Souvenirs

Filthy. But we made it back across the border with only minor mishaps to our caravan.

Mexican parking stubs are a lot more charming than the legalese covered ones here.

Farewell to arms

Day 2 of our Mexico adventure brings us to our third family. Jesus welcomes us on our path. Well, not exactly us. Technically, Jesus faces the Tijuana Costco. His outstretched arms welcome value priced plasma tv's and aisles of mayonnaise as far as the eye can see. But that's pretty close to what I imagine heaven would be.

Our travels today take us to the hill country outside of Tijuana proper. Gorgeous views, unpaved roads, overweight car. Freak winds and rain.

Our task today- pouring the concrete roof. 10 tons worth of concrete.

And once again, there's a view of my ass.

Roof poured. Biceps sore. Seeking shelter from the driving wind and rain with a bit of nosh our familia kindly prepared for us. Then back across the border to our own complacency.

Burrow y burro

Across the border in Mexico again. This time, we gringos had the opportunity to support Eduardo's soccer team at their state championships. Go team Tijuana! Watching these kids run around made us realize how tired and out of shape we are. Sigh. Not a good thought to start a weekend of ditch digging and hauling concrete buckets. But we all learned the correct way to say "GOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL!" Eduardo is the one that looks like Tigger.

The Ditch. Aie! The Ditch. Rocky, compacted, sticky, dense soil. Mucho pick axing chip chip chipping away at the limestone. I could have sworn I hauled out the same boulder multiple times today. My elbows call out for a jackhammer. Where is the jackhammer?

I befriend Preston's Mexican cousin. Su nombre es "Donkey."

Me thinks this rock is following me. Me thinks this may be sun stroke.

Me thinks this may be a dinosaur femur bone. Me thinks me needs to talk to photographer as all me photos are of me ass.

Wendy con familia feliz.

Seeing red

Lilypads! Cross your fingers, maybe the water lily will flower this year. Will it be red? Or yellow? Or white?

Warming temperatures make cannas more colorful. I totally want a necktie with this color scheme. This is one of the few non-edible plants left in the backyard.

This is kind of scary looking.

Chorizo black bean molé chili. I wish there were limes on the tree. This could use a touch of lime juice and queso fresco.

2 lbs of lentils for 50 cents! Some mirepoix, chicken stock, a smoked hamhock, and bay leaves. Lentil soup warms the soul.

Heavy handed

The bucket line commences again today.

Moving 30 bags of 50 kilo cement bags? Like carrying marshmallow peeps for manly men like us.

We head home a bit sun burned, quite a lot dirtier, and aching head to toe- hopefully with fuller hearts knowing that we laid a new foundation for the family, literally.

Dumping loads

Rick surveys this afternoon's handiwork. Them concrete buckets are heavy. And I had a hand in carrying every bucket. I was thoughtful enough to also bring a Costco sized bottle of Advil for everyone to share.

Don't let the picture fool you. I single-handedly pushed the cement mixer uphill with my manly man strength and buns of steel. The others are only there for moral support. (Note that my purple and orange wardrobe matches both the mixer and the Posada where we're staying.)

Real life Peeps!

Packing the rear

It's time for the twice annual Tijuana volunteer house building trip. Costco has colonized my refrigerator with Sunday breakfast for 30. Fitting all this into the back of the car may prove to be a challenge. My Tetris skills are a bit rusty these days.

The Posada at La Gloria Mexico sports an orange and purple color scheme this year. I'm glad I brought my matching hat.