August 11, 2025
I was up for hours last night with, delicately put, tummy troubles. By the time we had to leave for our morning boat ride, I was feeling better but definitely not 100%. Kyle was a trooper and gladly took the kids himself on the excursion while I went back to sleep for a bit.
Boat excursion stories from Kyle
I was unsure what exactly the boat trip would be like other than a stop at an island and looking for dolphins. After packing a backpack filled with water, snacks, towels, and sunscreen we had a quick breakfast at our house and were off to catch our boat.
We met the boat at the same dock where the submarine ride started and almost got on the first boat that pulled up. Luckily we did not as that was a full day boat and ours was only supposed to be 9-1. After a brief bathroom emergency scare our boat arrived and we jumped on with a few other guests but the boat was already mostly full from an earlier pick-up somewhere else. The boys requested a snack almost immediately and the captain came around with shots of some liquor which caught me off guard but I drank as he said it was good luck for finding dolphins.
It worked and dolphins were our first stop. We found them near a fish hatchery by the island Vrgada. The pod of dolphins must have had a way of getting at the fish being raised in the hatchery, Bream & Sea Bass, as they were hanging out all around it. We saw divers trying to repair the nets underwater that the dolphins must have made holes in to get a snack. After a few big final jumps from the dolphins we headed off to dock at Vrgada where we had 2 hours of free time. We walked through the tiny town and up a big hill which eventually came to tiny steps down a cliff to a sandy beach. It was nice but got very crowded. We all had a swim in the water to cool off since it was well over 90 degrees out. We checked out a big tree that was barely holding to the top of the cliff after some erosion and all guessed how much longer till it toppled 50 feet down to the beach.
After some ice cream we began the walk back to the boat. It left at 1PM and the feeling I got was it was not waiting for anyone. We arrived back in time and shockingly neither of the boys complained about the long walk with sandy feet at all! Lenny insisted we sit up top on the way back to get a good view which left us roasting in the sun but luckily once we left the dock we ended up in the shade with a nice breeze. Good call Lenny! We were almost back when the captain spotted dolphins and turned to go see them. I was ready to be off the boat but dolphins came right next to the boat so the last detour ended up being worth it.
After a few more hours of sleep, I was determined to accomplish something productive this morning so I attempted to do a load of laundry but the one (1!!) machine on our side of the resort was being used. Reminiscent of my college dorm laundry strategy, I set an alarm to go back and start a load as soon as that one had finished. The timing worked out that once I started that load of laundry, I walked right to the dock to meet the guys as they returned from their excursion. Both boys exuberantly greeted me (“MOOOOOM! We missed you mama!”) which was surprising but much appreciated. We then went to the restaurant for our last buffet meal. It was near 100F today and the dining area is open air but with no circulation so as soon as we arrived I was itching to leave. The boys had a ton of snacks on the boat so weren’t terribly hungry and Kyle ate quickly so we weren’t there for long.
Len came with me to grab our clothes from the laundry machine and en route he was gathering sticks and somehow sliced open one of his fingers. He wasn’t in pain, but be managed to wipe blood all over his face and swimsuit. After washing him up, we saw that the cut wasn’t that big so he calmed down quickly. I grabbed our wet clothes from the machine and planned to hang them up to dry on our deck back at the cottage. After the excursion, Kyle and the kids were tired so Kyle took a nap while the boys watched a movie.
We walked back into town, determined to play the greatest hits on our last night in Croatia. We went to our favorite restaurant, Gladne Oči, and were happy to see our favorite server Manuella when we walked in. She ran in the back to grab us a bottle of her family’s oil and we were so touched by the gesture. She shared that they only have 15 olive trees but they yield 170 liters of oil in a good year. We learned they only get a good crop every 2 or 3 years but they still have plenty of oil to spare. This time, we only ordered one fish and some mussels to share rather than the entire fish board which was still plenty. Looking back, I can’t believe we finished the whole board just the two of us last night.
We continued the repeat of last night’s antics by heading to the trampoline, bouncy house and mini jeeps for the kids. While Ollie wrapped up a Jeep ride, Len went with Kyle to get cotton candy. We fit in everyone’s favorite on our last night in Croatia! On the way home, while waiting for the mini train back to Pine Beach, Ollie asked Kyle if he was nervous before he became a Dad. When Kyle asked him why he was wondering about that he said, “I just wanted to know how I will feel before I become a Dad.”
