Eva's 7th Birthday

My not so little Eva turned 7 on the 14th of July.  Back in May when my parents were in town we threw her an awesome Mexican party with her friends there.  It was great.  One of the main reasons why we did it was because we knew it would be hard to do something when we had just recently moved into our new place.  And, at the time, we didn't think we would make it to Oregon to have our annual "invite all of our friends and family to a BBQ at my parents" party.  I had some friends miss it, which was nice because I look forward to it too.  When it was getting close to her real birthday I had to remind her it was coming up.  She had no idea.  Kind of sad and a little funny at the same time.

My awesome aunt made these as the party favors.  So cute!!

We had pinata issues.  Thank goodness for our ladder, Josh.

These guys decided to have an obstacle course through the brincolin.  It was quite the site.  Matthew actually "won."

This is for you Eva...

You have made a lot of growth this past year.  You lost three teeth.  And all were VERY traumatic in their own way.  I don't know what terrifies you so much about losing teeth but something does.  You also really took off in the swimming department and grew a lot of notches in the responsibility department as well.  It melts my heart every time I see you grab your little brother's hand to help him do something.  You can be such a nurturer.  You also have had to be very brave in a cross country move that we made and I am so thankful for that.  I know it wasn't easy leaving all of your friends but you have embraced this moment in our lives and I love you for that.

You have gotten a little picky on me.  It gets trickier to feed you at times.  One day you don't like cheese sticks, peanut butter sandwiches, fish; I just can't keep up with you.  But you do love some things.  Pizza is high up on the list and you love it when I make you pozole.

You are turning into a good little reader.  I am amazed at how you can read an entire book in Spanish and not skip a beat when you pick up an English book and do the same.  You are way more ahead of me when I was your age a long time ago.  And you are really good at math story problems.  You know it too, and you will even say that you are good at math.

You are very loyal to friends.  Or I suppose you can almost say exclusive.  You don't seem to have a lot of acquaintances but more two or three really good friends that you love and create long lasting friendships with.  I suppose that is why every time you have to say goodbye, it even breaks your mother's heart.

Thank you for being you!  You are turning into such a beautiful young girl.  I love that you are a little rule follower and great helper.  I just want to squeeze you so you can't grow any more.  It all seems to be happening way to fast for your mother.  I know I can be hard on you sometimes, but never question the fact that I love you to pieces.  You are very special to me.

Love,
Mama

Mexico Part 56: Leaving Guadalajara

On the 4th of July, my brother Alex flew in from Washington DC to do the trek with us from Guadalajara all the way to Phoenix, Arizona.  The days leading up to the move were of course CRAZY.  We were frantically trying to sell all of our stuff.  There was this lady that came one Saturday night and told us, "I want everything."  Which helped relieve some stress but created other stress.  It's hard to price your things sometimes.  The last things to sell were our beds, which was actually a good thing since our last night there we were still sleeping on our bed.  So that Thursday, Eva had presentations at school for her last day, I was running around closing up water/electricity/cable accounts, and picking up my brother from the airport.  Needless to say we had a lot to do in order to leave right after Eva got out of school.  Well, that didn't happen.  My brother came to our home to see a pretty chaotic downstairs and the landlord.  We quickly shoved everything outside and turned in keys.  We actually got our deposit back, which was awesome, since they didn't like to give us back our last one.  My sweet neighbor had watched my kids all day and even fed us the yummiest lunch/dinner.  We said our goodbyes and didn't pull out of the driveway until 5.  It is very humbling to see all the things you own in the back of a trailblazer and maxima.  We made it to Tepic, two and a half hours outside of Guadalajara before we had to stop because of blinding rain and containers on the top of the blazer that kept opening up.  We wanted to make it to Mazatlan that first night but with such bad weather and a late start, we stopped in Tepic.  The next morning we had more bin problems but made it to Mazatlan and stayed the rest of Friday at the beach.  It was beautiful there.  Saturday morning we had the best hotel buffet breakfast and headed off for a long drive.  The kids were great this day.  They had no movies to entertain them and we traveled a long time.  It was on this day that we were waiting what our fate would be with the Yaqui community.  Apparently, they were having water disagreements with the government.  So, there way to be heard was to block the road with huge semis and not let people through.  They weren't very nice about it and used wooden paddles, bandannas and numbers to intimidate and threaten people.  It was by far the worst thing about the whole trip.  But we made it through that ordeal and am thankful I will never experience anything like that again.  Well, at least not anytime soon.  That night we made it to Hermosillo.  And the next morning got up and made it all the way to Phoenix.  I was proud of myself.  I drove all the way through with my brother as co-captain helping with whatever the kids needed or wanted.  And Matthew was awesome driving the whole time alone, with River and Eva's bicycle in the front seat.  The first week in Arizona our awesome friends let us stay at their place from Sunday to Thursday morning until we could get keys into our apartment.

We are slowly getting adjusted.  It's hot here, but I don't hate it as much as I thought I would.  It actually feels good on my joints.  This place is very diverse.  There are a lot of different people where we live.  Maybe it's because it's a college town, or cause we are in an apartment, but you can see just about any kind of ethnicity and race here.  The transition for Eva has been easier than for Elijah.  He loved every "home" we stayed at during our trip and still asks about our "other house" but slowly he will get there.  We all will for that matter.  Matthew of course, couldn't be happier that he is here.  He is learning a lot and grateful everyday he is now studying medicine in the states.  And, I, well, am slowly getting there.  It feels lonely a lot of the times, but I just put on a happy face and hope really soon, I will really feel that.  

Here are just some of the special people we have loved while living in Mexico, that are still there and miss...

We now are onto our next adventure.  Arizona Part I??  I can't believe three short years ago it was Mexico Part I.  I never thought I would be so sad to leave a place when I wasn't eager to be there in the first place.  But I suppose that is how life is.

Mexico Part 55: The weeks leading up to the big move...

The weeks leading up to the big move were eventful to say the least.  We went on our trip and Nana came.  These were some of the things we got in, in no particular order.  

 We have gone to Gauchimontones many times and they never get old.  We have seen them at different times of year as well.  Look at the next two pictures.  This was a trip with Cathryn and John in April.  It's amazing what a little rain does to the place.  

 These next pictures are of Eva's last day of school.  They had an awards assembly and of course goodbyes.  Her other really good friend was sick on last day of school, which was a real bummer.  

 This is of Eva hiding from me because she didn't want her tooth pulled out.  It was literally dangling out.  I barely got my finger in to touch it when it fell off.  Girls, I tell you!!

 Eva's ballet recital.  They performed Swan Lake two nights in a row.  She was awesome.

 Our last trip to the Guadalajara Zoo.  This time we were able to get on their new tram and Nana was able to join us.  

We are going right over the lions.  No big deal just don't fall out!

Monkeys hitching a ride.  Elijah wasn't too thrilled about it.

He always looks like this when he eats.  

Mexico Part 54: Anniversary Trip

On the 19th of July, Matthew and I will have been married for 10 years.  That's a lot of years!  Not to mention the fact, I have been with the guy since I was 16.  Almost have of my life.  And because of it, we decided to take this opportunity we have living in Mexico to fly to the beautiful region of Cancun, Mexico.  So, on June 14th Nana flew down to watch the kids, while Matthew and I left the next morning for our little vacation.  We gave Carla a quick tour of all the things she would need to know while she was here and we left.  She is seriously one of the bravest people I know!  Who would do that?!  Fly to a country where they don't speak the language to take care of your kids?!  I have the BEST mother in law.  Our trip didn't start the greatest because we showed up at the airport two hours early, like the airline wanted (but totally, not necessary), flight was three hours delayed, and apparently, we didn't have our shuttle transportation set up to the resort once we got to the Cancun airport.  Thanks to some very nice people, we made it to the hotel on the correct shuttle.  But, by the time we got there, and figured things out, it was around 10:30 pm.  We basically lost all of Saturday.  Always a bummer.  Then on Sunday, we spent roaming around the town of Playa del Carmen "getting ready to have fun" (for you Arrested Development watchers).  You see, the night before, we were caught off guard paying 160 pesos for two one liter bottles of water, when at the store we would have paid 40 pesos.  Inflation is crazy in these places, and when you live in Mexico, you know better.  That's why we hit up Playa del Carmen.  We found a Walmart and got the missing trinkets we needed for our trip.  The beach at Playa del Carmen is beautiful and we ended up setting a tour for Cozumel on Monday for some snorkeling.  Monday we headed back to Playa del Carmen to take the ferry over to Cozumel, only to realize we barely had enough money to pay for the ferry and take the shuttle back to our resort.  We accidentally forgot to bring enough money with us, and didn't have any credit/debit cards with us either.  It was a shame, because in Cozumel it was raining and we didn't get to see the island after the snorkeling because we had no money on us to pay the transportation.  We made lemonade out of our situation and enjoyed the snorkeling.  Tuesday we went to Tulum.  We saw awesome ruins there and played on their beach.  Even though it wasn't sunny, I had never enjoyed such blue, warm water or white sand.  It had nothing on my Oregon beach.  Wednesday we made the decision to stay put and enjoy our beautiful resort.  We ate great food there, swam in cool swimming pools, laid around the beach, got sunburned; it was an awesome day.  Thursday we took a tour to Ek-Balam and visited the ruins there.  We went to a small Mayan community for some lunch, swam in a cenote (underground hole with water inside), and stopped in a small town.  One of the coolest tours we were on.  And then Friday we went to Xcaret, an archaeological park embedded with so much of Mexican culture.  Every night we did night swimming and ate delicious resort food.  I missed my kids but it was nice to just be Matthew and I.  I have learned a lot being married.  It has its ups and downs.  Way more ups than downs though.  I have learned what it means to think about the other person, compromise, and how to rely on one another.  I think about him as my really good friend.  I remember when we first got married how strange I thought it was that he never went home, and now I can't imagine him not being home.  He knows me better than any other person and loves me like no one else.  I really am lucky to call him mine.  I feel lucky that even after all these years, he still can make me laugh.  Happy Anniversary Mateo!  I love you!

And big shout out to Grandma Patty for letting us use some of her time share.  Thank you!!

I took over 700 pictures, so these are just a few of my favorites.

Tulum

Ek-Balam

Xcaret

Mayan Palace Resort