Aruba Pictures

On our "jeep" tour - visiting a cave with a really cool couple that we rode with.
The Xtreme Party Cruiser that picked us up at our resort to take us to the "Jeep" tour.

Eagle Beach at sunset (our resort was on this beach)

An aloe field. Aloe was Aruba's chief export and income before tourism hit. They still grow, process and sell aloe today. See http://www.arubaaloe.com. We visited the factory while we were there.

Some of the beautiful colors of the water - picture taken while on our snorkeling cruise.

Time Flies, especially for bad bloggers like me

Wow, how time flies!!!!!

I'll try to catch up a bit...

Part 2 of Aruba was fun - we did a half-day snorkeling trip, part of it at an old shipwreck from WW2. We took a jeep tour (I say "jeep" loosely) around the island and we saw lots of things we wouldn't have seen otherwise. We went to the Aruba Aloe factory and to the Butterfly farm. I will post some pictures at a later date, as I am currently out of town and away from my computer (and all my pictures).

Dain and I have been spending a lot of time at the pool this summer. For the 2nd half of June, into July we've gone at least 3 times a week. Hot sunny mornings, perfect for the pool, followed by lovely afternoon thunderstorms. Ah, our summer weather has finally returned after a too-long drought! So far Dain and I have some very impressive tans/tan lines. And this is from wearing at least a 30 spf most days.

Poor Jeremy has been going through a lot. He got bronchitis, had to start physical therapy on his shoulder and elbow because of an old injury, and then just had a nasty 12-hr flu bug. Otherwise, he's still working and playing baseball. He's also trying to fit in fishing when he has the time.

Dain and I are currently visiting my friend Jenny, who lives halfway across the country from us. It's been great, since I haven't seen her for 2 years. Yesterday we took Dain to a splash park (he freaked out when the fountains turned on). Last night, while Jenny's husband Max bravely watched Dain (he has a fear of toddler poopy diapers, can't blame him) I went with Jenny to a Brazilian Samba class that she teaches. Yes, I shook my booty. And looked ridiculous doing so. Thankfully, so did everyone else since it is a beginner class and has only been going for a few weeks. And, I did have a lot of fun and got a great workout!

Today we took Dain to the zoo. The morning was gorgeous - not too hot, although a bit stickier that I'm used to (I never have been a fan of humidity).Here's Dain petting a very fat goat at the petting zoo (picture courtesy of Jenny).

I have also been shopping - right here in Jenny's house! :) Jenny is a very talented jewelry designer and makes all of her own jewelry. Each piece is so unique. I've really had to hold myself back from buying everything that I liked. Take a look at her website for Black Rock Design. She has some really beautiful stuff! Needless to say, one or more family members might be getting something pretty and unique for Christmas! :)

Tomorrow we're off to visit my aunt and uncle, who live about 2 hours from here. I'm really looking forward to it. And I think Dain will be fine in the car as long as he gets to watch Nemo for the hundredth time. :)

Aruba trip, May 7 - 9 (part 1)

Jeremy and I went to Aruba! We had a great time, and left Dain at home with my mom. A few things we learned about Aruba:

1. Aruba is "one happy island" until you're on the road with the locals. They have no patience for tourist drivers.

2. Aruba is windy, all the time. It's nice, because it helps to relieve the heat of the sun.

3. Iguanas are everywhere.

4. Aruba has a total of about 5 stoplights - in the entire country.

5. Locals grow up learning how to speak 4 languages: Papiamento, Dutch, Spanish and English.

6. The mullet-style faux-hawk is the height of fashion among the locals.

7. "$6 isn't great, it's awesome!" (explanation to come)

Here's a short diary of our vacation.

Thursday, May 7: Jeremy and I flew to Aruba. We left our house at 2:30 am to drive to Denver. We flew from Denver to Chicago, then Chicago to Miami, then from Miami to Oranjestad, Aruba, where we landed at approximately 9:30 pm (eastern standard time). This was how we celebrated Jeremy's birthday. Happy Birthday, sweetie!

(When we checked in, they made us wear plastic wristbands with the hotel logo on them. They don't want anyone other than their guests using hotel amenities. The wristband left a tanline on my wrist. )

This is where we stayed, La Cabana Beach and Racquet Club. It is the 2nd biggest resort on the island, behind the Marriot.Friday, May 8: slept in until approximately 10:00 am. Had late lunch at the hotel restuarant. Explored the resort and wasted some time listening to a time-share spiel (where they gave us $150 to gamble.) Discovered that iguanas are everywhere in Aruba. Did a little shopping and had dinner in downtown Oranjestad. This picture was taken right outside our room at the resort.

Saturday, May 9: Slept in again. Had a late breakfast at McDonald's. Tasted like home. After that, went grocery shopping for breakfast and lunch food, since we had a kitchenette in our room. Plastered ourselves with sunscreen. Spent some time at the beach and in the water. Jeremy got a sunburn anyway. Checked out the pool and watched kids go down the waterslide. Had dinner at the Buccaneer. I had pasta, and Jeremy had swordfish. Neither were that great. But the ambiance was excellent!

To be continued...

Dain's 2nd birthday

On March 11, the day before Dain's birthday, I decided that he needed a haircut. He was bordering on the mullet - and I love my child too much to let him have a mullet. Here are the before and after pictures.

Before:

After:

Here is Dain on the morning of his birthday, playing with his new table and train set we bought for him. He was so excited that he kept saying "wow!"

Here are a couple of pictures from Dain's birthday party.

Remember me?

Hi! Remember me? Becky? I used to blog here, I think. Once again life has gotten in the way of blogging. My apologies!
A lot has happened in the past month or so. Let's see:
- March 12 - Dain turned 2! (pictures to come)
- March 16 - I turned 30! (Augh!) (might have a picture to come)
- Jeremy and I have still been working with a personal trainer. Last time we checked (it's been almost a month) I had lost 5 1/2 inches and 4 pounds. I know it's more than that now.
- Painted 2 rooms (Living room and dining room - pictures to come)
- Dain got croup
- Jeremy installed hardware on our kitchen cabinets - they look great! (picture to come)
- I caught Dain's cold and am currently dealing with it
- I am currently working on window treatments for the aforementioned painted rooms (pictures to come if they turn out well)
- celebrated the 2 Wood "on their way" babies with a special Hillsdale Babies Shower for Louise (and got to see Hillsdale friends! Yay!)
- had lots of snow - in April - which didn't show up all winter but decided to come once we hit "spring"
- joined membership at our local mountain zoo (which is awesome, by the way)
- got an aquarium set up with 3 healthy fish (we started w/ 5 and 2 died)
- Dain's vocabulary is greatly improved and we understand him more and more
- My Bible study for the semester ended and I'm already missing it
- we are planning our upcoming trip to Aruba (without Dain!)
- started physical therapy on my right shoulder after injuring it doing too many pushups

Guess that covers it for now. Hold me accountable for posting pictures soon. I would do it tonight but it's bedtime!

I blogged about a month ago about how I was about to really get going on getting healthy. So, here's a bit of an update!
I've had 6 sessions so far with the personal trainer, with one coming up tonight. He's been tough! He specializes in cross-training, which combines cardio and weight training. It's very tough, very non-conventional and I really enjoy it! I have also been taking some classes at the gym and doing some Wii Fit at home.
The results: I have lost 1 whole pound. However, I'm looking at weight loss as a side effect of getting healthy. I am finding that I am feeling better most of the time. I recover more quickly from muscle soreness than I did at first. I also can tell in how I look and how my clothes fit that I am starting to tone up a bit. And the best part - my lungs are starting to get back into shape! I have exercise-induced asthma, so having healthy lungs is very important to me. Each workout, breathing gets easier and easier, although I will always require the help of an inhaler.
In conclusion, I am feeling better and looking better. It can only go up from here.
And I am prepared to be sore tonight after another very tough workout!

a little "pick-me-up"

A couple days ago, Dain was playing with this play-doh, along with all the toys and a mat. To my surprise, when he was finished, he put the play-doh back into its cup. Then he handed me the mat to fold up, picked up all the play-doh toys and put them in the play-doh toy caddy, grabbed the mat from me, and put it all away.
I couldn't believe it!
What a pick-me-up that was!