Without Regrets

Regrets are kind of like pimples.  Nobody wants them.  Almost everyone gets them at some point or another, and some people have more than others.  Thankfully when I look back at my life so far, any regrets I have are fairly insubstantial and they're pretty few and far between. I think this comes from being surrounded with good family and friends to help keep me going down the best paths.

A few weeks ago I was able to avoid an opportunity for regret. Taylor and I were in Oklahoma for a wedding. While we were there I spent a lot of time talking with my family because my Grandpa Joe wasn't doing very well. Taylor and I talked about it and had decided that after the wedding we would drive home so I could get my vehicle and drive up to see Grandpa. As the weekend went on, it became apparent that Grandpa wasn't going to be around for long, maybe not even long enough for me to make it up to see him after driving up from the wedding.
Since we only had one vehicle, and Taylor couldn't leave because he was standing up in the wedding, it would have been pretty easy for me to say that I'd just have to wait until after the wedding and hope that Grandpa would still be around.

It's amazes me how long it can take for things to sink in sometimes and to truly understand the gravity of a situation.  Finally it hit me that if I truly wanted to find a way home, I could. And if I didn't, I could very well miss out on the chance to see my grandpa one last time and tell him I loved him.
I left before the wedding, took a shuttle to the airport, rented a car and made really good time back home. By that evening I was sitting, holding my grandpa's hand.  Katie and I sang to him a little and I got to hear him say, "I love you." By the next afternoon he was gone.
I thank God I didn't miss that opportunity and for my husband who spent a lot of time on the phone finding me a rental car so I could drive home.

I pray this experience will always remind me to live without regrets.

Grandma and Grandpa Joe at their 70th wedding anniversary 

We buried Grandpa on Wednesday.
On Friday Taylor and I were driving to Denver to catch our flight to go to Playa del Carmen for vacation. It's about an hour south of Cancun, and we stayed at an all inclusive resort.  We were there for a week.  On Sunday we went to an ecopark called XCaret.  There we floated down an extremely clear underground river. (the water in the river was pretty chilly, but Taylor "helped" me adjust to it quickly... by shoving me in!)  This place also has a sort of zoo and aquarium.  We spent some time snorkeling and got some drinks at a bar. Then that night we watched a show telling about the history and culture of Mexico. I didn't understand a word they were saying but it was still neat to watch.

Taylor and I celebrated our two year anniversary while on our trip.  It's been the best two years of my life :)  A lot of people said we looked like we were on our honeymoon; I told them that's because he still makes me happy

Monday we went deep sea fishing. We didn't catch any big fish, but we did catch a few reef fish. The seas were pretty rough that day, and I was doing fine, but in the middle of the trip I did bait the fish by depositing my breakfast into the ocean.  But after that I was good to go and went back to fishing.  Taylor didn't get sea sick, but I still ended up with the better end of the deal.  Where we were fishing at, if you catch fish and want to eat it, there's a restaurant on the beach that will cook it for you. So we had them cook a red snapper and a "Trigger" fish we'd caught.  It was some of the most amazing fish I'd ever had! Unfortunately about an hour or two after we got back to the hotel, Taylor started feeling a little under the weather.  For the rest of the night he had what he referred to as "the Mexican cleanse."  I started to get worried about him, but after about 12 hours, he finally started to feel better and quit having to rush to the bathroom every few minutes.
We rearranged our schedule and spent the next couple days just hanging on the beach, resting, relaxing and in Taylor's case, recuperating. We're still not sure what made Taylor sick, since I ate the same fish he did.  The only thing I can figure is that he ate rice and tortillas and I didn't.

My "Trigger Fish" I caught

Taylor caught the big red snapper in the middle

On Thursday we toured some Mayan ruins.  It rained all day, but we were still glad to be out looking at things rather than stuck in our hotel because of the rain especially since there wasn't much to do there if you aren't able to go out on the beach. We left on Friday, but we were both ready to come home, especially since it was still raining the next morning.

The Mayan ruins at Coba

All in all it was a fun trip, the only thing Taylor and I missed was American food.  They had really good restaurants at our hotel, but you can't beat American quality, especially when it comes to beef.  We both were really craving a good steak. :)

A few things we found interesting while in Mexico

• A lot of Spanish people vacation here
• This means a lot of men in speedos (many of whom shouldn't be - I took some photos but I just to show what it was like but I won't subject you to that)
• A lot of women in thongs or topless 
• These conditions make for some very good people-watching opportunities :)

Western Kansas Fact: You quickly get accustomed to not having a lot of trees around when you live out here.  When we went to Mexico, it was a pretty forest-y area. By the time we got home, I was glad to drive through eastern Colorado and see the openness (this was kind of amazing to me, I used to think eastern Colorado was a waste land) :)

When I kept things to myself, I felt weak deep inside me.  Psalm 32:3
I really like this Scripture. When I first began developing my relationship with God, at times it was hard for me to admit my sin.  But this Scripture and lesson reminded me that God sees everything I do. He already knows my sins, but when I admit them to him, I free myself. Those sins no longer hold me hostage and make me guilty.  


Have a wonderful week!
Lyndee