Mexico

Jer and I were phenomenally blessed to be able to go on a week long trip to Mexico earlier this month.  Even as I type this, it seems like a far away dream!!  We had not been on this long of a vacation together for 9 years, and it felt sooooo good.  Earlier this year, Jeremy won a travel card at work that helped us pay for a Disneyland trip for the family, and it also helped finance this trip for us.  (:

We are so thankful to my parents for watching the kids for the first two days, and for Jeremy's cousin, Chelsea, and her mom (Jer's aunt) Debbie, for watching them the rest of the time.  It was no easy task, and I should know!  (:  I tried to make it a week that wasn't packed full of stuff, and I tried to be organized and do the grocery shopping and laundry and homework projects and everything ahead of time.  Still, as they later said, "We had NO idea!!"  I was a bit relieved that it wasn't just a cakewalk for them, watching these 8 kiddos of mine.  If it was, I would feel like I was doing something wrong, because it's certainly not a cakewalk for me!  (:  Anyway, a huge, huge thank you for providing us with such a perfect vacation.  And much gratitude to our older kids, who were extremely helpful while we were gone.  We missed them!  (But not too much.  :)

Cozumel was paradise.  It was a much needed time for us to catch up as a couple and fall in love again.  We had a perfect blend of rest and adventure.  Jeremy talked me into going scuba diving while we were there.  I was terrified.  It sounded so claustrophobic and scary.  It took me weeks to warm up to the idea, and I finally consented to a trial dive.  Cozumel is a world famous place to dive.  In fact, it seemed that everybody on the island had come there for the diving.  You have to be certified to go lower than 45 feet, so that's as low as we went.  When I first got in the water and tried breathing with the scuba gear, I hated it.  I felt like I couldn't breathe.  I totally panicked and was about to just get out of the ocean.  But our divemaster would have no such thing.  He just calmly led me through the steps and before I knew it, I was underwater.  I didn't like the first dive AT ALL.  I didn't know it at the time, but it was mostly because my mask was super fogged up.   Somehow, Jeremy talked me into doing a second dive, this time with a new divemaster.  He was so much better than the first and made me feel much more at ease.  And... I LOVED it!  It was so amazing.  I have been snorkeling several times (and LOVE it.)  This was like snorkeling on steroids.  Amazing!  I liked it enough that we went on a third dive, and even signed up for a fourth dive, but it was cancelled due to weather.  We both are so excited (and I'm still a little scared) to go again someday.  (:  (:  (:

We also swam with dolphins, had a romantic dinner alone on the beach, rented a jeep and drove around the island, toured Tulum (Mayan ruins), shopped, watched a sea lion show, went night snorkeling (out by ourselves in the dark ocean-- fun!), ordered room service every single morning and ate it on our balcony, napped in our hammock, discovered our favorite drink (virgin strawberry margaritas with lime), watched romantic movies, had massages and pedicures at the spa, enjoyed our huge jacuzzi, went to a local church (we just LOVED that), ate five thousand quesadillas, and read our books sitting out on the beach.  I kept trying to take mental pictures so I could go back to that relaxing state when I got home.  Ahhhhh....

 I love you, Cozumel!

Dinner on the beach

I loved that hammock!

My favorite pic!

A fire show at our hotel

Love those photos you take by yourself...

view from our balcony

Ready for my first dive!  Can you tell I'm deathly scared?!!

This is the life

At Tulum

   If you look closely, you'll see the picture we're holding is of the sunrise coming through the ruins directly in back of us.  Our guide insisted we take a picture of our profiles, holding this picture. Kind of funny.

Did I mention how much I loved that hammock?

Sad to leave!

I love this guy!