Puerto Rico Babymoon!!!

Wikipedia defines Babymoon as: "a vacation taken by a couple that is expecting a baby in order to allow the couple to enjoy a final trip together before the many sleepless nights that usually accompany a newborn baby. Babymoons usually take place at a resort that offers appropriate services like prenatal massage."

My version of a prenatal massage at a resort: snorkeling, surfing, kayaking, and hiking!

The two summers before I met Shane, he spent half of both of them in Puerto Rico. He managed the San Juan office of a Provo security system company and explored the island with his buddies. He actually met my brother Brian there, and Brian introduced us back in Provo. Shane's been telling me how incredible Puerto Rico is since we met. So when I was bugging to plan a babymoon, and there was a sweet deal for Puerto Rico, it only made sense. It's truly a magical island.

Shane was so awesome and planned all our activities beforehand. He had a lot to show me, and he knows I like to pack the fun in tight. We didn't waste ANY time:) 

Our fist day we got up early and caught a ferry to another little island off the main island, called Culebra. We caught a rickety taxi over to Flameco Beach, ranked #2 on the top 10 most exotic beach in the world! White, sand, few people, amazingly clear warm water, awesome reef snorkeling. In true islander fashion, Shane even grabbed a coconut, broke it open and we feasted on the beach!

Some locals told us about a lesser known, even more amazing spot. We climbed through a gate with a no trespassing sign, and hiked to our own private cove! It was so cool to be alone out there on this tropical island, snorkeling in such a crazy beautiful place. We felt like we were in a movie.

Shane knew I wanted to surf, so the next morning we drove to the local surf spot. We rented some junky boards and hit the waves with NO wetsuits! We're not used to that. The average air temp in PR is 82 degrees, and the average water temp is 80! Soooooo nice. Look behind us and check out that spot we're in! Tropical jungle, white beach surfing. 

 We made it home just in time to catch our shuttle to our kayak tour of the bioluminescent bay!

A bio bay is a body of water that contains millions of micro-organisms that glow in the dark (neon blue) for a second when agitated. 

To get to the bay we paddled through a long, skinny, jungle river, covered by a canopy of trees. Soooo cool. When we made it to the bay and our paddles started making the water glow in the dark! We hopped in and when we moved around, our bodies made glowing water angels. It was one of the more spectacular things I've seen in my 26 years of life. (Our camera wouldn't capture the glow, dangit.)

For our next adventure, we made our way to the rain forest! Yes, it's the real deal rain forest. And let me tell you, these pictures don't do it justice. It was TOTALLY incredible. 

As we got further into the rain forest we started seeing waterfalls everywhere. 

We stopped at an old tower, and at the top discovered the some of the most beautiful views we've ever seen.

Next, we hiked 30 mintues deep into the forest to a huge waterfall. The hike was so cool- the sights, sounds, and smells were exactly what you'd think they would be in the rain forest. It even started raining while we were hiking, which made it that much of a real rain forest experience! When we got to the waterfall, I climbed around and even took a dip in the pool at the bottom. I seriously loved every minute of this experience. It was so rad.

 Our last day, we finally took some time to check out our hotel!
Our hotel turned out to be super nice and right on the water. It had had some awesome pools and even a private beach.
I felt like one lucky gal. I mean, look at this view from our room!!

Before heading to the airport we took some time to check out Old San Juan, the historic colonial section of San Juan. The city is "characterized by its narrow, blue cobblestone streets and colorful flat-roofed brick and stone buildings dating back to the 16th and 17th century when Puerto Rico was a Spanish possession." It was such a rad place. We enjoyed the afternoon walking around, going in shops, taking pictures, eating treats, and admiring the awesomeness of the town. 

Way fun and the perfect way to cap off an amazing babymoon!!

I can't say enough about my bomb husband, and how sweet he was to take me on this trip. He knew it meant a lot to me and he did A TON to make it happen. He spent a lot of time, money, thought, planning, and effort into making this something we'll always look back on with huge smiles. He made it such a fun trip for us and we had a total blast, thanks to him. I'm SO lucky to have him as a husband and best friend. Our daughter is lucky to have him as a DADDY!! We just may have to take her back to Puerto Rico someday:)

We took a ton more pics. Check them out here: https://plus.google.com/photos/104396866593957854377/albums/5741316304834684273

Husband & wife surf team.

Shane and I have been ansty to go on a surf weekend getaway for a while now and finally made it happen! 

We headed to San Onofre Friday afternoon and had a fun 2 hour surf sesh. 

(Yes, I can still surf just fine with my belly...we'll see how many more weeks I can last! And yes, the doctor says I can surf. 

And yes, I'm being extra careful.)

Then we drove to our motel (camping spots were all booked!) in Carlsbad.

It was the cheapest one we could find, and it was perfectly grubby and awesome. 

We slept in, then walked next door to a radical surf cafe for breakfast. It was almost like a surf museum- way cool. We ate delicious crunchy, banana french toast. (french toast coated with Honey Bunches of Oats. I'm going to try it at home- it was SO good!)

Then we surfed some big waves in Oceanside. We got worked! We're still pretty amateur surfers, trying to learn as we go. But it was fun to be in a new place. I like new places.

Next we walked the Encinidas street fair. Fun.

We had to make our weekend really count, so we headed back to San Onofre for a Saturday evening surf. 

Needless to say we were hungry and tired and happy. 

Stopped at Cafe Rio on the way home and BOOM. Perfect surf weekend accomplished. 

We are lucky. 

Ragnar Relay Radness

What is Ragnar?

Ragnar is the overnight running relay race that makes testing your limits a team sport. A 
team is made up of 12 individuals; each individual runs 3 legs. The legs of the race vary in difficulty and distance, from 3-8 miles, allowing elite and novice runners to run together. Over 2 days and 1 night, teams run across 200 miles of the country’s most scenic terrain. Pair that with crazy costumes, inside jokes, a great finish line party and unforgettable stories. Some call it a slumber party without sleep, pillows or deodorant. We call it Ragnar.

Our race started in Huntington Beach and ended on Coronado Island, San Diego. 

Some friends from my ward recruited me to their team, and it was a total BLAST. 

It was pretty funny being pregnant doing this crazy thing. I made a sign so everyone would know I'm wasn't just bloated.  

Here were my runs:

Friday at  2pm: 2.5miles up a steep, long hill in 97 degree heat! Fun.

Saturday at 1am: 6 miles in the dark mist, slightly downhill most of the time. Waaaaay fun and awesome conditions.

Saturday at 10am: 7.5 miles up a looooong hill in Torrey Pines, San Diego. Ended this one with a victory dive into the ocean! 

This is in Lake Elsinor after my first hot, sweaty run. We had to get in! 

It was so much fun running at night and hanging out in between runs with everyone. The vibe of the race was so laid back, fun, and low pressure. It was all about goofing around with and cheering for friends, trying to sleep in crazy places at crazy times, figuring out where and when to be to the next hand off, and meeting/laughing at all the crazy people you meet along the way. It was such a fun change from what I'm used to.

Above: The crew in van #1

Below: The whole team! Featuring my belly. 

Thanks to my mom, for giving me the push I needed to do this. (Side note: My parents ran a half marathon without training this same day in Albuquerque and killed it! 2:04 and my mom got 2nd in her age group! She's legit.). 

I'm FOR SURE doing Ragnar again. If you want to join me next year, hit me up! 

We are faaaamily.

Shane's parents and aunt came for another spring break visit!

We had 4 days of fun: A tour of the Queen Mary, walks on the beach

(a couple of us may have jumped in for some surfing...),

Easter BBQ, horseshoes in the sand, lots of good food, movies, Phase 10 and Rummikub.

We feel especially proud that we got them out on the kayaks!

They were a bit uneasy about the idea,

but after some tough love they were rowing like champs.

We were excited to take them on a whale watching trip...

but we didn't end up seeing anything! BUMMER.

At least we were able to enjoy a beautiful ocean boat ride.

I don't think they have those in Utah.

A few days later some more out of town family stopped by for a visit!

My cousin Claire, her husband Quin, and their cute son Elliot were down from the

San Fran area and we're so glad we got to see them.

Iver and Elliot are almost exactly the same age and it was their first meeting.

They're 6 months and just learning to sit up by themselves.

Some serious cuteness going on.

It's fun and totally crazy to see these kids with their own kids!

A BIG thanks to Lewis, Toni, and Mike for making the trip to see us crazy Californians!

And thanks to Claire and Quinn for stopping by for some cousin time.

We love having family around! Keep it coming please.

An email from mom

I have THE BEST mom ever. Those of you who know her know just what I'm talking about. She and I are BFF's and I couldn't have gotten luckier to be sent to her. I called her right after the ultra sound where we found out we were having a GIRL. She knew I was feeling very uneasy about it. So what does she do? She takes the time to find, scan, and send this most kind email to me that very night. She knows just what to do to make me feel better. Every time! So, I thought I'd share her email:

Heyo!

We are sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo excited for this baby girl to get here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We think her middle name should be Sunshine. So that she's named after her mom.

We pulled out some old books to look at Sal as a baby and there are so many cute pics I just had to send a few to you. If your daughter is half as cute (or half as spunky) as Sally was, you're in for a whole lotta fun!

#1 - I think this is your blessing day. I wonder why Alex looks so happy?

#2 - You are showing off one of your very first tricks:

We would say "Show us how brave you are."

And you would stand on one foot while you held the other one way out.

You are barely one year old in this pic. (I should have known then!)

#3 - This is in Raytown and you're exactly Audio's age.

As soon as we got home from church every week you wanted to take off your dress.

#4 - You loved sledding with Dad and never complained about being cold

- unlike all the other little girls.

#5 - Jumping on the bed with the brothers.

Look at your smile - you loved doing anything with them!

#6 - Your favorite swimsuit. You wanted to wear it all the time,

even if we weren't going swimming.

This pic is in Yellowstone.

#7 - This is the age I remember best.

Probably because you were all old enough for me to finally catch my breath!

You're wearing one of the dresses I made you. That I still have.

Seriously, you can't deny how cute you are and how much you're going to have with your own mini-Sal!

love, Mom