Utah to Costa Rica Road Trip

We left Cuyutlan yesterday after stopping at the internet café, then drove a few hours to Ixtapa/Zijuatenejo. The road from Mismaloya to Playa Azul was along the coast and through the mountains, so it was extremely windy, but with beautiful vistas of the cliffs and ocean below. Unfortunately, it is still the dry season, so the whole country has not been as green as it usually is. There are beautiful flowering bushes and trees, but the majority of the trees are still bare. It’s amazing the miles and miles of gorgeous, undeveloped beaches, which had only a few habitations of locals. By the time we were off that road all of us were quite sick though, I’ve never been on such a windy road.

This is the less touristy part of Mexico, so the roads are smaller (but mostly in great condition still), and the villages are authentic, many of them without cars, running water and sometimes, electricity. It is such a neat experience. I often wonder what it would be like to grow up and live the lives these people live. What is it like for them, what experiences have they had, what thoughts do they think? I am so grateful to have available to me all the opportunities and blessings that I do, and to have been born into such a land of abundance and prosperity. The stereotype is that Americans are rich, and now I know that that is true. Even the poorest of us are still wealthy compared to a vast majority of the world.

We woke up early Sunday and got ready for church, and then drove around and miraculously found the church building. No one was there…except for one man who was late meeting some friends, so he hopped a ride with us and we drove to the stake center (it was stake conference). Guess who was the presiding authority? Richard G. Scott of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles! Imagine our delight! We drove across town and arrived before the meeting started, and we were able to hear Elder Scott open the meeting and explain that he had come to reorganize the stake presidency, but after meeting with the current president, each man prayed individually and received the same impression that the current president’s work was not done and he was to remain in his calling. Very interesting, we had never heard of that before.

That was as long as Kimball and Parker lasted. Greg took them out, and after a few more minutes, Kyah was done as well. (We had no food at our hotel, so we all went to church hungry, as we had no time to stop to get something.) They had English translation in other classrooms around the church, but the kids were so hungry and restless, I finally took Kyah out to the car to get…something, anything. Greg came out a few minutes later with the boys (after receiving a blessing from the Elders) because he was so sick. He was ready to leave, so we loaded up and left (after doing a twenty point turn trying to get our huge American vehicle out of an overcrowded church parking lot.)

Then it took us nearly an hour to drive back across town with Greg ready to throw up any moment and so weak he could hardly hold the steering wheel, with Aaliyah crying and Kyah screaming, “I’m starving!!!!” After what seemed like eternity, we arrived back at the hotel and spent the remainder of the day resting. Greg felt a lot better after throwing up, and is feeling much better today. Parker woke up with a fever last night, and Kimball still had one also, but all is well today.

We left Puerto Vallarta today, Monday. We weren’t too fond of it, and didn’t really do anything while there. It was too big and too touristy. Plus everyone was sick or handicap (Kevin has been having trouble with his foot). We drove along Highway 200, and stopped at the Los Angeles Locos, an all-inclusive hotel past Tenacatita. They have over 200 rooms and the cost includes all food and drinks, plus all activities like horseback riding, snorkeling, surfing, etc. Unfortunately they were full until Wednesday.

So we went back to Tenacatita, a beautiful little beach that is mostly undeveloped, called by the locals, Tenacatitaaahhhhhh! It was gorgeous, and we stopped and had lunch at a palapa (a palm-thatched restaurant) called Los…something, the name for parrot in Spanish, which was on the beach (I had fresh shrimp). We considered staying there, but there was no internet in town, nor a laundry mat, so we continued on and kept driving until we reached Cuyutlan, a small town with a unique dark, fine sandy beach. Our hotel is Maria Victoria, which is right on the beach. I consider it to be a step up from the roach motel we stayed at in Los Mochis. I’m a little tired of staying in dilapidated hotels, I’m ready for a nice all-inclusive. I’m also a little tired of living out of our car- it’s a mess, crammed full of all of our stuff, and it is so dirty now. Oh well, I guess we can’t keep it nice forever, especially in our circumstances.

Still livin’ the dream!

Unfortunately I got off on the wrong foot with Sayulita. First of all we couldn’t find it because there were no signs, then when we arrived we couldn’t find the road to the beach. When we did find the roads, they were so small, only one car could fit on them, so we had a difficult time maneuvering and getting around. It seems that I have seen more white people than I have Mexican people, and most of the foreigners seem to come here to party. They have the music thumping right now at some party and it’s 11:00 pm. It is still a beautiful place, and it does have Internet access, so we’re planning to stay here for the weekend so that we can go to church in Puerto Vallarta.

We stayed at Junto a Rio, little bungalow right on the beach. All of their bungalows were actually full, so we stayed in a large tent that was set up on a large concrete slab. It was very spacious, and had a king size and two twin beds, and was connected to a bathroom. We slept well, but found the tent swarming with mosquitoes the next morning.

For breakfast, we set off into town to find the “juice lady.” She made us all some excellent smoothies, then we went across the street to “Si Hay Olitas” for breakfast. The food was fabulous! (In fact every where we have eaten the food has been fabulous!)

Greg met a guy who offered to teach him a few moves on the body board, so they went to play in the water while the kids and I played in the sun and sand. Around nap time we went back to our tent to take naps, but found that it was too hot. We had already paid for three nights stay, but we decided after the mosquitoes and the midday heat, that the tent thing wasn’t going to work with small kids. We spoke to the manager, Megan (she is from B.C.), and her father-in-law, Ignacio, who owns it. They very kindly refunded our money so we could move on to Puerto Vallarta. Nice, kind people, I highly recommend them. Their bungalows would be awesome and they have a nice little spot on the beach that is good for kids. Most importantly, they are more concerned about people then they are about money.

Our stay in Sayulita was overall pleasant, but still not our favorite place so far (that would be Playa Chacala, though our favorite resort/hotel was definitely El Rancho). We have now made it to the south end of Puerto Vallarta and we are staying at Jalisco Vacacionale, a worn, dated, but clean and very spacious hotel (Jalisco is the state we are now in). Our room has two bedrooms, each with two queen size beds, two bathrooms, and a large room that serves as living, dining and kitchen, with large windows that have a spectacular view of the ocean and pool below. The beach is not the best we’ve seen. It has a large rock jutting out on the north side, then sand for a couple hundred yards, and then the beach is pebbly. We plan to stay here until Monday, after we go to church in Puerto Vallarta tomorrow.

We have been having such wonderful experiences. It has been awesome. The kids have done really well. We have had our share of tantrums and friction, but overall we have managed to keep our goal of being happy. I’ve realized how ignorant we were and how little we actually have had to fear. Mexico is a wonderful place and everywhere we have been I have felt completely safe. I have never felt the least bit threatened or even frightened (except when we were lost in the dark in Mazatlan!) The people are so kind and helpful, and they all absolutely love children and always comment positively about our “Hermosa bebes” and our happy family. I feel that we are like snails, leaving a trail of love and goodness behind us wherever we go.

Again and again Greg and I have confirmed to us that we are doing the right thing because we are following our hearts, and we truly believe that when you follow your heart, you can’t go wrong, but that by so doing the whole universe will conspire to help you accomplish your dream.

As we share our experiences with you, we hope you all know that it is not to gloat over you that “Ha, Ha, we’re here and you’re there.”

Our purpose is probably best stated in the quote that Nelson Mandela made famous, which says “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us, it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Livin’ the Dream, Baby!

When we couldn’t take the bugs anymore, we drove into San Blas, a romantic little town filled with lots of "history" that dates back to thee 15th century. It was immortalized by the poem "The Bells of San Blas" written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. When we drove into town, the first impression is “a little scary” (as is the impression in most little…let me rephrase that, in all cities and towns in Mexico). It’s a regular, small, Mexican town, with abandon buildings, graffiti, stray dogs, and I think our initial reaction as Americans is fear, because where we come from only the “bad” parts of town look like that. I am learning that many of our beliefs, and especially fears, are based on incorrect or ignorant ideas.

We ate dinner at El Cocodrilo Restaurant right on the main street (Juarez, I think). (Another fear was that you can’t eat anywhere in Mexico, except for McDonalds, or you will get sick.) It was excellent food, the best we have had so far, and was located right across the street from the central plaza. Soft music was playing while we watched the people gathering for the evening to talk and visit together. It seemed so wonderful that I could see myself living there and felt a part of them, and again I realized how much these people are just like us, how “human” they are, despite how “foreign” their living conditions and circumstances may be to us. To them, it is just the way things are.

After visiting with some of the people in the plaza and playing with some of the kids, we went back to our bungalow, Casa Roxanna, a cute, well kept, very clean place with kitchen, pool and secure parking.

We arose early the next morning to head to Matachen to take the La Tovara River Jungle Boat Tour (take the road toward Puerto Vallarta before San Blas). An absolute fantastic experience! I would highly recommend it to anyone. The seven of us road in a lancha with our guide down a beautiful jungle river tunnel filled with mangrove trees, exotic birds, tortoises, wild raccoon like animals (I wish I knew their name), and crocodiles! Yes real crocodiles, one about 8 feet long was not 10 ft from our boat!

Further up the river we stopped at the Cocodrilo Refuge where they raise crocodiles and release them into the wild. It was amazing. They were feeding the adult crocodiles when we arrived, the ones that they keep for breeding. They have two in each cage, a male and female. Some were 12 feet long! Then we got to see all the babies, and because of Greg’s skills, they got a baby one out that we could hold. It was an awesome experience!

After our jungle tour, we headed further south toward Puerto Vallarta, stopping at Playa Chacala, which is on the way- located off of Highway 200. It is a very small town with a small beach in a little cove- and it is amazingly beautiful, supposedly one of the most beautiful beaches in Pacific Mexico. The only drawback here was the piles of garbage you had to cross over before getting to the fabulous beach. We learned later (which we had suspected) that it was the result of Holy Week, which was recently celebrated, and is not normally like that.

We played on the beach and did some body boarding, then decided we liked it so much we wanted to stay. We found the Mar de Jade, a beautiful little Zen/Buddhist resort all by itself at the south end of Playa Chacala. They are actually having a Silent Retreat beginning tomorrow, which includes meditation, etc. One guest here, after seeing us arrive with our four children, asked if we had come for the retreat. We told her we were only staying one night. “I thought it would be difficult for you to participate in the Silent Retreat.” “Impossible!” was our reply. (She had two small children of her own and is leaving tomorrow also.)

We relaxed in the pool for an hour, and then set off down the beach for some food. We ate at Chico’s restaurant, which is right on the beach, and had some excellent fresh seafood and enjoyed a beautiful sunset. The food is sooooo good! I wish I could capture that in the camera and share it with you!

We absolutely love Playa Chacala; it is definitely our favorite beach and town so far. The waves are great, the sand is perfect, and the people are awesome. It was a fabulous experience. The only bad part was that I left our door open while writing this to let in some cool air. All the bugs must have been attracted to the computer screen and they have eaten me alive. I have at least 19 bug bites…on my right arm, and probably that many on each limb. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh! Itchy!!!!

Livin’ the Dream, Baby!

We left as soon as we could then stopped at a gas station to ask for either an “Iglesia de Mormones” or an Internet Café. She didn’t know about the “Mormones”, but gave directions to an internet café instead, which led us down a paved road that turned into a dirt road that led right through a “neighborhood” which was way out of town, but no internet café. We found ourselves back on a paved road that was wide and in good condition. Deciding that we should just head toward Mazatlan, we set off going east on this paved road thinking (hoping) it would lead to the highway. Instead it led to…nothing. This great big paved road went out and stopped in the middle of nowhere. So what do you do? We returned the way we came…and we just passed a dead horse.

Well, we did make it to Mazatlan, and it is AMAZING! Gorgeous, stunning, magnificent, glorious, wonderful! We have been thoroughly enjoying our time here (now 3 days)- it is an absolute paradise. The resort we are staying at is called El Ranchos and it is beautiful!! It is located on Calle Sabalo Cerritos, which is right on Playa Cerritos (Cerritos Beach) www.elranchos.com They are rustic bungalow style villas. Ours is a two story with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room, dining, and full kitchen. It is very quiet, quaint and cozy. Most of the time we have the pool or Jacuzzis to ourselves, and the private beach as well. They have an onsite restaurant, which is upstairs overlooking the restaurant, but today they served our lunch poolside.

The most wonderful part about El Ranchos is their spectacular gardens! They are amazing! I definitely feel in paradise being surrounded by them. I highly, highly recommend this place.

When listening to “How to Be a No Limit Person,” Wayne Dyer asks, “How long would you sleep if you had no clocks or calendars, no specific meal times or bed times?” He says some studies show that people only need 4.4 hours of sleep…so we got excited by that and have been staying up late and getting up at 4:30 am to go running on the beach. And do you know what? I feel great! The only “side effects” are that if I sit down for awhile I get really sleepy, and when I lay down (to go to bed or to put the kids to sleep) I crash almost immediately- which for me is great because I used to have trouble falling asleep.

We spend most of our time swimming, either in the pool or the ocean, and playing in the sand. My favorite thing is to collect the countless sea shells- there are so many of them and in a multiplicity of colors and varieties. I think I want to make some jewelry out of my favorites.

We did go to Walmart again. It’s so interesting because it is Walmart, but it is geared to this culture. Some of it is kind of like an open market- the seafood section, and the bakery, where they walk around with trays and pick out their breads. The eggs aren’t refrigerated, they play Mexican music (on a boom box), anyone serving food (behind the meat counter, etc) all wear face masks, and my favorite part, is all the women, and some of the men, can’t resist but pinching Aaliyah’s cheeks! They just love babies and they say, “Hermosa!” (beautiful).

We did have one adventure in Mazatlan. After Walmart, we got heading out of town back to Culiacan (North where we came from), so we tried to turn around, but got totally lost. We were WAY out of town, on some dirt roads, and then found out we were heading the wrong direction, and the ocean was on our right, instead of our left. Well, after much difficulty and asking multiple people for directions (getting directions in Latin America is…mmmm, difficult) we finally got headed back the right way. I can only say that it is the only time so far that I have felt scared while in Mexico. It makes me appreciate Utah roads a lot more- they make sense.

The only other adventure that we’ve had is when Parker walked over to the pool in his clothes, then decided that he wanted to go swimming, so he took them all off and ran back to our room butt naked to put on his swimsuit. That got a few laughs!

Livin’ the Dream, Baby!

I was in a cove with a large island right in the middle, and on one side were these towering cliffs that had beautiful homes built right on the edge of them- what a view they must have had. It was all very beautiful, even if it wasn’t what I expected. So I decided to head back to grab the fam so they could enjoy it with me.

We changed into our suits, then headed for the beach down the flowering walkway. (The flowering bushes they have here are absolutely brilliant. Unfortunately this is where my camera battery died, so I missed pictures of the beach.) Kevin and Greg experienced my initial disappointment at the beach, but then we all had a nice time. They got in the water with the kids and I worked on my tan while Aaliyah slept on a towel in the shade.

Later Kyah and I waded through the water looking for “a big seashell” that she wanted so bad, like the one Kevin found for Parker, and I saw two small stingrays, a dead fish, and found lots of hermit crab shells (some with hermits still in them). We did find a big seashell to her satisfaction, and all was well until she slipped and cut her leg on a rock. With the saltwater stinging it, she wasn’t too happy about it, and the rest of her hour was ruined. We decided to head back to the pool by our room, where we hung out until check out.

We arrived the night before when it was dark, so we actually were able to see the town on the way out- as well as the beautiful beaches that we had been dreaming of! The first hotel that we had stopped at that had no vacancy (called Fiesta…something) was situated right on the white sandy beaches that we wanted! That’s one good reason to get to your destination during the day- you can see where you want to go. Next time we go to San Carlos, we’ll know where to stay.

Our next destination for the night was Los Mochis, about 4 hours away we figured. We headed south, and stopped over for lunch in Ciudad Obregon, where we stopped at Pizza Hut (Kevin got McDonald’s- we finally found one after all their advertising!) We met some very nice boys, 12 and 13, who washed our windshield, and were very fascinated with the laptop. I gave them some granola bars, which they really enjoyed. We got our pizza, which included packets of Salsa Catsup (it’s just regular catsup)…weird, then headed out of town.

Obregon was a large city that had many name brand stores like McDonalds, KFC, even a Nissan dealership (Greg liked that), and a Super Wal-Mart with covered, guarded parking. We had to go to Wal-Mart, just because it was there in Mexico, and to get a part to try and fix the DVD player cord which Kyah broke day before yesterday, so that we can have a DVD player again.

Los Mochis is actually inland, and you know us, we wanted to stay on the beach, so we headed west through Los Mochis to Topolobampo, which was on the coast. Of course we’re just going off the map, so we have no idea what any of these towns are like. Los Mochis was…a Mexican city, but advertised some nice hotels, a brand new Best Western, etc. We arrive in Topolobampo, which was about 10 km west of Los Mochis, and this is the real Mexico. A tiny little town, built right into the hills with colorful concrete houses, laundry hanging on clothes lines, rabid stray dogs and narrow little streets. We of course stuck out like a sore thumb in our huge American car loaded to the hilt, looking like we are definitely lost.

We drove right through the middle of town looking for a hotel that we saw advertised, but never saw anything that looked slightly close to some place we would feel comfortable staying. It was a very small place, and very fascinating. Some of the buildings actually seemed to be hanging off the cliff right above your vehicle.

The thing that struck me the most was how “normal” the people seemed to be. They were walking around, laughing, talking, gathering together at a park, eating, and playing games. They were all dressed in American style clothing with name brands; many of them had cars, some very nice. They are born here (in hospitals??), play as children, fall in love, marry, raise their children, grow old and die, but they do it in these 3rd world conditions that are so foreign to our lives of luxury. Yet they all looked so very happy and were all so friendly. It was really neat to see it.

We decided to head back to Los Mochis to sleep. By now the kids were going crazy!! “We’ve been driving forever!” So we stopped at the first hotel we could find which was the Coronado, checked in, then bribed the kids with M&M’s to get back into the car to go find some food.

Some event had just gotten out, so traffic was horrendous (at 8:00 p.m.), so we pulled off at the Bodega (a Wal-Mart like store) to grab…something. We must have been the most interesting thing these people had seen in a while- at least that’s how it appeared the way they were all staring at us. A six foot white guy with tattoos and a screaming little boy on his shoulders (Parker), a red-headed white boy with freckles pushing the other kid’s twin brother (Kimball), a brown skinned little girl (where did she come from?) being yanked around on a monkey leash by a white women holding a chubby cute little baby (whom they all loved to come up to and pinch her cheeks).

After wandering around like a bunch of idiots, we finally found a deli, but all it had left was some crusty buffalo wings, old fries and some decent looking chicken nuggets. So we got the chicken nuggets and then found some bread, ham and cheese. When we went to check out, we saw on the opposite side a nacho and burrito place. I went over and asked “Abierto??” (Open?) “Si,” he replied. So I waited for 10 min. while Greg put away all the bread, ham and cheese, and then checked out with the nuggets and some water. So then we got in line behind all these people who had been ordering food while I was standing there, but when we got up to the window I said, “I want two burritos.”

“No tenemos, “ was the reply.

“You don’t have any food?”

“Tenemos Nachos, sin queso” (We only have nachos left, without cheese.)

Well, Greg and I started laughing and did so for a few minutes (Kevin must have not thought it was that funny- he has food issues), then Greg headed back into the craziness (everyone in town must do their shopping at 8:00 at night) to get our bread, ham and cheese.

We made it back to the car, tipped Fernando for guarding it, then headed back to our hotel to eat our sandwiches. It was an experience in itself. A few adjectives to describe it; musty, smelly, 2 watt light bulbs, (the pictures make it look nice, that’s because my flash is brighter than the lighting,) one outlet in the corner about half way up the wall, the beds are really just foam pads on top of a cement pedestal, and I swear there is a bird or something in the ceiling. I was able to sleep for a while after laying my own blanket down on the bed. It was too hot to have a blanket on top, even with the swamp cooler adding musty-ness and fragrance to the air. At least there are no bugs (except for these annoying gnats), and there is guarded parking. As I was writing this at about 3:00 a.m., two guys got up, started talking and turned on their radio. They were ready to start the day. My only wish is that I could capture the smell through the camera so that you all could enjoy it with me.

Livin the Dream, Baby! Bienvenidos a Mexico!

It took us about an hour and a half to get to the border from Tucson. We were advised to take the Mariposa exit and cross the border that way. You might have thought we were in Mexico already, the road signs had already switched to kilometers, and when we went through the drive-thru at Jack in the Box for lunch, they took our order in Spanish- Greg had a difficult time because he doesn’t speak “Fast Food” Spanish, so he had to go in to make sure we ordered the right stuff. Then we stopped at Target to exchange the DVD player that we bought a few days ago, which was no longer working.

We finally got to the border where they stopped us to ask if we were carrying any weapons or ammunition. They asked Greg if he had more than $10,000 in cash, which he did---just kidding. Greg told them he only had about $500, and then they asked me how much I had. I just pointed to Greg and said, “He has all my money” to which he replied, “I know women always have a secret stash their husbands don’t know about.” I assured him I didn’t! So they let us pass.

Besides the huge border fence, border patrol and long line of semis heading into the U.S., you would hardly know you had left the states. The terrain was the same as Arizona or even some of Utah, and the roads were fantastic. The only noticeable difference was that there was no shoulder, but the roads themselves were in great shape. It wasn’t until we started passing some houses, restaurants, etc. that we then said- “Ahh, we are in Mexico”

Further down the road we had to go through customs, where you can go through the lane for Items to Declare, or Nothing to Declare (which is what we picked because everything we had were personal items, not to sell or give a way). It was really confusing, we didn’t know if or where we should stop, there was no one around. After sitting there for a while, finally some man who had been chatting casually with someone way ahead, waved us forward and to a pull off. He asked Greg some questions about what we had in all of our totes, where we were going (he told him Costa Rica), then he casually looked in the car at all of our stuff and every person inside, then let us go. That was it- easy!

We continued following the signs that pointed to Nogales, and then we had to stop at the Centro de Importacion e Internacion Temporal de Vehiculos to get a vehicle permit and our Visas stamped. First Greg went in to get the permit, then came and told us that Kevin and I needed to get our Visas stamped. The Mexican Consulate in Arizona had told Greg that we could include the children on our Visas, so I was supposed to ask them to do that on my Visa. When I got to the man, he told me they needed their own Visas and to bring them in. Problem! We have no birth certificate for Kimball. So I went back to the car to tell Greg. There was a little bit of worry, confusion, and maybe panic- so Greg went back in to clarify what we needed to do (since my Spanish is lacking). It turns out that children over two need their own Visas, so only the two oldest needed to go in. We were safe since Kimball was under two. Everything works out so perfectly!

After finally getting all the paperwork and everything paid for, we were off again. It was so exciting being in a foreign land. Except for Tijuana and Playa del Carmen (Cancun), I’ve never been out of the country. It is so interesting to see how differently things are done here, but also how much they are the same.

Our destination was through Nogales, then Hermosillo and on to Guaymas/San Carlos. We figured it would take us about 3 to 4 hours.

We enjoyed the countryside and the scenery. The roads were terrific, which we were surprised because we had heard they were so bad. It’s probably attributed to the fact that they were toll roads. Every few hundred kilometers we had to stop and pay, usually $48- $58 (that’s pesos, about $4-$5 dollars).

We passed through Hermosillo, which was a big town, and had lunch at KFC. We ran into the problem of Greg not speaking “Fast Food.” We wanted popcorn chicken and chicken strips. They couldn’t understand when he said “popcorn” in American (in Spanish, both the “o’s” are long, so like “pope-corn,” yes really) and he didn’t know how to say “strips,” so again he had to go inside. It took forever, and Greg came out flustered because they couldn’t figure out what he wanted and charged him for drinks and things he didn’t want- all because I wanted some chicken strips! What a good husband.

As we left Hermosillo for Guaymas/San Carlos, the sun was setting, so we were going to be breaking the first rule of “Don’t drive at night in Mexico,” but we wanted to wake up on the beach, and Hermosillo was way inland. Everything went smooth though, and we finally arrived in San Carlos where we had to stop at three hotels to find a vacancy at the MarinaTerra Hotel, a very nice resort with enclosed, guarded parking and lots of amenities. We checked into a suite that opened right out to the pool, so Kevin took a dip while the kids played on the playground adjacent. Then we put the kids to bed.

It was interesting trying to go to sleep. Our room, the master, was located right next to the hallway which led to the lobby, and since everything was tile floors throughout the hotel, we could hear every footstep, every door close, every child scream and every conversation, as well as the jumping marathon some little child was having in the room above us. We couldn’t complain too much, because our kids certainly added their share to the ruckus. My only disappointment was that I wanted to go dancing at the on-site discothèque which opened at 11:00 p.m. and taught salsa and mamba, but I fell asleep before the kids did, so we didn’t get that chance.

Today we spent the day simply relaxing. Greg did some trading and made some money, while the kids played in the "backyard" and then I took them to the hot tub and then the swimming pool.

When Greg was done "working", all the kids were sleeping except for Parker, so he and daddy and Kevin played in the pool while I worked on my tan.

While I was "working" on my tan, I listened to "How to Be a No Limit Person" by Wayne Dyer, an excellent seminar. He asks some interesting questions which I think depicts perfectly our motivation in taking this "crazy" step in our life. He says: "If you suddenly discovered that you had 6 months to live, how would you change your life? What would you do differently? Whatever it is that you would do differently, if you KNEW you only had six months to live, you would do it. My advice to you is take the risk, do it, TRY IT! If you are living out of a sense of obligation instead of choice, you are a slave.

Another question, where would you choose to live? If you look at that big globe, where would you like to be? And then ask, what is it that keeps me from being there? Why not choose where you want to be.

Last question, what would you do if there were no such thing as money? What would you be doing with your life on a daily basis? What would you do with your time? Because anything that you are interested in doing you can also earn a living at, ANYTHING at all. And if what you're doing you are doing because it is earning you a living, or you've got good benefits, or whatever it is, it's not bringing you true happiness. You can do anything, you can make a living at anything. Instead of doing things because you make money at them, you ought to be doing them because they bring you inner peace."

He also says "Progress is impossible if you always do things the way you have always done things."

After a few hours tanning and swimming, we decided to head into town to find a place to eat. After driving around much of Tucson and not finding any restaurants, we finally found a great Vietnamese and Chinese restaurant, (Nam Son on 430 N. Park Ave.) that looked like a total dive but had excellent service and food. We sat outside in the sun and enjoyed a great meal.

We then went to a local park to play. Kyah was amazed at the people who had no home, no car, and slept at the park. It helped her to get over being so upset about wanting dress up clothes though.

The rest of the evening we spent driving around Tucson trying to find a Walmart, then came back to the hotel and watched Discovery Channel's Man vs. Wild.

Livin' the Dream, Baby!

During our drive time we love to listen to "Input" as we call it- books on CD (or MP3 in our case). This time we were listening to Napoleon Hill's "The Science of Personal Achievement", a fantastic talk by Napolean Hill himself. I highly recommend it. Our philosophy is "Input determines Output," meaning that whatever you put into your mind, and/or body, determines what you get out, of yourself, out of life, etc. The more positive you put in, the more positive you get out. It is the key to success in life.

We ate lunch in Phoenix at Bajio and Keva Juice (they make GREAT smoothies) located at 2501 Happy Valley Rd. We had a nice little picnic on the rocks.

We arrived in Tucson late afternoon, a little flustered because everyone was ready to get out of car. We picked the La Quinta Inn to stay in on Starr Pass Rd. because it had a pool AND hot tub, laundry services and high-speed wireless internet (Motel 6 and Howard Johnson only had dial-up- who only has dial-up still???). La Quinta is great- we have a fenced in "backyard" where the kids can play that is connected right to the pool.

We spent the evening swimming, then headed across the street to The Waffle House, a little dive that reminded me of something from a Rocky movie, but had great food.

Livin' the Dream, Baby!