englers.org

A week ago last Friday, Christine, Jack, Grayson and I got on a Southwest plane headed from Austin to Orlando. The plan was the hang out with Jodie and Hayes’ family for a few days, then head to my trade show for a few days, then go to Denver for another trade show and to see Joan, Ted, Lydia and Leo for a few days before heading home. Call it “mixing business and pleasure”, if you will.

In Florida, we stayed with Jodie and Hayes for a few days, and hung out with them at their house for most of the day on Friday (after the boys napped all the way from the airport to their house, and a late lunch at McDonald’s that is). Hayes cooked some of the best burgers I’ve ever had that night, and the kids got hot dogs.

On Saturday morning, we’d planned to wake up and watch the Space Shuttle launch from their backyard, but it was scrubbed due to leaking Hydrogen or something… So, instead I slept in, and then we went to the beach, where we had a blast with them at Ponce Inlet.

We all got a little sunburned, and a lot worn out… the sun and the sand can sure take it out of you. After a day at the beach, we ate at a Chili’s with the extended family (pretty much all of Jodie’s family and most of Hayes’ lives there in Florida).

On Sunday, we got up, and headed to the Orlando Science Center, where the kids had a lot of fun. Our original plan was to hit the beach again, but we decided to save the kids from another sunburn filled day… We saw dinosaur bones, and learned about electricity… had lunch, and then picked oranges. Afterwards, we headed to Downtown Disney and the Lego Store before dinner at T-Rex (which is like a Rainforest Cafe with dinosaurs instead of monkeys).

We checked into the Marriot that night, and settled in. I went to a business thing, and the kids and Christine got to sleep pretty late.

On Monday, I did “work” things, while Christine and the boys met Jodie and her beautiful kids, Emma and Morgan, and spent the morning in the pool at the Marriot… which happens to be the biggest pool in the world or something.

Christine had her hands full with the kids all day… I was working… then on Tuesday, she took the kids out while I worked from the room and the lobby of the hotel, and then we headed to the airport around noon. We were lucky we’d left so early, because we ended up having to walk all the way across the Orlando airport after turning in the rental car, before waiting about an hour to check our bags (all 7 of them) with Southwest. The Orlando airport is a zoo. We boarded the airplane, all a little frazzled. The boys wouldn’t sleep, and couldn’t get comfortable, and Christine and I were tired too.

We rented a car in Denver (we weren’t sure if we were going to until we landed) and drove a little out of our way to get to the hotel… and checked in around 9:30 p.m. or so. The staff at the downtown Sheraton were awesome though, and got us into our room quickly, and brought up a crib and fridge quickly too. We got the kids to bed, and I stayed up late catching up on work from the day that I’d not had time to do.

On Wednesday, I worked in the morning, while the kids explored downtown Denver. They hit the public library, the Museum of Art, and the Capitol grounds, before we all went to lunch together. I headed to the lobby to work while the kids took naps (Christine did too). We then met Joan, Leo and Lydia out on the Denver Mall for dinner.

I took Grayson home from dinner early, because he just wasn’t feeling well. We watched Madagascar 2, and all of us went to bed late.

On Thursday, I got up and headed to another trade show, while Christine took the boys, and loaded up the car, and drove out to Arvada, Colorado (the pinnacle of Denver suburbia) to stay with Joan and Ted for the remainder of our trip. Grayson was so exhausted that he finally just laid down in the middle of the living room and crashed. While he napped, the rest of the kids headed to the pool and playground.

On Friday, I quickly hit the trade show, then checked out of the hotel early, and waited for the family to pick me up. Meanwhile, they hit Red Rocks Amphitheatre and Dinosaur Ridge. Talk about some cool stuff! Jack told me all about all of the dinosaur footprints and bones they found on the ride back to the Wagner’s house. That night, Ted cooked filet mignon on the grill, and we all caught up a little after the kids went to bed.

We were treated to this sunset from the front porch of the Wagner’s new house:

Gorgeous.

On Saturday, we got up and headed to Boulder, taking the scenic route through the mountains. We stopped at the Barker Dam for a few photos…

Our goal was to hike to Boulder Falls, but they were closed due to fallen rocks, which was just as well, as the kids were hungry. After lunch at a brewpub in Boulder, we left Joan and Ted, Leo and Lydia in Boulder and headed to the Denver airport. Turning in the car was easier there, but the bag check line at Southwest was just as bad as Orlando.

We got to our gate about 15 minutes before we started boarding (even though we were at the airport a good two hours before our flight), and got on the plane with some tired kids.

Grayson slept all the way home, and Jack and Christine played games together. It was a great flight, and we were glad to be home.

Seven days on the road, in two cities, with me having to actually work 5 of those days, makes for a very tired family, and we’re enjoying catching up on our rest today. We loved seeing our friends, but I don’t think we’ll mix business and pleasure again until the kids are old enough to buy their own tickets and get their own hotel rooms. Or until I can afford to just not work, if I don’t want to.

You can see all of the photos here:

Ponce Inlet Beach Photos
Orlando Photos
Denver Photos

We went to Dallas a few weekends ago, on our way home from Tulsa, and spent a few days. I had to speak at a DFWIMA meeting on Tuesday evening, and we wanted to spend some more time with the family, so we just stayed over for a few days on our way home.

We did lots of fun things while we were there:

1. Frank set up a tent in the back-yard for the boys to play in… and Jack and I spent the night in it the first night in Dallas. Who knew that my kid tossed and turned so much? I woke up at one point with toes digging into my neck. We slept inside the rest of our trip. heh.

2. We celebrated two birthdays. Steven turned 30, and Grayson turned 2. They were both good sports about sharing a party, though afterwards Grayson pulled me aside and said “Next year, remember I’m the one that’s most important, and while I love my Uncle Steven, he has to get his own party… oh, and I’m not wearing a damned hat again. One last thing: that cake was good. Do that cake again, please, Daddy.”

More photos of the party here.

3. We opened presents. Woohoo! Presents!!!!

4. I spoke at DFWIMA, and Christine got to come with me and see what I do when I’m speaking at industry events. It’s always fun to speak to peers with other peers.

“… I’m too young to marry…” – or at least that’s what I remember hearing about Tulsa from some country song…

Christine and the boys and I headed to Tulsa the weekend of October 11th for, Christine’s cousin, Christopher’s wedding.

Talk about fun!

First we flew to Tulsa (on Southwest of course), rented a car, and then drove to the Embassy Suites. We were experimenting with staying in a hotel room that actually has two rooms and a door between the two with the kids. It worked, although, sleeping on a pull out couch isn’t ideal.

We went to dinner with Uncle Ben, Aunt Gayle, and Angela on Friday night (at Luby’s) and had a lot of fun (the boys running around) and great conversation.

Then on Saturday we got up and went to a wedding.

It was great to see all of the Kamps in one place. Everyone looked fabulous:

The wedding was a lot of fun, and we were really glad we went.

That evening we drove out to their land just outside of Tulsa, and had fun getting to know more of the couple’s friends, listening to good music, eating good food, and drinking good beer.

On Sunday we flew to Dallas for a few days…

More photos here.

Christine and I recently took a weekend trip up to New York City. It was like 20 degrees the whole time we were there, but we had a blast regardless. It was Christine’s first visit to New York City, and based on this trip, I’m sure there will be more…

While we were there, we took one day to tour the city in a double decker (actually it was only the top deck that was open) bus. We drove all the way uptown to Harlem, and all the way downtown to Battery Park, and saw lots of sights in between.

We also saw two broadway shows: Mama Mia and Mary Poppins.

We visited the World Trade Center site, looked at the statue of Liberty from Battery Park, and visited St. John’s Cathedral [link to website], and St. Paul’s Church. We also walked in the Apple Store on 5th Avenue, and FAO Schwartz (and got Christine’s picture taken with Chewbacca).

We picked up a FAO Schwartz teddy bear for Grayson, and a NYC Taxi Cab for Jack.

We ate Knishes, hot dogs, and gyros from street vendors. We ate at Sevilla, a typical New York City Spanish restaurant set back in a Chelsey neighborhood (and pictured ourselves living in one of the brownstones across or down the street). We had dinner at the hotel, and at a Times Square Deli.

We slept in one day until noon almost.

And overall we had a blast.

Outside the New York Stock Exchange:

At Battery Park, looking at the Statue of Liberty:

Out at night on Times Square with Erin Taylor and the boy that dragged her to New York, Tom:

Lots more pictures in our New York photo gallery.

Last Thursday, the family took a trip to Sunny San Diego. Christine packed up the family, and I loaded the car, and we drove to Dallas. There, we stopped over for the night with Frank and Mary before heading to the airport at 6 a.m. on Friday. All four of us adults, and the two kids went to the airport, hopped on a direct American flight to San Diego, and were on the ground by 10:00 a.m. AA lost our stroller though, so we waited around the airport until about noon, looking for it, and getting our rental car.

From the airport, we headed north. We’d rented a house on Mission Beach for the week, from Sunny San Diego Vacation Rentals. Had a great view, but we couldn’t check in until 3 p.m. So, we drove to La Jolla, and back to Mission Beach to eat lunch, then up on Mount Soledad, then back to La Jolla to visit the beach for the first time… We all had a lot of fun getting wet and sandy in the 50 degree water Even Grayson got to enjoy it!

Once we checked into our house, we got situated, and then visited the beach again, after the kids took naps, and the adults got things packed away. We cooked steaks out on the patio, and enjoyed watching the sun go down, before we all hit the sack around 8:30 p.m. that first night.

On the second day, Jack and I got up and took a stroll on the beach while everyone else got breakfast going. Then while Grayson napped, Christine and I took Jack down to the Belmont Park, which is like a little Midway park right there on the beach. We walked in a bunch of shops, and even watched a platoon of US Marines run by on the beach and doing pushups in the surf. Then we rode the rides.

Oh. My. Gosh. Jack had a blast! The Tilt-O-Whirl, the boats, the Crazy Submarine, the Carousel, the Arcade. All of it. He had a blast (and we enjoyed ourselves too).

After Belmont Park, we all ate lunch, took naps, and then headed out to the beach to build a sand castle. First, we set up our little beach tent, and then Christine and Jack built a sand castle. Then they promptly destroyed it before the surf could (they taught us to destroy vital equipment before you let the enemy have it if you had to abandon it when I was in the Army – proud to pass the lesson on to my son). And we all retired to the tent where Jack and Grayson enjoyed playing with each other and with the beach ball Christine blew up for them.

On the 12th, we all got up early and headed to the San Diego Zoo. We saw flamingos, and parrots, and billy goats, and pigs, and turtles, and bugs, and bears, and pandas, and tigers, and a big fat hippopotamus. We ate lunch there, and the headed back to the house for naps.

That afternoon we took another stroll on the beach (actually Christine and Jack took a jog), and then Betty and Bruce (Mary’s sister) came down to visit from Anaheim. While they all took care of the kids, Christine and I went out for a date in the gaslamp district of San Diego proper.

We had a wonderful dinner together at Croce’s. Great food. Fantastic service, and wonderful conversation. It was prom-night in San Diego that night too, so we did some fun people watching from our window-seats. After an after-dinner drink, and a quick walk around town, we headed home for some much needed rest.

On Sunday morning, after breakfast, we took a two or three mile walk on the beach. All of us. We walked north to the pier we’d been looking at for days… It took us all morning to get there and back with the kids. But we got some great photos from the pier, and Jack and Christine and I had fun running together on the beach on the way back.

That afternoon, I took a nap with Jack, while Christine and Grayson went out to the beach, and Frank and Mary rotated between the beach and the house. And then we had steak dinner again at the house that night.

On Monday morning, we all got up, and loaded the car. Then Jack and I went out to the beach one more time to play and take pictures.

And after a rather uneventful flight home, Michael and Steven picked us up at the airport at 6:00 p.m. Then lighting storms hit DFW, and we waiting over an hour for our bags before heading back to Frank and Mary’s house for a good night’s sleep.

And on Tuesday, we drove back to Austin.

What I wouldn’t give to be sitting on the beach again!

All of the photos are here.

Oh, and here’s the movie… It’s rather large (140MBs) so be ready for a long download time… Sorry, didn’t want the quality to suck. It’s also about 15 minutes long, so make sure you have time to watch it before you download it:

Well, let’s see. It’s been almost a month since I’ve written… seems like the days keep getting shorter the older the boys get.

This year, for Christmas, we decided to make two trips over two weekends: one to Houston, and the second to Dallas.

We made our annual trek to Houston for the Teaff family Christmas on Friday, December 22nd. Jack is definitely growing up. Last year, he couldn’t even walk this time of year. This year, he was a rip roaring two-year old, and was really looking forward to Santa and presents (he figured out how much fun it was to open presents at his second birthday party in November).

Debbie and Raymond got a new dog. He’s a cutie.

We really had fun in Houston, seeing all of the family, and opening presents. Jack got plenty of presents, and totally had a blast. He really got into the whole tearing open the presents thing, and helped Christine and I open our presents, and opened most of Grayson’s presents for him too.

Dinner with the family was amazing. I think my favorite dish was the macaroni and cheese. I think I remember that Shirley made it, and her trick was to put a little sugar in it. Mmmmm, good.

For Christmas Eve, we needed to stall the kids, and help them burn off some excitement (while Santa was heading up the front walkway) so my mom (Momo) had all of the kids (Paige, Patrick, Iliki, Matthew, and Ella) dress up in nativity scene outfits and act out a nativity scene. It was so cute to see them all dressed up as Mary, Joseph and the other players. And they did a great job too.

Jack was a little scared of Santa, and wouldn’t sit on his lap, but we got him up there with Christine and Grayson for a photo. Grayson joined me for my visit with Santa too.

Everyone seems to be doing really well, and this year’s Christmas went off without a hitch. More photos from the Teaff Family Christmas here.

Then on New Year’s weekend, we made the trek up to Dallas for Christmas with the Kamp’s. The weather was pretty bad on the way up, but we made it in 4 hours… and as soon as we arrived, it really started pouring. We got lucky to make it there before the storms really hit hard.

Jack was in full present mode at Christmas at the Kamp’s too… and had a blast helping everyone open their presents. He got some great toys in Dallas, and Grayson did too. Funny thing though, is that Jack enjoys Grayson’s toys as much as he enjoys his own…

Frank let me borrow a bunch of old camera’s he’s been holding on to for a while including an old Agfa Box camera that was his first camera, a Rolleicord IV, that was his Dad’s, and his Nikon F1 with a really nice 55mm macro lens and a bunch of assorted attachments. I’ve been playing with them since I got home, and have shot three rolls of film already. I’m gonna have to learn a lot to get good with any of them though.

We worked on the Scout a little, dropping the fuel tank and replacing part of the fuel line, and I used a couple of old rags and some soap and water to clean out the interior a little. Hopefully Jack will get to drive it someday, if we can keep it in good enough condition for 14 more years.

Christine and I actually stayed awake long enough on New Year’s Eve to see the ball drop (which I can’t believe). Then we watched a lot of football while in Dallas, and spent New Year’s day watching USC with Michael.

The drive home was better than the drive up, and we made it back to Austin in 3 hours instead of 4. Photos from the Kamp Family Christmas here.

We’re all enjoying 2007 so far, and look forward to a good year, and hope you do too.

I went to New York City for a trade show this past week. It was a good show, but lots of work.

On Tuesday night, I took a few clients out to dinner, so that we could get to know each other. We went to the Rockefeller Center Cafe, which is down on the same level as famous ice skating rink down there.

As soon as we got into the restaurant and sat down, someone said “Hey, Britney’s out skating on the ice!”

And sure enough, right there, outside our window was Britney Spears, skating with her body guards, some guy (not her husband K-Fed), and a bunch of normal people just enjoying the evening.

So, one of my colleagues at the table went and snapped a few photos. Heh, she was acting like a teenage girl, actually, and went nuts that Britney was there.

She got up, went outside and took more photos.

I looked around to order some water, or a bottle of wine, and I realized that no one in the restaurant was eating or drinking. All of the waiters were standing and pointing and looking. It was pretty comical.

Here are the photos that we got of Britney. Some are good, some are dark, but they’re my proof that Britney Spears was 10 feet from me, ice skating…

Heh. Now I feel like a teenage girl for posting this story.

It’s Sunday night, and Christine and I are still waiting on a baby.

Jack’s little brother isn’t due until next Monday (10/16) but we were both pretty sure that he was going to make an appearance last weekend… nope, we’re still waiting. I think now that I’ve decided to stop traveling, the little guy has decided to hunker down for a few more weeks and stay cozy…

So, let’s see.

Since our last post, a lot has happened. A lot.

I flew to Santa Barabara, CA, again, for work. I was out there for three days. It wasn’t nearly as pretty this time due to the fact that there was a blazing fire a few miles east of us. The westerly winds kept us covered in soot for the entire three days I was out there. But it was good for business.

Then that weekend, it was Peggy’s birthday. She came to visit the lakehouse with Debbie and Raymond, and then stopped by the house to visit Jack on her way home. They had a blast playing in Jack’s room and reading books. Here are some photos from her trip up.

I went to New York City for two days for work. I attended some advertising conferences and trade shows, and spent some time in the New York office. Good trip, but sad too. While I was in New York, Christine called me to tell me Josh’s Dad was in the hospital and it didn’t look good. I spoke to Josh for maybe 5 minutes. We didn’t say many words to each other, but we communicated what needed to be said.

Then, when I got home from New York, I’d learned that David had passed away. Their loss is our loss. I can’t bring myself to write more about David passing right now… it’s still too painful for me. I still don’t know what to say about the event, because I want to say it all, but there are too many raw emotions behind my totally inadequate words. I attended the funeral that weekend. Alan Hillboldt and I drove down to Bellville together. Josh wrote about his loss here. David was a great man and we’ll miss him dearly.

This week was pretty mundane, but not. On Sunday night around 7 p.m., I came down with a fever… that lasted until Tuesday morning at 7 a.m. Ugh. I haven’t been laid up in bed sick like that for a long time. I still have a sore-throat. Christine thought she might be in early labor on two days this week. I took Jack to school and picked him up from school on Thursday, because we thought that might be the day. It was nice to see Jack’s teacher and the other parents, but it wasn’t the day. I did get a nice yellow parking ticket though for my troubles.

This weekend, we played with the neighbors a lot, and finished our power-nesting kick. The baby’s nursery is finally ready. The bedding is set, the walls are decorated with appropriate baby stuff. There’s a new shelf on the wall with stuffed animals. Christine has probably washed 50 loads of baby clothes in the past two weeks, and well, I sort of helped.

Like I said, we’re just waiting on a baby.

In the meantime, here are some photos from the past couple of weeks for you:

• Jack and Wesley – playing in the backyard. Yes, I know the grass is very long. You should see it today!
• Jack and Peggy – Playing and reading books.
• NYC – a few photos from the drive to the airport… I really didn’t have time to go out taking photos like I wanted to.
• Raymond, Debbie and the kids – from an evening out for dinner with the Munks.
• Water in the Yard – Jack playing with the water hose in the front yard.
• Fingerpainting – kind of says it all doesn’t it?
• Nora and Mason – Nora and Mason came over this morning to play.
• Walking Faces – Faces of Jack and one of him walking with his hands in his pockets (a recent discovery)
• Neighbors – Jack, Dylan, Nora and Mason playing at Dylan’s house. Jack took a ride in the bike carrier with Dylan too, thanks to Herbert.

So, I’ve postd a video every day this week, and I figured I should treat you all to something really special today.

Here are five photo galleries I haven’t linked to yet:

• Jack Playing – photos from this week, of Jack and his mom playing (they were “camping” in Jack’s room in a home-made fort, and then Jack was “taking photos” with his camera, and then playing with cars).
• Furniture by Stan – Cyndi’s uncle refinished some antique furniture that my mom gave us a while ago. The furniture looks awesome now, and all the drawers work perfectly now mom! Now our guests (and the new baby) will have a place to put their clothes when they come visit.
• Aggie Jack – the photos from our weekend Aggieland trip.
• Jack by Erin – Erin took some photos of Jack with her mom, sister, Chrstine and I after church on 8/27. Too fun!
• In the Sandbox – just some photos of Jack in the sandbox one afternoon.
• Ben and Jack at Serranos – After church one day, we met Murphy and Amanda at Serranos by accident. We ate inside while Murphy and Amanda (and their guests) watched Jack and Ben, then we came outside and watched the boys while they ate. The boys had sooo much fun playing together.
• Levy Party – Lori and Herbert threw a party for the kids one weekend afternoon. Lots of water splashing and playing outside.
• Lakehouse Swimming – We went to visit Debbie and Raymond on August 19th, and I took these photos outside around the pool. Jack just loved swimming this summer!

And, here’s the double whammy… another video for today:

Have a good weekend folks! (We’ll be nesting!)

Last Friday, Christine and I got on a flight, with Jack, to Seattle. We were heading up there for the weekend to see friends (The Penfields) that we really hadn’t seen in 3 or 4 years, and to meet their daugher (who is 3 now) and let them meet Jack, and to see how big Joel has gotten since the last time we saw him.

Long story short, we had a great trip, but it was way to short, and getting there was “half the battle” so to speak… Needless to say, American Airlines cancelled our Dallas to Seattle flight, so we were facing the possibility of not even going to Seattle for the weekend, but one of their star ticket agents understood our plight, and booked us through Denver to Seattle on Friday. Instead of arriving at 2pm as we’d intended, we arrived at 11:00pm. Jack was pooped.

We were staying at a friend’s condo in downtown: Fourth and Pike. An amazing address, and a great little one bedroom condo: Perfect for “getting away” for the weekend, or a week or two…

On Saturday, we got up ‘early’ and met Kelly, Greg, Joel, and Aubrey at Pike Place Market, and watched the fish throwers throw a few fish… then we walked down to the park, and then headed to our Harbor Cruise reservation. On the cruise, we chatted and caught up, and enjoyed learning about Seattle from the water, and spending time with the kids.

After our cruise, we grabbed a quick bite to eat at Red Robin, and then walked back to the fish market. Aubrey was cute… helping me push Jack’s stroller (he was passed out tired. We said our goodbyes and took Jack home for a nap.

After napping, we headed to the Seattle Aquarium… talk about fun for Jack. He really enjoyed looking at all of the fish and seals and starfish. It was really cute to see him exploring the aquarium.

We ate dinner at the Fisherman Restaurant on the peer, and let Jack have fun running around while we ate… I got up with him and ran around with him… the waitresses thought it was cute.

On Sunday, Jack and I got up early and went for a walk, and took some photos. Then we brought breakfast and coffee up to Christine. And then Christine packed while Jack and I took a nap.

As we were leaving our condo, we realized that the Seattle Gay Pride parade was taking place right outside our condo. Heh… “too funny” is all I’ll say.

We got in our car, and drove to the airport for the flights home. Jack was great on the 4.5 hour flight to Dallas, and fell asleep in Dallas before we even took off, and didn’t wake up until the morning.

It was a great trip, long overdue, and way too short.

The photo galleries are here:

• Seattle, 6/23 – photos from the airport in Dallas.
• Seattle, 6/24 – photos from the Harbor Cruise, Aquarium, and the Carousel.
• Seattle, 6/24 taken by the Penfields
• Seattle, 6/25 – Jack in the morning, and napping.

This past weekend, Christine, Jack and I headed to Bastrop State Park with Marc, Cyndi, Rowan, Jenny, and Michelle. Christine and I haven’t camped out there in 10 years… it was lots of fun then, and now.

Christine rented a tent for us from REI for a very reasonable rate ($24 for the weekend – not bad for a 6 man tent that costs $300+). Cyndi, Marc and Rowan came over to the house around 10:30, and we all drove out to Bastrop around 11:00 a.m.

Talk about a gorgeous day… man it was an awesome day to go camping: blue skies, green grass and tall pine trees, and friends… who could ask for more?

Jack got all scratched up and beat up on his first camping trip. He got scratched on both legs, he got a few bruises on his arms, and he got a nice shiner on his right eye… heh. Fun times!

Here are some photos from the camping trip:

Jack did really good sleeping through the night out in the woods too, though, he did wake up about 4 or five times. Eventually, Christine pulled him out of his Pack and Play and put him in bed with us (we had a blow up mattress) and he only woke us up 3 or 4 times when he was in bed with us… heh… but it was fun. An adventure even.

Rowan was hilarious at times… he’s really getting to be a big boy. We did things like sit around the campfire and make Smores, and walking along the really long windy nature trail, and climbing the hills, and playing with balls, and killing mosquitos – everything you’d expect on a camping trip in Texas.

More photos here.

The weekend of March 11th and 12th was a weekend of Birthdays.

I turned 30 on Friday, March 10th, and Ella turned 2 on Monday March 13th… to celebrate, we had a couple of parties!

Christine threw me a relaxed happy hour birthday party at Brentwood Tavern in Austin on Friday afternoon. We started things around 5:00 and ended around 10:00. Christine brought an Ice Cream cake from ___ and it was gooooood!

John’s 30th Birthday Party photos are here.

On Saturday, we got up and headed to Bellville for Ella’s party.

We got there in time for Jack to take a nap, so we headed over to Grandma’s house, and tried to put Jack down after a quick bite to eat. He wouldn’t sleep. He’s spotted a bucket of toy cars on his way from Chrsitine’s arms into the crib. He went nuts! He just wanted to play with his cars… so we played until it was time to hit the party.

Ella’s party was too much fun. There were kids galore, and lots of friends and family. Some kids fell off the new playscape Evan and Shadel bought, but no one broke them, but no one got seriously hurt. Ella got lots of presents. And all the kids got to eat cake and ice cream (as did the adults).

I took lots of photos, and got lucky (I think) capturing this photo of Conner:

Conner is Lori Lockett’s 3 month old son… isn’t he just adorable?

The photos from the party here.

On Sunday morning, we all got up, and headed to Newman’s bakery for Breakfast. Bussy met us for breakfast, and we had a nice conversation over omelets and pancakes, donut holes and kolaches. Then we went to Grandma’s house to play and show off the deck. She’s building a big deck off the back of the house that should be done in time for Easter.

She’s also got some great places for kids to play in the backyard… including this “funny car” built out of wood with horns and mirrors on it. Got a really great photo of Jack and Ella on that thing:

More photos from Grandma’s house are here.

On Sunday evening, Evan, Chad and Jake Payton (Jake was the ring bearer in our wedding almost 8 years ago (has it been that long?) and is now 15/16 or so), and I played poker. Chad took us all.

On Monday morning we got up, drove home, and returned to the grind.

Had a great weekend though!

This morning came early. Christine woke up around 4:00 a.m., then fell back asleep. I woke up around 5:00 and couldn’t fall back to sleep. So I got up and walked around the boat, waiting for them to finish docking.

By 6:30 a.m. they were done docking, and they were letting people off the boat, based on what floor people were staying on… so Christine got up and we started packing.

We were done packing and out the door by 7:30 or so, and we made it through Customs by 8:15. By 9:00, we were in our car, on the road headed for Austin.

We meant to stop by and see Raymond and pick up a rocking chair for Elise from him, but Loop 610 was under construction, and they’d closed the exits to I-10, so, when we found ourselves on 290, we just hightailed it to Austin.

We did make a pit stop in Cypress to buy some new windshield wipers for the Honda… the old ones sucked, and I could barely see through the rain coming down.

We got to Austin around 12:30 p.m., hugged Mary and Frank before they left, and put Jack down for a nap. We both swear that Jack has grown a few inches, and is acting much older after being away from him for a week.

We’re both exhausted, and are suffering from a mild case of land-sickness. That is, our inner-ears still think we’re on a boat that’s rocking back and forth, but our feet tell us that we’re in our house, and it’s not rocking back and forth. Think reverse sea-sickness.

We’re going to watch the Olympics again tonight, and pass out from shear exhaustion early.

Here’s a quick round up of the last few photos I’m posting from our trip:

• The Drama Bar in Black and White.
• Our Nachos and Quesadillas from Cozumel in the sand.
• Strand of Lights.
• No, Really. Don’t take this photo.
• At Dusk.
• Foggy Morning Docking.

Page through the entire gallery here.

On Wednesday night, Christine and I ate dinner and then headed to the Talent show, which started at 10:00 p.m.

Dinner was great, as usual. I had Schnitzel and Beef Wellington as my main course. Between dinner and the talent show, we went up to the top deck to tour a little at night, and we had fun taking photos of us fighting the wind at the back of the ship.

The talent show was fantastic. Six fellow cruise guests were brave enough to get up on stage and share their talent with us. There was a girl that played piano from New York, a lady that sang a wonderful song about San Francisco, and a guy that did a great piece from Fiddler on the Roof. Then an old guy got up on stage with his little bity trumpet and did a wonderful rendition of Hello Dolly in the spirit of Louis Armstrong. After the guests performed, the crew of the Elation got up on stage to do a skit called “If I Were Not Upon the Sea” which was basically each crew member personifying a job they would have if they didn’t work on the cruise ship, while singing and acting out their jobs “in the round”. It was quite funny.

We stayed up until midnight, which was our latest night on the cruise.

On Thursday morning, we got up, ate breakfast, and headed out to Cozumel. We weren’t docked at a port, as the piers in Cozumel were all destroyed this year by the hurricanes. We had to take a little tender boat ashore.

On the way to shore, I snapped a photo of what remains of one of the main piers… pretty crazy that a hurricane could really destroy that much steel and concrete:

Once ashore, we shopped a little (and met a parrot and a donkey waiting to have their picture taken), and we bought Jack a little mexican ybarra shirt which we think will be really cute once we get him dressed in it. We also picked up a few charms for free… the stores were giving them away as enticements to get us to buy something.

After shopping we headed out for Paradise beach, by way of Downtown Cozumel… we needed to find an ATM, and there’s only one or two on the island. Here’s a map of the island, in case you’re curious. Paradise beach is about half way between Puerta Maya (were our cruise ships docked) and Punta Sur, on the west side of the island. Cozumel is north of Puerta Maya.

Paradise beach was fun… beautiful crushed shell beach, with lots of chairs and umbrellas. We paid for a couple of chairs and an umbrella after finding all of the free ones were taken, and we sat down to enjoy the sun. I walked back out to the road to take a photo of a sunflower I’d spotted on the way in… then grabbed a few beers before sitting down to read.

We read for a few hours, and then I bought lunch. There was a $40 minimum if you used a credit card. That’s a lot of beer in Mexico my friends. Needless to say, when we got back to the boat, I was pretty worthless, and went to bed early.

But, on the way back to the boat, we picked up a hand-made recorder for Jack, and then got in line with our good friends from the cruise (we found some people we didn’t know near the front of the tender line, and they let us cut in line with them).

Last night we took it easy and watched the end of the women’s ice skating at the Olympics…

This morning we got up to enjoy our last day on the cruise, as tomorrow morning we sail into Galveston. We’re going to go lay out in the sun today, and try to even out our sunburns, so we don’t look stupid when we get back on shore.

We laid out today from about 9:30 until noon, but not until both of us had lathered up in plenty of SPF 30 sun block. We were dying hot at noon, so we found some shade and read inside, in the air conditioning for another 30 minutes. Then we headed to lunch outside, where we watched the cruise line’s version of “Survivor at Sea”. What makes these people get up and compete in these games astounds me, but they’re always funny.

After Survivor, we headed in to watch “The Newlywed Game”. Three couples competed. Once couple had been married 50 years, one 25 years, and one 5 days. Needless to say some of the answers were hilarious… and after 50 years, that one couple wasn’t ashamed of much… Hilarious.

We stuck around and palyed BINGO again. $60 down, nothing to show for it… but we do get to keep the BINGO cards! WOOHOO! (That last woohoo is heing yelling in my best Erin Taylor immitation voice.)

It’s about 4:45 p.m. on Friday afternoon as I type this, and we’re about to get ready for dinner, and we’re planning on spending some time outside enjoying the sunset before we head into Galveston tomorrow. Fun times folks.

We’re really enjoying this cruise, and vow to do it again something in the next 20 years.

Something else I should point out. The staff that makes up our rooms always puts a little towel animal in our room, and it’s pretty cute.

Photos from the last couple of days are here and here.

This morning (written on Wednesday, 2/22), our boat docked at Puerto Progresso, Mexico.

Christine and I went ashore around 10:00 a.m. after eating breakfast at the breakfast buffet. After we disembarked the boat, we took a bus into Progresso (the boat docked forever and away from the town… about 10 minutes by bus).

We got off the bus, and Christine called home on our cell phone, to check on things. Home is fine… as is Jack and the Grandparents. I toured the market while Christine was on the phone, and I saw the meat market… ugh. Lots of really fresh fish out under the hot sun covered in flys. I guess the flys keep the fish clean?

We then got on a tour bus headed for Merida, the capital city of the Yucatan state. Merida is about 4 hours from Playa del Carmen, 4.5 hours from Cozumel, and 1000 miles from Mexico City (or so our tour guide told us).

We drove the 20 miles to Merida, and got out at a monument to the Yucatan Mayans, that told the story of the city and state. It was interesting, and I took a few pictures there. Miss Yucatan 2003, 2004, and 2005 were at the monument to take some photos while we were there. I should have taken a few photos of them… heh… but I didn’t. Gosh.

Today was the first day of Carnival, so there were lots of preparations for Carnival in the two cities we visited. And lots of kids going to see the festival.

We got to the city center in Merida, deboarded the bus, and went to the main cathedral. Got some good shots in there. It was interesting to me that Jesus wasn’t nearly as beat up in this church as he was in Guanajuato… I guess life’s a little easier in Merida than it was in Guanajuato.

We then went over to the State Government offices to use the restroom before heading off on our own.

The town square was beatiful… and there were lots of folks just hanging out passing the time talking. I think they were waiting on the parade that kicks off Carnival:

We walked down a few streets to find something to eat. We found a pretty decent place to eat, and had a plate of Nachos Especiale (Nachos with beef and Guacamole – good stuff). Fancy… I know!

Then we shopped for 15 – 20 minutes before heading back to the boat. I bought a bottle of Jim Bean for $10 before we got on the boat… it’s rediculous how much a drink on the boat is. Seriously. I think each drink is at least $5… that’s rediculous…

We then trecked back to the boat, tired and still sunburned… and probably a little redder than when we got off the boat. Merida was fun, and it’s interesting to me how these Mexicans have learned how to get money out of us tourists. On both bus rides to and from Merida, we were offered beer… at $1 a piece… which is cheaper than on the boat, but I guarantee the markup us about 75 percent… considering we’re stuck on the damn bus and it’s 95°F outside… who’s not going to buy a beer or two?

Anyways…

We got on the boat, and headed to our room to take a nap. We ended up watching the movie “Fantastic Four” while our boat headed out to sea. If you haven’t seen it yet, you aren’t missing much.

Tonight is “Guest Talent Show” night, and we’re looking forward to seeing some of the other guests on the boat make fun of themselves. Tomorrow: Cozumel.

Photos from Progresso are here.