Peyt Sis Land!

Years from now when I look back over our time on Guam, there will be many weeks that stand out in my mind. Of all of them, few will compare to this one in which Peyt's Island transformed into a magical place called Peyt Sis Land. This past week my slightly older sister Courtney managed to finagle a week off work to visit us all the way out here from California. We had blocked off a set of dates for her to come, but as of our trip to Palau, there was no news of a plane ticket, so I came back expecting to hunt down another set of dates since these were fast approaching. Oh no... Court had booked her flight and would be on her way out the very next week!!

 Nick and I love having visitors because it's the perfect excuse to take them all over Guam and show off how awesome this place is. We hit the ground running on Court's first day with the southern island tour.

 Goofing off at Magellan's Landing

Carabao ride - One of 5 things you can only do on Guam

We wasted zero time showing off our favorites... like Inarajan Pools

Spanish Fort... ahoy

Jeff's for gifts and yummies

Caves at Dadi Beach

Surprise sand critters

Guam's ridiculous sunsets

Someone is happy to be on vacation! 

And then dinner... steaks that Courtney insisted be served branded.

So, yeah, that was the first day.

The next few days we spent exploring...

snorkeling at Fish Eye

 And Gab Gab

(thanks Mr. Baracuda for blocking my face)

 And gorgeous Gun Beach

We took Court boonie stomping to some of the Island's best hideaways...

 Inside Pagat Caves

The other side of the Pacific Ocean

And introducing her to the Philippine Sea

Hiking through Waterfall Valley

Making time for nature

 

Hunting down rainbows

Searching for Starfish (and avoiding spiders!)

Sampling local flavors

Climbing mountains

Summitting Lam Lam

And singing at the tops of our lungs.

Creating these carefree new memories and showing Court our slice of paradise unquestionably made for an unforgettable week. But technically, any one of you can come to Guam and have any or all of these awesome experiences (I am thrilled that a few of you yet are going to do just that!). But few of you... dare I say none of you... can come to Guam, do everything in these fabulous photographs, and in a week's time turn this boring, ugly, giant wall:

 

into a masterpiece:

Yes... my amazing sister led the painting of this entire mural, which we started on Monday and finished on Friday of the week she was here. This incredible piece of art on the wall facing our church sanctuary is a story of its own. But now, perhaps, you can see why this particular visit was so extraordinary... because this particular visitor is so extraordinary. Yes, this is my sister, who travels across the world armed with with a doodle pad and Dr. Seuss sticky notes, who always has a song to sing, who creates paintings and parties and possibilities that make our world a more fun, colorful, and beautiful place.

So grateful to spend this week with my sister, merging the one thing I love to do most -- exploring -- with the one thing she loves to do most -- creating! Together, we managed to conquer the entire world... in just one week. One seriously amazing week :)

Final sunset over Peyt Sis Land... love ya Court and miss you already.

Tarzan and Jane

My mom (Jane) and dad at Tarzan Falls 

For our last day of adventures together in Guam, I took my parents on a classic boonie stomp to Tarzan Falls. It was a beautiful sunny day, and this is a great hike, downhill the way there, uphill the way back, and mostly in the shade of the jungle's tall trees. The gorgeous waterfall makes the muddy, buggy and at-times steep trek well worth it.

Top of the first of four cascading falls

 Trail was so muddy we had to hike in the river!

Almost there, guys! I promise!

We made it! My mom's signature Rocky pose :)

Nice waterfall you got there

Hey Mom, when was the last time we hiked to a waterfall together?

 Back at the top of the falls

 Lush jungle

We rounded off the afternoon with cold drinks and yummy snacks at Jeff's Pirate Cove.  Great last day in Guam together! So thankful for the chance to show my parents this awesome place. Also so impressed with how adventurous they were, jumping right in to diving, snorkeling, hiking, and everything else that is our life here. Usually the worst part of a trip like this is the ride to drop visitors off at the airport. But luckily I will see them again in Texas in just a few days, so our memory making continues. And, signing off from Orlando, FL with Starbucks in hand, my USA trip has already begun! Looking forward to seeing many of you throughout the holidays!

Journey to Mt Lam Lam

If I had to choose a favorite day of my parents' visit, it would have to be the day we climbed, as a family, to the top of Mt. Lam Lam. It was on our wish list for our time together, but the decision to fit it in on the Friday after Thanksgiving came when my mom asked, "Hey, where is that picture at the top of your blog from? I want to go there." And so we went. We started up the hill  45 minutes before sunset. And by up, I mean up. The first third of the hike is particularly steep, and all of it is, to some degree, in the weeds. My parents did great tackling mud and gravity to make impressive headway up the slope.

 Pausing halfway up the mountain to stare at the blue ocean and rolling green hillside

Tall sword grass sways around you on all sides

We made it!!

At the top, a breathtaking view of the whole island and the surrounding sea in all directions

And my mom got to take pictures with the beautiful crosses 

she has been staring at on my blog for the last year and a half.

 Sunsets sure make for fantastic backdrops around here...

We somehow managed to choose the evening with the prettiest sunset 

of the entire two week visit... lucky us...

Up until this day, this Friday after Thanksgiving, 2011, I had never before climbed a mountain with my parents. And here, 9,000 miles away from home, at an age approaching retirement, they crushed it. And in return, the land and the sea and the sky put on a show for us all. A show of beauty and breeze, majesty and simplicity; in essence, nature's grace. A moment in time when the sun sets as it has every single day since the beginning of time. And yet, never before quite like this.