Within a couple of hours of arriving at the resort we were already in the water doing our first night dive where we saw this octopus and other sea creatures.

We woke up at 5am two days in a row to see the rare thresher shark.

We took a boat to Gato Island and found some white tip reef sharks.

We watched this really long sea snake rise from the bottom of the ocean floor.

We saw various sizes of cuttlefish.

After seven dives in less than 48 hours we are now certified to dive down to 30 meters (100 feet) and to use Nitrox air which allows us to stay under water longer.

We rented a motor bike and drove around the island of Malapascua. Not many roads are paved.

We found this make-shift basketball hoop nailed to a coconut tree.

Even on a small island in the Philippines, basketball games are still played, with or without shoes.

We wanted to get to the lighthouse, but were not certain how to actually get there since there was no visible road when we got near.

These kids became our guides and showed us how to get up to the lighthouse through some foliage and brush.

These plant was growing all around the light house. The red color on the leaves make it look like it is a flower from a distance.

It was long weekend to be able to spend time together as a couple and enjoy a new hobby of scuba diving together.

We started off the morning having breakfast at the resort and then saw these four LDS missionaries. We paid for their breakfast buffet.

We had the whole beach to ourselves. Everyone had a great time playing in the water.

There is clean water on their property, but you have to use the spigot to pump it out. Mason really liked using the spigot.

The kids also liked playing on the hammocks.

We had a super yummy BBQ for lunch.

After lunch we walked to another area of the property to have a friend climb up a tree and get us some coconuts.

A beautiful location, good food and great people about sums up our weekend in Baler.

Our flight was delayed in Manila, so to pass the time the kids shared the iPads.

Sheridan Resort had nice rooms and friendly staff, but the food wasn’t great…we discovered Daluyon Resort/restaurant nearby that had AMAZING food

The clouds were coming in, but we still stuck with our plan to do the Underground River

The kids waiting for the paper work to be completed before boarding the boat for the Underground River tour.

Other people waiting to board the boat for the Underground River asked to take photos with Matt.

On the boat ride to the Underground River we could see the “Sleeping Giant” in the mountain.

We made it to the Underground River…Blake stayed at the resort with a babysitter.

Our group is ready to enter the caves of the Underground River.

Bats and swallows were in the cave.

After a huge downpour, we all decided to go swimming. The kids really liked this trench and spent a good portion of their time here.

The dads did boogie boarding and had some pretty decent size waves.

After swimming we decided to do the zipline over the ocean. Mason was a bit scared and probably too young as well to ride by himself, so Tia went with him.

Kalani got to ride the zipline by herself and we bought the photo the company took of her.

We did a mangrove tour and saw 2 different snakes in the trees…and we got wet with another downpour.

We waited for the rain to stop and then used these umbrellas for the tour which came in handy since the rain started up again. Our three-year old friend had a nice nap towards the end of the tour.

Dinner buddies…this little three-year old LOVES Tia.

We went to Daluyon Resort for lunch and saw a monitor lizard. The kids were all very impressed.

The walk between the Sheridan and Daluyon was along a dirt road and the kids had a great time exploring.

Palawan 2015 was nice and we are so glad that we were able to be with friends.

On the day of our departure to Siquijor, Matt picked up my parents and brother from their international arrival, while I took those who had already arrived to a different airport terminal. We finally got to see the whole gang and relaxed at Cinnabon before our domestic flight.

Kalani got to hang out with her aunt Kalani, whom she is named after for a week.

Welcome to Coco Grove in Siquijor. It has become our “other home” in the Philippines!

We showed our family where and how our cousins live in Siquijor.

Salagdoong beach with the two of our Siquijodnon cousins.

We took the family to the beach across the street from where our Filipino relatives live.

We went to the lookout tower that is the the middle of Siquijor Island.

View of Siquijor from Triad Resort

More than 20 of us woke up by 5am to take a boat 3 hours away to Oslob to see whale sharks.

We are already to make memories together by snorkeling the whale sharks.

Hello whale shark! There were 6-10 sharks being hand-fed at Oslob.

After seeing whale sharks, we headed to the nearby Sumilon Island to snorkel, swim and play in the ocean.

Since the festivals were taking place, our family fed us a couple of different times at their home. We would eat at a private area on the second floor of the home as guests of honor.

While waiting for the festival performances to start, our family took naps since they were jet-lagged, and the performance started an hour late.

We took our family to the famous Balete Tree and they were able to experience a “fish spa”.

One cousin from California and the other from Siquijor. Same age and similar build.

Siblings spent a lot of time together “talking story”.

Before we left Siquijor the girls wanted a photo with a jeepney.

Good-bye Siquijor. Until next time.

My sister and cousin’s week in Manila before the rest of the family flew in.

My cousin had a direct flight from LA, California. We let her put her suitcase down and then took her to Matt’s basketball game. She didn’t last the whole game.

The boys had never met our cousin before, but quickly accepted her and would spend a lot of time sitting with her on the couch.

Jet-lag is brutal. These two would fall asleep around 7pm every night when they first arrived.

My sister came from Texas, so we loaded her up with goodies to bring here for us. Many of these treats went to friends and co-workers. The people here really appreciate sweets from the states.

I took the girls to Pagsanjan Falls. Blake and I stayed at the resort while they went to see the falls.

The girls went to Taal Volcano while I stayed home one day. It is always nice to get out of the city.

We tried out the trapeze and my cousin was really good at it.

We went back a second time to do trapeze with the whole gang.

Matt took my youngest brother out to do wake-boarding one morning.

We had to take them to Mall of Asia. In 2006 it was the largest mall in the Philippines, but now it is the third largest in the country.

We also took the crew to Sofitel hotel which is on Manila bay so they could experience Spiral Buffet.

When it was just my sister and I at home, Matt had a hard time telling us apart from the back.