Givelod Manis

For three years now the pre-school at ASPV has sponsored Givelod through the Children of Haiti Project.  The biggest fund raiser is the annual Trike-A-Thon.  The day is a lot of fun for everyone and we appreciate all the work that the pre-school staff does to promote service learning in our youngest students.  Ollie and Ella raised a lot of money thanks to some generous donators, thank you all very much.

Dad had fun with his new GoPro too:
video from  last year (about the 4:30 mark in the video)
from two years ago

Ollie changed his restaurant of choice
at the last minute from a taco stand to
Lukumbe becuase:  "they do a really
good job of celebrating birthdays."
He's right.

Well its official ... Ollie's six.

As I spent today playing with his new Star Wars and Hot Wheels toys (he was there too) i realized...perhaps i should still be six.  Goodtimes.

There's a marked change for sure.  He does the putting together now, I have been relegated to couch coach (and a proud one).  He loves lego and has amazed us with what he has made.  He tries hard, is a great brother, a happy guy, and cool dude.
We are very blessed.

We celebrated the big day with our family and then Friday had the real fiesta at PeterPiperPizza (gringoes think Chucky Cheese) where games, pizza, piñata, and great friends made for lots of laughs and had us sleeping soundly last night.
Here is 6-tastic*:

a trip down memory lane with the OPP:

• birth
• first
• second
• third
• fourth
• fifth

time sure flies when you're having fun!

---

* all rights reserved by TraxCorp

The holiday season is always a busy one, and we made the most out of it this year!  It included Posadas, Fiestas, concerts, gingerbread, countless piñatas, and lots of skype time with loved family and friends around the globe.

Some highlights of our time:

the editing on this one leaves much to be desired - my apologies.  hey but at least it isn't months and months after the fact!

our vacation also included a trip to Guanjuato which was previously posted.

We spent the first part of our December holiday doing a little exploring in Mexico.  Despite living here for three years we have seen very little outside of Bahia Banderas (Karli travelled extensively in Mexico some moons ago).  We decided to go to Guanajuato (as well as nearby Dolores Hidalgo and San Miguel de Allende) which had received rave reviews from our friends - it did not disappoint.

Guanajuato is a gorgeous city nestled in a valley with colorful houses that cascade down the hillsides.  It is extremely old and the mines that surround the city continue to pull out rich deposits of silver, which was the main reason the UNESCO world heritage site was settled.  Many of the streets are not wide enough to allow for car traffic and instead wind in and around the homes and up the hillsides; those that do allow cars, are one lane and there is a complex network of tunnels that keep much of the traffic underground.  With a thriving university campus there is a youthful pulse to the city and an abundance of art (Diego Rivera was born here), music, and great things to see, do, and of course eat.  The family survived its first two overnight bus rides and i am thankful that the kids coped so well ... as i know it will lead to continued adventures (its in their blood).
In short, Guanajuato was a fantastic and rich trip that we highly recommend. (lonely planet)

Some of our adventures:

Our holiday was great and there is more great stuff to come (more traditionally Christmas) so stay tooned...



Much of this video could use some further explanation, we'd love to sit and share it with you:
(some explanations/memories)

• (3:50)  While walking into the main plaza in Dolores Hidalgo (the birth place of Mexican Independence) a funeral past with the mariachi's playing behind.  It was truly beautiful.  Karli made me promise to get a mariachi band for her funeral, so if I check out first .... you know.
• The doors and the street art in Guanajuato were absolutely amazing (photo gallery)
• (6:14)  This long "poster" is a chronological history of the world...from Adam and Eve.  It was absolutely fascinating and unlike anything I have ever heard of or seen before.  It was tucked away in a room we easily could have missed at the mine and was a true surprise highlight of the trip.
• (0:48)  2007 Scorpions world tour ticket ... nuff said.

From December 1st through 12th our neighborhood gets pretty loud; we truly don't mind, indeed we feel thankful to live so close to such a beautiful and culturally rich celebration.  Fiestas de Guadalupe:

also here

This past weekend we did a swap with friends of ours who live just north of Vallarta.  It was incredible, Karli and I have long been proponents of trading rather than getting new stuff when it comes to the kids...it seems the same invigorating energy that accompanies a new* toy works with adults too.

We had an amazing time; and spent hours chasing roosters, playing in the waves, on the beach, and in the hammocks.

(click images to see them larger)

Thank you thank you thank you ROEL for sharing your life with us for the weekend, we look forward to playing together soon...

In other, unrelated, and unsolicited news: best breakfasts in Sayulita - hands down.

* or new to me

So its American Thanksgiving*.  I have much to be thankful for.  More than I could ever state.  First and foremost, for Karli.


November is quite the month for Karli and I.  We "met" in November, we were married in November thus we have lots to celebrate and have been doing so.

i am thankful that on our anniversary weekend away my wife wanted to cancel our dinner reservations at the "nice place" to go back to the incredible fish taco joint we happened upon the night before ... con champagne - que fancy.



* AKA thanksgiving to my American friends and family.