Cold, snowy, blustery day....

It is snowing like crazy today! And this accurately portrays how I feel. :)

the Tortoise and the Hare...

You know the classic story - the hare is really fast, but the tortoise ends up catching him in the end... well that was Ryan and I at Pigeon Creek last night.

We had heard about skate skiing before, and found out that there was a place near Holland that rented the equipment, so we decided to give it a try! We headed out to Pigeon Creek Park, arriving just as the sun was setting. We were very excited to give this new sport a try, and to see how Ryan would do on skis for the first time.

We got our skis, and walked out to the trail - realizing that we didn't even really know how to put the skis on. And the guy at the rental shop was not very reassuring at all, as his only piece of advice was, "just try to stay up, and not fall down a lot, it is really hard". Oh great. :) We got the skis figured out, and quickly realized that the rental shop guy was right. I do believe that I fell as soon as I stood up. And I was practically in tears watching Ryan try to figure out how to manage on these really skinny, shorter than normal, skis. :) I don't think that we have ever laughed so hard.

We finally got it somewhat figured out, and were off on the trails. The trails were in excellent condition, really well groomed, and the snow continued to fall while we were there! It was really neat to do it at night, and we both decided that the night skiing was a really cool time to be out there. Ryan ended up being the Hare - he was faster than me, but would fall enough times that I would always catch up. It cracked me up. And I was definitely more like the Tortoise - slower, but also a bit steadier, although I had my fair share of falls.







So did we ever figure out exactly how to skate ski? Not really. Did we get really wet from continuously falling in the snow? Yep. Was it fun? Without a doubt. Would we do it again? Absolutely!! :)

Here are a few pictures from our little adventure!

Where all our cares melted away... :)

Ryan and I took our first official vacation together - to Mexico! When we got married two years ago, we celebrated our honeymoon at Lake Charlevoix because Ryan couldn't take more than a couple days off work, but there was always the promise of a bigger trip someday, and we finally made it happen! We stayed at the Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya Resort - an all-inclusive get-away that made life pretty easy for us for 5 days.

It was 4 days and 5 nights of sun, sleep, swimming, food, snorkeling, zip-lining, napping, kissing, walking, laughing and traveling fun that went by too fast. It was a great way to spend our second anniversary, celebrate the start of a new year, and re-energize ourselves during this holiday season.

New Year's Dinner...Lobby...


Here is our room at the resort...
We took an all day excursion away from the resort that included 3 different snorkeling experiences - one in a fresh water inlet that eventually led to the ocean (and we learned what it looks like when fresh water and salt water encounter - it looks like oil and water because they don't mix!) where we saw fish, sting rays, coral and lots of other underwater wildlife. We didn't see any sea turtles though, as it is technically winter season, and the turtles are not around as much.

We also snorkeled in an underwater cave where there were lots of stalactites and stalagmites. Very cool! It was rather funny because our guide told us it would be cold in the cave, and we wouldn't stay long - and when I asked how cold the water would be, he said it was in the 80's! Both Ryan and I laughed, because coming from Michigan, that is like bath water! :) After we finished in the cave, we had a wonderful lunch with baked chicken, rice, salsa and chips. It was some of the best food we had the whole week - very authentic Mexican meal.
Our last stop for that excursion was a natural cenote - or sinkhole. It was an area that used to be a cavern, but the ceiling collapsed, creating a very cool place to swim and snorkel! There was a zip line, a platform for jumping and diving, and hammocks for relaxation.

The whole resort was open to the elements - for the most part, the only areas that were more closed off were the guest rooms and some of the eating areas. The lobby had very high ceilings and an amazing warm breeze would be blowing through all the time. There was a swim up bar and two pools, but Ryan and I were more interested in the beach, so we didn't go in the pools at all. There was a lazy river, and we took advantage of that one afternoon. It was very lazy, and very relaxing - just what we wanted.

The food wasn't 5 star, but we did enjoy breakfast a lot. They had cereal - and it was all Kellogg's!

All in all it was a great trip. Ryan did very well on the airplane, even with the windy turbulence on the way back into Detroit. And the best part is - he would do it again!! :)

This is a finger painting that we watched a man paint of Riviera Maya. It was a very neat thing to watch, and captured some of the beautiful colors we saw on our trip.

Tanya and Tim's Wedding - December 27, 2008

Two days after Christmas was another celebration! Ryan's cousin Tim got married, and Ryan was the best man!! That was a first for Ryan, but he did a great job. :) The weather was crazy for the wedding, the temperature soared 30 degrees, so it was 60 and rainy in December!

It was still a beautiful day, and we are very excited for Tim and Tanya!Tim and Tanya Koning...

Such a handsome guy! Of course we had to get our picture by the Christmas tree...a perfect time of year to get married, if you ask me! :)


It was a beautiful wedding! :)

Christmas!!

 
Well Christmas is already behind us by a week, but here is a little recap of our holiday...

Ryan and I continued our Christmas tradition by starting the celebration spending Christmas Eve with his family. Ryan had to work a half day on Wednesday, but at least he was given the afternoon off! We ate a very "diverse" meal at Ryan's parents house - each person gets to request their favorite food - so there was everything from smoky links to fettuccine alfredo! The tree was filled underneath with an amazing amount of gifts, and the floor was practically covered with wrapping paper and ribbons when we were all through. :) My favorite gift was a North Face vest from Ryan - and of course some more 'Life is Good' apparel.
 

Later that night we drove down to Battle Creek in time for the candlelight service at my parent's church. This is one of my favorite Christmas traditions - especially when the sanctuary is lit entirely by candlelight at the very end. The next morning we enjoyed a wonderful breakfast and Christmas celebration with my family, followed by lots of naps, relaxing, and later a great lasagna dinner! (We like to mix things up at the Parker's....lasagna is better than the "traditional ham dinner" anyway).
 

It was a great Christmas, and a wonderful time with family!!