Christmas Cheer- Dec 24th

Our first Christmas presents arrived earlier than we expected.  Forty minutes early to be exact.  But Lacey and Field were still happy as can be, even after waiting in the airport for 20minutes for Mat and I to pick them up.  We gave them a deal on a cab ride though as we felt a little bad for making them wait.  Cheapie,  cheapie, two for one deal.


After negotiating with the cop,  and explaining that Mat was not meaning to speed or make an illegal turn, our next stop was Walmart so Field could load up on Spiced Rum.

The world of Kong is a dog`s delight!  This bone traveled all the way from Saskatoon to Harley`s mouth where it never left her sight for the rest of the night.  I think Harley dreamed of her Grandpa dressed as Santa hiding this bone under the Christmas tree.  Once again....a pretty happy dog!

And I thought I wouldn`t have auntie net`s perogies for Christmas.  Wrong again!  After laughing my head off I am now pondering how many coffee and baileys she had before deciding to make me my own homemade perogie, dry it, sprinkle it, put a hook in it and send it away as a Perogie Christmas Tree Ornament.  I am starting to think that our parents hit a new level of craziness once all the kids have grown up and moved away.

Ok, so we open our gifts a day early.  What of it?

We thought this would be an appropriate welcome gift for Fielding.  I don't know?  Something about it just said, "Fielding".

Happy boys!

Merry Christmas

HO! HO! HO! Merry Christmas Everyone!

It's a little bittersweet for us this year.  We are very excited to experience this crazy town over the holidays and we have many familiar faces around us and coming to see us, but there is no doubt we are missing everyone as this time of year. 

I am already dreaming of auntie nets' potato filled treasures, smothered in browned butter.  Devouring perogies and gorging myself until the waistband of my pants has disappeared by my protruding, yet satisfied stomach, meanwhile disgusting each member of my family with how many perogies I can inhale, is no doubt a Christmas tradition of mine.  One I am quite proud of I might add.

And then there Ugie's Prime Rib Feast that would put John's Prime Rib to shame.  I am not sure what I will miss more; the food or entertainment.  One things about our family is that you are kept on you toes.  Whether it be uncovering a family mystery, taste testing too much wine with Auntie Jackie, or seeing Jeff snap his crayons and teach someone a lesson.  There's always  a good story to talk about the next day.

I'm green with envy just thinking about what our famous chef of the Fiedelleck family will be cooking up on Albert street this Christmas.  Lindsay brings her award winning menus right to the kitchen table. Her efforts are hard to ignore.  Waking you up in the morning are an artist's vision of true passion in the form of delicate and divine aromas.  Finally her masterpiece will be served to drooling faces which she has been shooing away like starving street cats all day.   Then supper is followed up with festivities and beverages.    The thought of missing charades, or another game that always winds up in a pant-splitting laughter over Carol's ingenious ways of "winning" and  coming up with the correct answers, will be a disappointing miss for us.

To all our friends and families, we wish you the best and we are thinking about all of you!  Have a Merry Christmas and we look forward to chatting with you in the new year.

Love,
Rochelle, Mathew and Harley

Lab Work

Meet Duke.  Duke is an all-star hunting champion.  His proud owners Dean, Leslie and Mitch will tell you about his top-notch bird hunting skills and his ability to respond attentively to calls and commands.  But I will be the first to tell you that when this dog is not working he turns into a tank of love.  My first hand experience of this was while watching the Rider Play-Offs and having 150pounds of lab warm my feet , topped off with a little lab-drool and kisses to my toes.


Other than that, there's not much more to say, the pictures tell the rest. 

Mitch and Duke

                                                             A lab is a lab is a lab!

Stay Focused

The two things which I have on my list to conquer are defeating me.  I took my first surfing lesson a few weeks ago and I must say that in my head I thought I would pop up and surf with some grace.  Instead I found myself recklessly being catapulted into the surf and if I was lucky, I still had my bottoms on when I eventually surfaced.  Perseverance is a word I have been throwing around to my students in the last few years and it was exactly what I needed to learn that day.  

Long story short, after “MacGyvering” my bikini bottoms and trading my frustration for determination, I finally got up.  This is all it took to get me addicted.  Salyulita bound are our weekend plans from here on in.  Salyulita is a beautiful little surfing community which has much to offer and we are looking forward to heading out again and gaining some pride!

Unfortunately my drive for sports does not filter into my drive for academic attention.  I have high hopes and big dreams for learning Spanish but three months later I find myself tongue twisted and phonetically disabled.  So... On with the Spanish lessons!  I started this week.  Based on my previous experience with attention and focus troubles, I can firmly say I am concerned about my performance outcome. 

Since it’s one-on-one instruction, I think I will find it hard to “hang out in the girls bathroom, doodle, sway back and forth, kick my foot, or go for a nice little walk”, which have all worked successfully for me in the past to get me through the long days of direct instruction.  However, panic is upon me!  What am I am going to do now?  I think my teacher may notice when her only student is missing for periods of time.  She will pick up on the arrows and scribbles I have on my page and she certainly will become distracted with my inability to sit still.  

Well, this may be a new phase in my life that I am looking forward to with a gut wrenching feeling of failure.  Well...here goes nothing. 

Deséame suerte!

R.

Día de Muertos

(I am about 2 months behind but it is worth sharing.)

Hanging out at graveyards and decorating skulls is not our typical  weekend plans, but in this case we relished the idea of experiencing one of Mexico's most notorious celebrations.  Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead), is a Mexican Tradition celebrated October 31st- November 2nd. 

The cemeteries are transformed into enchanting wonders as each tombstone tells a story of a loved one.  Flowers, cookies,  bottles of beer, are just a few of the spirited items placed oh-so delicately among the alluring cement monuments. The air is filled with mariachi notes as families unite to celebrate the life once lived by kin.

Family friends, Glenda and Terry, live about 2 blocks from this cemetary.  We were happy to have them show us around and join us in the celebration.

Mexico does not miss a chance to sell, sell, sell.   These vendors set up, right outside the cemetery with their carts full of Day of the Dead flowers, crosses, pictures.....you name it.

Welcome to the Jungle

Vallarta Adventures' Canopy Tour will have you swinging from trees, Tarzan style, repelling and off course zip lining.  What a great way to spend the weekend.

Once a year, right before high season, Vallarta Adventures provides a free canopy tour as a final 'test' for all of the new tour workers.  These workers have been training for months and this is their final preparation before they are allowed to give tours on their own for high season.  This free tour always fills up fast with other Vallarta Adventure employees and their family and friends.  Thanks to Andres and Michelle, we fall into this category.  I'm happy to report that the tour was a huge success and that we had an amazing time. Definitely recommend to anyone.  Thanks again for including us Michelle and Andres.       

Guadalajara Road Trip for Three

Mid-October, three little Mexican's hit the road for Guadalajara.  We took a scenic drive through the mountains where one could be surprised by parts of the roads missing around any given turn.  But no worries, a few rocks would be set out as a nice little warning not drive over the edge.  Needless to say, I was white knuckled the rest of the way there.  The upside was the breathtaking views and climate changes throughout the elevation gains and drops.  At one point it was +32 and sun shining and within a matter of minutes it dropped to 22 degrees and we where in the clouds.

Our eager navigator kept an eye on the road the whole 4.5 hour trip there.  Eyes like a hawk!

This view and the one below are literally minutes apart.  It was a very steep and fast decline to the bottom where the sun was awaiting us.

This view reminded us of home( minus the mountainous background).  The farm land and flat area was a nice treat for us.

Yes there is!

Did you really expect anything less for our princess?

Beautiful churches and museum plaster the downtown streets of Guadalajara.

The Market

Over 1,000 vendors fill this block.  Anything you want, they got it.

After the market we headed back out into the streets for a bite to eat.

Guadalajara has a celebration the whole month of October.  It makes it easy to find entrainment on many of the streets.

The only piece of grass we could find within a 5 mile radius for Harley to do her business, existed in the main square, aka Central Park.  Lucky for us it was just one block from our hotel.  Harley did not blend in as she was the only dog in the park.  Privacy was in short supply for her.

                                    One can get distracted by the simple pass time of people watching.              

            Talequepegue- is a quaint but vibrant area of Guadalajara.  Art, crafts and good restaurants   are sure to be found in this area of town.

               No need for conversation in this restaurant- the decor alone will keep one entertained.

A drive -through Cerveza Store.  No joke! 

Yes, it's another John Deer

The main street of Mascota

The Grand Canyon of Jalisco