Now that the Art and Craft show is over, I can concentrate on the yard again. I got more rocks so I could make a couple rock sculptures, mainly to represent Dave and me. When I finished balancing the rocks I decorated them with items I had in the yard and also each of us got an empty bottle of wine.
So basically the middle circle has been created as a focal point and past that is the BBQ pit and paths leaving the guest house to walk to the house, beach, or fire pit. I really like the way it turned out. It is sooo much better than what was there. Here is a picture of what it looked like before.
And now.
Little by little I will get plants and cactus to plant but for now I have to stop working in the yard and do some cleaning of the guest house as Ron and Noreen are coming to visit us for Christmas. We are excited. They fly into San Diego on the 22nd and will spend the night in a Hotel. They will pick up their rental car and cross the border to Ensenada where we will meet up with them. We plan to leave our house on the 20th for a leisurely ride to Ensenada, spend the night in San Quintin and be in Ensenada the morning of the 21st. We want to shop at the Mega store across from Costco, Costco, Walmart, and Home Depot. Then we will meet Ron and Noreen in Ensenada on the 23rd and they will follow us to the house. Depending on what time we leave Ensenada and the road conditions (as there is road construction being done and depending on time of day) we will either go straight home or stop for the night and continue the next morning. Their visit is short as they have to be home before New Year’s Eve, but we will enjoy their visit that much more.
Happy Birthday to our grandson Sam!!! He is 13!!!!!
One day last week as I was going into town, I passed a place where a Mexican couple live. I noticed 3 of their trees/bushes in their yard had sparkly things hanging in them. I slowed down and looked and they were aluminum cans slit and pushed down to create an ornament. How cool was THAT!!! I thought that was really great and would like to copy the idea. So I did. I have a waste basket full of uncrushed coke cans so I will do some experimenting to see if I can create the ornament. Dave went out fishing with Phil so I stood in the kitchen and slit the sides of one can but I didn’t cut down far enough so it didn’t turn out too well. I tried another and figured out you have to make the slits starting from the top edge of the can to the bottom. Then you can push down on the top of the can which will bend out some of the sides. Once that happens, you take a small screw driver and go behind the other strips to bend them outward. Once all strips are bent out you push a little harder on the top of the can to set the strips so they stay bent out. I got some twine and attached enough to the can to hang it with. After I finished with all the cans I had I went out and hung them in a bush by our driveway. They sparkle nicely but I need a lot more cans if I’m going to cover the tree.
Thursday, I went over to our neighbor’s house to see if they had any uncrushed cans. They had a few and said I could have them. It was getting late in the afternoon and I wanted to take a walk on the beach before the sun went behind the mountain so I told them I would be back tomorrow to get them. I had a nice walk and found some interesting shells along the way. I walked to the first estuary and turned around and came back. On my way back I was still looking for unique shells and sea glass but I happened to look up over a small sand dune and noticed what looked like a turtle shell. We were told Coyotes killed two turtles a couple of weeks ago and I wondered if that might be the remains of one of them. So I walked up and took a look and sure enough it was what was left of a turtle. She had come to shore to lay her eggs and the Coyotes got her and also ate her eggs. The same fate happened to the other turtle. I was so excited to add a turtle shell to my yard! I took it home. As I was walking near Mary and George’s house, Mary hollered out that I had her turtle. I laughed and said “no—I found it first”! The shell still had a right front leg and a rear left leg barely attached. I laid it down near the rock sculptures and went upstairs to tell Dave of my find. He told me Mary and George had found it shortly after the Coyotes attacked it. I had no idea so I went over to see Mary and mentioned what Dave said. Mary said they were waiting for it to dry before getting it for their yard. She told me how they found it on the beach and drug it up on a dune to let it dry. The next day, they found the shell on the beach again so they drug it back up to the dune. That is where it stayed until I spotted it. I told her I had no idea and she could have it if she wanted. She said it was alright, I could keep it. It’s a nice size. I really did feel bad about taking the shell when they had their heart set on it. Mary also said there was another turtle and the remains are in the first estuary further up the beach that Jay and Jan laid claim to. Mary said she will have to go get it as Jay and Jan have left in their boat to go south. So for now I have the shell in my yard. Eventually the fins/feet, whatever you call them, will disintegrate and all that will remain will be the shell. Part of the upper shell is missing as the Coyote’s chewed into it to get the head. Pretty interesting stuff here!!! Nature is definitely interesting.
Friday, Creela and Phil invited us to their house for dinner. We had BBQ pork, stuffing, salad and lots of wine!!!! After dinner we sat outside next to a bon fire and talked. We had a delightful time. They will be leaving to go back to their San Diego home in a week. We are leaving for Santa Rosalia on Monday and they will probably be gone by the time we get back. They will come back down to Bahia in the spring.
Saturday I cleaned, washed clothes, and went over to Mary and George’s house to retrieve their aluminum cans. There were a few but I will still need more. I did my trick with them and hung them up and the bush is starting to get fuller. It looks festive!!! My neighbors love it and so do I. I told them that was our poor man’s Christmas tree. Simple things really are fun and add a lot of joy!!!
Sunday was a day to pack and get things ready for Santa Rosalia. Dave watched some football, and I did some cross stitching. It was a low keyed day. We had some high cloud cover today and we had to run the generator for a while. Just can’t get enough solar power when that happens. Good thing I didn’t wash clothes today. They wouldn’t have dried.
Monday - Sunday, December 6-12.
We left the house around 7:30am and traveled to town where we dropped off our laundry with Yolanda and told her we will be back on Thursday to pick it up. Then we were on our way to Santa Rosalia. We had more of those high clouds and it looked like a non solar day. I guess we are supposed to have this type of cloud cover for a few days. The ride was uneventful. When we arrived at the marina we went down to the boat to check it out and open it up. We hooked up the water and electricity and then went back to the jeep to bring down all our stuff. The weather is a little warmer here than in Bahia, but it still is cool in the morning and night.
We went to dinner at our favorite chicken place. There we met Mary, whom is a cruiser. She was eating by herself. She said she just got back from Escondido and came there to have dinner. Her husband and children were back on her boat. She invited us to join her so we did and had a nice conversation. It was good to see her again. After dinner we said goodbye and Dave and I walked to the bank and pharmacy. It was a pleasant evening and we enjoyed the walk back to the boat. We were both pretty tired so bed time wasn’t far away. I got on my computer and started searching for gifts for the grandsons.
Today, Tuesday, I was able to finish my shopping online for the grandsons, so now Christmas shopping is done. I also managed to vacuum the floor and clean the bathrooms which needed it badly. Then I went outside and rinsed the cockpit as it was covered in dirt. It is just a given that job has to be done when we come down to the boat. Arturo cleans the decks and the cockpit is not included in his job. It only takes a few minutes to rinse and then the sun dries it all. Later I go back and put everything away. I was going to walk to the hardware store this afternoon, but it was getting late so I decided not to. One of the cruising couples here in the marina invited us to a potluck gathering of the other cruisers in t he marina tonight so Dave and I went to the store and got some chips and dip.
At 5:30pm Dave and I walked up to the marina big room to join the other cruisers. There were 3 other couples beside us and we shared experiences found out where they were from and what places they had been to. It was fun. After awhile we said goodnight and went back to our own boats.
Tomorrow is laundry day, walk to town and maybe the hardware store and pack up to leave on Thursday. All systems were working just fine on the boat which is always a good thing.
Didn’t make it to the hardware store but did walk to town to get a few things. Laundry is done and the jeep is packed except for the last minute things in the morning. I am looking forward to getting back to the house to prepare for Ron and Noreen’s visit.
It is Thursday and we are back at the house. It was a non eventful trip. As we came into town, we stopped and picked up our laundry and headed to the house. After everything was unloaded from the jeep and brought upstairs, I put it away and then Dave and I relaxed. You don’t realize how much energy is taken from you after riding in a vehicle for 5 hours. Well maybe you do! Tomorrow I start cleaning the bamboo room.
Monday - Sunday, December 13-19.
Today is a cleaning day. The Honda generator was started up and I vacuumed the bamboo room. I cleaned everything so it looks really nice now. That is where Ron and Noreen are going to sleep.
They will be able to wake up and have the sun shine in the room and see the view! Next came the cleaning of the bathroom and then the trailer. Of course I didn’t do all that in one day. I like to spread out the work.
I have added more ornaments to the bush in our yard and it is looking rather festive!! I am going to save them for next year and even add to what I have so I can decorate a couple more trees/bushes.
We have 2 strands of lights which we will figure out where to put them so at least we have a little holiday cheer on the house.
The bougainvillea plant that is in the yard isn’t doing so well so Dave and I dug it up and relocated it in a less windier place. Hopefully it will flourish there. I hauled some dirt from the arroyo to plant it in which is much better soil than where it was. So we shall see. The plant I pulled up alongside the road a while back is starting to show signs of life. Yahoo!!! If I’m lucky it will bloom.
I need to get some more rocks to outline a couple areas and then I will take a break from rock hunting. My neighbor Mary asked if I wanted to rock hunt with her on Thursday and I said “sure”. So we both will be able to get the rocks we want. She is going to line her driveway with, hopefully, purple rocks. Really!! There are purple rocks here. They are awesome. She has permission from a man who happens to be a natural born Mexican, and a doctor in San Diego, who has rights to the quarry.
Dave spent the last couple of days disassembling the tower that was built next to the bamboo room. We got permission a long time ago from Larry to tear it down as it is all rotted from termite infestation. He got the roof off and I took the palm frawns off as they were all nailed down. There was nothing to be saved so I ended up with 4 full garbage bags and will end up with another 4 bags as Dave still has 2 roof sections on top of the carport. He finished getting the rest of the roof down yesterday, Tuesday, and I started to pull nails out of the boards. What a great view we now have from the house. It is nice to have that tower out of the way. Today Dave is planning on tearing down the stairs and then he will be done. He went and got water this morning, Wednesday, and when that little chore is finished we will be cleaning up our mess in the front yard. I told Dave that his ‘yard art’ wasn’t exactly what I had in mind!!!!
Dave ended up having to build a brace for the carport roof as it is sagging quite a bit. He did take the stairs down and put a railing across the end of the deck where the stairs led to the tower. He spent most of the morning taking nails out of the wood and stacking the wood out of the way to either burn or use for another project. There are some good pieces of wood.
Mary and I went to the quarry and got a bunch of purple rocks for her and I got granite rocks for me. I was able to line up the rocks in front of where I planted the bougainvillea and a couple other places as well. Now I am done in the yard for now.
Dave and I hung our two strands of Christmas lights. They look awesome and are really bright. We hung them on the posts and rafter right outside the sliding glass door from the living room. Here is a picture.
Everything is ready for Ron and Noreen’s visit. Today, Sunday, I went into town to get a couple things and fill up a gas can. Tomorrow we are leaving for Ensenada. It is suppose to rain in San Diego and Ensenada so we figured if we left tomorrow, we could have a leisure ride up and if the road isn’t good we can stop for the night and continue Tuesday morning. Then we will have all day Wednesday to shop at Costco, Walmart, Mega, and Home Depot. We will meet Ron and Noreen in Ensenada on Thursday and start our drive home. I hope the weather is nice while they are here and not too windy. Right now it is nice with very little wind so it is fairly warm. Well it is what it is and at least we are spending Christmas together!!
Monday - Sunday, December 20-26.
We left this morning for Ensenada and drove all the way. The weather was good and the roads weren’t too bad. We were really glad we didn’t stop overnight as it rained all night which would have made the roads terrible, on Tuesday, especially where construction is going on. We didn’t do anything after getting to the hotel as it was around 3:00pm. We recuperated from the long drive and then went downstairs to the restaurant to have dinner, and then back to our room.
It was cloudy all day on Tuesday, but didn’t rain much. It was cold enough to wear a turtle neck and sweatshirt. We went comparison shopping and figured out what we wanted to buy. We went to Home Depot first to look at stick on tile for the bathroom floor by the Bamboo room. Sand has gotten under the tile and every time you step on it it crackles. Today was a look day not a buying one. The next stop was Mega department store, then Walmart and finally Costco. We made comparison notes between Mega and Walmart and decided Walmart had better prices. So tomorrow we will go to Home Depot to get the tile squares then Walmart and finally Costco.
Ron and Noreen are flying into San Diego this evening and we will meet them tomorrow morning. Dave and I did our shopping and the weather has been clearing out nicely so we won’t have to worry about the roads going home tomorrow. We did call Ron and ask if they could upgrade their rental to a 4 wheel drive vehicle just in case. So they will check into it. This is just so they will have plenty of clearance under the car for rocks and if the construction roads are muddy.
Ron and Noreen couldn’t get a 4 wheel drive vehicle but they did get a nice Chrysler van so that will work. We met them Wednesday morning in front of the plaza in downtown Ensenada. After greeting them, we decided to stop at Costco to pick up some wine and cheese. Then we were on our way to the house with Ron and Noreen following us. Dave and I knew that since we got a late start leaving Ensenada we wouldn’t make it to the house before dark, so we stopped at a place called Jardin’s. It means garden in Spanish and boy does it live up to its name. We had heard a lot about the place so we thought we would try it. We stopped early enough to have a margarita and catch up on stuff, after checking in. The rooms are really nice and the owner has a garden where they grow their own vegetables and an orchard of oranges, limes, grapefruit, and apples. There were a lot of plants around the place to make it inviting and pleasant. It was beautiful. Now we understand why a lot of the gringos stop there on their way down from and back to San Diego.
We were on the road around 8:00am on Thursday, and made it all the way to the house. The weather was nice and the roads also. Upon arrival at the house, we took Ron and Noreen to where they were going to sleep and then gave them a tour of the place. Dave was tickled to show Ron his work area, the pila and the generator room. Afterwards Ron and Noreen got unpacked while I put groceries away. Later, Ron and Noreen walked on the beach and enjoyed the serene atmosphere.
Merry Christmas everyone!!!! We were awakened early this morning with an earthquake. To us it sounded like something hit the house. Maybe it was Santa Claus!!!! There was a bam and then nothing. Ron said they had the bam and the ground swayed a little and then that was it.
Ron and Noreen presented us with a gift from the Brownsville Deli, back home in Bremerton, Washington. That is where Ron and Noreen have their boat, they live aboard, and where we used to moor ours. We got a good laugh from the gift. Here it is and here is a picture of them in use!!!!
HA!!! You men out there didn't think I would actually 'WEAR' them for a picture did you??? Sorry to disappoint!!!! Well not really!!! Ha!
Ron took a picture so he will have it to give to the gals at the Deli. What a hoot!! By the way---that is a sweatshirt I am wearing in case you hadn’t noticed. The north winds are blowing and it is cold!! Not as cold as Washington, but still cold.
This afternoon at 4:00pm, Joanne and her daughter, granddaughter and son-in-law are coming over for dinner. They are bringing a spiral ham and sweet potatoes and we are cooking a roast, scallop potatoes and serving a green salad.
It was fun having them join us, and Mary and George stopped by after dinner to have a drink with us. It was a nice Christmas!
The weather has been chilly, but sunny. Ron and Noreen thought it would be warmer than it was, so they didn’t have a lot of warm clothes, but they managed. It was still warmer than Washington. They got to hear the coyotes yip, and wake up to sunshine in their room, and listen to the birds.
Noreen and Ron had fun walking the beach and collected small shells and rocks. All of us went for a hike so we could show them the abandon ranch not far from the house and Noreen took some pictures of the large Cardon cacti, well she thought she did until she got back to the house and discovered there were none. That was too bad.
The wind had been blowing all day and we thought it wasn’t going to die down after the sun went down, but it did. We ended up having a bonfire in the front yard and as we watched the fire burn, we drank cappuccino with Kahlua in it. Yumm!!!!
It was a perfect evening. After that we called it a night. The Christmas lights on the deck looked bright and festive from the front yard!!
Monday - Friday, December 27-31.
Today, Monday, we took Ron and Noreen to town. We showed them the typical Mexican tiendas (stores), Ron and Noreen bought a couple shirts and we visited a tourist shop and the little craft shop. We stopped and had lunch and then headed back to the house.
Dave has been watching the weather because there was some indication it was going to rain on Wednesday. If that was the case Ron and Noreen would have to leave on Tuesday to avoid driving in mud at the construction sites. But as it turned out, Wednesday was suppose to be o.k. for travel. We hate the thought of them leaving, but are enjoying every minute of their stay.
After dinner we played Cruisers Mexican Train and had a ball. We finally ended the game at 12:00am. Good thing we don’t have to get up early in the morning!!!
This morning, Tuesday, Ron and Dave went to town to get water. When they got back Ron and Noreen witnessed our system for pumping water from the tank on the truck to the pila tank. After that was done I made breakfast and after cleanup we took off to explore Las Flores, an old mining town, south of the house. Noreen and I rode in the back of the truck and had a blast.
It was a little dusty, but not too bad. Upon arrival at Las Flores, we explored the jail which is the only building intact.
We got some pictures of the jail birds, Ron, Noreen,
and then we walked to a cemetery which Mr. Daggett descendants were buried.
The Daggett family now owns a lot of the La Gringa area north of where we live. We saw the remnants of homes and another building I’m not sure what it was. It probably was a home at one time.
I got a cutting of a cactus to bring back and plant in the front yard somewhere. The ride back to the house was better as the dust was blowing away from us. When we got home we had lunch and then Noreen and Ron did a little packing and getting ready to leave early tomorrow morning.
Well the time has come to say goodbye to Ron and Noreen. We enjoyed their visit very much!! There were a few clouds in the sky but the morning was nice. They left here around 6:00am. They are driving all the way to the boarder today as they have reservations in a hotel just on the other side of the boarder in San Diego. After they had been gone awhile, we noticed that the sky was getting cloudier and looking north it didn’t look pretty. We are hoping they don’t have any problems. As it turned out, we had heavy cloud cover and high winds. It is a good thing Ron and Noreen left today because it got nasty here. The wind blew about 44-45 miles an hour, sand was blowing everywhere and our windows were rattling. It was not a day to be outside. Dave and I read I took a nap and later cross stitched and watched the wind storm out the window. The wind continued into the night. We were hoping it would calm down before we went to bed. It did for awhile.
We were awakened by one of our plastic chairs getting blown on the deck. Then the back of one of the chaise lounges came off so I drug that and the chair inside. We still had the rest of one chaise lounge and another one plus a table on the deck. I moved them closer to the house and thought they would be alright. After going back to bed, a little later we heard a crash from the deck. When I looked out the sliding glass door I found the table in pieces and about ready to be blown off the deck. Not a good thing. I brought the pieces in to the house and had to retrieve the other 2 legs that blew off the deck. Dave tried to see if it was salvageable, but unfortunately, Mother Nature made it such it can’t be repaired!!! The wind blew around 45-50 miles an hour all night. We didn’t get much sleep. I ended up stacking the chaise lounge chairs on top of the other and that seemed to keep them from blowing around. The wind finally calmed enough we could sleep. About 8:30am it started up with a fury and hasn’t stopped yet. We got a few sprinkles yesterday, Wednesday, but no rain to speak of.
We received an email from Noreen saying they made it across the border at 4:30pm. They made good time. They had a 6:00am flight out of San Diego so they were up and moving really early this morning.
The wind has died and has switched out of the northwest!!! Thank goodness. The wind started in a flash and ended the same way. Whew!!! We moved all the furniture off the deck so we won’t have to worry about damaging any more stuff. We walked the yard accessing the damage and the only thing we found was one of my tall whale bones fell. No worries, I will fix that when the wind isn’t blowing so hard. What a wild day and night yesterday. That is winter in Bahia!!!
Dave and I are staying home tonight to watch T.V. and ring in the New Year. Some of the gringos that are here went into town to have dinner and celebrate early then return home. It’s been cold and we just wanted to stay where it was warm and relax. There were a few fireworks but nothing compared to what it would have been in Mazatlan!!!
