Acapulco, Baby! SLC friends eat your hearts out!

This past weekend we were invited to Acapulco with some friends. They have a condo there...right on the beach! It was so beautiful, quiet, and relaxing. Gabby loved swimming in the pools....she wasn't too fond of the sand or the ocean waves, but she had a great time anyway! She got to play a ton (or tease shall I say) her friend William who is only 6 weeks younger than here. He was running all around and she was crawling around chasing him! Yes--she has regressed to crawling....faster, maybe?

Anyway, we had a wonderful weekend with our friends. It was so nice to get out of the city and relax. It is so amazing to think that places so beautiful are right here in Mexico....

First Steps

So, Gabby just took her first totally independent steps tonight! She is 1 year and 3 weeks old and she seems quite proud! It is like a whole new world has just opened up to her! Enrique and I have been having her walk to each of us while we sit on the floor with her. She usually takes 2 steps or so and then just reaches out so one of us will grab her....but not tonight! She got her balance and started walking! She took about 5 steps and we were cheering and clapping and she had a huge smile on her face. Enrique ran to get the video camera and of course she was not cooperative. After a few more minutes she started up again and now she is getting even better balance....7 steps independently is the record for tonight! We did capture some good footage on the video camera and we will get it on here asap! On another note.....it is FREEZING here! All of Mexico is getting hit with massive cold front and it even snowed in one part of Mexico today! We have a heater in our room and we are staying warm in there for now! Hope all is well. Looking forward to Tuesday. What a marvelous day that will be....a new President!

2009

I would like to say this is my first blog of the new year, but since I have been catching up today since Christmas.....this is the third blog of the new year!
We have been visiting with my mom and George this past week. My mom has been ill (she must have drank the water!) so she has been resting. Enrique and I have been taking George all around the city. On New Year's Eve we went to some ruins called Tepotzlan. The cool thing about these ruins is that you have to hike to the top of a mountain to see them. Yeah---the pyramids were stratigically built atop a mountain. The hike is difficult, but well worth it. I had been there before, but Enrique and George were newbies. They had a great time, as did Gabriella. She was chattin it up with people left and right and everyone was getting a kick out of it!

We came home in the evening to find most every business shut down for the night! Enrique and George went off in search of dinner, while I layed down to relax with my ma and Gabby. We all fell asleep....and soon Enrique came in to say "Happy New Year!" I was quite grouchy, went back to sleep, and woke up the next morning...not quite as we had planned, but ce la vie!

George and Enrique, on the other hand, stayed up watching the countdown on T.V., drinking a few beers (maybe a few more than a few) and did a tradition for the New Year. Here, each person has 12 grapes in a cup and when the New Year is ringing in you make a wish for each of your 12 grapes and then eat them. Normally, you share your wishes aloud with the group and usually you end up wishing good things for family and friends, rather than for yourself. I still need to wish upon my grapes.....

I cannot imagine what this year holds in store for La Familia Gonzalez. We had a crazy, difficult, and amazing 2008 so here's to 2009! Bring it....

First Birthday

It seems like just yesterday I brought home this amazing little creature from the hospital. I was scared, tired, scared, nervous, excited, scared, full of self-doubt, amazed, scared, exhausted, scared... And here we are a whole year later! Everyday is amazing and full of surprises. I now feel: amazed, excited, tired, fulfilled. The scared is mostly gone.....it is so different and wonderful having made the move to Mexico and sharing all these moments with Enrique and Gabriella. Even a year ago, I didn't know when we would all be together and here we are! We've made it! We celebrated Gabby's birthday with Enrique's family first. We planned a small party with hamburgers and french fries--a la americana--we called it! Just as the party was beginning a clown arrived! Enrique's mom had gotten the clown and it was so fun! The clown was great--he had everyone participating. Later, we ate and sang, cut the cake, and opened gifts. It was such a great time chatting with everyone and enjoying such a great celebration. We also celebrated back at our house with my mom and George. We went to the zoo downtown with one of Gabby's friends and some of my friends from work. It was a beautiful day! Very very crowded, but a great day nonetheless! Gabby fell asleep during part of the visit, but what are you gonna do? She needed her beauty sleep! I am so thankful for such amazing family and friends. I am realizing every day how lucky I am to have the chance to be here with my little family and I am learning to live each day...not just exist. Gabby does a great job of reminding me that even though we are not living in Salt Lake like I had always pictured, we are still very much alive and have great opportunities to be happy every day if we choose to be so.....

Merry Christmas!

I really cannot believe that Gabby's first Christmas has come and gone already! We spent the holiday with Enrique's family. We had a traditional posada on Christmas Eve at his sister-in-law's house with all his family and some friends. A traditional posada begins around 11 p.m. A group of people are outside the house and a group of people are inside the house. Everybody has a little candle. The candles get lit and all other lights, music, etc. in the house are turned off. The group outside the house starts singing the posada song and the group inside sings back....this goes on for a good 10 minutes or so, then the group outside is offered a chance to come inside and celebrate and eat. The group outside enters....the first person to enter is carrying a small porcelain baby (representing Baby Jesus) and everyone sings some songs to the baby, takes a turn holding it, gives it a small kiss, and the last person places the baby into the nativity scene. By this time it is just after midnight and Christmas has begun! We then did a gift exchange (we had drawn names...you know the drill) and then sat down to eat. When all was said and done it was about 2 a.m. and we finally went home to sleep! We didn't take any of Gabby's Santa presents with us because we celebrated Santa style once we got back to the city and my mom and my friend George arrived. They flew in on the 27th and on the morning of the 28th we opened presents and the sort. Gabby got some blocks, books, dolls, and a kitchen with some dishes. She didn't really get what was going on, but she sure has enjoyed her stuff. Speaking of stuff....that is what I have focused on for so many Christmases....buying stuff for people. Will they like it? Do they already have it? Until this year. I didn't send anything back to Utah. We didn't buy presents for everyone in Enrique's family. I didn't get everybody at school presents. We didn't buy Gabriella presents galore. We chose carefully for our daughter. We celebrated. We laughed. We created new memories. We spent time together. We enjoyed the holiday....it was amazing. Hope your holiday was amazing, too.