First Day Adventures in Cancun

Holy hell, it has been an interesting day.

We started the morning by heading into town to find a supermarket. One thing I noticed right away is that people drive a little crazy here. I never quite knew who was in what lane at any given moment. It definitely feels like a bit of a free for all on the roads.

Luckily, Shane is doing all of the driving.

Eventually we made it to the supermarket, which turned out to be quite the experience. Since my Spanish is not very good, figuring out where everything was took a little extra effort.

For example, who knew milk (leche) would be sitting on a shelf and not refrigerated? And coffee filters were definitely not anywhere near the coffee. It took us about half an hour to finally track them down.

Despite the confusion, we made it through the shopping trip and hopefully we will be a little more prepared the next time we go.

After our driving and shopping adventure, we came back to the condo, grabbed a nice cold drink, and headed down to the beach.

The sand here is amazing, and the water is full of bright greens and blues. I absolutely love it.

I could definitely get used to this for a month.

Houston Layover

It has already been a fun trip and we have not even made it to Mexico yet.

We had a four hour layover in Houston, and my good friend Caitlin, who lives here, was able to pick us up so we could grab lunch together. It was so nice getting to see her, even if it was only for a short visit.

I am kicking myself a little for not taking a picture with her.

Now we are back at the airport with a little over an hour left before our next flight. After that, we will finally be on our way to Cancun.

I will post another update once we get settled into our condo.

Bye Bye Arizona

Well, today is the day. Our bags are packed and we are ready to go.

Bye Bye Arizona!

I am definitely going to miss my cat like crazy while we are gone, but he is in good hands while we are away. Saying goodbye is never easy, even when you know everything will be fine.

Next stop is Texas for a four hour layover, and then we are finally off to Cancun.

The adventure officially begins now.

Booked and Ready for the Trip

Today was a long day, but we finally got almost everything done that we needed before the trip.

Trip Checklist

✔ Tickets
There was a small change in our plans. Since we booked the tickets a little later than expected, prices and routes had shifted. We will now be flying from Tucson to Cancun and leaving on the 30th.

✔ Rental Car
We booked a rental car for the month. It is a tiny little car, but it will definitely get the job done.

✔ Random Shopping List

We also picked up a few things we wanted for the trip:

• Water shoes. Yes please.

• Waterproof video camera with a cute little mini stand

• Biodegradable sunscreen

Florida Friends and Family

After our time in Mexico, we will be making a quick stop in Florida.

We arrive in Tampa on November 30th and will be leaving on December 6th. I am really looking forward to seeing everyone while we are there.

Everything is finally starting to come together, and the trip is feeling very real.

Safety First and Additional Travel Plans

I just registered our trip with the U.S. Department of State. Since we will be traveling out of the country, it seemed like a smart idea to let them know where we will be and how long we will be gone. Safety first.

Next Up

We are also adding a small change to our travel plans.

It turns out we will save quite a bit of money by stopping in Florida on the way home instead of trying to make a separate trip later this year. It will be a short visit to say hello to my family and meet a very special new addition. One of my best friends just had a baby, so I am really excited to meet the little one.

After our quick visit, we will fly back to Tucson from Florida.

I feel incredibly lucky that all of these opportunities are coming together. We will be purchasing our flights in the next few days, so stay tuned for the exact travel dates.

Retired

Well, today is the day.

It is my last day of work before our new adventure really begins. After months of planning and counting down the days, it finally feels real.

I am officially stepping away from work for a while and could not be more excited about what comes next.

Let my two month retirement begin!

Blackout Dates

I did a little Google image searching today and managed to find a few more pictures of our vacation home.

I found some photos of the condo complex where we will be staying, along with a few shots of the pool area. Seeing pictures of the place made the trip feel even more real and got me even more excited about relaxing there.

While I was browsing the listing, I also noticed the booking calendar for the condo. It was interesting to see all the blackout dates already filled in throughout the year.

It definitely seems like the condo stays pretty busy, which is always a good sign.

Exciting News for Our Cancun Trip

Today I have some exciting news to share.

There is a chance that a few of our friends might come visit us while we are in Cancun. Nothing is officially planned yet, but the idea alone makes me really happy. It would be amazing to share part of this adventure with friends.

If any of you are reading this, I just want to say one thing.

DO IT!

Seriously, it would be so much fun to have some familiar faces join us in Cancun.

More Travel Prep

In other news, tomorrow Shane will be able to request the cash from his 401k. It will be nice to have that taken care of so we can focus on the rest of our trip planning.

The next few weeks are going to fly by.

Only 23 days and counting until our adventure begins.

Busy Week and Big Life Updates

Dear friends,

Sorry for being a little MIA lately. This past week has been completely packed with events and responsibilities.

There were definitely a few challenging moments. My car broke down, and I have been running on very little sleep because of a busy work schedule.

But there were also some really great things that happened this week.

First, I got to reunite with a great friend who recently moved back to town. It was so nice catching up after being apart for a while.

I also officially put in my two weeks notice at work, which feels like a huge step toward our upcoming adventure.

On top of that, we paid off the remaining balance on our cozy studio condo, and my car is finally fixed.

After such a busy stretch, I am really looking forward to having more time on my hands and hopefully getting a full night of sleep again.

More exciting updates coming next week.