Rocky Point 2020

It’s cold outside (by Arizona standards). Layla and Brinna and I put on coats to walk Layla to school now. And we debate about whether or not the cold hands and face is worth the walk or if we should just drive to school. We dream of warmer days, yet we keep walking.

All those dreams of warmth send me back to the beach. Specifically, Rocky Point, Mexico over fall break. 

Sun, swimsuits, and salt water...fall break seems so long ago!


This year we headed down to mexico with two other families. The first night we got there and our campsites were set up, I walked by this scene and got so excited to be in such a beautiful place with good people.

We hit the beach first thing in the morning.

We decided to try something we've never done before... cornrows for everyone!

Well, at least most of the girls had their hair braided and we convinced one of my boys.

Brinn actually loves to get her hair done (unlike her sister:) ).

Yep, Kacin's hair was long enough for cornrows!

These two are some of my all time favorite pictures of him. That's his real smile right there.

I think he was regretting the mullet he gave himself soon before the trip because it meant his hair was too short to be braided. Sad.


Whether braids or curls this guy here is my hair twin.

The water was so very calm and perfectly warm. We brought the paddle boards and kayaks this year to add to the fun and water tricks.

All the braided hair girls right here.

Brinn is in heaven at the beach. She loves the water, the sand, and the waves.

She showed me how she can touch her feet to her head. And then Kyler tipped her over and she yelled at him.

It may look like a whale out in the water...

But that was just where the teenagers escaped from the heat and played a game of "big booty" (the game where you sing the song then call out your number without messing up).

We all took rides on the banana boat. I'm glad I ended up on the kid ride with Brinna. I was perfectly content with that. Though I know all of the adults and big kids had fun getting thrown from the boat again and again.

Eric and I tried to go out for a walk every evening and morning.

Is there anything better than a beach sunset?

I love the golden hour at the beach.

And I do love this family of mine.

That sunset!


Does she know how lucky she is to have these big brothers?

Pretty impressive boys...

Kyler!




Another day, another morning walk with our girls.

Another day of cornrows gone wild.


The girls spent a lot of time finding and playing with sea critters.

I didn't get a picture, but my favorite time of the whole trip was probably taking the paddleboard out first thing in the morning on the clam waters. We went out so far and the water was clear and beautiful. It was so peaceful.

These boys did a lot of beach digging.

They made themselves a hot tub.

Eric and I did a lot of reflecting together on our growth and changes over the last year. And we took a lot of selfies, too.

My little boy! He loves his sodas still.

These are the two ladies who were there with us. It is always nice to get to know people better and sharing a campsite with someone for a few days does just that. I admire so many things about each one of these women. So grateful for a few days to have fun with our families together!

These two did some haggling on the beach and scored a deal on sunglasses.

We met up with a friend who was staying at the resort. Then we found out that Kacin and Kyler's seminary teacher was coming to stay with them the next day. So we arranged it so that the teens could go down and sneak up on them and surprise their seminary teacher. Apparently, there was also a $5 reward from another seminary teacher to the first person who 5 starred him. These boys accepted the challenge. They ran up to Lotze and pushed him in the pool water! He got them back by pulling Kacin in, too. They had a blast meeting up with their awesome seminary teacher.

We went down to the market to shop around.




We promised Perry he could pick out some candy. Weeeellll, one of the covid rules in mexicos is that children could not go into stores. That was a hard rule for these kids. And really tricky to figure out which mexican candy to get Perry when he couldn't go in to see anything! In the end, we found him some gummy worms.

The sunset on our last night was literally FIRE.

Look at those unfiltered colors!

We enjoyed the smoke bombs and fireworks that the boys bought at the market.

more fire tricks...

I'm glad these two had each other to hang with all week.

sisters and friends....










Other highlights/lowlights from the trip:

-two nights of delicious churros!

-getting our floating mat stolen but recovering it from some people down the beach

-time to rest

-yummy tortillas

-poor communication between teens and parents

-getting photos deleted from my phone by the mexican border police

-Brinna and Perry's fair skin sunburns

-Perry loved sleeping with the boys his age in their tent

-we rented a trailer for our family which was convenient and helpful , especially with Brinns at this age

WE LOVE ROCKY POINT! Seriously this is becoming such a happy place for our family. So glad we made it during fall break for the second year in a row. And so glad to share the trip with these people!

(music video still in progress)

thanksgiving feast

It was a happy thanksgiving that left our both our hearts and bellies full.

We were grateful for dear friends, new friends, and family to share the day with.

We were excited to get to host this year. We gathered up tables from around the house and found seating for everyone. We did not have enough matching spoons, even for the adult table (where did all my spoons disappear to??), but we did have enough seats and for that I was truly happy about.

Each of my children played a part in setting the tables in our "fancy" way. I love working side by side with my kids on stuff like this to figure out how to fold napkins, arrange flowers, iron placemats, etc. 

We didn't think to snap a picture until the children had their fill and disappeared from the tables. But the food was amazing!!! Everyone contributed and it turned out so yummy and my belly was FULL.

 

The boys consumed video games while the girls worked hard to create a play to perform for us.

THere was some very good acting in their performance of "the Lost Princess."

The audience was thoroughly entertained.

As we sat around the Thanksgiving table, Mandi asked each of us to say something we are grateful for but it had to be something superficial. It was hard to just pick one honestly. I said my comfortable bed, but I am also grateful for

hair ties, shampoo, conditioner, good smelling soap, Wet brushes, hot showers, laundry baskets, carpet, scissors, sharpie pens, journals, maps and globes, dishwashers, washing machines, dryers, a rack to hand clothes, my steamer, a good vacuum, bracelets, rings, a curl straightener brush, makeup, good smelling laundry soap, good shoes, pretty sandals, yoga pants, running shorts, hiking fanny packs, paddleboards, pillows, children's art, snacks, movie theater popcorn...

I could go on for ages! Because the truth is even when I think some things in my life are crappy or not what I wanted or hoped they would be, even when those things are hard and frustrating, if I stop and slow down and notice all of the good in my life, man I have been blessed beyond measure. There are so many tangible things, so much beauty in nature, so many people, so many gifts, talents, skills, so many things to enjoy with my five senses---what a wonderful world!

I hope you can see that, too. It takes time and a little bit of effort, but notice all the good--the smallest things and the big things and everything in between and you will see that you have a beautiful life, too. Not a perfect life. Not an easy life. But a beautiful life.