Max's 5th Birthday!

Max is 5! I can't believe he is that old...or that I am! We decided to celebrate his birthday at school with all of his little friends. He wanted a Cars themed birthday (of course) and bug cupcakes...I know they don't really go together, but they worked since his birthday is close to Halloween. They turned out really cute too. Tim took time off work and went to help and document. I wish I could have been there, but I'm a working woman now.

His teachers Ms. Carol (in black) and Fabi (in blue) made him the adorable crown and Cars toolbox. They are so sweet. Fabi is new, but Carol has been there since Max started. He loves her and talks about her all of the time.

Liv loves sweets so she was in heaven!

Here is all of his class except for two that were missing. They're so cute, and I love the cardboard people they made in the back as they studied Community Workers. It is a wonderful school with such loving staff. Max is picking up quite a bit of Spanish there. I love hearing him speak it!

This picture is so Max! He gets a little shy when all the attention is on him.

Women's Retreat in Coroico

Forgive me, I am backlogged on my blogging, but I just had to blog about the women's retreat I took back in August. Every few months the Embassy plans a women's retreat so we can get away together and revamp. I decided to go on the one in August although we had just recently arrived and I only knew one other person that was going. I was a little nervous, but all of the women turned out to be great. There were 9 of us that went. Here is a picture of us right before we headed home.

Coroico is at the edge of the Yungas Jungle in Bolivia. To get there you have to take the infamous Death Road. Luckily, they have built a new Death Road which is better so you only have to go on the old one for a short time. The old Death Road is mostly used for bike tours now, which Tim is just dying to do, but hopefully he won't die when he does!

Because it is in the Jungle it is so green. We stayed it a hotel with an amazing view. It had this great outdoor pool that looked out on gorgeous green mountains! For the retreat we did yoga, meditation, goal setting, African dance, humor therapy, got massages and layed by the pool. It was wonderful...everything I love to do. During the goal setting class I commited myself to train for a marathon for 2012, something I never knew if I would do, but decided to wait until I lived at 12,o00 feet. I know I'm smart. The idea is to train here and run somewhere much lower in elevation.

We took a nighttime walk up to the city center, which was about a 15 minute walk up from our hotel. People were out celebrating because we just happened to be there on August 6th, Bolivia's Independance Day. It was a quaint little town with a beautiful church and nice plaza.

They had so many beautiful flowers there. Here is one of my favorites.

Our stuff came!

So a few weeks ago we got our big shipment. About 6 weeks after arriving we received our quick shipment which had some clothes, bedding, some toys, and kitchen necessities. The big shipment had everything else...decor, more clothes, toys, books, not to mention food (mostly Costco stuff) oh, how we've missed Costco! It was quite the process getting it. The ship landed in Chile around the 20th of August. Usually from there it will take about a week with travel time to La Paz and getting through customs, but we hit all sorts of bumps. First, there was a strike at the port right after our stuff arrived so nothing could leave. When it finally did make it to La Paz there computer systems were down for a few days so they got backed up. Anyway, they kept giving us dates when it was going to arrive and they kept changing. First it was going to come on the 6th, then the 9th, the 12th, then the 16th. We found out on the 14th that there was going to be a big blockade up in El Alto (which was where our stuff was) on the 16th and nothing would be able to get through. Somehow the guy that was organizing it was able to get things ready for the night of the 15th so we didn't have to wait until the next week. It worked out great because Tim had no work the next day due to the blockade and protests so we got to stay home and unpack together. Somehow our wonderful maid made her way through the chaos too and came and helped me tackle the whole kitchen that day. We had over 150 boxes total. Much of that was food and kitchen supplies. It was like Christmas the night we got our stuff. We opened all of the toys that night and the kids were so excited to see them all. We even got our car a few days later, which was like Christmas for Tim and I!

Max playing with his lego car.

Liv with baby Zoe.

One of the things the kids looked forward to getting the most was their rain gear, hats, boots and umbrellas. They wore them around the house quite a bit that weekend.

For about a week after getting our stuff our entire yard was filled with empty boxes. Good thing our house is gated because we looked pretty "White Trash"

A few days later was the Utah vs. BYU game. Max sported his Utah Superhero cape this day. Sorry to say Mayka, but he has yet to wear it with the BYU side up. He thought about it one day and I told him he could as long as his dad didn't see, but he decided he didn't want to do anything his dad wouldn't approve of.

Soon after our shipment came I was really anxious to get our decor up on the walls. We put in a request for some workers from the Embassy to come and hang it all (we can't do anything for ourselves anymore), but they were taking much too long so I put Max to work!

La Entrada Folklorica Universitaria

The last week of July every year, the Universities in the area put on a parade. Each school performs music and dancing in elaborate costumes that represent dances and cultures in Bolivia. Its the first parade I've been to where I've had to pay for a seat, but it was worth it. The costumes were amazing and the music and dances were fun. Max was sitting in the stroller in the street and was right in the action. Here are some of my favorite pics we took.

After watching the parade we saw this adorable little boy playing the charango trying to earn a little money. He had quite the crowd watching. One man went and bought him an ice cream cone and as soon as he saw that he packed up his stuff and dug in.

Lake Titicaca

So back in July we took a little day tour to Lake Titicaca, (the world's highest navigable lake and largest in South America). We went to a place called Huatajata; not the most impressive part of the lake, but beautiful nonetheless. We got there just in time for a parade in the small town.

Then we headed down to the lake and got on a little motor boat with a tour guide. He took us around the lake and over to his island.

On the little island we saw women spinning wool and some amazing boats and other artwork our tour guide had made out of reeds from the lake called totora.

He and his dad built a boat out of these reeds that sailed across the Atlantic. Its pretty impressive how they stitch the reeds together and that they are so durable. After our tour we ate at a restaurant right on the lake.

We also got to see a vicuna (bicunya) up close. These are similar to llamas and alpaca. Their wool is extremely fine and soft. I read that a scarf made of their wool costs about $1,500 and a coat about $20,000.

I also thought I'd post this picture of Liv and Rosendo. He is a driver here that took us to Lake Titicaca, as well as other places. Liv loves him and always gives him big hugs when we see him around. He loves it!