Birthday Party a la Mexicana

We had driven by it almost every day for 6 months. Wondered what exactly was inside it. What would make it so fun. Finally, we were invited to a party to get in...

 

Yupiiland!!!

Saturday, September 24th Eny, one of the girls from the Ranch, was having a birthday party. There is a couple here in Mazatlan, trying to adopt her. She's been such a big part of their lives for years, so they threw her a party like she was theirs already. The party was held at Yupiiland. What exactly is inside Yupiiland? 

Princesses, play structures, face painting, balloons, music, dancing, piñatas... oh, and tacos.

 Brenda, showing off her facepainting.

 Ian making some kids laugh.

 Tonponio showing off his Spiderman facepaint.

 Cesar also getting some Spiderman facepaint.

 And Julian, too!

 Carlitos, Juan, and Pepe having some fun on the merry-go-round.

 Precious Pepe.

 The Birthday Girl!

 

The older boys playing foosball.

 Caught some smiles out of Jorge and Angel.

 La mordida!

 Piñata time!

 Candy!

 Chuy taking a swing at it.

 The Birthday Girl and all her spoils.

It was really hot (no air conditioning) but fun to experience a typical Mexican child's birthday party. Now we know what Yupiiland is like, and so do you!

Taking Back the Garden: Day 3

 A pathway was forged...

 Through the thick weeds and thorn bushes and wild flowers...

And Ian cleaned up the garden space.

I, Lisa, cannot claim any help in these endeavors. It was all Ian. 

Ian: 1

Wildlife: 0

Taking Back the Garden: Day 2

Though we made a lot of progress the first day, it didn't end there! Day 2 went as follows:

 A giant grasshopper, which totally made me think of Disney's A Bug's Life...

Ian holding up the vines that were encroaching on the garden walls, or "lifting up Mother Nature's skirt" as he called it...

 Yes, that is a tarantula.

 No, this was not the same one in the previous picture, but a different one. This one is for sure dead, the other... we're not entirely sure.

 No more vines!

 No more vines!

 So much cleaner!

 No more weeds in our planters!

 Finally have space to get in the door again!

A much shorter skirt for Mother Nature...

Mattoons: 2

Jungle: 0

Taking Back the Garden: Day 1

One of our biggest projects since coming back has been getting rid of all of the plants and vines that have taken over the garden area since our trip to the U.S. Here are some photos to show you about how the first day of that went:

Mattoons: 1
Jungle: 0

Por fin!

We FINALLY arrived in Mazatlan late Sunday night after a week of waiting for documents to be sent to Arizona. We drove straight through from Phoenix to Mazatlan, only stopping a few times for gas, bathroom breaks, and to feed the cat. (He was such a great traveler, by the way!)

Coming home was slightly more hectic than sweet for a few reasons... We left our house key with a friend, who was taking care of the plants while we were gone and he still had the key when we arrived. So we had to wait an extra little bit in the driveway before we could actually get in the house. Then, we were greeted by in infestation of ants in our kitchen that we had to try and take care of. Their "home" and most of the ants are gone, but some are still crawling around here. Once we finally slept, I got up in the morning to make coffee and BROKE the coffee pot. Literally, I cracked the carafe on our tile countertop. And I remembered thinking as I walked into the kitchen that morning, "Would it just be awful if I broke the coffee pot??"

Needless to say it was definitely one of these mornings:

 

All in all, we're glad to finally be back and settling into a routine again. More updates to come soon! 

A little delay...

Actually, it's more like delays, plural. There are two things I wanted to mention in this post:

1. I do apologize for the delay in posts. We had to leave the country to renew the visas and car permit. So we figured... if we have to leave the country, we might as well make a trip back to Michigan, right?? We spent August 22-September 2 doing a little tour-de-lower-Michigan, visiting family and friends. It was great to spend some time with those who we did see, but it definitely wasn't enough to see everyone or do all of the things we wanted to do (mainly eat all of the foods we wanted to eat...)

2. We are having a bit of a delay actually getting back to Mazatlan. We intended to cross the border yesterday and be back at our house today... However, we ran into some problems trying to get a new permit for the car. So we are currently in Phoenix, trying to get things sorted out.

If you could, pray that we can get everything sorted out and get back to Mazatlan as soon as possible, that would so appreciated. If you're not the praying type, send some good vibes or ju-ju or whatever it is you trust in our way... We'd appreciate that, too. :) We'll keep you posted!