Meh-he-co (Mexico)

Ryan and I just got back from a week-long trip to Mexico. It's been almost 6 years since we've been away together (last time was...OUR HONEYMOON) so we decided to bite the financial bullet and just go ahead and have a fun trip. I'd like to give a shout out to the folks at VISA who made this trip possible before we actually had the cash. Interest is a major bummer when it's accumulating against you...but it was now or never!

We had a lot of fun together and I don't think Ryan got too sick of being with me 24/7. :) We tried to balance between seeing the sights and having adventures (our first trip to Mexico!) and just relaxing and recharging. I think we had enough time to do both things and we didn't get homesick until the end. There were a lot of things that we saw that made me think "I wish the girls were here with us!" But a lot of the time I was grateful that it was just the two of us. I just realize how hard it is to travel with kids and how it usually isn't a "real" vacation for the parents!

We were lucky that my family was willing and able to look after the girls for us while we were gone. It took two van-loads to get everything out to Wetaskiwin (Claire's equipment sure is bulky!) and they even loaded it all back to our house and had everything back to normal on Sunday when we got home! It was such a blessing to have the girls where I knew they would be loved and kept safe. Madeline now says Mamma & Poppa & Uncle & Auntie and often asks for them!

My family has always had an affinity for signs - welcome home signs, graduation signs, happy birthday signs. No family affair would be complete without signs. It has always made me feel loved!

The guitar was a big hit with both girls

Madeline is figuring out how to use the flute - right now it's mostly a spit tube but every once and awhile she gets a note out

Here is Claire testing out the "shakers" we bought for her

We also had some great friends look after our building (thanks Jeff & Eva) and siblings who also kept a watch on things (thanks Greg & Steph and Steph and Mel).

I've made a couple of albums on Facebook with pictures and explanations of things so I won't write too much here. If you want to see the pictures, here are the links:

Mexico Album 1
Mexico Album 2


Experiences in Mexico:

• That a "loose woman" in Spanish is called mamacita

• That going topless on the beach is a European thing

• That smoking is also a European thing (we probably smoked about a pack each in second hand smoke!)

• That a LOT of European people travel to Mexico (at least this time of year)
  

• That street shop bargaining is kind of fun

• That tipping is an art

• That what people read on the beach can tell you a lot about their personalities

• That you CAN get a sunburn on your earlobes

• That Mexican TV is hilarious

• That the Quebec French accent is quite horrific (Ryan's sentiment)

• That Ryan is a pool shark

• That highways in Mexico have huge speed bumps and no real lane divisions

• That snorkeling is super fun but then you have "suction cup face" afterwards

• That the stress and fatigue from the day of traveling home almost erases all the relaxing done on the beach!

Cool things we saw:

• 2 different rays, a lobster, HUGE dark purple sea urchins, tiny red sea urchins, little swordfish, tons of bright coloured tropical fish (while snorkeling)

• A wedding on the beach at sunset - we were out in the water at the time and watched the bride walk down the aisle. Very romantic

• Beautiful sunsets

• The most hilarious night show ever where these Mexican kids danced to songs from Grease, Saturday Night Fever and Evita whilst lip synching

• Fun towel designs on our bed everyday

• Banana, coconut, aloe vera and chile pepper trees/plants

• The "bidet" statue/fountain (see Mexico Album 2 for pictures)

• Tons of huge lizards everywhere

• Vultures circling overhead as we walked through the jungle (not a very encouraging sight

All in all, this trip was a great break for us but we are glad to be home and I am excitedly preparing for Christmas! My policy is that we have to wait for December 1st to put up the tree and decorations and start up the Christmas music! That way you are not sick of it all by the time Christmas day comes around.

Horses, Halloween, Holidays, Happy Happy Joy Joy

(Linky link blog entry - click on any underlined word for a link to a webpage)

I've found a new hobby - blog hopping. I find it very interesting to read blogs that deal with new recipes, home decorating, photography, saving money and mom-related dialogues. Some of the ladies whose blogs I check regularly are so clever and creative it's a bit daunting to try and write my own blog!

We've had a lot of fun with horses lately. We've put Claire on the waiting list for the Little Bits riding program that allows children with disabilities to take riding lessons. The wait list is almost 2 years though but maybe that will give her more time to be physically ready to sit on a horse. We went to observe a class to see exactly what it was all about. They have three volunteers that help each child - two on either side to provide support/balance and one person leading the horse. It was such a neat atmosphere and everyone was so kind - I'm looking forward to trying it out with Claire. We also had another Hearts and Hooves activity at the CNIB where the girls had a chance to brush and play with ponies. It was great!

(As a side note - I've realized that one of my favourite and probably over-used punctuation marks is the --DASH--I can't get enough of it)

We started with a new GRIT worker in October and she's great. We loved our first lady, but because of back/knee problems, she was having troubles lifting Claire, especially when we would be at play groups/singing groups where we'd have to sit on the floor. Our new girl, Janelle, is very kind and we have enjoyed getting to know her in the past few weeks. We also have had Claire's first IPP meeting with GRIT which was encouraging and attended the annual general meeting and had some great Greek food as part of the bargain.

Ryan hosted a super-fun EQ activity at our place complete with outdoor soccer, Rockband and 10 pizzas. The girls and I spent the day out in Wetaskiwin raking pine needles and cleaning the garage. It was so fun to be outside all day even though it was a bit chilly.

We also had fun at Olivia's Alberta reception. It was fun to get to know Rob a bit more - we like him! Unfortunately we don't have any pictures of the bride and groom since our camera had a little accident and tried to commit suicide by jumping onto the hardwood floor at the Rutherford House. We got a few pictures before that happened though.

Here we are with Lorne and Carrie and Broc - enjoying some chatting and good desserts.

We've had numerous meetings for church things, GRIT things, school things, etc. It seems that we have something going on every single night of the week.

We had a great Halloween. Click here to see some pictures.

Our big news is that Ryan and I are going to Mexico in a week, for a week. We had wanted to go during Spring break in March/April but decided at the last minute to go during Winter break in November. We're staying at the Catalonia Yucatan Beach resort and I'm so excited! We're so lucky to have family who are willing to take the girls so that we can have our first vacation together since our honeymoon almost 6 years ago!

Here are some fun pictures from the past few weeks.

Madeline and her experiments with blue Smarties

Here is Claire wearing her Beetlejuice pants doing some good standing in her standing frame.

Madeline love piling things up and laying on them. Her bed is full of blankets that she lays on top of.

Boxes are the most fun!

Maddie's first shiner. I'm surprised she hasn't hurt herself more because she climbs and jumps off so many things.

Goofy goof

More goofy goofing around

Claire has been so funny lately - this is how she falls asleep every night. No matter how many times we go in and turn her around and flip her over, she isn't comfortable until she is laying like this.

Do you like see-food?

Ah, the joys of managing our apartment building. Raking leaves/garbage/cigarette butts from our side lawn.

Luckily we had lots of help!

Here is Madeline practicing her wrestling moves on me.

Funny bunnies on the floor

Claire's lovely, spontaneous and infectious smile!

Here is the next rockstar drummer. Whenever we are playing, she always wants to hit the drums or the foot pedal. We have to confiscate the drum sticks most of the time though in order to protect our valuables from being smashed.

Thanksgiving

I love Thanksgiving. It's a great holiday with lots of tradition and family events. We go to Wetaskiwin to spend it with family and usually have a football game, play board games, eat ourselves silly and spend quality time with one another. Here is a link to some pictures of the fun weekend.

It is also a good time to reflect on what we are thankful for. I'm grateful for a comfortable home that has all the room and comforts we need. I'm grateful for a supportive and hard-working husband who is a great father to our children. I'm grateful for Claire and for her endurance and happiness. I'm grateful for Maddie's crazy spirit and thirst for learning. I'm so glad we live in this country where we are free to vote like we did today and to make our voices heard. I'm grateful for good friends who uplift and support us. I'm grateful for our employment. I'm grateful for vehicles that work (knock on wood), food aplenty, ability and $ for leisure activities, good books, computers, laughter, good music, household appliances that make my life easier and the beauty of the earth around us.

Whenever I start to feel sorry for myself, all I have to do is count my blessings and it makes me feel ashamed for being down in the dumps!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend!