Yes I am still alive!

Ok I know it's been a while since my last blog. Ok - a REALLY long time. Whew - who knew Mexico would be busy!

I do have a lot to write about - though today I just wanted to do some basic highlights. Let's see....

School has started at our Casa. Hmmm even more work than I thought. Not so much because of the actual preparation, etc. Just because C requires constant supervision or his mind escapes and nothing gets done or learned. Very frustrating. Then G gets frustrated because C dominates so much time - gets bored then disruptive. Ugh. I am glad I never decided to become a school teacher for a profession! My Dad suggested I get more creative and incorporate more fun stuff into learning to help encourage C to want to learn. So that is what we are trying. We are working on making a claymation movie. He has to write a script first (Language arts) edit it, count out the number of sequences (that's all the math I've figured into it yet) do the rough sketches as a film strip then we will shoot the movie with my camera. It should at least get him writing and reading his own writing - and definitely handle the art aspect.

For math we have been playing store. He's practicing giving change so that he can sell lemonade on the roadside to earn money for a toy he wants. It's a start.

G's eye is still scarred, but his vision doesn't seem to be affected. He's a bit more defiant - but everybody loves him. He's called 'Guapo' just about everywhere we go -even with the scar on his eye. The workers at the beach all love him too. He was 'helping' them shovel sand the other day to prepare for a walkway. The worker gave him rides back and forth in the wheelbarrow to get sand. It doesn't seem to matter that G speaks little Spanish, they like having him around.

Residential Oasis is moving along well. Casas 1 & 2 are basically finished -except for a few details that I have been out at the beach almost every day helping with. The boys have been spending a lot of time on the beach since we are all out there. Casas 3 & 4 are going along a little slower than we originally hoped, but still well within the construction schedule.

C finally lost his 4th tooth which for some reason was complete drama! He howled and cried even though the tooth hung on by a thread for a week! We finally got tired of it (it was sticking straight out of his mouth and looked like a hillbilly) and yanked it out. He cried far more about the THOUGHT of the tooth being ripped out than it hurting at all.

I stopped to take some pics after the tooth came out, and couldn't get the boys to give me a decent pose. These pictures are the best I could get.

Panther, our black cat died while I was in Canada in August. We don't know for sure why - though he was older, overweight and had we think arthritis in one leg. Anyway -it was sad that I wasn't there since I was the only family member that Panther would really trust.

That's all the updates for now on our little family - I have lots of other adventures to write about in later blogs.......