The Dominican Republic

2014 was a great year - Kara and I had a lot to celebrate.  We both turned 30, I got a promotion at work, Kara graduated with a nursing degree and got a job at St. Vincent's Trauma Neuro unit, and we had our second child in September.  All of that, along with our impending 5 year anniversary in May, meant that it was time for us to take a trip!

We've been wanting to take a trip with Jason and Kristy for a long time now, and are so thankful we got the opportunity.  We headed to beautiful Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, for a 5 night stay at The Majestic Elegance, and it was FANTASTIC.


One of the things I love about Kara and I's relationship is that we both share a passion for travelling.  We had such a good time in the airport, and on the plane, travelling down to the Dominican.  (The Southwest drink tickets didn't hurt, but in addition to that, we both just love going new places and seeing new things.  It's one of my favorite parts of our marriage).  We even enjoyed the bus ride through Punta Cana, sight-seeing and watching the Dominican people as they went about their day.  When we got to the resort, we checked in and laid down in our private pool-side bed.  It finally hit us - the realization that we had no expectations, no responsibilities, and nothing to "get done" for five full days.  What a fantastic feeling.  Jason and Kristy landed shortly after us, and before long, our vacation was off and running.

We spent 5 days on the beautiful white sandy beach.  We read and took naps.  We slept in, and went to bed early, whenever we wanted to.  We ate seafood, and sushi and steaks and everything else you can imagine.  We walked the beach and jumped in the waves and swam in the pools.  We went to the casino one night - and had a fantastic time losing $100.  

We also did our fair share of all-inclusive-ing.  We enjoyed lots of "majesticos" (the resort special drink - a mango flavored frozen drink made with rum) and an occasional shot of mamajuana - which is a Dominican drink made with wine, rum, and honey.   I asked what was so special about mamajuana, and the bartender said "mamajuana is a people-maker.  Two people check in, drink mamajuana all week, and three people check out".  I laughed so hard.  

The best day, by far, was the one when we went on an excursion.  Dubbed as "Swimming with the Sharks", the trip involved taking a short bus ride to the bay, and jumping on a small boat with about 10 other couples.  The shark swimming was nothing to write home about, but we had such a blast riding around on that boat, drinking awful rum drinks, dancing like idiots, swimming and snorkeling and enjoying the beautiful weather.  (In the middle of the boat trip, we did stop at a marina where were paraded in to pet a single shark that was being held by a Dominican guy, but it BARELY counted)  The highlight of the trip, by far, was at the end when we drove out to a cove that had completely still, 4 foot deep water that was crystal clear blue and looked like glass.  They had a floating bar and we got off the boat and just hung out.  It was so much fun.

One other point - one of the memories of this trip that I will really cherish was getting to bond and connect with the people I was with.  Kara and I so needed the quiet time, where we could talk and just spend time with each other.  5 years later, and I still love her like crazy.  Also, I really enjoyed the time with Kristy and Jason.  We spend a lot of time with them (well, not as much as we'd like, but several times a year), but with kids running around and obligations when they come home - we very rarely get time to just sit and talk without being completely exhausted.  I love my kids, and their kids, to death, but was so great to get to spend time with time with just the adults.

This trip had everything.  Great food and drinks, peace and quiet with just a little bit of excitement, white sandy beaches and calm ocean waters, Euchre games late into the night, and everything in between.  Here's a photo dump - what a memorable trip!

Happy 5 year miss.  I love you to the ocean and back!

I could lay here all day.......everyday

Snorkeling - although for some reason this picture makes me look like some sort of hippo.

I love the carribean! 


Dancing on the boat during our excursion!

A true cowgirl.  :) 

Relaxing on the beach.  

Cheers to mamajuana!! 


Excursion time!

I love this dude.  I hope you never change Jason.  

Look how still that water is!  


A shot of our private pool and the outdoor beds we relaxed on.

"Swimming with the Sharks"


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