Flashback Friday

Stan and I in the perfect beach vacation picture; white sand, blue ocean, and a cold, fruity drink in hand!

The whole gang....Scott, Kathy, Ronnie, Betsy, Val, and Stan on the dock at "Lands End".

First of all I must credit Camille with the idea of "Flashback Friday". Every Friday she posts a picture from her family's past. This is my first post....

Stan and I were married in March of 2006. We didn't have a honeymoon because he was living and working in Houston, and I was still in Arkansas. I moved to Houston in July, and in September we gathered best friends Ronnie and Betsy Penney, and brother and sis-in-law Scott and Kathy Christopher and went to Belize for a holiday! We were on an island off the coast of Belize. The streets were all sand, no cars...just golf carts! We rented a 6-person golf cart and explored the island. We went literally to the end of the road to a resort called "Lands End", where we took these amazing pictures.

National Day

Singapore will celebrate it's 44th National Day on August 9th. This year the theme is "Come together; every heart reaching out, every hand reaching up." How awesome is that? I love that Singaporeans honor their unique ethnic backgrounds, but also celebrate the fact that they are one nation, coming together!

Liverpool comes to Singapore

Juan came through for the "lads" this time by organizing an outing to the Liverpool vs. Singapore football match. As you can see, there was plenty of foolishness before, during, and after the match. We had a bus chartered to get us there, open seating on the south end of the stadium, and smuggled in refreshments to sustain us! We were all reminded of college football games....except it was 85 degrees! Liverpool won the match 5 to nil, and we learned "You'll never walk alone!"

Chaing Mai...super shoppers!

In front of our hotel...left to right..Heidi, Ana, Loren (with Tracy), and Joyce.

Tuk-Tuk, the fastest way to get around!!!

Heidi and Ana.....ooooo, sparkly things!

Scoping out the purse shop.

Full bags=happy girls!


Of course we had to shop while in Chiang Mai....we are women, and there were bargains to be found. You may (or may not, but I'm going to tell you anyway) be wondering about my references to Tracy in the pictures. Our friend Tracy was supposed to go with us, but had to cancel at the last minute. We really missed her, but bought a "Tracy doll" and took her with us everywhere so she could still enjoy the trip! So, all the group photos include Tracy...kind of like "where's Waldo?" try to spot her!

Elephant rides...highly over-rated!!

I know the picture is a bit blurry, but it is really hard to hold the camera still while riding on a moving elephant! Check out the facial expressions!

Sure, we are all smiles now....

This little guy was painting a picture with his trunk! It turned out to be a tree, and I bought the picture...what a great souvenir.

Bath time, the elephants really enjoyed this!

At the entrance to the elephant sactuary. Left to right..front..Heidi, Connie (holding Tracy), and Ana. Back...Valerie, Loren (peeking out), and Joyce.

I was the only one on this trip who had ridden an elephant, so that was a priority. I guess you want to experience it at least once....anyway, comfort is not a word one would associate with an elephant ride! You sway from side to side, then feel like you will be pitched over his head when you are going downhill...hanging on for dear life is necessary. Oh well, mark that one off the "bucket list" girls!

Still Catchin up....Chaing Mai, Thailand

Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep Rajvoravihara in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

The Naga Stairs...309 of em leading up to the temple.

Same picture...takin in 1967 by my dad!

Naga stairs....another pic by my dad, way cool, huh?

This is my dad, Hoover Herbert.


Ok, bear with me while I get a little sentimental. I recently visited Chaing Mai, Thailand with a group of my girlfriends. My dad had also been to Chaing Mai in 1967, while he was stationed in Thailand during the Vietnam War. I went through his old slides and found these pictures taken during that time. We visited the same temple, and took virtually the same pictures! We lost my dad almost 5 years ago, and I have to admit, standing in that place, knowing he had been there was really awesome. I just wish I could call him and talk to him about the experience! Everyone out there, call your daddies right now......

A Costa Rican Sunset

ENJOY!

Back to Costa Rica........Steamin

Share the road, amigo!

This is the trail....see the actual volcano...way off in the distance?

A "volcanocito", or mini volcano with lava and ash.

Bubbling mud pots.

A steam vent, yes, that water is actually boiling!

Have I mentioned what a wonderful, understanding, patient husband I have? I REALLY wanted to go to a volcano while we were in Costa Rica, and nobody else did. The kids elected to stay at the resort and chill by the pool for the day, so Stan graciously agreed to accompany me to the Rincon Volcano National Park. Road signage is not a big budget item in Costa Rica, so you come to an intersection and basically guess which way you should go.....we guessed wrong 3 times. 4 hours later, we arrive at the park....did I mention it was really hot? And the last 10K was a dirt road? And we got behind a cattle drive?.....only to be informed that we couldn't hike up to the volcano because it was too late in the day..4 hours up and 4 hours back, senor! So we hiked through the National Park on a trail which led us past steam vents, mud pots, and baby volcanos. I absolutely loved it...Stan is still trying to decide what I have to do to make that one up to him! Love that man!

Solar Eclipse in Singapore....News Flash!

I'm feeling a bit like Linus today. As you can see, the much anticipated solar eclipse that blacked out much of Asia today was a wash in Singapore! Do any of my fellow boomers out there remember the series of cartoons where Linus is so excited about the solar eclipse, and Lucy is full of dire warnings of "burning your eyes out" by looking at it? Linus devises a way to view it by poking a hole in a piece of paper, and letting the light shine on a second piece of paper.....anyway, eclipse day comes, Linus is standing in the rain, holding his 2 sheets of paper, and Lucy is standing in the doorway calling him a blockhead! Well, I was standing in the rain this morning, just to capture this special moment in history to share with you.......Singapore's Solar Eclipse!!!!

Costa Rica....Surfin

Place your feet just so....

If only the math teacher had held their attention this well!

30 minutes of instructions, and they are ready to give it a go.

Last minute pointers....

Good job, Grant!

Spoke at little too soon!

Success!!!!!!

Grant and Carson took surfing lessons while we were in Costa Rica. Our beach was sheltered=no waves, so we ventured down the coast to Tamarindo Beach. We found surf shops and schools galore, a beach bar for Stan, and shopping for Rachel and I. It was a great day for everyone!

Costa Rica...Swingin

Last minute instructions....are we sure about this?

Stan gets hooked up to the zip line

Carson showin out.....zippin upside down!

Is that a smile or a grimace on Grant's face?

Safe at last!!!! Back on the platform.

Ok, the family that plays together, stays together...right? "We" (me) decided to try the zip-line-canopy-tour-tree-top-adventure-thingy! We traveled from platform to platform, through the tree tops in harnesses attached to zip-lines. It was lots of fun, and we even spotted howler monkeys lazing in the trees.

Catchin up...May 2009

We flew back to the US on May 15th. Carson's graduation was on the 16th, and due to 2 weeks of rain, the ceremony was moved in doors. You know the drill, each graduate receives "x number of tickets"...anyway, I didn't attend, so no photos! Stan assures me, yes, he did get the diploma. Congratulations Carson, we are so very proud of you!