The Beach, Eleven Kids, and Lots of Sunblock...

... or not enough as it turns out. :)

So... we went to the beach. And we're back. I got stung on the foot by a sting ray. It's okay, though. We swam. We played. We got burnt. We watched Mary Poppins. We ate some seafood. We took a monton of pictures. We praised God, and gloried in all He has made!

And... I'm really tired... lol.

However, it was a really good time, and I am so thankful we were able to go. Below is a [brief] [for me] account of our time in Bahia de Kino during the kids' Spring Break...

We got to the beach on Sunday afternoon/early evening and were met with cloudy skies and lots of wind... and I was definitely praying that our next two days weren't going to be overcast and freezing... because it was chilly! However, that didn't deter the kidlets from crashing right into the icy water...

... and running right back out to wrap themselves up in towels! ;)

Katie Schick went with us, and was a HUGE, huge help... I know both Jenna and I were grateful for not only the extra set of eyes to watch eleven kids on the beach, but also for getting to spend a little extra time with this amazing muchacha... :)

This was taken right after Candi decided that [for some reason] she should smash her forehead into the cold, wet sand and let the tide run over her face...
Who teaches her these things???

Diego and Candi watching [now] a safe distance from the icy waves...

We finally headed back to the bungalows for the night, grilled up some quesadillas, and then had chips and cheesy Ro*tel dip... :)

As there wasn't anywhere near enough seating for all of us, the kids ended up eating most of the meals on the floor, or outside on the porch... which worked just fine. :)

Praise the Lord, the next morning dawned bright and clear with a dazzling sun to start off our day! Here are all the kids with their swim-gear ready to hit the sand and waves...

... and hit it we did!

Wherever our "stuff" was, it was quite colorful... lol. Rounding things up at the end of every swim-time was something quite interesting... and even though a few things went missing [cough... Katie's miraculously lost-beneath-the-sand-and-then-recovered-the-next-day flip-flops], for the most part it went well... ;)

Alexia and Jazany -- growing into two young ladies!

Julissa and Nere -- still best of friends, and every-other-day worst of enemies... ;)

Mario & Jose -- every time I see this photo, I just have to laugh!

They were so ready to go out into the deep, deep water [that was 3 inches deep] with their inflatable boat that had no bottom... ;)

Aaron & Diego -- who have apparently lost their ability to smile naturally! We tried this photo several times, and could never get good smiles or straight faces from them!

Ha! Cutest child award... right here!

(Or one of the cutest... I know I'm biased.)

Top left: Ramses got his arms stuck in this little inner-tube... :)

Top right: Ponch hamming it up... and looking like a blinged-up reindeer. ;)

Bottom left: Super-Mario!!! With lots of snot... lol.

Bottom right: If he doesn't win you with anything else, Jose will capture you with this beautiful little smile... :)

Diego in the water -- always colorful with his protective goggles to see through beach air, and his fuzz-top [specialty-cut by Steph which includes NOT cutting hair until the kids head back to school! We're having a contest to see whose hair grows the longest... lol]

And Aaron -- in one of the greatest pics of all time... ;)

Maybe not of ALL time, but this was certainly a highlight! He found the skeleton of a -- well, I don't know what it was, actually... sorry -- and it still had the eyeball [petrified, of course]... gross.

Cool -- but still kind of gross.

On Monday night we went out to eat at Jorge's, a Mexican seafood restaurant. And these four little guys posed for me in their "good clothes" before we walked to the joint...

This is what happens when you try to take a "good" picture... kids usually interrupt!!!

"Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." - Matthew 22:37

Tuesday morning was amazing.

Jenna and I had the opportunity to have an early-morning prayer time on the beach, and lots of time to write in the sand... ;)

So... once again I am so thankful for God's provision in our lives. And for the memories that we will have from this trip. It does seem like a lot of work, but looking back at the pictures... it's a lot of fun, too!

And Mom -- it gives me a whole new appreciation of what you did every single time we packed to go to TableRock! ;)

I have some pretty great videos from the trip, too, and I will try to post those sometime soon. [Yes... "soon" is always, always a relative term in my world... lol.]

Thanks so much everyone for your continuing prayers... :)