Lo que paso en Puerto Rico

I wish we didn't have to come home, but real life made us. We spent a wonderful week in Puerto Rico with the Vega's. It feels like the time flew by, but we were able to see and visit so many places. We have lots of pictures, so bare with us.

Wednesday was one of my favorite days. We went to Flamenco Beach, which is always talked about on the travel channel as being one of the greatest beaches. Believe me, it was. The water was crystal blue and the sand was powder soft. I couldn't ask for a better beach.

Flamenco Beach is located on an Island called Culebra, which is about a 1 1/2 hour boat ride or a 15 minute plane ride. We decided to do both. We flew over and took the boat back.

I usually don't have a problem with small planes, but I think I saw my life flash before my eyes when we were about to land. The plane held 8 passengers and all of us had to sit in particular seats according to our weight. The captain told us before we left, Culebra has strong winds, so the landing maybe a little bumpy. The take off and 10 minutes in the air was awesome, and then the landing came. We had to fly over a mountain and drop suddenly in order to hit the landing strip. Our plane jerked side to side, looked like it was going to hit the mountain, dropped suddenly, had a couple alarms go off and then landed going what felt like 200 miles an hour. Even though our lives flashed before us - I would do it again.

Thursday we went to a beach called Crash boat which is located in a town called Aquadilla. This was a favorite beach of Bacho's growing up. It was fun to chill out and eat pinchos (grilled kabobs).

Friday was a lot of fun and busy too. First, Jason and I went to the beach in Dorado. We took a bike ride around the beach and around some of the neighborhood. Both of us were so sticky and sweaty when we returned, but it was fun.

The second thing we did was went to the El Yunque rainforest. It was so cool!! I love places like this. We hiked around and went to La Mina falls. On the way out it was raining so hard, but I guess that is why they call it a rainforest.

The third thing we did, I know - Friday was a busy day. We went on a kayak tour. We went to the town of Fajardo and went to the Bio Luminescent bay. We weren't able to get any pictures of our own, because we didn't have the right kind of camera. As soon as the kayak guide sends us our pictures - we will post them. However, I have added a picture that shows you how cool it is. We left on the kayak tour at sunset - so we had no light to guide us into the bay. We paddled about 2.5 miles through the ocean and the red mangroves to the opening of the bay. It was so cool - the closer we got to the bay and the more we touched the water - the more it would glow. Jason and I ran into the mangroves many times and hit our heads on a couple of trees while paddling, but it was worth it to see the bay. If any of you go to Puerto Rico - I recommend this.

On Saturday - our 5 year anniversay day - we went to Old San Juan and El Morro. A little history lesson - the English and the Dutch attacked the Morro repeatedly in its time. Located on the San Juan Bay, the six-story fort was originally constructed in 1540, although its exterior walls were not erected for another 200 years. Inside the walls is a veritable labyrinth of chambers, barracks, hallways and prison cells.

Old San Juan was really neat. It has shops all over the place, blue brick on the street, tons of people and lots of culture. It was really windy this day and extra humid, but we still enjoyed our selves. We were able to go to the gates of puerto rico, eat at a bakery Rachel Ray recommended and watch tourists and natives walk by. And to top it off, we went out to eat that night in Isla Verde for our 5 year anniversary.

Sunday we went to visit with some of Bacho's family and then Jason and I went to a town by where Bacho grew up named Ponce. Lastly we went to the beach to hang out and visit the last time in Puerto Rico - for this trip atleast.

Thank you Vega's for helping make this trip an enjoyable one, for taking us around the island, and showing us traditions of Puerto Rico. We had so much fun. We loved every minute of our vacation and only wished it was longer.

To Jason - my hubby of 5 years and my best friend for much longer, Happy Anniversary. I am so thankful to have you in my life. I think we should have an island getaway for every anniversary from now on. Love you!!!

Lake Powell 08

We just got back from a fun, yet cold trip to Lake Powell. I think this is the earliest I have ever been to Lake Powell. The air temp was perfect, but the water was only 67 - it was chilly!! We played in the water until our lips were blue and our feet and hands were numb. We always enjoy our annual trips to Lake Powell with the Watson family. This year we did something a little different - we had lunch at Antelope Marina one day and it was ta-ta tasty. I think this should become a new tradition. Thank you to all for getting the food, drinks, etc.. and making this trip a fun one.

18 weeks of training starts now

It's official --- Jason and Bacho made it into the St. George marathon in October. This will be the first for both of them, so they are following a training schedule and it starts now. Jason and I keep thinking about how far 26.2 miles is - and it blows our minds, so we just won't think about it. I told Jason I will train with him for the first 13 miles, but he's on his own after that.

We were up in Scottsdale a couple weeks ago and found this statue - I had to take a picture of it to show Jason what he will look like after the marathon.

Before & After

YAHOO... we are finally finished with our backyard. I'm sure many of you read we would be finished with the backyard around May 1st, and it actually was, we just didn't take a picture until now. We have come a long way from dirt --- to water.

This was the backyard in the beginning


This was Jason and I enjoying the dirt and making smores.



I have to give a big THANK YOU to Jason and his friend Chris who shoveled 16 tons of rock from the front yard to the back. I've never seen two people drink so much water in such a short period of time.



Here it is... our Arizona oasis. We have been enjoying our pool for about 3 weeks now. It is so fun to come home and relax by the pool and listen to the waterfall. We are so excited we have a pool to jump into when the temps reach 110. With everything being so expensive now - we spend a lot of time in the backyard and absolutely love it.




If you're ever in the neighborhood and want to take a dip - stop by.

Caution - Human Anatomy

As some of you may know, I recently had a surgery due to an ectopic pregnancy. I found it very interesting when the doctor showed me pictures of my insides. I warn you - it might not be pretty, but if you like anatomy it's cool to see the female reproductive system.


The picture below shows the uterus. The dark liquid around it, is actually blood. Normally, it would not look like this - I had a lot of internal bleeding. This is what ultimately led me to the ER.



The next two pictures are of my Fallopian Tube. As you can see, it is very swolen and already starting to rupture. My doctor thought this was why I had so much internal bleeding.




Sadly this picture is after they took out the tube.




Last, but not least is a picture of my other side - the healthy side. The big ball in the middle is the uterus and the little circle to the left is the ovary - can you believe this small thing is what causes pain, and the tube connected to the uterus is the fallopian tube.



To all of you who have kept us in your prayers - THANK YOU!! Jason and I are doing great. This wasn't what we wanted, but we realize it happened for some reason and know that we have more chances in the future. We know this experience made us stronger as a couple and helped us realize how fragile life is.

Merry Chirstmas - 5 months later!!

First, let me explain why this is so late getting posted. The pictures from Christmas were on a different camera and we have not been able to get them onto the computer. Finally, we found some handy device that lets us plug our memory stick into the computer. Every year our family likes to do "gag" gifts. I have added pictures that show some of the gag gifts from Christmas 07.


I gave my mom fashionable noodle jewelry from "Tiffany & Co." I'm sure if she was to wear it out somewhere and get hungry - she could eat it.



My dad got this lovely speedo! We haven't seen it on him yet - and to be honest, hopefully we never will.

My parents gave Jason this traffic puzzle. They thought he could take it to work one day and show others in the office what the next traffic job would be.



Staci and Bacho gave Chuck this awesome shirt. We all know Chuck secretly loves the Boner Brothers - I mean the Jonas Brothers.



Chuck gave Bacho this "bowl". The color of the bowl was puke green and I believe had a face of a frog. It was very ugly!! Where is that gift now Bacho?

My o My, how time flys

I was scanning through some pictures, trying to find something we could add to our blog to make it a little more exciting and came across this picture. I believe this was 5 years ago. Jason and I had gone to San Diego to visit the Kipps and take some pictures for our wedding announcement. Somehow, this picture ended up on the roll. Colby and Cass have grown up like crazy!! I can't believe Colby will be 16 in 2 weeks. We love visiting the Kipps. We always have a fun time.