Cheers

It has been four months since we arrived in Mexico and we decided to have a little celebration. Typical Mexican food included, tomato salsa, tortillas, pork stir-fry, re-fried beans, Mexican tunes and some wine. I realized that I am including more peppers in my meals; we are getting used to hot food. It was an awesome meal. I also reminded myself that I had to look forward and not back; Mexico is my home now. It is the only way to fit in and be happy.

We had a really large rain storm come through the other day with wind speeds of up to 75 mph. Thunder, lightning and lots of rain. We love the storms, reminds us of South Africa in the summer when we were growing up. It's the start of hurricane season, which we know nothing about. But we will probably learn very fast. The rainy season has a lot of rain, but not like monsoons and the humidity is less than what I can remember from the summers in Durban.

It is very hot this week and a tropical storm seems to be in the works for next week. Days feel like 44, with actual temperatures reaching 36 degrees (Celsius of course). Humidity is higher and everything feels a little sticky. Since we don't have a pool right now, we fill buckets with water from the tap and just pour it over our heads - we call it poor boy's swimming. But it is effective. And with a pre-storm breeze, you can cool down. You have to wait at least 4 minutes for the water from the tap to cool sufficiently not to burn...

I love Zumba. Seriously, it is almost as much fun as tennis. I found the creator of Zumba, Beto Perez's show in Utah online and work out on that sometimes and in a moment of craziness I decided to record a few minutes and share it. I probably won't do that again; it is not easy to watch yourself look ridiculous. But seriously, I enjoy this so much that I sometimes laugh out loud!

Friday night we went to the local park where there is a small mid-way during the summer for the kids. Some stall selling fries and candy, balloons, some outdoor café's and a double story trampoline for the kids. We and ended up watching a bit of the softball game that was underway. Several home runs and lots of cheering followed. It was a fun walk in the neighbourhood and it's nice to see so many people enjoying the warm evening in the park. Of course there was activity at the church and it seemed like a mass was underway.

Xena has become a true lizard hunter after almost catching a rather large iguana one afternoon. She only let it go, because I was yelling at her to drop it. I don't think she will listen to me next time. She now hunts and stalks each and every one of them. She scratches (and even bites) all around their concrete nests and though they are extremely dumb, they have managed to avoid her so far. I think it's just a matter of time until she gets one.

The house seems to get really hot in the afternoon and early evening, and in this current heat the house felt like a sauna last night after dinner. Cooking in the kitchen only adds to the heat. We noticed that the neighbours sit in front of their houses on the street, so we decided to try it. And voila! It was much cooler out front, with a really nice breeze blowing down the street. We sat there for about an hour cooling down and with all the windows and the front door open, the house cooled down quite a bit so we could relax inside again.

We heard this week that our house purchase is expected to be completed by the end of the month. I am so excited about this. Not sure if I should be, but I am. Either way, we will be in our new home on September 1 - even if we are renting. Now I'm lying awake at night, thinking of all the things I have to do when I move in.