Our Mexico vacation ~ Day 6

Our sixth day of the trip was a Sunday and it was the perfect day to relax, be together
and talk about our Father in Heaven and His Son, our Savior. It felt sweet and good.

Because the pandemic rules are much more strict in Mexico right now, we decided not
to attend church there, as adding almost fifty people to their congregation seemed unsafe
and like it could possibly be stressful to our sweet Mexican brothers and sisters. So instead,
we had our lessons and meetings together at our condos and it ended up being perfect.

Jacob's darling sister held a Primary meeting for all of the kids ages three to eleven.

We also had several other separate meetings of the teenagers, the adults, the moms, etc.

And then all of us joined together to listen to Jacob's dad give a lesson on the truths
he knows to the deepest part of his heart. It was really wonderful to be a part of.

Much of the afternoon was filled with playing games (which Jacob's
cute mom is always up for and I so appreciate, because I am not.)

That evening, each of the grandkids received a medal (in honor of the Olympics)
with a short description from their parents about what they had done during the
trip to earn it--being kind, brave, helpful, hilarious etc. And I took a photo of
this incredible group of darlings that we absolutely adore and love so much.

Day six was a good one.

Our Mexico vacation ~ Day 5

Day five was definitely unforgettable. Our family (along with Jacob's dad and our
cute sister-in-law) snorkeled with whale sharks. These beautiful, spotted sharks
are docile (gratefully), but also approximately 30-40 feet long (holy bananas).
Some of the dorsal fins on these amazing creatures were bigger than our children.

And speaking of children, I was so proud of our kids. From the oldest, down to the youngest,
they jumped straight into the middle of the ocean (we drove an hour and a half away from
the coast), with zero hesitation, and swam like crazy people to stay up with these sharks.
Jacob and I did it also, so I guess we can be proud of each other. Jacob loved it so, so much.
I wanted to do it, no matter that I had recently learned I would likely get very sick (which
I did), but I'm still grateful I went for it in anyway. It was pretty incredible for all of us.

A little less for me and then for Matt, who also had a crazy reaction to the
snorkeling (who knew these things could be genetic?), but still worth it for sure.

Too much cuteness on one boat.

And too much giantness in one ocean. Jacob's dad took these photos, as we found out
our newly purchased underwater camera had a defect that my sadness won't allow me
to dwell on, and we are so grateful to have these magnificent creatures in pictures.

Note: In the photo directly above, you can see our awesome guide above the whale
shark at the top of the photo, if that gives you an idea how gigantic they truly are in size.

And we let poor Matt, who had lost all of his calories for that day (and probably two extra
days) choose where to go for dinner, with the hopes of getting some nutrition in him. We were
joined by Jacob's parents and his youngest brother and family and had such a fun night.

And oh my...the palm trees, the sunset shining in the clouds and the moon. I loveth.

Our Mexico vacation ~ Day 4

The fourth day had the theme of snorkeling. We started at Yal-Ku and
enjoyed being with almost everyone in the family at one point or another.

The gorgeous lagoon and a fabulous picture of Nate that I believe my father-in-law took.

Next up was out to the ocean to a coral reef to see turtles, sting ray and eels. And for
yours truly to learn that the terrible episode I had in Costa Rica, when I became so sick
while snorkeling, wasn't just an isolated incident. We'll leave it at that, but oh the fun.

 

The view from the balcony of where our little family was staying.

We ended up going to dinner that night at the same place as Jacob's younger brother (the one that lives
in the same town in Utah as we do) and his family. We seriously love these guys and had a great night.

And if you can't tell by now, I end each day with sunset photos.
Because well, sunsets. Especially sunsets in Mexico.

Our Mexico vacation ~ Day 3

Our third day began early as we joined a few of the other families with older kids at a one-of-a-kind
park called Xplor. We rode almost a dozen ziplines, explored cenotes, went down a coupe of water
slides and really had an amazing time. The whole setting was in the middle of the jungle and it was
something else. We aren't people that love places like Disneyland (that sentence may earn me a lot
of death glares) or amusement parks, so we wondered about the whole day here. But I can safely
say, it was the favorite (or near the top of the list) for several of our kids. And all I took was a
single picture as we went in, because I wanted to just focus on the fun. It was a good decision.

More time in the pool. More cuteness and flipping and flopping.

Cousins playing Spikeball on the beach.

That evening, we went for ice cream and I took another picture of our kids
that I love. Much more realistic and like our usual selves. I'm a fan.

And Annie took another photo of these cute, old people

So much beauty surrounding us everywhere.

Our Mexico vacation ~ Day 2

One very gorgeous morning.

Matt and Jacob spent some time kayaking and snorkeling in the ocean behind the homes we were
staying in. I'm sad I didn't get a picture of both of them, but I really love this picture of my Matthew.

 

Lots and lots and lots of swim time, every single day. Each condo had its own pool,
so there was a whole lot of pool hopping with the grandkids. And pool flipping, clearly.

This incredible trip was a gift to all of us from my overly kind in-laws. So, so generous. And a part
of it was that they arranged a professional photographer to take pictures of all 49 of us. These two
photos above are of just a little of the crazy that happened during a lot of waiting. It was fantastic.

This picture was another result of waiting. Annie took it for us
and I love it so. And the man next to me a whole lot more.

And a photo I took of my six chicklets. Love, love, love this picture something ridiculous.

A beautiful picture Jacob captured to end a really wonderful day two.

Our Mexico vacation ~ Day 1

Our trip began with meeting a whole lot of other Allens at the airport near our home
and a whole lot of excitement. (Note: this picture is still missing several people
who were there that morning, one family from Utah who had a different flight and
two other families coming from the Midwest. We were a large group to be sure.)

And when we finally arrived, we took a bit of a detour to sign up for an adventure we planned
to take a few days into the trip. Our little family had dinner nearby, before heading to the condos
we were staying at all together, and this was our view. It was such a fun way to begin the trip.
The incredible food, the two men serenading those of us at the restaurant and just being with
the seven people I love most in this world. A fabulous start to a tremendous vacation.