Playa del Carmen Vacay

As I sit here on our 3rd snow/cold day off school and the coldest day of my entire life (no, really the wind chill was -38!), I realized I hadn't blogged about a much warmer time this winter...our trip to Mexico!  Matt and I went on a trip to an all inclusive resort in Playa del Carmen Mexico from Dec. 31-Jan. 5 in celebration of my 40th birthday last October.  It was heavenly.  We literally had NO responsibilities and could just relax and do whatever we wanted!

flying in

We got there on New Year's Eve, so we got to celebrate the new year outside in 80 degrees, a first!  It was a lot of fun, but we were so tired since we had to wake up at 4 am to be at the South Bend airport.

We spent time at the beach and pool.  It was a great time to go, not too crowded.

These little coati were EVERYWHERE!  They were rummaging around in the dirt and trashcans.

We spent an afternoon in town touring the shops and restaurants.

Our resort, Grand Sunset Princess!

We went ziplining at a really cool place in the jungle!

It was a lot of fun and even though it rained a bit, we had a great time!

waiting on the rest of our group to eat

We also got to go swimming in a cenote (natural sinkhole).

Our resort room was gorgeous!  It was spacious and the balcony overlooked the pool.

We went to dinner each night (usually around 9) and then just walked around the resort.  It was so nice being able to walk around even at night and not be cold or worry about bugs.

 Everyone was so willing to bring you drinks and help out.  Several employees were a little too insistent on us buying into the timeshare there and they kept asking us about it.  We eventually got smart and told them it was our last day, then they stopped asking!

It was a great week away, just the two of us!  We missed the kids (Emmy sent us messages about every day 😃), but it was nice to feel the sunshine and swim in the ocean.

Sunset on the way home

Christmas Celebrations

Christmas is such a magical time as we celebrate the birth of Jesus.  It was so nice to have Nate and Sara here this year to celebrate.  We all went to church together and got pictures beside the huge Christmas tree in the narthex.

Our "perfect" tree! :) 

On Christmas Eve day, we always go to the Hahn's for a brunch and to spend the day.  We had a nice time eating, playing games, talking, going to the Christmas Eve church service, and just being together.

Landon and Emmy were so excited to be asked to be a junior groomsman and bridesmaid in Nate and Sara's wedding!  Emmy said it was her favorite gift of all! :)

Then that evening, the kiddos had to open their new Christmas pjs, get Santa's cookies and milk ready, and say goodbye to their elf, Tricky, for another year.

Emerson picked out bracelets and charms for all of the special ladies in her life and wrapped them up.  She has such a giving heart!  Mine has  a mom charm, palm tree, flip flops, and sunglasses!

Christmas morning, the kids were actually quiet until 7:30 when they insisted we get up so they could open presents!

Emmy got a school set for her American Girl doll and Landon got a Madden '19 NFL video game.

They were also excited about the illustrated books of Harry Potter.  We are reading through them together (currently we are on book 5....which is taking us literally FOREVER to finish...it's long!) but Landon said he wanted to start reading them on his own too.

We went to the Clarks for lunch and got to spend time with my side of the family.

Emerson got a camper for her dolls, which she loves!

The kids enjoyed helping Caleb and Brooklyn open presents too.

Phew!  Well, I think that is all for our December!  It is always such a busy time, but I look forward to spending time with family and friends and watching the kids get so excited.  Especially Emerson!  She always talks for days about how she can't wait for Christmas!  I hope you all enjoyed the holiday as well!

Gingerbread Houses and Friend's Christmas

These gingerbread houses kept the kiddos occupied for a few hours during our first day of Christmas Break.  I was so thankful to have the Friday before Christmas off.  It's a great day to get any last minute things done before the craziness begins.

Last year, we got the kids separate houses and that seemed to work out better!  Much less arguing this way!

Then, that night, we celebrated Christmas with the Davis, Frye, and Faller families.  We had a yummy meal of prime rib and the kids got to decorate cookies for Santa.  This is always such a fun memory!