So as I get ready to leave here and start summer I am writing about April...at least I am consistent.

April was fantastic. We were lucky enough to have a visit from Granny & Boppy which is always a treat, did some camping, went to the boat access only community of Yelapa, played, laughed, celebrated Ella's 2nd, swam, kitesurfed, saw turtles, iguana, dolphin, pirates, rays, birds, fish, and were treated by the return of Uncle Foffy at the end of the month. We live a lucky life and are thankful for it everyday.

April 2010 from markpicketts on Vimeo.

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Speaking of giving thanks, i just want to publicly thank my family for allowing me - and often joining me - to kite more than 50 times in a little over two months. My wife's patience, forgiveness, and being the hottest girl on the beach everyday is what makes me the luckiest kid on the playground - thank you. My favorite sessions were the ones when you're there...

lens: Rudo

March was a busy month around these parts, first I traveled to San Antonio to train to become an official nerd, the title: Google Certified Teacher has been added to my resume and all kidding aside it was one of the most incredible professional development opportunities that I have ever been a part of. Of course everyone involved wanted to eat Mexican food at every meal...

From there the whole crew went to Rome, Georgia to celebrate the 90th birthday of Raymond Waters. It was great celebration befitting an incredible man. Ollie, Ella, and i were able to meet some family members we'd never met and Karli reconnected with people she hadn't seen since she was Ollie's age. I am consistently amazed at how family, regardless of previous contact or distance, seem to know they are family at the youngest age and this was no exception. See the video!

As the world cup draws closer and closer i am thankful to have returned to a futbol crazed nation and excited to cheer el Tri into the second round. The signs, spirit, and jerseys can be seen everywhere these days; these players truly bear the weight and pride of the entire nation... i for one can not wait! (more mexicanisms)

This blog has really evolved to become more of a video-journal and this post is no different. Highlighted in this clip are a long weekend camping, an enchanted wedding on a magical Mexican beach with old friends, and our road trip down to Manzanillo and Boca de Iguanas south of Vallarta.

disfruta:

March and April adventures... from markpicketts on Vimeo.

This pretty much brings you to Ella's 2nd with lots more to come, keeping up with this is a battle i continue to lose but i keep trying....

Everyone of these starts out with an apology for the late posting, and this one is no different.

It's official, we have a two year old:

Ella Turns 2! from markpicketts on Vimeo.

looking back:

• Here is her wonderful arrival
• and was this really just a year ago??
  birthday stills, semana santa video - this is the video that had her bday in it

Is it possible that with each day that passes time moves a little quicker?? because it is really feeling that way...

en serio, how else can you explain that this was in the fall:

February.

Yes it was some three months ago but i find myself today writing about it.

It is likely the month that receives the most "bad press". I have often heard, and maybe even lamented about the blah's of February and how difficult it sometimes is to get through the shortest month of the year.

Well, it is difficult to feel that way any more. With four family birthdays in the month, Valentine's Day, and this year an (extended) visit to Boston, not to mention a trip to the zoo, Ollie's first field trip, and the general chaos of day-to-day life the month absolutely flew by.

Indeed, time seems to be flying these days (so fast that it takes a while for me to actually get to putting up some stuff here on this blog). Regardless of how late it is; its here now. Sometimes as i am feeling a little bogged down with footage i wonder if i should just forget it...then i look back and it is so much more than all worth while.

So i invite you to watch this:

February 2010 from markpicketts on Vimeo.

Then consider a couple previous posts, from Februaries gone by...

• February '09
• February '08
• February '07
• The Original Birth Announcement!

So I spent the first couple days of my Spring Break finalizing some old footage and putting together more recent stuff. Of course the other 14 days i spent further digging myself in with more and more footage - ahhh good times.

Here are two little flicks:

1. Christmas Part Two

yup the hole is that deep. This takes off where this one left off, ready for Uncle Foffy's arrival just in time for Christmas Dinner. From there we had an incredible week with family in the surf town of Sayulita.

Winter Break 2010 (part 2) in Sayulita Mexico from markpicketts on Vimeo.

2. Raymond's 90th

so there is much to fill in (two months and three birthday's) between these two videos, but late march had us in Georgia to celebrate Raymond's 90th birthday. Friends and family came to Rome from all over the place, and the fiesta was a wonderful testament to an amazing man.

Raymond's 90th from markpicketts on Vimeo.

As I mentioned in this post there is a lot more footage that i will try and work on over the spring and get out to you. Start looking forward to three birthdays (four as of Thursday), more camping, the zoo, friends, friends, weddings, two weeks off and more friends...so stay tuned.

Well February is a busy month around this family and 2010 has officially proven to be no exception. We have birthdays for Aba, Oliver, Karli and me, add to that Valentine's Day, an extended work trip to Boston, the arrival of almost wind to the Bahia de Banderas, the Olympics ... a great month really - but lets not forget another superstar award for Ollie for random acts of kindness on the school yard, a "bathtub" added to our apartment and nightly routine, all while Karli continues to defy the aging process by looking better and better with each day that passes.

There is a lot more footage from the month that will find its way here soon but this post is specific for a great event that was held here at the American School of Puerto Vallarta - last Friday, February 26th:

It was the annual Pre-School trike-A-thon. Ollie personally raised more than $3000 pesos ($300 dollars) to help build/re-build schools in Haiti; we could not be more proud of his effort or the generosity of his sponsors. The event was a blast and the group as a whole raised more than $2000 for the cause - not bad for kids still learning to tie their own shoes!

trike-A-thon from markpicketts on Vimeo.

Life in new places is full of exciting and new stuff! Lots of firsts happening in Mexico and i am struggling to keep up with my documenting. I am slowly making my way through some amazing pictures of our week in Sayulita over the New Year, stay tuned.

Last Friday Ollie had his first real field trip! To go and see some Dolphin with Vallarta Adventures, moms and dads weren't allowed poolside and i have to admit i was pretty jealous of Ollie's experience. They got to meet some seals, some incredible birds, and shake hands with the Dolphin stars. It was a great morning and we appreciate all of the work that Miss. Jennifer did to put it together. Pictured are the two classes with the stars, Ollie's class, and the art project they did on the afternoon of the field trip.


So although i continue to work on our NewYear's highlights we did have an incredible weekend last weekend camping on a beach just north of Vallarta. It was the kids first experience camping and it was nothing short of amazing. Ollie was impressed with dad the firemaker and even said that he wanted to be one when he grew up, the roasted marshmallows were a hit, as was cowboy coffee and fire cooked breakfasts. Thankfully the kids both loved it and we hope to be experience the great outdoors with them a lot more! Of course the luckiness of camping barefoot in January was not lost on me. Enjoy:

Camping in January from markpicketts on Vimeo.

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One last one, because I can't resist sharing a shot from Pajama Day:

Yesterday on a road trip to a new beach in the south we had some car trouble, we never did make it to the beach. We did have a 9 hour ordeal that had us meet (and appreciate) some wonderfully kind people. One of my favorite moments was asking the attendants at a gas station - in the middle of nowhere - if they knew where i could find a mechanic; there was literally no response whatsoever. Taking their silence as a no, i asked for a taco stand recommendation ... this response was a diatribe describing the wonders of the local cuisine. They love their food here (and so do i). Good times.

Pictured is Karli reveling in what very well could have been the greatest chile relleno ever made.

(reposted from: http://sites.google.com/site/betadepuertovallarata/mexicanisms)

I am simply blown away with the amount of footage the holidays brings. I am a little overwhelmed to be honest, but i have a lot of good stuff that i want to share.

This is early December here in Vallarta; A staff Posada, Ollie's Christmas concert, some Vallarta, a trip to a jungle beach, a couple piñatas*, Noche Buena, Christmas morning, and lots of just goofin around:

Early December in Mexico from markpicketts on Vimeo.

.... there is much much more to come...

* notice how quickly Ollie goes from barely touching the piñata to really givin'er!

So its true. Living my life is officially taking all my time; leaving me unable to fully document it...at least not in a timely fashion.

November was kicked off with a Halloween visit from "Uncle Foffy" who made the journey laden with the finest of TraderJoe's wares, which we enjoy and appreciate every day. We also had a visit from Granny & Boppy before celebrating our 4th year of wedded bliss and American Thanksgiving with our new friends here in Vallarta.

Throughout all of it we have laughed, loved and continue to feel like the most blessed people on the planet.

Here is some images from our month:

Geoffrey, Granny, Boppy & Halloween from markpicketts on Vimeo.

The end of November brought visits from our past: Ecua-peeps. Ollie and i helped launch Nutmeg for her return voyage to the Bay Area. Then visited with John, Olivia, Ceci, and pending as they celebrated an extended dia de gracias in one of our favorites: Sayulita.
This incredible day was launched into unforgettable when our sunset cocktails were interupted by news of sea turtle hatchings about 20 meters from our seat. We endured the walk and watched as these little ones made their run for the sea (footage). Modern odds are stacked against these tortugas and it was a pretty amazing thing to witness; especially when Ollie (unprompted) carved a road into the sea to help the little tortugas (meanwhile mom used all of her strength in holding Ella back).

As we head into December it is difficult for me to comprehend how fast time is passing...and (unlike me) it shows no sign of slowing...
We hope that this finds you and yours well and look forward to being in touch over the holiday season.

Its October here in Vallarta (unlike wherever you are), and although the leaves are not changing the weather is...and for the better! Less heat, less rain, really wonderful and the old guard here tells us it is just going to continue to get better - very exciting. I am still anxiously awaiting the wind but need to be patient until January, until then we are still really enjoying the family trips to the different (and amazing) local beaches (details, stories and pictures).

This year Ollie is really excited for Halloween ; and why wouldn't he be? A chance to dress up, to eat junk food, combined with a visit from Uncle Foffy has the whole house pumped for this weekend.

All the more reason for me to hurry up and post some images from the 3rd Annual Picketts Pumpkin Carving Party!

3rd Annual Pumpkin Carving Party from markpicketts on Vimeo.

Here is some history:

• 2008
• 2007
• 2006, 2006 (otro)

wow, i really like looking at those but it makes me feel OLD!

Although there was a plethora of reasons for our relocation to Mexico, near the top of the list was being closer to our California family. Toronto-PV and Toronto-DR is really a wash but the difference from San Francisco is massive. We have not been disappointed and last week were spoiled with the second visit from Kristy this year. Ollie and Ella hammed it up in the pool with Aba non stop and both show new tricks in the water daily.
Another Sunday passed and another beach this week: Los Muertos - Sayulita.

Kristy's Visit 09.09 from markpicketts on Vimeo.

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Monday mornings ASPV has a very cool flag ceremony in the elementary school. This week Ollie was recognized by his teacher. I know i am bias but i thought it was pretty cute:

Flag Ceremony Final Version from markpicketts on Vimeo.

Sometimes you have to hit reset...this is one of those times. I created this blog as a place to share memories with friends and family - and although i have a ton of footage left to share from the summer and from our first six weeks here in Vallarta the backlog was getting a little heavy.

I kept wanting to finish a video and post it before moving on - chronologically like...it may seem weird but its just the way that my brain works; but we are in Mexico now the things we are seeing, smelling, experiencing, and lets not forget tasting are happening now.

So i am hitting the reset button.

This is us, last weekend:

Last Weekend in September.m4v from markpicketts on Vimeo.

Some explanations:

1. We could have left that CD on repeat Friday night - he would have sung us through until monday...
2. Cirque-de-Backyardigans...an experience that truly defies explanation
3. Playa Camarones y Chilaquiles (the list is growing)
4. fun in the rain and some new swimming skills

I really will try and share some of the great stuff that is now backlogged but not at the cost of falling further behind.

in other news i think i am officially done with YouTube; been wanting to go to Vimeo for more than a year now but resisted and resisted but no mas!

If you subscribed in YouTube, please redo so in Vimeo (if you still want)

img from: http://blog.heritage.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/reset_button090324.jpg

So just shy of October, i am posting for some good times in June and the start of July.

There are lots more coming soon but for those of your living in "real time"; please know that Mexico is fantastic! The four of us have never been more happy. We have a house, friends, jobs which we are loving, and then there's the food....

We go to a new beach every Sunday and have a new love: chilaquiles. I am tracking these beach adventures (and will get them posted - with pics - here soon enough).

So 'nuff talk...

IronIan's Triathalon...

yeah its a cheezy name but trust me he has had worse and when you beat his time i will consider your thoughts on the issue.

ironman from markpicketts on Vimeo.

Well it is been awhile since i have written here; and it isn't like nothing has been happening. Perhaps in a later post (or more likely posts) i will have a moment to reflect on selling 95% of our posessions, leaving our home & the friends that remain like family in the Dominican after five years, blasting through Canada, then California, before driving to Puerto Vallarta, with a brief stop in Cali, Colombia, meeting new friends, starting a new job, and beginning to get settled in our new home.

However, if that happens it will be on another day.

Today is Oliver's first day of school, and although we have no idea how it is going it was a memorable celebratory morning - that i simply had to document

Here is my last email as the Academic Technology Director to the staff at CMS:

From: Mark Picketts
Sent: Wednesday, June 17, 2009 4:56 PM
To: All Users
Subject: the secret is out....

I can’t hide it anymore.

The real reason for the academic technology successes over the past couple years has been revealed:

We have loved our time in the DR and will miss you more than you could imagine. Our CMS family are always welcomed wherever we are.

Follow us at: http://karliandmark.blogspot.com/ and please stay in touch

con amor,

Karli, Oliver, Ella y mark

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Mayra has been a part of our family for the past three years and she will be missed by all of us, the only thing keeping us going is the thought of a reunion with her in Canada or San Francisco soon. Some Mayra moments:

It finally happened: Karli wrote her second blog post!!

Well truth be told we both had to give speeches of adios on Friday to the wonderful people that have been the core of our Dominican family for the past five years. Karli proved why she is a writing teacher and i ... well i was sobbing mess (partly because i had to follow this speech):

When Jack hired Mark and I at the Boston fair 5 years ago, we weren’t really even sure we were a couple at the time. We obviously convinced Jack that we were worth hiring as teachers and I guess we must have seemed stable enough at the time to take a chance on our fledgling relationship but we were literally defining our relationship in the elevator on the way to our interview. We thought, well what the heck, lets just go and see what happens and in the mean time we can learn to kite surf, take in the beaches and even learn how to dance merengue. I am forever grateful to God, the Universe, and Jack who hired us both that snowy weekend in Boston, which gave our little relationship experiment a chance to grow.

So we moved here together- but separate, a couple kind of – boyfriend and girlfriend but not ready to live together. But when Mark got here he really hated his apartment and it was just so below his standard, which was really saying something at the time and he came over to my apartment one weekend and just kind of never left. And a couple of months later we got engaged on Pico Duarte, we got married in Las Terrenas and then had our first Dominican baby here in the city. Originally we were only going to stay 2 years but after giving birth to Oliver we realized we were part of something really wonderful here where everyone has this wonderful love and respect for children. There is not one of you out there that doesn’t ask about our kids every ingle time we see you and you really do mean it. I can’t imagine after your true and genuine happiness for our happiness, having kids anywhere else.

So we became part of the greater CMS family. Now when I say CMS family I don’t mean that in a “one big happy family” way. No, this is a real family. Supportive, caring, even a little dysfunctional at times but always there for you. This family has its nurturing mothers who care for us along the way and its funny, spirited aunties who keep us laughing and having fun. And certainly there is more than one crazy uncle in the group who you just can’t wait to see what they are going to do next. And just like in any family there are many ups and downs but what makes family so great – is that they are there through all of it.

I want to thank this CMS family for supporting both Mark and I in our many ups and downs- through different houses and jobs, marriage and kids. It is harder than I thought it would be to leave this island because I realized I am leaving my first “home” I created with my new nuclear family and extended family. I am finding I have so much more of an emotional attachment to things and memories and places here than I thought. But I have to remember that the things are just things, the memories I take with me where ever I go and the places…well one day I’ll be back with my husband and my 2 Dominican children so that they can see what a great family we came from.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Truth: she doesn't even know i am posting this.
her first post here

(like every post here, i have so much to put up here and am hopelessly behind...but i will try and get it up here soon, but life is kinda hectic these days)

We are well into the season of lasts here in the Dominican...
We remain busy enjoying the last days of the la vida buena in the DR. Last week was Aba's final visit to Santo Domingo and as with all of her previous visits it was nothing short of incredible:



We are really looking forward to being so much closer to you next year Aba.

Lots of posts this month already and even more running around in my head. Here is a little show about our Spring Break. We were joined in Cabarete by Jeff, Deb, April, and Eric and had a wonderful, relaxing, and hilarious week.
It was our last time in Cabarete this year, and although i know that i will be back at Nanny Estates. It's the first time in years that i have left not sure when exactly i would be back. It is one of the most incredible places on the planet, and the people there are even more incredible!

Well, enjoy:


Ipo, i am not ignoring your comment. I am working on something to fill you in re: next year. It's a work in progress, but for now:

Way down here you need a reason to move
Feel a fool running your stateside games
Lose your load, leave your mind behind, baby james
Oh, Mexico
It sounds so simple I just got to go
~ J. Taylor