

Once you place your order, you go out back to chill out on the beach and check out the scene.

Me and my mom. That lady spoils me when I'm in town! Love it!

Deja on her first horseback ride. Wait? Horses on the beach? Hey, whatever hustle works in Jamaica. There was also a massage therapist roaming around with his table, CD vendors, women selling fruit, peppered shrimp, and vendors selling items that are well, sorta, kinda illegal.

Fresh from a nap, I'm pretty sure he smelled his fish cooking. Chillin here with his Uncle Shomari.

Lunch is served! Yep, fried fish and the local fare of bammy (fried cassava) and festival (a fried dumpling of sorts made with cornmeal, flour, sugar).

Your fish isn't complete unless you dress it up with some pepper! Scotch bonnet pepper and onions are soaked in this tub of vinegar which is pretty potent. I use it sparingly!

We drink our coconut water straight from the coconut here! 

Letting Xavier get his feet wet before we leave.

Once back in Kingston, we stopped by to say hellos to my Grandma, Enid, who turns 82 this year.

And that's it folks. A two day whirlwind experience. Xavier did pretty well and things were a lot more manageable on the trip back to Miami, since I no longer had three suitcases to contend with. Missing everyone terribly, but we'll see most of the fam when we return to Negril later this year for that rescheduled vacation. If you're ever in Kingston be sure to have someone take you to Hellshire. It's quite an experience.TGIF!
P.S.
We have a lot going on this weekend. We're installing a few projects this month so I need to work up a punch list of all that needs to be done to get those finalized. We also start a new and fun one on Monday, which means I'll be spending a few hours at the fabric store to get things rolling. Can't wait. Oh and of course, I'll be watching the Super Bowl, for the commercials and Beyonce, only. No football fan am I. Hehe.