To honeymoon in Mexico? . . . or California?

We got loads and loads of snow last night and into today. 12 inches to be exact. (wowzers!) Every school in the area was canceled, including the universities and government buildings which rarely ever close for anything. My hubby didn't even think twice about driving 30 minutes to work. Our street wasn't even plowed which automatically made a sign flash in front of our eyes that read "Lazy Day Today!".

I really like snow, but after all this, I'm ready for spring and to see some flowers again. The thought of warm weather has made me think of vacations. And my friend, Missy, her post about finding a vacation spot this year made me think about our honeymoon next summer.

Honeymoon??

Yes, honeymoon. Next year will be our 10th anniversary and we have never been on a honeymoon. (Crazy, eh?!) We haven't even ever been anywhere together -- alone -- for over a weekend anyplace. The farthest we've traveled together is Arizona and New Orleans and those trips have just been over long weekends. And Arizona was for our friends' wedding which we just made a day or two longer so we could see some of Arizona.

I'm more than ready to get away with my husband. Finally. I feel like I've known him for ever and ever. Well, because I sort of have. We have been "together" for 15 years and have known each other for 23 years. It's time to get away with this guy . . . my best friend. :c) (Yes, that is cheesy, but nevertheless, it's true.)

I've never been west of Omaha, Nebraska. Well, for the exception of Arizona (Sedona & Phoenix). I've never been to the New England area, either. (How boring am I?!) I've never been to Canada. I've only been out of the country once, and that was to Brazil. I've also been to Hawaii. I've been to a handful of areas within the U.S., just not a lot. But come next week, I will be able to add Oklahoma to my list of places I've been! (Yay!)

So . . . drum roll . . . I think we've narrowed down our place of destination to either Mexico or California.

Why?

Well, because I have a huge passion and love for ancient art and a lot of it resides there in Mexico. I took tons of classes in college on art history and fell in love with the ancient art. One semester I studied the Mayan Culture (the art of) and wrote my term paper on the amazing Mayan Women. They absolutely fascinate me. (They were oh-so-powerful and idolized!) Most of the Mayans resided in Mexico with some residing in Central America and a few in South America. I would absolutely LOVE to see some of the Mayan ruins face-to-face. Love to! And to photograph them. Ooooo . . . what a dream come true that would be.
I would like to stay at a 4 or 5-star resort (why, yes!!), maybe all-inclusive?, and the times we aren't exploring the Mayans, I would want to be on the beach drinking margaritas :c) But another part of me wants to explore wine country of California and make my way to San Fransisco, but that would require a whole lot of driving and not staying put in one place for very long. But that is another thing I would really love to do.

I also really want to travel to Italy and Greece one day. I don't know if I want that to be right now yet or not. I may want to bring my kids with me to see those areas. Or, maybe not? :c)

So I'm posting this just to get some opinions. Have you been to Mexico? What parts? Did you see the Ruins? Did you like Mexico? Did you stay in an all-inclusive resort? (We've never stayed at one, but have heard it's the "route to go".)

(If I had endless money, this is where I would go in a heartbeat!)

What about California? Do you think we should skip Mexico this time around and go to California instead? We're really leaning towards Mexico, so trying to change my mind would take a lot, but if you know me, you know I'm easily swayed.

So please let me know your thoughts! We have to plan this because we have to save save save! (Money does not grow on trees here.) And, we want to do it right. So any advice would be absolutely fantastic and very appreciative!!

This will be my last post before I leave for Oklahoma (well, unless baby A decides to come before I leave, and I can't not tell about that!)! So . . . I'll be seeing you in one week with pictures of a new beautiful baby girl in my family, and hope to return to a lot of great vacationing advice!