Christmas Part I

Peggy’s great adventure this Christmas started with a little 19 passenger airplane  to Cancun.  It was just a few minutes after we boarded the prop that it was in the air.  The views were spectacular!  

 

From Cancun, I flew directly to Dallas.  We got right into the Christmas festivities the next day at the school that Ellie and Charlie attend.  Each of their classes had a Christmas party.

Charlie’s girlfriend is to the left.  She is about 1/2 his size but he looks to her for a little help now and again.  At the party, he sat down next to her on the floor, put his feet on her lap and asked for help.  She knew exactly what was needed and took off his shoes.

Lots of props reside at the school for some great imaginative play.  African safari anyone?

Always construction work that needs to be done!

Keanan gets some extra Mommy time while the older kids are at school.  He reminds me of Thomas the Train sometimes – his head stays stationary while his wide eyes follow Adrienne everywhere.

Ellie and Charlie are more like twins than regular siblings.  They always seem to be dreaming up play scenarios.  When Damian came home one evening, they were kitties.  Damian didn’t miss a beat and put saucers of milk on the floor for them to slurp.

As usual, I had a difficult time taking pictures of Ellie.  She is a study in motion.  Like her cousin Cody, several of the pictures I attempt turn out to be pretty background photos with no little body!  Finally, I captured one of Ellie’s death defying jumps.

Gracie, the family dog, has been amazing to me.  She has had quite a roller coaster ride of a life.  From being abandoned to becoming the princess of the household and now to being  just one of the crowd.  She is my buddy!

Is it a see-saw or a boat?

Adrienne and her men!

See what I mean about Ellie’s launches?

Keanan, like Gracie, is happiest when he is with his pack.

Ellie is mailing some last minute instructions to Santa.

Adrienne really got to me with this handmade Christmas present.  Now really, could any grandma keep the tears back with a present like this?

My visit with the Hirsts for the week leading up to Christmas created some lasting memories .  Adrienne made sure to keep the true meaning of Christmas in the foreground.  Each day Adrienne thought of a “random act of kindness” for the kids.  One day it was leaving toys at a playground for some lucky kids to find.  Another day, they took treats to the library, the fire station and the police station.  Adrienne fashioned a tee shirt for Damian complete with train tracks drawn on the back.  She included little wooden train engines that the kids can use to drive over the tracks.  A massage shirt!  Like Gracie and Keanan, I was happy to be part of the pack!

Cozumel Radio Online

We told you about Cozumel Radio Online/Cozumel Radio.net in a previous post. While Peggy’s been gone, Ed thought it was a good idea to record a Christmas/New Year’s greeting and put it on the air. The owner of station came over and recorded two greetings: one for the kids and kiddos and one for Cedaredge friends. Each greeting airs about every hour and will continue to January 1. Fun for the kids, grandkids and Peggy to hear Papa’s voice wishing them a Merry Christmas. Hopefully Cedaredge friends and the Hamburger Group hear them, too. If not, Feliz Navidad and Feliz Anno Nuevo.

Pulpo and Arturo

While Peggy is gone, Pulpo, our friend and contractor, and his son, Arturo are doing some work at the house. It’s good that Peggy’s away, as any type of work creates so much of a mess. Dust and concrete chips everywhere. Even in the coffee maker! First, he built a new shelf in the kitchen and then tiled it and the existing one. Never enough storage room. On the new shelf we’re thinking about storing plates and bowls. Then he built and tiled 3 small shelves in the dining room to hold such things as the internet modem, telephone, Skype and cell phones, etc. He put in 3/4 inch holes in the back of each shelf for wires, cables, and electrical connections. Works well. Now, he’s building a new stand on the roof for our tenaco (250 gallon water tank). The old one’s concrete and rebar were rotting. He’s also moving it a bit so there’s more room on the roof. He’s making it “Wilma proof” by making it larger and stronger. After that’s done, he’ll do some minor roof surface repair. Finally, he’ll start on the bathroom counter. That’ll be big! Ed has cut out the wall tile where the counter top and shelves will connect to the wall. The counter and shelves will be tiled with small (1”) bright blue tiles. All of this work was supposed to have been completed before Peggy returned, but this is Mexico! Manana! Start late, work slow, but, it’ll get done- eventually! It’ll take several weeks. We’ll keep you posted on the progress.

The Eco Divers Show

I think we told you that shortly after arriving, we checked in at Eco Divers. No Jorge! Word was he had left for Mexico City and was teaching there. On one of my walks I passed by Eco and there was Jorgito! I stopped and after a couple of beers, I got the whole story. Seems that years ago Jorge taught in the public schoosl. Over the years his mother has kept his teaching status in place. So, this summer, his mother called and said that he had a job teaching at a Mexico City school. What she also told him was that if he taught for only a few years (maybe 2 or 3) he would qualify for a pension when he reached retirement age (60?).  By keeping his status active and “lending” it to his relatives who taught school, he received credit toward a retirement benefit. Amazing. For a guy who never gave it much thought, he now thinks about it a lot. The monthly benefit will be about a $1,000 US ! More than enough to live comfortably here since he now owns his condo. We told some of you that story, no? Well, Jorge bought a condo about 6 years ago. Didn’t like it, so he gave it back after about a year. Then, he stayed in the condo, waiting to be asked to leave or evicted. Never happened! Mexico has “squatters rights”. Seems that if you live at a place 5 years, never being asked to leave, and you then pay the back taxes and file some paperwork- it’s yours! And, so now he owns it free and clear. So, along with the pension, his life appears to be set. Why him? Aztec/Mayan gods must be smiling upon him.

Peggy Update

Peggy left on December 14th to spend two weeks and Christmas with Adrienne and Jamie G.  Actually it is to spend time with the kiddos! She flew Maya Air from Cozumel to Cancun on a small plane. A 15 minute flight that very fun. Then she flew to Dallas for a week with Ellie Bellie, Charlie and Keanan. We’ve talked via Skype every night and she had a great time. Now, she’s in snowy Broomfield with Alex and Aubrey. She got a busy schedule for Christmas Eve and the Christmas. Ed stayed in Cozumel but has been busy. See the Posts! Peggy flies back to Mexico on the 28th and she’ll be welcomed back with open arms. Her friends, and especially Ed, have been missing her.

2011 Posada

Once again we were invited to Sergio and Cesci’s annual Posada. A posada is a play about the 3 wise men going to see baby Jesus in the manger. The street is blocked off for the play. There’s also a pinata filled with candy for the kids.  The audience is invited to participate in the play. And, of course, there’s food for everyone!

Here’s Jamie B, Ed, Cody and Peggy all dressed like peasants and dancing to celebrate the arrival of the wise men (3 kings). Cody kept calling us pheasants rather than peasants!

The 3 kings are visiting the manger with baby Jesus. Our friend Bob , in the middle, was one of the 3 kings. He’s wearing a decorated lampshade as a crown.

Joseph and Mary with baby Jesus.

An angel announces the birth.

The Posada was great fun. Lots of food, friends and fun. Cody got a huge bag of candy from the pinata which he left a healthy amount for Grandma and Grandpa.

The Texas Baxters are here!

Jamie B, Kelly and Cody came down for their annual visit. We had a great time with them We swam, fished, ate, and played bunches. They got to go fishing with friend Edwin and they caught a bunch if fish which we ate at Edwin’s parents place, El Farito. It’s right around the corner from our house. Cody caught 15 grunts which we delicious.

Jamie B, Cody and Grandma at Blue Angel looking for crabs, snails, or some other critters!

 

The Baxters getting ready to ride bikes somewhere. Cody loves riding on the back of his Dad’s Jaguar bike. The Jaguar is a pretty old rusted out bike. But, it’s fun!

We drove to the other side of the island to play and fish! Here’s Jamie and Cody casting out their line.

Grandpa trying his luck.

Cody looking in one of the many pools, searching for fish, crabs, or anything swimming around. He always carries a net and a collection box. He dumps them out before they die, or, he leaves them for Grandpa to dump out.

Visit With The Vein Wizard

Today we took the ferry and bus ride to Galenia Hospital in Cancun for Peggy’s visit with Dr. Morales, who we call The Wizard of Veins. He calls himself a magician, as he makes veins disappear.  Dr. Morales did the surgery on Peggy’s varicose veins 2 years ago and this was her annual follow up. Dr. Morales injected a few small veins and let Ed watch as those veins vanished. Mago (magic)!

Peggy then visited with the dermatologist there, Dr. Solis. She gave Peggy a thorough exam- from her scalp to the bottoms of her feet!  Nothing serious. She then prescribed some skin creams. And, the usual exhortations of  “Use  sunscreen. All the time. Everyday!” Good advice for us all.

Sam’s Club

Earlier this summer Sam’s Club opened a store here on the island. Prior to that, if we wanted to go to Sam’s we had to take the ferry to Playa del Carmen or to Cancun. Today, we biked over to the new store. It’s not a tiny Sam’s, nor is it Grand Junction’s size; it’s just right, to steal Goldilocks’ line.  Many of the same Member’s Mark products (only labeled in Spanish) that are found in the US stores and, of course, many Mexican products. Prices are about the same as US, except for some notable differences, like wine! Eat your heart out Gerry and Denny, 5L of Franzia was a little less than $10 USD!

Cochinita Pibil

This trip we brought down a DeWalt jig saw for our friend and contractor, Pulpo. Most guys down here have nicknames and Elias’ is Pulpo which means octopus. Go figure. Anyway, when we handed over the jig saw, Pulpo said he’d bring us cocinita pibil for Sunday breakfast. Cochinita pibil, is a Yucatan dish with pork that is slow cooked after marinating it in lime or orange juice. It’s cooked with achiote seeds to give it red color. Very, very tender and deliciousl. On the island, it’s usually a Sunday morning breakfast treat. Served with onions on corn tortillas, it’s perfect! Although Pulpo made his promise a few weeks ago, he did not forget and here’s a photo of him delivering it to Ed. Dressed in shorts and T’s, drinking coffee ,and enjoying cocinita on our new table, we pondered our good fortune!

Elias aka Pulpo and Guapo.

It’s a tough job but………

One of Rita’s boats (Frigate) has been out of the water for awhile getting some new fiberglass, paint, and engine work done. Before putting it back into service, a shakedown run is required  to break in the engine. We along with Dick and Gwen were were pegged for this grueling work. The night before, Dick decided to pass a kidney stone and bagged out. Silly excuse as far as we were concerned!

The weather was good with large rolling waves that we “surfed”  going south.  A very smooth ride but no luck fishing. The ride back was a bit different as we were headed into the wind and waves that were so helpful before.  The engine wouldn’t rev higher than 1,50o rpms so we motored into the marina and the mechanic checked it out. A few hours later after cleaning out the gasoline filters, we were back out on the ocean fishing following the frigate birds hunting on the water.  For us, no fish. For the birds, probably!  To mimic the old saying, “A bad day of ocean fishing from the boat is better than a good day at home doing not much!” Thanks Rita!

Such a pretty boat!

We don’t know about you but we’re thinking that Rita’s fleece lined jacket might be a little over-kill! 

Chester, the scooter riding dog, is watching every move Ed makes with that chicken!