Hike Hurricane 2018: Three Falls Hike...

I had a new year's resolution to try more local hikes.  I've heard of Three Falls but didn't even know where it was.  I found it and made everyone hike it with me. We started by following the historic canal and going through a little tunnel.

It doesn't always have water, like now, but I imagine it is crazy awesome when it does.  

The first 2 falls are right near the beginning of the hike.  The 3rd fall is a bit farther.

The 3rd fall had a little pool underneath it and just a whisper of water coming over the top. Okay it was mostly a mud pit. The kids tossed big rocks into the mud and thought the noise they made was hilarious.

Great way to exercise!

Random pictures...

Maxine's curls are stupendous!

I sang the National Anthem at Coral Canyon Elementary VERY last minute but my hair is looking awesome and my Mom bought me a new dress for my birthday.

Wrestling boys.

One of the reasons we live in this place is the beautiful skies!

Bun Burner 1500 Gold...

Merril wants to compete in the Iron Butt Rally, which is an 11-day endurance motorcycle rally.  It's expensive but you can't just pay money and enter.  You have to be selected.  Merril decided to go to an Iron Butt luncheon in Jacksonville, FL to try and secure a spot.  He rode his motorcycle to Jacksonville to earn his Bun Burner 1500 Gold and maybe impress some of the higher ups.

Wade rode a teensy bit of the way and took these nice pictures of Merril.  M had to complete 1500 miles in 36 hours or less and he did it! My bum hurts just thinking about it.

Dang!

Vegas with Maxine...

JoLyn was performing in a percussion group in Las Vegas and Jo Anna invited us all down for a mini girl's weekend.

We watched JoLyn and went to The Cheesecake Factory!

Merril took the rest of the kids to play in the snow with Wade and some of his kids. Jack said they had to hike a bunch in the snow and he had to pull the sled. It looks like they're having a good time though.

Crazy greenhouse...

I ignored the greenhouse last year because I was working on the backyard so much.  It got out of control in there!

I couldn't believe how many weeds were in there!

And a cabbage patch.

Now that the weeds are out of the way, the greenhouse needs a lift.

After working on the rest of the yard, the greenhouse area is just too low.  It's secured to the ground with stakes so it had to be loosened first. 

Then using shovels as levers, I lifted it up and stuffed boards underneath to hold it there. I secured the stake and they acted like stilts, holding the greenhouse in the air.

Then we'll bring in more dirt and plant.

New entry table...

I had some money saved and I've been looking for an entry table/buffet that could give me more storage and fell in love with this!  Maybe it's because I've just been to Mexico but I love the funky colors and textures of this piece.  And it has lots of storage for games, bags, etc.  

Dana gave me this lovely, soft blanket for my birthday!

And another penny got stuck between the keys of the piano.  

Juliet's 5th grade cotillion...

Juliet wanted a new dress for cotillion so we got her an early Easter dress.  We found this super nice dress at JC Penneys but I wasn't a huge fan of the see-through top.  

So I altered it to make it opaque.

Juliet danced with some boys.

Merril dressed up and came to dance with her as well. 

These are the 5th grade girls.  They aren't going to be at Coral Canyon for very much longer!!

While we were away, the kids played at Grandmas...

The kids played with Grandma while we were gone and ate yummy waffles.

They went on a hike and found some ice.

It snowed enough to make a snowman.

Cenotes Jardin del Eden and Azul...

On our last day in Playa del Carmen, we had enough time to visit a few more cenotes.  These weren't caverns anymore, the tops had collapsed so they were just pools.  

The first we visited was called Cenote Jardin del Eden (Garden of Eden).  

The second was called Cenote Azul (blue). I saw the hugest eel under some plants and I squealed in my swim mask and backpedaled!!! 

I just loved the blue water!

I was nervous to go on vacation with friends but I had the best time! I feel like we got along well and laughed and told stories the whole time.

Mexico Tulum and Coba...

We started this day at Akumal Beach and swam with sea turtles.  I saw two small squids that changed color and took off!

Then we drove to Tulum to see some ruins.

These crazy iguanas are everywhere!

We left and found some tacos for lunch.

We went to Coba in the afternoon.  These ruins were tall and we were able to climb up them.

They were pretty steep steps and I was winded at the top.

Then we found THE COOLEST cenote! A cenote is a limestone cavern, or sinkhole, resulting from the collapse of limestone bedrock that exposes groundwater underneath. There was a crazy spiral staircase and two places to jump from.  I think one was 30 feet and one was 15 feet.

The water was so blue!!

This was our first cenote and ended up being my favorite. It was called Tankach Ha. The entrance is small and as you walk down the stairs, it opens up into a huge cave with lights.  Teeny, black catfish swim in the mineral pool.  They were adorable!

Day 2: XpLor park

On our second day, we went to an adventure park called Xplor.  We ziplined on top of the canopy several times. Under the canopy there was a network of caves that we were able to swim in.  We took boats and paddled through the caves.  They were well lit and fun to go around in.

We had to wear helmets all day so we didn't bonk our heads on the stalactites.  Amazingly, all the food was included!  There were food buffets and drink stations and we could get anything we wanted.  I wish more theme parks in America would follow this example.  If you pay over $100 to get in, food should be included.  :)

Birthday Vacation to Mexico...

For my birthday, Merril planned a trip with Wade and Sherri Beatty to Playa del Carmen in Mexico. Wade's 40th birthday and my birthday and almost identical.  We caught the red eye out of Vegas.

We arrived and found our rental car.

We found some food and explored the areas around our airbnb.  We stayed in different places but close to
each other.

We changed and went to the beach.

I was cold.  :)

There was a fun touristy street by our airbnb.  We messed around and ate gelato.