Viva Mexico!

Yup, finally getting around to posting about the holidays. Paul had two solid weeks of vacation, so we took advantage. The minute he was done with his final we drove 5 hours to Dallas. The following morning he and I took off for Mazatlan, Mexico. We had planned to go to Mexico back in June, but school got too crazy and we had to postpone it...and since Christmas is the only other time of year that he has a break, we squeezed it in before the Christmas craziness. Gratefully his sister Christina and his mom were willing to watch the girls, so we had 6 whole days to ourselves.

It was really a relaxing vacation. We honestly didn't do much...eat breakfast, hang out at the beach, eat lunch, walk along the beach, eat dinner...but that's what we wanted.Our first day there we walked a long way on the beach...we ended up doing that a lot.
We hiked up to the top of the faro, or lighthouse. It is one of the tallest lighthouses in the world, even though the actual building is only 2 stories. It's built on top of a hill that's on a peninsula. It was a nice hike and provided a great view of the city.
(The hill you can see to the right of me in the distance is the lighthouse.)
We did do one organized activity...we went to Salsa and Salsa, where we learned how to make a bunch of salsas and even do a little salsa dancing. Paul and I were even crowned the salsa King and Queen for our dancing skills!
We happened to be there during our anniversary...not too much to complain about a sunset like that! Happy 5 years Paul!
We LOVED the food there. We went to Pancho's twice...it was divine. Check out my steaming bowl of chicken, tomatoes, queso fresco, cactus...amazing. The bowl was still super hot to the touch when I was done eating.
We walked along the beach every morning after breakfast during high tide...we often got our pants quite soaked.
The last 2 days we spent entirely on the beach, besides mealtimes. It was funny watching the Mexicans pose for pictures...one knee is always bent.
Of course, more food...one of the best parts of the vacation!
This is called the cliff jumper tower. At high tide, jumpers dive into the water, of course when they are paid. We didn't ever come out to watch...it was cool to watch on youtube. But walking to the top and seeing how far down it was was quite intimidating.
We got a good laugh out of this building...a fine example of the South American building quality.

Of course it was wonderful to have some time to ourselves...our first vacation alone since we had kids. It went so fast, but we were ready to get back to our girls. Part two of Christmas vacation to come...

Random Lubbock Weather

Lubbock's weather is remarkably sporadic. Last Monday we went to the park...in shorts.
Then this morning, we woke up to the first snow. Hardly anything, I know, but the girls were anxious to go play.

Of course we have no real snow clothes, so they are bundled up in multiple layers of pants, socks, and shirts. Poor little Anna struggled to walk with so much on! And of course the snow is gone now. Maybe we'll hit the park again tomorrow - you never know!

Quilts of 2010

Remember how I've told you about my quilting hobby before? Well here is the quilt I made for Lisa's family for Christmas (the pictures uploaded sideways...why I don't know, but you get the idea).


Again this one was lots of fun, and thanks to my marvelous mother-in-law who lets me "shop" at her supply of fabric, I hardly paid anything for the fabric.

I just realized that I never posted pictures of a quilt I made for Anna. It was pretty simple, with large blocks. I made it a texture quilt, so there is corduroy, chenille, minky, and silk along with the cotton fabrics. I'm proud of this one because I did it without a pattern...I designed it myself! Granted, it's super basic, but it was new for me to figure out all the little details on my own.

Walking around

She's done it! At 17 months, she's finally walking everywhere. She had taken a few steps before Christmas, and would walk between furniture during the Christmas break, but the first week home, she just took off everywhere. I'm so glad not to have to carry her everywhere, even if she does go slowly.

Lesson in humility

Yesterday morning, despite having bad head cold, I ventured out with the girls to sign Hattie up for a soccer class. Being low on gas, I stopped at our corner gas station to fill up. I left the radio on for the girls while it filled up. When I got back in the car, it wouldn't start. Nor was I able to get my key out. I had power, for the heater, radio, etc, but the engine wouldn't turn over. I vaguely remembered having something like this happen before, but I couldn't remember what I had done to fix it. I called my neighbor Cassie to see if she had suggestions. After looking through the owners manual, I called the Toyota dealer. They gave me some suggestions, none of which worked. By now the girls were freezing in the backseat. The dealer suggested I get a jump, then come into the service department. I saw a policeman and asked for a jump, but apparently they can't because of all the electronics in their car. Whatever. So I called Cassie again and waited for her to rescue us. Now Anna was whining and Hattie wouldn't stop talking about getting signed up for soccer. Cassie arrived, we set the van up for a jump, but it didn't work. I was annoyed, flabbergasted, and freezing. I'm not super car savvy but I know how to jump start a car. Just as Cassie and I were getting out of the car to check the cables for a third time, a man walked up and asked if we needed help. I quickly explained how the car wouldn't start and that I couldn't even take the key out. He quickly took a look and in seconds fixed the problem. He put the van into park.

I couldn't have felt more stupid! I sheepishly thanked him, not believing I had overlooked something so simple. He walked away, silently laughing at me I think. So now I have been humbled a bit...just because I know how to jump a car doesn't necessarily mean I know how to operate one :)