Day 5 & 6 Ensenada

Day 5 we spent on the ship sailing to Ensenada. We went to a few shows and an art auction. Who spends $6000 on art while on a cruise? Well, lots of people aparantly!

Day 6 was a Saturday and we arrived in Ensenada, Mexico.

We walked around the shops there in Ensenada and after several more "no gracias" we decided to find a taxi to take us to the blowhole. Our taxi driver spoke very very little English. He also had a knack for making us feel as though we were going to die every few minutes. He drove so crazy!! And there was only one working seatbelt.

After a long 45 minute drive...

We made it there in one peice.

We walked through more shops as we worked our way towards the blowhole or La Bufadora . It was pretty cool!

After a long, fun day in Ensenada, we went back to the ship and packed up our bags. That night we had our last supper aboard the Carnival Spirit and went to the Guest Talent Show which was...interesting. That night we sailed back to San Diego. In the morning we unboarded and then drove back to Las Vegas.

Home Sweet Home!

On Day 4 we were still in Cabo. We rode a Catamaran and looked at some of the scenic parts of Cabo.

Heh. We left really early. Sarah was tired and feeling a little queasy from all the boat rides.

Look! Its the tip of the Baja Peninsula! ...its upside down and sticking out of the water.
We also saw 'El Archo'. Its where the Pacific Ocean meets the Sea of Cortez.

Its also a popular place for sea lions! Welcome to the sea lion colony. During our 2 days in Cabo, we also had the sea lions swim alongside our boats. They were so big! And loud!

After looking at the scenic landscapes, we went farther out into the ocean to travel to the spot where we were going to go snorkeling and kayaking. On the way we got to WHALE WATCH! It was so cool! There was what appeared to be a Mama and her youngin. We got to see them spout water and jump out of thewater doing backflips. In the only picture I managed ot catch them in you can see the whale's tail splashing the water.

We also saw a fin right alongside our catamaran. The tour guide said it was a killer whale. We could see the huge whatever it was diving deeper into the water. I think we must have startled 'whatever it was'!

At this point our camera died because we failed to change out the batteries the night before. So you don't get to see us in our 2-man kayak or in our snorkel gear. Shucky-darn. It was so much fun though! We kayaked around the bay we were in and back to the catamaran. Then we geared up and went into the water to snorkel.

Sarah was a little tentative at first, as water (especially 50ft deep ocean water) is not her best friend. But she overcame her fears and stuck her head down into the water and swam over to enjoy all the fish. One of the guides had some of us gather near him and put some bread into the water. The fish were literally touching us they were so close!! They were so colorful and weren't shy to swim alongside the humans. We spotted Dory the fish (like from Finding Nemo). And Sarah may or may not have accidentally punched a fish.

After our fun adventure, we rode the catamaran (oh, they fed us yummy food and drinks- though we declined the shots of tequila) back to the Cabo port, then rode the tender boat back to the ship. Another fabulously exhausting day!

Day 3 - Cabo San Lucas

We spent days 3 and 4 of our cruise in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico! The weather the first day was absolutely perfect!

We rode tender boats from our ship to the port. When we got there we walked around markets and looked at the merchandise. We walked past several resturants on the land side and boats on the water side as we made the 30 minute walk to the beach.
"Work is for people who don't know how to fish"
Larin made a 'special friend'. All along our path there were tons of local men and women trying to sell merchandise. Their sales pich usually began by saying, "hey amigo" and "good deal for you" and "good price for honeymooners". To which we would respond by saying "no gracias". Pretty sure we said that over a hundred times. But we did give in once and bought this wood carving while lounging on the beach.

The beach was beautiful. The water was perfect. We went swimming in the ocean and could see through the water down to the sand. We could see little fish swimming around our feet! It was so perfect.

But then we got hungry... so instead of eating our ship we walked through the port and found a place to eat.

Yummy!!! Chicken tacos and nachos.

Larin drank some Mexican soda...

When we finished eating lunch we headed back to our ship, totally exhausted from a long and fabulous day!

Baja Mexico Cruise January 2011 - Days 1 and 2

January 3rd we set sail from San Diego, CA on our ship, the Carnival Spirit.

We woke up the next morning and enjoyed some yummy breakfast delivered to our room. This is Larin eating out on our balcony.

We spent the first whole day on the ship as we made our way down to Cabo San Lucas. That day we explored the humongous ship. We played a couple rounds of mini-golf on the top of the ship...

Larin just barely beat Sarah.

We enjoyed the beautiful weather on the ship and watched the sun set from our balcony.

B-E-A-U-TIFUL!

Each night we went down to the dining room to eat. There were two formal nights where we got to get all dressed up. In the evenings we also went to comedy shows and the ship's version of broadway/vegas shows. Fun!
Each night room service turned out our beds and left us "towel animals". How cute are they?!

Top 10 from the past 2...

Sarah's favorite ten things from the past 2 months:

10. Living in warm sunshiney Las Vegas where its been in the 70s or 80s for the past few weeks.

9. Getting to go snowboarding again. And making it down the mountain a few times without falling!!

8. Getting to go to Utah to see Emily and Amy Jo.

7. Getting to visit the temple a few times. It is such a great opportunity for service and blessings!

6. Being recognized as the 'Star of the Week' at work... basically the employee of the week. It is great to have my efforts recognized.

5. Getting to go camping with boyfriend and other friends. And I didn't even freeze!

4. I have 20 toddlers under my care and supervision and I am handling it. I am amazing.

3. Speaking of amazing, I have a boyfriend who thinks I'm amazing. And he is amazing. And he treats me like I'm a princess. And he makes me so happy. Weekdays are the worst things ever because we don't get to see each other for like 16 hours straight while we sleep and then go to work. Weekends are truly becoming my favorite.

2. Setting a curfew so I get more than 5 hours of sleep. I need my sleep.

1. Being happy. Because I am doing things that allow me to be truly happy. I love making good choices.

And I have so much more to look forward to!!! April is going to be a fabulous month! Kickstarted by going to SLC for conference with Larin and getting to see the bestest Emily and meet her boyfriend and have her meet Larin. Oh, and before that I have another job interview this week. (cross your fingers. knock on wood. all that stuff.) Then a trip to Alamo, NV to meet Larin's family Easter weekend. Then I get to see Emily N. and her parents. So much goodness!!!

Oh, and here's some pics... As promised.

With the best friends. Amy Jo and Emily in SLC before Amy Jo left for the MTC.

At the cabin during our snowbaording trip. Yes, I know its fuzzy. Thanks to the amazing sunset behind us... But it shows Larin's amazing hugs. I love his hugs.

Also at the cabin. Larin doesn't like pictures... in order to get him to smile I had to say "poop". So this is a picture of him laughing at poop.

Sam, myself, and Larin... ready to hit the slopes, baby!

I'm Alive!

Yes. I am alive. Just busy enjoying life. Which is enjoyable.

What?! Is that not enough information? Okay... I guess I'll tell you more. I'm still working at Childtime and I turned down that job offer. Still looking. I have a boyfriend. Yay! Larin and I are officially dating. Which is probably why I've been so busy. A very good busy. Loving life and having fun!

If we're lucky maybe I'll post again. Maybe.

Yay, yay, yay!!!

The postings this week have been scarce because I've been busy! Good busy. Like hanging out with a great man busy. Fun. ...Insert HUGE grin...

So this weekend will be a fabulous weekend. And I have no worries setting such high expectations...

Tonight I'm going to the temple! That is always a wonderful experience.

I get to take a mini road trip to Salt Lake City! (like a 6 hour drive) and I'm driving by myself which means lots of Sarah time. yay!!

I get to see my best friends from college Amy Jo and Emily, both of whom I haven't seen in FOREVER! It is Amy Jo's last Sunday before she leaves to serve a mission in Argentina and she is speaking in her family's old home ward there in Salt Lake.

I promise to take lots of pictures. Or at least, I promise to try to remember to take lots of pictures.