T-ball Time!

Morgan is so excited to start T-Ball this Saturday.  I wasn't so sure she would want to sign up, but was happy to hear she is ready to try something new.  So this Saturday we'll all head out for her first practice and game.  She is on the Rangers team with several other kids from her class.  She is really excited and we are too!  

All good things must come to an end...

Here are some final pics of our recent trip.  

Kota Kinabalu - Day 4I

Well sadly enough, today is the last day of our vacation.  We enjoyed the day relaxing by the pool.  We walked on the beach and dodged the jellies, took a few pics and swam in the pool.  We're packing our room now before our late checkout.  We still have some time to kill here at the resort as our flight is very late tonight.  

This has been an incredible couple of days for Mark and I and we owe Mark's Mom, Nancy, a HUGE thank you for watching the girls for us.  

THANK YOU, Mom!!!!  

Enjoy the rest of the pics...

It's somewhat hard to see in the pics the three main trees in this pic are very unique.  Notice how their trunks grow parallel with the ground before turning and growing up.

More beach pics...there is a horse rider in the middle of the pic at the edge of the shore.

"They'll hang me by my toes if I go in there."

More horse riders on the beach.

Stay tuned...I'm hoping for another shot at some great sunset pics tonight.

Kota Kinabalu - Day 3

Why spend the entire vacation relaxing??  Today we started our day an adventurous ATV tour.  We left right from the resort and headed into the jungle for a trail ride.  It was muddy, and bumpy, but most of all fun.  Mark thinks it was quite "technical" for a vacationers trail, but we managed.  Mark was in his glory.  I, on the other hand, was stalled out on the trail about 30 feet behind him.  Actually, I was pretty good about keeping up and only had to be pulled out of the bush once.  Still no sightings of wild men in grass skirts or loin clothes, as some of you "may" have seen on National Geographic.     

About 45 minutes into the ride we stopped for "refreshments".  It was really nice.  We pulled off along the shore and walked out on a floating dock.  There was water and local coffee, as well as some local sweets to try.  There was a young Australian couple with us on the tour, so it was nice to talk with them during our rest.  After the short break we rode to the beach and were let loose by the tour guide for another 20 minutes.

The tour ended just in time for us to stake our claim on our favorite beach side chairs.  After rinsing all of the mud off and changing into our bathing suits, we spent the rest of the day by the beach and in the pool.  Literally!!!  The clouds rolled in right about sunset and the rain was not far behind.  There was a massive downpour and storm and we actually lost power here in the resort.  But that didn't last long and now we are ready to call it a night.  Tomorrow is our final day here before returning to the real world.  We plan to make the most of our day by spending it in our favorite chairs next to the beach.      

Great legs!  But way too muddy!

We did not coordinate our shirts on purpose.  These were provided for the tour to protect our shirts from getting too muddy.

Some pics taken during our ATV ride.

More resort pics.

I was hoping for some really good sunset pics today, but the clouds rolled in before that could happen.

Kota Kinabalu - Day 2

What a day!!  Mark and I headed to the Shangri-la Rasa Ria Nature Reserve to get up close and personal with Orang Utans.  It was so cool!  First we headed to the reserve and saw a video about Orang Utans, why they are endangered and what the reserve is doing to help this species.  Then we headed out for about a 10 minute walk to a viewing platform in hopes of seeing some infant Orang Utans.  And we did!!!  They were so cute!  About 5 of them aged 3-5.  We saw them eating, swinging from trees, rolling around on the ground and playing with each other.  Once the Orang Utans spend about 1 1/2 years here they head to a larger facility for another 3-5 years before being released in the wild.  What an experience!!!  And much to the disappointment of some, we did NOT see any savages or white men hanging by their toes in the jungle.  (Sorry Uncle Gary!)  

After a much needed shower to get rid of the bug spray, we spent the rest of the day relaxing by the pool.  Doing nothing more than reading magazines/books, enjoying the sun, and dipping in the pool.  The resort here is very secluded and quiet.  Its hard to imaging having to return to the hustle and bustle of Seoul in just a couple of days.  (There is snow & rain there now.)

We managed to break away from the mundane to check out the sunset from our terrace with a glass a wine in hand.  We had dinner at the award winning restaurant "Coast" and then had a nice walk on the beach.  The perfect ending to a near perfect day.

"Shangri-la Rasa Ria Nature Reserve"

A "little" lizzard at the end of our nature hike.

My hubby!  Recovering under the umbrella after over-doing it in the sun yesterday.

Relaxin'

"Mommy"...as requested by Morgan & Molly

More room pics....

Sunset on the terrace...

What a way to end the day!

Dinner at "Coast"

What a sense humor this guy has!!!

Kota Kinabalu - Day 1

Wednesday was our first full day here and we did absolutely nothing.  Well, except lounge by the pool/beach, swim, relax.  It was a good first day.  It is very, very hot here, and humid.  But we are in the presence of a wonderful pool and poolside bar, so we are staying cool.  For those of you wondering about wild men wearing grass skirts that capture white men and hang them by their toes in the jungle...we haven't seen any of that.  Although we'll be on a jungle hike today, so we'll let you know.  Actually during our drive from the airport to the resort we saw a very developed city.  One that will obviously be growing even more soon.  Lots of new construction of apartments, restaurants and shopping developments.  We were surprised too!  

Here are some resort pics.  Enjoy!

Our personal terrace.

With giant tub.

Here is one wing of the resort.  There is a whole other wing and pool in a different area.

Mark lounging in the cabana.  Although we moved from there, closer to the beach so we could enjoy the breeze coming in from the sea.  Notice that Mark is so engrossed in what else?!?!?!  Twilight!!!

The beach!  If only it were more user-friendly.  Sand flies...ew!

Doesn't this look inviting.  

My hubby!

The beach is really long.

The reason why we wont be swimming in the sea this trip.

They just wash up on shore waiting for high tide to take them back to sea.

The beach is HUGE.  Here I am at the water's edge looking back at the resort.  It's a shame they can't do more with their beach.

Jungle behind the resort.

View of the pool, beach, ocean from our room.

What a way to end the day.