Oh the weather outside is delightful...

I am back from vacation, and back in the real world...which means a return from my 2-week blogging hiatus. Nothing says vacation like sunshine, swimming, pina coladas and staying off a computer for a couple weeks...ahhh!

We spent our holidays in Cancun, Mexico, celebrating my in-laws' 30th anniversary (Here's to 30 more, you two!)! So naturally, you have to brace yourself for an onslaught of pictures. I'll keep it to a minimum since my mother-in-law did a wonderful job of summarizing the trip, and I just can't find the energy to do so in an equally graceful manner. See her blog here for a synopsis, and let me sum it up for you the best I can as follows:
As you see from the pictures, it was beautiful weather. We swam a lot, travelled to interesting places a lot, ate way too many tacos, and generally lounged around. If I had to pick a highlight, I really couldn't decide which I liked best: my 90-minute massage in the rain, swimming with the dolphins, exploring the Mayan pyramids, or sipping a pina colada on the beach. All in all, it was a hoot, and it reminded me why I decided to major in Spanish...which also leads me to my resolutions for this year.

Ahem:
1. To quantitatively improve my language skills in at least Spanish and German. I am woefully out of practice (especially with my German!), and my aim is to get back to a place of being very comfortable speaking it without having to stop and think.
2. To cook more at home. We are both generally so busy (and I have a new thing to keep me busy that I'll mention shortly!), that we like fast meals...like soups. Nothing wrong with a good soup, but I love cooking, and Nolan loves helping :) Time for me to start loving on those new cookbooks I got!

As for my new activity? I am pleased to announce that I will be running a half-marathon on April 11 of this year! I've been wanting to do this for awhile now, and just recently got up the guts (I hope to do a full-length marathon someday!), and am training with Sarah to do this together in Santa Cruz...along with a couple 10Ks along the way in February and March (for practice!). We got our training schedule, and the first day is tomorrow! 3 months of training and many miles: here we come! Here is the link to the race if you want to see what we'll be doing and/or cheer us on!

And now the Mexico pictures...I chose just a few that I thought would sum up the trip nicely:


















And of course I HAD to include a picture of Senor Milo with his souvenir that we brought him! Viva Mexico!