Babies! and Anniversaries! and Weddings, oh my!

Yes, I’m just going to roll all of this into one post…so hang on to your britches, it’s going to be a long’un.

The month of March has just flown by for us but it has been filled with wonderful, wonderful things. 

BABIES: We started the month out babysitting my friend Jodi’s precious twin boys, Jensen and Noah. It took some convincing on my part to get Lane to babysit with me, but once we were there, I’m pretty sure he loved it!

The boys were napping when we arrived and Jodi said that they were both feeling bad, so we were a little worried that we would be with sad, crying babies all night. It was actually quite the opposite. Those little boys were just as sweet as they could be. We fed them, loved on them, played with them and had so much fun!

(sorry for the crappy cell phone pics)

We watched the boys play bumper cars and thoroughly enjoyed it!Jensen is stealthy in his walker! He would follow Lane to and from the kitchen without hitting a single wall.

Jensen and Lane became best buddies!

Sick little Noah just needed some love from both of us!

Anniversary: The following weekend, we celebrated our second wedding anniversary! I’m conflicted because, while it feels like yesterday that we were just walking down the aisle, it also feels like the two years should actually be ten.

We were able to celebrate this year with a STAYcation. Thanks to a generous birthday gift from my best friend, Mary C., we spent the night in a suite at the wonderful Stoneleigh Hotel in Dallas. It also included dinner at their fabulous restaurant, Bolla. We checked in and had crazy good drinks and snacks on the patio.

On the patio at the Stoneleigh.

 

Duck confit spring rolls and pomme frites.

We went back to our room and got ready for dinner. It was fun to get dressed up and know that we’d  have a nice dinner coming our way. It was a great weekend. We fall more in love every single day. I didn’t know that my heart could get much bigger! I am so thankful to have an amazing partner, best friend and boyfriend all rolled into one! Here’s to another 60 years!

Weddings: Finally, the month of March is coming to a conclusion and there was no better way I can think to spend it, than in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico celebrating the wedding of our dear friends Ashleigh and Raymond.

When we first heard that the wedding was going to be in Cabo, we almost certainly knew we wouldn’t be able to go. We’ve really had to tighten our purse strings this year and a vacation to Mexico was certainly not in the budget. Fortunately, we both have unbelievably wonderful parents and they were able to bless us with opportunity to go. Lane hated the thought of missing his best friend’s wedding, and I hated the thought of Lane going on a vacation without me, so we are truly forever grateful for our parents intervening. It is beyond me how generous those four people can be. We are so lucky and hope to one day be as generous as they are.

The weather was perfect and there’s nothing like waking up to the sights, sounds and smells of the ocean. We stayed at the Riu Palace in Cabo. Neither of us have ever been to an All-Inclusive resort so we loved the idea of free drinks anytime we wanted!

When we arrived, we were able to spend a little time on the beach with the whole group.

The view of half of the resort from the lobby bar.

The view from our beach…the southernmost tip of the Baja Peninsula.

Sweet baby Jack. Raymond and Ashleigh’s son.

 

Boy time on the beach.

That night, we got ready and attended Ray and Ashleigh’s rehearsal dinner. It was held a Mexican restaurant on property. We were greeted at the door with Margaritas…what else could be better?

 

Obligatory shot before dinner. This view will never get old.

 

The next day we woke up, went to the pool and then got ready for the wedding. It was a HOT day, but perfectly sunny and beautiful. The ceremony was set up on the beach with the archway looking directly at the Baja tip.

The wedding was beautiful. The bride was beautiful. The ceremony was beautiful. It was a really special moment that definitely left a few tears in my eyes. The officiant  had a great message. It particularly stuck out to me when he was talking about the rings. He said that the ring is something to be so proud of. Because that ring is an outward symbol that says you are someone’s husband or wife. It says that you are proud to be a spouse and that someone is proud to call you their spouse. He said it a little more eloquently, obviously, but I loved it. I always like looking at Lane’s hand with his wedding ring on it. It makes me feel great knowing that when other people see him, they know, because of the ring he’s wearing, that he’s proud to be called a husband and that he’s proud that I’m his wife.

The ceremony was short and sweet (just how we Baptists like it!) There were lots of onlookers and they cheered when the happy couple kissed!

After the wedding, we put our swimsuits back on and enjoyed a day in the sun!! Thank you Raymond and Ashleigh for including us in your big day!

Our last full day in Cabo, we decided to go deep sea fishing. It’s something that Lane loves to do and I’ve never done before. We’ve always heard that the fishing in Cabo is supposed to be amazing, so we couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

I’ll fast forward through all of the gritty details and say that we were highly disappointed in the captain and the charter. They were too lazy to take us out to fish for marlin or tuna and ended up only fishing for mackerel just off the shore line. We caught one fish. One. If it weren’t for the other sea life we saw, I would probably have thrown a fit. But, it was all made worth it for three reasons…Whales, dolphins and sea lions (seals…what’s the difference?). We saw some seals/sea lions as we were leaving the marina, but the best part came when we were, what felt like, surrounded by GIANT whales. We saw a baby and a mama that were probably 20 feet from our boat.

At one point, there were dolphins chasing our boat!

And, as we were coming back into the harbor, a little old man sea lion/seal (still don’t know the difference even after googling it) hopped up on the back of our boat and wanted to take the extra bait off of our hands. He was precious. I really wanted to pet him and possibly take him home with me. He and Knox would be best buds, I’m sure of it.

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Oh, and here’s our one measly fish that the guide caught and let Lane reel in.

A few pictures from the boat:

Pretending to fish.

Lane’s friend David came all the way from Baghdad for the wedding.

Early morning on the boat.

The bait that we drove an hour for….

Amy and Aaron, who we were so glad to spend time with.

We returned to the resort in time to hang out. After a long nap by the pool, we decided that we need a little something different than what the hotel buffet had to offer us. Amy and Aaron researched a local restaurant that had great reviews on TripAdvisor.com and we decided to tag along with them. We were so glad we  did! It ended up being one of the best meals I’ve had in a long time. The restaurant was called Pancho’s, but never fear, there is no flag to raise here. It is known for its wide variety of tequila. Lane and Aaron sampled some tequila, which I’m learning is similar to wine in the way that it’s aged and processed. It was served in what looked like champagne glasses and they sipped on it for the flavor. Amy and I had a bacon wrapped tuna steak that looked like a nice baseball cut of filet mignon. It was MUY DELIICOUSO. The “special pepper sauce” that it was served with should be served in that same tequila sipping glass because I could drink it all. night. long.

The waiter pouring the very special tequila.

While we were sad to leave the beautiful view from our hotel, we were happy to be home in our own bed with our buddy. I came home with some awesome cankles. I mean, we’re talking elephant sized feet and ankles. Apparently I had a bad reaction to the sun (fell asleep on the boat while we were fishing) and it caused my legs to swell up! Who knew! Oh well, it’s given me an excuse to down some benadryl and keep my feet propped up. Live and learn!

whew. I literally just sighed out loud. This post is over. If you’re still reading, I salute you.  Time really does fly when you’re having fun. We are so thankful for the friends and family we are surrounded by that have provided us such amazing opportunities. This was definitely a March to remember.