Eight.Eleven Years

 8.11 Years

• We got back from Utah and life got back to normal. This month, I have been working on getting your room organized and decorated. You picked out a light purple paint for the walls. We moved furniture around and got a large desk for you and JoJo. It has turned out so cute. I made a book ledge for each of you and you bought a stuff animal hammock for your bed so it is quite cute and cozy up there. It feels good to get your room to where is it functional and shows your personality. 
• On Saturdays, you like to sleep in until 10am, have a slow morning, listen to your story while working on some arts and crafts in your room, and then sometime around 3pm, want to be social.  
• We were not home for long before heading out to Mexico!! We have been looking forward to this trip for a while. It is your first time going to a different country. We went with our family, Grandma and Papa, Annie, Joe, and Elaine. It was a blast. We left on a Wednesday. We had to wake up so early to get to the airport. It was a whole day affair getting down to Mexico, with a four hour lay over in Atlanta. Thursday was a slow day. You kids got to stay at the hotel with Grandma and papa while we went to get the rental cars. We loaded up and drove south. We stopped and got some groceries and ate in Playa del Carmen. We made it to the condo and the play was amazing. We went snorkeling that afternoon. We made it out to this place where there were millions of these silver fish. They were all in sync with each other. It was crazy how many of them their were. The condo we are staying out as a room for just you and JoJo. You get your own big, bed, which you love! Friday, we went to Xel Ha. That was a favorite among everyone. The waterslide was awesome. Even papa went down it. We then headed over to zip lining. I was your buddy for this and you liked the ones you sat on the seat and went down. We cliff jumped next. I was impressed because when it was your turn, you just went for it. The cliff was 15 feet. The next stop was floating through the mangroves. We paused for lunch, ice cream and soda. Laying out in the sun on the chairs felt so good. We then walked over to the caves and snorkel. Then we finished the day rope swinging into a cenote. Papa bought you all matching shirts. It was so fun. Saturday was a colder day. While the weather was good in the morning, we hang out at the condo. You all just loved playing in the sand, flying kites, swimming in the ocean and pool. That afternoon, we visited Tulum. The ruins were just okay to you kids. What really fascinated you all was trying to open up a coconut. It took a lot of smacking, but you finally opened it and we all drank the juice and had fresh coconut. There were shops just outside the ruins, so we got some food and let you all shop. You had a bit of fun money so you got a mini dream catcher. Sunday, we drove to Chichen Itza. There was a huge storm on our drive there. But once we started our tour, the rain stopped. Having a tour guide was really helpful. That evening , we visited Valladolid. It was a beautiful city, with colorful buildings, music and dancing in the park, and big church center of town, and plenty of shops. You were still going strong on the shopping, asking the vendors how much everything cost. Monday, we stayed at the condo the whole day. It was so nice just to read, swim, play, and hang out and chill. That was another favorite day of everyone. Tuesday, we had another slow morning and then visited the cenote in the afternoon. That was beautiful. The first part was an open portion where you could see turtles. Then you swim through the cave with the stalactites and bats. After you cross that, you made it to another open part. We had lunch there and laid in the hammocks. Wednesday, you and JoJo stayed back from deep sea fishing and spent the morning with Grandma. She really likes being with you. Then, we had to make our way back to the airport and say goodbye to Mexico. It was an amazing trip.
• We tried to go on a family ski trip to Hoodoo. It hasn't snowed much so the conditions were pretty iffy. We stayed on greens the whole time because everything was choppy and icy. The one time we went on a different green, the ice got too bad and you slipped down the hill. Dad was with JoJo and I took you three older kids down the long run from the top of the mountain. There is turn on the left that is easy to miss. If you miss it, you end on some blue hills. Well, you didn't stop in time and went past the turn. When I caught up, you were trying to walk back up the hill to take the turn (none of us wanted to to those blues on the ice). It was hard to walk back up, so you had the idea to take off your skis and walk with your boots. Well, one of the skis got away and slipped down the hill. I didn't know what to do. We couldn't see it. If we went down the hill to look for it, we would have to finish on a blue or black. But if Dad cam and got it, would you finish skiing down the green on one ski? Thankfully a snowboarder found it and walked it up the hill for us.
• Some highlights of this month also includes a sleep over at Emersons. You had a blast. I guess you all stayed up until midnight and then woke up around 6am. Endless to say the next night, you went to bed early and I had to wake you up at 10:40am to go to the library.