VIVA MEXICO!

We love going to Mexico. If it was up to Kristen, we would live there.

Now, going to Mexico with friends--that's an even better treat.

The trip started with an interesting turn of events--when we got to the hotel we were told it was full, and that they would be sending us to another hotel--40 minutes away. That didn't sound too appealing considering we had just been on a shuttle ride for 2.5 hrs just getting to the hotel from the aiport. But they promised to upgrade us to a suite if we would stay there for 2 nights, and then come back. We just told ourselves that "we are in Mexico", and that you have to be ready for anything. Everything worked out just fine, and we eventually made it back to our original hotel with all our friends.

6 days in paradise makes it hard to return to cold Utah. Between the beautiful resort, trips into town, jungle adventures, amazing Mayan ruins, laying at the beach/pool, lots and lots of food, and great friends to share it all with, we had an amazing time. We can't wait to go back!












kayaking and wearing our sombreros

Enjoying the view from the terrace





















We went into Playa del Carmen to do a little shopping one night













Kristen & Val getting into the
Mexican spirit















Kristen ready to go into town












Kristen relaxing in the hammock






It seems like we ate ALOT!
Because we did.

My favorite place to eat was the

creperie. YUM YUM YUM

Valentine's dinner






















We went on a jungle excursion and rode on the sky bikes.
They took us from above the trees down in the caves. Pretty cool!













We snorkeled in the cenotes


Kristen ready to repel
down into the cenote (cave)






Raise your hands if you think this
guy looks kind of goofy!








the chicas hangin' out on the beach
(Kristen, Tawnya, Misty, Valarie, Alison)















Val & Kelly taking a break


Alison & Steve after a nice
stroll in the kayak















The girls after dinner on Valentines. Man,
what good husbands to take their wives to
Mexico for Valentines! :)













A fun bike ride down to the marina












A trip to the ruins at Tulum. The ruins are perched high on a cliff above the blue, carribean water.
If I was a Mayan, this is the tribe I would have joined.














Looks like a postcard













Tawnya & Dave enjoying their
margaritas "sin alcohol"












Ryan & Misty eating dessert at
the Japonese restaurant












The girls "trying" to show us
their yoga moves












Oh how we love Mexico!

VALENTINES

Valentine's Day came a little early this year. We actually celebrated it the Sunday before the 14th. We have a couple traditions for Valentines, and since Kristen & I were going to be out of town on the actual day, the kids wanted to make sure and celebrate before we left. We really only have two things that we do, but the kids really enjoy them.

First, we usually order a heart shaped pizza to eat. Since it was Sunday, we decided to make our own home-made pizzas instead of ordering out.














Second, we get a big pile of candy and put it in the middle of the table. For 15 minutes we each take turns rolling dice. A matching pair earns you a reward from the pile. Once the pile is all taken, then you can steal from others. And I'm telling you, it gets to be a pretty heated battle. Our next activity......a trip to the dentist!

Cabin Fun

While I was in Alaska, Kristen decided to take the kids and go for the weekend with some friends up to their cabin. It was a sort of reunion trip with the same friends that we went with to Lake Powell earlier this year. Between snow mobiling, sleigh riding, rope swinging, lots of games, and great friends, they had a wonderful time. I just wish I could have gone. Well, like they say, while the cat is away, the mice will play!

Emmonak, part 2

So, I'm back in Emmonak, but not by choice. We spent a few days in the village of Alakanuk. The weather forecast didn't look too promising while we were there, so we decided to leave while we had the chance. While in Alakanuk, we set up clinic in the tribal council building. They gave us an old office to use to set up clinic and to sleep in. It was completely full of junk, which we had to clean out and move around just to have enough space to set up. That's also where we had to sleep. No beds, no pads, nothing! Just a nice hard floor to lay on. They did have a bathroom with warm water, but no shower. They had community meetings all day in the main recreation room, and at night they had half the village practicing the tribal dance for an upcoming competition. They practiced every night for about 3 hours. And they weren't very quiet either.

When we were ready to leave and went to check out, you'll never guess what they charged us for these luxuryaccommodations-- $180.00 per night. Yes, that was not a typo--$180 per night!! Never mind the fact that we are bringing a service to their village, and sleeping on the floor. I wasn't too happy about it, either.

And if that wasn't bad enough, the only way to leave the village was on a snow machine (snow mobile)--no planes were coming in because of the weather. The closest (biggest) place to go was back to Emmonak. So we hired a man to take us and our gear back to Emmonak. Since there is only enough room on the back of the snow machine for one passenger (and there are 2 of us), I had to travel in the sled that was pulling our gear. Talk about a crazy trip. I was wrapped up as much as I could possibly be. And between the exhaust from the snow machine and the ice crystals that it was shooting at me like b.bs, it wasn't a very enjoyable trip. Not to mention that the sled I was sitting on was home made, made out of wood, and VERY bumpy. Single digit temperatures didn't help either. Fortunately, it was only about 30 minutes of torture! :) But hey, it's all a part of the experience, right? Sometimes I wonder what on earth I am doing up here!

My "first class" seat

Emmonak, Alaska

My first stop on this trip is in the village of Emmonak. I don't always have internet service in the villages, but I do in this one. We have set up clinic in the community center, and upstairs they have a few rooms to rent out, so that is where we are sleeping. This building does have running water. In the bathrooms, in order to let gravity help pull everything away, they have built a little platform, 2 steps up, for the toilet. The roof is already lower than normal, and when I have to step up 2 steps higher to get to the toilet..... Well, needless to say, I can't stand up when trying to use the bathroom. Ok, so that was probably a little too much information, but I thought it was pretty funny when I wacked my head the first time using the bathroom!

Between city council meetings, Bingo, and traditional dance practice, they have me playing musical rooms. Which is a pain having to break down all the equipment and move everything into another room. I've been a little dissappointed in their willingness to be accommodating. Oh well, you do what you've got to do.

Kids will be kids

Cute little girl all bundled up

An elderly tribal woman


Taking a walk to the store

Native tribal dance

Sledding

Lots of snow makes for great sleigh riding. So we ventured back to the same place where Kaden broke his leg while sledding several years ago. Katelyn has no fear, as she tries to do whatever her brothers do. Kaden had no fear until he flew off a jump and landed on his head. And Caleb, he just likes to have fun. Some bruises, headaches, and rosy red cheeks are all we took away from this sledding adventure. Fortunately, all bones were intact!

Nighttime Visitor

Last night as we were putting the kids to bed, Kristen just happened to glance out the window and notice a deer laying in the middle of the snow in our backyard. So we got the boys, turned off the lights, and spent the next 30 minutes spying on her. The bright moon and the 2 feet of snow that covered everything made for a fairly bright night. After a few minutes of resting in the snow, we watched the doe as she meandered around the yard, eating any leaves or branches that she could find. We moved from room to room as she moved around the house. Since we were looking from the second floor, we had a great view of her (especially when she was up eating the rose leaves along the house), without being spotted. The boys were concerned about her being cold and alone, and not able to make it back to the mountains. So it was a great opportunity for us to talk about Heavenly Father's creations, and how they/we are all created to survive different types of situations. It was a simple but beautiful moment together with our boys, spying out the window into the cold night.
Fortunately, Katelyn was asleep before this happened. Normally we would feel bad she didn't get to be there with us, but for some unknown reason she has this terrible fear of deer. When we see them while we're driving, she is sure they are going to open up her door and get her. Trying to explain to her that deer can't open doors doesn't help either. Christmas time and reindeer have helped to calm the fear a little, but I don't think we'll be having any pet deer for a while.