TULUM

I can't tell you how excited I was to go to Tulum!! Glenn cooked us all a big breakfast and then we packed up our snorkeling gear and an ice chest - after coffee we finally headed out - it was amazing to see how much everything had changed from the last time we were here!!

 

We stopped in the little village, near where we stayed the first time with Teri and Jay and ate at a fantastic place called Mateo's - we knew it would be "fresh" food since they had crates of all different colors lined up against the wall with fresh fruits and vegetables!  I had forgot my camera in the car so Rene took the pictures for me (that's why I don't have any of them)  I ordered a pineapple, banana and mango smoothie and it was SOOOOOOO good!!!  We all enjoyed our tacos sitting at that outdoor place and then headed down the road, hoping that the beach we remembered was NOT private and inaccessible!!

Sure enough, we found it!!  We pulled in the area, parked the car and ran up the little incline to see if the beach looked the same and it did!!!  Just as beautiful and pristine as we remembered it!!!

 

 

 I couldn't wait to get in that warm, clear water!!!  It was SO MUCH FUN to walk and walk and walk out and still the water wasn't deep!

 The colors of the water were amazing!!  Every color of aqua you could imagine.........

 We all walked the beach, searched for treasures in the sand where the tide had washed up and did some snorkeling!

 This huge piece of driftwood looked like a photographers' dream and I had fun capturing it from different angles!

 There was one family actually camping in the parking area and the kids were playing  in the sand down by the driftwood - I happened to look over as the parents came down to the beach and were taking pics of the kids climbing on the driftwood - they were naked as jaybirds and I'm sure it made for a cute picture - then I happened to glance at the dad I assume and it looked like I could see his bare butt - before I even had a chance to comprehend that yes indeed he was naked, he turned around!!  I got an eyeful - ha ha!!

What do you think - Christmas picture???

By late afternoon it was turning cool and the sun was going down - Mexico went off of Daylights Savings Time on Sunday so it's dark by 6:00!!  And it was time to head back home - we decided since we were out and about that we would just go eat over on the "Mexican" side of Akumal - it's SO nice to have Rene' with us as he speaks fluent Spanish!!  So we went to, according to the locals, the best place to eat - no prices on the menu - we all ordered completely different meals so we could taste each others' and it was all excellent - especially the price - $27.00 for 4 meals and 4 sodas.  I think we'll be eating there again............what a fantastic day we had in Tulum- I'm ready to go back!!!

Relaxation............

Since the guys went fishing that morning, Cindy and I decided to take a morning walk along the beach - it was one gorgeous morning!!  The hammocks swaying in the breeze looked pretty inviting!

I'm trying to decide if people do indeed climb this ladder to this cute palapa and enjoy their drinks!!  Do the waiters wait on you up there?  And gosh how do you get down after you've had a few?  I guess we'll find out as we're eating at this bar/restaurant on Friday night!

This is the view of Half Moon Bay from the other side.

When we were at the grocery store, Cindy and I both thought this weird looking fruit looked so pretty and so exotic so we bought one!

Here's the inside!  It's called a pitahaya - and you can scoop the fruit out with a spoon - but it didn't have a very flavorful taste - kind of a cross between a strawberry and a melon with a texture almost like pudding - we weren't impressed!

Glenn and Rene had a good time fishing with the results below - Rene didn't catch anything but he enjoyed it as well!  Happy hour was beer and pina coladas with some excellent guacamole!

We all enjoyed some snorkeling in the bay during the afternoon - pretty rocky getting out a ways but the water was nice and there were a lot of fish!!

And after cleaning up we headed down to the restaurant where our fish was being cooked - it was a nice meal with some mighty strong margaritas!!  We met some new people and enjoyed the little band!

La Sirena

 What a great nights' sleep!  The king sized bed was comfy and with a nice breeze blowing through, we all slept like logs!!  Glenn was up early though and I got up shortly after and we took a long walk on the beach!  I decided to take some pics of the condo before we were TOO unpacked!!  This is the sun room that walks out to the grassy area and the beach.

 

The living room is decorated with lots of artwork as the owner is an artist.

Behind the folding doors is the master bedroom.

Here's the view from the sun room - we didn't lack for any views!

The condo is situated in Half Moon Bay and when you walk to one end, you can definitely see why it's called that!

We figured that Cindy and Rene were going to sleep in a whole later than us due to the time change so we decided to go ahead and walk into the village for breakfast - Rene had the keys to the rental car is his pocket and I wasn't about to go into their room and start looking for them!!  Exercise was the key here so we headed out!!  It was quite a ways but a nice couple stopped and picked us up and delivered us to The Turtle Bay Cafe where we sat under a huge palapa and had one of the best breakfasts I've ever had!!

We walked around a little bit and then started walking back - met Cindy and Rene so we just got in with them and sat during their breakfast at the same place - I enjoyed a cup of mocha and it was delicious!!

Then we were off to Playa Del Carmen for grocery shopping at a large store - it was fun getting our groceries and exchanging some money as the peso is pretty good right now!

Back at the condo, Cindy and I grabbed our suits and headed out to read...........

After happy hour we went into the actual "town" of Akumal and since the place we wanted to go to was closed (Sunday), we went to Tequilaville which is run by a Canadian couple - had some great Mexican food and met some nice people before we headed back so Glenn could watch the Bronco game!!

There weren't a of clouds for the sunset but it was still beautiful!!  The guys had set up fishing for the next day so it was an early night for them - and by that time, I was on my 2nd book!!

Akumal, Mexico - HERE WE COME!!

HMMMMM - pictures don't always go where they're supposed to go - especially when you're on vacation - so enjoy the pics and THEN read about them below!!!!

Bartering was at its' best when Glenn traded a granite kitchen job for 3 weeks in a beachfront condo in Akumal, Mexico!! No, we couldn't take 3 weeks off at one time but we could certainly take a week - so we called up our good friends Cindy and Rene from Oregon and set up the dates!!

For once, our plane didn't leave at 6:00am!!! We had a 10:30 departure from Denver so just drove up that morning (in 10 degree weather) and headed for check in - because there were no seats together when I booked the non-stop fight, I asked at the counter if there was any way we could sit together and she told me the fight was fully booked BUT they had some seats left in first class if we wanted an upgrade - we had never flown first class before so I figured it would definitely be out of the budget but when she told us it was only $132.00, we looked at each other and said YES!!

Since we were there in plenty of time, we stopped and had a nice meal BEFORE we went through security along with a great cup of Caribou coffee - the morning was definitely going well!! And with our first class ticket, we had a special line to go through for airport security and of course got to board first! Gosh, we loved sitting in first class!! The drinks, the snacks, the leg room, the service - now I know why people spend that extra money to sit there!! I hope this won't be our last time to experience it!!

After a non eventful 4 hour flight, we landed in Cancun (and of course were off the plane first) but our plane arrived BEHIND the other 5 that were sitting there and customs was a nightmare..............an hour later, we were finally through it, our button turned green and we grabbed our luggage and headed outside to catch a shuttle over to terminal 3 where Cindy and Rene had landed!!! Between our texts, we managed to meet up a little while later and they had the rental car already picked up - we were off to Akumal!!

Luckily it was still light out by the time we arrived and we reached the condo complex with no problem! The pool was beautiful - our condo was even more so!! With 2 bedrooms and 2 baths, and a super nice sun room that leads out to the beach, it was perfect!! We dropped our suitcases off and headed back down the road to eat as we were all SO hungry - we had passed a nice looking restaurant on the way in and after checking the restaurant list, found it was a good one!!

  Seating was outside under the palm trees and with the almost full moon rising, it was gorgeous!! I ordered a mango margarita and let me tell you, it was the BEST one I've ever had - the rim had the usual salt on it but also something reddish and when I took the first sip, it had a little kick to it - I couldn't quite place it but whatever it was, it was very unusual and very good!!! We later asked the waiter what it was and sure enough, it was a form of a chile powder - sounds pretty strange but it was such a unique combination of flavors!! I even ordered a second one!! Dinner was fantastic - we all had something different and my grouper fish was wonderful. What a great meal to end our day!!

We laughed, we talked, we unpacked and we smiled a lot, knowing that we were in paradise once again - To be cont'd.....

Lull Me To Sleep

Even though my second fountain is sitting in the living room (with no water flowing), there is a reason why...........Glenn says he would like to have it up in the bedroom so the water can lull him to sleep - like he needs anything (he's asleep before his head hits the pillow!!!)  But I do agree it might be nice!!  So once I stay home long enough, I'll get it up those steps and hooked up!!  Until then, it's decorating my living room!!

 

 

This next picture is for my 3 girls!!!  Ever since we moved to this house, they have all complained about the faucet in the laundry room/bathroom!!!  SO HAVE I!!!!!  And while I was gone to Niagara Falls, the NEW faucet that I ordered quite a while ago was installed!!!  For those of you that have NOT been to our house, let me explain - the faucet did not have handles like these - it had push buttons - so you just had to try and hold it down and wash your hands at the same time and it was not user friendly at all!!!  I am SO happy to have a new faucet!!  Thank you Glenn!!!!

Tournament Time

Saturday was the varsity tournament (junior high) for Rayna's school so we had decided a long time ago we would go down and see her play!  It was an early morning as her game was at 9:30am in Pueblo!!  But we were ready early enough to stop and have breakfast at The Hungry Bear - strawberry crepes and bacon -yum!!

 

We found the school and Rayna even started the first match!!  They played great although Rayna was sick with a bad sore throat and sure didn't feel good!!!  But they lost the next 2 matches so by then were completely done as they had lost a game on Friday night!!  It was sure neat to see her play though!

 

 Kylan was their cheerleader, along with another little girl - he had fun waving the pom poms and yelling, "Let's Go Eagles".

 After the game, we headed over to the river where Glenn did some fishing and I took a nice long walk on The River Walk - it was beautiful out, in fact it was hot out!!!  After my long walk, I sat in the shade and read and this was my view!

Lunch was at Souper Salad and then we took in a movie at Pueblo - Taken II - before we headed back up the mountain!  Gosh - 2 meals out and we had leftovers for dinner that night so I had a no cook day!!  ALL RIGHT!!!

New Office Decor

After taking those beautiful aspen pictures a few weeks ago, I just knew I had to frame them and hang them upstairs in my office - and that's just what I did!!  I put them on the wall by the refrigerator and they do look great!

 

A couple of weeks ago I had went to Sears to check out their fountains which I knew were 50% off as my massage therapist had bought one!  I had decided to buy two, one for the office and one for our house.  They only had 2 styles left but I liked both of them.  The manager of that department came over and saw I was walking back and forth between the two styles - he then told me that if I would buy the one style, he would give me the other style at 50% off!!  Of course he didn't know I was planning on buying one of each anyway so I told him great!!  Let's see, 2 fountains worth $150.00 full price each, at 50% off, with another in store discount of around 20% and then the 1/2 price discount on one for a grand total of $85.00 for TWO fountains!!  What a bargain!!

Here's the picture of the fountain that is in the showroom! I put small pieces of granite in the bottom which looks really cool and also helps with the sound!  My plan is to set it on a piece of granite so it sits just a little higher!

Ft. Collins Fun

Glenn and I FINALLY made it to Jill and Robby's house - because they had been down to our house several times during the summer, we just hadn't made it up there yet!!  So yes, we were the LAST of the family to see their beautiful remodeled basement!!  It looks so nice and it was a pleasure to sleep in a bed instead of  the air mattress!!  They really did a great job on it and I can't believe the transformation!!

 

It was nice outside (of course) by the time we got to their house after the childrens' museum - the kids wanted to play outside for a while and Parker was all smiles!!

 

After dinner, Aleah insisted on painting!  They looked cute as can be and really enjoy that activity!

Jill is VERY patient when her kids paint - Parker probably had more paint on his hands and the table than on the paper (which would have driven me crazy when my kids were little!) but Jill was very calm about the situation and when they were done, promptly cleaned him up!!

Sunday Robby and I went shopping - I had decided on my N. Falls trip that I wanted a small computer like what Teri carries when she travels - it's about a 10" one and I knew it would be perfect as many trips as we take - my large laptop gets mighty heavy carting it around!!  So we headed to Best Buy and found the one I wanted but they didn't have it in stock in Ft. Collins - Jill and I later went to Loveland to pick it up!  So I'm now the owner of a cute little notebook!!

Mid-afternoon we headed to their church in the country which is right beside a pumpkin patch - so the church was hosting a get together with free admission into the patch - Robby was busy downloading things onto my little computer so Jill and I and the kids headed over!

We had fun walking through the hay maze and the corn maze!

Aleah and Parker both thought it was fun to carry the corn around!

Robby and Glenn came a little later and after picking out a pumpkin, we headed over to the church where they served hot dogs and root beer floats!!  Jill and I even participated in a "Pie Walk" but didn't win a pumpkin pie - darn!!

All too soon it seemed it was time to head back up the mountain!!  We sure had a great time with all of the kids and grand kids!!

The WOW Childrens Museum

What a great find in Broomfield - the Wow Children's Museum!!  We headed there after our ice cream treats and of course all adults get in free so it was a "cheap" outing for Glenn and I.  I was thoroughly impressed with this place!  Lots of things for the kids to do and it wasn't overly crowded either so that made it nice!!

 

Rayna is pulling herself up on this contraption - I even tried it and easily got to the top!

 

All of the kids loved the musical instruments room and Parker showed us his skills on the piano!

Here's Gary and if you look closely, you'll see there's a film below the black round circle - that's because he's enclosing himself in a bubble - really cool!!!

One of the areas was dress up with mirrors around it and tap shoes to put on - Kylan looked cute as can be in his little Indiana Jones outfit and the girls loved dressing up and twirling around!

But I think the kids' favorite place was the "Whole Foods" grocery store!!  It was SO cute - there were green aprons for the kids to wear, a checkout stand with a scanner that even beeped, an old fashioned cash register with money in it, bags to put the food in and of course all the produce and food that you could "shop" for!!

Don't the little girls look cute scanning their purchases?

This was our best attempt at getting a picture of all the kids - and Rayna had already left by this time to grab a bite to eat with her dad before heading back to the volleyball tournament........

So all in all, even though the pumpkin patch didn't pan out, we all still enjoyed ourselves!!  Jaime's headed back to the tournament minus Kylan who went home with the Keppy's (and as a side note, Rayna's team WON the volleyball tournament - CONGRATULATIONS!!!) and Glenn and I followed Jill back up to Ft. Collins as we were spending the remainder of the weekend with them!!