A week in Cancun (Riviera Maya).  Last week we went and stayed at Palace Resorts Aventura Spa in Mexico.  It really was a great time because our dear, dear, dear, dear, dear friends (did that for you Karen) Mike and Karen met us there and we enjoyed living in the lap of luxery for an all-inclusive 7 days.  It was also special for Karen and Mike as they ask us to help them celebrate their committment ceremony, I got to officiate.  That was such an honor and I felt so privilaged.  Syd took pictures and held the rings.  

We are back in Ft. Lauderdale now getting ready for Thanksgiving with Ryan and Brandee as well as rushing around taking care of last minute details to get ready to head to Cabarete, DR on Saturday at noon.  We did have dinner with Bryce, Ryan, Brandee, and Bryce's new Girlfriend Jennifer last night at Kitchenetta http://kitchenetta.com/ very nice Italian.  Jennifer was a real hit with Syd and we all enjoyed meeting her, a keeper Bryce.  If you ever plan on taking a pet with you internationally do your research very carefully.  Hermann is going and we thought all we needed to do was get an international certificate from a local vet here but as it turns out we have to make a rush trip to Miami Friday morning to the USDA office so they can certify his travel documents,  we don't really have time for this but he is part of the package.  All for now except a few more pictures from Mexico.  Next entry, I hope, will come from the Dominican Republic. 

 

Today, thanks to Ryan's suggestion we headed to the Everglades to the Shark Valley Loop which is in the heart of Everglades National Park.  This is a 15 mile loop trail that can be taken by Tram ($17) or like we did by Bike.  This is an amazing experience to be up close to wildlife (alligators, snakes, and many species of birds and fish).  At the 7 mile mark there is an observation tower that is very easily accessible and provides a birds eye view of a huge amount of the Everglades.  We had a very easy ride to the observation tower but, the headwinds on the 8 mile return to the visitors center almost did us in.  The trail is very level just like most of Florida but the constant wind in your face today made it more of an exercise then an adventure.  All and all we were very glad to take this bike adventure and enjoyed the whole experience.  As a catch up from the last couple days, the beach of course and Syd and I did have a really nice round of golf at the Inverrary Country Club course.  I can't hardly believe that it has already been a week since we left KC.  Now it's time to start getting ready to head off to Aventura Spa in Cancun next week with our great friends Mike and Karen. 

Here are a few pictures to go along with Syd's post today.

Busy few days!  We had our retirement party on Thursday at Hoopers.  Lots of fun!  But sad to say goodbye to so many good friends.  Then a luncheon at my work before we headed out of town.

We made it to Florida on Sunday.  Staying with Ryan and Brandee for a bit....or till they boot us out!  So far so good! 

Monday we went to the beach; today we voted (glad we registered in Florida!) and then took Hermann and Buster to Jupiter for Herm's first beach visit.  He's not much of a water dog...but he did like digging in the sand.  Tomorrow Matt's going to take me to the golf course so I can break in my retirement present from him...new clubs!

Yikes!  Almost time to shove off!

This last month has been full of good byes!  I've had one last get together with my bunco group, my GNO group, my bowling friends, my old friends from high school, old work friends, etc.  Last weekend was a great time with some of my dearest friends at Cher's house in Arrowrock, MO.  Beautiful time!  And two of my son's (Bryce and Marshall) and Marshall's fiance Alix were able to join us at LeBourgeois winery.   All of this has slightly dampered my excitement....but only slightly.  I think our greatest blessing is that we're genuinely going to miss (and hopefully be missed) by so many.  This makes our return visit in September even more exciting!

Our saddest good bye was, of course, to Matt's dad.  Russ died on October 14th and yesterday was his memorial service.  He was an incredible man.....one of the kindest sole's I have ever known.  When we would talk with Matt's parents about our plans to travel, Matt's mom was always saying "don't count on me to visit", but Russ was very quick to pipe up "well, I will!".  Matt believes that now his dad will always be traveling with us...in spirit.

Our retirement party is Thursday, so that likely will be very bitter sweet as well.  We'll be saying good bye to a lot of friends and family that we won't see for some time.  And this afternoon we're getting together with Bryce.  He has received a job offer with a company in North Carolina and leaves for that on Wednesday.  We do hope to see him in the DR though sometime this winter!

The apartment is starting to clear out.  We've already hauled off some furntiure and Matt has repainted our accent walls so it doesn't really look like home anymore.  Tomorrow we have friends picking up our sofa and entertainment center.  Tuesday we loose our bedroom furniture!  Tuesday night will be spent on an air mattress but we will be checking into the Sheraton Suites on the Plaza for Wednesday and Thursday night (shout out to Kevin for helping us get a great deal on that room!)

Today Matt is "test packing" the Mariner to make sure we have room for everything we're planning to take.  I'm wondering what the neighbors will think when they see him load up all our stuff.....and then unload it? 

Thoughts from Syd.....100 day countdown begins!

Yes, I'm excited!  Feel this is a point where we need to really ramp up our efforts to close out the apartment.  Last night Matt got down a bunch of old photo albums from the top of the closet for me to start going through.  I sorted out some for my sisters, some for the kids, some to scan and a few hard copies I must keep!  Expect many more nights of this.

I realize it might seem like we've changed our plans a lot over the last four years, but it really has been a process in determining what we want to do.  Nearly four years ago (wow, that went fast) we made the decision to retire at the end of 2012.  Our original plan was to buy a motorhome and travel.  But then we kept discussing more and more places we would like to visit.....that weren't possible in a motorhome.  Then we discussed buying a place in the Baja.  While having a place of our own in a location we love appeals to me on one level, I really hate the idea of missing out on so many other experiences.  So....at least for now....we're going to be vagabonds.

We have our retirement part planned for Charlie Hoopers on November 1st.  I'll work (more or less) my last day on Friday November 2nd.  And then we're on our way to Florida.  We plan to use Ryan's address as our official address so would like to be registered to vote in Florida for the elections on November 6th.  Hopefully our vote will count that year because it sure didn't mean much in Kansas!  We'll stay with Ryan and Brandee until November 13th then we're headed to Cancun for one week to meet Karen and Mike so we can get them hitched.  Then back to Ft. Lauderdale to spend Thanksgiving with Ryan, Brandee and Bryce then we should fly out to Cabarete on November 24th.  Here's a picture from the deck of our apartment in Cabarete with a peak of the ocean!

Our plan is to leave Cabarete around April 24th and fly back to Ft. lauderdale.  We'll spend maybe a week there then start heading to the border to cross into Mexico.  We were in a dilema about where to go after Cabarete.  Heading to most Mexican locations in the summer probably isn't a great idea.  But Lake Chapala has temperature in the 70s most days in the summer because of the altitude.  Plus it's actually low season so a lot of opportunities for great rentals.  So that's where we're headed....actually to the village of Ajijic on the north shore of Lake Chapala.  It is about an 11 hour drive after we cross the Texas border so we'll make it a two day trip.  We plan to check into our Ajijic home, Casa Marcela, on May 15th.  This three bedroom home looks to be incredible from the website, and my favorite part is the rooftop terrace.  Check out the pic below, those hammock chairs are already calling my name.

After Ajijic we will plan to come back to Kansas City in mid-September for a visit.  Marshall and Alix are planning a late September wedding so that should be perfect timing.

Really looking forward to this adventure! 

100 days from today

This is a monumental day. Officially 100 days until we pack up the Mariner and head out on the adventure of our lifetime. There have bee a lot of things going on lately and again I kick myself that I have not been more diligent about updating the blog. Let's see, I will go over a few things that have been happening. While we have our first stop in Cabarete, Dominican Republic staying very close to Kite Beach. Here is a Webcam of Kite Beach, http://www.cabaretekitebeachwebcam.com/ it is said to be the world’s best kite surfing area in the world. Sounds like fun I hope I might try it out but I bet Syd will be more apt to give it a go. Here are a few updates since I last posted. I had the trailer hitch installed on the Mariner so we can pull the trailer to Fort Lauderdale. I picked up the bike rack so we can haul the bikes after Cabarete. We went to Fort Lauderdale for the 4th of July and had a great visit with Ryan and Brandee. They decided that they don't have room for the China cabinet now so we will be leaving it with Syd's sister Susan for now. The good news with that is now we won't have to haul a trailer to Ft. Lauderdale, I hope. I will be doing a dry run (pack) of the Mariner to see if we can get the 2 chairs in as well as Hermann's crate with room for our stuff also. I think I can do it, we'll see. Phase 2 of our adventure is set as well. We will be spending next summer May to September 2013 in Chapala Jal, Mexico, here is a local webcam for Chapala, http://chapalaweather.net/webcam.htm. It's not a good one of the Lake but a really good one to watch weather conditions. We are going to get our banking situation set in the next week, which will be another big step. I think Syd is going to take over more entries to this blog cause she ask me for the link again and she is just a little excited that this is the 100 day mark.