La Stabioneta

Ciudad de Mexico – so much to see, too little time. We spent 2 ½ weeks in Mexico. During this time, I had a lot of stuff going on at work, so I didn’t get to see as much of the city as I wished, but Catherine was a trooper. The main way to get around Mexico City is the same as New York or Madrid – the Metro. What is cool about the metro in Mexico City is that first few wagons are only for women and children. There are usually security guards/cops in the metro, and if a man goes past the “barrier”, he/she will have no problem yelling at the guy, even if its his family. No men allowed. Period. Now, there are some things about the Metro that are worth noting here:  If you have a backpack, wear it on the front. Always in your sight. If you have a wallet, front pocket at all times. Avoid rush hours at all costs -   (48) Rush hour in Mexico City is no joke - YouTube Julia (Catherine’s sister) made an appearance while we were in Mexico City. She’s been teaching this old lady Eng

Why? People keep asking me why I took my family to Mexico for 3 months. And personally, I don’t know if I have a SOLID reason. I initially thought it would be fun, filled with great food (lots of tacos) and we get to skip the Seattle winter. Another reason was to learn what is like to live in Mexico. A few days ago, we visited Ek’ Balam. A Maya town of about 800 people, and we got to spend a few hours with them. Manuel was our guide, and he took us around town and taught us so much about the culture there. This town is a few miles outside of Valladolid (where we stayed) and the drive there was very quiet. Not a lot of people going in and out of this town. When we got there, we met with Mario, who introduced us to Manuel. We then walked around town learning about the Mayan Culture. In a very “traditional” way, the men go out and work in the fields; while the women stay at home doing some knitting, weaving, and household chores. In the past few years, these traditions have evolved, s

One of the key learnings of our adventure is that 3 months is a long time. But I have been amazed at the resilience that my family has shown. What are some of the hard things we have experienced: Language . While Spanish is my native language, it is not for the rest of the family. The way Catherine has been able to navigate this experience with the Spanish she learned while living in Houston is fascinating. While its hard for the kids to make friends, when they do, they are able to figure out how to play together despite the language barrier. Their confidence is getting stronger. The Food . You know how hard it is to find bagels? Also, the nearest Trader Joes is 16 hrs away in San Antonio, Tx. Catherine is starting to like Valentina, which is HUGE. The kids are starting to like tacos a little more. Camila’s primary lesson (at church) was about trials and how to overcome them. She wrote that her trial is being in Mexico where everyone speaks Spanish and that she doesn’t like the

"A tribe is a group of people connected to one another, connected to a leader, and connected to an idea. For millions of years, human beings have been part of one tribe or another. A group needs only two things to be a tribe: a shared interest and a way to communicate." - Seth Godin The last few years, especially as I have the privilege of working remotely, many people have asked me if we are moving away from Seattle (since it's so expensive).  The answer has been a consistent "Nope". We love Seattle. We love that we can go hiking in the morning, kayak in the afternoon, and then dine in the city at night. The number of activities to do is what makes Seattle one of the best places to live. BUT while we love all those things, it's ALWAYS about the people . We have found our Tribe* and we are continuously blessed by them. As an example, on December 18, 2022, when Argentina won the World Cup, we had 70+ people in our home celebrating with us. They all knew how m