Just an average Saturday

February 28, 2015 By

This morning, Bode and I were snuggling up in bed and conversation turned to the beautiful bluebird day. We’ve had a glorious dump of snow this week, which is torturous because I’ve had an annoying cold and haven’t been out to enjoy it. We commented on the sun’s critical role in warming the earth and I remembered a video that NASA released last week that is a 5-year time lapse of the sun.

I’m not one to get emotional about space but seeing explosions of fire brought tears to my eyes. 200 million images were spliced together into an unbelievable display of color and power. “A constant ballet of solar material moving through the sun’s atmosphere,” wrote NASA. Light, in every metaphorical sense, surrounds us, warms us, heals us.

Fascinated, this led Bode to study the black hole and watch a fascinating video showcasing solar flares and an additional ejection of solar material called a coronal mass ejection (CME), and some with complex moving structures in association with changes in magnetic field lines that loop up into the sun’s atmosphere, the corona. 

When I was his age, my Saturday mornings were spent watching Bugs Bunny.

Filed Under: Bode, Humor

Snow Day Updates!

February 26, 2015 By

While back East has been pounded, Colorado forgot it was winter…until this week. Today, many of our area schools declared our first snow day of the year and my kids are rejoicing. Well, Bode is rejoicing; Hadley is still sleeping in. That is her way of celebrating.

We’ve been really busy with travel. A month ago, we were in Cancun. We were at The Broadmoor for Valentine’s Day and 12-year anniversary and then last week for my birthday, we had a fabulous time in Aspen. It’s funny to catch a glimpse at the high life when we’re quite the opposite.  Mile High Mamas is in a lull with advertisers and several of Jamie’s clients are late paying their invoices so we’ve been scrimping and saving…just one of the joys of being self-employed. It’s feast or famine and while we’ve been feasting on our trips, we’ve been famining at home. No complaints, though. Plenty of blessings come from being self-employed, even if it is a roller-coaster at times.

I’ll have many updates on Aspen and I’m still working on my magazine article for The Broadmoor, hence my blogging hiatus. Must. Meet. Deadlines.

I’m a bit under the weather today so am dispatching the kids to their friends Trey and London’s houses. A few other updates:

Jamie. My favorite ski buddy. Working like crazy, countdown to pumpkin season is on and is busy indoctrinating the kids with story lines from Monty Python and the Holy Grail, a movie that I despise.

“Dad, what is the movie rated?” Bode queried.

I responded “‘I’ for Idiot.”

Hadley. Rocked the moguls last week, graduated to Level 6 in ski school and completed huge Egyptian diorama at school that about sent me to my grave (she loves that crafty stuff).

Bode. Skied his first black-diamond run at Buttermilk in Aspen. Student of the week, named me his “hero” because I take him on cool trips,”brought me to earth,” and am an amazing cook.

Who knew it could be that easy?

Filed Under: Hadley, Jamie

From Denver to Cancun with Southwest Vacations!

February 23, 2015 By

A couple of weeks ago, I detailed our family’s awesome trip with Southwest Vacations to Cancun.

Today at Mile High Mamas, I wrote about even more of our experiences and am helping them promote the incredible discount their offering: an all-inclusive resort + air starting at just $749.

Go check-out the fun today at Southwest Vacations: Our luxurious Cancun trip without the expense (get our deal now!)

Related: It’s currently 15 degrees in Denver (chilly even for me) so if you go, take me with you!

Filed Under: Family travel

Growing On Up

February 18, 2015 By

I’m overloaded with travel and deadlines the next few weeks so posting will be sporadic. Thanks to those who have asked about my mom. She’s still in the hospital, not much has changed, and I’m flying home in a few weeks. Please keep those prayers coming.

Last weekend, we went to one of my favorite places on earth, The Broadmoor. The timing was impeccable! Their PR Director gave me the story assignment for their magazine to write about Broadmoor Outfitters, their on-site adventure guides and we had a blast rock climbing, geo-caching in the snow, mountain biking and hiking. Much more to come about that but what made it the most special was being able to celebrate Valentine’s Day and our 12-year anniversary there. I’m so grateful for this little family of mine and my wonderfully handsome, hard-working, spiritual, wise and hilarious husband who not only puts up with but supports my hair-brained ideas.

I posted this picture of us on Facebook and my longtime blogging friend Serf Rhett commented: “Tarnation. I’ve got to get out more often. Who are those small adults posing with you two?”

Tell me about it.  These kids are growing up waaaaay too fast! I had a freak-out moment last week when 10-year-old Hadley (who’s almost my same height and is the tallest girl in her class) told me she needed new running shoes. Her previous pair was a size 5 youth so we started with a Women’s 6. Then 7. Then 7 1/2. Finally, she found a pair that fit: a women’s size 8!!! I also bought her a make-up kit for Valentine’s Day. We’re holding off on eye liner, mascara, etc. until she’s in middle school but her face has been breaking out (hello, puberty) so she has started wearing foundation and lip gloss.

It’s only a matter of time before she starts sharing my shoes, make-up and clothes.

I’m still trying to figure out if that is a good or a bad thing.

Filed Under: Hadley, Health

Southwest Vacations: An iguana bike ride, a too-late discovery and farewell (Cancun Day 4)

February 13, 2015 By

Just tuning in? Be sure to first read:

Southwest Vacations: When Getting There is Half the Fun (Cancun Day 1)
Southwest Vacations: The Flowrider’s Hilarity and Beach Bumming (Cancun Day 2)
Southwest Vacations: A Snorkeling Adventure Within a Misadventure (Cancun Day 3)

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Biking Explorations

A three-night trip with Southwest Vacations wasn’t nearly enough time to explore the Moon Palace Golf & Spa Resort. But thankfully our direct Southwest Airlines flight home didn’t leave until 2 p.m. so we had an entire morning to explore. Since our previous three days had been dedicated to the beach, we opted to check-out some bikes and explore the property’s 55 acres of lush tropical foliage.

Moon Palace implements a wildlife monitoring system that has classified 29 reptile species, 112 bird species and 15 mammal species that live and breed in the resort’s natural areas. We were ecstatic when we spotted a white-nosed coati lurking in the jungle and my daughter almost ran over an iguana (chalk those up to things that never happen in Colorado.)

 

While at the resort, we spent every moment together but my kids were counting down the years until they’d be old enough for the state-of-the-art Wired Teens Lounge. That is, until we stumbled upon the Playroom during our bike ride, a veritable kid’s wonderland geared to potty-trained kids up to age 12.

From various game rooms, an American Ninja-warrior-style play area, outdoor playground, mini-spa, fashion runway to practice the catwalk, a movie theater, arcade, toddler area, Xbox room…the Playroom had it all. What we had intended to be a 5-minute stop turned into an hour and we had to practically drag them out.

For once in their lives, the kids were begging for us to ditch them and we were frustrated we didn’t have enough time before our flight home for them to be ditched.

That is what I call a lose-lose situation.

Our Sad Farewells

Twenty-four hours prior to departure, Lomas Travel called our room to confirm our pick-up time for the airport (usually I’m the one trying to track them down tour operators confirmation).  They were right on schedule, we easily navigated Cancun International Airport and boarded our Southwest Airlines flight to Denver. As we were taking off, I turned around to see this girl of mine.

Sun-kissed. Hair braided. Personalized bracelet. In just four days, she had turned into a Mexican Senorita as she marveled at the wonderland below she had been fortunate to experience.

And so had we all.

It’s a Wrap

Southwest Vacations Shuttle Bus Friends

We arrived in Denver to a cold, snowy night. We collected our luggage, bundled up and loaded the shuttle bus to our car in long-term parking. There were two other couples sitting near us and we started talking.

“I’m so bummed to be home.”

“Me, too. We just got back from Cancun.”

“So did we!”

“Us, three!”

Coincidentally, we had all booked our trips through Southwest Vacations and had been on the same return flight. When I asked about their experience, the younger couple replied, “We had some problems with our hotel the first night. We called Southwest Vacations and they switched us to a different resort with no problems at all.”

The other couple echoed their approval, raving what a smooth trip they’d experienced.

I chuckled. Sure, we’d had some minor bumps in the road due to our own ignorance but it was one of our least stressful vacations ever thanks to being able to pre-book our flights, excursion, resort and transportation.

And finding ourselves in the back of that shuttle bus with those couples was just a reminder of what a small world it is with Southwest Vacations, and that they truly bring the world to you.

Filed Under: biking, Bode, Family travel, Hadley, Humor, outdoors, travel Tagged With:

Southwest Vacations: A Snorkeling Adventure Within a Misadventure (Cancun Day 3)

February 12, 2015 By

Just tuning in? Be sure to first read:

Southwest Vacations: When Getting There is Half the Fun (Cancun Day 1)
Southwest Vacations: The Flowrider’s Hilarity and Beach Bumming (Cancun Day 2)

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Booking our direct flight, ground transportation to and from the airport and our hotel was simple on SouthwestVacations.com. Tougher was narrowing down their excursions because Cancun has a plethora of options such as these:

Camel Safari & Reef Snorkeling Adventure * Selvatica Extreme Canopy Adventure * Chichen Itza Plus Cancun * Xcaret eco-archaeological park full-day tour of ruins and activities * Xel-Ha All Inclusive Eco-Aquatic Park Tour (the Zip Bike looks amazing) *Swim with the Dolphins at Wet ‘N Wild.

The Adventure Before the Adventure

We ultimately decided since we were only in Cancun three days, less was more and we would spend as much time in the sand and surf as possible with the Snorkeling Tour and Lunch. Little did we know our adventure would start before we even left the Moon Palace Golf & Spa Resort.

Our Southwest Vacations confirmation told us we needed to meet our Lomas Travel transportation outside of the Grand section at the resort. Ever the planners, we decided since that was about a 15 minute walk, we would take the shuttle and leisurely eat breakfast there before leaving. All was going according to plan when, just 5 minutes before we were supposed to meet our guide, I had a sinking feeling something was wrong. I approached the concierge.

“Is this the Grand?”

“No, this is the Sunrise section. Grand is on the other side of the resort.”

The other side, meaning where our room was located. We had erroneously assumed that since Sunrise was the “grandest” of the buildings with the most activities, that was the Grand. Turns out Sunrise is Grand. Are you as confused as we were?

We panicked, knowing there was no way we could make it back in time to meet our transport and we had just missed the resort shuttle bus. We would occasionally see golf carts weaving in-and-out of people on the ocean-side trail and I wondered what one needed to do to hitch a ride. Turns out you need to be an idiot.

“Get in the golf cart and we’ll take you!” the bellhop generously offered.

Golf ride for idiots

The Official Adventure

He raced us back just in time to meet our transport and we cruised down the coast on a saltwater breeze to Playa Maroma in the Riviera Maya, just 10 minutes north of Playa del Carmen.

Playa Maroma

Following a brief introduction from our snorkeling guide, we boarded our catamaran, were fitted with snorkeling gear and sailed away on waters so blue they can’t be found on any color chart.

My cerulean reverie was interrupted by my daughter.

“Mom, you look like a dork,” referring to my snorkeling mask, to which I responded to her mirror image as “the pot calling the kettle a dork.”

There was nothing geeky about our two different stops at reefs teaming with marine life. Though the coral wasn’t overly colorful, the iridescent schools of fish were. We squealed as we swam through a jelly fish field, feeling tiny pin-pricks on our skin, and lazily floated above the reef to the slow-motion balletic pulse of the water.

When we weren’t snorkeling, we were munching on chips and water provided by the friendly staff and diving off the back of the boat.

“Hey, Mom. Check-out my pencil dive,” Bode called out.

I’m not sure what happened but his pencil looked more like an ink blot when he unceremoniously plopped into the water.

“Hey Bode,” I joked back. “Why don’t we just call that one an ‘eraser dive’ so we can forget about it?”

Once back on shore, an open-air buffet lunch was included in our incursion where we were serenaded by a mariachi band.

Bode brought down the house with the very unforgettable Mexican “Chicken Dance.”

We spent our final hour frolicking on Maroma Beach’s wide open transparent water, convinced we had landed in a world of movie-set perfection.

Unintended Adventure No. 2

Though my husband and I hadn’t had an optimal first experience along the hotel strip years ago, we wanted the kids to experience at least a taste of Cancun so we had our driver drop us off downtown. However, something got lost in translation and instead of delivering us to an outdoor, touristy market like we requested, he left us at a mall–something I despise in the U.S. and appreciate even less in a foreign country. We realized this just as he was driving away with all our snorkeling gear, and the instructions to return in 1.5 hours.

I tracked down an older American couple and they pointed us in the correct direction, several miles down the road. Then we had our second misadventure of the day: We hopped on a Cancun public bus, prayed for the best (it turned out to be perfectly fine) and we eventually found a gloriously tacky tourist market.

The moment we stopped off the bus, I kid you not, an overzealous man almost crossed the street in an attempt to lure us into his store. “What is he doing?” Hadley asked, ready to get back on the bus. “Don’t worry, it’s just the way it’s done here,” I soothed, which was the only calming moment of the experience.

But our extra effort was worth it. I loved watching my kids haggle with the locals. Hadley got her hair braided and a personalized bracelet while Bode got a fair price for a shark T-shirt.

We were ecstatic when we arrived back at the resort and I asked Hadley, “So, what did you think of the market?”

She thought long and hard and then equated it to our favorite card game: “It was just like the chaos of playing Pit.”

Welcome to Cancun.

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Stay tuned tomorrow for Southwest Vacations: An iguana bike ride, a too-late discovery and farewell (Cancun Day 4).

Filed Under: Bode, Family travel, Hadley, Humor, Jamie, travel

Southwest Vacations: The Flowrider’s Hilarity and Beach Bumming (Cancun Day 2)

February 10, 2015 By

Just tuning in? Be sure to first read Southwest Vacations: When Getting There is Half the Fun (Cancun Day 1).

When you have only three nights in Cancun with Southwest Vacations, you can either try to cram it all in or take it easy. We took one look at at the Moon Palace Golf & Spa resort’s staggering amount of activities and decreed we needed to spend an entire day at the resort doing nothing…and everything.

One of my favorite travel traditions is to go for an early-morning run upon arrival. There’s something untainted and magnificent about watching the sun wake up your new world and I was entranced by what I saw on property. From a curious field of sunflowers overlooking the ocean,

to a tranquil beach,

to a preview of the resort’s seven outdoors pools that are among the largest lagoon-style pools in Mexico.

Sand and Surf

Following a delicious buffet whereupon we discovered the best thing ever to happen to breakfast–sweetened condensed milk on pancakes and waffles–we hit the pools. We were among the first in line to test our surfing skills on the Flowrider where thousands of gallons of water create two lanes of endless waves. Eager beavers? More like we arrived early to avoid witnesses to our inevitable humiliation. We had a couple of options: We could bodyboard on the FlowRider or attempt the standup flow boards. As newbies, we opted for the former and after the initial fear of  dropping into the bowl,  we felt pure exhilaration as we rode the unbroken waves, carved turns and cut back and forth.

As it turns, face-plants are the norm there so we were in good company.

We settled onto the beach where we played volleyball, glided through the Caribbean waters in kayaks to watch the on-site Dolphin Discovery program, built sand castles and strolled the surf.

Conditions were cloudy yet still warm, likely scaring off the crowds. I settled back to read a book in the temperate weather while the kids played. 

I think some people call it relaxing. It was a first for me but won’t be my last.

The All-Inclusive Obsession

This was my children’s first all-inclusive resort experience and they whole-heartedly embraced it. I gave them some freedom but not as much as Hadley would have preferred. “Mom, I think you need to just let us explore. I mean, set boundaries, of course, but we’ve got it from here.”

By “here,” she meant bouncing between the pool, beach and the Sweets and Coffee shop where we downed about 20,000 calories of mini-cheesecakes (but who’s counting, we didn’t!)

We also became virgin Piña Colada and Miami Vice addicts (the drink, not the tacky 1980s show).

I knew we had a problem when we had to prematurely cut Bode off to rush to make a reservation. Our normally low-maintenance son lashed out, “This is the second time today I have been denied my pina colada.”

His reentry into the real world wasn’t pretty.

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 Tune in tomorrow for “Southwest Vacations: A Snorkeling Adventure Within a Misadventure (Cancun Day 3).”

 

 

 

Filed Under: Bode, Family travel, Hadley, Jamie, travel Tagged With:

Southwest Vacations: When Getting There is Half the Fun (Cancun Day 1)

February 8, 2015 By

Shortly before Christmas, I was perusing through my  spam folder when I happened upon an email entitled “Southwest Vacations – Mexico Vacation Opportunity.”

I don’t know about you but I’m regularly “winning” the lottery and dream vacations so I almost automatically deleted it but I’m so glad I didn’t.  The email explained that Southwest Vacations® recently launched service to Mexico and the Caribbean and they were wondering if my entire family would consider taking a trip from Denver (one of their top departure cities) to Cancun.

View from the Moon Palace Golf & Spa Resort

Though I was obviously familiar with Southwest Airlines®, I had never heard of Southwest Vacations and a bit of research revealed they are directly affiliated with the affordable airline and offer complete vacation packages to Las Vegas, Disney World, Disneyland, Florida, California, New Orleans, Phoenix and other top US destinations.

Low-cost vacation packages that you do not have to plan yourself? Sign me up!

The process was embarrassingly easy, given the amount of research that usually goes into planning a trip and it was a comfort to know that all the services had already been vetted. At SouthwestVacations.com, I booked our direct flights, transfer information to-and-from the airport, hotel, excursions and paid my international taxes…all with a few simple clicks.

We surprised the kids with the news of our Cancun vacation on Christmas and they were thrilled. I usually spend the final weeks leading up to a major vacation stressing and planning but I literally had nothing to do because everything had already been confirmed. I started stressing over my lack of stress, which made me realize that maybe I have a problem with needing to feel stressed.

And then I got over it really quickly and decided for once, I would find out what it was like to have a stress-free Southwest Vacation.

The Flight

I checked our family into Southwest Airlines 24 hours before our flight to ensure an optimal boarding assignment. We have flown a number of times but have never had an international direct flight and it was a game-changer. Instead of wasting essentially two days to get there with our usual layovers, we gained an entire day to enjoy Cancun during our quick 3-night trip.

Say “yes” to Southwest’s direct flight from Denver to Cancun!

Our 3.5-hour flight went smoothly and upon arriving at the Cancun International Airport, we were greeted with a madhouse (apparently we weren’t the only ones who had opted for a long-weekend getaway during Martin Luther King Jr. Day). We eventually made it through Customs without a hitch…until we were randomly selected to have our bags searched. Seeing the wad of small bills for tips in my purse, the officer queried, “Ma’am, does this exceed $10,000?” I tried to stifle a laugh–it was like he totally knew me.

The instructions on our Southwest Vacations confirmation were to walk directly from Customs and not stop to talk to the multitude who was trying to sell timeshares. We quickly spotted our Lomas Travel representative and were mercifully whisked away in an air-conditioned shuttle.

The Resort

I had only been to Cancun once before on a brief stopover during a cruise and my first impression was not favorable. Though the Caribbean waters were undeniably beautiful, the hotel zone seemed like non-stop revelries and for a non-partier who craves outdoor adventure, I couldn’t figure out the allure.

When my family pulled up to the Moon Palace Golf & Spa Resort–a short drive from the airport but seemingly worlds away (40 minutes) from Cancun’s populous hotel zone–I caught a glimpse. A doting staff presented us with flowers, cool washcloths and we gratefully devoured a spread of snacks in the lobby during while singing, “I think I’m gonna like it here.”

Moon Palace is a sprawling all-inclusive resort, boasting 2,446 luxurious marble décor rooms and private balconies with three distinctive sections. We stayed at the more secluded and quiet Grand section, the expansive Sunrise is replete with activities and pools while the Nizuc section has exclusive concierge service with shuttles connecting them all. I love that despite the size (which seemed overwhelming at times), each area had its own personality and the cozy feel of the Grand perfectly suited us. We had one of their most basic rooms and it was anything but basic.

Our room’s private balcony overlooking the jungle

A double jacuzzi for one fully-clothed boy

A helpful concierge helped us narrow down their 13 restaurant choices and made us dinner reservations at the Brazillian steakhouse, Arrecifes. As we were walking the ocean-side path to dinner, we caught our first view of the water. My daughter begged, “The ocean is calling and I must go” (or something like unto it) but her killjoy parents’ stomachs were calling even louder so we forced dinner upon her. As she stuffed her face with delectable Bolinhos de arroz, acaraje, and empadinhas de palmito, we learned two things about the Moon Palace: 1) We were going to eat well and 2) We were going to eat a lot.

Following dinner, we hit the abandoned beach. Still in our dinner clothes, my husband and I initially cautioned them to merely walk in the sand. But of course, the kids needed to at least touch the water! And then you can’t expect them to merely wade! Before long, they were vacillating between being fully submerged and building sandcastles.

Jamie and I settled back on the beach and watched as the full moon burned down and Cancun glistened with silver lights like a galaxy of fallen stars.

Hadley looked at the horizon, that long line that cuts the world in two, and flung some sand toward it.

“Did you see that?” she squealed as she launched another handful. When it hit the dark ocean, the moon’s reflection lit up each grain of sand like a bioluminescent bay, a befitting touch of lunar magic in the hauntingly beautiful Moon Palace.

Just when we thought our trip to Southwest Vacations couldn’t get any better, it did just that.

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Stay tuned for tomorrow for Southwest Vacations: The Flowrider’s Hilarity and Beach Bumming (Cancun Day 2).

 

Filed Under: Bode, Family, Family travel, Favorite Posts, Hadley, Humor, Jamie, travel Tagged With: ,

My mid-life crisis

February 7, 2015 By

Jamie and I were recently talking in bed and he casually mentioned my mid-life crisis.

“My mid-life crisis? What are you talking about? I’m not having a mid-life crisis. I’m perfectly happy and grateful!”

“Really? Because a couple of weeks ago, you wrote about feeling at a crossroads in your life and were frustrated over your lack of direction.”

“So, that’s normal. Everyone feels that way sometimes.”

“And then last week, you were talking about how bummed you are that your body is falling apart and how it’s all downhill from here.”

“I’m having a mid-life crisis!”

“Yup.”

“Well, have you had your mid-life crisis?”

“Yes. I was 28, got cancer and lost my job.”

If you’re going to have a mid-life crisis, I wouldn’t recommend his.

Now, excuse me while I go buy a Ferrari and get a face lift.

 

 

Filed Under: Humor, Jamie

Why Siri is my soulmate and my children are savages

February 5, 2015 By

The Compromisers

Every New Year, our church schedule changes from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. For most people, 11 a.m. is the most optimal time to give you extra time in the mornings. I was particularly looking forward to the change this year because it will still give us time to drive back from the mountains and make it to church on weekends we’re away.

I was recently reminded that all that extra time lends itself to mischief.

It started out innocently, as it always does. Jamie’s and my king-sized bed is a central place in mornings and evenings. Somehow, we all congregate here to snuggle up, read, watch TV and just hang out. On Sunday, we were playing around on my iPhone and we had a blast looking at their technologically outdated websites Jamie made announcing their birth, which I haven’t seen in years (Hadley’s and Bode’s).

That led them to asking about milestones in their lives like the first day of kindergarten, birthdays, etc. and it was so fun to glean the archives in my blog. It made me so grateful I’ve kept a record of all these memories and reminded me I need to bite the $$$ bullet and get my blog printed into a book for our own family history.

Then they started getting bored and who better to entertain you than Siri on the iPhone? We learned some interesting facts about her animal preference:

Ummm, OK.

Here’s the thing about Siri: I’ve trained her well. Not only does she talk to me in an Australian accent but she calls me “Queen Mother.”

The kids have a whole string of funny nicknames and songs they’ve made up–most recently they’ve been calling me “Muzzy, Muz, Muzzy Boo.” That would have been swell if they’d programmed Siri to call me that but it was worse. Much worse. Poor Siri had been compromised and all I could do was sit back and watch. Deeply dismayed, I finally rescued Siri and told her “Don’t let my children play with my phone.”

She responded with a web search for “Raising Savages.”

It’s like she totally gets me.

Filed Under: Humor, LDS
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