The time had come for Sadie to learn to ride a bike.  We took advantage of a beautiful day and headed out to Veteran's Park (where Colt also learned to ride).  Sadie caught on really quick, which I knew she would.  Less than 30 minutes after we got to the park she was pulling away on two wheels.  I gotta admit I almost teared up a little.  Here's a clip of her pulling away for the first time.

Another great vacation in the books!  Check out our video slideshow from our Belize trip!

We winded down a fun-packed week with a  relaxing day on Ambergris Caye.  After a stroll through the town of San Pedro, we had a delicious brunch at Estel's By the Sea.  We'd spend the rest of the day visiting shops around town and not really doing anything of note - a perfect end to our trip!  On Thursday morning, we ferried back over to Belize City to catch our flight back home.  What an unBELIZABLE vacation it was!

We set out on a manatee watching tour, an all-day venture which would take us to Swallow Caye, a hot-spot for viewing the manatee up close, a snorkeling stop at Goff's Caye for a BBQ lunch and some snorkeling, and a stop at Caye Caulker.  The kids even did a little tarpon feeding - just ask Sadie about it!  All in all it was a fun day on the water - we enjoyed the stop at Goff's Caye but Caye Caulker is the only one of these spots we would do again.  We finished the day off with dinner at The Dive Bar, a well recommended spot but not one we could recommend.  Food was good but the service was not.  Still it was a great day in Belize (as they all tend to be!).  Just check out the pics!

Monday was the day we started training for in October.  Belize Dive Pro Center picked us up at our dock at 8am for our snorkel/dive combo adventure.  After checking in at the dive shop and getting our gear, we took the boat out to Hol Chan Marine Park, a marine reserve covering approximately 18 km² of coral reefs, seagrass beds, and mangrove forest.  Colt and I had an AMAZING dive, while Susan and the girls snorkeled.  Each of had a guide, and experienced the best snorkeling/dive that we've done.  We saw schools of eagle rays, nurse sharks, sea turtles, and countless species of fish. 

After our dive, we took the boat over to what's known as Shark Ray Alley, a popular spot known for its largely harmless nurse sharks and rays.  Local fishermen used to come to the spot to clean their catches, filling the waters with morsels that were perfect for the bottom feeding nurse sharks and rays.  Swimming with these creatures was an incredible experience! 

After our dive, we stopped at the Palapa Bar in San Pedro for lunch.  Colt and I started a tradition of burgers after diving during our certification training, and we continued it at the Palapa Bar with burgers for lunch.  They have a sweet waterfront spot with a swimming area - where that day a lionfish decided to hang out.  We did not get in the water there since they are venomous, but it was neat to see one up close.  Lionfish are an invasive species of fish and not good at all for the reef, so hopefully this one was harvested soon after. 

After lunch we did some grocery shopping while we were in town, then headed back to spend the rest of the afternoon at the villa.  We'd spend the rest of the day lounging sea side and watching movies once the sun went down.  What. A. Day.