Puerto Vallarta 2013 - Day Two

We got lots of sun on our first full day! We usually spent most of the morning at the beach.

Here is a rare moment where Chris is just relaxing...

The guys enjoyed the thrill of trying to get a good deal with the beach vendors, which really cut in to the girls' reading time since they had to get our opinions about everything.

The view of the hotel from the beach.

The happy couple!

It sure heated up quickly...We couldn't resist heading to the ocean and feeling the waves crash over us!

Hmmm...the three amigos?

In the evening we played cards in the lobby while waiting for the show to start. We didn't catch many of the shows because most of them are pretty cheesy and repetitive, but on this particular night Chris was chosen from the audience to participate. Unfortunately, most of the pics of the show didn't turn out too well. With a day full of sun, it was early to bed for everyone.

Puerto Vallarta 2013 - Day One

I love the anticipation of a trip!

Therefore, I love waiting-at-the-airport pics...

We flew out of Abbotsford, so everything was super easy and relaxed.

When we we arrived, we very pleased to see that our rooms were just as impressive as the online pictures showed. This hotel underwent a total renovation in the past year and it was a job well done.

Notice the interesting feature in the background...you can see through to the shower from the room, or close the closet door if you need a bit more privacy.

The layout of the resort was wonderful...everything was close by...the beach was close to the pool, the restaurants, bar and lobby were close to our room...I would definitely return to this resort, as we found out many guests have done.

We spent quite a few evenings relaxing in the lobby with a beverage or a hot cappuccino.

This is the view from our hotel room...I don't think I could possibly get tired of waking up to palm trees, sunshine and the ocean every day!

This is the newly constructed adult pool, which we spent tons of time at.

This is one of the first drinks I ordered when we first arrived.

Sangria!

Sadly, the wine in Mexico is not as good as our BC wine, so I found many other mixes that I preferred over the next week.

The first night in a tropical location is so magical and I just couldn't wait to see what the next day would bring!!

Happy Spring!

I have all these wonderful notions of what blogging could and should be for me, but sadly I have not been very disciplined when it comes to blogging...




I have a whole bunch of posts from last summer that I had prepared, but just feel like they are too old to post and that I should just start fresh this year. I love the idea of blogging but most days find I am busy enough with day-to-day living.


Today is a day off and I am up early, waiting to start on my huge to-do list. We will be at the airport this time next week, on our way to sunny Puerto Vallarta! I guess that will be a good blogging opportuity to kick off this year.

Hope to see more of you soon Blogger!

Get Ready for It!

Okay, just to give you the heads up...I've been working on blogging some of the highlights from this past spring and summer. I'll be posting a little more often in the next while so I hope you enjoy. :)

Chehalis River Campground

Our last camping trip of the season was at Chehalis River Campground. We had never been here before, but hopefully we will be going back! They had the perfect group site for the six couples/families that went and the river was right in our back yard. :)

Food? Who needs food?!

Beautiful BC right in our own backyard!

This weekend was HOT... so we plunked our chairs right in the river, in an area that someone had already made into a type of wading pool.

Life doesn't get much better than this!!

Almost time to say good bye to summer...I'll be so sad to see you go...

Larnder-O'Donnell Annual Camping Trip - Birch Bay 2012

Every year, we look forward to our annual Larnder-O'Donnell camping trip. We all like trying new places and this year's location was the Birch Bay State Park. We have been there before and loved it, but it was something new for the Larnders. I do believe they ended up loving there too. So many beautiful trees and nice private sites.

A meeting over the fire :)



This bridge led us to a little piece of heaven....the beach!




The best part of the trip is spending so much time with my BFF!

A bike ride to the "C" shop was in order to get some ice cream.

This year the two oldest kids were busy with work and school so just our babies came. It was so much fun watching the two of them together because they both get along so well together. We discovered they are pretty much two peas in a pod! Here they are doing the teeenager thing.

Many hours were spent looking for little ocean creatures under the rocks.

The men folk having some sort of discussion.

I wouldn't even beging to count the hours we spent playing "Dutch Blitz".

I had played this game as a child, but was reintroduced to it on this trip and ended up going to get my own set to play for the rest of the summer.

Every vacation needs a little road trip for some adventure.

We went in to Bellingham to the mall one day to check things out in the big city.

Here's our chauffeur and his choice of tunes.

It's a little known fact that Kenny Loggins was part of the BeeGees for a small amount of time.

My favourite pic of the whole trip...

Yup, we're a happy bunch when we all get together!

Our families are changing every year with the kids growing up so fast, so each year will be a new adventure, but I hope this is a tradition that we can keep up for years to come!

Seawall

This summer got off to a great start by going to the Seawall with Dana.

I'm not sure I've ever walked around the entire Seawall, but today was the day.

Gorgeous scenery!

At the end of our walk, we hung out at the pool for a few hours and just soaked up some sun, enjoyed the scenery and had a few snacks and beverages.

What a great way to kick off summer!

Playland!

Playland brings back so many great memories from when I was a teenager.

It's not quite the same these days, but it was still lots of fun!

One of my favourite rides...the Helevator.

Ohhh....the anticipation!

I love this pic...although it appears Kenton is a little less enthused :)

Okay...I was wrong...THIS is my absolute favourite ride at Playland!

It makes me laugh every time I go on it!

Had to go for ice cream to end the day off right!

July 4

You haven't experienced fireworks until sitting on the beach on July 4.

We've done this for a few years now and hope we can continue this tradition and make it even bigger!

The usual bunch...my parents and Aunt Judy and Uncle Bill.

Had to get a sunset pic with my mom :)

Sun is setting...the show should begin soon....

Let the show begin...

Happy 4th of July!!

Happy Canada Day!

Working in health care on a rotating schedule means working weekends and holidays.

Fortunately, I work with a great bunch of people, which means we don't let work stop us from having a bit of fun!

Happy Canada Day Y'all!

Summer Kick off at Birch Bay

Chris and I decided to get away for a quick trip to before summer life got busy.

The easiest thing to do was to go to my parents' place in Birch Bay.

It didn't take Chris long to grab a glass of wine and get the fire going :)

Chris couldn't resist playing with some of my dad's power tools...

Chris and I have gotten to really enjoy biking in the last little while...

of course it's always the most fun when your destination is the ice cream shop. :)

Gotta love a beach photo op!

Since this was going to be our only chance to celebrate our anniversary, we went out for dinner one night.

Our choices were limited in Birch Bay, but we were not disappointed with Bob's Burgers n' Brew.

Anywhere I can find a yummy drink is good with me!

Here is Chris trying to figure out the tip on his phone's calculator...

Chris will be Chris...need I say more?

Ummm....how did that get in there? I guess it's not hard to guess who was operating the camera at the time!

It's always great to get away as a couple...already feels like it's time to get away again!