Busy days

Things have been a bit hectic since we arrived back. First, our ahijadas (goddaughters) were very happy to see us and we them. The twins flung themselves at us and squeezed so hard around our necks that we almost lost our breaths--delightful! We had brought back ponchos for the 3 girls crocheted by Barb’s sister-in-law, Jess. Jess also made three bead strings (Darianna is holding one); they are now attached to their purses. Barb had previously got the hats, sunglasses and purses. There they are, dolled up in the second foto (the photo is a bit dark but is not too bad if you click to enlarge it). We took them down to the malecon in Ajijic and strolled along. I think that we made quite a sight and I caught a number of people smiling as we passed. Even when we got to the playground, the girls were reluctant to take off their finery to play as you can see in the third foto. We had been taking the girls frequently to a restaurant; however, we decided that for the money we were spending, we could get 3 roasted chickens plus salad and tortillas, enough to feed all the little ones in the 5 and under house (before Christmas there were 18). When we arrived back, there are now 24! Well, we are going to continue bringing food, but we have to increase the chickens to 4. A chicken with salad and tortillas only costs 80 pesos (i.e., less than Can. $7.50) at the rosteria in Chapala; the guy chops the chickens into small pieces. The kids now know what to expect and go rushing to their places at the tables as soon as we arrive.

In February 2008 when we first visited Kate & Jack here in Ajijic, we met Sonia who lived in Dartmouth. She was down here last year for some months as well. She had sold her condo in Dartmouth and moved to Ottawa. This year Barb helped her to find an apartment to rent just a few blocks from us. She immediately began hunting for a house to buy as she is going to move down here. She did agree to buy a very nice one and is to have the closing next Monday on Jan. 25th. Unfortunately, while waiting (her apartment was the only one without bars on the windows), she had a break-in, losing her computer, some jewellery and some cash. Even more, she was nervous about staying there longer. Barb invited her to stay with us until she can move into her new hourse. This week, she decided to go on a short trip to Manzanillo, which is near Puerto Vallarta on the Pacific coast. She returns tomorrow on Friday.

About a week ago, we called Jose Luis, our contractor, about the irrigation system as one of the sprayers had broken off. While here, he mentioned to Barb that his men were just finishing a job and had no others at the moment. We had 3 more jobs that we intended to do, but had been thinking about waiting until late Feb. or March. In any event we decided to go ahead and they started last Friday. They have already finished installing a small patio off the spare bedroom. Yesterday, they started working on the addition to the bodega (garden shed). When finished, the bodega will be 3 times the current size. As usual with Jose Luis, he is making it extremely solid. The final job to do is in the driveway inside the walls. There are 2 long pads of cement for the wheels with grass in the middle. It is fine now, but during the hot dry season, we often go for days without moving the car and the grass under dies. The men are going to replace the grass in the middle with cement and flagstones. We are also having him install an electric light in the big star that Barb got for over the table in the gazebo. She had intended to put a candle in but the little door was too small for a big candle; in any case, a candle is lost in the big star. We'll provide fotos in a future blog when everything is finished.