Puerto Vallarta: Beach, Pool, and Relaxing (September 2010)

Due to the fact that we were in Mexico, Hollis and I spent a ton of time at the beach.

Hollis loved the feel of the waves pushing him back and forth.

The day we remembered to bring our camera, the ocean was muddy from a storm.

But that just meant more awesome waves. Hollis and I met a nice 8-year old girl who had fun playing in the ocean with us.

We built a sand castle with her too.

The view was awesome - sun, rain, clouds - so I took a picture.

Then I made guacamole when we went inside. And I made it look like the Mexican flag!

This is how Hollis spent a good portion of our vacation:

Yep. Reading. I read a ton too. Good thing we had e-books, otherwise we'd've run out of things to read!

We also took our camera to the pool - underwater photos are so fun.

Especially when you play with the light-bending properties of water.

Whelp, that's all for now!

Los Veranos Canopy Tour (September 2010)

Hollis and I bought two spots on a canopy tour that my relatives had been on before and really enjoyed. We were quite excited to get started!

The zip lines were awesome - phenomenal views and exciting speeds! We loved our guides too. After we were done with the tour, we got to spend some time in their small petting zoo.

So many cute little monkeys that we got to feed, and we also got to hold an iguana, snake, and rabit! It was a long day, but well worth our money.

Puerto Vallarta (September 2010)

Hollis and I spend our Honeymoon (part C) in Mexico. My parents had upgraded their time share and got a free week at any resort that had to be used by the end of the year. We were thrilled to take them up on their offer.

Hollis quite enjoyed some of the street signs. Apparently there is a dance club called "Disco Golden Times."

Yep. He's pretty darn awesome. Also, a store called "Liquid Men."

Hollis and I didn't want to bring our real wedding rings to Mexico, so we wore inexpensive rings (~$1 each) to Mexico with plans to purchase travel rings there. We bought both rings at the same place, so we paid $40 for both. It was a great price. And we LOVE our rings. Hollis got an awesome silver ring with turquoise set in it:

Mine is silver with several different colored opals set in it:

My ring was a tad big, but I loved it so much. I sized it by wrapping silver wires around the bottom of it. Maybe when I'm pregnant it will fit better ;)

DISNEYLAND!! (September 2010)

Hollis and I started Phase I of Honeymoon part C: Disneyland!

In January 2010, Hollis and I both participated in the MLK day of service. Disneyland, in 2010, had a program: give a day of service, get a day at Disneyland. So we both had free tickets to Disneyland. Hollis had never been before, and I was SO EXCITED to go with him. I love Disneyland, and after going there, Hollis does too.

We got to go to so many places. Right before closing time, we went into Fairy Cove (or someplace like that). During the daytime, it takes 40 minutes to get there (because Tinkerbelle and other fairies are there). But we enjoyed the cute big decorations.

I love Disneyland. I totally want to go back.

Super FAT (Summer 2010)

So, everyone likes to think of summer when it's winter, right? Or nearly spring?

Okay, so I just never got around to blogging the second half of summer. We started August by attending Super FAT (aka Crapo Family Reunion). We went to a spot near the Hoh Rain Forest (right next to Forks). On the first day, we went to the beach. The kids had fun (see their smiles) as did my husband.

On the second day we went to the rain forest. We enjoyed hiking, and I loved walking with my niece. I taught her how roots are like mouths for eating and drinking (okay, maybe not the most technical, but the basic idea is there). The trees were beautiful and mossy!

After the rain forest, we went back to the beach. We went to the right side of the beach where there was sand. Hollis enjoyed running headlong into the surf. I was very happy to get my ankles wet (it was COLD!) but it was beautiful and misty.

That night (or one of them anyway) we went to Forks for Chinese food. The amount of Bella/Edward stuff was ridiculous. Hollis and I couldn't resist posing with a couple of them.

The pose below happened when Hollis, Carol, and I were trying to find ice cream. Apparently everything closes at 8 PM, so no ice cream for us.

On our last morning, we went and visited the animals that lived at the ranch where we were staying (the Hoh Humm Ranch - I highly recommend it!)

We had to hike, but we found deer! It was so cool. I got to hand-feed a deer. As did my awesome husband! :)

Birthday Balloon Party

So my nephew turned 2 years old, and his parents came up with the best birthday party idea ever. What do little kids love? Balloons! And thus was born the balloon castle:

It's two cardboard boxes taped into a castle (or house) with a child-sized door cut in the side. Then, while the 2-year olds were napping, we filled it with balloons and covered it with a blanket. He (the birthday boy) had no idea that there was anything hiding, but boy oh boy was he happy to be in there. After he got his first turn, we let all the little kids go in (hence the mayhem you see above).

Then we played balloons war (or boxing), and that was fun. We adults could do more than case balloons around the room and put them back in the box.

Goodness, I love my family.