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HurricaneEmily goes to ABR - 6/16/2012 11:40:57 PM
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HurricaneEmily
Posts: 582
Joined: 2/5/2012
From: Eugene, Oregon
Status: offline
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So here's part one. Part two tomorrow night. Quick disclaimer: The following events happened...WHEN they happened may or may not be accurate. 
We left at 4am on May 8th to go to the Eugene airport…coffee in hand…3 tiny liquors in the carry-ons. By we, I mean myself, GmaDeb, David (hubs), our son Jackson and baby daughter Temperance. We greeted Mari and Jeff- aka BeachridersOr- at the airport. Then, after a debacle over not finding the infant ticket in the computer, (there had to be something right?) we were off! We changed planes in San Francisco and met up with another friend Jesse. Reboarded. Then we were truly off. Everything else was uneventful. Travel is travel…but both of my children were as perfect as I could have asked. Zero crying from Temper. Movie watching and sleeping from Jackson. Yes!
In Cancun we met the rest of the party, John and Karly, and then breezed through everything….green lights all around. We were not two steps from the airport before we managed to spend $50 at Margaritaville… BAM….just like that. “Get in the van crazies!! I only wanted a beer anyway.”
 
“OXXO por favor.” So, after a quick stop for a 12 pack of Dos….I handed out the beer coozie gifts I’d brought for everyone. Then, John handed out the shot glasses on a chain that he’d bought for everyone. So we took a shot to celebrate our arrival and all of the gifts! Jackson sat in the front of the van with GmaDeb to help navigate.
  
We rolled up to ABR and poured out onto the front steps like the silly band of misfits that we are. I’m sure Badger and Babs could hear us from the front gate…hence their incredibly swift greeting. Maybe they’re pros at this welcoming committee thing. Whatever the case…I’d only just been handed my fruit juice when there was Paulo with a big hug and Babs with her warm smile. My initial thought was … This is gonna be good, I can tell.
So, with plans to see them again later, we were off to our little slice of paradise for the next 10 days. And it truly was. We opened up that top floor room in 6 to reveal a view that totally measures up to every comment on here. Yep…it’s absolutely worth the walk over here from the Moonrise.
 
We literally dropped stuff on the floor and everyone in the room put on swimsuits. We were back downstairs and in the ocean in record time. We dipped our feet but Jackson wanted to swim! So, we migrated to the pool. It was a total blur of awesomeness that concludes with a memory of a friendly staff member repeating “Cerrado. Closed. Cerrado.” With a smile on his face. We learned the rules and politely obeyed from that moment on. Mostly. 
Dressed for dinner. Sampled the buffet. Chatted about nothing. Stared at the waves. And then….it was time for this mommy to retire with the babies that had been such angels all day. So, I said my goodnights, we settled in, and I sent husband down to greet our new friends. The next morning, when David told me his tales, I was not surprised to find that everyone got along just as I’d imagined they would. He even said I was right. “About what?” I asked. “Everything,” he said. Holy carp! Did I just get the rare “you were right” phrase? I owe you one, Badge, you were a hit! He said things like “We laughed so much my cheeks hurt.” And “These are totally our kind of people.” What did you tell him in Mayan, anyway? 
So…Wednesday I was up with the sun wandering around looking for coffee. On this early morning walk I saw Badger enjoying a cup of his own coffee on his balcony overlooking the pool. Anyway, I found coffee at the Main Bar and I put coffee in my Bubba, 34oz mind you. Well, I did that only once before I realized that it was WAY too big a cup for the 16-24 ounces of coffee that I wanted. So, I washed it out (with clean water) and dedicated it solely to ice water. It worked best for that purpose. My coffee and beer were fine served in cups from the bar. Mother found this out, and agreed, after the taste of a Bloody Mary tainted her water for a whole day. Ok, back to the trip… After some coffee and another good laugh or two…
…the rest of the crew was up for breakfast.
Jackson was thrilled to be able to help himself to whatever he felt like trying. He was very independent at meal times, especially when it came to dessert! Temper loved the yogurt and melon. For this breakfast I sampled things. Yogurt, melon, eggs. I don’t love breakfast, as it is, so these things suited me fine. I did end up really liking the red or the green chilequilles as my favorite breakfast item (they switched on alternating days). After breakfast, we made our way poolside and tried to take it all in.
  
David woke up with a sore neck, so much so that he couldn’t turn his head, so I walked down and scheduled a massage for him. He immediately felt much better and even after the initial effects wore off, he was much better than before. Trip killer averted! A little lunch at the buffet…
 
Jackson found a baby coconut on the beach and called it a sea bean for a while.
Pit stop at the Moonrise…
…and then we wandered down to Lol Ha for some Coco Locos. 
 
They were yummy. I won’t talk too much smack but WTH is with Lol Ha these days?! We ordered 5 or 6 of those giant coconut drinks and sat for a reasonably short amount of time drinking them. We paid and left a decent tip, not overly generous…but then, he wasn’t overly nice either. Our waiter didn’t like us one bit. I got the “stink eye” all the way out. I suppose it’s better than him chasing us down, like I read from another TR, but still rude. And not what I’m used to in the Roo. Moving right along….Wednesday night I left the babies with David and wandered back down to the Main Bar to see who was up to visit.
I ran into all kinds of characters early on but the group dwindled off at a fairly early hour so I took myself to bed as well.
Even then, I managed to get a mini hangover and a stiff neck from the awesome pillows. Needless to say I couldn’t join them at Tulum ruins that early Thursday morning. Well, I went back to sleep for probably another half hour and when I awoke for the third time that morning…I felt fresh as a daisy. Really? Ah, such is life…. So Temper and I walked around the resort.
 
She tried lime sorbet for the first time and made a sour face at every bite, it was very funny. This was also the day that I took pictures at the Moonrise and managed to snap a distant shot of Babs and Badger.
 
I’m unsure if that photo was before or after Badger showed me the Portugese Man’o’war that they had only just found on the beach. Jaime (from the Moonrise) was even the one to bag that sucker up! Later, some of our group would spot the CEA taking it down the beach a ways to then release on the other side of the reef, or so we were told. Anyway, after all of the excitement, we ran into TwirlyB and Bernie where we got some great advice. Twirley told me that for a modest tip, the very nice guard out front will make Jackson a grasshopper out of palm leaves. We made our way there straight away. Amazing!
Meanwhile, the group was experiencing one of the most beautiful places of all time. And since I wasn’t there…I can only relay the general vibe of the excursion via pictures…
   
While waiting and talking with the guard, the second group made their way back in a taxi driven by the famous Moises – who will be more in our tale later. They then told me that David and Jackson were back already! When did I miss them? Well, we said our many thanks again and I tipped once more and we made our way back (under my umbrella of a hat) to find the rest of the party.
After a dip in the pool and some freshening up it was dinner time. We had a fairly early dinner, as usual, and went back up to tuck in the kiddos. David was beat from all of the walking they did and wanted to stay with them, so he sent me to find some friends. This was Mother’s Day in Mexico so there was a twist on the usual Mr Akumal. Instead, it was Mrs Akumal tonight and I made it down just in time to hear all about the silliness. The laughs started right away as I ran into Badger, Babs, and Patty! Ohhhh…..That Patty! We had SO much fun. Patty did you skinny dip or was it just me and those other kids from Oregon? I know you got attacked by a sand monster like me. And it all started like this…
Isn't that the best angle for a picture?!
Friday started poolside with a lot of relaxing and the group snorkeled.
 
While lounging poolside this mid-afternoon we met a couple from Cleveland. 
Their names were Greg and Brandy but we called them both Cleveland the whole trip anyway. They ended up joining our group as part of our honorary family and would later survive a golf cart fiasco, a fishing trip where Greg caught us a Dorado, and then excursion with us Amazing Race style to 2 ruins and a cenote. But I digress. Friday afternoon, part of the group rented golf carts for a dip in Yal Ku Lagoon and HMB. They DID make it to Yal Ku Lagoon…
 
But…the good-looking blonde, Jesse, decided it was a good idea to drive the carts over the highway to Akumal Pueblo. Needless to say, they got the carts taken away and were banned. Wouldn’t ya know it? They never made it to HMB. So…after a drunken escapade or 2 and separate li’l family dinners….the little kids (and some of the big kids) were tucked in while a few others partied into the night.
Saturday was poolside for some and ocean-side for some. Below is Jackson mixing up a batch of Coco Locos. Little bartender!
 
Mostly it was relaxing and laid-back with the highlight being… snorkeling with Jackson! He saw a huge sea turtle first thing and a ton of different fish. This day had some shopping too, if I recall. After snorkeling, beaching, and lounging, GmaDeb and I checked out the stands behind Lol Ha and all around the arches. I finally got my leather square with a painted Mayan calendar. This one even has two turtles on the bottom! Perfect. Also, we found a young gals shop that had the most amazing beaded bags so we made a note to bring Mari. Saturday brought an extra influx of local families with day passes or there for a weekend visit but either way, it left little room…well, anywhere. Again, not too much negativity but… The snack bar was empty, the pool was packed, and I imagine I only got away with a nice dinner because, with kids, we ate earlier than most. In any case, everyone felt like making it an early night and grabbing a spot ocean side the next day.
 
Sunday just happened to be our Mother’s Day back home. Everyone did their own things and then met back up to switch groups around. Sandcastles, snorkeling, naps under a palapa…all was a go. Sunday was also a day for group shopping. Still in swimsuits, we all made a split decision to go. So we threw t-shirts and flops on and walked around all of the carts and shops again.
 
We returned to the young gals shop with all the bags and GmaDeb and Mari picked out beautiful beaded bags made in Chiapas. Also, we found some baby hoodies and some opal jewelry that we liked in one of the stores but the young guy didn’t bargain much at all and since we knew this was the owner’s son, we wanted to wait and talk to his mother. Good thing too because we ended up finding opal pendants we liked better from a cool boutique type store right behind Lol Ha called Galleria Lumanai. GmaDeb and Mari wouldn’t find this one until tomorrow though, so this shopping day ended with prospects to return. Sunday night everyone made their way over to La Cueva del Pescadors for a fancy Mother’s Day dinner.
 
 
We ordered a pitcher to start and ended up with a couple more before the end of the night, but were informed that those crazy kids Badger and Babs hold the record for most pitchers in a night.
 
We didn’t even TRY to compete. 3 pitchers between 9 of us was already doing the trick!
 
We ate like kings and queens. I remember plates and plates and plates being passed around. And then, the most extraordinary coconut ice cream in the world!
 
Somebody liked it...
We tipped and paid our tab, hugged and said our goodbyes, took more pictures...
...and cracked our glow sticks.
And just when we were about to leave… wait, someone had to pee. Ok, FINALLY… we sauntered back down the beach. We were stopped to have our lights examined and got the ok that the pink and orange glows were red enough for the turtles. Yipee! We laughed, we danced. It was a wonderful walk back. One of my trip-highlights, for sure, even with the sand monsters. Then when we stumbled back to the Main Bar area….Mr Akumal was in full swing. The group dispersed, as we do at this hour with our many different agendas. We retired to the room with David’s fishing trip on the docket early the next morn.
< Message edited by HurricaneEmily -- 6/18/2012 5:17:47 PM >
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“To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.” Lewis B Smedes
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RE: HurricaneEmily goes to ABR - 6/17/2012 5:05:32 AM
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uphillklimber
Posts: 5531
Joined: 2/17/2005
From: Bryant Pond, Maine
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What a fun time!!!!
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Lovin life,
Bob
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RE: HurricaneEmily goes to ABR - 6/17/2012 8:27:03 AM
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Jamie
Posts: 2548
Joined: 3/10/2005
From: Southern California
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Really nice report and pictures, look forward to hearing about the fishing trip. Thanks
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RE: HurricaneEmily goes to ABR - 6/17/2012 7:24:29 PM
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Gem
Posts: 2331
Joined: 2/20/2005
From: ~~Coal Valley, Illinois~~
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Kudos to you Em for braving a bambino in Akumal...what a sweet babe~
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RE: HurricaneEmily goes to ABR - 6/18/2012 7:48:36 AM
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xelgoer
Posts: 13750
Joined: 2/27/2007
From: Eugene, OR
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Em, I was really looking forward to this TR. You did a great job so far.......... Your babies are dolls.
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RE: HurricaneEmily goes to ABR - 6/18/2012 2:09:00 PM
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HurricaneEmily
Posts: 582
Joined: 2/5/2012
From: Eugene, Oregon
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Thanks Badger! And thanks to everyone for your compliments! Gerber's TR inspired bigger pictures. So, part one is updated and here's part two...
Overnight there was a thunderstorm with lightning! I tried for a while to get video but, no such luck. Maybe the storm would help with the fish! Monday morning, we were up very early to send David off.
In fact, everyone was up fairly early as this was the day that Miss Jesse had to go home. Her shuttle picked her up somewhat early but we all got to say our goodbyes! She was a riot and one of the most positive attitudes I’ve ever known, just walking around this world with a big old smile. Good thing she lives in Oregon with us!
Well, the fishing trip was very successful as they ended up catching a dorado and a barracuda to take to La Cueva for dinner that night. Twist my arm, Cueva twice in a row. A couple days prior we met a cool couple from California, Nancy and Jack, and David talked Jack and Greg into joining him on his fishing trip. Well, after Greg caught the dorado...
 
and Francisco’s son reeled in a little barracuda, Jack and David brought in a monster of a marlin! They, of course, released him.
 
 
There was so much fish, we had them prepare it several amazing ways and then left the rest with the restaurant. Barracuda tacos, dorado in a mushroom cream sauce, straight up grilled with butter and garlic - my favorite. Mmm mm.
Blurry picture of a sleeping gato. Consistent with Pescador pictures right SoSo?
Between the mini lobsters Sunday night and the fish extravaganza on Monday…I was in seafood heaven! So, with the same amount of pitchers and appetizers and ice cream…and similar dishes to last night….our bill ended up being less than half of the previous. They must have really appreciated the fish! Works for us! I could live off the coconut ice cream by the way! Oh! A very big father son moment happened during this dinner! Jackson caught a baby lizard, true lizard-hunter style, just like his Dad!
Tuesday. Tuesday was the grand excursion to 4 fantastic places in one day. With the help of our skilled driver, Moises, we managed to see Valladolid, Chichen Itza, Ik Kil cenote, and Ek Balam in one well timed adventure. This fantastic day started somewhat early with some coffee (a couple of them were Mayan coffees) and breakfast. Mom made a few mini sandwiches for the road. We walked down to the end of ABR’s drive and met Moises! Now, here I should mention that when the group went to Tulum, they met Moises in the cab when he was pulled over and ticketed for having too many riders.
So after a big tip and a lot of apologies (which he repeated were unnecessary), they snagged his card to book him for this trip. Big hugs and friendly hellos and we were off in the direction of our first stop…Valladolid. Also here, I should mention, that GmaDeb took shotgun like she prefers so that she can converse in Spanish with the driver. Only today, Moises immediately informed her that they would only be speaking in Spanish for the day. He would help her but it would be a fun challenge and she’d remember/learn a lot. Ha! Good for you AND serves you right Mom! You’re the one that always wants to talk to the locals!  Ok, where was I…oh yeah, Valladolid.
 
We stopped long enough to visit the church and take plenty of pictures. Then we loaded back in to head for Chichen Itza. As Moises would say, not to be confused with Chicken Pizza! Once there, we were about ready for beer so Moises said he’d have ice cold beer waiting for us when we returned from the ruins. Ah Perfecto!
     
The ruins were just as I remember…huge, majestic, HOT! So, even with cold beer in hand (Gracias Moises!), the next stop wasn’t a tough choice. “Let’s go swim in Ik Kil!”
 
This cenote was amazing! Kind of an open-water meets a cave. We walked down a big windy flight of stairs and, once at the water’s edge, you see a glorious beam of sunshine filling a circle in the center. Bombs away! We swam with the tiny little catfish. Everyone noticed how much harder it was to tread water in this fresh water after being used to the salt water.
 
Before the walk down, for 30 pesos, we rented a life-jacket for Jackson. He used the stairs to climb in and he swam with us too! Then, after the much needed cooling off, we needed some lunch. So with a quick discussion about not wanting more buffet food, Moises said he’d help us find some “good food!” Not far into the drive we almost passed this amazing little Mayan restaurant but GmaDeb craned her neck around to peek. Moises noticed her and asked “Want to try that?”
“Any chance they have cochinita pibil?” we asked.
“Oh yes!” he answered. We enthusiastically replied, “Yes we do!” And it was a fantastic choice. He even got us permission to take pictures in their kitchen!
[image to be inserted]
The menu was “mayan to me” so Moises to the rescue again with assistance in ordering. Everything was absolutely delicious, we ordered and ate too much. Also, the huipiles (Mexican dresses) were so beautiful that GmaDeb and Mari each had to buy one. And right about the time of…“Muchos gracias! Adios!”…It started pouring a big fat jungle rain that soaked you head to toe in 3 or 4 drops. We quickly piled in, good thing Temper was already sleeping in the van, and we started our drive back as Ek Balam was on the way back anyway. We settled in the car. “Jeez, it got cold in here!” We turned OFF the air conditioning. “…Ok, that’s better. Now, what’s the verdict group? Are we climbing Ek Balam in the rain?”
Yep! So we made our way there…the group quietly listening to iPods, looking at pictures, and napping…GmaDeb conversing with Moises en Espanol all the while. They even joked in Spanish so much so that he asked her, “Are you sure you aren’t from here?” Ha! That’s one of our little jokes. I waited a moment and then quietly filled the silence with, “Her heart is from here.”
We pulled up to Ek Balam just in time. They were closing things down and, aside from 2 other couples, we were the only ones there. We spread out and kind of took over the spot for a little bit. We climbed the main pyramid to the top and took pictures. That white speck is GmaDeb.
Pitstop in the middle…  ...views from the top…
I even took the Tiny Temper up to the top in our baby sling!  
After we’d seen it all, we all piled in the van for the final time that trip. When we pulled away we noticed that we were the last and they were closing Ek Balam for the day. How nice of them to have stayed for us. And in the rain!!! What a lucky twist on an already fantastic adventure for a group of Oregon Ducks. Was that even ON the bucket list yet? Hike a pyramid in the rain. Well, check that one off anyway!
This drive wasn’t a long one as we were already a lot of the way back by this time. But, we were tired and damp. What was already a quiet drive became even quieter as Jackson finally crashed, most of the backseat too. We pulled up to ABR needing a full restart button if there was to be any kind of evening. We met at the restaurant for Italian night. It was good, not great. The tiramisu was great! But the wine was a no no. As in…Do not drink! You would think Jackson would be tuckered out this evening but he was stalking a crab that had come in during the rainstorms. After a nice dinner where we were waited on, we resigned to our quarters and put sleepy babies to bed. This night I got to go down and visit with my new friend Angela, aka shadowcat_410. We met through here (LocoGringo) and knew we were kindred spirits as soon as we realized we had the same birthday.
 
Wednesday of the 16th was John’s brother, Doug’s, birthday.
So, after breakfast the groups separated.
SoSo and GmaDeb grabbed this spot for a minute.
Then Beachriders and kids went to Cueva with SoSo for pitchers and WiFi time to call home and wish Dougie a very happy birthday.
While Jackson took off to Kid’s Club to meet Carolina and Temper napped with David…GmaDeb and I finally went shopping together! She had to bring me back to Galleria Lumanai to show me all of the fantastic things she’d found on a walk about with Mari. Well, they were right! It’s an amazing little “boutique-type” shop that we’ve walked by a thousand times and had never been in before now. Well, we picked out a gorgeous opal frog on a silver chain for my sister and Mom even picked out a gorgeous turtle for me! We made our way to the stand where we got my leather square and bargained for a few more gifts for people back home. A few bracelets, a pair of earrings, and 2 leather bookmarks (with the kids’ Mayan signs) later we decided to stop spending money for the day.
We made our way back to the Moonrise and hung our signs.
  
Wednesday night we had reservations for dinner in the restaurant in the hopes that it was Mexican cuisine night. It was another Italian night so we cancelled reservations and did our own things. Wednesday night had thunderstorms too! The lightning was wonderful!
Thursday was our last full day and I hadn’t got to go to Tulum yet so the group obliged and off we went to one of my favorite adventure spots. First was Zazil Kin for the swings and a beverage. There, everyone could sit and relax and let me make up for what I’d missed.
  
I just wanted to get in the water on a Tulum beach once before I had to go home.
 
Ahhh. Okay all, we can go have some lunch and shop in Tulum. Our cab drivers waited for us, because it was a slow day, and we told them we wanted to find some good food in Tulum. First stop was a nice little street side restaurant with air conditioning and Pacifico!
 
After lunch was a shopping trip that covered both sides of the street, right there in Tulum Pueblo. We browsed for quite a while with hopes that our favorite gals still had their shop with baby dresses and our favorite shirts. But, to our dismay, we could not find them. So, after the group made some purchases and we were satisfied that we had looked everywhere for our friends…we loaded back in the taxis and made for ABR for probably the last time this trip. GmaDeb had to soak in our last sunset.
Thursday night was finally (and luckily) Mexican night so we made reservations for the restaurant.
We reminisced and we each noted our favorite trip moment. Danger and all, the golf carts were a highlight. Hiking in the rain was a great one. I’m not sure I ever picked, or if I just kept naming things until dinner was over. Either way, we said our goodnights and settled in for our last sleep with the ocean on the wrong side.
Friday morning was an early one for all of us. I assume everyone wanted to soak up the most they could before our shuttle. John and Karly were meeting a friend in Cancun and staying for 3 more days so they didn’t even rinse sand off. But the rest of us played in the sun until the last possible second until it was time to shower and “get it together.”
  
Jackson had to say goodbye to Carolina. She was the greatest! He looked forward to Kids Club every day.
Once stuff was downstairs and everyone was ready and waiting, GmaDeb and I did our final rounds and got those last minute signatures that we could. Travelon!! Still need yours chica! We said our goodbyes. Hugged SoSo. Then we loaded in the shuttle. I cried like I always do. I think a few of us did this time. Everything else was uneventful again. Thankfully. We were home before we knew it and outside in the crisp Oregon air. ::cough cough:: “Dang fresh air with no humidity!” Ah….c’est la vie!
Until next time…. 
< Message edited by HurricaneEmily -- 6/18/2012 5:24:58 PM >
_____________________________
“To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.” Lewis B Smedes
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RE: HurricaneEmily goes to ABR - 6/18/2012 6:56:11 PM
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ChrisandCindy
Posts: 4693
Joined: 12/24/2005
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Enjoyed your report.
DJ 70, one of my many favorites.
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RE: HurricaneEmily goes to ABR - 6/19/2012 7:33:24 AM
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Kwing
Posts: 7761
Joined: 12/23/2005
From: Ohio
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Great looking family and Great report - Muchos Gracias!
< Message edited by Kwing -- 6/19/2012 8:02:44 AM >
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RE: HurricaneEmily goes to ABR - 6/19/2012 11:26:37 AM
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dp
Posts: 27
Joined: 6/1/2012
Status: offline
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New to the forum, but wanted to say how much I enjoyed your trip report. We are heading down with a large family group and I hope we have half the fun that you did. I also wanted to say that the pic of your two beautiful kids in the net swing is "picture perfect." It would make a great holiday card if you send those out. Thanks for the enjoyable and fun read.
dp
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