Cayman - Part 2

Our adventures in Cayman Island continued with a drive around the island. It was a long day, but one filled with lots of stops and lots of great things to see.

Our first stop was at Pedro St James House.  It is the oldest standing stone structure on Cayman Islands and was built in 1780.

It once was a cotton plantation, then a millionaire's project to revive it, and now a historical site that the Cayman government have put millions into to renovate and bring it back to life.  

We had a private tour and learned a lot about this site and its history.  Definitely a lot of history in this cute little house.  

Next, we stopped off for some eats and drinks at the island's only brewery.  Good food, great beer, and even better company.

We ran across this building in the Caymans by accident.  We think maybe Papa has a side gig going on in the Cayman Islands that he hasn't told us about.  His secret is out!  

We visited the Botanical Gardens which housed some incredibly beautiful orchids and other magnificent flowers and plants. 

Our last stop on the island tour was at some blow holes.  It is so cool to see these formations and it's amazing to think how they are formed by Mother Nature's force.  

Ryan and Sullivan have a tradition on vacation that started a couple years back.  They attempt to get ice cream every night as a little sweet treat.  Ice cream proved to be a bit harder to find than we thought it would be on Cayman, but we made it work.

We forgot to get a picture one night when we stopped at Wendy's for a Frosty.  So I took to AI to create a picture for us.  It's not perfect - especially the Frosty itself, but you get the gist.

We had an amazing time in Cayman Islands.  It was food for the soul to relax and enjoy some quiet moments with each other.  Some of the best times were simply spent on the beach - taking short walks, having deep (and not so deep) conversations, and just hanging out. 

Grand Cayman... thank you for the memories!  

Two Decades...

It is beyond hard to believe that we now have a TWENTY year old now. Quinn officially entered her 20s today and we were so thankful she was able to come home to celebrate!

The morning started with a birthday breakfast of her choice - braided bread.  Yum!  And no birthday breakfast is complete with a candle and a wish to start the day.

The afternoon was spent shopping and running errands - looking for clothes for her internship this summer, along with a family trip to the farmer's market for flowers (but sadly no pictures to prove that).

The birthday girl always get to choose dinner, and tonight's choice did not disappoint.  We made it to Pei Wei tonight for some delicious Asian food.  

Presents were unwrapped midday and again, she was blessed by great gifts from all that love her.  

While Sullivan's go to cake is usually DQ ice cream cake, Quinn also has a great go to dessert.  She picked Rice Krispie bars.  As always, half with M&Ms for everyone else, half plain for Q!

The birthday girl blew out the candles and made some wishes.  Here's to hoping that year 20 is her best one yet. Hoping it is filled with lots of love, and laughter, friendship, fun and BIG memories made.  

You are loved more than you know, Quinn McKenna!  

Happy 20th Birthday!

Cayman Islands...

We spent Sullivan's Spring Break in the Cayman Islands.  It was full of sun, sand, beaches, snorkeling, and relaxation - the perfect unwind to the busyness of life.  

Vacation life on the beach is hard to beat - the sun, the sand, the relaxation, and the views!!

We did lots of snorkeling and saw beautiful fish, coral, sea life, and turtles.  The island is very accommodating for shore snorkeling - meaning you don't need a boat to see great fish and turtles.

One afternoon we went to Hell.  You read that right.  On the island, there is a VERY small town (basically a quarter of a block) that is called Hell.  It consists of a post office, a couple of gift shops and these structures that formed due to algae corroding the limestone.  

So the three of us can officially say that we've been to Hell and back and lived to tell the tale.  

It goes without saying that sunset pictures were a must.  The sunsets were gorgeous, but not as gorgeous as the subject...

We got all the combination of people with the sunset too...

We visited Starfish Point, where starfish tend to congregate.  We've never seen starfish in the wild before, so it was neat to see them and pick them up.  

We question the legitimacy of the starfish being in the "wild", although all signs seem to suggest they are.  It seems convenient that they were all there in that one spot, but nonetheless, very neat to see and touch. 

Twinning is winning... 😀

We visited a "turtle rescue" center.  Turtle rescue is in quotes, because we later learned after leaving the center that it is more of a turtle farm with the mask of a tourist attraction.  Poor turtles are being sold for their meat.  10/10 don't recommend going here again.

We also visited a bat cave.  Sounds as great as the turtle farm, doesn't it?!?  It actually was a great evening - we toured some caves, saw the beautiful work of the earth with its cave formations, saw some bats (ew! but also cool), and had a nice meal at the cave site.  

I'll leave this first part of the Cayman update with a funny!  This is Ryan attempting to take a selfie of us with the beautiful beach in the background.  Needless to say, it took lots of attempts and Sullivan stepping in to rescue the picture...

Stay tuned for more of our other Cayman Island shenanigans soon...