From the Caribbean, to the states...

When planning a vacation, the only expectation you set for yourself is to enjoy the week and to make sure to capture the memories along the way... at least, that's my idea of a successful trip. Never do you think you'll meet new friends, who'd then turn into good friends, and planning family vacations! :) 

Well about five months ago, it happened to us...

Blessed are we to have met such a wonderful couple! We love them to pieces, and are so thankful we have managed to stay friends these past months. 

With that said, we immediately began planning our next trip to see one another. It was going to be within the year, no doubt about that. We both had girls the same age, and were bound and determined to introduce them!!! Video chatting sufficed for the time being. :) But not for long!!! After setting the date, the next thing we knew we were packing our bags. We decided on a water park for the girls - and ourselves, who are we kidding - but there were two different locations, each being closer to either us or them. Given this was not going to be the one and only trip we'd plan, we decided to just choose one, then next time we'd go where it was closer to the other! Since they are two of the sweetest people I know, they chose Cincinnati (closest to us) so next time, Sandusky it is!!!!! 

Well the day came, and after about 2.5 hours...

...we had arrived to our destination!!!!!

 Immediately, we got our bags and headed in the hotel. Not a minute passed before we heard someone shouting our last name off the balcony! Haha. We were pumped!! Once we arrived to our floor, there they were...  waiting at the elevator. I wish I had a picture of that moment. What was I thinking? Oh I know... I was too excited to think of anything else!!!! One detail that couldn't be overlooked, was that both our girls were the same height, and weight [not often is that found with my little one, given she's quite petite for her age] but they also had their hair in double braids. It may not sound like a big deal, but after the commonalities we discovered on the cruise it was just a funny "...of course" moment.

Wasting no time, we got the girls ready and headed down to the water park!!

 

This place was awesome! Both girls were able to ride just about everything, except for big ones. There were designated areas for smaller tykes, deeper waters for bigger kids, slides big and small, and even a roller coaster water slide for the adults. They really thought of everything!

 After day one was about over we headed up to our room, ordered some pizza, and cleaned up for the night. So far, this whole day was nothing short of perfect.

Oh, and let me not forget to mention the girls pajamas...yellow top, pink bottoms. It was really beginning to freak us out. NONE of this was coordinated, I promise you.

 Once our bellies were full, we headed downstairs for story time with Violet the Wolf. When I say this hotel is kid friendly, I mean it's REALLY kid friendly - story time in the middle of the lobby. :)

Then it was time to head back up to our room for bed... ya know, the fun way.

Once the girls snoozed off, the adults stayed up and chatted the night away. It was certainly a moment for catch up. And low and behold to our surprise, we discovered that Mike knew one of Chris' good friends from college. Let me break that down as to how weird that is... they live in Michigan, we met them in the middle of the Caribbean, yet somehow Mike knows Chris' college buddy who lives in Chicago. GASP! So after about an hour of "...seriously? That just happened." we found the time slipping further and further away. Eventually we said good night, and got some rest since we'd be heading back home the next day. 

After a good nights sleep, day two was among us. It was sad thinking these were our last few hours together. So we made the most of it, and headed back down for a last round in the water park! 

 Somehow, we easily managed to gather the girls up for our last photo before leaving... 

 Without being redundant, I'll just say it one last time... I seriously love these people!!! We were so lucky to cross paths, introduce our girls [who hit it off so easily], and plan our successful reunion. Hopefully it won't be too long until our next trip!! :)

Palm trees, Coronas and... Snowmen

Inspiration for today's post developed during a late FaceTime chat with some old/new friends. My mind immediately trailed down memory lane to a recent trip where we met these wonderful people.

Royal Caribbean, Oasis of the Seas

To describe the SIZE of this ship is impossible... you have to see it to believe it. Really, there's no words. I'll share two of our favorite spots; Central Park, and the Solarium. 

Now, onto what this post was initially about... our new friends, and the moments I'll never forget!

Everyone, meet Mike & Tammy!

What began as our honeymoon, ended as the best vacation with two new friends. Our encounter was on an unforgettably windy morning - and when I say windy, I mean knocking me off my feet. Shading my face from the sun, I always wear a hat - not knowing it would be the cause of an introduction to our newest friends!! To further explain, my hat blew off and rolled down the aisle, Mike grabbed it -  voila! After Chris and I found a new spot, less windy, Mike and Tammy followed and the rest is blissful history!! :)

For the duration of the trip, the four of us were inseparable. We even added an excursion to our agenda to further extend the adventures!

The absolutely gorgeous, Magen's Bay.

 Suntans and sunburns in tow, we made our way back to the ship. There, we established "our spot" at Globe and Atlas pub, where cocktails, coronas, and snowmen became the highlights of our evenings; along with music by Jimmy!

There was never a dull moment with us. Here are a few more photos to share...

It was so great in fact, we already booked a trip in July to reconnect! This time there will be 6 total... bringing the kids! :) As fate would have it, Tammy and Mike have a beautiful 4 year old daughter - she is a doll. Both of our girls sent a little video greeting to one another when we returned from our trip. It was precious, so we're anxious to get them together.

This is not meant to be a sappy post, but I'm really missing our friends!! I can't wait to see them again. We were lucky, and blessed to have met such a wonderful couple. Our connection was effortless, and I'm hoping we continue this friendship for the rest of our days. They love traveling, as do we, so there's no doubt many adventures await us! There's only about 6 hours between us, but still not close enough for frequent visits, so until our trip (and between future trips) we are thankful for FaceTime. ;)

...a bit blurry, but look at those smiling faces! :)

Tammy and Mike - if you're reading this - we love you and can't wait to see you again!!!! Countdown is 51 days, and it couldn't come sooner.