It's a Boy!

A big congratulations to Lindsay and Ewart who just recieved Owen William into their lives last Monday morning. We can't wait to meet him... isn't he gorgeous?

A Soggy Apology

Christmas cards are coming your way...but they are all water damaged. :( A very full glass of water was tipped over on the whole pile of open letters. Oops. So please accept our apologies for the ratty look of them. Mom says it gives them character. (I think that's kind of like when she used to tell George and I that if a bird pooped on us it was good luck!) Hope you're all well! Ting

Here we go again...

This week I started teaching a course to prepare students for something called a First Language Certificate. The job is great hours (one a day, Mon through Friday) and is very close to home. My class currently consists of only five students; a very interesting mix including the director and owner of the English school I'm teaching for, the wife of Rob's assistant, a guy who lived in Vancouver for nine years, and two young adults. I think it will be a great class, as they are such an enthusiastic bunch. Unfortunately it is creating some difficulties with organizing Lucas' bedtime, as it falls right smack in the middle of it. So far it has worked out with minimal tears on his part, but quite a bit of stress on us adults! We're having to choose between a very early bed time or a rather late one. Last night I tried early, and he slept thirteen hours, imagine! Needless to say, we tried early again tonight!

Rob is working long and odd hours as the busy sesason slowly rears its ugly head here in Zihua. Mom, Lucas I have been busy with my Aunt Pat and cousin Deb, who are here visiting for a couple of weeks. Rob and I made a very exciting discovery of a children's' play-place and activity centre that has just opened, and we have registered Lucas and myself for some classes starting in January. We've trimmed our synthetic Christmas tree but are still struggling with the stocking dilemma. We had planned to buy some cheap material and stitch some together, but every time we step foot into that zoo, Lucas has a temper tantrum and Mom breaks out in hives. We may use Rob's sport socks; they're almost big enough. ;)

I am still doing some yoga and have been immortalized on the new website of my instructor. Haha. If you look carefully you may be able to see the grimaces on my face. This month's evening class will be hosted on our roof-top deck, yet somehow I still can't get Rob or Mom to try... One too many tequilas and they're running around this place saying, "look at me, I'm Ting doing yoga!" But still no takers.

So we are just kind of here, awaiting baby-news from Linds and Ewart who are a week overdue, and getting ready for Christmas in our own quiet ways.

Visit to Morelia

Last weekend we went to Morelia, in the state of Michoacan, for a visit. It was a smooth sail all the way there due to these two sleeping beauties in the back. We stopped in Patzcuaro to eat ceviche for breakfast, then ended up staying most of the afternoon as we strolled through the shops and markets. We found so many lovely things for Christmas gifts, not to mention that we'd have liked for ourselves! Patzcuaro is truly a Mexican handicraft heaven.

Then it was off to Morelia, a further 45 minutes up the road. The city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and we could see why just moments after entering. The architecture is spectacularly preserved, the city is clean and very well organized for tourists. Although many modern conveniences can be found, they are cleverly housed within heritage buildings and display no garish signs on the outside. One can be walking the quaint streets and stumble upon a department store or fast food restaurant just within the walls of some circa 1800's building. Gorgeous. The weather was also a nice break, with temperatures dipping down to 10 degrees or so at night. We were surprised to find ourselves rather cold! Lucas kept pulling at his pants and hoody to try and get them off. Apparently he has become very accustomed to being in little clothing! Yet he was visibly excited by his new DC sneakers. (You may be able to see the blur of them running by in the pictures. He didn't stop running!!!)


We took a trolley tour on Saturday that had us all over the city getting a quick glimpse at most of the famous buildings and the aqueduct. It was the perfect toddler-excursion, ending with a tasting and tour at a candy factory where they were making up batches of fresh, warm guayaba jelly.

Nights had us taking turns, with Rob and I spending ours sipping wine with a view of the illuminated cathedral while listening to live music, and Mom and I watching the weekly fireworks and music show that accompanies the illumination of the Cathedral.

On Sunday we headed out to the zoo. As much as I don't particularly like the concept of zoos, I have to admit that it was wonderful watching Lucas enjoying the sights. He was all pointing and grunting as he watched gorillas, zebras, giraffes, leopards, bears, and everything in between. We will certainly return to the zoo next time we visit Morelia!

Of course the requisite Costco and Walmart visits were done, Christmas shopping was completed, we went back to Patzcuaro for another ceviche and we were homeward bound.
Sorry about the triplicate photo. I'm not sure why that happened, and it won't remove!

Birthdays and Playdough

Happy Birthday to Mom! Yesterday Mom celebrated her 6$, I mean 6#...I mean...geez...the keyboard must be stuck. Anyways, she celebrated her birthday here with us, and we kept her on her toes all day. Lucas woke his Abuelita up with a wrapped box of chocolates that he had been gumming all morning while waiting for Mommy to say it was ok to go on in. Then he gave Abuelita the gift of birthday tears when Mommy said he couldn't eat any of the chocolate. Sigh...bad mommy. After quick preparations, the whole family, including canines, were off walking into town to have some breakfast. We found a lovely cafe by the fish market (no that's not an oxymoron) where Pillo could chase the cats, Chola could sit under the table, Lucas could run around the basketball court, and we could sip coffee and freshly squeezed orange juice. After breakfast drill-sergeant Ting marched us all home, put Lucas in bed for a nap, and Mom and I were off for a visit to the spa. We had side-by side facials, Mom had a pedicure and I had my eyebrows shaped. You should have heard me trying to explain the concept of threading to the girl who tamed those caterpillars. It was especially difficult because I couldn't think of the word for thread...but pretty good of me to try, right? I think she got a little worried when I started picking at the hem of her uniform, but eventually she got the idea and said she had heard of the technique! Relaxed, we drove our shiny and clean faces home to hang with Lucas for the day. Rob had to run off to work after he was relieved of babysitting duties, so after Lucas was down for the night, we snuck out across the road for dinner at Casa Bahia. (Don't worry, we didn't just take the monitor, we actually hired a sitter.) Mom and I shared some very tasty jumbo prawns in garlic and a Dorado steak with soy and wasabi. After dinner we played a game of scrabble on the patio, began to get jumpy about having left Lucas (we were only gone an hour and a half) and returned home for a glass of wine and another game of scrabble. It was perhaps one of the quieter birthdays we've shared, but really nice nonetheless. Many happy returns Mom!

Whose bright idea was it to make playdough, anyways? Here is a photo of Lucas showing off his self-inflicted battle wounds from the bowl of flour. Apparently he grew tired of smushing the dough, eating the dough, and feeding it to the dogs, so he went to play with the flour instead. I love the look on his face that just screams runway model. America's Next Top Model, here we come - Tyra's not going to know what hit her!

Who are you looking at?

The Blue Mamou

The bay of Zihuatanejo at dusk

So last Friday I found myself in a bar, smack in the middle of an arthritis medication commercial. Or maybe a retirement home ad, I'm not sure. There was even someone taking promotional photos, oh my. I have never, ever, seen so many running shoes in a bar; even in Vancouver. (Or socks pulled up to knees paired with khaki shorts for that matter.) But regardless of the arthritis cure being offered; be it medication, alcohol or heat, the joy was evident and it was fantastic. I found myself having a blast.

Ok, you got me, I wasn't really in a commercial, it just felt like it. Mom and I had gone to the season opening of The Blue Mamou bar here in town. It's a blues bar owned and run by an American couple named Judy and Jimmy Mamou. When we arrived, I just couldn't believe how many people were there. It was standing room only, the bartenders couldn't keep up, people were dancing up a hurricane and I think almost everyone except for myself was over fifty. Mom and I had a stupendous time chatting with people and dancing the night away. I was left with a resounding impression that life would only get better as well as an incredible respect for these people who had chosen to get out and boogie. The crowd was a mix of tourists and local gringo residents but the crowning glory was Jimmy Mamou himself absolutely ROCKING the bar on his guitar while dancing and singing. An extremely muscular, black man, Jimmy was dressed in his skin-tight white pants, white vest, and white Mexican sombrero. He looked and sounded fabulous and I was astounded to learn that he was the young age of 76!

Anyways, Mom and I had a great night and had to drag ourselves away after midnight because we had promised Rob, who was home with a cold, that we would only be a couple of hours. But...we'll be back...and I won't be wearing my heels next time!

My Boys

The coconut doesn't fall far from the tree.

Just about perfect

There are times when life here just seems...well good. Of course Rob works too much, Lucas screams too much, I bitch too much, and the dogs bark too much, but hey, that's life. Then there are days when everything is right. Like this past Sunday, for instance. Rob's day-off started with me opening my eyes and saying, "Lucas slept through the night!!!" Yippee! After breakfast it was off to get the car washed, inside and out, for the hefty sum of four dollars. While we waited, we poked about the market for goodies. Among other purchases was a gigantic bundle of fresh basil for cents and the steal of the century; a kilo and a half of freshly caught tuna for about 160 pesos. That's about $16 to the rest of you. Look at the size of the steaks we had for dinner! (And there is plenty in the fridge for sushi.) Mmmm. Apparently we were lucky because they hadn't seen tuna for almost a month before Sunday.

After Lucas' nap, it was off to explore Troncones for the afternoon. He drove. Ok, not all the way, just down a stretch of the dirt road after a quick little milk break. Look at the concentration on his face!

Tuna is heaven to some, a quick spin at the driving wheel heaven to others. My slice came when we ventured onto a vacant beach-front lot on Manzanillo Bay. The sand was tiny rocks mixed with shells, the waves were dulled by the rock formations just off-shore, the water was barely warm, my baby was super happy. And so we will plug away at work and chores with the anticipation of next weekend's adventures not far from our minds.

Google Talk

So many of you have now discovered that our phones are really bad here. Hahaha! We've tried buying new ones, changing batteries and severe battering of handsets, but nothing seems to be making a difference. Alas, we'd like to talk to you all more often. Therefore if you'd like to try, I've downloaded googletalk, a free service from google. If you're interested please check it out at the link below. You'll need a gmail account, which can only be had by invitation, so let me know if you'd like to try and I'll invite you. Ting

http://www.google.com/talk/

Girls Night Out

Dia de Los Muertos/Halloween

I hope you all had a fantastic Halloween. As many of you know, it is by far my FAVORITE time of year. So I was a little sad that I wasn't in Vancouver to celebrate. Nonetheless, I dressed up Lucas in his costume and we carved a pumpkin together. Then we sat in the dark in mom's room and looked at the jack 'o lantern lit. Lucas loved that, but his fingers kept creeping towards his jack o lanters' tempting luminescent lights and well... you know...danger, danger. I'm sure it won't be the first Halloween to end in tears! I had bought candy just in case, but it was definitely a record low year at no trick or treaters! We did do a drive buy candy drop on the way home from picking up Rob at work though. There was a group of about ten or fifteen kids all dressed up for a party, and they were thrilled to have us drop some candy off! Who wouldn't be, right?!

It is heartening to see that most places in Mexico have not confused Halloween with the Day of the Dead, seeing as they fall on almost the same day and contain many of the same macabre images. Although the festivities here were nothing compared to what Rob and I saw in Oaxaca, we were pleased to be able to see an altar competition in the town square. The picture below shows one of the altars, this one done in sand. Lucas loved the lights and people, but it was rather late for him.

We also had the pleasure to have a visit from Millaray, from Mexico City. Any of you who don't remember, she is the student whom Mom hosted for almost three years. She was also one of my students. We had a fantastic visit which included a night out on the town for the ladies; margaritas, dancing, and mom pleading, "Let's just stay for one more set" at two in the morning. Whoohoo! Lucas is in love with Millaray and had her run off her feet within hours of arrival.

Turtle Release

This past Sunday evening we had the wonderful experience of a turtle release here in the bay. The turtle eggs are collected daily off of the beach by hotel staff. They are kept safeguarded from predators in enclosed pens and then placed in small pools when they hatch. After a few days they are released in the evening to maximize their potential survival. Intrawest organizes many turtle releases for the kids and this last Sunday was for staff's children. Although Lucas was perplexed and nervous at first, he soon warmed up to his little turtle and went tottering off after it when he finally released it. It was quite a sight to see all of the baby turtles slowly making their way to the ocean. Wish them luck in their travels so you too may see their offspring when you come to visit!

Some house pics

Here are some pictures of the outside of our new home and the bay of Zihuatanejo. It is such a beautiful spot and makes us feel very much involved in the town. We can hear the music from the centro on the weekends, the sound of the boats going in and out, and people living their everyday lives all around us. Yet we can also still hear the birds, the crickets and the frogs. Divine. The only noise pollution we could do without is the nightly symphony of street dogs and Pillo's delighted responses.

PS. Did you check out Rob's new do?

Too Much

Yesterday when I posted about the snake, I had no idea that the day would only get more interesting. Shortly after seeing the snake I heard Pillo making a ruckus upstairs and went to investigate. He had pushed open the door off of our bedroom to go out onto our patio and investigate an iguana. A large one. Ok, still slightly prehistoric, but not as bad as the snake. Later that evening we went to take the dogs out. Being slightly nervous around the pool after the snake sighting, I made sure to keep my wits about me for critters. Lo and behold a very silly crab had made its way up the stairs from the ocean and was hanging out by our pool. A very popular place I'm beginning to understand. Amidst cries of "let's cook it up!" we went out on our cheery way. I'm not entirely sure why we didn't think to take the poor crab down to the ocean with us, but hey, I never said we were all that clever. Anyways, again letting our guard down Rob and were hanging out trying to phone home (what a disaster - sorry Paula and Linds!) when I spotted another critter that made my spine crawl. A scorpion. Oh yes, a scorpion. Rob didn't believe me at first, seeing that I had made him crush an innocent grasshopper earlier in the evening due to my over-active imagination. But this time it was real. It was a baby, but I don't care. I am wearing shoes around the house now- especially in the wee hours of the morning when hitting the stairs to go see mr.lukey in his room. We are going to have to have the fumigators come soon!

Hope this post doesn't put any potential visitors off. It is lovely down here. The wildlife is all part of the charm and adventure. Although I could have done without the swarm of mosquitoes at Yoga this morning. It's really hard to concentrate on contorting your body when all you can think is, "I must scratch, I must scratch, I must scratch...will she see me if a sneak a quick one in?!" So much for clearing my mind.

Not entirely sure why I decided this was the appropriate photo for this post. Perhaps because it makes me laugh so much, and I think that's exactly what these experiences call for; humor. So bottoms up and try to keep your children from the sauce!

My Cool Nephew

Here's a fantastic shot of Logan "cheers-ing" with his dad in Barra de Potosi. Isn't he a dream boat? (I mean Logan of course;P)

A Visitor

I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this one. I was just out sweeping the pool deck when I heard a large rustle beside me. Expecting to see another large iguana (which almost sent me over the railing of the deck last week) I glanced over only to come face to face with this. It may, perhaps, explain the large poop we've been finding on the walkway. Any suggestions? Friend or foe? Keep toddlers out of the pool? Yikes!

Lucas is One!

It was a great day to turn one!

Can you see the monkey on the cake? It's Boots from Dora the Explorer! The cake was chocolate banana and even had candy bananas on it!

I think he liked it!

A gift from Grandma and Grandpa Herman.

Online Again

Yippee! We are back online and I am eager to fill you all in on some of our latest exploits. My cryptic last post alluded to our wet adventures at our old house. Indeed we have now left the house my mother so fondly calls "La Casa de los Horores" and moved into our new paradise right in town. Here is a photo of what we wake up to just about every morning.

The house is a dream compared to our old one. Actually, it's a dream compared to any of the homes we've ever lived in! I promise a photo tour very soon.

We had a fantastic visit with George, Jus, and Logan. It was unfortunate that they had to get caught in the storm, with us, but we sure did appreciate the help with the move! Justine, Mom and I may never forget being caught on the highway in the car with the babies and dogs in the middle of the hurricane. I surely never will. When we returned the next day to see what we had abandoned, we were astounded by some of the destruction right along where we had been driving. Only by the grace of God did we manage to drive a straight line with such limited visibility and sheer terror of the lightening striking directly above. When we got into town we spent three quarters of an hour driving through literally rivers that were once major roads. Thank god for SUV's. Now I understand why they do make sense in some circumstances. Rob found our license plate on the side of the road the next day. When we arrived to the new house George had to pull into the garage for me because I had jello legs. Truly a tropical storm like I have never been part of before. Not sure I loved it this time... Not a fantastic picture, but here is Justine standing in our flooded living room at three in the morning.


We now own a whole lot of water damaged items; mostly Lucas' books and moldy clothing. Mmmmmmm... Lovely. George's computer miraculously made it through after being picked up off the floor in the middle of it all. Anyways, except for the soggy inconveniences, we were all happy to arrive to our new, water-tight home and enjoy the rest of the visit.

The lovely Justine and tuckered-out Logan.

A Quick Note

I just wanted to post a quick note to let anyone who was wondering know that we are all fine here. We have not had internet access for almost two weeks due to two large tropical storms - hurricanes that passed through. Mom was awoken at three in the morning by Chola's heavy panting only to step into several inches of water. We quickly learned that our house was not water tight, but seemed to keep everything in alright. After two days of soggy living and new leaks springing up every few hours, we decided to move into our new place ten days early. Poor George and Justine had to help with yet another move! Anyhow, we had a fantastic time with them and are now getting settled into our new place; including getting our internet connected. I have lots to tell and some great photos to share. You must, however, wait.

Logan and Lucas

We are having a blast here with Logan, Jus and George! Lucas and Logan are sorting out their differences with amazing patience for hair-pulling, toy-stealing and sippy-cup envy. Here's a pic of them "sharing" cookies at Playa La Ropa the other day.