Family Pics

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DEEP THOUGHTS by Max

"Kendall, do you want to play... and not fight?"

Kendall's 2nd Birthday Party

The birthday girl

the treats

saving some animals

friends and cupcakes

presents

cousins

Happy 2nd Birthday to Kendall!!

KSU vs KU On The Hill

With a 59-7 Wildcat victory, there really wasn't much to see. Good thing we didn't buy tickets!

I almost felt bad for the speechless KU fans who wanted to use the tired, old comeback "Wait 'til basketball", but couldn't after the news of K-State's pre-season ranking at the top of the Big 12.

I'll probably regret this, but it just seemed too appropriate. For those 2 or 3 KU fans that I like, please forgive me.

Kendall is 2!

Pancakes with candles for breakfast

Off to gym

Home for lunch and a yummy Small Cakes birthday cupcake

After nap we met Daddy at Build-A-Bear

and a carousel ride before leaving the mall

finally, dinner at Red Robin where Kendall got this cool hat and a song

(guess she didn't like the hat)

WT in JC

No, we didn't go camping... this is our back yard, and you can find us here at least a couple nights a week.

metal fire pit on plywood

empty beer bottles and cans strewn about the yard

ENORMOUS tub of cheese balls

a chair with a built-in cooler

same stupid stories night after night after night

I think it's about time we start thinking of a way to start a fire in snow.

Cheer Captain

Adrienne took the lead for this game.

The result? ... a Hawks' V-I-C-T-O-R-Y!

Mexico

We felt like 5 years was reason enough to celebrate, so we were off to Puerto Vallarta for a few days of relaxation and adventure.

Here are some shots of/from our hotel, not a bad place to wake up to every morning.

Our trip started with an incredible "Outdoor Adventure" in the Sierra Madre mountains

Jeep ride into the mountains

Mule ride

Zip Line course

Rappelling down waterfalls

Hiking

(pictures would have been great, but cameras weren't allowed and we thought $60 was a little much for pics of us in unflattering helmets and harnesses in bad places)

Here we are after the excursion, still in the mountains

Next, we toured the town and did a little shopping

Ah, the happy couple... we took more pictures together in one week than we have in the past 5 years.

We stopped for lunch downtown and were serenaded by a live mariachi band, we can check that one off our bucket list.

Time for some luxury sailing on a 50 ft. boat. They normally book 18 people for this tour, we had 6, it was great. We stopped at the caves of "Los Arcos" for some snorkeling. Good food, good drinks, and good company made for a fun day.

Kev and I tend to be suckers for a good bribe and this trip was no different. We were suckered into a timeshare presentation before the Mexican sun ever hit our faces, in other words, before we left the airport. One of the irresistible bribes was a day trip to El Eden, the place "Predator" was filmed. We headed out bright and early Tuesday morning, anxious to see some Schwarzenegger paraphernalia. First thing, we found out that wasn't where we were going. Turns out we were headed out for the excursion from hell. We started with a 1-hour bus ride (we were the only two on the bus, btw). We switched buses (luckily there were people on this one), then headed straight back toward our hotel, where we came from. On the way, we stopped at a jewelry store, and the bus slowed down to point out a "big house" and a tree with big fruit (which, in my opinion, looked like a tree with enlarged testicles). Next, we hit a garden with large spiders that, fascinatingly enough, contains a fruit that is the "only known cure for cancer". To our surprise, we learned that we had a cutting-edge scientist in our midst when a woman replied, "Wow! We should get this in the United States." Next on the agenda... time to live on the edge! The bus stopped on a busy, winding highway in the mountains, let us out so we could walk 50 yards along the road (with no shoulder) to stand on the edge of a non-railed cliff to see a waterfall. If the fear from the sudden drop to death next to bustling cars wasn't enough to scare your pants off, maybe the 3 memorial crosses for those who lost their lives in that very spot would do the trick. So, 2 o'clock rolled around and it was already time for lunch. We were herded to one side of the restaurant and told that we had to order from the menu provided, all meals $10-30 each (not very believable in a small Mexican village in the mountains), and they didn't even have tacos. Having made friends on the Mexican version of Gilligan's Island, we joined forces, left the group, and hoofed it up the dirt road for some authentic Mexican cuisine. We found a spot, the cook/waiter set up our plastic table and chairs, and we dined next to fighting chihuahuas, and a caged squirrel. Two tostados, one empanada, and three Coronas later, we owed senor 95 pesos (less than $8). The trip ended with a stop at a drunk Mexican's tequila distillery where he showed how tequila was made and spoke of sexual acts with his wife between shots of tequila.

As if we hadn't had enough excitement for one day, our new friends exited the tour early with us, we hit the hotel to quickly freshen up, then took a boat ride to "Rhythms of the Night". A great show and good dinner! The night ended with a sinking ferry boat, which came as no surprise after the crazy day we had.

Our last full day was spent sipping tropical drinks by the pool in the morning, then playing in an international tequila water volleyball duel - Mexicans vs. Americans - in the afternoon. (Can't remember who won. Come to think of it, can't remember if we kept score.)

We headed downtown with friends in the evening to send our trip out in style. A crazy, fun group, no doubt!

This was an amazing trip that we would love to do again someday. It was great to get away and do as we please for a few days. I was aware that Kevin was probably ready for a little down time, time away from working long days and late hours, and time away from the never-ending sprinkler project... but... i had no idea. Hugging a drug-dealing cabbie, Forrest Gump impressions (which, may I add, were spot on), getting the ultimate comb-over from hanging your head out of the cab window at 2am, pretending to be an agave-crushing mule... I'll let the rest of the photos speak for themselves. Mexico Kev is uninhibited, that's all I can say.