Mission: Accomplished

I did it! 12 books in a year! I had to push hard there at the end, but here's hoping I can make this a yearly accomplishment.

My new found book obsession followed me to Mexico where I lounged by the ocean or the pool with my Kindle in one hand, and a Corona in the other. I logged quite a few reading hours, and was able to finish one and start another.

Book 11: Orange is the New Black

When I saw the Orange is the New Black Netflix series come up, I binge watched the entire first season. If you haven't seen it yet, I recommend watching it. It's directed by the same gal that did Weeds and is very entertaining. With a big cliff hanger after season 1, and now waiting for season 2, I thought I'd take a short cut and read the book. Unfortunately, the Netflix series only somewhat follows the book, so I'm still left hanging. The book, though, was very good. It's a true story where Piper Kerman, a middle-class white woman from new York, recounts her year-long prison sentence for a non-violent drug crime she committed 10 years before. It was interesting to see what life was like for her, and to hear about the relationships she made on the inside as well as how her relationships on the outside (fiancé, parents) handled the strain.

Book 12: The Goldfinch

I couldn't put this one down. Since I didn't quite finish it in Mexico, I stayed up late the next few nights not being able to stop reading. I love getting sucked into a good book. I was skeptical at first, the synopsis didn't seem to be my type of book, but I'm glad I listened to the recommendation I got. It's a little dark and twisty, mixed with tragedy, mystery, and a love story. It's a little longer than the other books I read, but that was nice since I didn't want it to end. If you end up reading it, let me know. I'm curious to see what others think.

Cabo: Part 3

The next day was our first full all-inclusive day, so we took advantage of getting up in time for the breakfast buffet. We sat out on the patio of the Brigantine by the water which had a beautiful view.

had the place to ourselves

After breakfast, Clint had to call into work, so I headed to the pool with my Kindle and ordered myself a mimosa or two.

I also took a walk along the beach.

setting up for the beach party that night

And wrote a note in the sand for my grandpa on his birthday.

love you so much <3

After my walk, it was back to the pool where Clint finally joined me...with his Surface and still more work to do. He needs to learn how to disconnect on vacation better!

We then ordered a quesadilla and some cerveza, laid out some more (where I took a little siesta), then back to the room to shower. Rough day, huh?

Having the all-inclusive deal meant we got tickets to the theme nights, so that night we went to the beach party. We were greeted by a pirate who promptly tilted our heads back and filled our mouths with shots, then we were allowed in. We found a table with a nice couple and their teenage kids, and then hit the BBQ buffet.

The night started with a band for entertainment, then our emcee came out after we had eaten and started the show. He rounded up the audience for a conga line (Clint and I stayed put) which then turned into a line for a limbo competition. The emcee was hilarious, and made jokes as everyone passed through to give it a shot. We were cracking up. The winner got a bottle of tequila!

limbo comp

He then grabbed 5 couples from the audience to participate in a balloon popping competition, which again was hilarious to watch...glad Clint and I weren't singled out for that!

beach bon fires

cool decor

After the party, we went back to the room and watched another movie before bed.

The next day was Thanksgiving. We slept in a bit then got some breakfast. I tried the omelet bar where you choose your toppings. It was delicious.

watching the hang gliders at breakfast

mmm, omelets

After we ate, we took a walk along the beach to check out the other resorts. At the end you come to a rocky hill where the multimillion dollar vacation homes sit. Maybe some day!

check out the yellow house with the pool!

watching the waves

After our walk, it was back to the pool for more sun and reading. We also grabbed a traditional Thanksgiving snack, fried ice cream. That's a thing, right?

noms

Before heading to our room, we sat out on the beach to watch the sunset.

so pretty

Later that night, we went back to the Brigantine for the Thanksgiving feast and show. The food was very good, but I'd hardly call it a Thanksgiving feast. They did have turkey and cranberry sauce (out of a squeeze container), but that was it for traditional. We also had salad, rice, seafood chowder, lamb, prime rib, and corn on the cob.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Then the show started. Quite interesting...

a pilgrim and indian

Michael Jackson

masquerade?

a man on stilts

and the finale...blue balls

Back at our room we were able to see a fireworks show in town near the marina. Then it was off to bed, another great Thanksgiving spent in Mexico.

I should have known better than to think we could go on vacation without Clint getting sick. The next morning he wasn't feeling well, so opted to stay in bed. All.day. That was fine though. I headed to the pool with my Kindle and got updates on my phone about the Apple Cup. I was a little bummed we weren't able to go watch it in town...but laying out by the pool all day isn't so bad.

Clint joined me later in time to watch the sunset again, then we went to the lobby bar to enjoy our last dinner in Cabo.

loves his Surface

already decorated for Christmas day
after Thanksgiving

Clint and I got a kick out of these signs...reminded me of this hilarious comedy bit.

no molesting, please

The next day was our flight, so we squeezed in as much sun as possible. We got up early to lay out on the beach one last time.

no swimming, just testing it out

We packed up our room, and said goodbye to our gorgeous view before getting picked up by our shuttle to the airport.

goodbye, Cabo!

sure do miss this!

the putt putt course we kept meaning to play

Our flight had a short layover in San Diego, so we thought it'd be fun to try to get a later flight and be able to see Clint's brother and his family. Our plan worked, so they were able to pick us up from the airport and have dinner. It was great to see them, even if for a short visit.

We had them take us out to Mexican food, since we were craving carne asada. Cabo just doesn't do it the same as good ol' SD.

view from the restaurant

After dinner, we headed to a park where the girls could run out their energy. They go crazy for Uncle Clint!

a couple of goofballs

It was nice catching up with Blake and Rebecca, and we got a little extension on our vacation out of it. They took us back to the airport, and it was home to rainy Seattle for us.

We had an amazing time and really got to relax. Can't wait to go back!

Cabo: Part 2

On day 4 of Cabo, we finally felt like we were starting our vacation and jam packed the day full of activities. Starting with me cooking breakfast again while Clint had to do some work before heading out.

gorgeous day!

breakfast burritos

archway from the lobby to the resort

We walked down to the marina so we could catch a water taxi over to the main beach and do some exploring. Before finding a ride, we watched them clean and filet some marlin that had just been caught. The pelicans were out in full force waiting for scraps.

busy day at the marina

catching a ride

life jackets - safety first

the captain's 401K plan

Before getting to Medano Beach, we took a tour of the arch and Lover's Beach.

Lover's Beach

the arch

tons of seals out

the most southern tip of Baja, and a seal

circling around to Divorce Beach

The taxi dropped us off right in front of Billygan's (a bar on the beach) and said he'd be back in a couple hours…just ask the guy for Captain Penguin.

We walked along the beach checking out all the bars and resorts, while being hassled about 30 times by vendors. We finally cut across up to the road to get out of the mayhem and headed Baja Brewing Co. They're up on the roof of a resort, so the view was pretty cool up there.

super crowded beach

walking past the Office

After a couple beers, we found a street taco shop and got some pork carnitas and carne asada. It was delicious!

Clint about to get hassled again

We got back to the beach just in time for Captain Penguin to pick us up and take us back to the marina.

a seal hitching a ride on a fishing boat

We had scheduled our horseback adventure for that afternoon, so we went back to the room to change before the shuttle picked us up from the lobby.

The shuttle took us to the Sanlugueña Ranch where we'd meet our tour guide. It was just Clint and I, so we checked out the stables and all the other animals while the horses got ready for us.

goats

geese running rampant

donkeys

roosters

I haven't been on a horse in forever, so I was a little nervous. I hopped on Princessa, and our guide told me all the commands. While he left to help Clint on his horse (Indio), I tried to get Princessa to walk forward by doing what I was told. She was stubborn and just shook her head…guess only our guide was going to be able to get her to do anything.

Once on the horses, our guide led us down towards the beach. Horses aren't allowed on the beach in Cabo, but he said we could walk towards it and look at the beach. How exciting?

ready!

leaving the ranch, crossing the highway,
and making our way to the ocean

here we are, close to the beach!

Clint's horse did tricks

We then took the scenic route back towards the ranch to ride along the trails, passing by Wal Mart.

so pretty?

My horse liked to stick close to Clint's horse's ass. She even head butted him a few times. Fortunately, she moved out of the way for Indio to poop, but was right back on him afterwards. Guess she liked being close.

nose to butt

We finally made a turn into some of the trails where it got a lot more pretty…trees, cactus, quails.

finally giving Indio some room

photo op

After an hour of bouncing around on a leather saddle in shorts, we finally went back to the stables.

Back at the ranch, our guide asked me if I'd like to see a donkey drink some Coke. Um, of course! As soon as we started walking over, the donkey saw the beer bottle and started going crazy for it, what a lush! He poured some Coca-Cola into the bottle and the donkey went to town. Silly donkey.

We also checked out the llamas...

and her crazy teeth

Riding horses is hard work, so we rewarded ourselves with dinner and drinks at Mi Casa. I've been told by a few people to check this place out when you're in Cabo, and I'm glad we did! The place is decorated really cool, and the food is delicious. I'd definitely go back. Since it was a little early for dinner, we were the first ones there and had the place to ourselves.

fun outdoor seating

courtyard by the bar

homemade delicious tortillas

carne asada

After dinner, it was back to the resort where we hit the hot tub before calling it a night and watched a movie back in our room.

We woke up to another perfect day, and it was straight to the beach. We pulled some lounge chairs down towards the water and enjoyed the nice peace and quiet while getting some reading done (me on my kindle, and Clint with his audio books).

could not get enough of this view

selfies with phone shadows

after I decided Clint was on too much of an incline
for me to lay out next to him

collecting sea shells

We had decided to sign up for the resorts all-inclusive deal for the minimum of three days to end our trip, so lunch on Tuesday was our first included meal. We ate at the Brigatine (one of the restaurants) and gorged ourselves on fish tacos, tortilla soup, and cerveza. After lunch, we changed our lounging scenery by laying out by the pool and order some more fun drinks.

one of many Calima Specials

The resort was very family friendly, and had activities going on constantly. We were talked in to playing black jack in the community center that afternoon. We didn't win the grand prize (free dinner and drinks), but had fun playing anyways.

our black jack dealer

To take full advantage of all-inclusive, we grabbed sushi at the Calima restaurant after black jack before heading back to the room to get ready for dinner. Then just a short 2 hours later, it was time to eat again. We went back to the Brigatine for grill night, which was delicious. We also made friends with our server who brought us out a sampling of aperitifs after our meal. He also sent us off with a to-go container of ice cream which we ate in bed while watching more Breaking Bad before calling it a night.

my filet

Clint's short ribs