At the beginning of November, my husband and I were looking for a way to escape. . .
We’re anxiously awaiting the birth of our second son in January, and it seems like there’s not nearly enough time to get everything done. At the time, we were about to be thrown into the middle of holiday season, and quality family time had been a distant memory. His job is currently in “crunch time” with a huge project that’s expected to end within the month, and I’m busy “nesting” which means our house is in total chaos. Any free time we had is spent preparing dinner, winding our 20 month old down before bed, and crashing on the couch in front of the tv while work, laundry, or some other mundane chore is being done.
With 2 months to go until D-Day (Delivery Day) and no sign of the end of household madness, we decided to jump on the opportunity to take a quick weekend trip down to the Texas Hill Country for a stay at the Lakeway Resort & Spa.
I was so excited to leave the stress and worries that come with being in Dallas behind, it didn’t even bother me that we weren’t going to be able to leave until after my husband left work on Friday night. Knowing this would probably be our last vacation as a family of 3, we were going to make the best of our last weekend away!
Although we didn’t really see how gorgeous of a resort Lakeway was until the next day, even at 11pm as we pulled into the resort, I could tell this was going to be an awesome weekend.
Unpredictable Parent Problem #1 arose when we realized how big the grounds of the resort were. Not only did we have a passed out toddler to get to a guest room, but we were definitely outnumbered by the luggage 3:1.
I was a little nervous at how we’d manage to get it all to our room without waking our son. Fortunately for us, although the grounds of Lakeway are large, the distance from the lobby to our room wasn’t as far as I had imagined. So with the help of the friendly, night Valet staff, we successfully made it to the room without losing anything.
We’d reserved a standard room with 2 queen beds, and I couldn’t believe how spacious it was! There was plenty of room to unpack our bags and unfold the Pack ‘N Play. The vanity and bathroom even had it’s own separate area. Our room also had a large balcony overlooking Lake Travis (which we again didn’t get to appreciate until morning.)
Now, I wish I could say that we all went to bed that night without any problems and woke up refreshed the next day. . . but as a parent, I’m sure you know this about NEVER happens! Unpredictable Parent Problem #2, I’ll spare you the details, but let’s just say the rooms are beautiful with high ceilings that make for awesome acoustics when you have a screaming toddler. So sorry to the wedding party that was having to room next to us!
When you’re running on less than 5 hours of sleep and 7 months pregnant, it would be easy to wake up in a really crabby mood, but once I saw the view out our guest room, it was hard not to feel a sense of peace. It was a cool, foggy morning overlooking the lake with the green rolling hills in the background. The type of image you don’t ever see in Dallas.
We quickly got started with our day by having breakfast on the property. There was a Breakfast Buffet that offered an all-you-can-eat selection of French Toast, bacon, eggs, waffles, and an Omelet Bar. There were a variety of fruits, pastries, and cereals to choose from, as well as a list of menu items as well. For a resort, the breakfast pricing was surprisingly inexpensive, and since my son was under the age of 2, he ate free!
We also chose a table out on the patio that overlooked Lake Travis and the resort’s amazing pools!
Since we went at the beginning of November, we didn’t go swimming. The water was a crisp 72 degrees, and just a little too chilly for me. But, that didn’t stop other guests from spending their Saturday enjoying the sun and several older kids took advantage of the water slides and invigorating temperatures! (I definitely want to return in the summer and test the pools out; however, I heard a rumor through a staff member that they’re working on having the pools heated so they can be used all year round!)
One perk of the Lakeway Resort & Spa for families is the Kid’s Zone. The Kid’s Zone is a getaway for the kids!
As a parent, if you’re looking to go on a Date Night while in the Austin area or need some time to head out and do a little shopping without kids in tow, a trained child-care provider is available to watch your children in the Kid’s Zone for a few hours while you have Adult Time. There are toys for all ages, board games, books, crafts, a large TV with a large variety of movies and video games (including Guitar Hero),and much more!
We hadn’t planned on using this area as a baby-sitting service, but we did head downstairs as a family, and spent an hour playing with our son while he got some energy out before nap time. It’s a great way to feel “at home” without having to bring all the toys with you!
As the sun set over Lake Travis on Saturday night, I couldn’t believe I’d waited so long to revisit the Texas Hill Country. Austin is such a short drive from Dallas, and it’s almost like being in another world. And a whole different experience from when you visit as a young couple to traveling with a family!
I am honestly looking forward to the next time we head back down, and hope we can stay at the Lakeway Resort & Spa again! It’s such a great place for families and a quick drive into downtown Austin no matter the season.
*Lakeway Resort & Spa graciously invited me to enjoy a complimentary weekend stay package, but they did not ask me to write this and the opinions expressed are all my own.
