Puerto Vallarta!

We're back from our awesome vacation. We had so much fun! The weather was perfect, the service superb, and the guacamole as delicious as I remembered. While it was really nice lounging at the pool and beach drinking pina coladas all day, there really is no place like home - especially when you are traveling with a 6 month old!

Surprisingly enough, Olivia did really well. I was horribly afraid of the plane ride; I didn't want to be that passenger with the screaming baby. Luckily, she was a peach. She loved the pool, but I tried to keep her out of the sun as much as possible, so she spent a couple hours every day in the shade of a palapa at the pool side. It was hot and humid, but she seemed to enjoy it. Everyone was so good to us and helped with Olivia so that Tyler and I could relax a little, too. Thank goodness for family! We owe them, big time!

I'll post more pictures soon, along with some highlights of our trip. Until then, these will have to do!

This was the view from our hotel room. It was so beautiful- the picture doesn't even do it justice.

Olivia loved the ocean.

Shopping downtown. From left to right: Tyler, Olivia, Me, Haley, Kyler, Amanda & Seth (in back) and Madison and my mom (in front). Wendi and Gub left us to make a run for some vanilla before we headed back to the hotel, so they're not pictured. And, my dad is behind the camera.

On Saturday we headed to a beach called Las Caletas. It was about an hour's boat ride away. I took Olivia's swim suits, but after a bunch of people got stung by jelly fish I decided against putting her in the ocean! One lady was stung so many times that they had her on oxygen until a boat came to take her to the hospital. OUCH! The white sand was beautiful, though. And we got to hold parrots, monkeys, and chase sand crabs all over the beach.

This is one of Olivia's swim suits. I think it is my very favorite! Haley's mom made it for her. I think the hat makes it the cutest thing ever! And her little cheeks look so cute in it, too. Everyone at the pool loved it and kept asking me where I got it.

Last time Tyler and I went to Puerto Vallarta we ate at this restaurant called Pi Pi's. They made a huge dish of guacamole right at your table. That was what started my love affair with guacamole and I've tried to duplicate their recipe ever since. I've made some pretty yummy guacamoles in the last 5 years, but without those perfectly ripe, buttery advacados (which can't be found around Utah) it isn't quite the same as Pi Pi's. Since my family is all obsessed with guacamole and can't get enough of it, we made them go back with us. Needless to say, they loved it. And the margaritas weren't so bad, either!

Funny story about the margaritas... We ordered them all without alcohol, even though the waiter tried to convince us otherwise. My dad said, "You know, we're Mormons... we don't drink." The guy laughed with my dad and then nodded his head. But after all of us taking a huge swig of them as soon as they sat them on the table, we quickly realized they were loaded with tequila! Yes, even Madison's. The waiter quickly brought us new, virgin drinks and laughed (in his Mexican accent), "Sorry. They say they want to see you (mormons) get drunk." We laughed, and then enjoyed our virgin margaritas!!

Each night we'd head down to the beach to watch the sunset. It was also nice to play in the ocean in the evening since the sand was so much cooler! The pool overlooked the ocean, so we grabbed a chair on the pool deck and relaxed for a few minutes.

This is one of my favorite pictures! Olivia loved watching the waves roll onto shore, and she loved listening to it, too.
Here is another view from our hotel room. This was just to the left of the first picture. It was at least nice to come home to a somewhat green Utah. In a few more weeks the fields will be brown from the scorching sun and I'll have to come back to these pictures to see paradise!