Swimming VS. Sledding

Wondering why i have a tropical beach scene as my layout rather than a Christmas-related template just 10 short days before Mr. Clause pays me a visit? Well, I am SKIPPING Christmas this year! You heard me. This year for Christmas my family (parents, sibs, grandma & step-grandpa) are spending this holiday season in a little place i like to call CANCUN, MEXICO! whoo! We are staying at an all-inclusive resort on the lovely tropical island of Cancun Mexico. It is a 5 star resort with pools and beaches and clubs and spas and parasailing and snorkeling and every activity possible on this sandy slate of heaven! And ALL of the activities are included in the "all-inclusive" pass I so conveniently possess, so i can do ANYTHING i want!! (well, for the most part...) And do you know what the best part of that little gold wristband shimmering in the 90 degee weather for all to see is?! ALL THE SPECIALTY DRINKS YOU WANT!!! Holy freak! Anybody who knows me will know that this is Heaven on earth for me... I am OBSESSED with pina coladas and strawberry daiquiris! I love them almost as much as i love tropical fruits!!! (Almost...) But seriously!!!! What more could a young girl my age ask for then the warm sand between her toes and all you can drink AMF's and endless fresh pineapple chunks for Christmas?!?! (jk about the AMF's.. im not like that, i swear!) Oh and i almost forgot to mention the best part (and purpose) of this whole trip!!!! I get to spend Christmas day in the Cancun Orphanage!!! I am looking foward to this the most!!! (well, its head and head between this and climbing palm trees.. haha) Anyways! I had an amazing opportunity to visit this same orphanage last June and i LOVED every minute of it! Best experience a person could have.... very emotional but SO worth it!! I love those little kids... Im not yet fluent in speaking spanish so its quite hard to communicate with these angels, but lucky for me, love is a universal language and that is all i need to have a great time with these adorable kids :) ALSO! These past couple of months i have been working on my scuba diving certification. And though it took me 6 long weeks; 2 night-time deep water dives at the Midway Crater, 350 boring pages of reading in the PADI diving book, and 1 nasty 50 question final (that took me 3 and a half painful hours to complete.... ugh) i FINALLY passed scuba school! yay! So im also going scuba diving while down there! I am really excited for this trip, mainly because i was very worried about Christmas this year and didnt know how well my family would be able to deal with it (seeing as that its our first Christmas without Ty..) But i think that we made the right choice by going away this year. The memories are just still to fresh to stay here, and i know that Ty would want the best for us, and i think that this is what he would want. haha That sounds funny, but im not talking about the luxurious tropical part of the trip.. I say that because the whole reason for this trip is to bring down the money that friends and family and even complete strangers so genourously donated in Tylers name specifically for this orphanage that Ty, myself, and my parents were able to serve at in June. Thats what Ty would want. All of the other activities are just a bonus that we added in, but this year i am determined to experience the real meaning of Christmas. To remember Christ. That is what this is all about. To remember and honor him. Which is exactly what im hoping to get down there at that orphanage. Acting selflessly is a great way to respect Christ's life, and that is my goal this year. (And hopefully for years to come..) After all, "When ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God." This trip will be a great time for my family to bond and have fun, as well as forgetting ourselves and serving others while growing closer to the Savior and coming to a fuller and better understanding of the Gospel. This will be a great trip and hopefully a growing experience for my family and myself!! i am oh so excited :)