Boats, Caves, and Piña Coladas.

If you haven't read the first part of this story, it's better to start at the beginning. To do that Click Here and read about what happened on my ACTUAL birthday and why this trip didn't happen then. 

Then let me say, Get Ready. This post is photo heavy and I wanted all of them to be extra large so you would get the full effect.

If you already read that previous post, let me remind you. Jade and I had jumped on an online deal to schedule a boat tour out to Las Islas Marietas with Vallarta Adventures. After our first failed attempt, we rescheduled from Saturday the 6th (my birthday), to the following Wednesday. 

On Tuesday, however, when we realized our car wasn't going to be finished at the mechanic's shop, we called back again and rescheduled an entire week later, to the following Wednesday, to give Tony plenty of time to finish the car. 

The tour company was very accommodating and helpful and we felt great about how easy they were to work with. 

So when that Wednesday rolled around we, again, dragged ourselves out of bed at 5:00 am, leaving the house by 5:30 in order to make the 1.5 hour drive to Nuevo Vallarta and account for the time difference to arrive by  8:00 am to board our boat on time. 

We were much better prepared this time. We got everything ready the night before and got plenty of sleep. No ear-cracking thunder to keep me awake for hours in the night, thank goodness!

We were very excited about our trip and arrived at the marina right on time. 

GET THIS:   ...They lost our reservation! 

When the lovely, accommodating young lady was talking to Jade the previous week she offered the new date and Jade said we would take it. Apparently, she had not made the change and no notes had been entered onto our account. 

They thought we had "no-showed" the previous week. 

Yikes! 

We quickly pulled out our cell phone and showed Divina proof that Jade had called again to reschedule. She was actually very nice and hopeful to help. Unfortunately, their boats for that day were entirely booked. 

She told us there was no way we could still go on the Marietas tour that day. She did offer for us to jump onto another tour (although we would have had to pay the price difference which I thought was less accommodating than they could have been). But I had my heart set on the Marietas islands and we rescheduled AGAIN for the coming Saturday. 

But I did pretend to need some time to think about it because they offered for us to do it from the dolphin observation deck. 

It was our third time rescheduling and would be our third time actually leaving our house early and trying to make it to the boat. It would be exactly 2 weeks after my actual birthday. 

So come Saturday the 20th, we had 5:00 alarm clocks again, an apple for the road. Sunscreen, hats and our snorkel gear were packed.

We just left the house about 5 minutes late. It wouldn't have been a problem had we not hit some pretty serious traffic that morning. It was worse than I had ever seen it. There were lots of big trucks and buses which were very slow. Opportunities to pass were few and far between. 

I was getting very nervous when it was 7:50 local time and we knew we were still probably 20 minutes away. But I also knew that the "check-in" time is usually scheduled quite a bit earlier than the absolute "you'll miss the boat if you haven't checked in yet" time. 

I also wasn't ready to get my hopes up until my butt was actually sitting on a boat. 

Luckily we arrived quickly and check-in was smooth. Divina had rescheduled us correctly so they had room for us. 

We ate a quick continental breakfast and boarded this beauty.

Jade had his GoPro camera which takes incredible photos as you can see blow. Unfortunately we had an issue with our memory card and these next two photos are the only two that made it from the entire day. Fortunately, though, I also had taken a waterproof handheld camera and had double documented everything. Lucky us.

We picked seats on the top deck in the back. I should know by now that I should always get a seat at the front. I LOVE boats. No, I mean I really, really LOVE boats. I love how the front of the boat bounces on the waves. And I never get sea sick.

At first we thought the boat was quite empty. Then the captain announced that we would be boating over to Puerto Vallarta to pick up the rest of the passengers. By then the boat was completely full, over 100 people on board and we set off for the islands.

The boat traveled fairly slow which I didn't mind at all. They told us it would be almost 2 hours before we arrived at the islands.

Jade and I enjoyed watching the (Jade is telling me they were brown boobies) birds dip in the air and slice through the water to catch fish. We saw two sea turtles in uh... romantic embrace. At that, the captain cried, "Love is in the air!" and he and the crew continued their show of salsa dancing and telling jokes to introduce themselves.

The weather was perfect and the time flew by. Soon we were anchoring right near one of the islands, which happen to be right off the coast of Punta de Mita.

So here's a quick wiki-history for you.

The Marieta Islands (Spanish: Islas Marietas) are a group of small uninhabited islands a few miles off the coast of Nayarit, Mexico. They are very popular tourist destinations because of the abundant marine life populations due to the islands being protected from fishing and hunting by the Mexican government.^[1]

The Marieta Islands were originally formed many thousands of years ago by volcanic activity, and are completely uninhabited. The islands are about an hour long boat ride west-northwest from the coast of Puerto Vallarta and are visited daily by hundreds of tourists, yet no one can legally set foot on the islands. In the early 1900s the Mexican government began conducting military testing on the islands because no one lived there. Many bombings and large explosions took place on the islands causing amazing caves and rock formations to be created. After a massive international outcry, started by scientist Jacques Cousteau in the late 1960s, the government eventually decided to label the islands a national park and therefore protected against any fishing, hunting or human activity.

So the government limits the number of companies that can take tours to the islands but there are a few. Most of the tour company websites boast about the aquatic life you might see including dolphins, sea turtles, manta rays, octopus, and almost 100 different species of birds that call the islands home, most notably the Blue-footed booby, the Brown booby, and the curious "laughing" sea gull. During the winter the area is very famous for whale watching.

We donned our snorkel gear and jumped in the water. Our tour didn't actually include very much snorkeling and we didn't go anywhere where there were many fish to see. I think mostly the snorkel gear was just used to help the 100+ people on the boat of varying swimming skill levels actually swim to the island.

Our first stop was the most famous island with the beach hidden in the center. The outside of the island is made up of rocky cliffs. There is one main tunnel into the center where you can relax on the sandy beach. 

This is the view of the tunnel from the inside.

These photos don't show it but with our whole tour group in there the beach seemed very small. Definitely not as big as I had imagined. 

To the left I found another cool cave to the outside of the islands. A few guys were exploring it ahead of Jade and me. We headed in behind them but the current was so strong they turned back about half way through. We took their word for it! But the view, seeing the waves splash up through the rocks and start filling up the cave was very cool. 

At the mouth of the cave a few of us stopped to take pictures. I was standing next to the designated photographer from their group. That's when the current got REALLY strong. I was holding onto the rocks next to me for balance and I tried to dig my feet into the sand to keep myself anchored. It didn't work. 

Next thing I knew my legs were parallel to the sand and my feet were being dragged into the cave. My death grip on the rocks was the only thing that kept me from being swept away and the photographer next to me was in the same position, his feet almost in my face. His four buddies rushed over and reached out to grab ahold of us without getting too close to get caught in the current as well. 

We headed back out the main tunnel back to the boat.  Honestly going through the tunnel was one of the best parts of the whole day. It was so cool! 

Jade and I did free dive just a little around the rocks on the outside of the cave. There was some cool coral and some different species of fish, even some fairly big ones. 

This (below) is the outside of the island. 

When we got back to the boat we jumped in one of the kayaks. I wanted to paddle board but the ocean was too rough for it to have been fun. We kayaked around for 10 minutes and when we got back on the boat they were taking ponga rides around a few of the islands, down to a private beach. 

I actually didn't know about this part of the tour. But man it was gorgeous there!! Seriously idyllic. One of the most beautiful places I have been in my life. We just walked back and forth a few times and took a million photos. 

When I had thoroughly documented the entire beach we jumped in the water and just enjoyed the crystal clear water.  

 But there was one last shot I really wanted. Nailed it.

We took the ponga back to the boat. I know we make orange life jackets look good. 

They had a lunch buffet out and ready and offered an open bar. I must have had at least 6 virgin Piña Coladas. 

Sooo happy.

Another two hours on the boat watching the waves and the birds and we were back on dry land. It was finally a birthday success!

 BONUS: No one got sea sick

Discursos

"He wants us to give talks in Sacrament meeting," Jade said to me. I had looked directly at him even though we were in the middle of a conversation with the Branch President at our church in Las Varas a few Sundays ago. I gave him my Translation, please? face.

I honestly had no idea what the man had said. I often pick up pieces of the conversations or even most of the them, getting hung up on just one or two difficult words. But this time I hadn't caught anything. But now that I knew, my mind was drowning in the idea of standing in front of everybody (all 6 of them) and having enough of anything to say in Spanish that I could take up fifteen minutes of time.

"In Spanish?" I joked.

"Sí, claro," Yes, of course.

Dang! So close...

We continued to joke about just baring my testimony and leaving almost all the time for Jade, or Jade giving my entire talk for me. We told him we might be "sick" that day.

Luckily he was giving us two weeks notice and letting us choose our own topic so I thought I was up for the challenge. I told him I would do the best I could.

So naturally, in holy Latter Day Saint tradition, we waited until the last Saturday night to write our talks.

No--not really... Well, --yes, really, but not intentionally.

Coincidentally, Jade and I did get sick just a few days later. It even kept us from Church that next week. Maybe He just wanted us to be freshly recovered with plenty of antibodies so we wouldn't have any excuse when "Talk Sunday" rolled around.

So on Wednesday, after we recovered, I started searching past General Conference talks to get some ideas. I actually felt really good about the fact that I was getting started 5 days before Sunday. Score for being on the ball! Yes!!

And that's when our laptop died. Well, actually the laptop charger died, usually a much easier problem to fix but until then carried the same death sentence.

I hadn't lost a lot of finished work. But without a computer I would have had to resort to writing my talk on the notepad on my iphone--not impossible but far from ideal, or on an actual paper notepad--oh the horror! The actual "horror" part would have been doing all the research and translating on the iphone and then hand writing in. Sounds very time consuming.

If only Amazon.com deliveries were as simple here in Mexico!!

Jade and I knew that our best bet was to drive down to Puerto Vallarta and find some kind of computer store. But this whole debacle happened just a week after my birthday and if you remember from my past post our car was in the mechanic's shop.

It was supposed to be finished that day, in fact, but that doesn't always mean a lot here in Mexico. Our mechanic seemed to be doing a great job and was awesome at keeping us updated but there was no way to know if our part would come on schedule or if anything else could go wrong.

So instead of trying to work out the bus schedule, we waited to see if our car would come to the rescue in time, which it did. It was finished on Wednesday and we picked it up so first thing Thursday morning we hit the road for Puerto, almost a 2 hour drive.

We had no luck finding a computer store and knew that even if we did it would have been slim chances they would have had the right charger for us. We actually found a universal charger at Wal-Mart for about 200 Pesos that had different size attachments. The biggest one looked like it would fit so we bought it feeling hopeful.

We brought our laptop into the mall and tried plugging it in to see if it would work so we would know before we made it all the way home in case we had to turn around and come right back for a different solution. But a security guard kicked us out! Apparently we are not allowed to steal their electricity for our personal devices.

It did work! But the computer won't hold a charge. I'm not sure if it's the battery's problem or the charger. We just leave it plugged in.

So that was a huge victory. We got home late on Thursday and were able to both write our talks on the laptop on Friday. Once we made some headway in that direction we realized we had another dilemma. No printer. Hmmm, not very prepared are we?

Luckily the Edmunds Family came to the rescue once again and let us come over and print off our talks on Saturday night.

When Sunday morning rolled around I didn't feel as nervous as I had expected. I didn't feel a lot of pressure to be funny or exciting. Really I just wanted to pronounce everything correctly.

When I wrote my talk I really only wrote the beginning and the end. Most of the middle was quoted from a talk by Elder Neil Andersen, copied directly in Spanish from the church website. Thank you LDS.org!!

But that meant there were some big words that I wasn't very familiar with. I knew that if I talked slow and paid close attention to the accented letters I would be fine. I also wrote the English translation below each paragraph in case I got lost.

I spoke first. My talk was about love and following Christ. Another sister spoke after me which we didn't expect. Her talk was about hope and it was beautiful. Jade spoke on happiness.

Normally if I was asked to give a talk in a new ward in English, my first thought would have been to take up half the time just introducing Jade and myself, telling how who we are, how we met, and why we were in the ward. It hadn't even crossed my mind! Luckily Jade picked up the slack and said all of that for us. He was funny and charming and his talk was mostly original compared to my mostly copied one. So he made us look good.

He even trimmed his beard for church so he looked sharper which will make y'all laugh if you've see him lately via FaceTime or photos.

All in all it was an awesome and crazy experience. I have posted my talk below if you care to check it out.





Hola Hermanos y Hermanas. Estoy agradecida por estar aquí. No puedo creer que Hermano Anaya me pidió a discursar con mi español terrible.

Pero a mí me gustó preparar mi discurso y sentí el espíritu en la preparación.


Hello brothers and sister. I am grateful to be here. I can't believe Brother Anaya asked me to speak with my terrible Spanish. But I enjoyed preparing my talk and I felt the Spirit in my preparation.

Hoy quiero hablar de mi Salvador.

Es un don especial de Dios, saber tanto de Jesucristo, y  su vida, y lo que el requiere de nosotros para que seamos sus discípulos.


Today I want to talk about my Savior.

It is a special gift from God to know so much about Jesus Christ and his life, and what he requires from us to be his disciples.

Eldér Dallin H. Oaks dijo “Seguir a Cristo no supone un ejercicio ocasional o casual, sino una dedicación continua y una manera de vivir que se aplica en todo tiempo y en todo lugar.”

Elder Dallin H. Oaks said, "Following Christ is not a casual or occasional practice but a continuous commitment and way of life that applies at all times and in all places."

Yo pienso que la cosa maravillosa es que lo mas que aprendemos de Cristo, podemos sentir cuanto nos ama.

I think that the wonderful thing is that the more we learn of Christ, we can feel how much he loves us.

Quiero usar un discurso de Conferencia General por el Eldér Neil L. Andersen. En su discurso “¿Qué piensa el Cristo de mí?” dijo,

“En la medida en que lo amen, confíen en Él, le crean y lo sigan, sentirán el amor y la aprobación de Él.”

I want to use a talk from General Conference by Elder Neil L. Andersen. In his talk, "What thinks Christ of me?" He said, "As you love Him, trust Him, believe Him, and follow Him, you will feel His love and approval."

"El presidente Monson dijo 'Es una época en la que aumenta la incredulidad y la indiferencia hacia Cristo y Sus enseñanzas."

President Monson said, “It is a time of growing disbelief in and disregard for Christ and His teachings."

En este ambiente turbulento, nos regocijamos de ser discípulos de Jesucristo; vemos la mano del Señor en todos lados. Nuestro destino se presenta hermoso ante nosotros. “Y ésta es la vida eterna”, oró Jesús, “que te conozcan a ti, el único Dios verdadero, y a Jesucristo, a quien has enviado”19. Ser discípulo en estos días de destino será un mérito de honor por todas las eternidades"
In this turbulent environment, we rejoice in being disciples of Jesus Christ. We see the Lord’s hand all around us. Our destination is beautifully set before us. “This is life eternal,” Jesus prayed, “that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”19 Being a disciple in these days of destiny will be a badge of honor throughout the eternities."
"El llamado de Jesús, “Ven, sígueme”21, no es sólo para quienes estén preparados para competir en unas olimpíadas espirituales. De hecho, el discipulado no es una competición en absoluto, sino una invitación para todos. Nuestra jornada del discipulado no es una rápida vuelta a la pista ni se compara del todo a un largo maratón. En verdad es una migración de toda la vida hacia un mundo más celestial."
"Jesus’s call “Come, follow me”21 is not only for those prepared to compete in a spiritual Olympics. In fact, discipleship is not a competition at all but an invitation to all. Our journey of discipleship is not a dash around the track, nor is it fully comparable to a lengthy marathon. In truth, it is a lifelong migration toward a more celestial world."
"Donde sea que se encuentren en el camino del discipulado, están en el sendero correcto, el camino hacia la vida eterna. Juntos podemos levantarnos y fortalecernos unos a otros en los grandes e importantes días que están por delante. Sean cuales sean las dificultades que enfrentemos, las flaquezas que nos limiten o las imposibilidades que nos rodeen, tengamos fe en el Hijo de Dios, quien declaró: “…al que cree todo le es posible.
"Wherever you now find yourself on the road of discipleship, you are on the right road, the road toward eternal life. Together we can lift and strengthen one another in the great and important days ahead. Whatever the difficulties confronting us, the weaknesses confining us, or the impossibilities surrounding us, let us have faith in the Son of God, who declared, “All things are possible to him that believeth.

Eldér Andersen cuenta una historia de una familia después el gran terremoto de Haití. Ellos fueron un buen ejemplo del discipulado.


Elder Andersen told a story about a family, after the huge earthquake in Haiti. They were a good example of discipleship.

Los padres, Olgan y Soline corrieron lo más rápido posible hacia su apartamento en busca de sus hijos; el edificio de tres pisos donde vivía la familia Saintelus se había derrumbado. Sus tres hijos fueron adentro.
[The parents], Olgan and Soline ran as fast as they could to their apartment to find the children. The three-story apartment building where the Saintelus family lived had collapsed. Their three children were inside.
La enorme destrucción estaba en todos lados. Los niños no habían escapado, y ningún esfuerzo de rescate se desplegaría en un edificio que estaba completamente destruido.
Massive devastation was everywhere. The children had not escaped. No rescue efforts would be devoted to a building that was so completely destroyed.
Olgan y Soline Saintelus habían servido en misiones de tiempo completo, se habían casado en el templo; creían en el Salvador y en las promesas que Él les había hecho. Sin embargo, tenían el corazón destrozado; lloraban de modo incontrolable.
Olgan and Soline Saintelus had both served full-time missions and had been married in the temple. They believed in the Savior and in His promises to them. Yet their hearts were broken. They wept uncontrollably.
Olgan me dijo que comenzó a orar en su hora más oscura. “Padre Celestial, si es Tu voluntad, si fuese posible que tan sólo uno de mis hijos estuviera vivo, por favor, por favor, ayúdanos”. Una y otra vez caminó alrededor del edificio, orando en busca de inspiración. Los vecinos trataron de consolarlo y ayudarlo a aceptar la pérdida de sus hijos, pero Olgan seguía caminando entre los escombros del edificio derrumbado con esperanza y oración. Entonces sucedió algo bastante milagroso. Olgan escuchó el llanto casi imperceptible de un bebé. Era el llanto de su bebé.
Olgan told me that in his darkest hour he began to pray. “Heavenly Father, if it be thy will, if there could be just one of my children alive, please, please help us.” Over and over he walked around the building, praying for inspiration. The neighbors tried to comfort him and help him accept the loss of his children. Olgan continued to walk around the rubble of the collapsed building, hoping, praying. Then something quite miraculous happened. Olgan heard the almost inaudible cry of a baby. It was the cry of his baby.
Durante horas, los vecinos desesperadamente excavaron entre los escombros arriesgando sus propias vidas. En lo oscuro de la noche, entre los aturdidores ruidos de martillos y cinceles, los socorristas oyeron otro sonido. Dejaron de golpear y escucharon. No podían creer lo que oían. Era el sonido de un niño, un niño que cantaba. Gancci, de cinco años, dijo más tarde que sabía que si cantaba, su padre le escucharía. Apretado bajo un pedazo de cemento que resultaría en la amputación del brazo, Gancci estaba cantando su himno favorito: “Soy un hijo de Dios”29.
For hours the neighbors frantically dug into the rubble, risking their own lives. In the dark of the night, through the piercing sounds of hammers and chisels, the rescue workers heard another sound. They stopped their pounding and listened. They couldn’t believe what they were hearing. It was the sound of a little child—and he was singing. Five-year-old Gancci later said that he knew his father would hear him if he sang. Under the weight of crushing concrete that would later result in the amputation of his arm, Gancci was singing his favorite song, “I Am a Child of God.”29
Con el pasar de las horas, en medio de la oscuridad, la muerte y la desesperación de tantos otros preciados hijos e hijas de Dios en Haití, la familia Saintelus fue partícipe de un milagro: Gancci, Angie y Gansly fueron hallados vivos bajo el edificio colapsado30.
As the hours passed amid the darkness, death, and despair of so many other precious sons and daughters of God in Haiti, the Saintelus family had a miracle. Gancci, Angie, and Gansly were discovered alive under the flattened building.30
Los milagros no suceden siempre de forma tan inmediata. A veces nos preguntamos con contemplación por qué el milagro que hemos solicitado tan fervientemente en oración no sucede aquí y ahora. Pero, al confiar en el Salvador, sucederán los milagros prometidos. Ya sea en esta vida o en la venidera, todo se pondrá en su lugar correcto.
Miracles are not always so immediate. At times we thoughtfully wonder why the miracle we have so earnestly prayed for does not happen here and now. But as we trust in the Savior, promised miracles will occur. Whether in this life or the next, all will be made right.

Eldér Andersen dijo, “Testifico que en la medida en que lo amen, confíen en Él, le crean y lo sigan, sentirán el amor y la aprobación de Él. Cuando usted se pregunte: “¿Qué piensa el Cristo de mí?”, sabrá que es Su discípulo, que es Su amigo. Mediante Su gracia, Él hará por usted lo que usted no puede hacer por sí mismo.”

Elder Andersen said, "I testify that as you love Him, trust Him, believe Him, and follow Him, you will feel His love and approval. As you ask, “What thinks Christ of me?” you will know that you are His disciple; you are His friend. By His grace He will do for you what you cannot do for yourself."

Yo también quiero testificar de la importancia de seguir a Cristo. Yo he sentido el amor de Cristo y sé que si tratamos de vivir rectamente, Cristo será feliz con nosotros.

Amo mi Salvador y amo este evangelio con todo mi corazón. Estoy tan agradecida por compartir mi testimonio y conocerles más a ustedes.

Gracias por su amistad y amor. Y Gracias por el espíritu aquí. Me encanta estar aquí con ustedes para adorar a Dios. Testifico del poder de amor.

Espero que amemos a nuestros vecinos y ayudarles encontrar el amor de Cristo.

 I also want to testify of the importance of following Christ. I have felt the love of Christ and I know that if we are trying to live righteously Christ will be happy with us. I love my Savior and I love this gospel with all my heart. I am so grateful to share my testimony with you and to get to know you. Thank you for your kindness and love. And thank you for your spirit here. I love being here with you, worshiping the Lord. I testify of the power of love. I hope that we may all love our neighbors and help them find the love of Christ. 


En el nombre de Jesucristo, Amen.

Families Can be Together Forever

Well the story of our little family starts with the fact I've never really ridden a fiberglass board. I have always had a foam board and I have only ever long boarded. 

Honestly I could probably count the number of times I've been surfing on both hands. But it is one of the major passions of my life, regardless of my amateur skills. 

And it is also my single biggest goal this summer--to get better at surfing, and to do it... a lot. 

The first weekend we were here in town Jade and I had made a run to Costco to stock up on food. While we were there we noticed their foam board selection. Not bad. And honestly it was a great price, only 1600 pesos, about $125 USD. 

The benefits of foam boards are awesome for beginners. They are more buoyant and much thicker which makes them more stable and easier to catch small waves. They are also much more durable which is a HUGE consideration. Fiberglass boards are very delicate and break or ding much easier. 

But Jade hadn't had a chance to begin looking for his board yet. He was planning on checking classifieds and surf shops and we had some other big purchases at the time so I decided to hold off on my Costco board. 

A few weeks later Jade had his heart set on a board. A Canadian family in Nuevo Vallarta was selling it because they were moving back. We went to check it out and although it had more damage than we were expecting, it was also more beautiful than I knew! I fell in love with it and it was a pretty fair price. 

As we were coming to find out, boards here are more expensive than in the states because most of them are imported. People have to pay the price to get the boards down here and there aren't a lot for sale at one time so cost and demand keep the prices up. A good deal on a new long board is usually around 8,000 Pesos! (Roughly $630.) And a good used board is usually 5 to 6,000. 

We found this board for 3,500 P ($275). 

Of course Jade did his research. The shaper, Steve Clark, is from San Diego and has been shaping boards for a lot of professionals for a long time. He makes really high quality boards and is known for using an especially strong foam. His trademark is putting a stamp of Duke Kanamoku on his boards. Duke was a Hawaiian swimmer credited as one of the first men to spread the sport of surfing around the world.

So he came home with us and Jade named him Duke.

So since Jade was set with his board we quickly scheduled a trip to P.V. to Costco to pick up mine. However when we got there, they were out! Jade took 3 laps around the store to make sure he hadn't missed them. I was out of luck.

We called back every few days to see if they had received another shipment but it was taking MUCH too long for me.

We decided to spend a morning surfing in Sayulita, trading off with Jade's board. He wanted me to see how a fiberglass board feels but mostly I think we were both tired of waiting to surf!

We invited Ethan who is an awesome surfer. In fact, the first time we saw Ethan was when he was playing around surfing the waves right here in Chacala. It's a steep beach break usually so it's pretty rare to see surfers but he was making it look easy. We honestly just watched him for a while, envious.

He joined us and even brought along a foam board he had access to and offered it to me to use.

But when I rode Jade's glass board, my mind was irrevocably changed. I had to have a glass board! I knew it was going to cost much more than 1600 Pesos.

As we talked about how much we could spend on my board it came up that we had a little nest egg we had set aside for a jetski that we had wanted to buy and tow to Mexico with us. It had fallen through at the last minute but the cash had been set aside for our "toy fund." We decided to get a great board that I could keep forever. AND we decided that we should get a cheap short board so we could practice here in Chacala. (Really we just wanted to be like Ethan, lol)

So Jade set out on another internet search. (I am pretty sure it's one of his favorite things to do in life). He said he had been checking the classifieds for a long board that was my size ever since we got here. There had never been any. We set a date to drive to Puerto and check out a short board that was in the classifieds.

There was also one other possibility. When Jade was looking, a while back, he found out that there was a good board shaper, here local. He had read an article on Marco in a Mexican surfing magazine online. Marco supposedly was very talented and was being praised for trying to keep his prices very low. He makes high quality custom boards for just a little more than you would normally pay for a good used board. He had worked in California but recently moved back and opened a shop in Buscerias.

His company ATL, pronounced Atul, is named after one of the ancient tribes from this area.

Jade had contacted Marco and his company/wife, Aimee to see if they had any boards on hand. It takes about 6 weeks for a custom board and although it was tempting... I just don't have that kind of time. I need to be in the waves, like, yesterday!

They had one board. It was an 8 foot (just my size) brand new board that a customer had cancelled his order for. We jumped on the chance to check it out but when we got to his shop on our way to P.V. that day he realized he had accidentally left the board at home.

We were perfectly willing to go to his house to look at the board. Before we left we mentioned that we were looking for a used short board as well. He rustled around in the back room for a minute and then emerged with a beautiful 6 foot board. There was no way we could afford it, not to be our trash board that would likely get broken on the beach in Chacala.

But it had been his own board. And he was selling it for a steal. We even talked him down an extra 500 pesos if we bought both the boards.

So we picked it up and drove down to his house to check out the long board, which was absolutely perfect. We bought both boards. 2,000 pesos for the short board and 5,750 for the long board. Roughly $150 and $450 respectively. They stopped and talked story with us for hours. We finally left when their 4 month old daughter, Lily, started getting fussy.

They were some of the nicest, coolest people we have ever met.What a cool experience! And what an honor that we will be riding his own board that he made for himself, along with a brand new, never-touched-the-water beauty.

When we got the boards home we laid all of them out on the bed so we could clear a spot for them. We named the short board Marco, after his father, and I named my long board Guadalupe. She is a Mexican beauty. No-- it doesn't matter that she's white. She's still Mexican. 

And today I actually put her in the water for the first time. We went to Playa de Tortugas! Which turned out to be one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. We surfed there for 3 hours and it was PHENOMENAL. I am 100% satisfied.

Aren't I supposed to be wiser? Or at least taller...

Well those of you who know me know that since I met Jade I have had some pretty incredible birthdays. You could call me a little spoiled. And especially after we spent the last two years in Hawaii and then Catalina Island for my birthday  let's just say that I am pretty blown away that I get to be lucky enough to celebrate my birthday in this tropical paradise. 

So we were gearing up for another awesome day of festivities. 

My first thought was to surf all day but alas, I didn't have a board yet. I could rent but that's kind of a hassle. I had settled on the choice to buy a soft-top foam board from Costco but they were currently out of stock. I expected some in any day so I decided to put off surfing for now. 

I knew how amazing it would be to spend the day deep sea fishing! I've never been and Jade's family are enthusiasts. Jade even has a trophy bill mount from a 421 pound Marlin he caught in Hawaii when he was 14 that resides as a decoration in our house! 

But okay, okay! I'm not THAT spoiled. We don't have jobs, after all. 

But I do LOVE boats and exploration adventures. And seeing the Marietas Islands is something on our To-Do List this summer so Jade looked into it. He found an ad online for a company that takes customers out on a tour to the islands. It was a great price so we booked a trip for my birthday. 

The trip includes a catamaran ride out to the islands, breakfast, lunch, snorkeling and kayaking gear, a small boat tour around the islands, and a ride back about 7 hours later. 

The islands are just out off the coast of Puerto Vallarta and are famous because the beach is in the inside of the island. 

This is a photo I found online. 

We thought we should  get all ready to leave the night before since waking up WAY too early was an unfortunate part of the plan. Of course, we were doing an excellent job of procrastinating getting ready when my first present arrived in Chacala the night before our trip.

Chuck and Colleen Edmunds bought me the most GIGANTIC Tres Leches cake cake I have ever seen. Chuck brought it back from a bigger city that he had visited that day. I think it was made buy a guy in his church. They called us over to pick it up and I nearly had a heart attack at the sight of the thing. 

In Chuck's infinite wisdom he thought we should split the cake since it was made for a family of 20. I tried so hard... (*cough cough) to get him to give us much less than half. He has 3 kids who I assumed would scarf it down. But no, apparently not many of them are fans of Tres Leches. 

So we took half (YES, pictured below is only HALF the cake) and headed home to start our celebration. There were no candles so I stuck a match in the cake and we lit it with uncooked spaghetti.

So this is where the story gets good. 

Because of ALL the cake we had to eat but mostly because of our unparalleled procrastination skills, we didn't actually get anything packed and ready for our trip the next day. We had started to make small piles of things that we knew we would need but we were so tired and knew we had to rise SO early (because of the long drive and the time difference to Puerto) so we decided to hit the sack and try to wake up early and finish everything. 

So...

1. We went to bed late because we are terrible procrastinators.

2. That night was the loudest thunderstorm I have ever witnessed. It kept me up for hours and I even had to plug my ears a few times because it hurt my eardrums. 

3. That day both Jade and I actually started feeling like we had a sore throat. Sicknesses always seems worse at night and that was another reason why I hardly got any sleep that night. 

4. I set 2 alarm clocks on my phone so we would be sure not to miss the trip. Both of which, I did NOT hear. We woke up at exactly the time we were supposed to be driving away. 

5. As we got ready at lightning speed (good thing breakfast would be served on the boat because there definitely wasn't time!) we remembered that part of our wake-up-early plan was to get gas. We were running low and although we were sure we could get to the next town, we definitely could not get all the way to Puerto Vallarta. So we knew that would make us another 10 minutes late. 

But we jumped in the car anyway and just hoped for no traffic or cops. We got about 8 minutes up Chacala Road towards the highway and the car sputtered. I thought Jade was slowing down for the turn but the car slumped to a stop. No juice. 

The engine turned over as Jade tried to restart the car several times. Still nothing.  

6. We were broken down on the side of an empty road. 

Six reasons why, apparently, we were not supposed to be on the boat that day. 

Jade tinkered with some things under the hood. Obviously not something I can tell you much about. The ending to that story is that nothing worked. It was 6 am in Chacala, too early to get much help. 

We called Vallarta Adventures and they said it was even too early for us to reschedule our trip. We weren't supposed to be there for another hour. We tried explaining that it would take an hour and a half to get to them and our car was currently parked with the hood up. They still asked us to call back later.

That was when Jade's unimposing, kind side came out. We knew we would call the Edmunds for help (Thank Goodness for friends!) but Jade didn't want to wake them up. "Let them sleep," he said. "We can't make our tour now. We don't have anywhere else to be. It's too early for a mechanic. We might as well hang out here for a while." (What a sweetheart, huh!)

So we sat and talked. Jade tried a few more things with the car. A few people drove past us but traffic still hadn't picked up. 

There was a farmer that drove by to check on us twice. He was on the land right across the street from us. He offered us waters and even gave us a pineapple so we wouldn't starve there. He practiced his English with Jade telling us about his family in Oregon. He offered to tie a rope to our car and tow us over to his cousin's house! "Son mecanicos," he told us, "They are mechanics. We'll fix your car!" He was the sweetest guy and our conversations with him made my day. 

"I am 65," he told us later as he strung a big basket full of pineapples on his back, "can you believe it?" Jade teased him saying that he couldn't be more than 30, although he really did look young and strong. "It's because I eat of lot of fish. Fish and shrimp and only a little bit of cerveza." I guess that's the secret to youth, seafood and pineapple farming.

We hung out there for an hour, giving the day a chance to wake up a little. Still, it was only 7 am but we decided to get started. We called and rescheduled our trip for the following week with no problems. Chuck came quickly to our rescue. We tried adding some gas. The car had acted like it was out and it could have been possible since we were low. But the gas light hadn't come on yet so it was unlikely. Still worth a shot, though, but no cigar.

We drove into Las Varas and got the number for a tow truck off the side of a building. Nothing was open yet so we headed back to Chacala. Chuck sent us the number for a mechanic.

All of our intentions to get something done early flew out the window when I got home and saw my bed, so inviting. We had a nap for few hours and then got back to it. Chuck gave us a ride back to our car. We called the tow truck and waited there for about another hour. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the tow truck. I honestly half expected a rope tied to the bumper. : )

He got us into Las Varas to a mechanic and the guys started looking at it immediately. But it was about closing time for siesta and since it was Saturday they wouldn't reopen again until Monday. 

 They told us to call Monday for an update and we walked down to the highway and took a taxi back to Chacala.

Exhausted, we decided to sit back and enjoy a dinner on the beach. We sat at one of the restaurants, our toes in the sand, and enjoyed a much deserved, delicious meal of fresh fish and coconut shrimp.

 We walked on the beach, got caught in the rain, and cuddled up to a cute chick flick, my choice of course.


The car is fixed now. It took the mechanics about a week so we rescheduled our trip again. Luckily Vallarta Adventures has been very nice about it.

Our tour of the Marietas Islands is actually scheduled for this Wednesday, 2 days from now. There will definitely be pictures to come.

...I think I'll start packing now.

I didn't end up getting a foam board from Costco. I got a fiberglass board that is MAGNIFICENT. Pictures to come.

I seriously hope that someday I can repay Chuck and Colleen for all the help they gave us. Having them to rely on was the ultimate blessing on my birthday. Without them I think I would have been a wreck.

And if you are wondering what happened to all that cake....
I'd say we did pretty well. I am going to have to jog back to America to burn all these calories. But when you are given the most delicious Tres Leches you've ever tasted... it's totally worth it.

Let Freedom Ring!

As Jade and I sat on the beach on July 3rd, a typical Wednesday in Chacala, we racked our brains to figure out how to celebrate Independence Day for ourselves.

I have never been out of the country on the 4th of July so I have always been surrounded by people clamoring to celebrate the holiday that rings of our freedom.

In Mexico, it would be just another Thursday, just like last week and just like next week.

It was hard to imagine that there would be no parades, fairs, or my favorite, fireworks. No red-white-and blue clothing and Popsicles. And definitely no proudly waving American flags in front of every house.

 I have taken for granted that there is usually not much pressure to plan something for ourselves because there is a myriad of public events to give us our fill of excitement and patriotic celebration.

We had no clue what to do. Even though, "when in Rome," we are happy to celebrate Mexican holidays, something in my heart did not feel right about skipping this US holiday. We were determined to find a way, however small, to celebrate our American freedom.

At first I wanted to barbecue. That's the perfect American summer tradition, isn't it? But wait... we don't have a barbecue. All we have is a stove. We could fry something? But we didn't have any typical barbecue food anyway. Jade and I usually stick to the cheap Mexican style food here and I don't think rice and beans would have captured the sentiment we were going for.

Baking a patriotic dessert would be fun and delicious, the best combination. but ...actually our oven has never been used. Vicki said she doesn't cook much and hasn't lighted it since it was installed. (Those are NOT the type of fireworks I would like to see this year.) Also no baking ingredients or even a pan I think I could use. And what exactly makes a dessert patriotic, anyway? Does it need to be red, white, and blue? Because frosting is definitely out of  the question.

We thought about the fireworks we heard going off the previous Sunday during church in Las Varas (which at first I thought were gunshots... not scary AT ALL). It would be very traditional to have fireworks. I wondered where we could buy them and my mind wandered over whether they were legal here. Buying fireworks out of the trunk of a guy's car on a sketchy side street hiding from Policia is not the American adventure I was looking for either. Scratch that plan.

So after many failed attempts my best idea was to simply eat American food, not a single taco or burrito all day, and to just enjoy ourselves.

I know there didn't HAVE to be an outward expression of our celebration. Having pride, joy, and gratitude in our hearts for our freedoms in America is all the holiday is really about.

I am so extremely grateful to our Lord for leading our Founding Fathers to secure such a wonderful nation with God-given rights and freedoms such as religious freedom, freedom of speech, the right to bear arms, the right to due-process and a fair trial, the right to defend ourselves and our family, and so many others.

I cannot put into words how grateful I am to those who serve in our military to defend those rights and freedoms at great personal cost. And for their families for the cost they bear just the same.

There are a lot of difficulties that our country is facing but despite the trials, I am so completely PROUD to be American that I wanted to find a way to pay tribute in my heart, to show my thanks.

And so instead of our typical avocado/egg breakfast tacos, we ate cereal for breakfast. We had pb&js for lunch. We SO enjoyed everyone's Facebook and Instagram posts which  made us feel a part of the festivities. And we sat on the beach all afternoon, just being grateful.

And then an unexpected gift, Ethan Edmunds saw us on the beach when he was heading out for a swim. He strolled over to us and invited us to his family's house for dinner.

Ethan, 13 is the oldest son of Chuck and Colleen Edmunds. They are an American family that recently moved down here from California. Their work is with Global Church Partners, working with and training local pastors (www.globalchurchpartners.com). They have 2 other kids, Syndey is 11, and Alistair is 4.

We met them a few weeks ago on the beach when they were hanging out with a couple friends that were in town vacationing. What a pleasure it has been to get to know them! Chuck and Colleen are the kindest, greatest people and their kids are all very creative, talented, and sweet. It's funny to me that I hardly notice Ethan and Sydney's ages. They are so fun to be around they just seem like friends.

...And no, I am not just saying that because they will probably read this.

So we got to have a barbecue dinner after all, chicken, potatoes, and pineapple, and a patriotic dessert to top it all off.

As we gawked at Ethan's amazing photography skills in his photos from the lightning storm the previous night, he reminded me that the storm had been a pretty great natural "fireworks" show too. Check out his photo! AMAZING!!

Let freedom ring!