Eyes That Are Opened

A desire that Eric and I have for our kids is that their eyes may be opened to the world around them. We are blessed and so often take what we have and the way we live for granted. We pray that our kid's eyes and hearts would be opened to those around in need. We also pray that they can experience and appreciate other cultures and diversity around them. We want to expose our kids the beauty of other cultures and feel blessed that we had the opportunity to do that during our get away! 

This is one of my favorite pictures of our trip to Cabo with the kids. I feel like this pictures speaks for itself.

It was fun to see the kids eyes being opened to the Mexican culture as we journey to town most nights. We were staying at a beautiful resort but that is not the real "Mexico!" As they walked through the markets they took it all in and we were able to have great conversations with them along the way.

 

The markets in Mexico are such a fun experience.

 

We would spend about an hour or so each evening walking through the markets after dinner before heading back to our resort.

 

The kids had so much fun checking out all the amazing treasures.

 

They also experienced little ones coming up to them trying to sell them stuff right on the street. It is a way of life for the Mexican culture but once again a eye opener for our kids.

 

They were troopers and tried new food!  Some nights they resorted back to chicken fingers and french fries but they did have fun trying new things. The classic nachos were a favorite of theirs.

The first night they discovered Shirley Temples and it was all over after that.  

    

At many of the resturants they had local people that would come in an try to entertain you with singing, magic tricks, balloon creations ... you name it. The kids thought the balloon guy was pretty cool.

 

We had such an amazing time seeing the Mexican culture through the eyes of our kids. Their eyes were opened in a new way on our trip!

Fun In The Sun

The kids could hardly contain themselves with they saw the pool when we arrived at the resort. 

They were excited to spend the week swimming their hearts out. Well you could say things started a little rough our first day in Cabo at the pool. We had been up really early, the kids so excited they couldn't wait to get in the pool. In a matter of minutes Shane had his shirt of and had jumped in the pool and just seconds later Eric jumped in to save our little boy who was quickly sinking, and not moving his arms at all. Shane is a good swimmer but after a long winter in South Dakota and the factors of the day it seemed like he had totally forgotten how to swim. Eric brought him safely to the side. Not even an hour later it happened again. Eric looked at me and said I think we are calling this a trip not a vacation. We shook our heads not sure what got into Shane and what our week would bring.

 

By Day 2 Shane was back to being a fish and Eric and I were breathing a little easier. The kids had so much fun together. Of course the weather was picture perfect and they were loving life in the pool.

 

The kids had fun jumping, diving ....

 

and playing dolphins. Notice Emma is the trainer and Shane and Alexa are her dolphins. It was so much fun seeing the kids have a blast together and also using their imaginations.

   

 The kids enjoyed taking some breaks from the pool playing horse shoes, putt putt golf and one day they even painted a tile.

 

The kids also loved the slide. It provided hours of entertainment for the kid. Notice the friendly little guy that sat on the rock every day and watched people go down the slide.

 

I love see the pure joy that is in the kids face in this pictures. There is no doubt about it, they are loving life!

 

The beach was another place the kids loved to spend time. They were in awe of the ocean.

 

The kids loved running on the beach.

 

I loved watching the kids put their toes in the water for the first time.

     

They loved running in and out of the waves.

 

I loved watching Shane and his dad play in the ocean together. Their faces say it all.

 

The kids also loved playing in the sand and building sand castles.

 

There were some days that all the sun and fun proved to be too much for our little man and he crashed for a little nap poolside.

At The Beach

The kids had so much fun on the beach. They didn't mind at all when I asked them to head to the beach two nights after dinner to get some pictures. It was a picture perfect back drop to capture pictures of fun memories and also use them for my assignment for my photography class. I felt a little bit like I was cheating this week with all the beauty I had the opportunity to capture through my lens. I took some posed pictures on the beach but also go a lot of fun pictures of them soaking it all up!

 

I will always treasure these pictures of the kids time on the beach and also being able to have fun playing around with a hobby I am having so much fun with! 

A Visit To The Orphanage

One of the things that we were all looking forward to on our trip was a visit to a local orphanage. The kids couldn't wait to visit the kids at the orphanage. It is an all boys orphanage with boys from the age 6-14. The night before we headed to a local Wal-Mart to pick out some school supplies and games for the kids at the orphanage.  The kids had so much fun picking out things for the boys. 

I love how God works out the little details.  The orphanage director's wife worked a couple days a week at our resort so he was able to pick us up and bring us to the orphanage.  The kids were very excited in the morning for the visit.  Chris, the director took us out the the barrios before we went to the orphanage.  I wish I would have jumped out and snapped a couple pictures but I didn't.  The kids took it all in as we saw houses out of cinder blocks and tin roofs.  It was definitely nothing my kids had seen before.  Chris told the kids that this is the kind of houses that most of the people that work at our resort live in.  

We then went to the orphanage. Chris gave us a tour of the orphanage.  It is only 4 years old and is very well supported by numerous American Foundations. 

The boys were heading down to the soccer field for their morning exercise.  Shane joined right in.

The spent time stretching. 

The did different soccer drills ....

and then they were off and running.  The girls were a little bummed they had flip flops on and couldn't join in until Shane came over about half way through with a bright red face, sweat rolling down his face and looked like he was about to pass out.  The poor thing ran his tail off but it was so hot he had to take a break.  We were amazed at how hard the boys worked and hardly broke a sweat! 

Our visit to the orphanage was a huge highlight for all of us.  Our hearts have been opened as a family to the orphans around the world and this was an amazing experience for us as a family! 

A Special Get Away

We decided to take the big kids on a special little get away to Cabo San Lucas. I wrestled a bit with the idea when Eric proposed taking them to the time share we have access to. I wasn't quite sure how I could leave Max behind but I also knew taking him would not be a vacation. Eric is so good about investing into each of the kids individually that he thought it would be good for us to have this focused time with our big kids. They have been such a huge help and blessing in bringing Max home and his adjustment. They have given of themselves and at times have had a little less of mom of dad because of the process. They can't wait to bring a little sister home and yet we know that as little individuals they too have needs that we need to meet and to continue to invest in them. We want to continue to foster an open and meaningful relationship with each of them.  I became more and more excited about our special get away as the time drew near. I knew Max would be fine and soak up every ounce of being spoiled and one and one attention from papa and grammy.  I just wasn't sure if he would wear papa and grammy out! 

 

This was the kids first trip to the ocean and to walk on a real beach. The couldn't wait to get to beach a look for shells. I loved just stepping back, snapping some pictures but most of all watching them take it all in!

 

Shane wasn't sure if he should venture down to water first a check out the big waves or look for shells.

 

The kids would often stop in their tracks and look out over the ocean and take it all in.

 

They were so excited as they spotted new treasures that they gathered in their hands to take home.

 

This is one of my favorite pictures of Eric and kids as they were discovering new treasures together.

 

I loved seeing the kids sense of wonder and awe as they discovered and took in this new piece of God's beautiful creation.

 

Emma snapped this picture of Eric and I and it was one of my favorite from our trip. Our faces pretty much say what we are feeling ... complete joy! What a blessing to have this time to get away from the business of life and soak up time together and have time with our big kids.