Happy Thanksgiving via Ecuador...

Our forefathers would approve.

I'm just going to get this out of the way right off the top:  We spent Thanksgiving on the beach and did not eat turkey.  I don't feel so much guilt over the former, but the latter I do have a smidge of regret.  Turkey, of course, is tradition on Thanksgiving...as is green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, cranberry salad and family dysfunction.  It just all makes sense together, except for the cranberry salad...never cared much for that combination of ingredients.  I missed the turkey and the interaction with dear friends and family, but our sushi was pretty darn tasty.  I imagine that the Asian pilgrims may have enjoyed sushi and sake with the natives those many long years ago.  Probably not a California Roll, but definitely a nice Dynamite Roll or Pink Dragon, perhaps.

This Thanksgiving, more so than any in recent memory, I am very thankful for a new life and fresh start with Laura and Eli.  It has become more and more evident that this roll of the dice was a pretty good one.  We needed this.  When we left the States in October, our little family unit was teetering precariously on a thin strand of waxy dental floss strung very loosely over a deep gorge of stress, disappointment and regret.  It was dismal at best and mostly hopeless.  Stepping back a few thousand miles away from that disturbing Dali painting it is amazing that we could make anything positive happen in the emotional state we were in...I was certain that we were incapable of making a good decision or choosing a direction that wouldn't come back and bite us in the proverbial butts.  Granted, it's still early, but things are falling into place and we have learned to smile again.  We are "The Little Family That Could" and we are almost to the top of that mountain.  I am thankful for the constant, steadfast, selfless and gracious support of our family and friends...we love and appreciate you all.  It's been a rough year, but I am certain it will end on a positive note that will carry us on through next year and beyond...we will endure and keep hope alive or, as a wise and beautiful Irish woman from Colorado once told us, "Don't let the bastards get you down!"  Wise words and a beautiful sentiment, indeed...cheers to all of you this Thanksgiving weekend!

That wave never did catch him.

Embracing the Randomness...

The owl was very impressed.

Many of the things we see around here on a daily basis are odd, strange and very random.  We have learned to embrace and accept most everything.  I like to equate our new surroundings to Wonka's Chocolate Factory...it's crazy and doesn't necessarily make sense, but it works!  It is amusing and innocent and, yes, very brightly colored.  There is a palpable innocence and honesty to the locals.  They love life.  They love their families.  They are completely happy to just be happy.  I dare say that this is unconditional and pure and devoid of naivete.  From the smallest child to the most weathered and seasoned adult, the same innocence is in their eyes.  And their culture is a direct reflection on their honesty and innocence.  What I view as "random" from my perspective, is unintentional.  Everyday is rife with examples.  So, without further ado, here are a few of those great examples of randomness:

We were leaving the SuperMaxi (side point: It still boggles my mind why they chose to name a grocery store after a feminine hygiene product.) grocery store in Ibarra yesterday when we noticed a guy standing literally in front of on-coming traffic juggling three big machetes...and, sadly, he wasn't very good, possibly self-taught.

Families of three, four and even five riding on the same motorcycle or scooter...amazing and impressive.

There is something of a fascination, which we cannot figure out, with the local culture and stickers or decals.  This is the very definition of random when it comes to adorning cars, trucks, buses (especially buses!) and businesses with any sticker image ranging from western sunset scenes, Detroit Pistons or New York Yankees logos, clowns, rainbow Jesus, regular Jesus, Bart Simpson, Tweety and/or Pooh, Playboy logo, local soccer team logo, the names Teresa or Maria, over sized blonde in bikini...you get the drift.

Massive colorful statues, usually located in common areas or roundabouts, depicting local peoples doing various activities like working in a field, riding horses or breastfeeding.  The latter statue was disturbingly graphic.

Indigenous children wear some interesting accessories with their customary dress, such as: silver boxing gloves, spider man pajamas over the clothes, Disney princess backpack, etc.  A nun was walking through the main square texting on her phone.  I wonder who she was texting?  Street dog walking down the sidewalk carrying a baby doll in its mouth.  Small truck with 15-20 students piled in the back.  Local "handyman" fixing our gas stove armed with only his mouth and a long piece of wire...works great!


Anywhere we go, whether it be here in Cotacachi or in another town, locals and indigenous peoples take the time to acknowledge Eli and either touch his face in a gentle way or try to interact with him.  I believe they are genuinely intrigued and amused by him.

Everyday we walk into town, there is a little boy who always manages to find a dandelion to pick and give to his mother.  He tells her she is "the most beautiful mommy in the whole world" and I'm pretty sure he means it.  That's just the way Eli is most of the time...very random and very sincere.  I think this culture suits him well.

A Day In the Life...

So this post may be a little different from the previous posts.  Thought we would give you a "Day in the Life" series of photos.  I will try and capture a bit of what we experience each day....

It rained for about an hour last week and you would have thought it was little gold nuggets falling from the beautiful sky, instead of water.  Eli grabbed the umbrella and played!  I'm sure the neighbors enjoyed his rendition of "It's Raining It's Pouring" over, and over, and over, and over again. 

One of Eli's favorite things to do is play in our stone courtyard.  He makes hide-outs for his action figures, plays with Beetles, digs in the dirt...He is as dirty as a street kid most days to his delight.  All 3 pairs of shoes are ruined - he walks all around in the best pair which has a broken strap. 
 

Ok, so you may have figured out by now this isn't Correy writing...I don't know as many big words and cannot string them together like poetry.  Anyway, this is a view of the back gate into our community.  Notice the cow (there are actually about 10 in this pasture).  We have to walk through an Indigenous person's property (they allow us to) which includes 3-4 dogs, multiple chickens, a few large roosters, cows, sheep including a brand new little baby and 1 pig.  A couple weeks ago, I went for a morning walk by myself.  Those of you who know me well know that about every 4 days I make some type of "resolution" (I'm gonna go on Atkins!  I'm going to do yoga every day!  I'm giving up coffee!  You get the gist....)  So this fateful day I had gone out our front gate and walked about 2.5 miles all around town and was feeling great!  "I'm going to do this every morning!!" I say to myself.  "How wonderful I can be a guest in this country, feel safe to walk alone, Ahhh the view!" then I turn up the path and face - a small cow and a big dog.  I've seen both many times but today they are laying ON the path - directly between me and the back gate (Oh did I mention when I was feeling empowered and healthy, that I picked up a 10 lb jug of bottled water for the house and had already carried it about half mile?  Yep.)  So I stand there holding my water and staring at the cow and dog, which both stare back.  The path is only about 18" wide, with a trench that looks gross on either side.  Neither animal moves...and the dog growls.  So I weigh my options:  1) jumping over them while carrying 10 lbs of water  2) jumping around them to the pasture and risk the trench 3) turn around and accept defeat.  I choose option #3.  My parents can attest to my short-lived high school career as a "long jumper" in track.  So I turn around and walk the 1.25 miles to the other gate with my water.  Safe and sound.  I do still walk by myself, just maybe not with the water jug. 

The Little Guy.... I do not mean to make a derrogatory comment, but we call the man in this picture "the little guy".  Every afternoon he waits at the back gate (mentioned above) and waits for one of us Gringos to open it up.  Then he goes to an open lot (this one is across from our house) and sits and cuts the grass for a few hours until dusk.  Then he hauls 1-2 bags to the back gate, and proceeds to come around and see which one of us will let him back out.  He weighs maybe 80 pounds, and each bag is probably 100 lbs.  He is mute...an example of Indigenous in-breeding...but very sweet.  He cuts the grasses to feed the cows which is the law in Ecuador - if there is open land Indigenous are allowed to either let the cattle graze, or cut the grasses.  So we have made it our nightly routine to check out the windows and see when he's carrying his bags, then we go down and open the gate for him.  While we are at it, we take some bread and feed "Daffy" the resident duck. 

Daffy lives in the pond at the back gate and is very social.  Sad story though...Daffy had a mate (a lovely white duck we are told) and they used to walk through the neighborhood together.  His girlfriend went missing, so he is sad.  He sits up the hill from the pond and looks over the fence at the cows/animals on the other side.  He waits for us Gringos to come and feed him and say hello.  We all do and he is a fat little duck.  Of course Eli is now trying to talk us into getting a duck for our bathtub (that we don't have).

This is the little pizza place in Cotacachi that we visit once or twice a week.  A very nice young woman owns it and makes some good pizza pies.  Eli flirts with her niece who is probably 6 yrs old and tries to get them to turn on the TV.
 

Our other favorite pizza place.  This is Eli with his new friend, Jonah.  D'Angelo Pizza is in Otavalo and Jonah's dad runs the place, so he is there all day.  Each time, Jonah has a new toy he brings out to share with Eli (a ping pong ball, a pretend horse, a calculator....)  Yesterday we went and brought Jonah some stickers (Angry Bird stickers for those of you who love the game!)  Jonah proceeded to put them all over his big wheel and ride all through the place - hilarious.  There is a small courtyard right next to the tables and that's where they play.  They don't understand a word the other one says....

So hopefully it comes through that we are having a nice time.  We are in love with this country and its people.  Yesterday I bought a Panama Hat!  And most days we enjoy each other's company :) Even though I have 13 bug bites that itch like crazy...and most nights either the beetles scratching or the beat of music from an Ecuadorian baptism party wake us up....it's been a pretty good ride so far.  We miss our dear family and friends...thank you for the nice words, encouragement, humor, emails, and Skyping.  Greatly appreciate you and keep it coming!

It has been nice to stop and smell the roses for a minute.  Life is pretty darn good.  Until we meet again....Cheers