Puerto Rico - July 24th - Day 2 of Vacation

"YOR-VIT," "YOR-VIT," "YOR-VIT..." This is what we heard throughout the night last night. The evening birds of Puerto Rico called out, what I believe, to be the name of our Texas Ranger's catcher, Yorvit Torrealba. You can only hear them in the evenings , which I thought was pretty interesting. I kept hearing myself say to the birds, he's back in Texas, not stop making all that noise....

We woke up this morning to bright blue skies! I was a bit nervous about the weather today because of the dark clouds we saw last night and the amount of rain we were getting throughout the evening. The first thing we did was head to the local grocery store to buy some groceries and snacks for the week. We didn't think about the fact that it was a Sunday so when we arrived at the grocery store, we saw that they did not open until 11:00. We decided to go back to the house and just hang out until the stores opened.

The first thing Mike did when we got back to the house was go to the backyard to see the coconut tree. He wanted to see if he could actually get one down and open it up. He found a large machete in the backyard and stepped onto a bucket so he could reach the coconuts. He was able to get one down and spent the next 15 minutes cutting/tearing it apart to get to the center. It was very difficult to get through the layers and layers of fibers that protected the coconut itself. As you can see from the pictures, he had to work off numerous layers of that stuff before he was able to get to the coconut. When he finally got there, he was able to get a crack in the coconut and drink the coconut milk. I tasted it and it didn't taste like anything to me except water.

When it was 11:00, we headed back to the grocery store. There were two different grocery stores in town and it was amazing the lines that had already formed outside both stores. It was obvious that many people were ready to do their Sunday grocery shopping. We got some steak and chicken to grill the rest of the week, some drinks and we were headed back home shortly afterwards.











Next on our day's agenda was the beach. We packed our bags and headed for Aguada Beach. We only had to drive 5 minutes to Playa Pico de Piedra. The beach was packed full of locals. I was surprised that there were so many people on the beach. We could also see in the distance that the clouds were about to bring in some storms. We hung out as long as we could before we saw lightning and decided to seek some shelter. We sat in the car for about 30 minutes hoping the storm would pass but the sky never seemed to clear so we decided to head back home and play some card games.

After beating Mike in a game of Phase 10, we headed out to the town of Rincon. It was about 6-7 miles from the house. We ate at a restaurant called Harbor Restaurant. They had awesome pina coladas!!! We had fried calamari for appetizers and then waited for our main course. Mike ordered scallops in garlic sauce and I ordered linguine with shrimp. We watched a band set up outside the restaurant as we waited for our meal. When the waitress arrived with our food, she mentioned that because we had waited so long, she would not charge us for the appetizer. Not only did she comp our appetizer, she did not charge us for our 2nd yummy pina coladas and she took 1/2 off our first pina coladas. Again, I had plenty of food to take home for leftovers.

Puerto Rico - July 23rd - Day 1 of Vacation

This is kind of late but I figured it would be a good way to keep track of what we have done on our vacation in case it takes me awhile to get all the pictures uploaded and into a digital scrapbook. Since I have not even completed the scrapbook for Mike and my trip to San Francisco from last December, I figured this would be the best and fastest way to get our trip documented.

We left early Saturday morning from DFW. Our flight was at 5:15 in the morning so we had to be at the airport by 4:15. Mike said he was wide awake by 2:30 so he went ahead and got up to get ready for the trip. Me, on the other hand, waited until the alarm clock went off at 3:00 to drag myself out of bed. I am a morning person, but 3:00 was a bit early for even me.

Our first flight was to Charlotte, NC. It was only 2 hours and 30 minutes long. I slept most of the way but the plane was a bit chilly, even for me. I was pretty surprised at how full the flight was. I didn't think that a 5:15 flight would be full at all. When we arrived in Charlotte, we had just enough time to get off the plane and head to a different terminal. Just as we got to our new terminal and gate, it was time to board our second flight. We didn't have enough time to grab a bite to eat so we were both pretty hungry by this time. The flight to San Juan was 3 hours and 44 minutes. I was unable to sleep for a couple of reasons. Firstly, there was a group of teenagers that sat right behind Mike and I. They were very loud and annoying (Mike says I'm too kind using those two specific words). They were so loud and obnoxious. Even the lady sitting next to me made a comment about them. The second reason I was unable to sleep was because the plane was so cold. At one point, I asked the flight attendant if she had any blankets I could have. She kindly informed me that she could sell me one for $7. How outrageous was that? If I can't spend money to eat the food on the plane, what makes you think I would pay $7 for a blanket?

Our plane landed in San Juan around 1:30 in the afternoon. The weather was a bit gloomy and rainy but we were both very excited about finally getting there. After getting off the plane quickly, since the teenagers decided to become louder and more obnoxious (if that's even possible), we went to claim our luggage. Mike's luggage immediately came out and we were both a bit nervous while waiting for mine to come up but it eventually did. I would guess that we waited at least 10 minutes for it.

The weather was very humid when we exited the airport. We had to walk to an area marked "Rental Car" pickup and waited for Thrify Car Rental to come pick us up. We ended up renting a small, white, Nissan Versa (which we thought was interesting since we also rented a small, white car when we were in San Francisco). After leaving the car rental place, we immediately went into the neighboring McDonalds because we were both so hungry. The young girl working at the counter had to ask someone in the store for an English translator to help with the translation of a McChicken sandwich and chicken nuggets. I thought that was pretty funny.

After lunch, we proceeded to drive to Aguada, Puerto Rico, which was in northwest Puerto Rico. We had rented a little house from VRBO Home Away. Along the way, we stopped at a Wal-Mart, which we were very surprised to see. This Wal-Mart was very different than the ones back home because it was crazy jam-packed and extremly busy. The store was in a complete disarray and the parking was horrendous. By the way, driving in Puerto Rico is what Mike calls, "free-for-all!" I thought the drivers in Texas were aggressive, but I guess I was wrong. Mike did a pretty good job keeping up with the locals' way of driving.







We arrived at La Casita de Aguada around 6:15 that evening after driving through a flooded street (from all the recent rain from that day) and Mike making ONLY one wrong turn. He had the map memorized in his head but he was just a tad off on the distance. Mike called Victor, the caretaker next door, and he let us into the house and showed us around. It was a very cute little house, but the air conditioner had not been turned on so you can imagine how hot and sticky it was. We immediately started cooling off the place while we unloaded the car. Then we headed off to El Galeon, a local favorite right down the street. We ordered two Coronas with lime and Mofongo balls (mashed plantains rolled into a ball and deep fried) for appetizers. It was absolutely delicious! It came with a sweet dipping sauce but neither of us knew exactly what it was. Mike ordered the Creole Grouper, and I ordered the Parmesan Crusted Chicken. Both dishes were delicious...and of course, I had leftovers to take home.

All in all, we had a very successful first day on vacation!

Thanksgiving in Delaware

I met Mike's parents and family for the first time over Thanksgiving. I flew out early Wednesday morning and finally made it to Philadelphia around 12:30pm after a short layover in Washington DC. Mike and his dad picked me up at the airport and we drove to their home in Newark, Delaware. Because the highways were busy with so many travelers, Mike's dad drove back to the house using a very scenic drive. It took us about an hour and a half to get back to their house but I didn't mind. Everything was so beautiful. All the leaves had fallen off the trees and it was so calm and serene. The weather, however, was not so much fun. It was 41 degrees when the plane landed in Philadelphia. Having lived in Texas most of my life, I am not use to cold weather. I brought my red parka and Mike kept making fun of it. It sure did come in handy because the next several days stayed in the 40s.

Mike's parents house in Newark, Delaware. They had some very cute yard decorations and candles in each window.

Thanksgiving table setting. Mike's dad always uses his Christmas plates for Thanksgiving meals.

The indians that were part of the centerpiece at the table.

Mike and I in front of their fireplace...which ran 24-7 while I was there. Mike's dad had a huge pile of logs piled up high on their back porch waiting for my arrival. Mike told his parents how big of a wimp I was when it came to cold weather.

The Slater family. From left, Greg (Mike's younger brother), Mrs. and Mr. Slater, and of course, Mike. He has a hard time smiling!

We went to the Schmidt's tree farm in Landenberg, PA on Black Friday. We didn't feel like messing with crazy crowds shopping so we decided to do something else. I have never been to a tree farm before so it was quite a treat for me. We took a wagon ride and then started going through rows and rows of Christmas trees. Mike and his brother Greg both worked at this farm for quite some time. Mike's dad would find a tree and announce, "this is it," but then his mom would take a look at the tree and say, "nope, let's find another one." It was really funny.

Mike and I stopped for a pose in front of some Christmas trees.

Since I had never cut down my own Christmas tree before, they "allowed" me to cut down their Christmas tree after they found it. Greg just handed me the saw and said, "Come on Texas Girl, get to work!" It was quite an experience I'll never forget.

This was sooo cool! They actually had reindeer on the farm. Mike said this is either Fraser or Douglas. One of them died so Mike didn't know which one this was.

Palo Duro Canyon

I took a halfday Friday so Mike and I could drive to Canyon, Texas to visit Palo Duro Canyon State Park. It only took us about 6 hours. I didn't think the drive was too bad but then again, I wasn't the one driving.

Not only was the place beautiful but the weather couldn't have been nicer! It was in the mid 70s during the day and the low to mid 40s at night. It was Mike and my's first camping trip and we had a blast. Even Freeway accompanied us on the trip.

We hiked 6 miles (roundtrip) to see Lighthouse Rock. It was absolutely beautiful. We ran into lots of bikers and hikers who were all out to see the awesome rock. I would definitely recommened this place to anyone who likes state parks and camping! The only bad part about the trip were the enourmous amounts of flies...it was hard to get rid of them but it wasn't bad enough to ruin the trip.

Folly Beach, South Carolina

We had a great trip to South Carolina...it's been such a long time since I've gone on a nice vacation like this one. Here are some pictures of the beach house we rented right on the beach.

End of the 2009-2010 school year

My 2009-2010 4th Graders

I can't believe that the last time I posted something was in March...crazy! My summer has officially started and I have been keeping myself pretty busy. Right now, I am in San Antonio helping my little sister while her husband is away at a commander's conference in Colorado Springs, Colorado. I will be here until the middle of next week. I am really glad that I am able to help out all my sisters in any capacity I can.

Highlights of my summer...so far...

* Completed a 65 page digital scrapbook/yearbook for the 2009-2010 school year

* Our school received an "EXEMPLARY" rating for our TAKS results

* I got the Droid Incredible phone for my birthday!

* Had the girls of MP over for Keeno Night...fun times!

and last but not least... I was on Fox 4 live at the Rangers game last Thursday...details, pictures, and link to youtube to follow.