oh, mexico.

{via the only place adam & i will stay at while in playa del carmen}

i've got mexico on the brain, y'all. and not just because the gos is lonely. 

well, winter break came & went.
today is the first day of the spring semester.
this week's posts will be filled with sponsor intros & those two giveaways i promised.

in the meantime,
happy monday.

oh, and please feel free to donate to my
"get michelle to playa del carmen, mexico" fund.

just kidding.

{not really.}

 

feeling {luna} blue

the boy & i have been through a lot in the last six months. and, while i'm sure what we're dealing with is far from over, i just feel like we've been stretched to our emotional limits. well, maybe not the boy because he is always cool, calm & collected {and i hate that about him!}. i, on the other hand, have a tendency to be a neurotic mess.

trust me.

which is why i think we need a vacay. a quick trip to our happy place.

sure, we'll be making plenty of trips down to hatteras island & ocracoke island this summer, but neither location can touch the beauty that is playa del carmen, mexico.

four nights with the boy.

{the boy...who isn't afraid to search for seashells for me,
playa del carmen, april 2006}

that's all i want. four whole nights. and, while i'd rather go as soon as possible, i'm thinking a nice, early november getaway would be lovely. it's far enough away to save up for, but close enough that we can start making arrangements now.

does our budget agree with my vacation plan? no. but, i'm sure there are a few out there {hint, hint} would would encourage us to indulge & rekindle some of the romance that has been lost due to stress, worry & work.

i'm feeling {luna} blue. i think the boy is, too.

vamanos. let's go!

Where in the World Wednesday

It's Wednesday & you know the drill...

To participate, post a photo of you anywhere in the world...whatever you consider travelling to be...and write a little blurb about it. Be sure to post your link on Classy in Philadelphia's blog and, while you're there, check out other WITWW links, too!

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Adam & I went to Mexico for the first time in 2000. We spent an afternoon on the island of Cozumel during a cruise stop. Since then, we've been to Mexico numerous times...mostly to Cancun & the Riviera Maya {and we always make a day trip to Cozumel}. Playa del Carmen is our favorite vacation spot and Adam & I love to go there whenever we can. This is a picture of us from our 2008 trip to Mexico. We were on a deserted beach at an ecological reserve near Tulum {and, no, we were not naked}.

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This isn't normal 'par for the course' when it comes to WITWW, but I wanted to show you our view...


And, for some added fun, videos of part of our ride {the poor rental car!} through the eco-reserve...

huevos rancheros.

we love mexican food.

we love visiting mexico.

we didn't get to spend any time in playa del carmen this year, but thank goodness my husband - who speaks pretty good spanish & also loves to cook - created this plateful of yumminess for us to indulge in on saturday morning.

i bring you mi familia's version of huevos rancheros:

{sorry for the pic quality...i blame it on the crackberry.}

adam didn't follow a recipe...the only inspiration for HIS recipe was visions of the huevos rancheros we ate at las cazuelas in playa del carmen back in 2008:

{shameless plug...las cazuelas is located right across the street for our favorite hotel in pdc, the luna blue. in fact, the review for las cazuelas linked above was written by the luna blue's hotel owners, tony & cheri. check out their blog. hell, get to playa del carmen and check out their hotel!}

the kids opted for caramel rolls, but i have already asked adam to make huevos rancheros again this weekend.

if we can't make it to mexico, the least we can do is enjoy a little bit of mexico in our home.

Wanna see more Mexico pics?

Then carry your hind parts over here:

http://thedelimadilemma.blogspot.com/2009/03/mexico-pics.html

My friend, Catrina, who is author of The Delima Dilemma just posted a few of her Mexico pics and they're a lot of fun!

And, while you're there, check out her blog and show her some love. She's fairly new to the world of blogging - all thanks to me, ha! - and I think she's got a good thing going on over there.

Enjoy!

The weekend in Mexico when we were all somebody...

Finally, after waiting a week, I'm sharing with you some pictures of our whirlwind weekend in Cancun at the Hilton. Enjoy!

The view from our room: Adam & Fred by the pool:

My sweetie (before he noticed his beer):

Adam wasn't smiling anymore after seeing this:

Yes, we all tried to fit in the jacuzzi tub in the bathroom...except for me. I just HAD to go outside and lean over the balcony to take this shot:

The view from mine & Adam's private balcony: Looking down on to the lobby bar area from the 9th floor:

Why, yes, room 900 is the Presidential Suite!

I wish my living room looked this spectacular!

Adam with Robert, our favorite guy at the Hilton!

The food on Friday night (we had a private party in our room both nights):

Show me the sushi!

Why do I always get stuck with the Jager shots?? I don't even like Jager.

I can't believe I'm posting this, but proof that Momlogic has gone international!
Me, Adam, Catrina & Fred (Catrina writes The Delima Dilemma)

These guys took great care of us all weekend!

Awww...

Saturday night's spread:

I think this pic sums up the weekend...fun, fun, fun!

Is this week really over??

You don't know how badly I am ready for this week to be over with. It's been ridiculous.

First of all, I cannot seem to shake the fatigue. That's mostly due to the fact that this stupid head cold has me up all night either coughing up a lung or shooting what I'm convinced is my brain out of my nose. My poor nose. So much skin has fallen off of it this past week that I'm surprised that I even have a nose left...ah, well, I guess it's just good and exfoliated. Of course, the drowsiness could also stem from the fact that I've been eating the Tussicaps prescribed to me like candy. Well, no, not really, but the codeine makes me feel all warm & fuzzy on the inside and really K.O.'s my cough.

Of course, this cold could just be some twisted punishment from God for picking up my sick child from school last week, but still keeping my wax appointment and vacation plans. Yeah. Daycare called (son only does half-day kindergarten) and said he was running a fever. I picked him up, drove back to work, put him in the care of the receptionist (who is also our cousin...thank goodness I work for a wonderful, family-oriented company!) and the proceeded to speed to my appointment at Spa Phoenix to get my brows waxed. Don't worry...all of you parents out there who are tsk, tsk, tsking me right now can rest assured that I called our pediatrician when I got back to the office (after a side trip to Arby's for my FREE lunch...hello!) and got him an appointment with the nurse practitioner that very same afternoon. The prognosis? Strep throat. What did I end up doing? I called my mother to warn her, picked up the antibiotic and then still got on an airplane the very next morning for Cancun.

This is why I feel as if I'm being punished.

But, the cold could stem from the fact that it was, oh, in the 40s when we left Virginia, in the 80s while we were in Cancun and then in the freaking 20s and snowing when we got to Atlanta. Nah. I was sick as a dog before we even got on the airplane...or at least close to it. I guess I'll stick with the punishment from God theory.

Anyway, as if being sick wasn't bad enough, how about having your five hour layover turn into a two & a half day layover? Yep. There was no way in hell we were going to get out of Atlanta. Not with the crippling snowstorm and all (how funny is it that the sun was shining just an hour after we landed in Atlanta...and our flight had already been cancelled). When we were finally able to get on a flight headed for home, I was:

• t-i-r-e-d -- I did not sleep at all while we were in Atlanta. No matter what I took or how hard I tried, sleep was not going to be my friend while we stayed at the Red Roof Inn.
• o-v-e-r it -- By Tuesday I was ready to be home. Heck, I should have been home. But, no, it had to go and snow BEFORE we even left Cancun.
• d-o-n-e -- Going back to work the very same day that you've returned from being out of town is never a good idea. Especially when you're sick, haven't had a shower and have been in the same pair of jeans for three days. Ew.

The only good thing is that once we got home the rest of the week did go by fast. And, now that I've seen my doctor I'm starting to feel a bit better. But, I'm still tired.

Who knew two days would do this to me? I'm turning into a weenie. Of course, whenever the quantity of alcoholic beverages consumed is greater than the total number of hours that you've slept, well, I guess it's to be assumed that you'll need some recuperation once the fun is all said & done. :)

I went to Mexico and all I got was...

• A really gnarly sunburn, but we lovingly refer to it as my racing stripe.
• A beer gut -- since I was only in Mexico for two days I figured that I would need to drink as many Leon beers as I could handle since I can't buy them here.
• The opportunity to BE SOMEBODY -- what do YOU know about Room 900? Yep...the Presidential Suite, baby!
• Some new friends -- East coast meets West coast and how about that random couple from Ohio?!
• A much needed vacay -- two days wasn't enough, but it did the trick!
• A pile of dirty laundry -- who knew I could go through THAT many shirts in a two day period?? Thank goodness I packed extra underwear, though...we didn't realize we would end up staying in Atlanta for two & a half days (so much for that 5 hour layover).
• A raging head cold -- and, NO, it's not strep. I do have good hygiene skills, people.
• A heat rash -- this is what sunburn does to me. Happy, happy, joy, joy.
• A dislike for discount motels -- thanks, Delta, for the fabulous accommodations...the Red Roof Inn in Atlanta was wonderful....NOT!
• Some great memories shared with great friends -- CALLATE!!

Pictures to follow....

The Quickie

After 2.5 hours of sleep, one sick child, a hasty packing job, one speeding ticket, a nearly botched check-in and a TSA search of my carry-on I can finally say that I made it to Atlanta safely.

There's an Egg McMuffin in my belly and Adam just downed two sausage buiscuts...and now we wait. One more hour to go and we will be on a plane bound for Cancun, Mexico. We will only be there for the weekend, but it is a much needed trip that Adam and I have both been looking forward to.

Don't be hatin'!

That's right.

In 18 days, I'll be here:

That's a picture I took from one of my last visits to the Hilton Cancun Golf & Spa Resort. It's from 2005, so the hotel has changed a little bit since then. Adam and I spent one drunken night there this past September when we visited his father for the day since we were all in Mexico at the same time. While Adam and I prefer spending our days on the beach in Playa del Carmen (about 45 minutes south of Cancun), I am no dummy and will NOT pass up a free vacation -- well, mini vacation (we're only going for the weekend).

I'm excited about this impromptu trip. Adam and I just cancelled our March Mexico trip. We just couldn't swing it with work, finances, etc...well, we COULD, but work would have been the problem. But, like they say, when one door closes, another one opens and, in this case, when one vacation is cancelled, another one is booked! :)

I have a feeling that Adam and I will be heading south for a day while we're down there. We can't go to Mexico without saying HOLA to our friends in Playa del Carmen...not when we would be so close. I'm just excited to get away. The trip is just FOUR days after our anniversary (aww) and we'll be going with Adam's father (he's the best!) and our friends, Catrina & Fred (their first visit to Mexico ever!).

Yikes...I guess now it's time to do my water fast, exercise a little and figure out all I'm going to cram in my carry-on. :)

Adding this to my library!

It's no secret -- Adam and I love Playa del Carmen, Mexico -- and I am sooooooo ordering this book:

http://playazone.wordpress.com/2009/01/24/recommended-reading-a-great-guidebook/

Anything and everything that can help make our March vacation seem closer than it really is is always welcome!

And, if you're thinking about making a trip to the Riviera Maya, then I suggest you check out this book as well.

Forget football...let's go to Playa!

So, I brought up an idea to Adam. Instead of season tickets, let's just go to Mexico. For the price of those tickets we could easily go to Playa del Carmen, Mexico at least twice this year. We have always gone for my birthday, so I asked Adam what he thought about going in March for his birthday.


He's considering it.

Daydreaming...

Mentally...I'm soooooo there.

Si'an Kaan Reserve, Tulum, Quintana Roo, Mexico

I'm feeling Luna Blue =[

Our December Mexico trip fell through...it was for the best, though. There's always next year, right?!

At any rate, I'm still feeling Luna Blue...those who KNOW will understand. ;-)

The Luna Blue is the small, boutique hotel Adam and I stay at when we are in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. We absolutely adore the owners, Tony & Cheri Head. We are treated like royalty when we are there. I miss it, I miss it, I miss it!

I was reading through Tony & Cheri's blog to see if anything had been going on. We missed out on a great art show benefitting the Peanut Pet Shelter last month. Adam and I fell in love with the tiled artwork done by a really gifted painter named Barry Launius (people "In the Roo" know him as Popeye). They also had a post about good places to eat while in Playa del Carmen...my mouth is watering thinking about the tapas at Las Cazuelas. My toes are longing to wiggle in the sand on the beach at Mamita's Beach Club.

Oh, boy...this December winter weather we're having in Virginia can take a hike...someone put me on a plane that is headed for Cancun and I'll take the ADO bus from there! It is my hope that Adam and I can plan a 2009 Playa del Carmen trip as soon as possible. My mind, body and soul need it!

I'm ready for a vacation...

I caught myself looking at airfare prices today at Spirit's website. Of course, I was only checking out the fares between D.C. and Cancun -- I looked at dates in January and March.

I'm thinking that this is my subconscious talking...I'm secretly longing for another vacation. Who knows. I think I'm just ready for a break.

Maybe we could swing something in March for Adam's birthday...who knows.