Beautiful Mexico

 Mexico is one of our favorite countries to visit.  It is romantic, charming, has gorgeous beaches, friendly people and is filled with excellent food!  Last week we were in Puerto Vallarta with friends.

Our dear friends and travel companions.  Favorite activities on the trip included zip lining in the jungle, scuba diving at Los Arcos, and just exploring the local culture.  We also did a LOT of swimming at the pool and playing on the beach.

 Persy and her friend, Luke.  It was so fun to hear these two speaking Spanish with the locals and to see that her time at the Spanish immersion preschool is paying off!  After this trip, I am even more committed to helping her become bi-lingual. 

 We were fortunate to stay at a stunning beach side resort thanks to the generosity of my folks.

Persy and Gabe exploring this charming city.  We ate at tasty local taco joints every single day.  Mmmm, I love tacos al pastor and pozole! 

 I came home with a dozen sunset pictures.  We stood on our balcony and were stunned by the spectacle each evening. 

Snow Fun

This year we've discovered the joy of snow shoeing as a family.  We live next to the most majestic mountains and I find it so peaceful and quiet to get away from the city and do some exploring.

Life Lately

I have been an absolute slacker with our blog lately.  Here's what we've been up to lately. . .

1. Halloween with the world's cutest parrot

2. Romantic weekend in New Orleans with dancing and eating to our heart's content.

3. Thanksgiving road trip to visit family

4. LOTS of Christmas activities with gingerbread making, school programs, seeing the lights, playing in the snow, and making Christmas cards.

5. Daily reading lessons with mommy have Persephone reading beginner books.  This girl is going to be Kindergarten ready!  I'm so pleased that she shares our passion for books and learning.

6. Typical family giggle time and all out silliness! :)

7. Wendy started volunteering as an Anthropology gallery interpreter at the Natural History Museum, and Gabe is prepping for a big jury trial coming up in January.

Zoo Day with Daddy

 We had a perfect morning at the zoo last week.  The polar bear was being especially playful and had Persy was squealing with delight.

The infamous elephant statue still scares my normally daring little girl. :)

Fall is My Favorite

 Spotting Witches

 Pumpkins, hay rides, and fall fun at Cornbelly's

 Playing with Daddy-G

 Hikes with Friends

Exploring caves with my little Adventure Buddy.  (She was a champion hiker on this steep hike.)

Aloha!!

The highlight of our summer was a two week trip with all of my extended family to the gorgeous beaches of Hawaii!  The grandparents generously covered airfare and hosted us in a lovely home right on the beach in Oahu's rural Laie.  We swam to our heart's content, hiked, snorkeled, enjoyed time with siblings and cousins and feasted like kings.  It was a lovely trip!

Lots of tasty shave ice

 Visiting an archaeological site where there was human sacrifice.  These are just a few of the cousins.

 My cute folks

 Persy tries to do poi balls at the Polynesian Cultural Center without whacking herself in the head!

Gabe is all geared up after scuba diving.  We also did a lot of snorkeling.

Laie Lookout

A jungle hike and swimming underneath a waterfall

We had a fancy dinner on the beach with my siblings.

Stopping by roadside fruit stands for fresh banana, pineapple, guava and mango

The

The Axis of Awesome

We did it!! We completed our first Tough Mudder in Colorado this June and it was nothing short of epic, challenging, and incredible. We enjoyed the challenge and camaraderie so much that we put together team "Axis of Awesome" for the Utah Tough Mudder this October.

Some serious bruising from the military walls.

Our amazing team

I'm looking surprisingly cheerful after 11 miles of obstacles!