bbb.

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Belize bound, baby!

(I'm always trying to come up with 

intriguing and quirky blog titles. 

I should probably just give up.)

After an amazing Christmas break 

Stephen and I headed to BELIZE with his parents! 

How lucky/blessed/grateful are we?!

It was a long trek getting there,

four planes and 24 hours, 

(did I mention I hate flying?)

but totally worth it! 

We rented a house right on the beach 

just south of San Pedro 

on the island of Ambergris Caye. 

It was around 2:00 pm when we got there, 

exhausted! 

We did nothing but walk the beach, 

bask in the sun, 

and watch the sunset from the rooftop. 

Casa Escalante where we stayed!

On the roof!

our second day we ventured out of 

the quirky Casa Escalante 

to explore the town of San Pedro!

Lots of grocery stores!

Neat atmosphere and super nice people!

The streets are busy with vans (taxis) and golf carts

ignoring pedestrians and speed bumps. 

Christmas decorations everywhere, too! 

The city lays alongside the ocean 

so we never lost sight of the shore :)

Many of our days, like this one, 

consisted of volleyball in the front yard,

napping in the hammocks, 

laying out on the pier,

and walking the beach. 

We also ate.

A lot. 

And rated every restaurant we went to. 

If you're ever on the island,

Fido's and Ramon's. 

They won. 

We made some friends, too!

These two local boys wandered past our house while we were outside and tried selling us necklaces and such. We kindly declined but they kept hanging out, finally bringing attention to the volleyball Stephen and Sherri were playing with. Stephen asked them if they wanted to join and they dropped their bags and started right in! After volleyball it was soccer with Stephen and Jeff. Sherri and I each bought something from them when they were done :) We thought it would be nice to have something to remember them by!

That night we had dinner at Ali Baba's! 

Jon nicknamed me that when we 

first met and the nickname stuck. 

(Said with an Indian accent, of course.)

We drove past the restaurant while touring the town 

the previous day and couldn't resist! 

We yelled "Ali Baba's!" out the golf cart 

every time we drove past for the rest of our stay!

Another beautiful morning...

Cannonball contest off the pier...

 Lunch on the beach...

And more friends!

These guys helped Stephen and I build 

sand castles before a game of soccer :)

And before we knew it, 

it was New Year's Eve!

We ventured downtown for drinks, pizza, 

and we were hoping some dancing!

Unfortunately, the clubs in San Pedro didn't open 'til 11:00 pm that night (normally not 'til midnight!) and us old married people just couldn't hack it! Getting up early to watch the sunrise doesn't allow you to stay up late to dance the night away. The town was poppin' though! Still all decked out for Christmas, lots of music and people. 

Stephen and I ended the night in bed 

reading the third book in the Inheritance Cycle :)

Yes, we're nerds.

And yes, I love it :)

I couldn't have pictured 

a better way 

to bring in the new year!

(Snuggled in bed with my sweetie... 

It seriously doesn't get better!)

And the first thing we did in 2012?!

Watch an incredible sunrise from the pier. 

Sitting with your amazing husband,

in Belize, 

watching a stunning sunrise...

Can't help but feel God's love :)

That day we piled in the golf cart 

and set off to explore the island north of San Pedro!

We found a lot of bumpy dirt roads,

gorgeous resorts, and the Palapa! 

A bar on a pier that is covered in guests' artwork!

We left our mark :)

On our way home we got caught in a rain storm!

With no windshield, doors, 

or windows on the golf cart!

It was the coldest, wettest, funniest part of the trip!

Despite the rain that followed the next few days

(yes, we got caught in more than one rain storm in the golf cart!)

we made plenty of trips into town, 

had many walks on the beach, 

and read numerous chapters in our book :)

And we went fishing!

Something I do not have the patience for!

(I went fishing in Alaska with Stephen and Same once... I fell asleep for the better half of the trip on the floor of the boat. I did catch the only fish, though! ...Poor Herman.)

Instead of fish though, 

we were catching crabs!

Not on purpose, 

but I was sure entertained!

Yes, I look like a turtle.

After fishing reading :)

We did some exploring south of town, too...

It was a super nice day,

so we made sure to get in plenty of sun time...

The next day we got the opportunity 

to go spear fishing! 

Or sit in the boat, bask in the sun, 

fish, and stare at the waves like I did. 

Three local boys took us out on their boat and let Stephen and Jeff use their spears to hunt fish! Such a cool thing! Takes so much endurance...swimming out, using the spear (It's somewhat of a sling shot, pulling back two rubber cords. They made them themselves!), then diving down to get the spear, and hopefully the fish, too! Sherri and I fished from the boat (I caught the first fish of the day!) when the boys were out. We caught lots of fish, saw a 5 foot barracuda, so many giant sting rays, dolphins!, and the reef! (The second largest great barrier reef!) All in all, successful outing :)

After our spearfishing adventure, 

Stephen took me on a date :)

 What a lucky girl am I to have such a loving husband :)

Every day I find myself falling more and more in love...

And the next day...

(I feel like this might be the longest blog post ever!)

Was another beautiful day...
And our last full one!

Had smoothies in the morning while laying out :)

We took the ferry to Belize City to venture around!
It turned out to not be too impressive, we love the island much more!
But we had fun exploring and enjoying the sunshine :)

Got all ready for my (early) birthday dinner!

Got these beautiful earrings from Jeff and Sherri!

And danced the night away at a bar on the beach!
Can't beat that! :)

And then...

with our tan lines and memories,

we left. 

The trip was incredible.

(I forgot to mention the snorkeling! I didn't get any pictures, but we saw so many beautiful fish! Dory, included! :) Sharks, rays, barracuda, groupers, gorgeous coral... Ahh! It was amazing!)

There truly aren't words.

It was gorgeous and quirky and FUN!

I loved the opportunity to spend 

so much time with Stephen's parents, too! 

Jeff and Sherri are so loving...

we are so lucky! 

THANK YOU, 

for the amazing adventure!

Maybe we can go back sometime 

and get you some snacks, Sherri?! ;)

We love you!