Be warned!
6 Days in the Dominican Republic, 1 blog post = photo overload!!!
This program has been a huge blessing for us. As a part of it we have been to the Bahamas, Aruba, Cancun, Maui, and now Punta Cana - Dominican Republic. Not only have our trips been free (we are 1099ed of course), but they have been planned and researched by someone other than me! There is nothing we have to do other than show up at the airport when we are told to, follow the flight schedule we have been given, and look for Chief signs when we arrive at our destination. They make things so simple and safe. They also choose venues that we would never be able to stay at on our own. The hotels are always quite ridiculously fancy. The service amazing.
Each trip has been something we would never, ever consider under "normal" circumstances. I am truly grateful for the opportunities we have had to explore new locations and relax together during these trips.
This year we were lucky and arrived before dark.
This was my first glimpse of the beach.
I am a ND girl who LOVES the beach.
The smell of tropical breezes, the crash of the sea, and the sand between my toes makes my heart sigh contentedly.
This hotel room is the most unique we have been in.
It was really beautiful.
(It also smelled like mold just enough to give Chad fairly major breathing issues all week. UGH!)
My favorite feature was the Tahiti bed in the courtyard.
It was softly cushioned, surrounded by beautiful shady palms, and only for our use!
It was a nappers heaven.
My second favorite was the butler who left us surprising treats, made dinner reservations, and was "at our service, as we wished."
My second favorite was the butler who left us surprising treats, made dinner reservations, and was "at our service, as we wished."
It was a long, safe, beautiful beach to walk and run on.
The Caribbean makes me adore blue, which is usually my mom's favorite color - not mine.
But there is no color more beautiful then the blues of the Caribbean.
Chad walked with me one day.
He always finds a silly pose.
Nappers heaven.
Look who is texting!
When you own your own business, there is no such thing as a complete vacation.
The grounds of this hotel were HUGE.
They ran golf cart with trailers that reminded me of a zoo train from place to place because it was such a long walk.
One of the "we will always remember that" mpments from this trip happened on the zoo train. The DR is famous for its tobacco. People smoke yummy smelling cigars all over, all the time. It was late and several Chief acquaintances were puffing away near us. They offered Chad a cigar. He responded that smoking was a no-no with asthma. So they offered me a lady-like vanilla cigar. I laughed and confessed that I had never smoked aneeething. The oldest builder, a clean cut guy who is about 60 said in amazement, "Not even pot?" Sorry builder dude, not even pot. LOL!
One of the "we will always remember that" mpments from this trip happened on the zoo train. The DR is famous for its tobacco. People smoke yummy smelling cigars all over, all the time. It was late and several Chief acquaintances were puffing away near us. They offered Chad a cigar. He responded that smoking was a no-no with asthma. So they offered me a lady-like vanilla cigar. I laughed and confessed that I had never smoked aneeething. The oldest builder, a clean cut guy who is about 60 said in amazement, "Not even pot?" Sorry builder dude, not even pot. LOL!
I adore tropical plants.
I might even like yard work if I lived way down south!
Might. . .
(Chad insisted on this photo. I told him I only like photos I take, but he won.)
There is always a banquet one of the first nights there. (think boring)
We are pretending that we are Middle Schoolers in this photo - posing in front of a mirror.
As parents of a Middle Schooler who LOVES to take her own photo, we thought this was hilarious!
Because Chad's asthma was really bothering him, we had a very low key vacation. We had signed up to zip line, and we were considering one other adventure - but he just felt too crummy to even attempt it. He did take me shopping though! He knows I am NOT a shopper, so a shopping excursion never lasts long!
There was a big ole mall in Punta Cana.
But, I hate malls!
So we went to the local flea market.
I was fun!
It was also shockingly quiet.
We had lots of attention.
It was fairly harmless though.
We bought one painting, some jewelry, coffee, and a couple t-shirts.
One salesman had me giggling all day. He asked me how many kids we had. When I told him 5, he whooped! Then he asked, "No have a TV in North Dakota?"
The other bit of adventure we had was taking a "sunset" sailboat trip.
(The sunset is in quotes because they had us off the water long before the sun set - but it was fun to be on the water.)
I LOVE to be on the water.
I kept thinking this whole week, sadly, that we skipped an entire summer in 2012. We did not play at all last summer, and I missed it so much! I can not wait for boating weather this summer.
This was the beach on the shore where it is less inhabited by hotels.
Some people on our boat snorkeled, but I fail at snorkeling.
So, I was happy to hang on the boat!
While we were hanging on the boat, chatting with friends, someone grabbed my camera and offered to take some pics of Chad and I. She was a wild one! Here are the results.
(love this)
(don't even ask!)
(haven't posed to C'mon KISS her, since Aug 6, 1994!)
There's the "sunset."
The only beer served on the Island was the local brew "El Presedente."
It was cold -
not as good as the rum,
WAY better than the mamajauna (a crazy local drink that tasted like cough syrup gone wrong.)
I will be honest as say the drinks were the best part of this trip. The coffee was AMAZING! The local Rum was yummy. The food at this lavish resort was not too lavish. Now, I totally admit to being spoiled on these trips. I am very used to AMAZING, UNFORGETTABLE food. This food was tolerable - but totally forgettable. It was beautifully presented in tiny, tasteless portions. BUT - I did not get sick, and I did enjoy the fruit!
This gorgeous swing is what I wanted to bring home with me.
Chad promises to build me one, soon. . .
And there it is one last time.
My final glimpse of the beach.
The airport was an unforgettable experience.
It was the craziest, most chaotic, departure ever.
But we made it.
Then we stood in line in US customs for 2 hours in Minneapolis and nearly missed our connecting flight. We sprinted through the airport, in stocking feet. Chad NEVER does anything in stocking feet, so you know it was an emergency! We DID NOT want to miss our flight!
And we made it.
Thank God!
So - that's it. Our winter vacation 2013 was not our favorite ever. Yet, it was still good. Much sleep happened. Much walking, laughter, silence, reading. Time spent thinking and praying. Time to soak up Chad. Time to practice very rusty Spanish with delightful hotel staff.
And coming home - was delightful.
Where last year I was SO stressed about the year in front of me. This year, I am looking forward to many things. Ethiopia in May. Small bits of yardwork this spring/summer. (We have vowed to pace ourselves - working less and playing more.) Fires in our backyard firepit, which is yet to be built.
Things feel comparably stable this year. Long deeeeeeeep sigh.
I am thankful.
And the kids?
They did great! I have one favorite quote of the week. Krissy said, "Grandma is even worse than you are mom." (Yes. Major brownie points scored there.)
This morning, I broke a major parenting rule. I woke my sleeping baby (at 8 am) because I missed him too much to wait for him to wake up on his own! I was shocked that he did not come and find us in the middle of the night. Last year he would have. He would never have slept peacefully, wondering if we would really arrive as we promised. This year, after 6 days away, we woke him up because we missed him! Such a miracle!
Also a miracle, he spent the whole day alternating playing, cuddling, and saying "I love you soo much! I'm so happy you are home!"
I am so thankful to all the people who loved our kids so well while we were gone. The peace that filled our home today is proof that they were so well cared for while we were away.
We are blessed.
