Lindsay and Johanna Depart

We were all up by 5 a.m. getting ready to leave.  Very sad.  We actually left the house at 6:15 and arrived at Leon in plenty of time.  We could not accompany the girls to the gate but they did not have to go through security until board start time.  Lindsay had an airline escort so both girls went a little after 9 for their 9:30 departure.  All went well and we sadly drove out of the airport parking lot only to realize that we had a flat tire.  Fortunately there was a good spot to pull over and John changed the tire.

Now we are home missing Johanna and Lindsay and hoping that all is going well with their flights home.  Boo-hoo.  But, it was a wonderful month and it went way too fast.

Monday - Last Full and Busy Day

The girls each bought a pretty scarf for Clara, our housekeeper, to thank her for helping them in the house - laundry, dish washing, changing sheets, etc.  Here they are about to give her the presents.

We headed out to the ranch bright and early.  I rode Molly and she was quite energetic today and the rain made it too wet to ride in the bull ring so I used caution and did not give lessons but just gave Molly a good work out.  But, each girl had a turn sitting on her for pictures and I talked to them about the importance of wearing a safety helmet any time you get on a horse - even if it is to just sit there for a picture.

Lindsay aboard Molly

Johanna aboard Molly

Then we headed up to Las Clavellines with Carol and Beverly to visit with the sewing ladies and also to see Esperanza's house that is under construction.  Then we drove quite a ways to the very small village of Colorado where there are only 30 families and a small primary school with 19 children and one teacher - grades 1 to 6.  These families are poor and our Outreach is going to pay for 1/2 the cost of the uniforms which will be pants and jackets of the sports variety which will help keep them warm in winter.  Many of the children showed up to welcome us (summer vacation is on right now) and it was quite heartwarming to meet them.  They had a big bottle of Fresca to share with us.  Then we had to drive all the way back to Las Clavellines to take the teacher and his wife.  By the time we got back to Carol's it was after almost 3:00 and we were all starving.  Carol provided us with gazpacho, bread and fruit with a cookie.  The girls had never had gazpacho before but they liked it and thought it tasted like red salsa.

The Sewing Group in Las Clavellines

Johanna, Beverly & Lindsay Looking at Uniform

Esperanza's New House in Las Clavellines

Esperanza and Some of Her Children

Esperanza's Old House

On the Way to Colorado

School in Colorado

Teacher/Principal of the School

Some of the Colorado Children

More of the Children

Back at home, the sun was out and the girls headed into the pool for their last swim (after they did most of their packing).  They had a lovely time and I did a video of them singing "De Colores" in the pool - very sweet.

We had our last dinner together of chicken, baked potatoes and carrots with strawberries and cream for dessert.  We all retired a little early because of our early departure in the morning.

A Beautiful Sunday

We headed off to church where the choir sang "De Colores" and the girls did a great job - even memorized the words.  Harold gave a good sermon which the girls said they enjoyed.  Back at home the sun was shining and they had some pool time.

Last Sunday at Church

Chloe Visiting with Johanna & Lindsay

Lindsay & Johanna

The Sun Dresses Made by Grandma

But, then it clouded up and we had some rain.  It was a perfect afternoon to make dresses.  We bought some fabric at Parisina which had elastic in the top so all you had to do was sew up a seam and add straps.  I made one for each of the girls - same fabric - and they loved them.  Not too difficult to make either, even though I am pretty much out of practice with the sewing machine.  I made spaghetti for dinner which is their favorite.  Tomorrow is their last day - hoo-hoo.

Saturday - A Busy Day

Master Class - Escher Quartet Teacher & Student String Quartet

This morning grandpa drove us down to Juarez Park for the first organic market - they will be every Saturday from now on.  It was quite interesting and the girls bought a few things there, like organic soap, earrings and scarves.  From the park we walked to Bellas Artes to watch a Master Class taught to a young (20's) string quartet who are students there for the Chamber Music Festival.  The teacher was a member of the Escher String Quartet and he was excellent.  They played a Haydn piece and he critiqued it and made suggestions on how to improve their interpretation.  They played each section over several times while the teacher worked with mainly the first violinist.   It was very interesting. We also walked around the Bellas Artes and looked at the unfinished Siquieros mural that is there.

From there, we walked around so the girls could do some more shopping and ended back at the Artisan's Market.  We stopped to visit with Patricia who played with Beth Ann when we lived in San Miguel in 1972-3.  She is now married and has 3 children - the youngest is 16.

From there we took a taxi home in time for Johanna's final lesson with Turkkan.  Lindsay had lots of computer time during the lesson.

I made schnitzel for dinner and everyone seemed to enjoy it.  There were more signs of rain and we did have quite a lot.  Between the last 2 rains there was about 3 inches.  Great for the poor farmers.

We played cards and Sequence for evening entertainment.

Back to Normal Friday

Johanna and Lindsay both woke up feeling 100% again this morning so we went out to the Ranch for riding lessons.  Grandpa went along because after riding we planned a trip to the village of La Campana to meet and visit with Eusebia and Juan who the Community Church outreach committee is planning to build a small room for their kitchen to replace the stone one which is entirely unsuitable.  It was a very heart rending experience to see these poor people and how they have to live due to lack of money.  Eusebia and Juan are 73 and 75 yrs old but look much older.  She told us they had 10 children but 5 of them died in childhood.  Now Eusebia has arthritis and a bad back and cannot move around very well.  Carol brought some food for them as their diets are mostly limited to beans and tortillas.  They had quite a few little great grandchildren around and a couple of grandchildren (mothers of the children) and two men who are relatives - one an abanile - who are out of work.

Eusebia in La Campana

Fields in La Campana

Eusebia's Old Kitchen

Lindsay &; Johanna in the old kitchen

Door into kitchen - no windows

Corn field in La Campana

We came home for lunch and it was beginning to look like rain.  And it did rain quite a lot.  The girls watched "JULIE AND JULIA" on the computer but we had to unplug because of the thunderstorm - they'll watch the rest tomorrow.

A Better Day

I checked on the girls around 8:00 and both said they were feeling pretty normal again - yea!  I went to ride and the girls stayed home and had a leisurely morning with Grandpa in charge.  After riding I ran a bunch of errands and was home in time to warm up the soup for lunch.  Both girls were hungry and enjoyed their lunch.  The weather was sunny and warm and the girls once again headed into the pool for an hour.  I had made crock pot boneless short ribs for dinner with baked potatoes and asparagus.  The girls were starving but I wouldn't let them overeat.  They did have a lemon bar for dessert - I think they would have liked more but I sure did not want a relapse of what ailed them.  We are thinking they got sick from eating carnitas Tuesday with all the salsa.  No more carnitas.

They watched "Penelope" on streaming Netflix and then retired to their room.  I'm very happy to have them healthy again.

Sick Day for the Girls

Lindsay was not up to par this morning.  Johanna said she was o.k. so she went out to the ranch with me and had a riding lesson.  I rode Molly first and she was feeling quite energetic - hadn't been ridden in 3 days.  We had a nice time. 

Got home for lunch and Lindsay still was not up to snuff and suddenly Johanna was feeling feeble too.  They watched a movie "Narnia" but they were all covered in blankets looking pitiful on the sofa.  Late afternoon and Johanna had a fever so she went to bed and I got her some baby aspirin and both girls had some Pepto Bismo.  By bedtime, Johanna's temperature came down and she was feeling better.  I had made chicken and rice soup - Lindsay was able to eat but Johanna was just too sick.  Not a fun day.