Family business in Puerto Vallarta

Allison is almost 3!!

2010-04-29T16:43:00.000-07:00

We miss our Mexico home but are very comfortable back in the U.S. Allison is almost 3 now and Oscar is 6. Time FLIES!!

Allison update

2009-01-29T11:37:00.001-08:00

Photo of Allison taken at Christmas 2008.

End of a blog. . . . .

2007-08-30T08:43:00.000-07:00

Well it has come time I think to end this blog. With all that is going on in my life(new baby, Oscar, family things) I don't have the time like I used to. I want to thank all my loyal readers and family for sticking with me. I have really enjoyed this blog and it is a GREAT way to keep in touch while at the same time improving your writing skills.(provided you spell check and grammer check) So to all of you out there. Take care. If you have my email address please continue to email me. If you don't and you want it to keep in touch please comment on this entry and I can send it to you. Have a great life all!!
Psalms 139:16(One of my FAVORITE verses)

Answered questions

2007-08-24T15:13:00.000-07:00

A few people have been asking me what Mexicans think of America and Americans. Let me first qualify this with; These are only people I know that live in my little area of Puerto Vallarta Mexico, so any angry comments please keep them to yourself.
OK Well to start off with I would say that probably close to 60-70% of the men here have been in the U.S. illegally within the past 10 years. As for the women and children that is probably more like 40-50% because many times only the men go and send money back. They all(pretty much all) agree that Mexico's political system both at the national and local levels is broken and needs a LOT of work. That is why they jump the border to make money. Even making minimum wage they can make in one hour what they make in one day here. Most jobs pay 120-150 pesos for a days work.(that is about $12)Most of them think that Americans have tons and tons of money because they see them coming down here on vacation and think that is how they live all year. Kind of funny. I blew a lot of them away when I told them, no we save up all year to do things like this, we can not just do it on a whim. Most of them, though really love Americans and don't find us brash(like the Europeans do) or rude. They do say we are a little loud though. LOL!!! That is probably because of the drunk spring break crowd that comes down screaming and hollering.
OK on to baby news. Allison is growing and changing very fast. She can now hold her head up for long periods of time and when assisted with balance can keep her legs beneath her for 1-2 second intervals. She is a real beauty. I can't wait for you all to meet her.

Baby, baby, baby

2007-08-17T15:28:00.000-07:00

On the baby front there are many changes going on. Every day it seems that Allison's face is changing. She gets more aware of her surroundings every day. For the first time 2 days ago she smiled when someone made faces/noises at her. She can lay on her stomach and hold her head up briefly.(Very strong for a 22 day old) At this point her eyes appear to be a light brown but they still are changing it seems. She can push herself up with her legs a little while on her Mom's stomach. Things she does not like at this point in time are; the heat here in the early afternoons, having thirst, anything touching her face for longer than a few seconds.
I don't know what to say folks. I am hopelessly in love!!!

Fun with baby!!!

2007-08-10T11:54:00.001-07:00

Bath time with Allison is so much fun. She is totally different from how Oscar was. She does not cry or squirm. She seems to love it. Here is a montage of photos during one day's bath sequence. She bathes, plays with Oscar a little, then is all tuckered out.
Now on to finding baby things in Mexico. Actually, other than clothes it is quite easy to find anything for baby in Mexico.(Of course you know the old joke; What is the Mexican national dress?. . . . . The Paternaty dress.-No comments please.LOL!) Clothes are scarce here and expensive but other than that anything you can find for baby in America you can find here. Often times much cheaper. (Baby oil is one exception, it is expensive here.) What bums us out right now is we want to outfit her in Tinkerbell stuff and it is virtually non-existant here. We did find a few stickers and a party banner with Tinderbell but that is about it. Guess we'll have to wait til she comes out to the states in October to buy that stuff.
As Leti's family is HUGE(at least 50 cousins) we have been getting little gifts for the baby or for Leti(a cooked meal) which helps a lot.
As for parents entertainment, it is not much. When a baby wants food every 3 hours you are kind of limited on what you can do. Yesterday we had a Mr. Bean marathon with my DVD collection of him. We watched almost all 14 episodes of Mr. Bean(which Oscar loves). Exciting huh? Tonight maybe a Northern Exposure marathon. . . . . .

Changing daily

2007-08-08T11:07:00.000-07:00

Well Allison is growing and changing like crazy now. I think if you watch her long enough you can actually see her growing. She let out her first real smile today. She is strong for a newborn. She can boost herself up with just her legs and can pull herself up (hold herself up) with her hands.(Which I do VERY carefully when she takes a good grip on my fingers, only a couple of inches on a bed)We still can't tell what color her eyes will be. They look brown at times and green at others. Only time will tell. She has the cutest little voice when she coos. She is starting to lose a little bit of the baby hair she has, but not much. She likes to play pattycake also.(With Dad's help of course)
Sorry no photos this time. I went to the same internet cafe and this time they could not figure out how to download the photos. Ahhhh don't you love how different employees are trained differently. LOL, well that is the charm of Mexico.
Hopefully next time.....

First photos!!

2007-08-03T14:39:00.000-07:00

After much searching I FINALLY found an internet cafe that will let me download photos onto their machine's. So without further adou, , ,Here's Allison. . . . . .

What a magical and messy thing. . ..

2007-08-01T18:03:00.000-07:00

Having a new baby in the house is pure magic. (When we are not changing diapers) Every day she does something new. Today she is really starting to use her eyes and look around the room at things. On her third day she turned from her back to her side and then onto her stomach.(which I am told is VERY early) She is a very strong baby, and when changing her diaper if someone is holding her legs because she is kicking it actually takes a little effort to keep them held. She was born with a full head of black hair.(She's gonna break some hearts!) She has long slender feet(like mine) We can't yet say what her eyes will be because they say that they can change after the first week or so. She is cooing a lot and crying even more(when hungry) She is a great eater according to Leti who is being sucked dry daily. We have put up Tinkerbell things all around her crib and I bought some Tinkerbell stickers to decorate her carrier/carseat. She is definetely going to be a Daddy's girl!!!!!!

It is a GIRL!!!!!!

2007-07-27T10:30:00.000-07:00

Last night(July 26th) on our 2nd wedding anniversary God blessed us with a beautiful 8.31lb baby girl. Both Mom and baby are doing great and should go home today to enjoy a weekend of breastfeeding and pooping. Hopefully photos will soon follow if I can find a computer where I can upload them. Our precious girl will be called Allison Briseis Goll.
Talk to you soon everyone!!!!

I think MAYBE this time may be for real. . ..

2007-07-26T16:48:00.000-07:00

It is 6:49 pm Central Standard Time and Leti has been admitted to the hospital. She is 5cm dialated. We have been waiting at the hospital nearly all day. The first time we went they would not admit her, 3cm. The second time, nada, only 4cm. The third was the charm. Who would have thought the baby wanted to wait until our wedding anniversary to present itself(today the 26th)? If it comes out in another 5 hours that is. That would be the best anniversary present ever don't you think?
Today's words of wisdom(and quite possibly what Oscar might say today);

An old country doctor went away out to the boondocks to deliver a baby. It was so far out, there was no electricity.
When the doctor arrived, no one was home except for the laboring mother and her 5 year old child.
The doctor instructed the child to hold a lantern high so he could see while he helped the woman deliver the baby.
The child did so, the mother pushed, and after a little while, the doctor lifted the newborn baby by the feet and spanked him on the bottom to get him to take his first breath...
"Hit him again", the 5 year old said. "He shouldn't have crawled up there in the first place!"

No new arrival yet and trouble to boot!!

2007-07-25T14:14:00.000-07:00

Well nothing yet. On our last visit to the hospital the Mexican doctors told us they think they might have misjudged the due date. "Ah huh huh gee ya think?!?" Good thing they are not brain surgeons or rocket scientists.
Oh and the trouble is that my car's alternator broke and it is virtually impossible to find one here. We've been looking all morning with no luck. The mechanic who has it is going to try to rebuild the one I have. Let's hope he is better with alternators than the doctors are with due dates.

An e-book and a few other things. . . .

2007-07-23T13:24:00.000-07:00

When I was doing my research to move down here to Mexico one of the sources I came across was a woman named Julia who had moved down here with her husband in 2001. I would ask her questions via e-mail and she would reply and tell me her take on things and they were always right on the money from things I found out later being here. She had an ebook that I bought called "Mexico - The Trick is Living Here" that was informative, funny(and even funnier when I read it NOW) and more helpful than almost anything in making a move like I did. Why am I putting this on my blog? Well she has come out with a 2nd edition. If anyone who reads my blog is considering this move or is even just curious I recommend Julias book highly. It is a fairly short read and has you not wanting to put it down. She is a fabulous writer. She currently lives in Cuernavaca, Mexico with her husband. Check out her web-site(where you can purchase the ebook) at;

http://www.home-sweet-mexico.com/

OK on to the other things. I have been thinking of starting a web-site called ;Only in Mexico can you. . . .
I just got another reason yesterday. Only in Mexico can you. . go to WalMart and be handed full shot glasses of samples of liquor for free. I tried the Bailey`s New Caramel Creme and some Tequila. Oh and HOT HOT women were handing out the Tequila samples in very short tight satin shorts. Show me WHERE in America THAT could happen. LOL!

Last item of the day. NO BABY YET. As I am writing this at an internet cafe across the street from the hospital where our baby will be born they are examining Leti and maybe will induce but who knows. I will let you all know.

Anyone know any good tricks to get a baby out?

2007-07-19T17:49:00.000-07:00

Well here we are on the 19th, two days after our due date. I've thought of getting Leti to jump on a trampoline(she would not go for that one) drink a lot of root beer(she had never even tasted root beer so she said no) go down stairs jumping and landing for each one(again she said no) I just can't get a break here. The only thing I can do is wait. The baby will come out when it is ready.But in the mean time if anyone knows any tricks, I'm all ears.
OK today's words of wisdom(with a current theme);
A woman goes to her doctor who verifies that she is pregnant. This is her first pregnancy.
The doctor asks her if she has any questions.
She replies, "Well, I'm a little worried about the pain. How much will childbirth hurt?"
The doctor answered, "Well, that varies from woman to woman and pregnancy to pregnancy and besides, it's difficult to describe pain."

"I know, but can't you give me some idea?," she asks.
"Grab your upper lip and pull it out a little..."
"Like this?"
"A little more..."
"Like this?"
"No. A little more..."
"Like this?"
"Yes. Does that hurt?"
"A little bit."
"Now stretch it over your head!"

No News yet!!! ARGHHHH!!!

2007-07-16T18:13:00.000-07:00

Well the due date is on the 17th tomorrow and NOTHING yet. Sorry these have been so short but with Leti in this condition I hate to be away from her side for long. I just took photos today so someday the baby can see what his/her mama looked like at 9 months pregnant with him/her.
OK I'll keep you all posted.

Grocery prices

2007-07-13T17:22:00.000-07:00

No baby news yet. Some people have been asking the prices of things here. Here are some prices from my last trip to WalMart here. The prices are converted to US dollars
2lbs of ham $3.58
20 lbs of sugar 10.12
10lbs peruvian beans 7.77
2.5 lbs shredded mozarella cheese 7.76
2 lbs margarine 2.30
white grapes .59 per kilo
whole pineapple 1.60

There are just a few. Any specifics please email me.

2007-07-10T08:32:00.000-07:00

No baby news yet but soon we hope!!!! It continues to rain here daily cooling things down.(Thank God for that!) Richard is back in town for 6 days. I brought him up to his house. We hope Leti has the baby so he can see it before he leaves. Oscar is as honery as ever. Playing Spiderman all day and Power Rangers is mainly of what his day consists of. Sorry this will be a short one sue to the fact that I am in an internet cafe in very short term parking. Have a great day all. Hopefully NEWS soon!!!

Rain, rain, rain. . .

2007-07-06T19:47:00.000-07:00

Well last night it started raining HARD and has continued to do so all day. And consistent with Mexican engineering(at least in these parts anyway) water is building up everywhere. It is not odd to see 6 inches to a foot of standing/flowing water in some streets. I think they just don´t plan for drainage when they are doing these streets. Funny though you would think in a place that has a ¨rainy season¨ that, that would be one of the first things they would plan for. My brother in law said that in Guadalajara that they have as much as 3 foot of water in places when rainy season comes. And this is in places people are living. WOW! But the plants sure love it. I now have sunflowers that are easily 9 feet tall. I don`t see many sunflowers down here so it is an oddity and I get many questions about them.

Todays words of wisdom;
Two Scottish nuns have just arrived in USA by boat and one says to the other, "I hear that the people of this country actually eat dogs."
"Odd," her companion replies, "but if we shall live in America, we must be doin' as the Americans do."
Nodding emphatically, the mother superior points to a hot dog vendor and they both walk towards the cart. "Two dogs, please", says one.
The vendor, only too pleased to oblige, wraps both hot dogs in foil and hands them over the counter. Excited, the nuns hurry to a bench and begin to unwrap their "dogs".
The mother superior is first to open hers. She begins to blush and, then staring at it for a moment, leans to the other nun and whispers cautiously, "An' what part did you get?"

Happy July 4th mi paisanos(My countrymen)

2007-07-03T19:05:00.000-07:00

I would like to wish everyone reading this in the U.S. a happy July 4th!! Even though the country is NOT going in a good direction right now it is still the best country on earth. Seeing the poverty, filth and corruption in Mexico has conviced me of that. No where but in America can you go out and do so many different things. Freedom to worship who you want, Freedom to say what you want, Freedom to pursue the things you want. My hopes and prayers for the next President are high. I hope he/she can bring America back to the greatness it once knew. We need something to turn our great country around and get us where we need to be. Empty promises and untrustworthy motives will NOT get us there. Anyway to everyone, Enjoy the day! Thank God you live where you live!
Todays words of wisdom;
Blessed is he who expects nothing, for he shall never be disappointed. -Benjamin Franklin

It wont be long now. . .

2007-06-29T18:01:00.000-07:00

We went to ANOTHER doctor appointment today for Leti. They informed us she is 37 weeks now. They told her to rest more. Her feet are huge due to the liquids draining out of her body into the feet.(they say) So as I have no home computer and no photos to upload, this is about as exciting as it gets. But keep reading. SOON we will have baby news for you.
Everyone have a great weekend!!
Words of wisdom;
Two nuns cycling down a cobbled street. The first one says "I've never come
this way before"; the second one replies "Must be the cobbles"

May be a little slower in posting from now on.. .

2007-06-27T09:44:00.000-07:00

It is now the rainy season. 2 nights ago we got a real duzzy of a rain storm. Lightning hit the house(or VERY close to it-it was loud) so now my computer monitor is out. I either need to get it fixed or get another one. As no one grounds houses here (even though I did have it on a surge protector) that is what can happen. Chalk one up for American building codes, where the grounded wire would have done it´s job. One nice thing about the rain is it does cool us down at night.

Just about to burst. . ..

2007-06-23T10:20:00.000-07:00

As you all know my wife Leti is pregnant. She is at the 8 month mark now and her belly looks like it contains a large watermelon. Her Bellybotton is now a definite "outey" and sticks out to the tune of almost an inch. It is so cute. She however does not think so. When you are pregnant in a tropical climate it is not much fun. Her feet have swelled up like ballons at times. Poor thing. Magical things are happening in there and when you see her belly move as a hand or foot goes up or down it is truly one of God's miracles. Just think in a month, more or less we will have 2 kids under 5 living in our house. YIKES. Does anyone have ear plugs and Valium for sale!!

Back in the grove. . .

2007-06-21T12:47:00.000-07:00

Well we are back up and running now. The heat is starting to really rise here quickly. As I write this it is 91.5 degrees which in an of itself is not bad but the humidity is 65% also. Ahh but the skin loves such tropicalness. (the person inside the skin may not though) There were a few changes here while we were gone. The Liverpool they are building by the WalMart is starting to look just about done. My bouganvellia bushes grew what looks like a foot each. My sunflowers grew about a foot and a half and are now well over the top of the Isuzu Rodeo. Flowers are just starting to pop out.
Also I wanted to give my take on Mexican airlines as I compared them to their American counterparts. We flew AeroMexico. They had leather seats on all seats and on all jets/prop planes we went on.(We had a total of 4 flights if you count the connections) The stuartess' were all very friendly and not "by the book" unfriendly like their American counterparts.(Which in part I can see now due to the terrorist situation) For one leg of our trip we could not find the Doctor;s letter for Leti to fly and the stuartess just let us on after a little talking. Not that much fuss. All flights were on time and there was very little time in between flights leaving and taking off at their gates. They had things printed on the seatback in 5 languages for passengers. All Stuartess' spoke fluent Spanish and English. AND, the biggie, we actually ATE a full meal on these flights even though the longest one was only one hour and thirty minutes. I don't know about all Mexican airlines but I do know that my experiences with American company airliners in the past has NOT been good for about 5 years now. They keep getting cheaper(their quality/offerings NOT their prices) and ruder and offer less and less every year. I guess I am an old fashioned consumer but you have to EARN my repeat business.

Visa APPROVED!!!

2007-06-19T08:07:00.000-07:00

Well we leave today from Juarez.(The armpit of Mexico - NO it wasn't too bad or too unsafe just HOT and not much to do) We were approved for Leti's visa so now we can travel back and forth.
That is all for today's good news. More soon when we are home again.

Sebatical. . .

2007-06-10T08:55:00.000-07:00

We will be on a little vacation this week so the entries may be sparse if any at all depending on when I can find internet cafe's. We are going to Juarez to finalize Leti's immigration papers for the U.S. While we are gone our employees will be running the business. Immigration has become such a hot button lately. Who knows what the outcome will be. Hopefully good so she can go back to the U.S. and visit anytime she wants to. I will keep you all posted.
Today's words of wisdom;
A minister told his congregation, "Next week I plan to preach about the sin of lying. To help you understand my sermon, I want you all to read Mark 17."

The following Sunday, as he prepared to deliver his sermon, the minister asked for a show of hands. He wanted to know how many had read Mark 17. Every hand went up. The minister smiled and said, "Mark has only sixteen chapters. I will now proceed with my sermon on the sin of lying."

Thoughts of summer

2007-06-08T15:53:00.001-07:00

Today's blog is a little airy. Sorry but today I am in a kind of thoughtful, reflective mood.
Summer approaches and I am reminded of sipping iced tea on the back porch with Grandma and Grandpa. With hair as yellow as the sun and tanned skin that rivaled some of my now countrymen. How I miss those days of not a care in the world, playing cars, walks to the store with Grandma/Nanny. Putting together puzzles, and watching the Muppet show with Mom and Dad on Saturday nights with a big box of fried chicken.(In my part of the woods back then they gave us a box that was printed to look like a train car) I know that looking back things always seem rosier than they really were but those were good, rich times. I miss them. Yes summer makes me think of all the good things in life. Watermelon juice running down your chin as you bite into that first sugarfilled piece. The smell of fresh cut grass. The laughter of children running through a sprinkler. Women in small, dainty, white summer dresses. Walks in the evening while the sun is setting and the cool night's breeze is blowing with the faint scent of jasmine in the air. A walk in a neatly tended garden.
Oh one last bit of news. In case you missed it on CNN or one of the news channels. They found another chapter of the Bible. Here is how the story read;
Here is the LOST CHAPTER IN GENESIS....
Adam was walking around the garden of Eden feeling very lonely, so God asked him,
"What is wrong with you?"
Adam said he didn't have anyone to talk to.
God said that He was going to make Adam a companion and that it would be a woman.
He said,
"This person will gather food for you, cook for you, and when you discover clothing she'll wash it for you. She will always agree with every decision you make. She will bear your children and never ask you to get up in the middle of the night to take care of them. She will not nag you and will always be the first to admit she was wrong when you've had a disagreement. She will never have a headache and will freely give you love and passion whenever you need it.

Adam asked God, "What will a woman like this cost?"
God replied, "An arm and a leg."
Then Adam asked, "What can I get for a rib?"
The rest is history..

(See what happens when you bargain kiddie's?)

Our newest arrival!!

2007-06-06T05:49:00.000-07:00

Ahh gotcha!! No we did not have the baby. My banana tree sprung up a new little tree the other day. Soon we will have a grove. That is how they grow from off-shoots of the roots, like aspen trees. Now our little tree frog has another option on those steamy summer nights when the cats are out and about.
OK sorry short one today. Photo to come of the banana off shoot.

A few odds and ends to wrap up the weekend.

2007-06-02T12:58:00.000-07:00

Well this week I found out that the one place I just found that sells italian suasage is up for sale. Appearently in this housing market of fast profits they want their share. I am BUMMED! My traditional Italian Sunday dinners might be in jeapordy, but alas not to worry. The internet holds the cure for all things. I found a few recipes and am goint to try to make it myself. After first finding recipes for 100lbs of pork(arghhhh) I got scared but then I ran across a couple with only 3 lbs and 1 lb so that will work perfect for a family of 4 and soon to be 5. I am becoming a Jack of all trades here. I guess that is what Mexico does to one.
While sorting through laundry this morning an old friend of mine returned to greet me. We have an iguana that is about 2 1/2 feet long(an adolescent I suppose) that sits atop our wall in the back and suns himself. He popped his head up to make sure I was sorting the coloreds correctly and then rested it again in the sun. I named him Rocky. He just looks like one.
And I recently received an email from an old friend and former boss of mine Jim K. which was great to hear from again. Hi if you are reading this Jim.
Saturdays make me long for my Saturdays back in the states where I would watch Mexico One Plate at a Time and later Lydia's Italian Kitchen. MAN I miss PBS!!! Also I miss Coconut Fred, which was a cartoon Oscar and I would watch on Saturday mornings together. (luckily I have a lot of those on my Tivo I brought down.)
OK that is it. One last word of wisdom;
The Pope, Billy Graham, and Oral Roberts were in a plane crash over the Pacific Ocean. They all died and went to heaven together.

"Oh, this is terrible," exclaims St. Peter, "I know you guys think we summoned you here, but this is just one of those coincidences that happen. Since we weren't expecting you, your quarters just aren't ready... We can't take you in and we can't send you back...."

Then he got an idea. He picked up the phone, "Lucifer, this is Pete. Hey, I got these three guys up here. They're ours, but we weren't expecting them, and we gotta fix the place up for 'em. I was hoping you could put them up for a while. It'll only be a couple of days. What d'ya say?"

Reluctantly, the Devil agreed.

However, two days later, St. Peter got a call.

"Pete, Lu. Hey, you gotta come get these three clowns.
This Pope fellow is forgiving everybody,
the Graham guy is saving everybody,
and that Oral Roberts has raised enough money to buy air conditioning."

-Mom I am praying for ya. Love, Mike

Give a moron a match. . . . and a bulldozer?!?

2007-05-31T11:48:00.000-07:00

We have a vacant lot accross the street from us filled with mango trees. The other day one of the neighbors or construction personnel down the street light their trash on fire.(As trash burning in Mexico is totally legal still-this is good AND bad in SO many ways)Anyway the fire got out of hand and with the many dropped mango leaves started spreading. It spread to a pile of tires(as many people in Mexico have tires in their yards or disgard them where ever they feel like. The tires started spewing black, black smoke into the air and the fires started moving towards some construction equipment. Well I guess that was all that the construction guys needed to see. One of these magna cum lauda hopped on the nearest front loader and started 'dozing dirt onto the fire. (which would have been OK but he was driving right on the fire-with flames 4-5 feet high. If there had been even one small gas leak in ANY of his hoses-BOOM!!!) You can see the dozer in the photos. The fire department came and watched and took a report.(basically did nothing) It just burned itself out. But now all of the mango leaves that were mulch are now ashes and will go into the soil for nutrients. Ahhh everything returns to dust from which it came. Pics I took from my porch in our front yard. (I wasn't worried about our house. I water quite a bit and we have no dried grass or dead leaves around and our house is of bricks and concrete. )

Bull fight and a few other things.

2007-05-26T07:46:00.000-07:00

The other day(as I told you in my last blog session) I got to watch a bull fight. For free. They have these every Wednesday at 5pm and the mechanic I happened to go to was about 1/2 a block away. So I noticed a business building across the street from the bull fighting arena. I went up about 3 flights and went out on the balcony and watched.(As did several others) I must say I was a little bored and disappointed. The way you see bullfights in the movies is always glamourous and fast paced. This was neither. Basically the main bullfighter corals this bull with a cape where he wants him. Anytime the bull would get feisty or not do what he wanted about 5 other bull fighters would come out and coral the animal with their capes.(Galient I did not think any of them were. This is little more than bullying.) While the bull is lured into charging the cape the bull fighter sticks these sharp sticks with metal points in the bull and he loses LOTS of blood. Eventually when the bull has a lot of these in his spinal area the bull fighter gets one that looks thicker(this is the last one he uses) and sticks it higher up on the neck and that immediately made the bull go into convultions and drop to the ground. It was over. I never felt that the bull fighter was in any real danger at all. I think rodeo clowns put their selves on the line in a lot more dangerous way than these bozos. I was glad I did not pay the $35 U.S. to see the fight.
We have a tree frog living in the yard now. He is about 2 inches long and bright green with a white belly. We caught him once and then let him go again. We are not sure where in the yard he is living but he is definetely living here. Photo is one I took of him the other day.
Last night we saw Spiderman3 and Mr. Bean takes a Holiday. Both good movies. Mr. Bean was good for me. If you are not a Mr. Bean fan the movie was a little slow. I thought it was worth the time of watching it though. Spiderman 3 was good but I thought they tried to go too many places with it. It ended up having 3 villians in it. Too many story lines. Great action though.
Lastly, I went to a tequila expo in Vallarta yesterday. They had about 25 different manufacturers of tequila there. (I only tried the best tequilas, the anejo's or the special reserve ones) Still that was about 15 different tequila's that I tried. Needless to say Leti drove home. In my opinion out of all the ones I tried the Fogonero Special reserve is STILL the best. Even better than the one's that sold for $45 per bottle.(Yup they have those here in Mexico too. In the U.S. they must go for over $100.) The Fogonero was S-M-O-O-T-H as silk with just a hint of the smoky wood taste of the barrel it was aged in. The second best one(sorry I can't remember the name right now) was only about 1/2 an hour drive from our house. They have a restaurant, play area, tours and many many activities. We plan to go there soon.(well after the birth when Leti can properly enjoy tequila.)
OK have a great weekend!!!

Auto mechanics must be the same the world over!!!

2007-05-24T18:43:00.000-07:00

So I am driving to WalMart and Sam's Club like I do 3 times per week when I notice my engine heat guage is all the way on H. I also notice steam pouring out of my engine hood. Luckily I was AT WalMart's light. So I pull in, open the hood, notice oh no hoses broke but my reserve tank(radiator) the top was forced off and steam is pouring out. Conclusion: Must be my thermostat. So I take it to the closest mechanic and the first thing I tell him. "Can you check my thermostat? My car is overheating." So he goes and opens the hood and does a few things and this "Einstein" concludes it is my fan clutch. I am reluctant at first but he shows me how there is no pull on this one fan.(I am not a mechanic by trade so I don't know of coarse.) I say OK if you are SURE that is it do it. Then I tell him I buy all my parts at a place called Samir because parts for Isuzu's are hard to find in Mexico. He thanks me and starts. I wait and wait. 5 hours later."Well we are having trouble finding the fan clutch." I come back with "Did you call Samir yet?" "Oh no we will try that." I wait and walk around buy 2 or 3 rum and cokes. Come back again 3 hours later.(1/2 hour before closing.) "We still can't find that part. Can you give us the number to that Samir place?" (I'm thinking ARRGGHHHH Idiot!!!) So he calls and WHAT DO YOU THINK HAPPENED?!?!? They had the part. He says oh well we can have it ready for you by 10am tomorrow morning. So I call Leti and arrange a ride with her brother.(Oh and in the meantime I watch a bullfight for free-but that will be in my next blog.) OK FF to the next morning. I get there to pick up the car. THe guy tells me "Oh it wasn't your fan clutch after all, it was just your thermostat stuck closed." At this point I want to pick up something heavy and bludgeon him with it.(Not really but I am raging.) So let me get this straight . . .It was the thing I said for you to check the first 30 seconds I pulled in here? I could have saved a whole day's aggrivation if you would have just DONE WHAT I SAID originally?!?!? WOW, you are ALMOST in the Darwin award's category buddy. And that was my excitement for the past 2 days. One good thing is they WERE honest and did not replace a part that did not need replacing. Oh well, I have my car back. What are ya gonna do?
Bull fight blog next time!!!

The rainy season in coming!!!

2007-05-22T18:36:00.000-07:00

June typically(I'm told) is the start of the rainy season here. This is great news as the heat is intensifying here. Usually it comes on in the afternoon and cools things down and consequently raises the humidity.(I don't know how humidity at 100% can be raised but that is what they tell me.) This is the time when the plants really start to grow. Our friends Richard and Lindsey tell us that they had a vine that tripled in size after one of the rainy seasons. They pointed it out to me on a visit we had with them when we first got here. I hope this is the case with a lot of our plants. Our yard will look great with a more mature look to it. I'll keep you posted with photos. Luckily we are a little too far north to have the rainforests here but we are still subtropical so things tend to grow like crazy. Never any danger of a freeze as the lowest it has ever gotten here is in the low 60's(and that is in the middle of the night in February) For a gardener like me it is heaven on earth. This year I plan to grow - bananas, limes, basil, oregano, grapes, thyme and many, many flowers.
I try to stick to the Gardener's motto. .. "I'll get to it next year" OOOOppppsss I mean "Gardening is the art that uses flowers and plants as paint, and the soil and sky as canvas."
Always remember kiddie's a flower is just an educated weed. See you soon.

I'm a Mexican????

2007-05-20T19:38:00.000-07:00

Well this week I got my FM3 visa that allows me to be a year round resident of Mexico. It only took me about 15 days to get it with one sheet to fill out and getting fingerprints done too. Not AT ALL like the American immigration system. I read in a NY Times article(on line) that one family in NY have been waiting 22 years to get their legal status. That is right they started filling out their immigration paperwork 22 YEARS AGO!!! I don't know about you but I would say that is a broken system that needs an overhaul! Ahhh the American government run businesses/services. I can't immagine anyone in ANY business looking at a situation like that and saying it is OK. Oh but wait I forgot we are fighting a war in Iraq that was supposedly "Mission Completed" a few YEARS ago.
On a lighter note we went to Monteon today to have lunch with Leti's sister and her family. They made a seafood soup/cocktail dish that was delicious. It had Octopus(my first time trying that and liking it) shrimp, fish, and many other vegetables. YUMMMMM.

Day trippers

2007-05-16T15:20:00.000-07:00

Today we had to get Leti's original birth certificate so being in Mexico it required a long trip to get it. We drove to Compostela. About a 2 hour drive. Very pretty town with a large church and lots and lots of shoe stores.(Shoes are very cheap there) Leti while waiting in line saw an old acquaintance of hers and they started talking. Why does it seem everywhere we go she knows someone? LOL!!
After Compestela we headed back south to go home and ate lunch in a town called Chacala. I have read a blog of a woman from Chacala for a while so I got the idea to go from that. We ate on the beach at a restaurant called Tres Hermanas. It was very good and a great time was had by all. Oscar played in the sand while Mom and Dad talked and laughed at stories told. The ceviche was AWESOME there!! It gives Leti's ceviche a run for it's money.

Tribute to Mom!

2007-05-11T13:23:00.000-07:00

With the pending arrival of Mother's day(in the U.S.) I find myself longing for the sweet ways of my Mother. I wish I could be there to wish her a happy one and give her a proper gift. Distance is such a terrible thief of all. So in tribute I would like to send out this poem to her;

If there is happiness in my heart,
it's because you helped put it there.

If there is gentleness in my beliefs,
it's because you showed me how to care.

If there is understanding in my thinking,
it's because you shared your wisdom.

If there is a rainbow over my shoulder,
it's because of your outlook and your vision.

If there is a knowledge that I can reach out -
and I really can make some dreams come true -
it's because learned from the best teacher of all. . .
. . . I learned from you.

A mother's heart is a special place where children always have a home.

Thanks for EVERYTHING you've done for me all these years Mom. I will always love you!!

Inspired!

2007-05-08T12:11:00.000-07:00

Today I read Michael Dickson's blog(hey buddy!) and got inspired to take a look at the beauty around me. It is time to just sit back and look for the simple beauty in the everyday things here. The gorgeous pink and yellow hues of the sunrise. The simple lines of a palm tree in the sun. The sweet smell of fresh cut mint(and taste in my sun brewed iced tea) and fresh cut basil. Beauty in the flower of a hiacynth(which are plentiful here) large and yet delicate. The sweet roundness of my wife's belly that holds the power and beauty of life inside it. (and lots of noise later on) The most beautiful sound in the world-a child laughing uncontrolably.(which Oscar does quite a bit when I am tickling him-thanks for showing me how Dad, from my childhood!)The sweet aroma of the salty sea air when the mist from the surf hits your nose. And finally the awesome hues of fuschia and purple that set the sky ablaze at sunset!! Life is beautiful and WAY too short kiddies, LIVE IT NOW!!!
I have put in a few photos of my garden so you can see where I do my contemplating and see the growth lately too. (Just disregard the toys and banana leaves Oscar was playing with.) Oh and the white things in the shot of the new bed are not rocks but seashells we collect every time we visit the beach. We plan to mulch it with seashells. Cool idea huh?

New Garden addition.

2007-05-07T12:51:00.000-07:00

Made a new garden bed this weekend. I put it along the North-east wall facing the street. It has 2 rose bushes Red and lighter red, a bouganvillea, another flowery plant that was a gift and a Madagascar Palm. If you have never seen a Madagascar palm I have included a picture I found on line. It looks like a mini palm but has cactus like spikes on the trunk. Very cool looking plant. Hopefully Oscars playballs will not find it.
Also worth mentioning this weekend I cooked 2 different pasta dishes. One was penne pasta with olive oil, diced tomatoes, black olives(which by the way I have not found a Mexican yet who likes black olives.Leti, Yanet and Oscar picked them out.) shrimp, imitation crab, Parmesan and mozzarella cheese. The other dish consisted of a red sauce(containing olive oil, FRESH picked basil, oregano and a dash of red wine) topped with fresh Parmesan cheese. YUM!!!!
Todays words of wisdom;
A preacher was completing a temperance sermon: with great expression he said, "If I had all the beer in the world, I'd take it and throw it into the river." With even greater emphasis he said, "And if I had all the wine in the world, I'd take it and throw it into the river."
And then finally, he said, "And if I had all the whiskey in the world, I'd take it and throw it into the river."He sat down.

The song leader then stood very cautiously and announced with a smile, "For our closing song, let us sing Hymn # 365: "Shall We Gather at the River."

Pregnancy check up.

2007-05-03T14:42:00.000-07:00

Last night we went for our 6 month prenatal(I think that is what they call it) check up. The Doctor said everything is looking good. We go back for an ultrasound Saturday. He asked if we wanted to know the sex of the child. I said no, Leti said yes but he did not have to tell us. I don't want to know what it is til it hits the air.
Tuesday I will be going down to immigration to (hopefully) finalize the process so I can start on my way to citizenship(dual Mexican and U.S.) I will have to wait for 3 years to pass to be a full citizen but that is WAY better than the American immigration system and their waiting times. We know some Mexicans that have been waiting decades to naturalize.
OK have a great day. Words of wisdom for today;

Sometimes women are overly suspicious of their husbands. When Adam stayed out very late for a few nights, Eve became upset. "You're running around with other women," she charged.
"You're being unreasonable," Adam responded. "You're the only woman on earth."
The quarrel continued until Adam fell asleep, only to be awakened by someone poking him in the chest. It was Eve.
"What do you think you're doing?" Adam demanded.
"Counting your ribs," said Eve.

May Day!

2007-05-01T08:08:00.000-07:00

Happy May Day all. Although I don't know what one does on May Day, I saw today is the day. I can't believe we are in the 5th month of this year already. Time seems to fly by the older you get. Some things that used to be important to me are now just a joke. Things that I used to think were irrelevant are now some of the most important in life. Funny how age will work on you. Kind of how a jewelers wheel hones the diamond. Things that are now of utter importance to me are ;
Long walks on the beach at sunset with my wife!
Reading the Bible and prayer time each and every morning.
Play time with kids!
Teaching children.(Directly or through example-that is SO needed here in Mexico)
Enjoying a home cooked dinner.(made by me or by my wife)
Reading a good book.

Things that have fallen by the wayside;
How I look everytime I go out.
How much money I have in my wallet at any time.
Being bigger and tougher than all of the other guys out there.
Being up on the latest trends and styles.
Having the fastest and best looking car.
Having designer names on everything.

Life is short, I have learned. Enjoy what is important to you daily. Connect with things that matter to you. Live, laugh, learn, love.

Platanitos!!!!

2007-04-29T20:30:00.000-07:00

Saturday and Sunday we spent in Platanitos with our friends Richard and Lindsey. What a great time we had. I think we must have swam for a grand total of about 10 hours. We had ceviche, enjoyed the sunsets, met a nice Canadian couple(friends of R&L's) and watched the kids on the beach go out in the banana boat. Enjoy the photos. (Notice especially my lovely wife with the hyacinth in her hair that I picked for her.)

A rose by any other name?

2007-04-26T15:30:00.000-07:00

Picked these from one of our rosebushes in front of our driveway today. Not much else to report. We are off to Platinitos for the weekend on Saturday!!! Swimming and eating too much(also drinking too much! LOL!) Last trip for the year until Richard and Lindsay come back for the fall. Friends, water(pool), food, beer. Life is good!!

Mexican port workers getting greedy.

2007-04-25T12:34:00.000-07:00

Today there were 4 huge cruise ships at the ports. I have been told it was build to handle 2. Walmart was FILLED with cruisers. One of the cruise ships must have been from Japan because there were tons of Japonese in there also. Makes one wonder what will happen if this occurs on a regular basis. Will their greediness ruin the port? I guess we will have to wait and see.

BDay party/fiesta!!!

2007-04-22T20:56:00.000-07:00

Our long time friend Angeles turned 3 today. Her parents had a big blow out party. With clowns, pinatas, cake, pizza, hot dogs& hamburgers. Angeles is the closest thing Oscar has to a girlfriend so I always tease him that she is his novia/girlfriend. All of God's children are beautiful at that age huh??? Oh to be three again with not a care in this world.

We finally have our OWN electricity!!!

2007-04-21T07:28:00.000-07:00

Well after many many months of waiting and going down to the local C&F(electricity) offices to bug them about where/when we will get it, we FINALLY have our own electricity. We were borrowing it from our neighbor before. Luckily people here in Mexico know how hard it is to obtain things like electicity, phone, water so they are usually more than helpful if you need to use thiers. Most of these are owned by the Mexican government, I guess that is why they are so slooooow and so inefficient and run by crooks!!! Anyway here is a photo of our electrical hook up. Notice the nice big black electrical tape used to connect the wiring together. Very professional!!LOL!!

Fin de Semana!!! The weekend!!!

2007-04-14T19:20:00.000-07:00

After a hard week of work we deserve a night out, so I took Leti and Oscar to a restaurant on the beach. I had the prawns and Leti enjoyed the shrimp enchiladas. No liquor tonight(at least at the restaurant) they want around $3 per beer and $7.50 for well drinks. Don't they know this is Mexico? Ladrones!!(Thieves!) Oh and the photo of Leti alone is to show how nicely she is showing now.(Although that might not have been the best pose to do so.)
We went to a place called Aduato's Beach Club(ABC) on the north end of Bucerias which I would not go to again. The food was OK but overpriced for what you get.(Typical of a beach restaurant.) Awesome views though and as you can see our table was almost right overtop of the water.

Shell of my former self. . or should that be the other way around? :)

2007-04-12T17:01:00.000-07:00

For those of you that knew me back in the late 80s and early 90s you know about my body building career. Yes I said bodybuilding career. That was 2 lifetimes ago. LOL!!! Anyway upon doing internet research on my name I found this on the internet listing my biggest contest I won. Go to:
http://www.musclememory.com/show.php?o=Teen+Mr+America+-+AAU
and scroll down to the year 1989 and there I am. Cool huh? It only lists one of my 3 wins but oh well. Bet you never knew your cyberhost was so diverse. Professional trainer, nutritionist and Gym manager. By the way that photo is not me, it is a professional bodybuilder I used to like a lot in the late 80's named Shawn Ray. Let's get pumping kiddies!!

This one is just for Dad!

2007-04-11T13:37:00.000-07:00

Today one of my banana tree leaves fell off of the tree unexpectedly. Since my Dad is an expert banana tree grower (you should have seen the one he grew in his house in about 1 years time!) I thought I would take this photo and show it to him so he could see how big the leaves on the banana trees get here. Sorry the photo does not show the ground well. It is all the way to the ground. And this is one of the smaller trees!! I've seen some leaves three times this size here. Wish I could mail this one to you Dad so you could wrap up some fish in it and have steamed fish. Yummmmm!!!

Easter . . .

2007-04-09T06:30:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone had a lovely Easter. We did not want to fight the crowd at an Easter service so I downloaded a sermon on my computer and listened at home instead. Then we packed up the car, took an hour ride to Monteon(Where Leti's sister lives) and went to a beach hut they had there. We have been to this beach before and there was only one or two other couples on it. This time there were hundreds of families there. The semana santa weekend usually packs the beaches I am told. Our accomidations were great though. We had a palapa hut, complete with swing for the kids and BBQ pit. And lots of beer and tequila. (Oh and the photo of the little girl is Leti's niece- they call her "Flaca" which means skinny)

Holiday. . .

2007-04-06T08:57:00.000-07:00

With Semana Santa here we decided to close up shop on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and our normal day Sunday and have a nice holiday. Yesterday we went to the beach again all day. I enjoyed beers and shrimp tacos and shrimp burritos, Leti had Pepsi and shrimp empenadas. The beach is PACKED now with Semana Santa in full swing. It is almost like going to the beaches in the states on the weekends. Except you can BBQ, drink out of glass bottles and set up tents and sleep over if you want to. There were a ton of sailboats out as well as para-sailors, surfers, and jet-skiers. We had a good time. Don't laugh at the photos of me (especially my midsection!!)
Speaking of Holiday's I see good old Me. Bean has a new movie out. It is called Mr. Bean's Holiday. If you like Mr. Bean or English humor this is sure to be a belly holder. I hope it is better than his last full length movie though.

Good Start to Semana Santa

2007-04-03T14:51:00.000-07:00

Today Oscar and I walked to the beach again to spend the day. We had fun. Spent about 6 hours there(with no sunblock-heaven help our skin!!!) Then we ate ceviche de sierra and sodas at a beach side vendor.(ceviche for those of you who don't know is a raw fish dish that is marinated in lime and other juices. Those juices sort of cook the fish. It is REALLY tasty) They were selling oysters too that they had JUST caught(like 5 minutes ago)but I am not an oyster fan. The locals here love fresh oysters so they were lined up for them. While eating we watched a couple on water skis and(a new one for me) a man in a flying parachute kite type thing with a HUGE fan on the back. He actually flew down the beach with it about 60-70 feet up. Then we made the 10 block trip home on foot. Maybe next time we'll take a taxi. The Mexican sun is blistering in the afternoon.
Oh and here are some photos of a couple of things for the house we bought yesterday. Have a great one!!

2nd Blog of the day. . . .

2007-04-01T18:31:00.000-07:00

A steaming plate of homemade lasagna(made by yours truly-the Italian sausage find here was GREAT!)
A warm piece of garlic bread.
A FULL bottle of Cabernegh Savegnon(soon to be NOT full)
Life is Good!!!

Lazy Sunday. . .

2007-04-01T13:42:00.000-07:00

Not much going on today. Went to the English speaking church service that is in the Hotel at Paradise Village in Nuevo Vallarta(about 10 minutes away) this morning for Palm Sunday. Then on the way home went to the Mexican flea market and bought some fresh vegetables(very cheap) and a DVD for Oscar(a crap shoot if they will work but they are only $2 each and usually you can return it the next week to the same vendor.) It did not work, I will return it! This afternoon I have a treat for myself. I bought some Italian sausage(see my blog a few days back) and some red wine and am going to make home made lasagna. I really miss that. My Grandfather, Father and Mother all make OUT OF THIS WORLD home made lasagna. I'll let you know how mine turns out. Salud! Cheers! Happy Palm Sunday!!
I have included a photo I took of the hotel Paradise Village where the church service was this morning.(Well not in THIS building but close) Also one of Leti and I (that is pretty old actually) in her fathers house. It was hot and we had on swim suits.

Great find!!!

2007-03-31T08:29:00.000-07:00

Hello fellow parrotheads. (That is a Jimmy Buffet fan for those of you not familiar with that word) I found the coolest radio program that ANYONE with a computer can listen to, even if connected to the internet via dial up. (And it doesn't buffer every 10 seconds either-in fact hardly ever) If you like Jimmy Buffet and music like his go to www.margatitaville.com and click on the link that says "Click to tune in to Radio Margaritaville" and it will take you to a link that asks you what type of internet connection you have. Click the one that applies with the type of media player you have and Vuala you can listen to Radio Margaritaville live. It is great, especially if you love Jimmy Buffet music like I do.
OK words of wisdom for today;
Why isn't phonetic spelled the way it sounds?
Why are there flotation devices under plane seats instead of parachutes?
Why do fat chance and slim chance mean the same thing?
Have you ever imagined a world with no hypothetical situations?

SICK DAY!!

2007-03-30T07:50:00.000-07:00

Today Oscar and I are staying home. I am sick. I don't feel especially bad, but I have a cough and my head is filled with mucus. YUCK! So today's blog will be short. I appologize. I plan on staying in bed all day and throwing in my Northern Exposure DVD's while Oscar watches Spider-man or whatever cartoon tickles his fancy today.
Today's words of wisdom;
It is well documented that for every mile that you jog, you add one minute to your life. This enables you at 85 years old to spend an additional 5 months in a nursing home at $5000 per month.
No jogging for me. . . .

No Rhyme or reason.

2007-03-28T18:11:00.000-07:00

Today I saw something that flies in the face of all reason. I saw professional(well professional in Mexico anyway) electrical workers working on a live overhead line with the ladder leaned right on the line they were working on. Now I am no genius or electrical guru, but this has Darwin award winner written all over it. I looked up a ladder site on the internet and copied this directly; "Be extremely cautious when working around overhead energized electrical lines. A minimum safe distance is no less than 10 feet or 3 meters." I have known many electricians and I know a lot of them work with live wires and current, but that in my opinion is just stupid. That ladder(which was a metal ladder) if it finds a spot where the wire is stripped. . . ZZZZAAAAPPPPPP!!! But if some of you saw how they hook up the electricity here(I'll have to take a photo of a typical electrical pole and its many twist tie connections covered in electrical tape. Yup I said covered in electrical tape, NOT nice plastic couplers.) Oh well that is the charm of Mexico. (Just don't get too close)
On a lighter note, Leti and I enjoyed a nice lunch in Sayulita today, just the two of us. It was nice. We took about 3 hours and just enjoyed the time together with out the constant "Mom I want. . ." or "Daddy can I. . .?" We ate shrimp tacos and shrimp burritos and I had a beer. Then we took off our shoes and walked she beach shoreline. NICE!!!!!

More hidden treasures!!

2007-03-26T13:33:00.000-07:00

In doing my shopping and driving around this week I have found a few more hidden treasures here. Things I have started to think I would never find here have a way of popping up in the strangest places.
Root Beer- I don't drink this very often but I have a hankerin' for it every so often. I found it in a little shop in Bucerias about 5 minutes from the house. (Now if I could only find cream soda!)
Italian sausage - We found this quite by accident. We were driving out of town(Bucerias) and I noticed a sign that said "We are Sausage" I turned to Leti and said, "You don't think they would have Italian sausage do you?" We promptly turned around and went in. THEY DID!!! Needless to say a lasagne dinner is coming soon. Woo-Hoo!!! I thought the only lasagne I would be eating here would be the $15 per plate lasagne of the pricey restaurants or one with chorizo in it. Thank the good Lord THAT is not the case.
OK for all of you who like my photos for eye candy here is a gorgeous sunset I viewed while sitting at R&L's house.

Father and Son day at the beach!!

2007-03-23T13:38:00.000-07:00

Yes that is the official day for it. Well in our little corner of the world it was anyway. I decided to take Oscar out for some fun and sun. So we loaded up Oscars back back full of his favorite toys, put on the sun block and took the 5 minute drive to the beach. First we played in the tide coming in. (Oscar is scared to go in much further than his waist yet.) Then we watched about 200 pelicans diving for fish.(I got a shot of them but this is a small portion of what was out there.)Then we hunted for sea shells and shucked oyster shells. Then we met up with a nice older lady who we helped look for Beach Glass as she called it. Basically broken beer bottles that the tide has taken down all the rough edges off. She said she uses it to make mosaics with. She reminded me of my mother a little. (Mom, you need to take more time out for yourself and do things like this!!) Anyway, after both Dad and son were worn out we walked back to the truck and went home to take our naps. Enjoy the photos!

Star gazing and other odds and ends

2007-03-22T07:17:00.000-07:00

With the purchase of our new hammock I have been lying in it and looking at the stars at night. This has prompted my interest in astronomy again. I used to like it and had a telescope(still have the same one) for viewing the stars and moon. Lately my passion seems to be for finding satellites in the night sky.(A little game Richard and Lindsay taught me.) Last night I located 3. If you have never seen a satellite in the night sky, they look exactly like a star only they move. Some move very slow and some move rapidly. They do not blink or pulsate. Sometimes it takes 5 minutes to locate one and sometimes an hour. It is fun. Try it if you never have. It is relaxing too.
I have also discovered a new store here. It is run by a woman from the U.S. (originally) and called the "Gringo book store". All of the books there are in English and it is a Godsend. As anyone knows who lives in Vallarta there is NO easy way to obtain books in english. Even Walmart does not carry them. This bookstore has it all though. From fiction to biographies to childrens books. Also she sells coffee's and cinnamon rolls if you just want to brouse. She has a reading area that she calls "Casa Tranquila", which means calm/quiet house. Nice huh? Oh and this bookstore is in Bucerias, about 6-7 minutes from Casa de Goll. LOL!!!

Afternoon beach run!!

2007-03-19T19:15:00.000-07:00

Today after work we decided to go to the beach for a little fun, sun and relaxation. Here are some photos.They should go from bottom to top to be in chronological order. Yes we stayed until sunset.

Family dinner. . . .

2007-03-19T12:38:00.000-07:00

Yesterday(Sunday) I made a nice big bowl of spaghetti and garlic bread for everyone to enjoy. My friend Lindsay gave me a huge bunch of fresh Basil so I used a LOT of it in that and whipped up a red sauce for it. It was great we all sat down together and enjoyed the moment. It is not plentiful anymore the times where families do this. With today's rushed world it seems like we have less and less time to enjoy each other as we have our own goings on to attend to. Do something nice for your loved one's and enjoy a nice slow meal together talking.
Oh and speaking of slow. We bought a hammock for the yard and last night after dinner I layed in it rocking back and forth(slowly) looking at the stars and contemplating life and downing what was left of the wine from dinner. Love those Mexican nights. . . .

Slow day, more photos

2007-03-15T13:19:00.000-07:00

Well not much going on today. Here are a few more photos of Platinitos. Enjoy!!

Platinitos again!!!

2007-03-14T18:34:00.000-07:00

Went up and saw Richard and Lindsay last night. What a great time. I went alone this time as Leti had to stay and tend the store. :) I had THE BEST tequilla bar none of my life, last night. If anyone can find it in the states(and they do export) it is called El Fogenero. Try it, it goes down like apple juice!! Not the ordinary firewater that you get here. It is about $20-30 a bottle here which is pricey here, in the states it would probably be about $65 I'm guessing. Anyway, lovely day. On the way back I stopped in Playa de los tortugas, Zalcuapan and went to a local market(bought Oscar a DVD) and ate some shrimp tacos and beers in Sayulita. Enjoy the photos.

New Bouganvellia

2007-03-08T08:05:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we got a new bougainvillea for the yard as well as a couple of rose plants. The bougainvillea is one that is called "surprise" because it has 2 colors of flowers on the shrub. It is just a small plant and came in a one gallon pot but it is gorgeous!! Full of flowers.(As are all of the bougainvilleas here. I have attached a photo of what the branches look like in full bloom) With the rainy season coming in late June this is a perfect time to get it in. Keep those hands dirty my friends. Get out there and garden!!

Internet. Isn't it amazing?!?

2007-03-06T10:17:00.000-08:00

I was just written a letter from one of my best friends in high school who found me through classmates.com. I have not talked to him since I was 18 years old. He now has a boy in college(I AM old!!!) and a girl in the 7th grade. He still lives in Denver. I just wrote him back before I started this entry. Amazing to think that just 10-20 years ago this technology did not exist and we probably would not have talked or even seen each other our entire lives. What a great tool!!! Hopefully the government will keep their grubby hands out of it and not start charging us to use it!!!

We just got a video store!!!

2007-03-04T12:46:00.001-08:00

The little town on the beach where I live just got a new video store. It is definetely NO Blockbuster but they have most of the same new releases as Blockbuster does.(There is a Blockbuster in Puerto Vallarta-15 minutes from here) Last night we rented 3 movies from there. It is cool. They are DVD´s so I can watch them in English while the Spanish subtitles are going for everyone else or vice versa. We rented Cars(the Pixar animated film) which was GREAT and Pretiendo(Spanish and not so good) and Grilled(With Ray Romano and Kevin James) it really stunk. It is good to have access to Hollywood entertainment and yet be so far from it. Today we plan to go to the beach and maybe picnic and honor the Lord on his day by not doing ANY work!!! Talk to you all soon!!!

Magical things. . . .

2007-02-22T09:08:00.000-08:00

First off let me appologize for not writing for a few days. I was sick in bed with something. I am recovering nicely now though. While I was sick though I got the first feel of our baby moving in Leti´s stomach. WOW what a cool feeling to know there is a whole little person in there. To think that they are like a blank slate just waiting to be filled up by the things of this world. I hope he or she will experience much more of the good things than the bad ones. Ten perfect little fingers, ten perfect little toes. Two beautiful eyes and 2 innocent little ears. I think Louis Armstrong put it best.
"Oh what a wonderful world. . . . .I´ve seen babies cry. I´ve watched them grow. They will learn much more than I will ever know."

Back from the United States.

2007-02-16T08:32:00.000-08:00

Well I am back from the good ole U.S.A. What a fun trip. I stayed with my Mom and we visited with my sister a lot.(She has 2 of the coolest dogs!) Man the things I missed about the US! Dr. Pepper, Cheddar cheese, Heath bars, Cherry Coke, Mac and Cheese. Funny how those things are all food related. LOL!!! No, I also missed the clean streets, the courteous drivers(Well I was in California so not too courteous-but still more courteous than in Mexico.) And being able to go out and get anything you want at any hour of the day or night. (Mexico has VERY few stores yet that are 24/7) I did really miss the 80 degree days though. I forgot what it was like to shiver in the cold. San Franciscan mornings reminded me of that. But it was a lovely trip. Thanks to my Mom, sister and her husband for an awesome memory.

Pics of My 2 loves.

2007-02-11T13:57:00.000-08:00

Comments in order of the pictures. . .
Swimming at Richard & Lindsey's house.

A nice sunset(while with my 2 loves)

Flying a kite at the beach.

A day at the Malecon.

More pics!!! Artwork around the house.

2007-02-10T16:51:00.000-08:00

Welcome sign(Spanish/English) that hangs above our front door.(Left)

Statue of Saint Francisco in our front gated area of our front yard.(Above)

Ceramic lizard hanging on our back patio.

Papier mâché toucan I bought for our back patio. (Below)

Pictures!!! Finally. .

2007-02-08T13:03:00.000-08:00

Well I am back in the U.S. and can download photos at my sisters house(thanks Sis) Here are a few shots of our new house.
Our front room.(Sorry you can't tell too much from this one.)

Shot of our yard.(Designed and constructed by me.)

Front porch.

Shower in our Master bedroom.

Under construction. . . . . (Those are mango and banana trees in the background.)

SUPER BOWL!!!

2007-02-05T07:04:00.000-08:00

Let me tell you watching the Super Bowl on a Mexican TV channel is a lot different than watching it on one of the big 4 networks back home. For one thing my channel here(Azteca) just turned around the NFL channels feed and the announcers just talked over the audio.(Really annoying when you are trying to listen to the English underneath them-I understand why they did it though) They run their commercials over the ones from the US so I did not get to see any of them. That is half the fun of the SuperBowl is the great commercials. (If any of you out there saw some good ones write me with what they were.) It was enjoyable though. I had Pina Coladas and plenty of Cheetos(the Puffs NOT the Crunchy ones) and Sabritos( a local chip that has lime and chili on a square chip) and popcorn. Leti rented movies and watched them on my computer, she does not like football(American or soccer) I was not too impressed by Billy Joel but Prince however had an awesome stage show. (Don´t know how much of the halftime show you got to see on American network but here we got to watch it all. ) The Cirque de Soleil before the start of the game was good too!

Oh one more thing I will be going to the good ole U.S. on Wednesday so no blogs probably until Thursday, but I will be posting pictures from my sisters computer of my house and some of our adventures. Keep watching.

The wierd things some Mexicans eat. . .

2007-01-31T17:36:00.000-08:00

I have been having conversations lately(my curiosity gets the best of me) asking what kind of exotic meats people have eaten around here and other parts of Mexico. You best not read this blog if you get quisy easily. Here is a list of some of the things that I have been told that are pretty good. Iguana, turtle eggs, snake, cat, dog, armadillo, various birds, rabbit and octopus.
One gentleman, a recent acquantance from Mexico City just moved here, said after his morning jog he likes to eat 2 eggs(raw) mixed in with a beer and a little hot sauce. YUCK!! He said he used to eat turtle eggs that way but they are too hard to get anymore. (And illegal I might add-from what I´ve read)
OK that is all from the wierd files of the edible things here. I am off to eat some cooked flank of cow braised in salsa and wrapped in a flour tortilla, covered with cheese. (Maybe that sounds just as gross to some people. )

Anything for money!!

2007-01-29T08:01:00.000-08:00

Here it is amazing what people will do for money. I have seen people just begging on the street for it.(Not so amazing) People shine your shoes at the corners, children sell gum here as young as 3 years old, Mexicans of Indian decent(almost all of them) sell trnikets with beads and handmade things in parking lots of stores, and people sell papers and wash your windows in traffic intersections. Lately though there has been a ration of people that have a baton type stick and they light both ends on fire and juggle it in the intersection while the light is red and then go around to the cars afterwards and collect money for doing it. It is cool to see, especially at night, but annoying as I hate people asking me for money. (when I want to give to charity or for a worthy cause I like to chose who I give to) Even so I have to give them kudos as juggling a lit stick in the middle of a hot asphalt street with 40 gas tanks around you is quite a ballsy thing to do.(or stupid thing depending on how you look at it. LOL!) I wonder what dangerous and eye pleasing thing they will come up with next to make a few pesos?? This world will Never stop amazing me. ;)

A dreary day. . .

2007-01-24T12:27:00.000-08:00

As I sit here writing this and drinking my cafesito(thanks to Michael Dickson´s blog for this word) and watching the rain fall down I think I know how it feels to live in the Northwest. It has been cloudy and raining for the past 4 days. It is about 68 degrees here at 6:30am and all the locals are whining about the cold and have on their winter coats. (What babies - I am in short sleeves and shorts as are most of the other Gringos) It is a good day for watching movies and eating popcorn or reading a good book. As I watch the shivering Mexicans lining up for our coffee I am reminded of my snowy days in Colorado. I will enjoy this time though as I know the heat will return soon and I will be enjoying the beach again, Corona in hand. It is a nice change though. . . .

BIG NEWS!!!

2007-01-22T08:33:00.000-08:00

Well we have some exciting news for you all. Leti is three months pregnant. We wanted to wait until the 3 month point to tell everyone because they say once you are past that point the danger of a miscarriage is a lot lower. She is due sometime around July and we do NOT plan to learn what the sex of the baby is ahead of time. We are VERY excited! I have to check on this but I have been told that the baby will have dual citizenship when it is born due to the fact that it has parents from 2 different countries.
Anyway that is all for today!! Talk to you soon!!

Nothing makes sense but it is headed in the right direction!!!

2007-01-19T08:14:00.000-08:00

Some things about Mexico do not make sense to me. People here still burn thier trash. The other day I say a tire company burning tires and no one said a thing. They burn trash in big piles and sometimes very close to cars. This amazes me. It is a wonder more explosions don´t happen.
Another thing that amazes me is in a part of the country so beautiful that people just throw their trash out the window where ever they may be. They want to have a beautiful country but do not take the easiest step to fix it.
I´ve seen potholes here that could swallow a small car.
Also up until a few years ago(I understand) that most of Mexico to get a drivers licence all you had to do was show up at their equivelant of the DMV and pay your money. No written test and no driving test. But you would understand if you have ever been to Mexico and witnessed some of the driving. There are laws but you would not know it by watching a lot of the drivers here. They are horrible and act like they are on fire to get where they are going. Appearently a red light, to a lot of drivers here, means nothing. I´ve seen a LOT of people go right through them.
But on a good note. Mexico is headed the right direction. They have clean up programs for the trash. They have implemented testing for driving licences. They are trying to get their streets in better shape with better infastructure. Slowly but surely it is turning around. A lot of the people are resistant but that comes with the territory.

Insects in Mexico

2007-01-17T19:41:00.000-08:00

I have seen some amazing things here in Mexico but one thing that still amazes me is the bugs. They have big bugs and small bugs here. Poisonous bugs and bugs that just hurt when they bite you. I have seen spiders as big as your fist(and killed a lot of them too) and ants that are barely visible(tens of thousands of them usually) If you leave any dish or glass out unwashed you will have literally hundreds of ants all over it within a couple of hours. It is a little creepy. I guess that is the way nature does it´s thing though. Waste not, want not. The scorpions and tarantulas make my skin crawl though. Luckily I have not seen too many of them. One good thing about the insects here are the butterflies. I have seen some of the most beautiful butterflies here. There are thousands of them too. Some as big as dollar bills. The colors on them are amazing. Brilliant yellows and deep blues. Ahhh God is good to give us so many beautiful creatures to look at. Now all I need is a hammock so I can watch the butterflies on my bouganvellia(sp?) while drinking my Corona in the shade.

Phone service

2007-01-15T16:44:00.000-08:00

Today I went to TelMex the only Mexican phone company. (Ma Bell would be proud) I singed us up for a phone line. They say it will take 2 weeks for a tech to come out and install the line. I am a little more pesimistic having lived in Mexico now for a while. I think it will be more like a month or 2 but we will see. So to anyone who reads this and wants to call me soon you can at my own house!! No more waiting for calls at Letis Dads house.
Oh and we had the best time in Platinitos this weekend with Richard and Lindsey. They took us to a private beach and we swam in big waves and body surfed. We ate shrimp on the beach and drank rum and fresca.( trust me it is good!) We saw the whales shooting up thier puffs of water when they surface on the water. It was neat!!! Oh and we ate Kalua cheesecake for dessert both nights. YUM!!!!!(Not quite as good as anything Anna R. from DTV would have made but close.)

Not much new. Off to Platinitos again!!!

2007-01-12T15:14:00.000-08:00

Not much new here. This week I hung about 400 blue Christmas lights on our back porch and a 2 1-2 foot paper machete toucan is now hanging there too. It is feeling pretty homey now in casa. We also bought some of the mexican glasses that you always see with the blue borders made of the thick glass and hand blown.
Oh and the whales are back in Bahia de Banderas now. We plan to take a boat out one day and get close to them near Guayabitos. You can get within 50 yards I am told. You can see them jumping in the bay if your timing is right they say. So far I have not seen that yet. We have been to the beach 3 times this week too. I{ll keep watching!
Well we are off this weekend for some well needed R&R in Platinitos with our friends Richard and Lindsey. Cheesecake, shrimp, beer and swimming. What a combo!!! Have a great weekend kiddies!!!

CIRCUS is in town!!!

2007-01-05T15:12:00.000-08:00

Last night we went to the circus. It was a LOT of fun. I think I have not been to the circus in about 15 years or so. Cotton candy, popcorn, clowns and elephants. Every grown up should have this much fun daily!!! Although I did find the camels a bit scary. They were pretty wirey and almost out of control at times. The elephants and tigers were Oscars favorites. Oh and the chimpanzees!!

Happy New Years everyone!!!

2007-01-02T16:02:00.000-08:00

Happy New Years. May 2007 be a prosperous one for you! Our New years celebration was a lot of fun. We spent the time with Leti´s family and ate til we were bursting our seams in our clothes. We watched the fireworks that were on the beach(every big hotel on the beach shot them off of thier roofs) We could see about 8 different displays from our vantage point. We arrived home around 4:30am. OUCH!!
Also for the New Year my neighbor gave me a 10 foot banana tree. Once my Key Lime tree arrives I can make Key Lime Pie with Banana smoothies for all of you!! Come on down.
Well, here is to a happy, prosperous new year to all my friends, family and dedicated readers of this blog!! Salud and Cheers!!!

Feliz Navidad!! Merry Christmas!!!

2006-12-23T08:09:00.000-08:00

To everyone I wish a VERY Merry Christmas!! May the joy of our Lord's birth fill every fiber of your being this year!! I'll be taking a short break from this blog until after the holidays are over. I think a few Corona's on a small beach with my wife are in order!! Check back after Jan 2nd. Have a festive holiday season!!

Hot Water. . . . .and cooking!!!!

2006-12-20T13:23:00.000-08:00

Yesterday the gas man FINALLY came and filled our gas tank(very big 500 liters - should last one year or more) After 4 calls and 2 trips in person to the gas company we have gas. Since we are in a newly built house it is not on any maps yet and here in Mexico well you don't exist. What a mess. How does any progress get made in this counrty at all with things like this? That is why Corona is so popular I guess. Luckily we don't really NEED gas to live here. We can build a fire in the yard to cook with(or go to Leti's Dads house) and you don't really need hot water to bath in. But OHHHHHHH it is so nice after not having any since September to FINALLY have it again.
The yard is coming together nicely. I have made a pathway(similar to the one I had in my log cabin in Colorado for those of you who saw that) out of rocks and have 5 palm trees(one will bear coconuts!) and one bouganvilla tree. If we ever find out if and when we can get hooked up for a phone line then I can take photos and post them here for all to see. Who knows though after the gas saga. Ah well that is Mexico. . . .
Have a GREAT Christmas kiddies!!!!

Mike

The Holiday season in Puerto Vallarta

2006-12-18T08:04:00.000-08:00

Things here in Mexico are bustling with the excitement of the coming Christmas holiday. All kinds of decorations everywhere. I admit this is weird for me seeing snowmen and Santa Claus decorations with no snow anywhere. But the world of big business moves ever onward and upward. Here at the local WalMart you can buy a big inflatable snow-globe for your yard that has Santa in his sleigh and blows snow around inside. Put it next to your palm tree or your cactus, whichever you prefer. The cruise ships are all decked out with little Christmas lights and even the palm trees have them on their trunks. There is tinsel on the houses and Christmas trees in the stores. No matter what part of the world you are in God's love reigns true. I hope everyone is having a great holiday season. We continue to be blessed in our business and family life. Keep on reading. More blogs to come soon.

What a great weekend!!!

2006-12-13T08:55:00.000-08:00

Platinitos was absolutely gorgeous!! We hope to go back soon. We saw pelicans flying low right past the house we were staying in.(Thanks Richard and Lindsey!!) We saw fish jumping in the waters below our bedroom windows. There were tons of fishing and shrimping boats all day long to watch. Oscar absolutely loved the pool and swimming with Lindsey! We met some great new friends that were staying with Richard and Lindsey also. The best part, pascado zorandeado, coronas and cheesecake on the beach at sunset!!
So Christmas is only 12 days away now. Is everyone ready?!?!?

Platinitos!!!

2006-12-09T08:45:00.000-08:00

Well our friends and former neighbors from Colorado, Richard and Lindsey are here now again and we are off tonight to spend a couple of days with them and relax by their pool. Have a blessed weekend everyone and we will talk to you soon. You can look up Platinitos on Google and read all about it. It is a VERY interesting place where thousands of sea turtles come to lay their eggs.

Big surf!!

2006-12-06T06:32:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we went to San Pancho(or some call it San Francisco here) and spent the afternoon. Leti had a doctors appointment. We went to the beach and watched the waves coming in. These were pure surfing waves. Some of them were 8-9 feet high. If I knew how to surf I would have been out there riding one. We just sat on the beach and watched them come in and crash on to the rocks. It was a beautiful sight. There are a lot of large houses there built onto the cliffs and right on the beaches. Most of them have swimming pools that are literally 25 yards or less from the sand of the beach.
Now I have the itch to watch some professional surfers on some bigger waves. I´ll have to check into where I can do that here.
So is everyone ready for Christmas yet???

Snow. . .

2006-11-29T17:25:00.000-08:00

Snow. I have not seen snow now for about 7 months. There are some things I miss about it and some things I don't miss at all. I miss the quiet after a fresh fallen snow. I miss the briskness of seeing your breath. I miss snowball fights with Oscar and sledding with Oscar and Caleb(and Mike and Maren). I don't miss going out to start the car and having to scrape all the windows of ice and frost. I don't miss slipping and sliding while driving. I don't miss any temperature below zero. And I don't miss HIGH heating bills.

One of the nicest dinner's I've had in a long time. . .

2006-11-26T16:51:00.000-08:00

Last night we decided to go get dinner in Bucerias.(The town where we live) So we drove the short mile to downtown and purchased various items(Leti chose tacos and I chose a Hot Dog with a Frappuchino-and we both had churros for dessert) Then I said why don't we go and eat this on the beach. So we walked to the beach to a table with a palapa umbrella and ate as we watched the waves coming in and the moonlight reflecting off of the sea. There was a family swimming in the water(yes the water is that warm here) and it was a nice relaxing evening. I think we will have to do this more often. . . .
Talk to you soon everyone!!!

Sweet breads and birds

2006-11-15T09:11:00.000-08:00

One thing I keep meaning to tell everyone is about the sweet breads out here. They have these markets(panaderia´s) out here that make the most wonderful sweet rolls and donuts. And with so many different varieties it boggles the mind how they have time to make them all in one morning.(I assume they are all made fresh daily) And they are so cheap too. Today I had 3 of them and it came out to roughly$1. Try that in the U.S. and you´d be looking at 2.50 easy. I guess coming from Colorado where there are not too many good bakeries it is a big switch for me.
One mystery for me down here. I have lately(in the past month or so) seen birds in the arrow formation flying south. Where the heck are they going and just HOW GOOD of weather are they looking for?!?!? :)
OK better stuff next time. Sorry, I´m running low on material huh? See ya soon.

Ranting day. . .

2006-11-11T09:05:00.000-08:00

The Mexican repair shop
Most Americans would be amazed at how and where Mexicans here repair their cars. I have seen multiple instances of cars being left in the middle of the road (no hazard markers or anything) and the owner returns to work on it in the middle of the road. One I witnessed was a huge 18 wheel semi truck that did this and pulled off his whole front wheel assembly. Most recently, (Today) there was a truck in the road to the side of our shop that was left there since last night sitting on a jack stand. Who knows when the owner will return to fix it. Amazing!!!

On a happier note I went to our house just now and it only needs to have water, electricity, windows and outside paint done and we can move in. HOORAY!!!!!

Oh and they tell me the humpback whales should be returning VERY soon. We hope to go and see them in the bay. You can take boats out to see them there. They only approach them to a certain point because they can jump almost all the way out of the water. Pretty cool to see a 40 ton creature do that. Unless you are in a rowboat beneath him. LOL!!!!

We have a house!!!

2006-11-06T14:22:00.000-08:00

Well we finally have a place we can(well, . . .will eventually) live in!! It is in Bucerias and is in the final stages of being built. It is about a little less than a mile and a half from the Bucerias beach. It has an oversized yard and is in a quiet neighborhood.(For Mexico it is quiet. LOL!!!) As soon as we are in it and I can get my computer set up to accept my photos I will post photos!! YAHOO!!!!!

Day of the Dead!!

2006-11-03T08:47:00.000-08:00

Yesterday(Nov 2nd) was Dia de los Muertos(Day of the deads) The whole family went to the Ponteon (where Leti's Mom is buried) and decorated the grave and a priest gave mass in the graveyard. Kind of wierd for an American never witnessed this before. But it was very cool also. They have some pretty cool traditions down here, and a few bizarre ones too. We only opened the business for a 1/2 day and then attended the festivities. Almost every grave in the cemetary was decorated with flowers and photos and little rememberences of what that person liked when they were living. For instance if they liked Juicy Fruit gum you would put a pack on their headstone or close to the grave.

Some things that are hard to find in Mexico(weird stuff)

2006-10-31T14:09:00.000-08:00

Here is a list of things I have looked for in Mexico that I can not seem to find no matter where I go. Strange, but that is Mexico for ya.
A quality mechanical can opener.(The ones here are CRAP!!)
Cool Whip
Instant pudding (of any flavor-but you can find Flan out the ying yang here)
Gold Bond lotion or powders
Fly paper(How ironic since there are MILLIONS of the little buggers)
An Indian Food restaurant(from the country India)

Well that is Mexico for ya. 200 different types of salsa or tequila but none of the above.

(One strange side note; I saw a Mexican the other day who had a lot of jail tattoos on his body(I could tell they were from jail by the quality of the work) and he had a swastika on his arm. I wanted to ask him if he knew what that stood for but I figure I better let it lie. A real genius of a guy though. LOL!!!)

Lightening storm

2006-10-28T13:02:00.000-07:00

I experienced for the first time here a lightening storm. I must say it is a little different than the lightening in Colorado. In Colorado the lightning seems to CRACK loudly. Here is BOOMS and echos loudly. We got a gusher the other night with rain running down the streets in 3 inch streams. About 20-30 minutes later it was gone. Some say it was spin off from the hurricane that was near Mazatlan. Who knows. It was pretty and made everything smell fresh!!! And cooled it off nicely here.
Yesterday Oscar and I went to the beach.(Boys day out-while Mom stayed and tended shop-Her idea NOT mine.) It was fun. We played in the sea for about an hour and then walked the streets looking at the local merchant fare. I bought Oscar a toy turtle and Mom a bouquet of flowers. There's nothing better than making money while lounging on the beach huh? Just kidding, I stayed and did the closing duties so Leti could rest.
UPDATE: For those of you who read my motorcyclist crash blog I found out he is OK with only a few fractured bones. Who knows about the no class trucker who ran in front of him. . .

Some of the differences between here and there. .

2006-10-25T10:57:00.000-07:00

Some people have been asking me so how do I like it now that I've been here for a month living. I like it a lot so far. Ill list some of the differences between here and Colorado that I have noticed.
The stars are far brighter and there seem to be many more visible in Colorado.
The sunsets here blow away any I've ever seen in Colorado.
The roads in Colorado(and most of the U.S. I've been in) have it all over the roads here.
The humidity is WAY higher here. (which I love for my skin-in Colorado we are lucky to hit 35% humidity at times)
The people here seem so much more friendlier and willing to go out of thier way for you if you need something.
And last. . .The food here is great but the variety is not, unless you go into PV. Pretty much all you find is Mexican food here. (Good thing I like it a lot!!)

But all in all I like it here a lot and we are doing well for our first month in(almost) paradise.

Interesting day at work . . . .

2006-10-20T12:35:00.001-07:00

So I am working (making a hamburger or something-I don't really remember) when I hear what sounds like a 5 gallon bucket of tools being droped on the ground and then a thud. I turn around and everyone is running to help a guy on the ground on the highway in front of our business. (Our business is on a very busy highway(Hwy200) that connects all of the touristy type towns out here in the bay of banderas) Anyway it seems a Semi dump truck turned left in front of a motorcycle going very fast and the motorcycle lost. The guy in the semi got out looked at the guy, the blood and quickly walked back to his truck and sped away. Many many people got the truck description as well as the plates so hopefully they will catch the scumball. They guy on the motorcycle(now on the ground bleeding) was moving so I do not think he was mortally injured. The ambulance came and took him away so who knows. Well kids that is all the fun I have for today. More stories to come I'm sure. (Hopefully no more involving blood)

Business is off and running!!!

2006-10-18T16:13:00.000-07:00

Well we started up the business on Monday. We bought enough supplies for the week from Sam's Club(yes there is one here) and opened for business at 6 am. Our business hours are 6am - 4 pm Monday through Fridays 6 am - 2pm Saturdays and CLOSED Sundays. Things went better than expected. In fact we had to go to Sam's Club again the first night because we sold out of a few things. We won't be millionare's soon by any means but for what we need we are doing pretty good. Starting things up are expensive though. You need a lot of supplies when you are selling food. Our menu is Tortas,(a sandwich type of thing)Tacos, Eggs(for breakfast) Quesadillas, hamburgers, hot dogs, chocolate shakes, frozen frappuchinos and fresh squeezed juices. For now that is enough, until we can get an actual building to work in. Right now we are on a covered concrete large patio. It is right next door to where our building will be after we construct it so it is good to build clientel this way. Then we can sell a much bigger variety of things. We plan on selling ice creams, special coffees, pies and other dessert items. And you can't beat the dress code, today I went to work in a tank top, shorts and flip flops. :)

Come and get your hot fresh food(or cold for those that want ice cream)

2006-10-14T19:34:00.000-07:00

Well Monday we start up the business. I'll try to write Tuesday or Wednesday and let you all know how it went. We finally got everything together and are getting our things where we want them to open on Monday. We had to buy a big tank of gas(think kind of propane tank for a BBQ on a bigger scale) for our stove. I think we will be ready. We are only going to sell aguas(like lemonade, hymica,etc) fresh juices, ice creams, milkshakes, sandwiches, hot dogs, hamburgers, tortas and tacos. At first only from 6 am to about 2pm. We'll see how things go and then adjust from there. SO if you know anyone around Bucerias tell them to stop on in on the corner of highway 200 where you turn to go to Tonderoque. If they say you sent them we'll give them a free soda. Oh and any of you who may know a good frozen coffee drink or anything else you think might be good for us to sell please send me your recipes via the comment section of this blog!!!
I have included a photo taken of Bucerias shore-line from the air. Talk to you soon.

Business things

2006-10-12T17:49:00.000-07:00

Well yesterday we bought things to start the business. We will start selling on Monday in our temporary location until the permenent one is built. It should be a while but at least we will get some clientel going. We plan to start by selling tortas, tacos, fresh juices, milkshakes, ice creams, and pies & desserts. I knew all this lounging around had to end sometime. DARN IT!!! ;)