Cozumel Vacation - Day 8

We were both happy and sad about our last day at El Cozumeleno Resort. We were happy to leave because we were all a little homesick and worn out. Boogs thought we needed a vacation from our vacation. We were sad to leave Cozumel because we made a lot of good memories on this trip.

We spent our last morning on the beach and out by the pool. Boogs asked me to take a picture of him with the El Cozumeleno sign. He was not tall enough for his head to show through the man's face. He is such a cutie.

Boogs and Daddy took a long walk on the beach (I was relaxing in a hammock) to look for seashells. They brought back these shells and asked me to choose my favorite one. I looked them over carefully and chose three favorites without knowing who picked which shells. Two of the ones I chose were Daddy's picks and one was Boogs'. They told me the reasons why they picked up each shell.

We took one last balcony picture before we left.

Look at that smile. Boogs had a fantastic time on our vacation.

Boogs is pointing up to our 6th floor balcony.

I have no idea what kind of pose Daddy was making.

Boogs posing at the front of the resort right before we climbed into a taxi to the airport.

When I think about all the things we did and saw on this vacation, I am amazed. We were busy making memories, sharing laughs, trying new things, and having great family bonding time.

Our flight back to Texas was uneventful. It took almost two hours to get through customs and leave the airport. We left Houston for our drive back home and saw these clouds in front of us:

It was a bit of a tense ride back home. We drove through a huge thunderstorm with lots of lightning and driving rain. Parts of Texas had flooded again while we were gone. We were still happy to be home.

Cozumel Vacation - Day 7 Fishing

For day 7 in Cozumel we had scheduled a fishing trip. If we had not prepaid for this, we would have cancelled. This was a rough day to get started because we were all pretty tired and a bit under the weather. I was sick most of the night before and my husband was running a bit of a fever when he woke up. We left our hotel at 6:15 to catch a ride to Marina Caleta. We got on The Hunter fishing boat a little bit before 7 a.m. The first hour was pretty slow. Then the sun came out a bit and we started reeling in a few fish.

 Boogs had the best seat in the boat, actually it was the only chair on the boat.

 All of the fishing poles were baited and set up while we slowly trolled through the water.

 The slow rhythm of the boat put Boogs back to sleep for awhile.

 Daddy caught a few small fish at first. I pulled in a trigger fish.

 Then Boogs caught a few small fish.

 Another trigger fish.

Then, Daddy had a barracuda on his line. It was a bit of a struggle to reel him in and get him on the boat. Man, was that fish strong. It practically flung itself out of the boat at one point. When Daddy was trying to hold the barracuda for this picture, it slapped his stomach really hard with its tail. Daddy had a big red mark across his belly.

  Boogs was showing how big the barracuda was compared to him.

The fishing guide had a little fun with Boogs and the barracuda.

 

We were on the boat for a little over four hours. It was an okay outing but not a favorite for any of us. 

Cozumel Vacation - Day 6 Diving

Diving Day! This is the day my husband was looking forward to the most. It was hard for him to wait until 1 pm for our dive boat. We spent the morning on the beach at our resort. We had to get in some hammock time to start our day.

 

 Boogs found this little hermit crab. Every time he tried to pick it up, the hermit crab pinched him.

Daddy won every game of horseshoes and bean bag toss. Boogs and I competed for last place.

There were crabs all over the resort. They were on the beach, in the pools, in the fountain, on the pathways. You had to pay attention because their claws looked powerful.

Finally, it was time to go to Scuba Mau Dive Shop. Boogs and I prepared to snorkel while Daddy prepared to dive. We have not gone scuba diving since we were in St. Thomas in 2007 for a friend's wedding. That was a long time ago. While waiting for Daddy to get ready to board the boat, Boogs had a bit of time to work on his skills review book. Sometimes I really do annoy this child.

Time to board the boat and head out to sea.

 Dive master Leo did a wonderful job showing Daddy through the towers of rocks underwater.

Boogs was excited about snorkeling so far out in the ocean. After Daddy jumped in, the boat driver took us to a good spot to snorkel. It wasn't until Boogs and I were ready to jump overboard that I realized there were no life jackets on-board the boat. I felt confident that Boogs was a strong enough swimmer to snorkel without it, but it still made me a little nervous. The boat was always in sight while we were in the water. The driver kept circling around us. It took less than two minutes for him to pick us up when we were ready to get out of the water.

 The water was so clear it almost looked like we were in a swimming pool.

The boat driver followed the bubbles from Leo and my husband. He stopped the boat and let Boogs and I out to snorkel directly above the scuba divers. There's Daddy and Leo waving from 35 feet below us.

 It was easy to track Daddy because he had on neon yellow fins.

Daddy told us all about the amazing things he saw on his dive. Toward the end of the dive he came across this sea turtle. Boogs and I jumped in the water with our masks on to take a look. I took a couple of pictures of it from the surface but they were not very good. Daddy swam up, took the camera from me and then went back down to get a better shot, then brought the camera back to me. My waterproof camera is only good to 35ft. so Daddy did not get to take it with him on his dive.

 Boogs and I saw some pretty fish during our snorkeling.

 We took a break between Daddy's dives along this dock. Boogs got out and explored a little bit.

I kept teasing Daddy that he looked like a Solid Gold Dancer in his wet suit and booties. Then we had to try and explain to Boogs what Solid Gold Dancers were. How do you explain 1980s fashion to a millennial child?

 Ready to head out for dive number two after a little snack break.

 There he goes!

 Boogs and I were dropped off at a new place to snorkel.

We did not last very long in the water. Boogs and I went through a school of yellow & black fish with several large trigger fish nearby. Boogs got a little freaked out when it seemed like they swarmed around us. He became cold fairly quickly and wanted to get back in the boat.

 We packed a couple of books in with our swim gear. Boogs and I read while we waited for Daddy.

Daddy had a great time diving and is already planning a dive for next summer. You have to be 10-years-old to get certified to dive. Boogs is looking forward to turning ten next year. He and I are going to take a scuba certification class together after his next birthday. I have been on seven dives during our previous trips but am not certified. I always had to stay with the dive masters while my husband explored around us. I am also looking forward to getting certified with Boogs so I will be ready for our next trip.

We made it back to our resort in time to enjoy Fiesta Night - live music, games, food, dancing.

Cozumel Vacation - Day 5 The Beach

I always wake up early. So I went down to the beach and claimed a hammock for an hour or so before I went to wake up the boys. If I had a hammock and an ocean view at home, I would never get anything done.

This was one of my favorite days of our vacation. We arranged to have a rental car delivered to our hotel. Unfortunately, there was some sort of mix-up. Luckily, someone was delivering a car to another hotel guest. We flagged him down, drove with him downtown to the car rental place and started our day about an hour later than we had planned.

We had wristbands for Punta Sur/Echo Beach Park. We drove halfway around the island of Cozumel to get there. It was a beautiful place. There were several lookout points where you could look for saltwater crocodiles, a short boat tour of the area, several different beaches, snorkeling areas, hammocks, chairs, snack shacks, cafes, walking trails, and a lighthouse. The beaches were amazing. The water was crystal clear. This was our most relaxing day in Cozumel.

You could snorkel on your own or with a guide but you had to wear life jackets while snorkeling. The life jackets were included with your wristband pass. We spent almost two hours snorkeling. The ocean floor had lots of wavy grass and coral. We saw many different kinds of fish.

We completely lost track of time while we were in the water. We thought about trying to make the boat tour but the hammocks were calling to us. It was such a peaceful beach. We hated to leave it but by 2:30 we were hungry for lunch.

We ended up going to Papito's Beach Club Restaurant Bar for lunch. Our waiter was hilarious. We had a great time and enjoyed the food. When my husband and I went on our first trip together fifteen years ago, we went to Hawaii. He desperately wanted to have a drink out of a coconut. We asked everywhere we went on the islands for a drink in a coconut until a waitress told us that they kind of stopped doing that in the 1970s. My husband's dreams of having a drink in a coconut were crushed. I don't remember how the subject came up, but our waiter said he could make that happen. After the drink was finished, the waiter chopped the coconut in half and gave us spoons to dig out the coconut meat. Boogs had his very first Coke at Papito's. The waiter thought it was crazy that we had never given Boogs Coke or Pepsi.

Echo Beach Park closes at 4:30. I was sad to leave. We stopped at the sign on the way out to pose for a picture. When Boogs and I sat on the rope, it broke off of the pole and fell to the ground.

I put this picture here to give Boogs a good laugh.

We drove around the island a bit more for sightseeing before we had to turn in the rental car at 6 p.m.

It was a wonderful day. We returned to the resort, had dinner, and were in bed by nine.