grand caymen

ahhh....  I've got Grand Caymen Island on my mind tonight.  Jordan and I got home one week ago from a week-long vacation.  And it was amazing.  We hardly did anything more than walk the beach, swim, snorkel, and sunbathe.  The waters were crystal clear, the snorkeling was awesome, the nights were full of brillant stars... everything was absolutely beautiful. 

We enjoyed this vacation with our family: Jordan's parents, Joel and Robin, Spring (to whom we owe the gratitude for the invitation), Luke, and Michelle.We stayed at The Renaissance on Seven Mile Beach and we discovered on our walks that the condo sits on the nicest stretch of beach of those entire 7 miles!  It was the softest sand I've ever felt!  The water was always delightful and refreshing.  The sunshine was glorious!  We could not have asked for better weather.

Jordan snorkeled non-stop for the first half of the week... I mean hours out of the day in the water.  But after diving deep for a sand-dollar, his minor sinus infection got the best of him.  He went one whole day without snorkeling!  He took his ipod underwater everytime he went and got some great pictures.  He and Joel actually got to see a shark!!  We saw a lot of great fish, some sting-rays, and sea turtles... awesome!

silly goggles!

silly boy :)

 We were so blessed to even be able to go on this trip. A family that owns the condo just lends it out to others free of charge when they aren't going to be there. So we only had to pay for the flight down! How amazing are they?! We bought our tickets before Emmy was even born and she turned 3 months while we were gone. I can't believe I was able to leave my baby - my babies - but it was definately a good choice! Once again, I entrusted 4 of my 5 most precious gifts to Matt and Katie. Once again, I made out an unofficial will that Matt and Katie would get it all. And then I prayed about it... a lot! And it worked... I was at Peace! The condo was beautiful and we'll probably never be so lucky as to get such a great deal again! So we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves! And the time we were able to be there just happened to be over Jordan and my 7th anniversary! How perfect!

I just felt like this trip was specifically for me! I had such a relaxing and rejuvenating time. Weeks before we went, I made a list of book possibilities that I wanted to pick up from the library. But I was never able to get there without the kids (when I'm looking for a book for me, I cannot bring my children!). So minutes before I left the house, I grabbed a book from the closet called 'The Shack'. I read it on the beach and it just spoke so deeply to me. It's a religious book and many things stood out to me and got me thinking. But I was especially drawn to the beautiful message of forgiveness. There have been many things in my past that I have had to make a conscious effort to forgive and forget. I feel like I'm generally a pretty forgiving person, but life throws it's curve-balls... and sometimes they're more like canons! This book was a God-send and delivered to me at precisely the right time and place. I was able to have some alone time immediately after finishing it and I am repeatedly awestruck at how God moves and works in my life. It made me feel that this trip was for me... or more accurately, for Him!

As with every trip, it was good to get home and to hold my little loves again! There were hardly any other vacationers at the condo (if any?) But some of the residents came down a couple of times to the beach with their children. And I would wish that our kids were with us. They were so great for Matt and Katie while we were gone. I had to relearn Emmy again. She got a little longer while we were gone and a lot louder. Probably since she had 7 other kids to compete with to be heard. I also chose to pump-n-dump so that I'd be able to nurse Emmy for some months yet. And like 'riding a bike', it came right back to her!

Everyday life is refreshing sometimes, but I have a feeling that Grand Caymen is refreshing all the time! So happy that we were able to enjoy it!