hhhmmmmm

I almost don't know where to begin!

It has been a long time, blogger friends, please excuse my absence.

Here is a basic rundown of the past few weeks of my life.

As you all know, I had my family visiting. We did the usual suspects...

Cristo Redentor, though every time I go up there now, I try to take a different angle. Here is the latest:

Feira Hippie, which is a street fair that they have every Sunday in a big plaza in Ipanema. Artisans show their wares and actually vie to get a spot in the fair.

My sister bought me this ring for my birthday...

and as we were talking with the lady, I found out that to secure a spot in the fair, they have to pick one or two pieces of their art, whether it be jewelry, paintings, pottery, etc...

then a group of judges decides who gets into the fair! She said it is very tough because there are hundreds of people vying for the spots!

We went to the beach when it wasn't raining, which it did a little more often this trip as opposed to when they were here last year.

We celebrated the birthdays of my son, myself and my Mom...seeing as we are not usually together for any of these birthdays!

We had an artist bring their paintings to our house so that we could "try them out" on our wall. That is my Dad to the right...we didn't buy the painting, though.

Collected sea shells, saw people being rescued from big waves, watched a mother whale and her baby pass by...(I have video but I can't figure out how to upload it to my computer!!)

We even got to see a dead body pulled in by the life flight helicopters. I haven't gotten the whole story yet, but that was certainly freaky!

My Parents love to sit on the porch and watch the everyday happenings of the busy beach front....who walks around, when Pedro, our local chair/drink guy sets up his small stand, the occasional military training, where the cadets run on the sidewalk or beach singing their one, two songs....

and they left last night. Now, even that turned out to be something....

(remember, there is always an airport story!)

We got there, and as they are checking in, they find out that their flight was cancelled!

Sounds like bad news, right? Think again!

They were put onto the last 4 seats on the Brasilian airline flying the same night to Miami,

IN BUSINESS CLASS!

I was so happy for them! They got to relax a little more, rest a little easier, through a long journey. I am sure the extra room, and being able to put their feet up helped my Mom especially. She did really well here, and dare I say it, even healed her ribs and rested!

It is sad to be without them, but now, for my next journey...

I am flying out tonight to go and see another house in Florida!

The original house that we really liked in Key West fell through. The owner had no intentions of selling, in my opinion. He provided no paperwork that the banks needed to get ready for the short sale, and now, it will most likely go into foreclosure. We could wait for that, and maybe we will, but there is a new house that has really drawn our attention.

This time it is outside of Tampa, near Crystal Beach.

From the description and pictures on the internet, it looks to have beautiful water views. At low tide, you have a small private beach with which you can wade into the water. It has a pretty pool, and looks to be to our tastes with a lot of balconies and outdoor space.

The kitchen looks to be updated already, though there are some lingering questions that can only be answered by seeing it in person.

I leave tonight. I could have flown with my family last night, I guess. I just really needed one more day to get everything situated with my kids and get them started for the week in school. Maybe if I had left last night, I could have gone in business class too!!

Oh well...my kids and husband are way too important for me to bother myself with where I sit when I fly!

So, that has been my life, and as usual, I will keep you updated on the house. I will not post pictures until I know for sure if we are buying it.

Wish me luck and I will catch up on everyone's blogs soon!