Cancun

We had an amazing opportunity to travel to Cancun via Jason's business.  Yes, please!  We paid Holli to watch the boys and looked forward to a rare extended kid-free weekend.  Packing was an ordeal and getting ready to be gone from work two days added to it.  But once we were on the plane, it was totally worth it!

We stayed at the Le Blanc Spa Resort.  Let me just say this, by far, is THE nicest place I have ever stayed in my life!  It was open air, smelled exquisite, airy, bright, and you basically have your own butler on call.  You can order room service basically anytime, eat practically anytime (grill, Italian, French, Mexican, etc.), drink just about anytime (our new favorite is the caparinas), enjoy turn down service, have your bath drawn, bag unpacked...  I could go on and on.  There were so many options that they even had a pillow menu and aromatherapy menu, and all of this was available to book on their free app or by phone call to your butler.  And the room was so fancy that there was even a tv in the mirror.  Yes, you read that correctly.

Our room had a huge jacuzzi tub--even Jason enjoyed it and it was long enough for him to fit in it.  I had them draw a bath every night just because we could.  You could even choose the time, so the evening we went to the on-site karaoke club, I set the time for 11:30 and by the time we got back to our room, it was the perfect temperature.  Although we were on the first floor, the view from our room wasn't half bad, either.

Our first day there was very cool and windy, but thankfully it didn't stay like that the entire trip.  The color of the water just amazed me.  We unpacked, relaxed a bit, then met back up in the lobby for drinks and planned to head to dinner.  Unfortunately, our reservations got mixed up and they couldn't seat such a "large" group (c'mon...it's eight people!) so we ended up going off of the resort to La Distilleria. 

Even though pretty much anything there is kind of touristy, this was a little more of the Mexican flair we wanted to enjoy.  There was a mariachi band, delicious food, and great company.

We called it an early night because we had an 80 foot yacht calling our name early the next morning.  It was just the four couples, el Capitan, and two deck hands at our beck and call. AHmazing!!

We snorkeled, swam, and cruised around Isla de Mujeres.  There were several rooms on the yacht and plenty of places to relax or take a nap, watch from the upper or lower deck, or hang out and munch at the dining table.  Mid-afternoon, we enjoyed a delicious gourmet lunch.  I could get used to this!

Back at the hotel, everyone cleaned up, napped/relaxed, and got ready for dinner.  It had been such a long day that most folks fell asleep for the evening, so Jason and I enjoyed sushi at the Asian restaurant.   Each evening, we'd pick out what we wanted from the expansive room service menu and they would wheel it right into the room at whatever time you picked.  Talk about service!

And every morning, someone would grate the sand and leave a cheerful "Buenas Dias" in the sand.  Ahhh!

The boys played golf one morning, so we girls set up a spa day.  Since it didn't begin until 11ish, we walked on the beautiful beach and combed it for little shells.

Our view from the cabanas (with a hand-delivered, cold, beachy drink) was pretty amazing and we hated to leave the beach, but the spa was soooo worth it.  Relaxing, refreshing, and soothing.

Meanwhile, the boys encountered some wildlife along the way on their golf trip.  This little rodent thingee was kind of like a monkey-squirrel.

Iguanas dotted the course...

But the real excitement began when they found crocodiles just steps from the greens!  Yikes!  Thankfully, everyone returned with all their toes and fingers.

Meeting up at the swim up bar for a grilled snack was nice, and the view from the infinity pool was breathtaking.  But the entertainment from a wedding party (whose "Ca-CA"s in the atrium at 2am the first night were somehow blamed on us and nearly got our group kicked out) was priceless.  Pretty sure some of them didn't quite make it to the ceremony. 

The boys

As if we didn't have enough options on the all-inclusive goodies, you had your own private mini bar in your room.  I had never seen anything like this, so had to take a picture.

One of our delicious appetizers at the Italian restaurant our last evening:

The last night's bath, after fun at the karaoke club, even had bubbles and rose petals with the aromatherapy. 

Our view the last morning as we hung out by the pool for some sun was beautiful.  So glad we were able to experience this and have such a fun group that all got along well without drama. 

We showered, packed up, took our luggage to the concierge, then walked into town to enjoy some of the local flavor.  We did a bit of shopping and sight seeing at the market.  Some of the vendors were hilarious and we heard one who was brutally honest quip, "Come buy my crap!"

We headed to the commercial part of the strip and walked around some of the famous clubs like Coco Bongo, then settled in at Carlos 'n Charlie's. 

Didn't expect our margaritas to arrive like this!  I'm sure this place gets crazy the later on in the day you go.  At one point, I must've looked like the gullible one of the group because the waiters came and did my hair...complete with straws and napkins sticking out.  Then they got out a lighter (didn't really light it, but I couldn't see behind me and after all it WAS Mexico, so I was a bit nervous!!) and then shot me with a fire extinguisher instead, for a good laugh.  Pretty sure there might've been a small scream in there.

Back to the hotel, bus to the airport, then we had plenty of time to kill before our flight.  After shopping, what better way than Jimmy Buffett's airport bar??

Back to reality.  Hope to see you again someday, Cancun!

January

Our wonderful neighbors are exactly who we prayed for.  We are so fortunate!  They had a New Year's Eve party and were so sweet to invite us.  The first part was very kid-friendly.  We enjoyed a delicious Italian meal, let the kids eat treats, and I ran next door to bathe Carter and put him to bed.  We love that our monitors will work well enough to put the kids down in their own beds!  Ricky had gotten some family friendly fireworks and Reid was totally enthralled with his first ever, super long sparkler. 

After the kids were properly sugared up, played out, and super tired, some families left, older kids played in the media room, and we put our own kiddos down.  The adult part of the evening was a fun wine-tasting event, kind of a blind taste test with the bottles covered and all.  Everyone got along well and we had fun conversation.  Ricky's grandmother took quite a liking to Jason and it became the joke of the evening, keeping all of us hooting in laughter at their banter.

I found this shirt the next week, which would have been perfect!

Reid had such a good time that he even wrote about it at school that week!  If you can't decipher the kindergarten writing, it says, "We like to go to my neighbor's house."  Reid loves their 2 1/2 year old, Lane, just like a brother.  And Erica is amazing--I feel like I've known her for years, even though we've only technically known each other for about one year now.  I'm so thankful the Lord put us next door to another great Christian family and we look forward to many more fun times together.

On a cold January day before school started back, I got talked into a Chick-fil-A trip.  The boys were really good and patient, so I was all for Reid trading in his book for an ice cream cone.  Carter was actually pretty interested in it, and Reid sweetly shared. 

These two crazies have been enjoying showers with Daddy lately.  Jason will take them both in there sometimes while I pack lunches or cook dinner (which is virtually impossible with a two year old Carter hanging on my leg by the hot stove).  It's pretty entertaining to watch... Carter dances all around the water, but won't get in.  He loves to fill up a big cup and dump it "over" his head (he always misses).  Reid likes to sing, "Ca-ca-CARTER, ca-ca-CARTer, CARTY!" and draw pictures on the shower door. 

They will actually play a few other things together, too.  We got a huge bag of Legos from a coworker of mine, Sandra.  She has no idea how happy that bag of random parts has made Reid.  I'm pretty impressed with his creations he's made.  They end up having to go upstairs into Reid's room so Carter won't destroy them.  Reid gets quite hot-tempered ;)

I didn't realize how long my hair had gotten.  I never, ever have solo time since the boys are always with me, but one day Holli took Reid with her when she was there to pick up a girl in my class.  Perfect (and only!) chance to sneak out for a haircut.  The lighting was weird, so I look a lot healthier in the second picture.  Before:

After:

We had a trip to Cancun coming up soon, so I didn't want my hair everywhere.  It ended up being a bit shorter than I'd wanted, but it worked.  I won't make it back for another haircut for quite awhile, so it's probably better that way anyway.

A French Christmas

We stayed in Dallas for Christmas this year so we could celebrate in our new house.  It was also the 2nd annual Christmas Eve dinner at Steven and Aimee's house...yum!!  The big boys with Mamere:

All the boys, enjoying their own dinner earlier (and so we adults could enjoy our own, "grown up" food and all!)

Dinner was absolutely scrumptious, as expected!  It was wonderful to be with family, catch up, share new and old stories, and have all the boys playing together. 

Christmas morning in our own (new!) house was such a blessing.  I attempted to make monkey bread/plucky cake for the first time to hopefully start a Christmas morning tradition...let's just say I'll keep working on it.  At least it tasted good.  But first things first--Reid was dying to open presents!!  But we had to wait for Carter to wake up (he had been to bed late at Steven and Aimee's the night before, so slept in...unlike big bro) and we adults wanted our morning tea/coffee.  Even Carter really got into it this year and ripped open packages.

New trains for the train table...

Stocking goodies from Santa

The ripping open things happened so quickly I couldn't get pictures of everything.  But here are a few more:

It ends up that all Carter really needed was a couple of boxes and trash to play in, lol!

And he was immediately taken with two books from Aunt Lala et al.

The biggest hit of the morning?  The reindeer that 'poops' brown jellybeans.  They had to see it over (and over, and OVER) again!!  Jason made a great investment ;)  

 Spending Christmas in our new house was such a blessing.  Last year was a pretty crazy year, but what wonderful memories we made!  We are very thankful for all God has provided over the course of 2015 and trust that He will guide us through 2016. 

December Festivities

I was fortunate enough to have a MUCH needed girls' trip in December.  Laura and I decided to visit Canton for a pre-Christmas shopping trip.  The roach motel was waaaay overpriced, but well worth it so we could stay two nights and get an early(ish--we all have kids, so it was heavenly to sleep in) start on shopping Saturday without having to drive over an hour in the Trade Days traffic.  Even better...our lifelong friend, Mandy, who lived down the street growing up, was able to join us!  I hadn't seen her in years, so it was wonderful to all catch up. 

Shopping day!  After a (shoddy) breakfast at the motel, getting ready, and a bit of shopping, it was time to enjoy some everything's fried fair food!  Corn dogs were a must, but I had been waiting since my last Canton visit (when I was pregnant with Carter) for the ultimate...red velvet funnel cake!!! 

My little Canton cart was pretty darn overflowing by the end of the day, and that was after a few trips back and forth to the car.  I'd say it was a success!

And then we realized that Mandy somehow needed to fit into the backseat.  Good thing it wasn't far from the motel!  It was a fun weekend and so good to catch up with my girls.  Moms like us are not so good at taking a break from family to rejuvenate ourselves.

Back at home, it was a busy month!  Reid was totally into decorating this year.  And had the *ahem* muscles to prove it.

He was a Bear of the Month in December!  Makes a mom proud!!  Our December Friday Live is in the morning and is called Holiday Live.  Thankfully, Jason was able to attend the first part and barely made it to see Reid get his award before running off to work.  He even snapped a cute pic of Reid coming up the ramp on the way to the assembly.

 

One of the perks of going to the same school as your mom, right in the classroom across the hall at that, is that your mom can sneak across the hall for a quick selfie.  My little reindeer loved his party! 

This little stinker loved being home for the Christmas break.  He began his obsession with the pantry...and standing on water bottles, which is apparently hilarious.  Eek!

 

Somewhere in December was Jason's company party for the kids.  Structuretone always has a very kid-friendly, fun party and it's neat to meet all the people Jason works with.  Reid loves the doughnuts and cookies...Carter loves the fruit and cheese.   I love that we get to see a normal-looking Santa and take pictures that don't cost $30 after waiting in line for two hours.  Last year, Carter didn't seem to mind sitting with Santa, so I figured this year we wouldn't be so lucky.  Yep.

 

 

Carter was done!  It did make for a funny picture, though.  Reid wanted to open his magic kit from Santa right away, and he was enamored with his snowman balloon.

Carter got an adorable remote (that he apparently thinks doubles as a phone--he makes "calls" and listens to music all the way to Holli's each morning) and other goodies.

Reid even got his face painted this year...a BIG deal after avoiding it his entire life.  I'm pretty sure they had lots of fun and someone is counting down until next year's party.

Reid wanted a "special" breakfast one morning, so we made holiday pancakes.  I'm a good cook, but a terrible baker.  Note to self:  next year, use pre-made pancakes.  Thankfully, he didn't seem to mind.  We used his new cookie cutters and decorated them with sprinkles, whipped cream, and M&Ms. 

Someone was also obsessed with his "lungs" over the break.  Eek!!  Not even gonna go there...

Two little cuties

In the "hot tub" one day as I did laundry

Carter insists on feeding himself, yet ends up with half of it on his clothes, tray, and hands so he freaks out because he can't stand stuff on his hands.  At least he's trying.