Overdue Update

I never did post an update on the flower bed which I built (with help from my uncle) last summer. The following is a photo of it in progress.
Here it is almost finished.
I did finish the stone work last summer, but did not wind up having enough time before winter to fill it in and plant anything in it. I spent all of last weekend lugging bags of top soil, fertilizer and peat moss from HomeDepot. I have planted a few things, it looks quite nice. I definitely need more plants though.

Dumb Bird + Fast Dog = Dead Bird

Kei ate a bird last night. I took him outside for his business and a dumb bird got startled and as he was trying to fly away, kept hitting the sides of the house and porch, it could not figure out how to fly away from Kei. The bird flew right in front of Kei and of course Kei grabbed it in his mouth. Unfortunately, he did not want to release the bird, so I tried to wrestle it away from him. The wrestling caused some of the bird's blood to get on my leg, so I had take a shower. And to cap it all off, this all happened at 2 A.M. -David

Felicidades to Virginia & Raul!

The purpose of the trip to El Salvador was to attend my cousin Virginia’s wedding. It was a lot of fun, after midnight they brought out tequila shots and the party became carnival.

The gorgeous bride!Posing with Tio Andres, the proud father of the brideSusan, Virginia & MaryMary, Mom & WillEly & Tia MaryCute pic of Mary & Susan Funny pic of Kiko & I sporting some funky hatsSusan & WillPretty wedding cake and chocolate fountain, which were both very tastyThe entertainment portion; a fire dancer and stilt walkers
William dancing away

Note: Despite asking the makeup artist that I wanted only a little bit of makeup and a “natural” look he went ahead and caked it on. I guess natural has a different meaning over there.

El Salvador

Although this was an awfully short trip, we managed to go to La Costa del Sol, La Puerta del Diablo, Panchimalco, and to El Lago de Ilopango. We ate Pupusas in Santa Tecla and yummy oysters at La Libertad. I think it had been almost ten years since my last visit and the country has grown immensely, there are not only more people but also more roads, overpasses and buildings. Anyhow, I’d like to go back to El Salvador to show David its gorgeous black sand beaches, the small colonial towns, the volcanoes, lakes, Mayan ruins and small mountain villages. Maybe we’ll go once he works on his Spanish, so he won’t feel so left out of conversations. Here are a few pictures.

Lago de Ilopango El Chulón
A pretty palm tree at La Costa del Sol

Mom & Will at La Costa del Sol
Mary & LizRestaurant on the bay side of La CostaAt the summit of La Puerta del DiabloAt the colonial church of Santa Cruz de Roma in Panchimalco. It has been severely damaged by earthquakes over the years.

Running North: A Yukon Adventure

A must read for anyone interested in dogs, mushing or Alaska. This was a Christmas gift from my husband and I appropriately thought to bring it with me to read during our trip in Alaska. It was an interesting look at the world of mushing from the perspective of a female handler. Ann Mariah Cook chronicles her family's move to Alaska in preparation for their participation in the Yukon Quest, possibly the toughest dog sledding race in the world. A great adventure story!