Washington Pictures!

They're finally up!

Awwwwww, yeah.




As for the narrative, well, we'll see about that.

I woke up this morning and I could almost feel it.

While finishing up our packing this morning, I put on "Recycled Air" by The Postal Service to see if it might come; that wave of nostalgia for everything that a trip to the Northwest brings to me. It's unbelievable to me how a place can leave such gaping hole in your heart that can hardly be filled with music or coffee you try to place in it simply because they remind you of it all.

It's been (almost) five years since the last time I was in Washington. And I knew very little about how much life would change in the month following that trip. I can't say I didn't know it was coming. I sensed something there, some thrill of change lingering in the air that I'd tasted the year before - my first visit there. And now my visit this time includes that change in human form and I can't tell you how excited I am to share this place with Cliff.

Washington brings out great things in me, and I know no other way to explain it except that some part of me feels at home there. Alive. Exhilarated. Awake.

Everyone keeps asking me what I'm most excited about, because goodness knows there's a lot.

And I keep talking about that moment I first walk out of the SEA-TAC airport to feel and breathe the air. Right now, that's what I'm most excited about. And I probably won't get over that for a couple of days because I've been craving that feeling for so long. It's nothing short of a drug. In fact, I'm already dreading the next bout of withdrawal (though at least this time it's only a couple of months since we're headed to Portland at the end of October).

Whew. Just a few more hours and we're off.

Can't wait for the adventures to come.

I Dream About This

All day long.

(sigh) It can't come fast enough.

I Am Sustaining

Wow, what a week!

104 Transfer Students, 96 Transfer Parents, 318 Freshman Students, and 482 Freshman Parents later (that's exactly 1,000 people, in case you were counting) the first week of Summer Orientation 2009 is officially done.

I have been so incredibly amazed at how well this week has gone. My colleagues, my student staff, and all of the new Belmont community members have blown me away with their energy, their excitement, and their desire to really make this orientation great.

I've learned a lot, even in just the last week, about how all of this is really supposed to work. Who supports me, what sustains me, and how I rather enjoy the execution much, much more than the planning.

I am whole, a week later, thanks to many things including the Lord, my wonderful husband, family, friends, co-workers, and students.

Also thanks to these incredibly material but amazing things:

The Keen Whisper. These things, after a short run with a different pair of new sandals and eight blisters to show for them (which will go unnamed), have been like heaven for my feet.

"Manners" by Passion Pit. It's the only sure-fire 5:30AM drive-to-work and 10:30PM drive-home pick-me-up. It's an amazing album.




Royal Robbins Discovery Skort. I've got no shame in bringing back the skort, especially when I'm running around for nearly sixteen hours in a day.

And no thanks to coffee, which I gave up for the week and did fairly well without (despite getting very little sleep and running on fumes by the end of some days). It's never smelled so good in my life, however, considering most of my students have been running around in the mornings with a cup of it permanently attached to their hands.




We are taking the weekend off at the lake, and I couldn't be more excited about the prospect of sunshine, the water, the great weather, the warmth, a stack of good books, the food, and the time away.

Hope y'all have a great weekend!

In Full Gear

I don't think I knew that time could go by this quickly.

It feels like just yesterday was May 1st, and now here we are on the edge of my birthday weekend which always means that the end of May is only a week away.

We are in full gear, for sure. Both of us so busy at work we're forgetting to eat lunch some days and to surface for air. And the funniest thing happens when both of us cross our respective work thresholds at 4:30PM. We're in normal mode.

Sure, normal is still relatively busy because we've got tons of extra little things like photo sessions, Dale Carnegie class, men's and women's groups, and work functions.

But it's like my brain shuts off and I forget where I am, I forget how busy life is, I forget how much is really going on when I have moments like getting into the safe cocoon of my car on the drive home and blaring "Strawberry Swing", or in the movie theatre with friends on a Wednesday night watching a straight up chick-flick, or sitting out in the middle of pure Tennessee country holding a sleeping baby in my arms and watching a bonfire die out as the next to last guests leave the Lampo ELP picnic.

Oh, I could have sat out there forever. It was so rewarding after the busy and yet good day I had at work yesterday. So much is happening in preparation for Summer Orientation to begin in just a few short weeks, I got a huge chunk of to-dos chopped off the list and it just felt nice.

We're getting away for the night and tomorrow with Natalie and Ryan to play outside, jump in waterfalls, and just be. The prospect of more "being out in the country" sounds like heaven right now, and I'm very much looking forward to it! That is, before returning on Sunday to my first Associate wedding and celebrate me being alive for a quarter of a century. Weird.

Hope you all have a beautiful holiday weekend and take time to relax!

It's Booked! ...and a CONTEST.

Our second anniversary trip is now official! We've been planning it for months, but yesterday we hunkered down, got most of the details kinked out, and soon enough we'll be on our way... in 67 days that is.

Wanna know where we're going?

...



...


Well, you have to guess!

Only thing is, it's more than just one place...



So what do you do, now?

1. Name the state and specific locations from the image (CLUE ONE) above.
2. Send me an e-mail with your answers.
   

The first person with the correct answers GETS A PRIZE.

(No really, I'm serious! It's rather well-suited to the theme of the trip, I should add...)

This will be the first of daily clues I'll offer through Tuesday. So if at any point, you've already submitted your answers and you change your mind, just guess again! And as you will notice, I've disabled comments so as to give a fair advantage to everyone participating (to trust their answers aren't being copied.)

Have at it, friends!

The Moment You've All Been Waiting For (Part Two)

Day Three

• An even earlier start to the day because it was Easter, and we had a trip ahead of us out to El Cajon for a wonderful service at Shadow Mountain Community Church where David Jeremiah is the pastor (whose name and face I recognized from years of working at a Christan bookstore).
• After church, we spent some time just resting and walking around Balboa Park, touring the gardens, drinking coffee in a courtyard cafe, stopping over and over again to take pictures of the beautiful fountains, flowers, and architecture.
• From Balboa we drove out to Pacific Beach again and stopped a seeming hole-in-the-wall which turned out to be the world's largest Hawaiian BBQ chain called L&L. Oh My Gosh. If you've never had Hawaiian BBQ, try it sometime in your lifetime. It's soooooo good.
• Next stop: Point Loma where we visited the Cabrillo National Monument (don't think we didn't bring our NPS Passports), the lighthouse, and the tide pools. Fortunately on our way from Point Loma to Old Town we crossed paths with a 7-11 which more than made my day.
• Our goal for the day was to catch the sunset after doing some hiking in Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve. And that we did. And we got a whole lot more than a sunset and a good hike, too. Despite not seeing a whale on our boat tour, we got our bang for our buck at Torrey Pines and not only saw a whale fluke slapping out in the ocean but also caught wind of (literally) and saw a whale that had died and come ashore.
• Dinner at Miguel's Cocina in Coronado (where Cliff and I split their delicious lobster and shrimp fajitas) and dessert at Mootime (yes, again).

Day Four

• Woke up sad, of course, but ready to fill up our last full day in California with as much good as possible, which began with a visit to Seaport Village and brunch at Don Pancho's Taco Shop in Imperial Beach. A brunch of California Burritos (steak, cheese, sour cream, and FRENCH FRIES) at a stand-up taco shop just miles above the border. First times for everything, right? Well, it was gooooood.
• And the rest of the day? We lounged on the beaches of Coronado at both Silver Strand State Beach and the Hotel Del (with a sad goodbye with Aaron and a stop for just a little bit more ice cream from Mootime in between each... color us addicted) soaking up every last drop of sunshine that we could and enjoying a moment, just the two of us, together.
• Soon after that, we were heading back up to the Orange County area (and stopping for a "last meal" at In-n-Out on the way) to catch our flight home which took us on a roundabout way back with a layover in Las Vegas. So cool to see from the sky (seeing as I've never been before)!

Definitely a memorable trip, and thanks for bearing with me as I've recounted (almost) every detail. Ha. The travel agent and resident tripadvisor.com poster in me just couldn't help but share.

Oh, The Places We'll Go

I had gotten kind of used to this sticking around town thing.

But then...

a couple weeks back, we booked flights to visit our family in Virginia Beach. Thus, the countdown began. (Now) Sixteen days to hanging with the ones we love, a change of scenery, possibly warmer weather, and a mini-vacay. I am very excited about this quick visit home - time with Mom and Marcus (and maybe, hopefully, Cee!), lounging with the kitties, a Terragator trip, 7-11 Slurpees, bowling... I can't wait!

And then today, with the reminder of a soon-ending SWA sale, we finally booked flights out to Southern California to visit Aaron (who, if you remember, is in Navy Seals BUDS training out in Coronado) over Easter weekend. He is Cliff's nearest and dearest friend since the days they had chili-bowl haircuts and sang "Jesus Loves the Little Children." They talk a couple of times during the week, but it's just not the same as being present. We've been wanting to get out there for awhile to visit him, not only because we've missed him a lot but also because he could use the encouragement.

It doesn't hurt, either, that it's beautiful out there and that I've never actually been to San Diego. Just thinking about seeing Aaron, palm trees, the Pacific Ocean, In-n-Out, a BJs Pizookie, the beach, driving from Orange County to San Diego with the windows down, flying into Las Vegas at night (for a layover), the Zoo (and maybe SeaWorld), photoshoots, and strolling the Gaslamp District has brought so much sunshine into my day. 50 days and counting!

And don't even get me started on our week-long second anniversary trip we're planning to the Northwest in late July. I could barely sit still if I let myself think too much about it all!

I am so grateful that in all of our planning for savings and managing our finances, that Cliff and I have made a commitment to saving monthly for travelling - both "Family Travel" and "Vacation Travel" (and that doesn't even include our "Marriage Weekend" which is also used for some travel). If we didn't do that, I feel like there would actually be stress associated with stuff like this but instead, I get to experience nothing but sheer joy (the security gland in the pit of my stomach stays safely at rest). That doesn't mean we don't hunt for good deals, though, because then it's an opportunity to spread more of it around.

We're working on planning a trip to Maryland here in the next couple of months too, so Southwest, you better get with the program!

Kind of a Stay-Cation

Thanks, Hthr, for the term.

A couple of weeks ago, we'd been trying like crazy to plan a getaway for this weekend. We were on pins and needles everyday, waiting to get a Ding and hoping that maybe, just maybe, luck would have it that some extra cash we've got saved up (and the need to book a flight or two to get my free Southwest ticket) could be used on a trip to somewhere. Somewhere we could go that would be warm (or at least warmer than here), near a National Park, and easily camp-able. We had high hopes of packing up our gear, having Cliff take Monday off, and high-tailing it out of here.

Well luck (or just life) would have it that we ended up here for the weekend. Here with little to no plans (before Thursday afternoon) for the first time in a very, very long time. Here in our home, waking up incredibly late, watching movies, wandering bookstores, doing some chores, reading, and just being together. Not to mention, getting to spend time with some people we care about a ton but haven't seen in the longest. Oh and being around for church two weekends in a row for the first time in forever (months?!).

It's funny that sometimes we forget how nice it is, how relaxing it is, how enjoyable it is to just be here, to be home, and to just be. And so what if we're not spending a long weekend (well, Cliff didn't take Monday off so I guess it's just my long weekend) at Biscayne or Carlsbad Caverns (our two biggest targets for the weekend)?

There's always time for those things later and frankly, we could use the lesson in learning to be content and at rest where we are.

The New Years Surprise

Cliff sure had quite the itinerary planned out for us the last three days and it kept us dancing the line between total relaxation and total busy-ness that is the ebb and flow of our life. I can't tell you how wonderful every moment of the last three days were, though. I mean, really. From the very beginning, Cliff had thought out everything with such a mind for balancing the things we love with the convenience of places nearby (which certainly kept things a little less expensive).

Wednesday morning, we hit the interstate with me having no clue as to what direction we'd be heading. A turn onto 65N, then 440E, and finally 40E left me guessing only a couple of places, none of which were correct. Almost the entirety of "Call of the Wild" by Jack London on CD later, we ended up in a tiny little town called Wartburg, TN, which happens to be close-to-home The Obed... otherwise known as the Obed Wild and Scenic River. B-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l. Cliff had been to another part of the river once before to do some climbing with Aaron, but this time around he took me to a proper campground (the only one by the river) where we grabbed this great little campsite overlooking the rapids and the pedestrian bridge from the day use area. Getting this spot was easy because until about 6PM, when a true mountain man rolled up with his old pick-up truck and tarp tent (yes, I half considered our safety for like 5 minutes), we were the only people there. Cliff started a fire that lasted us well into the evening, over which we talked about our favorite memories and biggest challenges from the year. We dined lavishly on "cups of noodles" and roasted marshmallows, while drinking hot chocolate under a night sky full of stars. Even with temperatures near the high teens (which sure pushed our 15 degree sleeping bags to their limit), it was a perfect night and there's nothing like falling asleep and waking up to the sound of a rushing river by your bed. For certain. And that was our New Year's Eve. The quietest and least "festive" but probably one of my favorites so far.

Thursday morning we took our time getting and packing up. Cliff fixed another fire while I tidied up our gear and prepared our first meal of 2009. Hot chocolate and homemade instant oats. Mmm, mmm. Just enough to fuel us for a short jaunt along the trail that led from our campsite, along the river, and up onto a bluff with some pretty cool climbing spots. Definitely a place we'd want to come back to, is what we decided. Only next time, with kayaks and climbing gear in tow. Soon enough, we were back to camp, all loaded up, and we hit the road (not without a lunch break at gool ol' CB) for our next surprise location. Which turned out to be Chickamauga Battlefield in Georgia. Now, if you are at all surprised by this... you probably don't know us as well as you thought. Because we have been to more Civil War battlefields together than either of us can probably remember, and we've got the National Parks Passport cancellations to prove it. And Chickamauga is now probably my second favorite of them all (I really, really like Fredricksburg). The thing about Chickamauga is that it's got this really simple driving tour, a ton of monuments and plaques to read, and is the kind of place that's easy to enjoy no matter what your interest level is in the civil war, because the scenery is gorgeous and there's a ton of paths for hiking and biking. We're definitely looking to go back, because the driving tour was just a snapshot of all Chickamauga has to offer.

After Chickamauga we head back north towards downtown Chattanooga, which left me absolutely bewildered as Cliff hands me a mapquest printout and tells me to read him directions. I can't make out our destination from the address, and before I know it he's pulled into the roundabout in front of the downtown Doubletree Hotel. "SWEET!" I thought. Delicious chocolate chip cookies and a night's stay at a hotel in a wonderful city? He sure knows the way to my heart. Our room was great! But I mean, put a plush king-sized bed I don't have to make in any room and I'll fawn and fuss over it. We, after not showering in the previous 24 hours, cleaned up and then headed out from the hotel on a short walk to one of my favorite restaurants for dinner. Another great evening, it goes without saying...

And finally, today, being Friday, was probably Cliff's most masterfully planned day. We left our hotel mid morning and headed down Broad Street south of downtown on our way to find the McDonald's that we had been told was down the road. Or, at least Cliff had been told. McDonald's never appeared and before I knew it, we were at the base of Lookout and Cliff was taking a turn onto the scenic road that leads up the eastern side of it. He's faking the "I'm just trying to find us a place to eat" ploy while I'm sensing something else is going on, I just don't know what. Finally we see a sign for a Starbucks near Rock City so we stop off and grab a small bite to eat and some much needed caffeine. We hop back in the car under the guise of maybe heading to Point Park and he makes a quick right turn (across the street from where we were, mind you) into the Rock City parking lot. And there we have it, folks. The first surprise of the day, in more ways than one. I've always given Cliff a hard time about not taking me to the biggest tourist attractions in his home region and here we are, embarking upon a visit to one of them. And it was nothing like I expected... and that's a good thing. It was so cool!

So a good visit to the garden of boulders, canyons, overlooks, and even a swinging bridge, and we're on our way back down the mountain. But what do you know, we hit the base and we pull into the parking lot of the Incline Railway... a marvel of engineering that's going to take us back up the mountain? Indeed! A mile up the mountain in an electric car we go, and this time we're at the northern most point of the mountain, making our way to Point Park, the most well-known portion of the Lookout Mountain Battlefield - which is a part of the same National Military Park as Chickamauga. Now, I should mention this whole day has been overcast and we, each time we ascended Lookout, were literally in the clouds. But to add some unique perspective, the battles fought on the mountain were under the same weather conditions as well, so this visit - while not full of its famed vistas - was very unique in that sense. After a good walk around the Park, we walked a few blocks back to the Railway station and caught the car back down the mountain. Next stop, my pick: Mojo Burrito in St. Elmo for lunch. I went here once with Natalie years ago when we stopped by her dad's work and have dreamed of coming back. So when I saw the bright orange building hiding behind a warehouse at the base of Lookout Mountain, I jumped for joy and said "that's it!" And let me tell you what, it was as good as I remembered. It did not disappoint.

Post lunch, we were headed back into downtown, this time I had a stronger hunch than ever what was in store because I knew it was time sensitive. That only led me to believe we were on our way to watch an Imax showing of Jean-Michel Cousteau's Dolphins and Whales 3D. And I was right!!! So now, not only have I camped, spent the night by a river, hiked, eaten some of my favorite foods, slept in a luxurious hotel room, played around in rocks on mountaintops, and visited historic battlefields... but now I'm sitting in a theater watching my favorite animals in the world on the biggest screen possible with glasses on that make me feel like I can reach out and touch them? Kill me, this guy is good. I actually cried approximately six times during the forty minute movie and there wasn't even a plot (there wasn't supposed to be). When it was over, I didn't want to move. In fact, I wanted nothing more than to jump in a wetsuit, strap on some scuba gear, and find an ocean. Fast.

But I guess, a trip back up Lookout Mountain was my next best option or so Cliff thought, so we hopped back in the car. I stared him down quizzically as we ascended once again, this time on the northwestern side. I had another hunch but was surprised he managed to fit in something else in an already full day. But here we were, pulling into the parking lot of Ruby Falls, another East Tennessee landmark. And again, I was surprised not just by the gesture but by the actual place itself. I had no idea that Ruby Falls was a 145 foot underground waterfall reached only by a long walk through a really interesting cave system. The billboards just don't do the place justice. And I got a lot of practice time in for using my new external flash, which was a whole lot of fun!

As we finished up our hour and a half long tour and then worked on making our way back down the mountain, I couldn't help but feel that fullness of heart that comes from knowing that I am incredibly blessed to have a man who is so caring... so creative... and so content to spend time with me going to the places and doing the things we love... whether nerdy, fun, challenging, or all of the above.

Well, Where Do We Start?

We've got hundreds of pictures on our camera (thanks to my THREE new 4GB CF cards!!!), a mini-DVD's worth of video footage, stacks and stacks of stuff (both new gifts and old finds) all throughout the living room, nearly 2,000 more miles on my gem of a car, and some great memories of time well-spent with family.

I wanted to be home so badly once we finished our hour and a half detour on Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park, simply because I was tired of the car. All week I had been waking up and reorienting myself to being somewhere else, somewhere different. Then last night when we crawled into bed after opening up a week's worth of Christmas cards, exchanging the last of our own gifts, and cooking up some DELICIOUS crab cakes my sister-in-law sent us back with, I got kind of sad. Not that we were home, of course. But that we were so far away from my family that we had spent a good stretch of days with.

There were some surprising moments of sentimentality throughout the week in the form of gifts from Mom and watching old home videos and sorting through a lot of my old stuff at Dad's. Stuff that's getting boxed up (or that I confiscated to bring back with me) to make my bedroom more of a guestroom. Which I understand, completely. I guess it's just we're so used to everything happening quickly when we go to visit my family and yet, even in just a short amount of days, everything felt a little less visit-like and a little more normal.

I think Cliff had a great first-introduction to spending the actual holiday of Christmas with my family. Christmas Eve morning we woke up, had one of my favorite breakfasts (breakfast casserole), and exchanged gifts with Mom and Marcus. Then we packed up, hit the road for about three and a half hours, and went straight to Grandma and Grandpa's for Christmas Eve celebrations with everyone. Everyone being Cliff and me, my grandparents, Dad and Sue, my ten aunts and uncles, my thirteen cousins, and two guests. Yes, that's thirty-one people (in case you were counting).

Then Christmas morning we woke up and exchanged gifts with Dad, Sue, and Sue's parents who stayed the night with us. We another favorite breakfast of mine, and a speciality of my dad's - Eggs Benedict, and toasted to a bittersweet morning of quiet with mimosas. It was a good morning and then a great night at Sue's brother, my uncle Steve's house, with plenty of company there as well. Company being Cliff and me, Dad and Sue, and my (step, just for clarity's sake): grandparents, brother and sister-in-law, niece and nephew, five aunts and uncles, six cousins (plus one future-in-law), and three cousins, once removed. And again, that's twenty-five. Whew, right? (p.s. I found this great site about labeling cousins "once-removed", "second", "twice-removed", etc. It really helps when you've got a big family!)

Friday we had the fortune of driving out to my sister's dad's house about forty-five minutes away to visit while her while she was staying with them (on her first Christmas break from COLLEGE!). She wasn't at Mom's (evidently) while we were there, so I have to say that having Bob, Jodi, and Owen not too far from Dad's is rather convenient in instances such as this! We had lunch, exchanged gifts, and had a great visit thanks to everyone's hospitality...

Friday Uncle Steve had everyone back over for a Texas Hold'em Night in his basement, a game which Cliff plays none-too-often and was really not too excited about throwing away $10 for. Don't get me wrong, he enjoys it - a lot. It's just he hasn't played in, oh, two years and wasn't feeling like this would be his big night. But he was a trooper; he borrowed a couple of bucks from me (to make his $10), zipped up his jacket up to his chin, and put on my sunglasses. And what do you know... he won! Cliff took first, Dad took second, and my cousin Andrew took third. And now it looks like maybe someone who was so insistent on buying a poker set a few years back, might actually get some use out of it!

Saturday was a day for coffee and breakfast at Dunkin' Donuts, cleaning out the room and watching old videos, and a family get-together at Aunt Margy and Uncle Dave's new house in New Market (complete with dinner from a surprisingly great BBQ joint in MD called CarterQue).

As with last Sunday, yesterday was our travel day. Long, windy, and a little rainy... but beautiful, safe, and enjoyable. I think we finished with LOTR somewhere around Knoxville and then talked about anything and everything we could think of until we pulled into the parking lot in front of our apartment.

And though I was a little sad, I smiled as we made about five trips back and forth from the car to our little home thinking that anywhere with Cliff is as close to home as I'll ever get. I'm so thankful for that.

Brief Tidings

I can say...

Yesterday was: busy, busy busy. We got our to-do's done, though, and for that I am thankful.

The Lampo Christmas Party was: incredible. Thanks to everyone who is a part of that company and made last night what it was. All of you who work so hard and are rightfully presented with some pretty amazing food/service/accolades/gifts at the end of the year. What a blessing this company has been to us!

Our drive ahead is: long, long, long. But worth it, for sure. We'll pull into Mom's driveway tonight and the twelve hours may (or may not) feel like a blink. But we're up early and ready to go, let our Tour de Mid-Atlantic, begin!

Next time you hear from me, we'll be in Virginia... and as of now, we're on vacation!

I'm Better Now

And more educated about Belmont than I ever had been before!

The correlation? None. It's just that I was able to make it to my New Staff Orientation today because I woke up this morning feeling absolutely 100%. Heck, I even got Cliff out of bed for us to go kick some bootay at the gym. (Which is also where I learned that "that guy" obviously didn't get my letter. How dare he.)

And I will not fault my choice of eating establishments. Heck, I don't even know where I got the first bout from (my choice of making my excellent homemade chili wasn't it because I was the ONLY ONE who got sick... though I haven't eaten chili since) and who knows what the deal was with RuSan's. I can safely say that it will be awhile before I go for sushi again... at least the lunch buffet at Ru's. Man.

So now, on to the being educated about Belmont thing. I spent the whole first half of my day in an orientation for new staff members going through the ropes of how a great deal of this organization works. From communications to campus security, voicemail and staff giving, we got the lowdown and it was really a unique experience for me. One in that not a whole lot was surprising but I felt kind of like I was re-learning a place from a whole new perspective and that's just cool. The five of us sat around with a representative from HR for lunch and talked about the biggest hangups or challenges we face in coming from where we were to now being at Belmont. The perplexity of my situation is that two years at Vanderbilt only counts for a little bit of "somewhere else" and that my biggest challenge is in coming back. Back here in this office. Back in a whole new capacity. One I am still transitioning in, obviously.

Speaking of, I've spent the whole afternoon trying to figure out my communications strategy for while I'm out of the office for the next week. Because I'm the lucky-duck with pre-semester programming that warrants lots of questions from our parental and new student constituencies. But oh well, at least it's a vacation. YES, VACATION. WOOHOO, FREAKIN' HOO! I'll tell you what I've missed most these last couple of weeks was the luxury of getting off for a good month around this time of year. But I'll tell you what, a whole week after the last two months is pretty exciting!

We've got a LOT to do in the next thirty-six hours before heading out for Mom's early Sunday morning. Not the least of which is helping at graduation tonight, finishing our Christmas shopping and present wrapping, doing laundry, packing, cleaning my car, getting the oil changed, gassing up (the car, of course), oh and hitting the (CHRISTMAS) PARTY OF THE YEAR! I can only hope/believe/have faith that it will be as wonderful an experience as last year and I look forward to seeing all of Lampo and Co. donned in their festive apparel for the big event.

Now off to start working on those to-dos!

On Ports of Call

Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

Being our first stop on the trip, Grand Cayman holds a special place in our hearts. We tendered into the port at Georgetown early in the morning and met up with our excursion group just inside the waiting area. We booked the “Rays, Reef, and Rum Point” excursion with NativeWay Watersports, which was a nice blend of activity and relaxation. Our trip started off with a bus ride on the northwestern portion of the island to the marina where our boat for the day was waiting. There were about twenty other people on the boat with us, and after a thirty minute ride out into the bay, we found ourselves at Stingray City which is rather aptly named. There, boats (full of people) congregate near a sandbar where Stingrays come to be fed and play with the willing. And it’s no lie, they flock to this location and have for nearly eight years. They are very much like curious puppies (large ones, at that), swimming up against your legs and wondering where their treats are. We spent a good bit of time in the water with the rays, having our pictures taken, feeding them squid, and snorkeling around with them. After our time with the rays, we got back on the boat for a short ride over the barrier reef where we snorkeled. Once everyone was through with snorkeling, we placed our orders for lunch (we both went with the catches of the day, me with a blackened Mahi Mahi sandwich and cliff with the Grouper fish n’ chips) and took off for Rum Point Beach. This was a quaint little oasis where we had about an hour and a half to eat, relax, explore, and take pictures. Unfortunately we lost some time on our trip back to the marina and didn’t have anhttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gify time to spend shopping back at port before having to catch the last tender to the ship. But no complaints here!

Cozumel, Mexico

Our excursion for the day was the “Royal Dolphin Swim” at Dolphin Discovery which is located in the island’s Chankanaab National Park. Can I just say how excited we were about this? Okay, well, we were. Upon arriving, we caught a taxi to Chankanaab and were greeted kindly by everyone there. It probably didn’t hurt that we were all smiles and giggles as we watched the dolphins swimming and jumping around in the discovery area. After “suiting” up and watching an informational video, we joined our group and our trainer out in the water. Our dolphins were named Shadia and Scarlet and it took me about ten minutes to stop denying the fact that they were real live dolphins with me in the water and not some animatronic creatures. Cliff and I were the first volunteers for our round of activities with the dolphins (did I mention we were excited?) and spent the next hour just engrossed in our time with the dolphins. We each got a foot push, a dorsal pull, two kisses, a hug, a handshake, and some free time swimming and playing with them in the water. And I think I can speak for both of us when I say there is absolutely no feeling in the world like gliding through the water with your arms outstretched as two dolphins push their noses into the arches of your feet. Amazing. Add to that awesome experience (we bought the video!) some time spent relaxing and snorkeling in Chankanaab, and you’d think our day was just about perfect. To top it off, we caught a taxi back downtown and landed at Pancho’s Backyard where we enjoyed a lunch of fresh-made guacamole, salsa, tortilla chips, fajitas, peach margaritas, and good conversation with two couples seated behind us who were from Goodlettsville! YUM. And wouldn’t you know, this time we did have time for shopping though we only had $10 left for this port by the time we made it to the shops.

Belize City, Belize

I have been wanting to go to Belize for a long time. I mean, like since circa 1995 or so. So, we’re talking about thirteen years of expectation being built up about this country. Why Belize, you ask? Well, because of the reef (the second largest in the world, second to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia) AND the rainforest. We had to pick just one on this visit though (we can always go back for the other), so we booked the Cave-Tubing excursion with Major Tom which entailed a drive through Belize City and the Belizian countryside, a hike through the rainforest, a thirty-minute ride down the river through large cave systems, and a tasty lunch of authentic Belizian food. The company we went with were the first to do cave-tubing there in Belize nearly sixteen years ago and are really great at what they do, including equipping the trip with really great tour guides who give you all the information you could ever want to know about Belize on the way out to the rainforest. It’s a fascinating country in terms of the nationalities found there, the blending of cultures, and the history of the nation. Interestingly, lunch was a plate heaped with curried chicken, rice and beans made in coconut cream, and coleslaw – which was SO very good. We also really enjoyed the pace and breadth of this trip apart from our other excursions because we felt like we saw so much of Belize (though we just barely scratched the surface). Often times, we remarked on the similarities between Belize and our memories of Africa and for that reason, I felt really comfortable there. Even the market in Belize was quite vibrant and we partook in shopping, in enjoying one of the proudest creations of the country, and in listening to some fine Garifuna music.

Isla Roatan, Honduras

After a couple of busy days, we were looking forward to a relaxing beach day at Fins n’ Flippers here in Roatan. F&F is located on a small island off the coast of the larger island and our admission fee covered our boat ride over and all-day access to the beach. The location has only been operating for a couple of years and so the facilities are incredibly clean and very nice. It consists of a clubhouse, a gift shop, big restrooms, a café, a pool, a row of lounge chairs out by the ocean, and a pier leading out to the reef just beyond the beach. For the first hour we were the only people there, so we took turns using our rented snorkel gear, exploring what are supposedly some of the best waters to snorkel and scuba these days. We read, took pictures, and before you know it, it was time to grab a quick lunch at the café before heading back to do some shopping and get back on the boat. For lunch, we ordered Fundidos (a Honduran style fondue consisting of beans, cheese, and deep fried tortilla chips), a quesadilla (probably the best tasting either of us have ever had), and two local beers (one of each kind, for our collection). That was, by far, the best meal of the whole trip and we both agree on that wholeheartedly. So with full bellies, we caught the boat back to the town, did some shopping, and got back on the boat. And that, well... That was that.


I can’t pick a favorite, and so far neither has Cliff. But I am so happy with this itinerary and would suggest it to anyone without any hesitations. There are a variety of activities one can do at each place, as well as a whole lot of beach-bumming if that’s your fancy.

The beauty of all of the ports are unmatched and I found them to have unique, endearing qualities that makes each one stand out as wonderful. A good pick for sure!

On Cruising

Arriving in Tampa at 8:45AM, we caught a cab to the port (arriving just after 9AM) and upon pulling up saw the hordes of people debarking from the Legend’s previous week of cruising. Figuring out what to do next was the hardest part, but there were plenty of people around to help us determine what time and where we needed to be in order to get on the ship. We made it into Carnival’s holding area inside the port at about 10:45AM after browsing through the shops at port and stepped onto the boat at about 11:45AM, which was perfect. The ship wasn’t going to set sail for another four hours and we had a decent amount of time to grab lunch (GREAT FOOD!), take pictures of Tampa, and explore the ship (while toting around our carry-ons) before our room was ready at 1:30PM. I was very impressed with the size of the ship and that first night and next day at sea gave us some time to explore, carrying around our little pocket-size deck plan and wandering for hours.

To our benefit, Carnival prints daily these brochures called the Carnival Capers that gives you all the information you need to know for each day. This took some getting used to at first, because I’m all about pre-planning everything. But it was great fun to get the Capers each night (along with amusing Towel Creatures!) and highlight the activities/events/important times we needed to know about for the next day. Eventually, I came to think of these things as gold. There’s information on spa, bar, and casino specials along with what movies they’ll be showing each day, who the special performer will be each night, and the ever-important tips on what to do, where to be, and who to contact in port. It also has all of the daily changes to the dining schedule, though we could always count on the 24-hour pizza, ice cream/frozen yogurt, and room service. And though we have nothing to compare it against cruise-wise, we really enjoyed the food. Our waistlines could probably attest to that.

Being on a ship takes some getting used to, not just physically but mentally as well. I had a bit of motion-sickness on our first day and was trying to get used to the spacial limitations of essentially being on a moving Las Vegas resort on water. I mean, that’s kind of what it was like, at least according to Cliff (considering I’ve never been to Las Vegas). There’s always something going on, so the first day at sea (which was entirely rainy as we were caught in the tail-end of then-Tropical Storm Dolly) we spent our time trying to find the balance between relaxing, exploring, and doing. Throughout the week, the rhythm got a little easier, and we ended up finding a decent balance. We played in a Cornhole tournament and wound up in second place, winning Carnival medals. We played in a call-in trivia game and won a pretty cool prize package from Carnival (including another medal, a trophy, a print, a photo frame, and a Carnival bag). We went to the shows every night except our last and enjoyed them all! We even managed to watch two movies, read a few books, swim, workout (the first day), and hangout in the hot tub. And wouldn’t you know, we even donned our robes on the Deck Party night and did the electric slide, the cupid shuffle, and the YMCA (among other group dances) with hundreds of other people and had a blast! Carnival is the “Fun Ship” cruise line after all!

And while the ship was awesome, I will admit that being at port was definitely the highlight of the whole trip. Our itinerary was incredible (more on that, later) and the ease of getting off and back on the ship, even when tendering (when the boat anchors out further and you have to take a smaller speedboat to get to the pier) was great. We booked all of our excursions outside the ship, which turned out fine and a bit less expensive for us. It was strange to only spend five to eight hours at a place and then leave, but it was definitely enjoyable none the less. No matter how hard it was to leave each country, it wasn’t that hard getting back on the boat. By the second day at port (Wednesday) I came to call the ship “home” and was fairly settled in. Sleeping in a pitch black room (that’s what you get when you book an Inside Stateroom) definitely has its benefits and the bed was SO comfortable, especially for two twin beds pushed together. Also, by then, we had come to recognize a number of families and couples on the ship whom we saw and conversed with often. In fact, one couple shared our anniversary and were celebrating their twentieth while we were on our first!

Speaking of our anniversary, it conveniently fell on the first of two “Cruise Elegant” (or formal) nights on the ship, which meant we were in for lobster tails for dinner and a great Broadway-style production for the evening show. And after a wonderful night of getting dolled up, having our pictures taken (hence the new blog pic), eating delicious food, and watching a great show, Cliff took me up to the top deck under the full moon and slyly presented (and shocked) me with a first anniversary band matching my wedding band. We had talked about this very ring months ago and decided it might need to wait until later since he “hadn’t had a chance to set aside the money for it,” when really he had gone back the day after we bought our wedding bands a year and a half ago and gotten it then. As if the cruise itself wasn’t enough of a gift in itself…

Well, every good thing comes to an end and getting off the ship happened quickly and painlessly (except, if you count being done with a vacation) on Sunday morning. Having closed out our account the night before (with cash!) all we had to do was wake up early, grab our last meal at the Unicorn Café, and do self-assist (carry off our own luggage) that the morning. We did self-assist so that we could get off the ship in time to make it to the airport for our 11:15AM flight. Due to some confusion in the lobby, it seems we ended up in a shorter self-assist line, were off the boat by 8AM, and were at the airport, through security, and at our gate by 9:15AM with two hours to kill. It couldn’t have been easier!



…stay tuned for “On Ports of Call”!

And We're Off!

See you in a week... :)

Another Friday

It can't be possible that it's been a week since we (I) last posted. Sheesh. The nerve!

Not much is new here, admittedly. Last weekend was jam packed with activities, including dinner with friends, cheekwood and a chili lunch with other friends, a baby shower with more friends, a visit with even more friends, and then a leisurely Sunday. This week has been rather leisurely altogether, considering I started out the week not feeling so well and was home for the day.

We've been gearing up all week for our trip to Maryland to visit with the family, which is rather exciting. My Grandpa is getting inducted into the Georgetown University Athletic Hall of Fame which is kind of a big deal, and my family is coming out in droves to celebrate with him and my Grandma at the Induction Ceremony and Dinner tomorrow night. Even some of Grandpa's brothers and sisters are coming in for the occasion, which is always great because I seriously have the best great aunts (tantes!) and uncles in the world. It will be a quick but good weekend, which will find us flying home during the entirety of the Superbowl. But what can you do, right?

Anyways, that's all that's new around here. This week we've been dreaming of places to travel, and are even considering a cruise for our One Year thanks to the generosity of Cliff's supervisors and of course, his hard work. Only problem is, neither of us have ever cruised before and know very little about who to cruise with and where we should go. Alaska is probably tops on the list, with Baja and then the Caribbean (where we went for our Honeymoon) following behind. Any suggestions?