Mexico

 Mike and I left the frozen tundra of Minnesota and landed in Cancun, Mx  where it was a steamy 84 degrees.  The weather was perfect all 5 days of our trip.  We enjoyed the ocean, the sand, good food, drinks, pool-side foot massage, and the company of good friends: Scott and Cheryl.

The above picture is the view from the patio of our room.

 A historical landmark of Mayan ruins was right on the resort property.

 We could see these iguanas sunning themselves each morning.

 Water aerobics

This bungalow was where we sat and enjoyed an evening of Thai food. 

It was a wonderful vacation for sun and relaxation.

The kids were at home with cousin Heidi; they were jealous that we went away to the ocean, but loved hanging out with Heidi.  Thank you Heidi!!

Ice Skating and Hockey

 The hockey craze has starting at our house!  The Syrjamaki rink has been a great blessing this winter and the kids have improved their skating skills by 100%.  Grandma Miedema supported their obsession by buying them the hockey helmet and stick.

 Carter and his classmates at school for gym class played hockey behind school

 Carter was included in a 3 on 3 game next door with Isaac and his buddies.

 Carter in full gear

The girls also have really caught on to hockey.  Here is a game of girls vs boys.

The Polar Vortex Birthday Sleep Over

 The Christmas break was coming to a close.  The kids were getting restless to go return to school and mama was ready for a return to our normal schedule as well.

Minnesota then fell under record lows which came to be called the polar vortex.  The temps were to get as low as -25 degrees without the wind chill factor.  School was called off by the Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton.

In response to the school closure, we quickly organized a birthday sleep over for Taylor and a couple or friends.  (This was limited to 3 people for the sake of my sanity.)

 Taylor and Miss Lydia

 Taylor, Lydia, Kylie, and Jaclyn

There were pillow fights, crafts, movies, dancing, and gymnastics.

The girls build a movie theatre fort where they played and slept for the party. 

They are a great group of girls!

Happy Birthday Taylor Ann!

After the extended break, cold weather, sleep over, and difficult transition into school I found this quote that I absolutely loved!!!!!!!!!!

San Diego, California

We left the chilly temps of Minnesota with my parents and were greeted by 70 degree weather in San Diego, CA.  We rented a house in Normal Heights that had a hot tub/pool right outside in the back yard.  This was clearly our best decision of the trip!  The kids swam for hours and hours in the pool and the adults loved the hot tub.

Our first day we went to Pacific Beach.  The sights and sounds of the water were wonderful.  The temp of the water was a cool 60 degrees which made it just too cool for swimming.  Surfers were everywhere but had the luxury of a wet suit. 

Mike was hoping to surf for the first time but decided not to after rescuing an unconscious surfer from the waves after a bad fall.

Grandma and Taylor Ann

This was the kids' first visit to the Pacific Ocean

We then made our way to Ocean beach for a meal at the famous "Hodads" for  burgers, malts, and fries.

The walk out on the pier was cool and breezy.

Day 2 was a very special day as we celebrated Taylor Ann's 8th birthday.  Our day began at the Richard Walker Pancake house in downtown San Diego followed by a trip to the world renown San Diego Zoo.

The Rhino was Mike's favorite.

The Giraffes were beautiful.  There was a new giraffe that Mike, my parents, Taylor, and Carter got to see that was only 6 days old and was nursing from it's mother.  The baby in the picture above was born in May and was named Penelope.

Taylor Ann is 8!!!!!

The Koalas were my absolute favorite.

Grandpa and Carter by the Koalas

 Taylor loved the beautiful flamingos

Hailey and I stood in line for 45 minutes to see the giant pandas.  This is a 9 month old baby and it's mamma.  

Birthday cake by the hot tub….what could be better………….

how about a gondola ride through the Coronado Bay.

Mike surprised me with a date night on the Coronado Bay and dinner downtown!

Day 3 we hiked on Point Loma.  The views were great!

We explored the tide pools at low tide for a couple of hours.  We saw an octopus, a sea star, sea anemone, crabs, and snails

Our final day was spent touring the USS Midway.  The kids earned their junior pilot wings.

 This fighter jet was in the movie Top Gun and is aboard the USS Midway on the flight deck.

So long San Diego.  We loved every minute!!!