Cancun

We had a fabulous time in Cancun.  I love vacationing with Mike and relaxing on the beach for a whole week was perfect.

Visiting Mayan ruins at Tulum

Tulum was probably my favorite - history and natural beauty collide

Hanging out in Playa del Carmen

We ate a lot of delicious Mexican food! 

Then, after days in the sun, we got to come back to a beautiful hotel room...

With our own private soaking pool on the deck. 

Some days were spent simply reading and we moved only when we needed to find a new spot at a new pool - the complex had at least 8 pools...

With beds! 

And alas, our faces are peeling and we are soaking in aloe vera, but we had such a great vacation. 

Cape Lookout

Ironically we decided to take advantage of a sunny day and headed directly for a pocket of rain under a fog cloud on the coast.  This hike was on my list for a long time and, although wet, it was lovely.  

Rose Festival

Mike and I aren't great about celebrating our wedding anniversary (it usually involves a trip to Burgerville) but the city of Portland is fabulous enough to have fireworks each year to mark the first night we held hands.  Each year we go to the same restaurant (the site of the disputed first hand hold) and sit on the same grassy spot to watch the show.  I love it.  

Out for a Walk

The weather is absolutely brilliant these days, making walks our activity of choice.  

Mike would prefer to draw no extra attention to ourselves and keep the pace, so my desire to take pictures usually leaves him looking something like this. 

Big Personality

I took some pictures today of the cutest boy with the biggest personality. More here.

The Office

When asked as a child what he wanted to be when he grew up, Mike always said he wanted to work in an office. Now he gets to feel all grown up, working in an office and going on business trips.

Dog Mountain

A winter on plastic machines at the gym just does not properly work all of the muscles that one needs to climb up a mountain.  It was a pretty tough hike but, while extremely tired, sore, and slow, Katie, Mike, and I felt pretty strong on our first hike of the season.    

Moody Sky

What once looked like this

Now looks like this

I adore the fact that one second it is raining and windy, trees falling into streets and power going out, and then in the same hour the sun is in full force. I think I like it so much because I always dress for the wrong weather, even when the forecast is perfect, and now I find comfort in the fact that everyone else is dressed wrong at some point in the day. Awkwardness loves company.

Mom and Dad Visit

We are having fun . . .

golfing, 

fishing, 

working out (yes, my mom took a picture at the gym!),

playing Rock Band,

shopping (a lot),

eating delicious food, 

proving we do indeed have jobs, 

hiking,

making Mike crazy with a family of camera carriers, 

posing at waterfalls, 

and kissing in the tulips.

Something Old Continued

I love owning things that have a history.  I love things from different times and with different stories.  One of the purely blissful periods of my life was living with my grandparents in Panguitch, Utah and hearing hundreds of fabulous tales about where I came from - about who they are and were and who their parents were.  That summer I found a box of old clothes and on the top were the cutest little aprons that wouldn't keep a bit of food off of you, but are so delightful, made by my grandma.  This one now hangs in my kitchen.