Cheap Massages and Beach Bums

Our first day in Puerto Vallarta Mexico was fabulous. As soon as we got off the ship we had two days there. After swimming with the dolphins we decided to hit none other than the beach! We love the beach. It was so warm you just walk right in without any shivers. I had each of the kids pack their towels, flip flops, underwater cameras and sunscreen. No one was going to get burnt on my clock ha!

Who is going to dunk who

I love the ocean. At this beach its solid nice non rocky sand. Clear water that is amazingly fun to swim in. The one thing I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE about the beaches there is you can get massages for only 20-30 Dollars. On the ship they are 140 dollars for an hour so I was able to get everyone who wanted a massage one for the same price as one on the ship. The massages were amazing and very professional. You get one hour for 20-30 dollars on a massage table under a umbrella listening to the sounds of the ocean. Jackson and I were first. Cassie and Joshua went next. Ryan and Jason didn't want one because they were having too much fun in the Ocean. The second day we went back Jackson and I had yet another massage. Hey why not? Its vacation!

Jackson and Josh getting Massages

There are so many people walking the beach trying to sell you stuff which was kinda fun to watch. Anything offered to you, you can get half price if you just tell them that's what you have. It was interesting to watch my kids bargain with the locals. Jackson is pretty good at it ,Cassie did okay and to the two younger ones we had to do it because they would just pay full price on anything. The food was really good too in the carts. Cassie loved her fresh mango on a stick with chili pepper and lemon.

Cassie eating fresh mango with chili and lime

We had a great time. I think at one point or another everyone had dunked someone. Being a bigger girl I LOVE the water because it has no weight. My kids were tossing me around like a rag doll which they loved. We all laughed about my legs too how they look like baby powder because they were so white. I think I went from baby powder white to translucent so I am getting a little tanner ha.

My white legs but look at his farmers tan~! lol

Dunking Jason

Boys will be boys

We had an amazing time in the water. It was such a family fun day! Massages, bargaining and tons of water play. By the time we went back to the ship we were definitely tired. Ps....with all the spraying I had my family do...guess who came back burnt! Me! Dangit!

Perfect sand and warm water

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

Here are some pictures of some of the fun we had. This was just day one off the ship. By the time we went back on we were so tired from all the fun we had. I laughed so hard at the kids dunking me or their siblings. My day was complete spending it with my husband who is so romantic always giving me a peck every few minutes and watching my kids have a great time. My mommy heart swooned at our family day.

Cassie and Jason jumping waves

Trying to be serious when I took a picture...they look like twins

Josh got caught by wave

Jason selfie time

Cassie and the wave

Love of my life.

 

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Swimming with the Dolphins and facts

Dive in with the dolphins and get up-close and personal with the friendliest mammals in the ocean! We decided to do an excursion when in Puerto Vallarta and swim with the dolphins. Ryan and I had done this on our honeymoon but really wanted our kids to be able to experience this amazing event.

Its kinda pricey but worth every penny. You are there for 3.5 hours and its only 140 dollars per person. Well times 6 for us but again it was worth every penny. You get bused to the location from the Cruise ship. Once there the instructor tells you about the dolphins they have at the facility. It was neat to hear all about them. Then its lifejackets on and in the water you go!

You are in small groups so everyone really gets to interact with the dolphins. The trainers show you some of the tricks it can do and sounds it can make. Our dolphin was so pretty. Ok, ok I think EVERY dolphin is pretty!

To feel a dolphin you would think by the look of it that they feel like silk. They actually feel more like a rubber suit that you scuba in but slicker. They went over some facts of dolphins. Like they shed their skin every couple hours. That's how they stay so smooth. It sheds little piece by piece and evaporates instantly in the ocean. Talk about dead skin cells! Made me want to go home and change all of my mattresses ha!

Then we were able to have them kiss us or us kiss them depending on the dolphin.

Ryan kissing dolphin ...I was jealous ha!

Cassie smooching

Jason having a great time

The best part was being able to hold on and ride the dolphin around the area and feed it fish after.

Swimming

Speed demon Jackson

We also got to dance with her.

Josh Dancing with Dolphins

They are majestic creatures and I am so in love. Their eyes are so human and their hearts so kind. Being who I am I wanted to take them home! I loved also that the one we were working with was a mother. The baby was a year old but the trainers still let the mom go off and check on the baby which was in the same area as us. I mean the baby was full grown and I wouldn't of known it was a baby. They let the dolphins do what they want and don't push them to do more. That's how you know you are in a good place.

After "training" them they do a show. Jumping and swimming past you in a race. It was awesome to see.

Our show with us in background

Then its showers and lunch that they provide. It was a great excursion I give it a 5 out of a 5. Lunch was amazing with very fresh foods that were very satisfying. We even go to eat by iguanas that were walking around.

All in all it was an amazing event. I loved seeing the excitement on my kids faces. I loved seeing them laugh when we said they were making out with a dolphin because the kiss was long (for the picture). Its an experience they will never forget and I am so excited we decided to do it.

 

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I'm Back! Did you miss us?

Our 7 day Carnival Cruise to Cabo and Puerto Vallarta Mexico was AMAZING!!! Our first REAL vacation where we weren't visiting family. I have decided for the next seven days to write about a different thing we did on the cruise and our excursions. LOTS OF PICTURES! I will start tonight but as you all know when you go somewhere for 7 days with 6 people....you come back with a lot of laundry! Going to finish that....get into my ZEN zone and post, post, post, post away! Here are just a FEW pictures to keep you wanting more though. Missed all of you!

Plus our winners for the 10,000 challenge is Laura Lian and Kristen Gunnerson! Email me at Cushingscountrygirl@gmail.com and I will send you your 20 dollar E-gift card to Starbucks!

Thank you! and 10,000 giveaway

I am over the moon excited and wanted to thank you all! 10,000 views in just a matter of two months of posting on Everydayraerae.BlogSpot.com

Thank you for being amazing and subscribing to my blog. If you haven't yet there are many ways to subscribe now. Google+ or getting the app called Bloglovin and typing in my blog or the good old fashion way of putting your email in at the top of my blog to get emails.

I started this blog as an outlet per say. I love to write the way I talk which ends up with a lot of "..." and more "...." because I talk in run on sentences in my life too. I use this as my diary of my family and of my kids. I never thought people would actually read it but I am very happy they do. Thank you for being apart of our family life on the ranch with our four crazy teens.

Please share with your friends. I am so excited that I made 10,000 yesterday that I am going to have a giveaway of a 20 dollar Starbucks or Amazon Gift Card to 2 lucky people who comment on this post and get someone to Subscribe. All you have to do is comment below and tell me who subscribed:) I will be back in a week and draw the lucky two people!

Have a blessed day!

Get Ready...Get Set....GO!

With four teenagers nothing is ever really that simple. Going on a Vacation is included in this. We are pretty excited because we are going on our first cruise as a family. All 6 of us are going to have 7 days of glorious sunshine (fingers crossed) on the way to Cabo and Puerto Vallarta.

Ryan and I have been on two cruises before. One was our honeymoon and the second was this Christmas when all the kids were at their other parents house. We didn't want to sit at home with no kids on Christmas and be super sad. The one good thing about having a blended family we are finally on the schedule were we have all four of them or we don't have all four of them for Christmas and Thanksgiving. We are lucky they live with us full time but its still hard to not have any of them for Christmas. Anyways...being a mom and having that oh to normal feeling of "Mothers Guilt" I felt so bad they weren't with us that I booked another Cruise for all of them to go this year while we were on our Christmas Cruise. Hey its the only way I could have fun without feeling so guilty.

The cool thing is we are going back to the exact same destination. We love it anyways! The great thing however is going on a cruise with the kids that you have already been on. We already know the destination so it becomes more cost effective. We know the places to go or not go and the excursions to go on or not go on. We are even going to be on the same ship although we did get a free upgrade to a Ocean Balcony Suite for our two rooms which we are SUPER excited about.

The kids don't even realize what fun they will be having yet. Are they excited..yes. Do they really know how excited they will end up being...no. Since we aren't going during Spring Break and are going two weeks later on the cruise we have to do Independent Study for the kids. They will be out a week and so we got all their work to do. The teachers were nice enough to give it to us a couple days early so we can try and get it all done. Its funny though because one of the teachers has all our kids. She told us that we aren't allowed to vacation together anymore because she had to do all the work for all four of them. She said it jokingly of course but it was funny. So after school for two days the kids have come home and sat to do their work for hours. They are complaining a little as they have just gotten out of school but they wont be complaining once they have a week off and not have to worry about it. Plus....we don't want to have to bring all those books onto the ship.

I am very thankful that my Mother in Law is going to watch our animals for us. We invited her of course to go but with her vertigo she decided to stay back to help us out by watching our house and the animals. I love my mother in law because she is always so selfless. We are going to have to take her on a vacation on land sometime soon though for all the hard work she does for us. She will probably need one after watching all the animals anyways.

Tomorrow we are off and on our 11 hour drive to the port. We will spend the night there and get on the ship the next day. I am still packing even though I started a couple days ago. Have to Iron the formal wear and I think I will be done. I loathe ironing! So much so that I got a dryer that has
"dewrinkle" as the kids call it. For formal night though I will become Cinderella and iron. Did I say I LOATHE ironing! :) With 6 people there is a lot to iron. Then there is my husband who packs an hour before we go, always ends up having everything he needs while I am checking down my checklist that the kids and I have everything we need. I tried packing for him but he knows what he wants better than I would.

So we are off! To Cabo. I will try and post another blog before we actually leave but then Everydayraerae will be silent for the week. Silent because I am going to be listening to the ocean sounds and relaxing while hearing my kids say "thank you for taking us on the most magical vacation in the whole wide world". Ok I can dream. It will be fantastic though and when I get back you will be overwhelmed with fun pictures! We are going to be snorkeling and swimming with the dolphins. Its going to be the best family vacation! Hope you all have a blessed week. Say a little prayer that these Baby powder looking legs don't get too burnt.

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Spring Break Part 2

When my mother was pregnant with me my Biological father passed away. My mother remarried when I was an infant and I was adopted by my dad Vaughn. The most amazing thing about it was Larry's family (my biological father), my dads family and my mothers family stayed connected. Many of my aunts and uncles invite each other 30 years later to each others houses from the opposite sides. I love that my parents took the time in my life to see and stay connected to all sides of the family. After visiting in Spokane Cassie and I decided to make an impromptu visit to my families town which is Centralia, Wa. It was another 6 hour drive from where we were already visiting but it was so well worth it.

The thing about impromptu visits is no one knows you are coming. Usually when we all get together its planned so we have time to get everyone together. My biological Father Larry Ray (that's how they got my name LaRae) had 7 brothers and sisters. My mother had 2 sisters. The really neat thing is both of my Grandmas from both sides were best friends. I know any of you if you had a best friend would find it amazing if your child married your best friends child. What a way to connect the family.

First stop was to surprise my Uncle Mike. He had no idea we would be showing up. Heck I didn't know till that day either. He had just had open heart surgery. I wanted so bad to surprise him because I hadn't seen him in years even though we keep in contact on Facebook. His daughter Marie helped me set it up to surprise him. You should of seen his face when we walked in. I am so glad he is doing well. I really worried. Heart Surgery is no joke. Hugging my cousins were amazing too. I love Marie we have always been close. Stephen is too shy haha!

We went up to my families town and got a hotel. The next two days were a blur. I was suppose to meet my Grandpa on my biological fathers side for breakfast. It ended up being my grandpa, Vivian, My two uncles and their wives and my cousin. We never do anything small lol. It was so good to catch up with them that we decided to meet again for breakfast the day we were leaving. I had so many more houses still to go too. I loved seeing their faces. It warmed my heart instantly.

I went to my Uncle Mikes house next. He was my grandpas brother. Watching him rock in his recliner made me think of my Grandpa who had passed. This is on my others side. You know I think I cried three times while I was there. Hugging him was like hugging my mom. I miss my mom and grandpa a lot. Its nice to have someone who reminds me so much of them. He is a pastor also and that is always comforting because we could talk freely about God and our beliefs. Side note. The first time I ever felt God was at his church when I was little.

Next stop was my Aunt Cathy's house and all my pregnant cousins. They wouldn't let me take pictures of them but they were all there. I did have one cousin there too who I love who isn't pregnant but she is getting married in Sept so who knows what's next. We had a great time. Loved visiting and being with my second cousins too. I laughed a lot as my 4 year old second cousin told me that she didn't want to speak English and she will do is later. Mind you that's the only language she knows. Cassie fell in love with their puppies while we were there and oh boy did I know we would end up going home with one. Took three days for Ryan and I to really discuss it but by the day we left we had Sebastian in tow with us.

By the time Cassie and I got to the hotel we were beat. We had met up with over 20 of our family members. I texted my hubby and told him about our trip even though I had sent pictures throughout the day. I was so thrilled he had talked me into going. I really needed it. Cassie and I zonked out but fell asleep with smiles on our faces.

The next morning we met up with my mothers side of the family. My mom had two sisters. Jacque had 3 boys and Val had a boy and a girl. We were able to all get together but just missing out on 2 cousins which was amazing. I am glad that my family is close. I am the oldest grandchild on both of these sides so all of my cousins are younger than me. I always tell them they have to respect me! I think they just boss me around as much as I do them. Lots of hugs and more hugs and more hugs were given. Cassie was able to hang out with her cousins which was nice that she finally had some kids her age around. Kaeden and Cassie I swear would be BFF if we lived closer.

After we went to one of my cousins and hung out and talked and talked. I never tire of talking ha! I had promised Cassie we would go to the movie Cinderella so along the way I invited people. It was cool because we ended up with 3 sides of my family there. Aunts, cousins, cousin in laws and us. It was GREAT! I love seeing the faces of people who are so dear in my life. By the time the movie was over it was almost 11. Cassie and I were so tired but we followed my Bre to see where her work was. Once we got to the hotel we were out like a light.

I didn't even want to get up the next morning but we had too. I called Ryan and told him I wanted to move to Washington. I miss my family so so so much. I feel so at home with them. Cassie and I got ready to go and meet my Grandpa and Grandma for breakfast before our long drive back. Usually we stay with my Grandpa or Aunts but since it was impromptu we decided a hotel would be better. As usual many more showed up. My Uncles Bob and David, my Aunt Janet, my cousins Sarah, Laura, Brittney, Courtney, and Laura's hubby. It was a full table.

I just never wanted to leave. I missed them all so much. After lots of talking (mostly on my part ha) and lots of hugs and pictures Cassie and I were headed home. But wait! We had to go and pick up our new puppy Sebastian. Many hours later and many, many songs later we were home. It was a great week! I wish it never ended. I cant wait till we go back in Sept with all of us! Its going to be an adventure. I had to get back though....as the 6 of us are going on our first family Cruise to Cabo in just a few short days. Man I have to unpack and pack us all up again! Here we come Mexico!

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