Caribbean Cruise

{ sorry for the picture overload.....this is for journaling sake} In June, I went on a cruise to the Caribbean with 3 of my friends. We had SO. MUCH. FUN. Haiti, Jamaica, Grand Cayman and Cozumel. Loved every minute. The extra weight gain...not so much!

The first two days were at sea. We had a blast roaming the ship, eating a LOT, playing Name That Tune in the Schooner Bar, swimming, napping, and lots more! Our first stop was Labadee, Haiti. It's a private island that Royal Caribbean owns. We signed up for ziplining. The world's longest zipline ever! It was beautiful! And, disclaimer.....all drinks were non alcoholic. :)

The next stop was Jamaica! Most definately my favorite place! We spent the day at a private resort with a private beach! It was so beautiful! The water was so clear and warm and it was amazing. We had great food, lots of cold drinks, and the softest sand under our feet!

Grand Cayman was our next stop. It was so HOT. But, it was beautiful and the whitest sand I've ever seen. We got lounge chairs on the beach, swam, ate, and shopped. Jen spotted a KFC on our way to Tiki Beach. Even on vacation, she was still thinking business! Susie took a picture of her feet. Her nails totally matched the water. We had fun but we were ready to get back on the boat and chill! I can't wait to go back and swim with the sting rays. I think I can talk my friends into it.

That night on the ship.....it was rainy and overcast. We went out on the top deck to check out the rock climbing wall and wave rider. It was a little creepy to be in the middle of nowhere with a storm coming.

I'm pretty sure that this was the dessert that we all got 2 of! Chocolate Molten Cake. Sinful.

Our last and final stop was in Cozumel, Mexico. Can you see how beautiful this water is? We went shopping at this local market right off the ship. We got some cool things! Susie and Jen were making all sorts of deals on silver jewelry. It was hilarious!

We then sailed for the last 2 days back to Florida. We went to the spa, walked the track, watched an outdoor movie, and started to pack up. We played a country music trivia and our group won!! Well, we tied another group. So, the tie breaker was rock paper scissors. We didn't win that. But, I'm still counting that as a win.

Our waiters were so sweet. They honestly were probably sick of us by the end of the trip. All those diet cokes. Savory bites and extra desserts. Well, that's what they get paid for right?

Thanks so much guys for a great trip! We always have so much fun traveling together! Can't wait to plan the next trip!

Something old gets a face lift

Found this cute little charming bookcase that I needed to make a home for. It's sad home was in my garage for a few months but I finally decided on the color, the finish, the knobs, and what to put in it! I LOVE how it turned out. It totally houses a place for my Dr Seuss collection! Finally! And the Anthropologie knobs were on clearance. SCORE! Welcome to my home.

I do.

i love my job. Whether it's celebrities, red carpets, music videos, weddings, teaching, or just plain doing my moms makeup. I just love.

What's been happening.................

On June 22nd, my dad had an appointment for an angiogram. We were expecting everything to be fine, but the doctor came out and said he needed open heart surgery. The very next day. We were so scared. My dad and I are so close and everything was happening so fast! He had the surgery, and everything went well. He stayed in ICU for about a week and that was so hard seeing him like that. My mom was such a trooper. Hardly ever left the hospital. And, our saving grace was Joann Fogg. She was at the hospital with us for hours and hours and never left my moms side. She even had my mom spend the night since she lived so close to the hospital. It's been 6 weeks now, and my dad is slowly recovering. I can't wait for him to be back to normal! Some other EXCITING NEWS.....My grandma Rose found out she had a sister! After 88 years of being an only child. My uncle Jim did some geneology work and put all the missing pieces together and now we have a new addition to our family! Her name is Frances but we call her Aunt Fluff. We had the opportunity to go to New Mexico and meet her for the first time. I'm sure it was so overwhelming to her.....keeping all the kids names straight and who belonged to who! She grew up an only child as well. Their meeting was so sweet! It was such a cool experience learning about her and her life. I was sad my parents weren't able to go because of my dads surgery, but we're all looking forward to a trip to Oklahoma. Robin, Tony and I flew into Albuquerque and spent a little time there. We then drove to Santa Fe and spent the night. We shopped, ate some awesome mexican food, and did a little sight seeing. Then, we drove into Farmington where we met Aunt Fluff. We took tons of pictures, spent great time with family, and were sad to say goodbye.

Aunt Jo and Uncle Burr

Me and my sister Robin

All the girls

Me, Angel, Fluff, Grandma Rose, Robin, Shari, Sarah and Aleecia

Belton, Aunt Fluff, Grandma, Shari, Ava and Jane

Tony, Aunt Fluff, Grandma Rose and Robin Sarah, Aleecia, Aunt Fluff, Grandma Rose and Eric Burr, Aunt Fluff, Grandma Rose, and Jo Lily, Aunt Fluff, Grandma Rose and Mike

Look at these two cuties! SISTERS! They were inseperable. It was like catching up on 80 plus years of life! I got to stay with my Grandma, so I was able to join in on all the conversations. It was such a blast!

Shari and Beltons cute little girl Ava. She is adopted from China and we are so lucky to have her in our family! I love that little girl!

We got to spend a day up in Purgatory, Colorado. We had so much fun. We rode the alpine slides.....much faster than I remember them to be when I was young, and took the scenic ski lift up the mountain. The weather was beautiful until we got rained on! While we were on the lift. It was still a great memory. Little Ava even bungee jumped. We didn't think she would, but she got right up there and proved us all wrong! We finished the day in Durango with lunch and shopping! Great times!

While we were in Santa Fe, we got to see this miraculous staircase in a church there. It was built with absolutely no nails. It was amazing. I loved the old town of Santa Fe.

While in Albuquerque, we rode the tram up to Sandia Peak. It was amazing! 10,000 feet! The view was spectacular. I never did this as a kid, so I'm glad we were able to go this time!

This is definately a trip I will never forget. It was a whirlwind, and I wasn't sure if I wanted to leave my parents at home, but I'm SO glad I ended up going. Not only did I get to meet my new Aunt, but got to see all my family from New Mexico and Texas. Whom I love so much!!