Vacation Recap {7}- Koh Lanta part 2

Last One.... 

Maybe I've procrastinated on posting this because I just want to hold onto every last drop of being there...

That's lame. 

We got back 6 weeks ago... 

My skin has returned back to a lovely shade of white and this all seems like a distant memory now. 

So here are the last of my favorite things/highlights from Koh Lanta. 

Fruit Shakes. 

Seriously- I think everyone had at least 2 a day everyday. 

By the time we left, we all knew what we would each order:

like Hannah always got Watermelon Coconut....

....and I always ordered Lemon. 

Seriously they tasted just like Fazolis Lemon Italian Ices and I think I drank like 30 of them in 11 days. It is quite possible that all of that acid did damage to my digestive system- and I'm okay with that. It was totally worth it. 

My Favorite Day:

We took a full day boat tour thing around the "Kohs" near Koh Lanta

Here is "James Bond Bay" where, as the name may indicate, part of one of the James Bond movies was filmed. Crystal clear water. 

We stopped here to go for a swim

And then headed to another island to eat lunch on the beach....

Spent some time snorkeling....

enjoyed shakes at Koh PhiPhi.....

who doesn't want to eat a coconut shake in a coconut!? 

... and in perfect "my worst nightmare" fashion, went to Monkey island. Fortunately there were enough crazy people with us to distract the monkeys that I was in the clear. 

It was a great day of lots of time on a boat with lots of friends and seeing lots of fun things. 

Our favorite restaurant "Slow Down"

I don't think I need to explain why....

This was my favorite meal on vacation. SO good. I had it 2 nights in a row. 

The last night we were there, they surprised us with this.....

and said, "Thank you come to Slow Down many time!" 

I will frequent any restaurant for free ice cream. 

And lets not forget the "Bisquick" sand at slow down either. Most definitely the softest sand I've put between my toes. 

The highlight of my trip was most certainly TONS of quality time with such wonderful friends. Jules coming was such a blessing, I got to know many people on a much deeper level, and I got to deepen relationships with some of the most treasured friends I've had. 

Like my sweet Anna Mo. She's like a long lost sister. 

I'm seriously so thankful for her. 

We spent hours walking up and down the beach having long heart to hearts. 

I'm still wondering how we lived in the same city for the last 2 years and didn't know it. 

Anna B has become such a sweet friend as well! 

I would gladly take time with these 2 ladies any day! 

And of course these 2 crazies.....

Who I love more and more everyday we spend together over here! 

And this sweet, wonderful friend. 

Brook has been a light and a half in my life over the last 9 months. 

I am SO thankful that she spent vacation with us and wish that she lived closer! 

She has acclimated well as a California girl with all us southerners. 

And as her shirt indicates, she is now an avid Kentucky Basketball fan. I'm just glad I can actually remember "California Polytechinc State University San Louis Obispo." I am now quite the "SLO" mustangs fan myself. 

We were SO sad to say good-bye after a wonderful month together! 

I still can't get over the fact that I got to spend my vacation in the "jungle" of Cambodia and on the beaches of Thailand. Seriously, SO blessed. 

Joyfully SO thankful,

FINAL FOUR!

after 13 YEARS {to some of you this means nothing, to a UK basketball fan it means a whole, whole lot} we have FINALLY made it back to the Final Four! I've been waiting years to feel what I'm feeling right this moment. 

We woke up at 5:00 this morning to watch the game, and it was most definitely worth an hour and a half less of sleep today. 

So at 8:49 on Saturday night in America (Sunday morning here), we'll play UConn for a spot in the national championship. Oh the excitement. 

OHHHHH C-A-T-S CATS CATS CATS!!!!

JOYFULLY ecstatic,

Vacation Recap {6}- Koh Lanta part 1

In my mind I posted these a few weeks ago- I did upload the pictures almost a month ago, and have since forgot. Oh well, better late than never. 

Ah Koh Lanta. What I wouldn't give to be sitting on your WARM beaches right about now. 

So after Bangkok and Cha'am we headed to Cambodia for 5 days and then flew back to Thailand to park it in a beach chair for 11 days.... at least that is what MY intentions were. Adam spent at least half of his time under water breathing from an oxygen tank. 

This leg of the trip got off to an exciting start when I met up with this WONDERFUL friend in the Bangkok airport!

Jules has been a DEAR friend for the last 6 years. We met in Santa Cruz in 2005, and have been great friends since. We spent a lot of time in college traveling between North Carolina and Kentucky to see each other, and then I was honored to have her stand with me when we got married. In January of 2009, she moved to central Asia where she is still living now, and I hadn't seen her since then! We decided that 2 years was long enough and she just happen to also have some vacation time the first week of February, so 3 weeks before we arrived, she decided to join us for a week in Koh Lanta! It was most definitely a wonderful treat! 

Our wonderful tropical home-away-from-home for 11 days....

The Summer Lanta House

As I stated in my intentions, much of my time during the day was spent relaxing with friends on the beach.... either sitting in chairs reading and {mostly} chit-chatting....

taking long walks over long talks with great friends.....

or sitting in the wonderful Indian Ocean that only had little waves if any where we were, and was crystal clear. Perfect for sitting and talking. 

Some evenings after it cooled off a little, people played volleyball...

Or flamingo football.... What is this ridiculous game you might ask?

Full tackel football on the beach, guys vs. girls. 

Seems a little unfair, BUT the boys had to play with their feet taped together as seen here. 

Despite their handicap, they guys still won every game. It was definitely entertaining to watch- which is what I did. I have issues- as in I can't stand it- with sand being all over me, and there is no avoiding it in this game. 

Just before sunset, everyone ran to their rooms to shower and change in time to get back outside....

 to enjoy 11 of these.....

The sunsets were GORGEOUS and different every night. Most definitely a highlight for sure. 

 Lots and lots of sunset pictures were taken. 

Everyone then headed out to dinner at different places either on the beach or in town.  

This night was a highlight for sure. These 3 beautiful women are such a blessing to me. We had a wonderful dinner together and then taught some new friends from Norway to line dance.  

Then everyone came back to usually sit and talk. One afternoon a restaurant a few doors down from our hotel told us they wanted to have a dance party for us later that night. 

Always lots of fun to be had.

More highlights to come! 

Joyfully {sigh} reminiscing, 

A little bit of here, a little bit of there....

Hello. I've been MIA for 3 weeks- oops. 

Didn't plan on that. 

We've been busy over here and lots of things have happened on the other side of the world as well. Some have kept my mind elsewhere. 

Like.....

My life-long best friend had a baby, which in our friendship officially makes me an Aunt. 

Tyler Jefferson Adcock was born on Friday, March 11th at 12:26 pm all happy, healthy, chubby, and cute as can be! 

I can't begin to tell you how {i seriously can't find the word} this is. I've been trying to put it into words, but can't. Surreal maybe? Eve and I have been best friends since birth, but our "roots" go back much further though: my Great-Grandmother and her Grandmother were best friends. My mom and her mom have been best friends since they were in diapers. Then, they both happened to get pregnant with us within 3 months of each other AND we were their only ones. We have been best friends since birth. We were both each others' maids of honor in our weddings. Our friendship is so incredibly special, and she has absolutely been closer to me than a sister for 26 years. 

here we were when we were babies....

...and in elementary school. She was always the cute one. Clearly I was a bit more of a spaz.  

And now she's a mom. I can't wrap my mind around it. 

It's been a hard week. It is miserable not being there with her. I would give anything to be able to magically transport home for just a little while to just hold him and kiss his sweet little nose. sigh. 

Instead we have settled for this. Thank the BG for skype. Here they are when he was less than 24 hours old. I hated being on a computer screen in her hospital room instead of there myself. I am seriously so thankful that technology is what it is AND that we were blessed with a crystal clear internet connection when I got to meet him {which is so rare}.

In other exciting "becoming new parents" news....

Our friends Ryan & Lesli came home yesterday from adopting their sweet little boy Greer from Ethiopia! 

He is just as sweet as can be!

photo from my friend Danielle

We went to college with them- Lesli and I were in B-study together for 4 years. I mentioned them in this post last summer. In the last year they have been foster parents to 2 boys, adopted sweet Greer AND to top things off, in May they will add another little bundle of joy when she gives birth to sweet little Charlotte! Talk about exciting. 

AND........

My brother in law (Adam's brother) and his wife are having a baby in 11 days-ish! Which will also make me an aunt! 

Twice in 3 weeks....very exciting! 

They will celebrate their 7th year of marriage in June so in my mind, it was about time. I can't wait to meet our new nephew when we are all home this summer! 

And Over here......

The weekend after my short stint of sickness on the couch, my mom and best friend from college Jamie came to visit for a fun, but very busy week. We had a great time. 

I'll have more on their visit soon. 

The weather has been all over the place this week- it actually snowed a little on Tuesday. I have been over winter for 2 months now so say I was not excited is an understatement. Contrast that with today- it was in the upper 60's without a cloud in the sky. No complaints here. We spent all afternoon in a field throwing the football and frisbee, and flying a kite with friends. It was perfect. I don't anticipate it staying this way though.  

So that's a little bit of life lately. Lots of emotions- all good in some way, shape, or form, some heavier than others BUT a constant reminder of the BG constantly meeting me where I am. He is good. 

More to come soon. Promise {as always}.

Joyfully Here,