Cabo...
Ahh...
Ahh...
Those four little letters have a strange and immediate way of washing away my stress and drenching my body and mind in a wave of nostalgic peace and happiness. When all my kids are crying and my mind is screaming for some serenity, all I need to think about is...
Cabo.
Ahh...my happy place=)
If you couldn't tell, we recently took the trip of a lifetime - A cruise to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico with 12 of our closest friends. Well, it's been almost two months ago now, but I can still feel the sun on my face, and smell the ocean breeze.
No kids. Beautiful, warm weather. All you can eat, delicious food, prepared by someone else. The beach. Laughter and friends. Sleeping in. Alone time to reconnect with my Mikey.
It was heaven on earth.
Our amazing friend Shanae approached us last January with an idea to go on a couples cruise the following February. At the time, we only had Ian and were not even on the waiting list for foster care again. We knew that by the time it rolled around, Ian would be three and would be fine to stay with family members for a week. And because we were booking a year in advance, it was really cheap and we had until the end of 2011 to pay it off. So we excitedly said, "Sure! Count us in!"
Well, as any of you reading this blog know, here we are, a year later, with THREE kids!!!
When we got word that we had been chosen to adopt Logan, we sadly decided that we should back out of the cruise. Logan would only be two months old and I didn't think I would be able to leave him for a week.
Then he came=)
No, but seriously, all joking aside, those first two months of Logan's life, with Mason coming back AND having a colicky newborn were HARD to say the least and we needed a break!!! So after much consideration, and a lot of going back and forth, we decided that the kids would be fine and a vacation was exactly what we needed.
We were back in!
We were back in!
Waiting for departure day to come was so hard, and now that it has come and gone, I am so sad and often find myself wishing we were going back again next month. It really was such an amazing vacation. It is unlikely that we will ever be in a position again where we, and 6 other couples, will all be able to take a week and vacation together, and I am so grateful that we were a part of it!!!
The day we left (a Saturday morning) was pretty crazy. We had three kids to drop off to three different people! Good thing we had dropped the dog off the night before!!
By the time we got to the airport we were SO ready for the vacation to begin!! As we checked in and started spotting our friends, the excitement was palpable! We were on our way!
However, even with all of the excitement I had already started feeling, I really don't love flying, so I was glad we had a short flight. For me, my vacation really started the minute we all walked out of the airport into the bright, warm San Diego sunshine!
It's funny now, looking back on the entire week, but I have to say, that first day in San Diego was probably my favorite day of the whole trip! It was such a perfect day! Plus, I think that we were all so pumped up and excited to be there, we probably could have sat in a bus terminal all day and been happy as clams!!=)
But instead of the bus terminal, we all checked into our hotel...
...and then we rode the trolley into Old Town San Diego. Upon the suggestion of the lady at the front desk of our hotel, we ate at
"Rockin' Baja" in Old Town.
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| The view from our hotel |
...and then we rode the trolley into Old Town San Diego. Upon the suggestion of the lady at the front desk of our hotel, we ate at
"Rockin' Baja" in Old Town.
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| Steph and Matt |
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| Me and my Mikey |
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| Matt and Shanae |
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| Melissa and Karl |
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| Jared and Emily |
Man, she deserved a big tip! BEST FOOD of the whole trip!!! If you are ever in Old Town San Diego, definitely try it out!!!
I hate seafood, but these were seriously the BEST fish tacos I have ever tasted!!!!
This place was awesome! It had a fresh salsa bar, for heavens sake! Warm chips and several different salsa's to choose from. And all you could eat, included with your meal. I mean, come on! Why every Mexican restaurant around doesn't do this is beyond me!! It was also a really fun atmosphere, which I love about restaurants.
I hate seafood, but these were seriously the BEST fish tacos I have ever tasted!!!!
This place was awesome! It had a fresh salsa bar, for heavens sake! Warm chips and several different salsa's to choose from. And all you could eat, included with your meal. I mean, come on! Why every Mexican restaurant around doesn't do this is beyond me!! It was also a really fun atmosphere, which I love about restaurants.
After dinner, we walked around the shops in Old Town and did a little shopping. It really was the perfect date night!!!
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| Sebow |
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| My sexy hubby! |
These pictures were taken just outside our hotel.
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| Awww... |
When we got back to the hotel, somehow everyone ended up hanging out, laughing and "pretending" to watch TV in our room.
When it started closing in on 10:00 p.m. and we were afraid the hotel staff was going to come kick us out, we called it a night.
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| Emily, Melissa and Steph |
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| Shanae |
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| I have NO idea what the shower cap is all about! |
Early the next morning, a small group went for a run down to the water, and Sebow was born=)
(Trust me, don't ask!!!)
Then it was time to pack up and head for the boat.
(Trust me, don't ask!!!)
Then it was time to pack up and head for the boat.
We had a great time waiting to board in the warm sun.
Mike enjoyed re-living his high school cheerleading days by hoisting everyone in the air.
By the time the ship actually set sail, it had gotten quite a bit cooler, but we were so excited to be starting our trip that we didn't really care!
Mike and I both struggle with sea sickness, so we both were wearing our patches. They worked really well overall, but that first day at sea was a little rough. I guess the stuff hadn't really kicked in yet, and we were both feeling it! In fact, we both missed parts of dinner that first night, because we were feeling pretty sick.
But , despite the little bits of sea sickness, our time on the ship was SO much fun!!!
This was our stateroom.
Here are a couple of photos from formal night.
It was SO nice to be able to do whatever we wanted, whenever we wanted to do it. One night, we ate pizza at midnight. (And viewed a pretty awesome cat fight that night as well!!!) We sat in the hot tubs, we went to a comedy show, we sang karaoke, we lounged, we exercised, but mostly we laughed, laughed and laughed some more!!
When we woke up on the third day, we were just pulling into the port at Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
As it had been pretty cold and cloudy out at sea, I was SO glad to see some sun!!! We ate breakfast, packed up some gear, and took a ferry into land.
Everyone else in our group had booked a private sailboat to take them out for the day, but with our sea sickness issues, Mike and I opted to spend our time in Cabo on dry land. So we waved our friends goodbye...
...and we spent the afternoon on the beach. We almost rented jet skis, but after wandering into the water to find it freezing, we decided we were just fine to cop a squat in the warm sand=)
After spending the afternoon just laying on the beach, Mike and I headed back to the ship where we got a couples massage and facials. Can you say relaxation?!?!?
Our second day in port was spent doing a little shopping, a little sightseeing and eating at "Cabo Wabo", a restaurant which several people had told us we "must try".
NOT A FAN!!!
I wouldn't recommend it. The service was terrible, the food was mediocre, the prices high, and the ambiance was nothing special. But we were still happy just to be there on vacation.
We only had those two days in Cabo, but they were great, warm, and really fun days. If I ever get back there though, I would definitely want to avoid the port area and see the areas of the city that were farther away from the cruise ships. I was sad to say goodbye to the sun, but couldn't get away from all the locals asking us if we wanted a water taxi or a cheap excursion fast enough!!!
Back on the cruise ship, it was time for more karaoke ("Absolutely Brilliant!!!"), a dance party, more delicious food, sun bathing and the world's greatest "Chezz" waitress Katarina. (I will see if other people got more photos of our fun and post those later).
I contracted a cold while on the cruise, and the second to last day of our trip was spent with me laying in bed all day, sleeping, watching movies and draining our room's Kleenex supply. But the funny thing is, I remember being glad that I was sick that day instead of a few days later when I was back at home, or a few days earlier. Why, you ask? At sea, I didn't have to take care of anybody, or anything and I could just lay in bed all day, guilt free and order room service. And I had already done pretty much everything I wanted to do on the boat, so I didn't feel like I was missing out on anything. If I had to be sick, I felt like it certainly wasn't a bad place to be=)
But sadly, all good things must come to an end right? Eventually, we all had to rejoin the real world and leave our memories of one of the best vacations ever behind us.
I will never forget what a wonderful time we had, and I am so grateful to have such wonderful and fun friends to have gone with. You guys are the best!!!
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| The Matt's and the Millgate's |
Mike enjoyed re-living his high school cheerleading days by hoisting everyone in the air.
By the time the ship actually set sail, it had gotten quite a bit cooler, but we were so excited to be starting our trip that we didn't really care!
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| Oh, did we love the soft serve ice cream and frozen yogurt!!! |
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| Mikey giving Matt some love! |
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| Steve and Heather |
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| Shanae and Matt |
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| Us |
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| Stephanie and Matt |
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| Jared and Emily |
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| Karl and Melissa |
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| Heather and Sheldon |
Mike and I both struggle with sea sickness, so we both were wearing our patches. They worked really well overall, but that first day at sea was a little rough. I guess the stuff hadn't really kicked in yet, and we were both feeling it! In fact, we both missed parts of dinner that first night, because we were feeling pretty sick.
But , despite the little bits of sea sickness, our time on the ship was SO much fun!!!
This was our stateroom.
Here are a couple of photos from formal night.
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| Nothing says "vacation" like an umbrella drink!!! |
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| Getting ready to PARTY!!!! |
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| Me and my love |
When we woke up on the third day, we were just pulling into the port at Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
As it had been pretty cold and cloudy out at sea, I was SO glad to see some sun!!! We ate breakfast, packed up some gear, and took a ferry into land.
Everyone else in our group had booked a private sailboat to take them out for the day, but with our sea sickness issues, Mike and I opted to spend our time in Cabo on dry land. So we waved our friends goodbye...
...and we spent the afternoon on the beach. We almost rented jet skis, but after wandering into the water to find it freezing, we decided we were just fine to cop a squat in the warm sand=)
After spending the afternoon just laying on the beach, Mike and I headed back to the ship where we got a couples massage and facials. Can you say relaxation?!?!?
Our second day in port was spent doing a little shopping, a little sightseeing and eating at "Cabo Wabo", a restaurant which several people had told us we "must try".
NOT A FAN!!!
I wouldn't recommend it. The service was terrible, the food was mediocre, the prices high, and the ambiance was nothing special. But we were still happy just to be there on vacation.
We only had those two days in Cabo, but they were great, warm, and really fun days. If I ever get back there though, I would definitely want to avoid the port area and see the areas of the city that were farther away from the cruise ships. I was sad to say goodbye to the sun, but couldn't get away from all the locals asking us if we wanted a water taxi or a cheap excursion fast enough!!!
Back on the cruise ship, it was time for more karaoke ("Absolutely Brilliant!!!"), a dance party, more delicious food, sun bathing and the world's greatest "Chezz" waitress Katarina. (I will see if other people got more photos of our fun and post those later).
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| Must be REALLY good!!! |
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| Or not=) |
I contracted a cold while on the cruise, and the second to last day of our trip was spent with me laying in bed all day, sleeping, watching movies and draining our room's Kleenex supply. But the funny thing is, I remember being glad that I was sick that day instead of a few days later when I was back at home, or a few days earlier. Why, you ask? At sea, I didn't have to take care of anybody, or anything and I could just lay in bed all day, guilt free and order room service. And I had already done pretty much everything I wanted to do on the boat, so I didn't feel like I was missing out on anything. If I had to be sick, I felt like it certainly wasn't a bad place to be=)
But sadly, all good things must come to an end right? Eventually, we all had to rejoin the real world and leave our memories of one of the best vacations ever behind us.
I will never forget what a wonderful time we had, and I am so grateful to have such wonderful and fun friends to have gone with. You guys are the best!!!
