Chichen Itza

We got up really early like 6:30 am, got ready, and left for Chichen Itza. 

The doors opened at 8 am. 

We arrived at 8:30 am and took the free road instead of the toll road. 

Kukulcan (Mayan) or El Castillo (Spaniards)

The boys have talked about going to Chitzen Itza

since they found out we were going to Mexico. 

We saw all of it. 

The Ball Court

Hurricane had an almost accident in his pants, 

but pooped in the jungle with Sweetheart's assistance. 

We walked to all parts. 

A posed picture

The boys saw an iguana that we named Dinner and took many pictures of it. 

The public baths didn't have toilet paper so glad I brought wipes. 

The Observatory

We got 2 great pictures taken in front of the Observatory and El Castillo (top picture.) 

The boys wanted a chess set and jaguar whistle. 

Sweetheart negotiated for them and was happy about the price.

Next to the Sacred Cenote

We were leaving when most of the crowds started to arrive at 12:30 pm. 

We drove back to Valladolid. 

We hung out at the chapel for 2+ hours 

while missionaries talked with President Kirkham. 

Dinner is sitting on the snake's head.

We returned to shop at the plaza where 

my Mom bought me a fabulous shirt of sunflowers.

She bought hand stitched handkerchiefs from Antonia.

When I was about 10 or so, our family visited. I stood on the edge of the rim of the cenote. It is now fenced off.

We ate at a buffet and returned to Cancun. 

On the way we talked about branding our family 

and decided in part on a poem from Great-Grandpa Kirkham. 

They fell asleep from Valladolid to Cancun.

We had trouble getting 

through the gate at the community where my parents live. 

Sweetheart and my Dad resolved it.

After arriving, Hurricane swam and Underfoot played chess. 

I got laundry done and watched the LDS Women's Meeting with my mom. 

I liked Neill F. Marriott's talk and Dieter F. Uchtdorf's talk.

Ek-Balam and Valladolid

Hurricane came crawled bed with us after the sun came up, and we slept in until 9:00 am. The boys swam in pool. When they came in the house, they slipped and fell, and Hermama Nora, the mission home house keeper, brought them to our bedroom.

We packed to go to Valladolid. My parents had a companionship phone because they are down on how many missionary companionships they have right now.They let us use the phone for our visit. While we were packing, the phone was missing. Mama had a meltdown because she wanted to be responsible and felt awful that it was missing. Jilli had gathered the phone the day before when boys pulled it out at Xcaret to play games on it. There were no games on the phone. Jilli never told us and neither did Underfoot. The whole issue got resolved when Underfoot told us the next day.

We left a little before noon traveled to Ek Balam,

and the boys rode with Kirky and Jilli for the day.

 

 Ek Balam is a recent uncovered site (15 yrs approx.). 

Tourists may still climb the pyramid. The pyramid is very steep. 

The whole family climbed to the top.

 Boys got nervous climbing pyramid. 

Kirky and Jilli shared insights about the site structure and significance.

 Ek Balam has 3 fences around to enter the center of the city.

To climb up this structure, you need to lean forward onto your knees.

The houses around the main pyramid are a good size.

When we left Ek Balam, the boys were hungry.

We went to get cold coconuts,

but the vender was missing in action.

We traveled to Vallodolid to the cenote. 

The boys swam in the cenote, 

Sweetheart and I didn't want to because of fish and slime. 

 We probably missed out. 

We ate supper family style at a restaurant over looking the cenote.

We went to fill the car up with gas.

The debit card didn't work.

At the gas stations, 

the cards work only about 1/2 the time we learned later.

After checking into the hotel, we had problem getting out cash from 2 ATMs. Sweetheart put the wrong pin in and flagged the account to close it. We called the international number to resolve the issue and got cash.  We walked around the plaza and bought ice cream and a book. To wind down, we watched comedy sketches of  Tim Conway and Carol Burnett - No Frills Airlines and The Dentist. The boys laughed.

Xcaret

We went to Xcaret.

Xcaret is a ruin that has been turned into 

an amusement and educational park 

to have fun and teach about the Mayan and Mexican cultures.

A rain storm greeted us, 

and we got soaked even before going into the underground river. 

The water was cold. 

I think the boys really liked the underground river.

 

Jilli taught the boys about Mayan every day life.

 The boys got out of the water cold, 

and we walked around to help them warm up.

 

Lunch was included in our entry fee.

We ate a lot and with full bellies boys went to sleep.

The buffet was good. We all ate a lot.

 We woke up boys and went to see huge turtles, dolphins, sharks, and lots of fish.

These turtles were only 20 years old.

 They do a Mayan presentation with dancing.

The dancers have body paint of different animals.

In the middle of the fire circle is a man under the turtle's shell.

Hurricane stayed with us.

Hurricane made everyone nervous watching the Mayan dancing on the edge of the ledge.

Because of the rain, I got a blister on my foot. 

Underfoot got a blister on the edge of his heel.

Mama shared crackers with a lady whose baby was crying. 

 In the evening is a presentation of the ball game, fire hockey, 

the Spaniards' invasion, and cultural dances from the different states in Mexico.

 There were lots of music and the long day ended after the spectacular.

The boys loved scanning their wrists to take photos. 

By the end of the day we both wanted to be dry.

Today we gained an appreciation for the stresses of the mission president. 

He was on the phone all day dealing with many issues.

Driving Around

Leaving on our trip early Tuesday morning. 

We arrived late Tuesday afternoon.

My parents took us on a tour of Cancun. 

The first stop was the Mission Office. 

Hurricane wanted to run every where. 

 

Cancun has been in a drought. 

We arrived, and they had rain and the coolest day since my parents arrived. 

 

After finishing at the office, we bought Mega bars (ice cream) at a convenience store. 

When we arrived, Hurricane had been asking to buy something. 

At the convenience store, Hurricane bought a plastic toy. 

He put the $10 pesos he had on the counter. 

Grandpa Kirky bought the ice cream and was to be given change. 

Hurricane put his hand out to get all the change. 

The clerk thought it was super funny to watch Hurricane try to get the change. 

 

Boys liked the panaderia in the grocery store. 

They touched everything. 

The limes were Sweetheart's favorite thing at the grocery store.

We drove around a lot in the mission van and heard many stories of missionaries cultural shock. 

In one area, we saw a pig in a tricycle taxi bike. 

The area was one of  the very poor areas of Cancun. 

The electrical lines were a mess.

We stopped at the end of the drive and played on the beach. 

We decided to not go to an all-inclusive resort for 2 days during our trip.

Hurricane ran off at the beach, and Grandpa Kirky caught up with him. 

Sweetheart and Grandpa Kirky talked sternly with Hurricane. 

Hurricane does not understand how Mexico is different than the United States, 

and Hurricane needed to stay close to a parent or grandparent.

Supper was at a buffet. 

Sweetheart told Grandpa Kirky about Hurricane.

Hurricane takes a lot of time in the bathroom.

Grandpa Kirky laughed hard about the story.

September 22 - Last Minute Details

Here is our journal update for 3 weeks ago. We decided to go to Cancun, Mexico for fall break. Here are the few things we did before we left.

- Sweetheart and I got tetanus shots. Sweetheart also started a series of shots for vaccinations. He will finish those up in March.

- I started to coach Hurricane's soccer team. It is quite humorous. I know nothing. On Saturday, a clinic was held to teach coaches how to be better and gave quite a few ideas. I hope to be an okay coach.

- Hurricane Odile was to bring huge rain. The schools closed after school activities. Sweetheart's work even sent their non-essential employees home early from work. We received absolutely no rain. We had a lot of fun with Sweetheart home. The humidity was more than normal.

- I decided to make a present for my parents for Christmas. We have done the Jesse Tree advent for the past few years. The ornaments took a lot of time but turned out very cute. Other people made ornaments as well. We did an exchange on Thursday night.

- The boys packed.

- We emptied out all the rooms with carpet so the carpet could be cleaned. All the furniture went into the kitchen and our bedroom. We left the house very clean for our trip.

Be Well.

Labor Day

Labor Day is traditionally a day to celebrate laborers. So we labored at our house today to improve it by weeding, fixing broken fans, improving the chicken coop, cleaning up, laundry, and even swimming. We feel blessed to work and to teach our boys to work. Hurricane loves using the screwdriver drill, and Underfoot is curious about the world asking questions about what dinosaurs did during the winter. Now if anyone has an answer to the dinosaurs besides extinction or hibernation, we are open for more explanations.

We've started writing letters on Sunday mornings. This is Hurricane's 1st letter back from K-man. He liked it so much he put it on the wall.

Here are a summary of the last 2 weeks. Again the bullet form seems to work best over the novel....

Two weeks ago:

• Underfoot and Hurricane participated in a kids triathlon. They had so much fun and asked the organizer when the next one is. Hurricane decided to swim backstroke for his portion. Underfoot paced himself and thought it was going to be longer. 

  

  Underfoot at the beginning of his race.

  

  The end of his 50 meter swim

  

  Coming in the shoot after a 1/2 mile bike ride.

  

  Crossing the finish line!!!

  
  

  

  Hurricane at the beginning of his race.

  
  

  

  He is talking about the cosmos. He is really saying he doesn't need Daddy in the pool, but the rules said Daddy has to be in the pool.

  

  He swam 25 meters as a backstroke.

  

  His Dad ran the 1/4 mile bike ride with him.

  

  Crossing the finish line!!!

  

  Chocolate milks, otter pops, and participatory ribbons makes it a great race!

  
  
• After school clubs started. Hurricane and Underfoot are participating in Drama Club. They were given the assignment to learn tongue twisters. Underfoot is participating in STEM club. He and his lab partner needed to design how to get a giraffe (a water bottle) from his cage at the zoo to the vet. Their design held all the way. 
• I helped with the hearing and vision screenings at school. This is to identify if there is a concern to see if a child needs a referral for a professional. The amazing part is that Hurricane past his hearing test even though he sees an ENT for his hearing loss. You get what you pay for, right? 
• Our Saturday was busy with a baptism, birthday party, triathlon, and dinner with friends. We over scheduled and had an exhausting fun day! 
• Sweetheart worked toward his deadline at work. He worked a lot. 

One week ago:

• The boys had a 1/2 day of school. We are almost done with our 1st quarter as some of our friends are just starting school. After school, we each took a friend and went to Mount Lemmon to play in the creek and mountains. We followed tradition and got fudge at the end. 
•  Sweetheart tried Indian food for the first time. He was hesitant but is willing to go back and try again. I liked it all very much! 
• Friday night was a comedy of errors.  Sweetheart came to Bountiful Baskets to get our food while I finished running the site. We ordered 2 baskets, but he only took one home. He forgot the produce in the trunk at 100+ degrees for over an hour. He then started supper and instead of splitting the dough into 4 pizzas he made 2. He was trying so hard to be responsible that he called it a comedy. He openly admits that he is not as good at running the kitchen as I am... (This is a  Sweetheart approved message.) 

Hurricane likes praying mantis bugs. He was thrilled when this one jumped on him and stayed as his friend.

Be well in all your labors.