NUSA LEMBONGAN
Got the Scoot Boat across (Monkey #1 loves getting wet in boats so she had a blast) and stayed at Villa Rumah Kami (three bedrooms, amazing upstairs lounging room with views over the water, private pool).
This is a great spot, with excellent views and three minute walk to the beach (Pantai Selegimpak). This particular beach has sand and then a rock shelf, so it is not a ‘lets take the kids to splash in the water' kind of a beach, but Mushroom Beach would be perfect for that. It does have some great rock pools at low tide that Monkey #1 thought were the bee's knees.
There is some decent snorkelling at Mongrove point and Crystal Bay and Mummy and Daddy did a ‘Discover Scuba' dive with John from World Diving (we've been diving before but not yet done our Open Water Course). One afternoon John came to the Villa to do the theory bit and then the next day came with a mate to give us a lift of the back of their motor bikes to the dive centre and we did the pool session and then went out in the boat (just us) to a ‘nursery' diving spot which was OK; we saw lion fish and quite a big sea snake on a 40 minute dive.
Villa Ruma Kami is managed by Komang with the assistance of his older brother Wayan and a young lady named Ayu who did an excellent job in all respects. We asked about getting a baby sitter so we could do some snorkelling and the diving and Komang's reply was ‘too expensive' and he and Ayu would take care of the girls, both of whom adored them. They took Monkey #1 to pick every flower on the island, she got to ride on a motorbike into the village for some shopping and they took her for regular walks to visit the local cow who she had named "Emily". Komang and Ayu also cook all the simple but tasty meals. One thing to note (and not as a criticism but so that expectations are set right) is that most of the meals they can provide are some form of chicken or fish. There was no beef on the menu. If you wanted a fix you could go out to another restaurant. Komang is pretty got at local indonesian desserts; Daddy would let him decide what was for dessert and was never disappointed.
Mummy had her birthday while we were there and sneaky and caring Daddy asked Komang about a cake, which he cooked himself for the occasion.
One thing to note is that no villa we looked at could really be described as 'toddler friendly'. This one had the advantage that in the living area we could rearrange the furniture to create a corral so that Monkey #2 did not go toppling down stairs or over ledges but constant vigilance was required downstairs and outside.
Next stop Tuban...