He couldn’t Belize it!

What a great thing to be able to go on a family vacation to Belize. Not only a vacation, but also on a secret mission. Our mission as we accepted it after Lizzie emailed last fall was to surprise Matt by Tim, Jessi and I joining them on their vacation. It was very sneaky and was also very exciting to be able to see Matt before his 30th Birthday! Thank you, Lizzie!

So, Matt and Lizzie set out on a two week holiday on June 6th to San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize and Playa de Carmen, Mexico. The sneaky one is on the left ...

Tim, Jessi and I were also leaving on the red-eye from Portland on the 6th and since we couldn't post our woo hoo's or pics of ourselves at the airport, we slept. Once we got to Belize City, we had to catch a cab and then a ferry to the Island. Jessi did a lot of catching up on her sleep. The ferry was no exception ...

We made it to Belize on Saturday. We got to our condo and set it up for Matt and Lizzie's arrival on Sunday. Tim, Jessi and I explored the town, went out for a nice dinner and anticipated Matt's reaction when he found us there after we had lied to him for months.

Sunday came and to say the least, Matt was shocked. He could not believe we were all there. Big hugs all around. We planned to all be in the pool, but I snuck up to the condo to get pool drinks and they came in the door. I heard Matt's voice and froze in the kitchen. He came around the corner and could not wrap his brain around why his Mom was in Belize!

The rest was incredible and so was the place where we stayed ...

Our place and dock didn't come without a little excitement. First we thought a purple balloon jelly fish was a little scary.  Then a ginormous Sting Ray the size of a Volkswagon that passed by. What we didn't expect was what swam under the dock right after we had been swimming ... Shark!

One week went too fast. We flew to Belize City in a 15 seat prop plane and made our way back to Portland while Matt and Lizzie headed out to Playa de Carmen via plane, cab, bus and put on their "camouflage" paint to make the journey and cross the Mexican Border complete with Border Patrol, Customs, Machine Guns and Drug Sniffing Dogs in the Dark ...

I love these two! We all had a wonderful week in Belize. Matt was shocked! He turns 30 on the 24th. A big shout out to Lizzie for inviting his family on their vacation. She's incredible and very sneaky ...

When in Belize … Chicken's Poop!

When planning our trip to Belize, there were many considerations of things we could do. We could snorkel, fish, sight-see or … go to the "Chicken Drop.” This is a little contest they celebrate on the island every Thursday night. You buy a ticket with a number on it and if the Chicken poops  in the square with your number about 200 people erupt in cheers and you win money!

Another great Lizzie idea. Jessi and I received an email asking us if we "might" want to add a “Chicken Drop” night to our activities ... Can you say "hell yes" and chicken dance?

The day of the Chicken Drop, Matt had Montezuma's Revenge and Jessi was bit by something and had a swollen face. With all of that, do you think you could keep us from making a Chicken Pooping event? No! Most of us made it. Jessi was on the mend, but not feeling well enough to go. We thought it was only one “drop” so we told her we’d be right back and off we went in our buggy ...

We found Wahoo’s Bar and a crowd of rowdy people and an enclosed platform divided into 100 numbered squares. We “que’d up” to buy a drink wager and realized there were 9 “drops.”  Contests 1-4 were sold out of numbers so we decided to wager on the 5th, which was also the Main Event. All the rounds were $1.00 bets for a $100.00 payout except #5 which cost $5.00 a ticket for a $1,000.00. payout.

Tim and I waiting for Contest #5 ...

I bought two tickets, #41 and #69. The chicken’s butt hovered over #41 over and over in it’s 15 minute strut around the board. The “Hype Man” who was keeping the crowd drunk rowdy kept saying that “number 41 was looking very lucky” and “shit was going to happen!” All the while, I was being humble jumping around saying “I’m going to win” while my inner witch cheerleader was head chanting “41, 41, 41, 41."                           

Look what happened ... Plop!

No Shit, I won!

I had to pick it up to collect my $$$.

My handsome Body Guard … $1,000.00 !!!

We couldn't wait to get back to our condo and tell Jessi that we won! Tim drove us back through town yelling "Chicken Poop" the whole way ... What a blast!