Cancun

This is where we stayed:

We spent most of our time on the beach.

Below is the swim-up bar where I think we might have been the only people requesting non-alcoholic beverages. Everyone in every restaurant was in awe that we didn't drink. Not that they didn't try to bring us some anyway - and then offer to drink it all themselves when we turned it away.

The courtyard outside our room.

Our first full day, we relaxed on the beach. Okay, what am I saying? Everyday we relaxed on the beach.

and swam in the ocean.

The boardwalk to the beach is crawling with Katamundis.

Doug made a great deal for my new hat. The guy wanted $20, but went down to $15. Doug only had $7. They settled for $7 and 2 hamburgers (which were free to us!).

My dad played volleyball twice a day everyday. Doug joined in a few times.

Dustin and Paulette - ahem - "bonded."

Day two was more of the same:

Showing off my hat from our balcony.

This guy looked like a lobster, but still laid out everyday. Along with this picture come pictures of topless women, but I will spare you those.

We wandered down the beach to see the sandcastles and we found one that is not child appropriate, so I will not post it on my blog. It was masculine in nature.

My mom and me.

Swimming in the ocean.

Uh oh.

Red means: Don't swim.

Ready for our first fancy Cajun dinner.

It was a HUGE letdown. I wish I had a picture of our faces when they brought our "fancy" meals.

Paulette said, "With Doug, everything's like a constant photo shoot." Uh huh.

I tried out water aerobics.

Somewhere along the line, Doug and Dustin learned how to sail a katamaran. It has a slight learning curve. We went to rent it and the girl asked us if any of us knew how to sail. "No," Doug said, "But how hard can it be?" All the girl had to say was, "If they have to come rescue you, it's $50." When the little man pushed us away from shore, he looked terrified for us. The guys picked up on it very quickly and Dustin and I only had to jump off and push the katamaran once. The men did attempt to rescue us, but we sent them on their way and said we were fine. We were NOT about to pay $50.

Doug's Cancun tip #25: Always sunscreen your belly button.

Halle the fish.

Dustin, Paulette, Emily and Jared went parasailing.

Dustin and Paulette on the jet ski out to the boat.

Going up...

Two days before we left, Dustin, Paulette, Doug and I went to Playa del Carmen to shop for souvenieres for our kids. After 3 hours, we returned to the first store we had gone to and bought Nacho Libre masks for all of the boys. We also bought our boys musical instruments. Life has had a lovely soundtrack since then.

While on the beach, Emily and Jared got pictures with a monkey and an iguana.

Emily was buried in the sand.

We all tried to see how far we could swim on one breath.

As a side note: the pool was salt water. We discovered it didn't hurt to open our eyes under water. I suppose it is just like swimming through Visine.

On our last morning, we got up early to see the sunrise.

As did my mom and dad.

And I was eaten by an alligator.

We left Cancun at noon and were back in Anchorage by 11:00 p.m. We drove home, fighting to stay awake, and arrived home at 3:00 a.m. We had been up for 24 hours. Okay, Doug had. I just couldn't do it and dozed off in the car, but woke up every few minutes to make sure Doug was still awake. Doug was back at work by 8:45 that morning and has worked ever since.

Before Josh and Marinda left that night, we took a few pictures of all of the boys.

Nolan, Brenden, Ethan, and Josh

Thanks Brandon for letting us borrow your family for a while.