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Hi everybody - Or, um, make that HOLA amigos!!
All is well in sunny Cancun!! I am having a terrific time with my precious family; and my great friend Karen who took Jim's place on this trip, since his work duties would not permit him to join us on vacation this time. Although I am missing him something fierce, we are still having a delightful time at the all-inclusive resort, Moon Grand (of Moon Palace).
My family vacations here regularly - the resort is AMAZING!! The rooms are exquisite; quite ginormous with a huge jaccuzi in our suite. Plus, there is marble everything; floors, fixtures, shower - so unbelievably pretty and elegant. The remainder of the family is staying in the extravagant presidential suite which includes three enormous suites, complete with a dining room, living room and a bar area. We've got all the room to enjoy some relaxing time together.
It rained the first few days of our vacation; I was feeling pretty water-logged. :) But such fun we have had nonetheless! We still got in the pool and goofed around in spite of the steady downpours. Our fellowship at meal times has been swweeeet! And boy have we laughed! Karen and I had done our hair and makeup last evening and we were just about to head to dinner with my family when all of a sudden the downpours began again. Knowing we had to exit our building and head down to another restaurant further down the resort complex (over a mile away) I came up with a brilliant (but silly) idea! "Karen; it's pouring outside: let's wear a shower cap to cover our hair!"
"Love it! Let's do it!" she replied. I tucked all of my shoulder-length hair up in to the clear plastic shower cap, courteously provided in each guest's room. Karen topped off her hair-do with her plastic wrap, just above the ears - so it looked like a mushroom top on the crown of her hair. We looked pretty goofy; and when my sister saw us near the elevator she began to laugh hysterically. She buckled over, nearly crying. It was a hoot. We wore the clear, plastic shower caps during our ride in the golf cart to our destination. A couple of gentlemen commented: "Great idea" - One guy said, "That's great. I was thinking of something I could give to my wife." (Atleast our hair looked gorgeous when we arrived to the restaurant!) Good times!
I can't tell you all how excited I am about my progress down here in Cancun. I am super proud of myself, people. I have stuck to my WoE perfectly; and the best best best thing is I literally have an army of lovely people here to help me. Benjamin and Sulette who work in Public Relations have notified the various restaurant managers (at 16 restaurants) that I have specific dietary needs. The head chef has made my sugar-free, low carb delectable NY style cheesecake with almond-flour crust, laden with fresh strawberries and raspberries. Delish! Get this: Manuel has helped me each day to plan what I wish to have for dinner; and has personally seen to every single detail personally, actually advising the chef and head personnel of the restaurant that I choose to visit each evening. Tonight the chef made especially for me shrimp ceviche, crab meat with avocado slices, eggplant cooked in olive oil layered in fresh cooked vegetables - looked like an incredible vegetable lasagna; but no sauce - it was cooked in olive oil. Then I had smoked salmon. And for dessert the chef made especially for me a fabulous treat -- canteloupe, honey dew melon, kiwi, strawberry - diced up really small, with a cream cheese and tad bit of yugurt and almond flour -- all sugar free! The presentation of the platter was gorgeous and the flavor was unbelievable - perfect blend of sweet and tangy. There was enough to share with the rest of the family; and boy, did they love it! (me thinks they were a bit jealous!) It's just amazing how these precious folks are catering to my every need. It's quite overwhelming. I have not cheated one bit - the only thing I have been drinking is water with a squeeze of lime; or camomille tea; or coffee. I have not even been tempted to choose something off of my plan; and it's paying off! I can tell by my loosely fitting capris tonight that I am losing weight. In the 15 years I have been coming to Cancun I have never ever once lost any weight on vacation - quite the contrary. The food is so incredible here we always seem to go home with several (ok 8-10) more pounds than we came with. But I am eating so healthily this week -- grouper, fresh shrimp, salmon, flank steak, grilled chicken...delicious salads and colorful vegetables...tangy fruit... OH! And the other night, another sweet chef named Felipe (who is the executive chef at the resort) created a special meal especially for me!) I'll tell you about the dessert he made: There were several large rectangular slices of fresh canteloup -sliced with a filet knife; in between were smooth layerings of cream cheese. He poured over the top the most incredible sugar-free (but sugary tasting) glaze. It was scrumptious; and the presentation was beautiful! Rich, tangy, sweet - very satisfying!
I am so tickled with how great things are going down here! Had a fun day in the sun, swimming and loving time with family. Got pretty pink today - even though I was layered in sunblock; so I will make sure I'm not out in the sunshine too much tomorrow. Being a red head I can get pretty fried pretty fast.
Thankful for this magical time!! Thank you God for these wonderful people who are helping me to be so successful - and they are making my WoE and every meal experience so MUCH FUN!! :D
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