Summer 2011

Wow...what a summer! Where did it go?

I knew this summer would be a short one with all the days we had to make up for weather, but I feel like it has only been about two weeks.

Some highlights for Summer 2011:

1) Summer Break - This would be the first week I was off and pretty much the only downtime that I had out of the last 7 weeks. I slept in, chilled out and recovered from the crazy school year.

2) VBS Inside, Outside and Upside Down on Main Street - What a great week! I taught 5th/6th VBS at FBC Cabot. We had a great time, learned lots about Jesus and serving others, and went to several cool places including Joyland Skating Rink, the Cabot Police Department and jail, the Lonoke County Courthouse, Beebe Nursing Home, and the Swimming Pool. We sweated a lot and learned. I love VBS, but it wore me out.

3) Anniversary Cruise - The Sunday after VBS ended, Daniel and I left for Mobile to go on a cruise for our one year anniversary. We arrived Sunday afternoon (our anniversary) and set out to find somewhere to eat in downtown Mobile. We went to a cool little seafood place. The walls were covered with quotes and sayings. It was fun. We stayed in a nice hotel overlooking Mobile Bay and enjoyed watching the ships and trains going in and out. The next day, we boarded the Carnival Elation and set out for a week of fun and cruisin'. We enjoyed some awesome food and great excursions. Our first stop was Cozumel. We went on the Atlantis Submarine and went 100 feet under the water and enjoyed the sights of Chankanaab reef. We spent the afternoon shopping in Cozumel. Our next stop was Calica were we spent the day at Xcaret floating down the underground rivers and looking at the exotic animals. A few rocky days later (due to Tropical Storm Arlene) we arrived safe and sound in Mobile and headed home.

4) Children's Camp - W0w, what an adventure! I headed out with 70 kids and 12 adults from FBC Cabot to Lonestar, Texas for 4 very full days of heat,, fun, and learning about Jesus. We had a great time. The kids swam in the pool, played in the lake (including the infamous Blob), made crafts, played on inflatables, ziplined and so much more. It was an exhausting but awesome experience. They went nonstop from 7 in the morning to 11 at night and walked dozens of hills all day long. It was a lot of fun and a nice end the summer.

Since then, I have been attending Professional Development workshops, visiting family, and finishing up the last few tasks I intended to accomplish this summer. Overall, it was a fantastic summer.

Cruisin' 2011

Daniel and I just got back from a Western Caribbean cruise on the Carnival Elation. This is the same cruise we took for our honeymoon last year. This time I have to say I had twice as much fun. That probably has to do with the fact that we were both so exhausted from the wedding and wedding planning last time that we didn't enjoy it nearly as much as we should have. This time we took advantage of as much as possible.

We left Arkansas on Sunday (our anniversary) and headed to Mobile. We spent the nice in a nice hotel overlooking Mobile Bay. We had a great view and it was neat watching the comings and goings of the port. We ate dinner at an interesting little restaurant called Wintzel's Oyster House. It definitely had character. It reminded me of one of those places that Guy would go on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. The walls were covered with little cards with sayings. It was interestting.

On Monday, we got up and lounged around until it was time to catch the shuttle to the cruise terminal. We stood in line awhile and we on the boat a little after 12. The gangway had been damaged in a storm so we had to go an alternate path to get on the ship. That was interesting. We enjoyed some lunch on Lido deck and then headed to our room to get settled once they opened the doors at 1:30. We spent the rest of Monday and all day Tuesday at sea taking in some of the fun and shows on the ship.

On Wednesday, we docked in Cozumel. We headed out to meet our excursion group and went on a water taxi to the Atlantis Submarine. We spent an hour or so about 100 feet below the ocean's surface looking at the Chankanaab coral reef and wildlife. It was pretty cool. Then we headed back to Puerta Maya and did some shopping.

Atlantis Submarine

On Thursday, we docked at Calica, Mexico which is about halfway between Cancun and Playa del Carmen. We got off the ship (which is literally docked by a sandpit) and headed to the bus to Xcaret. If you ever have the opportunity to go to Xcaret, do it. It was so neat. We spent about 6 hours there and barely saw half of what was there. We spent the morning floating down some the underground rivers that go through some caves and come out at the ocean and the afternoon looking at some of the exotic animals. It was a great day, but we were beat when we got done.

We spent Friday at sea and went on the Behind the Fun tour that Carnival offers. It took us on a tour through the parts of the ship you never see as a guest. It is amazing what it takes to run a cruise ship. We toured the galley, the engine control room, backstage of the shows, crew quarters, and the bridge. It was a lot of fun but I think we walked about a million flights of stairs.

We got back to Mobile on Saturday morning. We had a great trip other than some rough seas from Tropical Storm Arlene. I don't know what my luck with June hurricanes is, but we got in the middle of Alex last year. Overall, it was a great trip. After a long drive home, we are back in the swing of things. So long, vacation.