Colorado Springs and the USAFA

Dale and I decided to combine a visit with Ross at the USAFA in Colorado Springs and a Rocky Mountain vacation.  Flying into Denver, we picked up our rental car and drove to our rental outside Colorado Springs.  The next morning we were up early to attend the Parent's Day Parade and meet up with Ross.  Usually it is warm and sunny.....but this morning was cold and brutal!  The fly-overs, gliders, and jump team were all cancelled because the ceiling was to low! The parade was impressive, with over 4,000 cadets marching onto the field!  Ross was not marching and joined us in the stands for a while.

After the parade we walked around the Academy for a while and then joined Ross and his squadron for lunch they prepared for all the families visiting.  Later Ross took us around the Academy, pointing out points of interest, memorials to fallen cadets, airplanes, and told us stories of his first weeks there.  We must have walked miles and miles....up and down......round and round! Finally we got in his truck and toured other places including the airport he flies out of.  We were dragging, it had been a long day, with lots of walking and we finally said our goodbyes!

Ross was busy most of the next day and we didn't meet up with him until dinner in Colorado Springs at a pizza place he picked out.  We spent most of Saturday touring Garden of the Gods!  It was a beautiful day and I took lots of photos! Sunday morning we decided to hike at Red Rock Canyon before meeting up with Ross and his sponsor, Mr. Thornton for a late lunch.  Mr. Thornton proved to be a great guy!  The hike was nice, the weather cool, and the scenery beautiful!
Monday was Pike's Peak or Bust.....and Ross decided he didn't want to go as he had already done that...so we said our goodbyes and headed to Pikes Peak....only to find out the road was not open all the way to the top because of high winds.  We waited and finally it did open, but boy it was still plenty windy and cold up on top. The drive was spectacular and we did see some snow up at the top.

The next day we were off to Buena Vista, Colorado and our stay at Mountain River B&B which was on the Arkansas River. Our B&B was very nice and the host....Erin and Mark were great folks.  The breakfast they served every morning was wonderful.  We spent our time in Buena Vista exploring......St Elmo an interesting old ghost town,  Princeton Hot Springs, Cottonwood Pass and Taylor Reservoir, Monarch Pass, Leadville, and Independence Pass. Our last night we had dinner at a steak house in Leadville called Quincy's ......very good food! Our final day we drove back into Denver to catch our flight to Austin.....another great Colorado trip in the books!

500th Dive on the Brac with Lady Go Divers!

It was time to head to Grand Cayman for my yearly trip with the Lady Go Divers.  I had to leave a day early and spend the night on Grand Cayman before flying to the Brac.  Cecilia, my roommate came in early so we had a couple days to relax, settle in, and chill out. Beth and Bonnie showed up the next day and the rest of the group arrived on Saturday.

Cecilia, Bonnie, Beth, and I rented a car on Saturday and toured the island with the most interesting stop at the home of Mr. Foots, a well know Brac resident.  He is in the process of building an Atlantis scene underwater on the island.
 
Diving started on Sunday morning bright and early.  We had Tom and Caz for the week as our divemasters...they were great and the valet dving was a nice touch!  We usually had three dives a day, then pool time before drinks and dinner.
During the week we went to Little Cayman and got to dive Bloody Bay Wall..it was nice, but the ride over and back was pretty rough.  We also had a chance to dive the Tibbett's wreck during the week and it was interesting to see the changes since I was there last.
It was during our week of diving that I made my 500th dive!  The crew drew a special board noting my accomplishment and the Lady Go Divers squirted me with little toys furnished by Patty.  It was a fun day!

As usual Cecilia and I had a great time....lots of laughs! 
The great trip came to an end with Cayman Airlines cancelling our flights out of the Brac....causing most of us to miss our flights back to the USA.  We spend most of the day in the Brac airport before flying out about 6:30 pm.  A group of six of us got hotel rooms in Grand Cayman, went out for a really nice dinner at Luca, and flew home the next day. 
It was a great week sharing lots of laughs!

Pokeman Go at Port A!

Karen and I needed our beach fix so we headed to Port A for the day with the golf cart in tow! We cruised the beach, had a seafood lunch at Finn's on the marina, and soaked up some sun on the beach! We saw a Pirate boat, a big Octopus kite, and lots of folks enjoying some beach time. Being the hip folks we are, we played some Pokemon Go.....and found a Pikachu on the beach! We stopped for a picture just to prove our Pokemon find! Also met the talented artist, Joaquin Cortez that created the sand sculpture!

Lunch Ladies!

Diane and I took Raenice to lunch at Paradise Key
between Rockport and Aransas Pass. We enjoyed
some great seafood and lots of laughs. It was a fun day!

Alaska Bound!

Packed and ready, we flew from Houston to Vancouver, and boarded our ship for the week, the Celebrity Millennium. Our veranda stateroom with Concierge Service was very nice and our cabin attendant, Ofelia welcomed us! We left Vancouver late in the afternoon and everyone was on deck as we left. Our first day was spent cruising with a chance to check out the ship.
Our ports were Ketchikan- Misty Fijords Cruising in the rain. Icy Strait Point - Whale Watching, Lunch in Hoonah, Juneau - Scenic Flight over Ice Fields and hike to Mendenhall Glacier hike, Skagway - White Pass Railroad, Hubbard Glacier - Cruising Hubbard Glacier Seward- Our cruise ended and our land tour started. Land Tour...Bus and Train Seward - Windsong Lodge...toured the Alaska Sealife Center, did a great whale watching tour, had lunch at Fox Island Anchorage-Marriott....we walked around the Summer Soltice Festival and went to a museum, ate dinner at Humpy's Talkeetna-Talkeena Alaskan Lodge....ate at the Wildflower Cafe and walked around in the rain Denali-Denali Park Village....traveled by train, The Wilderness Express to Denali, enjoyed lunch on the train Denali-Denali Park Village....did the 60 mile tour into Denali National Park Fairbanks - Pike's Waterfront Lodge

The highlights of our trip was the awesome flight over the ice fields and glaciers around Juneau with near perfect weather conditions. Seeing the whale continue to slap it's tail over and over again.....with a final breach on a great excursion out of Seward. Our Celebrity ship captain being able to give us a great view of the Hubbard glacier on a picture perfect day. The final treat was all the wildlife we saw in Denali National Park on the bus tour. The trip home was a killer......Fairbanks to Chicago....then Chicago to Houston.....then a 2 1/2 hour drive home! We needed a vacation to recover from our Alaska vacation!
 

Elusive Sixth Red!

The elusive 6th red! Five nice ones....but couldn't get a legal sixth one! Had the five before 11 am....still another great trip. Underwater or on top of the water.....love it!!

Blowing Bubbles in the Caymans!

Houston to Charlotte, Charlotte to Grand Cayman, Grand Cayman to Little Cayman was my itinerary for the day.  I met up with the dive group in the Grand Cayman airport, and jumped on the puddle jumper to Little Cayman.  We settled into our rooms, had dinner and crashed!  We were assigned to a boat, met the crew, and began our week of diving on Little Cayman.  The weather was very windy, and the seas were rough at times, with not great viz! Only got to dive Bloody Bay Wall 2-3 times because of conditions.  Our rooms were nice, the boats were new, big, and very nice..... and the food was amazing!  All they had to do was ring the dinner bell and we filed in like cattle to find some delicious dishes.  Our spare time was spent in the hot tub, chilling in the pool, holding down a hammock, or hanging out at the bar with a Mojito or Mudslide! Tammy was my roommate and we got along great!  I enjoyed diving with Lisa.....she would hang out with me under the boat hunting for creatures if my knee needed a rest. It was a great trip and I enjoyed meeting the other divers.

After spending the week with this group it was time to fly back to Grand Cayman and meet up with my friends, Dennis and Tamara for nine more days of diving.   Tamara and I arrived, as Dennis had flew in earlier....unpacked and settled into their condo.  I took the next day off to rest my knee, wash clothes and get my dive gear and camera together.  We did two morning dives, then had the afternoon off to chill out by the pool.  Dennis had planned all the menus, shopped and spoiled us with his delicious meals. Mojitos delivered to the pool were .....Awesome!  The weather was good most of the time and we got in some good dives, saw lots of marine life, and had a great time. We indulged in yummy ice cream by stopping the ice cream truck on Sunday....it was delish...my treat!!!
Finally after sixteen days it was time to head home....back to my hubby!  We said our goodbyes and I thanked my gracious host for a wonderful nine days in Grand Cayman.