"...I met a guy called James, on the BLS there, who's really nice - he made me laugh and I know if I'd been there long-term he could make, easily, for distraction. We just got on really well and I'd love to get to know him better. We're a long way apart but who knows, if it is in God's plans it will work and if not, then I'm not going to worry about it. I've written to him to say hi and say I'd like to keep in touch"
I went on to write some other stuff, but later in the same entry
"...I don't need someone I've only met for four days to be majoring in my thoughts."...ahem...it was already a problem.
Well, last month we celebrated 15 years of marriage! It's strange to think back to that time when we first met and it was fun to read my thoughts surrounding it. I had no clue, obviously, that we would end up here, but he made a deep impression right at the start. He still impresses me and I have so much respect and love and admiration for this man I was blessed enough to marry. Fifteen years sounds like a long time, but it has not felt long.
We were married in England, in January and needless to say, it was cold, it had snowed! Because he was American and once we were married he had to change his visa status, we had not been able to leave the country for our honeymoon, so that was cold too. Our anniversaries have always been wet and cold (yes even here in California). We always kind of hoped to go somewhere lovely and warm for our tenth anniversary, but when that rolled around we were serving with YWAM in Chico and had (less than) no money, no time, and no one to look after our children.
As this anniversary approached I started dreaming again. It seemed totally unrealistic to be able to get away, but our anniversary falls close to a holiday and it was a holiday for James from school as well as the kids from their school, so we started thinking 'maybe just a long weekend'?
James on a whim asked some good friends, half jokingly (I think), if they would watch the kids and they amazingly said yes. We had some air miles saved, which covered one of our flights and all of a sudden it was becoming reality.
Puerto Vallarta baby! Mexico sun!
We had never left our kids before to do something like this and it felt extravagant and surreal. We did miss them terribly, not that we pined, but we are so used to being us, a family, that it felt like something was missing. They are fun to be with and at such fun ages that we really do enjoy them. At the same time, it was good to make time for just the two of us and be together without the responsibility of caring for the needs of the children. We were able to eat what we wanted, stay up as late as we wanted, come and go as we pleased. Just 'be' together.
Yup I adore him!!!
It was a good experience, we loved where we stayed - Hacienda Las Animas, loved the weather, loved that we got to share some of the experience with good friends who can now share some of those memories with us.
(All the rest are i-phone photos)
Our good friends John & Alice were also in town, celebrating their tenth
Our very first night, we had dinner alongside the river. Great Mexican food, so happy to be together.
It was an easy walk to town, but James took great pleasure in making this bridge bounce as much as he could, just to try to unnerve me.
One of my favorite days - we walked to town, met our buddies, rode a bus to Boca, then hiked to Playa las Animas for lunch. It was a beautiful hike, passing wonderful beaches to reach our final destination. We rode a boat taxi back to Boca then bused it 'home'.
The one thing I wish we had done differently would have been to pack a lunch and enjoy it on one of the beautiful beaches along the way, instead of at Las Animas which was full of tourists. Still fun though.
Cheesy? Maybe. Most certainly true though :)
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