Our community is having a cookie exchange tomorrow so I made sugar cookies, cut them out with Santa head cutters and frosted them with buttercream and chocolate. I am pretty sure these cookies will go over well because of their  generous amount of frosting.
We are in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. Darrell has lots of frequent flyer miles and has earned an elite status so now he is usually upgraded to first class. On the way from Atlanta to Cancun the flight was pretty empty, including the seat next to Darrell so he asked if I could join him in first class so he wouldn’t be lonely and I was upgraded for free.
When we landed at the airport in Cancun the lines through customs was short and we got the green light so no additional checks were needed. We took our usual $9 bus ride into Playa del Carmen and checked into Playa Maya where we have stayed at for the past four years. After all of this traveling we were pretty hungry and went to La Caprichoza for dinner where we had yummy kebabs. We ended the night early after wandering to the churro cart for dessert. That’s Darrell ordering us some churros in the above photo.
Our beach front hotel is clean and simple. It is also pretty quiet except every once in a while I hear a noise that reminds me of the smoke monster from Lost. We decided to try out the hotel for breakfast. I had the “American” which came with toast, scrambled eggs and ham,which I had requested be placed on the side but arrived mixed in with my eggs.  Since I don’t eat ham Darrell had a lot to eat. Luckily, I found a yogurt shop near bank.
We walked to the grocery store called Mega where we bought several tasty and cheap pastries, shampoo, band aids, rubbing alcohol, water and vanilla for $10. We decided to spend the rest of our afternoon on beach drinking Sol and eating shrimp tacos but after lunch it started to pour so here we are, inside.
 
I clearly have too much time on my hands because a month or so ago I arranged my cookbooks into rainbow order.
Today I ran errands and turned my out of control cilantro plants into pesto (recipe from “How to Cook Everything Vegetarian” by Mark Bittman, second shelf, second from left, bright green).
I am really happy that my husband is finally coming home next week. It seems like the longer he is away the more sad I feel. I can’t believe we have been keeping this sort of schedule for more than a year now. Of course as soon as he does get home I will be flying to Seattle to spend Thanksgiving with my Mom and then on to San Antonio for a team offsite the following week. I won’t be able to catch up with him until the beginning of December when we go to Playa del Carmen for vacation.
Every time we go to Mexico we have a great time but I get sick. I get sick no matter how smart I am about what I eat or what water I brush my teeth with. This time I am preparing by taking Oregano oil and acidophilus. The Oregano oil is supposed to help with many things including keeping stomach bugs at bay. I have also scheduled a doctor appointment before I go so I can get a prescription for something to help me if I do get sick while I am there.
Today I made a kitchensink unique quiche with my new bounty of garden goodies and farm fresh eggs. I started by sauteing onions and garlic in olive oil then adding some sliced yellow squash. I folded that into my custard and cheese mixture and added some fresh basil and cilantro.
I also spent most of the day cleaning parts of the house, it feels good to have that out of the way but I still have a bit more to do, and I have to *ugh* vacuum. It feels like housekeeping is never done, especially since moving from the apartment into a house!
Lazboy called me on Friday to let me know that they might actually deliver my chair (the one I had ordered back in June) next week! I asked them if they were joking. I guess we will see!
Today after meeting up with my friend Tracy (who is by far the nicest and kindest person on this planet) I went to pick up a small preview share of my weekly CSA from KYV Farms; the first of many I am hoping. KYV Farms is small CSA close to where I live. The farmer is very passionate about growing good quality produce. He has a day job so this is purely a labor of love, he mentioned today that if he gets 200 members next season he would love to farm full time. So if you are in Jacksonville and are interested in joining a wonderful CSA please contact them!
Seasonally, it’s funny for me to think of being able to pick up cucumbers and bok choy in mid October but I guess Florida has two growing seasons. Who am I to argue! I also purchased a dozen fresh eggs and hurried home to make garlic ginger bok choy!
Today is Darrell’s Birthday! Once again he is not spending it here at home so Kitty, Max and I celebrated on our own and wished him a happy one on the phone.
Darrell got a new camera for his birthday! He got a sleek ultra compact Canon PowerShot SD550 which he had been begging me for! Actually he got my ‘hand me down camera’ since his old Canon PowerShot s400 finally died. I bought myself a new Canon Rebel XSi for a fair price and can not wait until it arrives! I am excited to take some pretty pictures but sadly it does not come with a ‘food’ setting.
Max and I are still attending obedience class and have mastered the ‘down’ command where Max will lay down if I bribe him with a tasty treat. He loves chicken! We are having a hard time with the ’stay’ command and are getting better at leash walking. We went to a “Doggie Social” yesterday at this beautiful home on the St. Johns River. All of the dogs played and played except Max, he just greeted new dogs (there were at least 10 of them there), explored the yard, peed on as many things as he could, and begged for human attention. I am glad that he is not one to start fights or be rough with other dogs. He seems pretty content to do his own thing. Yesterday, I was walking Max near our home when he started to crowd the sidewalk. I stepped onto the grass and into a hole and then fell down and skinned my knee. ow 
We’ve been really busy hanging out with Max and getting Darrell ready for his next trip for work so I haven’t posted about our new toy: Wii Fit!
It took me a while to find a Wii Fit (well three days). It is a blast to play and if you play long enough you do start to sweat a little. Check out the above photo of Darrell hula hooping!
