Oh no the Big 6-0!

Mom has gotten to celebrate several times this month for her birthday and this weekend we celebrated again.  We all went to a great little mexican restaurant and then home for cake and ice cream and presents.  The boys are old enough now that they are the entertainment most of the time.  Between Troy taking pictures and wanting to play on everyone's Iphone and Teague making silly faces and talking a mile a minute we were kept laughing most of the meal. 






Amber and Taylor




Amber and I got mom some TOMS that we had custom painted by a friend with the Rangers theme.  They turned out so cute and she acted like she really liked them.

Birthdays in Puerto Rico

The Puerto Rico trip was so much fun!!  The idea to go was thought of awhile back because Mom was turning 60 and Blake was turning 30 this summer so we thought that would be a good excuse to go visit Blake and have a fun, family vacation. While we were on the catamaran ride Amber and I got some fruit and put these candles on it and surprised Blake.   With a quiet and quick rendition of Happy Birthday!



The next night we surprised mom by having the waitress bring her creme brulee with a candle on top!!  She had no clue what was going on!!






It was a great vacation and after a week with no cares or worries I feel rested and ready to re-enter the real world!! 

Catamaran Trip

Our last day was spent on a catamaran ride and snorkel trip. I highly recommend this excursion if you ever go to any island. It's a 6.5 hour trip with lunch, snacks and all you can drink provided. We went to shallow snorkel near a beach and then after lunch they moved locations and we deep snorkeled, where were got to see a sting ray. We had a fun first mate and a fun group of people on the boat, which makes the trip that much more enjoyable! 

Blake and Kenny

Here is where we went to snorkel!!

The first mate who helped us with our snorkel gear and also sailed the boat.

Kite Boarding

Today we took a taxi over to a different beach where Blake and Kenny said the wind is better for kite boarding.  There were these cute little cabana beds that offered shade that mom and dad loved and plenty of comfy chairs for me and Amber in the sun.  We were served food and drinks all day while watching the boys kite board.




Kite boarding looks very cool, but when you see how much goes into doing it, it's also a ton of work.  It was basically surfboarding while strapped to a huge kite. There were tricks that the guys did that they made look easy, but with the strength of the wind and being able to control the kite and your board and your position in the air and your landing position...it just amazed us to watch them!









Out for dinner again.  Besides dinner, Amber and I lived in our swim suits, so we had to make sure we got at least one picture every night just to show we did bring actual clothes.

Historic San Juan

Today, Blake and his friend Kenny, took us around Old San Juan. We got to see where the cruise ships dock and the nice tourist part of San Juan, but we also got to see the slums of San Juan. We toured an old fort built on the tip of Puerto Rico that was really interesting. The different structures around the city were really neat to see so that is what we took the most pictures of today!!

The fountain just below the Governor's Mansion.


The largest church in Puerto Rico



Blake and his friend Kenny! 


Kenny caught a baby iguana



Different pictures from the fort

A triangular staircase







Afterwards we went to lunch at Vaca Brava and literally got a rack of meat to feed all six of us!!  We were super hungry and tired after all the walking so we were all ready to dig in!!

Here is our empty rack.  We had one little piece of sirloin left that no one could seem to fit in their full bellies!


After lunch, we caught the ferry across to tour the Bacardi factory where San Juan is known as the island of fun, sun and rum.  It was very interesting to hear all the history behind Bacardi and how they manufacture their rum.  At the end of the tour you get two free drinks to try all their different rums.  What a great way to end a long, fun day of sight seeing!!

Photo shoot day

We started the day on the beach and then went to Oceano for brunch. Afterwards, we went back to the beach. For dinner we went to a chinese restaurant and then to the casino. I lost $2 but had about an hour of fun!! Most of the day was spent snapping pictures and doing little photo shoots with the beautiful scenery!