I remember hearing someone say “BVI” and I had to ask what that meant; this very special place in the Caribbean that all the cool people call “BVI”. Our family was lucky enough to experience this very cool acronym last February for ski week. Instead of skiing in Park City, we journeyed on our favorite catamaran, Sea Boss, through BVI. From here, it is only the pictures that can tell the story.

Things to remember… the longest journey to get there (sleeping in the Atlanta airport), lobster, lots of lobster, conch shells, eating fresh conch while snorkeling, fishing, caves, The Baths, snorkeling, pirate night, busting my cheek, glow worms in the water at Anegada, early morning fishing, Hanna and Stu forever, tarpon fishing late at night with the Top Gun song Danger Zone playing, capturing a scale of a fish, paddle boarding, fly fishing with Stu, flamingos, a long walk on Cow Wreck beach and the rum to follow while riding in the back of a truck/taxi, saying a prayer for “Lobby”, the rainbow, Johnny stung by fire coral, hiking up to the ruins of a deserted estate while fighting the bugs, COVID tests via Zoom, forgetting the kids’ bag on our way home, Hanna mailing Charlotte’s favorite buddies and blankies home.

We stand amazed by this place and hope to come back soon.

Christmas came and went again like a dream. Santa stopped by on the beach via parachute. Charlotte and Johnny seemed less amused with meeting him and “sitting on his lap”. He brought a few presents and some candy which the coatis (Mexican racoons) ravaged through (glad they had the tummy ache and not us). Like every Christmas, we hope the takeaway was an experience that fills our memories with love and time spent together. Luckily, we get to do this as a family at one of our favorite spots, Rosewood Mayakoba. We feel incredibly grateful for this special week we get to spend in the sun and sand.

Things to remember: First and foremost, the near plane crash we lived through on our way to Chichen Itza; we’ve never been more scared and more relieved to feel the ground (we didn’t quite make it to the pyramids). COVID restrictions of masks, testing, etc. Massive crowds and chaos at Cancun airport on arrival. Breakfast, lunch and dinner; every bite is an experience in and of itself at Rosewood. Bike riding to and from the beach as well as to the village to play arcade games. Charlotte and Johnny had their own bikes this trip. Riding beach cruisers as a family through the jungle on our way to the beach might be the highlight of my entire year. Sailing with daddy where Charlotte and Johnny made an obstacle course under the boat that they called “Tom and Jerry”. The lifeguard pulling in the sailboat because the wind died. Johnny’s “dabs”. Charlotte reading a book on the beach. Playing dodgeball on the paddleboards. The Mayakoba boat where we found a deserted island to explore as well as a deserted boat from Hurricane Wilma. Playing giant chess. Swimming in the rain on the last day. Diving, swimming, digging, running, sunning, eating, biking, discovering and mostly loving life together.

Thank you, Santa. We will try to be good so we can come back next year.

NFR is a special event for feeling some of the goodness America was built upon; hard work, horses, dirt, pride and a little bit country. John and I were thrilled to be able to bring Charlotte and Johnny this year to experience NFR for the first time. We walked away with a renewed sense of hope for America and wholesome goodness that gets to live on at home on Mellor Ranch. God bless America and long live cowboys!

We were also able to squeeze a little bit more out of Vegas with a trip to see the Grand Canyon, Cowboy Christmas, amazing meals, bubble baths and last but not least, the Carrie Underwood show. Charlotte and Johnny are hooked. We can’t wait until next year.

If one is seeking adventure, Costa Rica is the place. We went from ziplines in the mountains to black sand beaches with howling monkeys in-between. It was truly adventure packed! There were plenty of critters to keep us on our toes (literally) and lots of winding dirt roads to help us slow down and soak in the rugged scenery. We also enjoyed practicing our Spanish and eating amazing local food. Our house was a major highlight as it sat up on the hillside above Coco Beach. The sunsets were incredible and so were the daily rainstorms as we swam in the pool. Overall, Costa Rica was a remarkable discovery with our two very curious children, especially as our wanderlust souls continue to crave uncharted territory through these Covid years (I can’t believe we’re saying “years” but it continues to rage on).

Things to remember: Ziplines, the bus ride to the water slide, the water slide in the rain storm, hot springs, rivers, mud, scorpions, lizards, frogs and crabs at night, june bugs, howling monkeys, more rain storms, sugar cane, crocodiles, humidity, breakfast on our patio, black sand, dirt roads with lots of bumps, mosquitos and even bigger flying bugs who remain nameless, more ziplines that might possibly be unsafe, boat time, beaches left undiscovered, feeding monkeys, feeding crocodiles, dogs, bone marrow, cats, fish spa, eating lunch in the deep backcountry, chillaxing in our infinity pool as we overlooked the bay, Johnny getting a fever the day we left, COVID tests on our patio, the lightning storm on our last night.

Below are pictures from one of our ziplining experiences where it actually felt safe and regulated … hence a professional photographer.

And now for the abundance of iPhone pictures that happen so easily without settings and without a giant camera to lug around.

We found ourselves back at our happy place for Spring Break. We’ve been coming to this same spot for years and always find our true Mexico serenity, especially when Park City’s spring becomes too long to bear. We happened to arrive on Charlotte’s 9th birthday, so obviously there was “Cake By The Ocean” and a proper piñata to crack. However, after much anticipation, the piñata was not filled with candy. Not sure where the miscommunication happened, but the kids really didn’t care. We were in Mexico and after that… little matters. So, happy 9th birthday to Charlotte and also happy spring break 2021. Below are the pictures to document our happy place – Punta Mita.

Below are pictures from our super awesome surf session.

Bermuda, Bahama, Come on pretty mama…

Words will definitely fall short to describe the incredible experience we were able to enjoy in the Exumas (Bahamas) on our first chartered catamaran.  For Park City’s “ski week” we escaped the snow (and anything to do with Covid) and disappeared into the turquoise Caribbean water where we truly wanted to stay forever.  It was just our family of four along with a husband/wife crew as we island hopped chasing sandbars into the sunset.  I tried to document the awesomeness of it all below with pictures, but they really don’t do it justice.  Thank you Mother Earth, The Bahamas, and of most of all, Stu and Hannah for our best vacation ever.  Like seriously.  (Keep singing Beach Boys…)

Things to remember:  Basically EVERYTHING, three meals a day with Chef Hannah, Captain Stu navigating, sand bars, sharks, turtles, Sea Boss, more sand bars, stingray shuffle, holding onto the tube with Captain Stu, swimming with nurse sharks, pig island, iguana island, conch shells, creating a new family color that only exists in the Bahamas called Bahama, the gentle rocking of the boat at night, sunsets, fancy drinks, snorkeling, the ocean currents that felt like rivers, exploring Boo Boo Hill, Thunderball grotto, sun burns, rashes, the Covid test on the beach, Charlotte hanging out with Chef Hannah, sand dollars, Charlotte and Johnny’s wrestling matches on the tube, way too much time at Atlanta airport, living every minute to the fullest.  We truly can’t wait to go back to Sea Boss with Hannah and Stu. 

We snuck away to Cabo last November to celebrate Thanksgiving pandemic style. We needed some sun, sand and I suppose a little isolation for yet another big holiday. It was our first time at the beautiful Montage resort in Cabo. The water was actually swimmable and warm, the grounds and pools were expansive, the food was amazing, and the staff was incredibly kind and helpful. We felt safe and alone and spent all of our daylight hours outside. Our modified Thanksgiving was a total success (minus a turkey in a warm kitchen on a cold and snowy day in Park City, Utah… oh well).

Things to remember: Charlotte and Johnny crashing into the waves on our first night as the sun went down, cheese grater sand, room service breakfast on balcony, Johnny catching a fish in his net, cabana with fruit and drinks and fried crickets, the ocean bicycle, walking to our room in the dark, playing in the giant pool, the cheese grater sand once again, fireworks Thanksgiving night, the outdoor shower, green hair, Montage merit badges, sea turtles hatching and running into the ocean, the giant blue floatie island Charlotte and Johnny played on for hours and hours, making socially distanced friends, delicious and expensive margaritas, the champagne party where we all danced, our family relying on each other as we live and thrive through these unprecedented times, me never wanting to change anything and hoping we can all freeze forever in Cabo.

So… happy Thanksgiving 2020 pandemic style.

So I guess the Mexican flag is also our family’s Christmas flag (at least it’s green and red). We enjoyed another peaceful seven days in Mexico with just our team Mellor to celebrate each others’ company along with the Christmas holiday. Santa came on a jet ski this year and brought a few toys for our stockings. We mostly remember swimming in the ocean, digging in the sand, eating amazing meals (including crickets), talking and playing, talking and playing. And that was our Christmas 2020. (If I could, I would put it in a bag and freeze it forever.)

This year has definitely been different … let’s just call it the year of COVID (dun dun dun). Most everything has been affected, especially travel. We had big plans to celebrate our 10 year wedding anniversary in Bora Bora (a bucket list trip for us); we were even going to bring the kids. But, that just wasn’t going to happen this year. Luckily, we were able to get away to one of our favorite spots in Mexico. For just a minute, we felt free from the stress of this crazy year. Socially distanced time in the sun, sand, ocean and a few margaritas fed our wanderlust souls as we celebrated 10 years of love and marriage. What a beautiful life we’ve created, John. Cheers to many more years!