...And a Happy New Year!

Oh my, 2010 really did end with a bang! 2011 isn't starting out too slowly either. It was an awesome year with graduation, wedding, honeymoon, moving (to the basement, yes, but it still counts!), great parties, starting work, and awesome family and friends.

For Christmas, as usual I went with my family to Manzanillo, Mexico but this year was extra special... Ben was there! It's always just been us 4 Allens there for Christmas for the past 10 years but this year I got to bring someone (of course he had to marry in to the family in order to get the official invite:) It was so much fun to show him this place that means so much to me. He loved it to I believe. He rode with us every day and rode really well too. He joked with the cowboys and played on the beach and ran and ate delicious food and even helped me with the annual christmas puzzle! My sister and I also really loved that we were spared the cat calling and whistles when he was around making our time that much more peaceful. I didn't get as tan as I usually do down there because we really didn't take the time to lay out, instead we were playing and going constantly. We even went to the sea turtle/iguana/crocodile refuge and got to hold a baby sea turtle as well as see all different sizes of turtles and iguanas. They even had a pretty big croc! However, their croc was not quite as impressive as the 3 1/2 meter wild crocodile we saw from about 25 ft away as we rode by the lagoon. It was so crazy!!!

New years was also a blast, we stayed out partying until 3AM and we were dancing and singing and just having a great time with a room full of strangers. The next day, of course we rode again at 8AM and we were able to find 2 little branches where a bunch of butterflies were sleeping so we shook it to wake them up and it was like a slow motion explosion of fluttering colors.

On the 2nd of January we were supposed to fly home but the flight was overbooked so they bumped Ben and I until the next day. To make up for the inconvenience they put us up in a 5 star hotel, with free taxi and food and two $400.00 vouchers for future flights! Holy freakin cow what a great deal. And they flew us home first class (on the first of our 2 flights home 1st class doesn't exist... but on the 2nd it was free movies and endless drinks and pretzels in the wider comfier seats.