I'm Back - From Vacation and Ready to Blog Again!

Let me preface our trip with some information on why we went in the first place. Back on December 19, 2008 we celebrated our official 10 year wedding anniversary. Yes, that was a long time ago and yes, we are getting older - we are not "Old" just yet, just older! I never did blog about that, but we were able to spend that night in a cozy little cabin up in Pinetop. My brother Tim and sister-in-law Misty live in Show Low and have 4 kids of their own, so they were happy to keep our girls overnight so we could have some time alone. The girls were so excited to be able to have a big slumber party with their cousins. There was quite a bit of snow on the ground and the cabin we stayed in was really cozy (think country with wood paneled walls). It had a wood-burning fireplace and hot tub in one room and then a bedroom and bathroom too. It was funny though because the online brochure said the fireplace was gas and that the hot tub was a certain type not just a jetted tub. We quickly found out upon arriving that those things weren't true, but it really didn't put a damper on our time there! Brian was challenged though when it came time to start a fire - the wood was pretty damp from being outside and then the book of matches that was left only had a single match left in it. We had dinner at a fun Mexican restaurant that had really yummy food and a great atmosphere! It was just so nice to have some time alone. We were also able to stop by a Circle K on our way back to the cabin to pick up some more matches! Brian played Survivor and was able to get us a very nice romantic fire stared. It was funny though because after a while having the hot tub running and that fire going the room was so HOT (and no it wasn't because of what we were doing in the room);), that we had to open the front door to let some cool air in! Anyway, our overnight stay was fun. We had to head out pretty early the next day so we could get to my family's annual Christmas party in Snowflake. We hope to do that again someday and thought that the girl's would enjoy it too!



OK, so now on to our real anniversary trip. We had always said that for our 10 year anniversary we would go somewhere! Well as December approached and life was so hectic we decided we'd wait and go after all the holidays. We found a great deal on a cruise that left out of San Diego and visited Catalina Island and Ensenada Mexico. We left on Sunday, February 22nd and returned late on Thursday, February 26th. It was just the perfect amount of time for us to be away! We haven't left our girls for more than just a night here or there, since I was pregnant with Ally over 3 years ago. It was definitely a much needed get-away! Luckily my awesome parents were able to come to our house to stay with our girls. Maddy and Lilly still had school and so it worked out great! I did feel pretty bad having them come since my mom unexpectedly had an emergency appendectomy (had her appendix) removed the Sunday before we were supposed to go on our trip. She insisted that she still wanted to come and was doing remarkably well after her surgery. Brian and I feel so blessed to have such wonderful parents, who are both just a couple of hours away. His parents were on a month's long trip to the Texas coast on a little get-away of there own, so we'll be calling them next time. Our girls really had a great time with Grandma and Papa H. and Ally even told my mom that she was going home with her! It made it easier for Brian and I to be gone knowing that the girls were in very good hands! They were happy to see us when we got back but they were sad that Papa and Grandma had to leave!


Brian and I had neither one been on a cruise before this, so it was all new to us. We did some research and talked to some friends and family beforehand but that is it. We really had a great trip. We had to first make the drive to San Diego, but had no problems getting to the boat. We were able to board much earlier than we thought and had no problems or hassles with that either. We had a nice ocean-view room in the middle of the boat. We both almost immediately, even with the boat being docked, noticed the rocking, etc. Luckily I had brought along some medicine and we took it a few times on the trip. We were never really "sea-sick" but we always felt a bit strange. I guess we both have similar equilibrium issues. In fact, we are still (today on Sunday) feeling some effects from being on the boat - lightheaded, dizzy, sort of out-of-it. It sounds bad, but I would still seriously go on another cruise. I might check with my Dr. first though to get one of those patches or might try some other things as well. But we would love to go on another cruise sometime! The food on the ship was plentiful and we took advantage of that! I need to get back to my New Years Resolutions now! I ate chocolate cake for dessert 4 nights in a row, need I say more! My "get-your-money's-worth" hubby had 2 lobsters for dinner and then 2 more for dessert one night. The Waiter was being generous and Brian kept clearing his plates! He did not get sick, but was so FULL! We ate dinner every night in one of the Restaurants and were assigned a table with 3 other couples. It was fun getting to know them and we spent our time just talking, eating of course, telling stories and laughing at silly stuff!
One of our stops was at Santa Catalina Island and we thought it was beautiful. The island is so lush and green and the town of Avalon is just gorgeous. I loved the buildings and the cuteness of it all! Our stop in Ensenada Mexico was nice too. We didn't sign up for any of the crazy excursions, but opted to take a shuttle downtown to do some shopping and sight-seeing. We were both a bit leary of being there with all the recent warnings about traveling to Mexico and the kidnappings, etc, but we still managed to have a fun time and of course found some souvenirs to bring home. The day we were there was the last day of CARNAVAL and there were a ton of local people who came downtown to watch the parade. We watched some of it before heading back to the boat. It certainly was unlike any parade I've been to in the US! I'm pretty conservative in most aspects, so this parade, yes even with kids both in it and watching it, was a bit too much for me to take! It was entertaining though and the floats, which were all handmade were so detailed and amazing. They know how to party that is for sure!

Well there are so many things I could write about, and maybe someday I will, but all in all we had an awesome trip. It was nice to have so much one-on-one time - just to talk and reconnect as a couple! Coming home, I felt so much love for my hubby. He works so hard to provide for me and out girls and rarely complains or does anything for himself. I'm glad he was able to get away from work and the stresses of daily life for a few days. I truly feel like the luckiest woman alive. I have the best husband and our girls have the best dad in the world! I hope that we'll be able to do this kind of trip again someday, but for now we have so many wonderful memories of this 10 Year Anniversary Trip! I'll post a few pics now and than I'm going to try to upload a slideshow. Us on a little boat on our way from the ship to Catalina Island
Our Cruise Ship - The Carnival Elation
Avalon, California on the Santa Catalina Island
Catalina Island
Brian enjoying his Sushi
Dressed up for Formal Night
Our Dinner-Time Friends - Table 199
Our Awesome Waiter at Dinner, Valentin from Romania
Crazy Carnaval Parade
Us Looking Very Touristy in Downtown Ensenada Mexico
View of one of the Many Piano Bars on the Ship
Me Enjoying a Delicious Strawberry Smoothie Before one of the Dance Shows
My Red-Faced Hubby (from the sun, not the lobster) Packed and Waiting to get off the Ship