Colombia: Day 3 (OVERLOAD OF PICS)

Today we did A LOT of walking and eating :)

We walked "la Peatonal". It's a street which cars can no longer drive on.  Its SUPER busy and loads of people walk the street and browse the shops and vendors.  I don't remember how long it was, but we walked for at least 5 hours.  I was a GREAT time! 

Tia Maggie, Me, Tomi, Abuela and in the back Chuma and Esteban.  I loved this day...

 

In Colombia they call pharmacies, drug stores, but it sounds way better in spanish, particularly since we were in Colombia where they are known for their drugs.  Esteban HAD to get a picture in front of this one :) "Drogas Colombia Farma" 

 

We had some 'aguas aromaticas' in el Cafe San Moritz.  Its a very old coffee shop of sorts.  Lots of telenovelas are filmed there and we weren't aloud to take pics inside.  So, here are Esteban and I right our side of it. :) I love 'agua aromatica' so good!!!!

 

should have bought the hat, but I didn't.

 

The very center of the city.  We saw and went into La Catedral and took pics of the Goverment buildings.  

There was a lot of hussel and bussel going on outside this church.  But I loved going inside and sensing the calm in this church.  it was super quiet and people where super reverent.  I also really love looking at old churches... no matter the denomination.

You can see Mon Serrate from this picturesque street.  

I just loved the beauty of Colombia! Seriously, stunning!!! 

El Museo de Botero, a famous Colombian Figurative.

Good Times.... 

After our walk we had a traditional Colombian lunch.  These were super yummy AND super cheap! 

It cost as much as a happy meal and it was MUCH bigger and healthier than the previously mentioned "food".  It was a tiny 'hole in the wall' restaurant.  We took half of an entire room :)

 

Churrazco, rice, fried plantanes (YUM) and a pasta salad.  

This meal also included a plate of fresh fruit and dessert. 

 

and since that wasn't enough food... we got DELICIOUS ice cream at Crepes and Waffles

That place was seriously, so GOOD! 

You can see Mon Serrate from here as well.  I loved it!  

That same night Tomi and Chuma's close family and friends all met up at Andres Carne de Rez, La Plaza to dine and chit chat.  This was SUCH a fun night.  Tomi and Chuma's family are the kindest of people, no wonder Tomi loves it there.

When Tomi first moved to Colombia, Los Moreno, took her in to their family as if she was family.  It was my first time meeting them.  It was SO nice to finally put a face to their names and to feel that same love they expressed to Tomi.  I cried several times this night.

Lisandro Moreno, Sergio Moreno, Bruno y Mauro

Sergio, Tia Maggie, Margarita Moreno, Tomi y Jose Moreno

Abuela, Nana (sweetest girl EVER), Hernan, Chuma, Mincho and Leidy

some of Chuma's cousins.  Love them! 

Mauro, Me, Jose and Sergio

As the night went on, I really wanted to chit chat with some of Tomi's old friends.  Friends who were her guardian angels until she found her one and only :) I had heard and seen lots of pics of these great guys.  So we started chit chatting and let me just say, these guys cracked me up like I haven't laughed in FOREVER!  Wish we could have hung out more... 

Tomi's Colombian parents (Lisandro and Margarita) and Abuela 

"Family" Pic <3 

The above picture is a long story... one that will have to wait for a long time :)

Lets just say, I LOVE these people!!!! 

This day was just the best! So much love to give and receive.  I couldn't be more happy for Tomi and Chuma and the love they have.  They are well cared for in Colombia!

Colombia: Day 2

Today we woke early and had some breakfast at a little tiny "Fruteria" around the corner from Tomi and Chuma's house.  It was SO yummy!  Oh how I have missed latin food...

We were all excited to be together.  Marcos and Dylan were still not there, but we were ready for today's activities.... hot springs and food :)

Ham and Cheese Sandwich, Fresh Squeezed OJ and a Cheese Arepa... SO GOOD!

Everything in Colombia is little.  The cars are all small and the tires tiny.  Tomi and Chuma don't need a big car, unless Tomi's family comes to visit.  It was quite the sight to see us all piles in that car.  Tomi and I took turns holding our mom and tia on our laps for the 1.5hr ride to Los Volcanes...

The whole bunch of us.  This might be my favorite pic of the entire trip.  REALLY good times!

Colombia is more beaitful than I had pictured.  It is so great and lush.  The people were beyond kind and hospitable.  Absolutely beautiful country!

The girls... 

Esteban looked like a tourist, more so than I did.  Tomi said it was because he wore tennis shoes... jajaja.  I am sure that the fact that he was one of the tallest persons around had nothing to do with it. ;)

We finally arrived at Los Volcanes.  Its a beautiful "resort" where they have three natural hot spring pools and a huge natural steam room.  The water is filled with natural minerals and nutrients for your body.

When we got there we had to walk down about 2.5 blocks down into the 'resort'.  It was a really nice walk down.  Plus we were eager to have some relaxation.

 As soon as we walked into the resort, we saw this TINY tennis court.  Esteban being the tennis fan that he is, insisted on a picture :)

These pool are not warm, they are HOT! They are awesome!

We were surrounded by lush green foliage and the air temp was just right, like a crisp fall morning, all day :) perfection!

This picture was taken from a little waterfall up from the resort.  It is a small 'resort'.  But it left us felling fully relaxed and hungry....

After Los Volcanes, we went to a little city calle Sopo.  There we stopped in a store called Alpina.  They make all sorts of dairy products and some pretty delicious pastries and treats... Tia Maggie had her cart FULL!

This is maybe 1/3 of the goodies we bought and ate there.  Seriously, so delish!

We ate our goodies outside surrounded by more beautiful scenery.  Seriously, I was in awe of the beauty in this country! We had some mate while with our goodies.

Our day ended there.  We were successfully stuffed and relaxed!

On a side note: They have milk that comes in bags there.  Its called "leche larga vida" You can leave the unopened bag in your cupboard and its good until 12/23/12!  CRAZINESS!  I had to take a pic :)

Colombia: Day 1

Esteban and I had purchased our tickets a LONG time ago.  As soon as we had word as to when Tomi and Chuma would be tying the knot, we made plans to travel together.  It had been months of anticipation and FINALLY the day came!

Our day started early on Tuesday.  We hung out at the SLC Airport happy as ever, ready to go :)

First flight to JFK.  We made the mistake of NOT buying some neck pillows in SLC.  So, we bought some at JFK.  I was feeling horrible, stomach bug, and any comfort was welcome, even if it meant buying the pillow at 50% more than it was in SLC.

Fortunately we had a nice comfortable ride on both planes.  No one with us on the first flight and then we each got our own row on the second flight.  SOO NICE!  I needed the room to lay down, I was a mess.  Didn't eat anything all day in fear that i would quickly throw it all back up.  

 

After 11hrs of flying and 2.5hrs of lay overs, we were finally in COLOMBIA!!!!

YAY!!!!! 

 

We waited a about 25ish minutes for Tomi.  Our flight had landed a little sooner than she expected and the lines through immigration where very short.  We tried calling her on a man cell phones and seconds later, she was there :) hoooray!!!! 

 

We hurried home to finally meet Chuma and we were SO very pleased that everything we had heard and seen of him was true.  He is an amazing guy.  Tomi is one lucky girl and Chuma is one lucky guy!

 Chuma is a fabulous guitar player and singer, among other things.  We were up until 2am listening to him play and laugh and getting to know each other.  Later, Tomi and Chuma sang the song they would be singing at the ceremony... I bawled like a baby!  The love they have for each other is simply beautiful! I couldn't help myself.

 Esteban pretended to play... Tia Maggie had been sewing all night.  She has made all of the nieces dresses for our wedding.  She is pretty much a genius when it comes to sewing anything.  Its always fun to see her and be with her!

 

True Love....

... SO happy for them!

What We Did With Our Summer: Part 1

It was hot... we ate LOTS and LOTS of Otter Pops and Shaved Ice...

Sibling Love

This is not always a captured moment.  But there are many moments like this around here.  I see the love they have for each other and I am grateful to witness it.  I hope they can develop a great friendship when they are older and I hope they can always be there for one another. 

Otis can be feisty, but I think he has brought a sense of love and affection to all the kids.  I guess babies have that effect on people :)  Milli is a sweetheart.  She wants to help and is patient with her little brother. 



Its is my privileged to be their mom... may I take full advantage of the sweet moments I have with them! I know they wont be little for ever and time will not stand still. 

Sometimes I'm A Nice Mom

 The kids don't love running errands with me.  And to be totally honest, I don't love taking them on errands with me :) But I always try to make it fun and reward them for good behavior.  Sometimes that works, other times it totally does not! 

After moving into the new house, we had lots and lots of trips to Ikea or Lowes.  So the kids got very tired of both of those stores.  It was a hot summer and we were being very frugal... For $4 (including tax) I was able to go from the "mean mom" to the "nice mom." Thx IKEA!

 

It was worth the mess for all the smiles and happy kids I got it the end.  Truth is, I really do enjoy the kids.  I want to make them happy. But you can't always get them everything they want.  They don't always expect something, and most of the time, they do deserve a treat :) 

 

I like to be the nice mom all the time... I just need NICE kids all the time too :)  Easy, right?