My new look

Thanks Betty for introducing me to the new Blogger templates. They have some really pretty choices, and so many more than before! Click here to find your new style!

Hope you like the new look...

As for this past weekend, Gabriela and I, along with kids, team managers and other parents, traveled to Sao Paulo for Destination Imagination. You can click on the name for more information. I think it is a fun and challenging activity that really shows children how to work as a group to come up with different solutions. They worked for several months on their Central Challenges, which is the main component of their total score. Once at the celebration, they present the Challenge and participate in other workshops and challenges for which they are also graded. At the end, the scores are totaled and a victor emerges....sometimes tears flow, or screams of joy erupt, but in the end, I really believe they all learn valuable lessons that they will hopefully remember as they grow older.

Our kids had a great time and did very well. Sao Paulo is a pretty, modern city with rolling hills and interesting architecture. We got to meet our blogging friend Fabiola, which was great. The three of us had a leisurely breakfast and talked each other's ears off :)

Thanks for the fun morning Fabiola!

If I were...

A blogger friend, Fancy Horse, let me copy this meme. I like it and hope it reveals a little of me to you :)

If I were a month, I’d be April. (when the Earth in the US is waking up again!)
If I were a day of the week, I’d be Saturday. (The day when my family and I have all day to ourselves)
If I were a time of day, I’d be 6 am. (I like sunrises and the freshness to a new day)
If I were a planet, I’d be Earth. (We are a wonderful planet that thrives)
If I were a sea animal, I’d be a whale. (I love their beautiful sounds and gracefulness)

If I were a direction, I’d be up. (I always like to be positive)
If I were a piece of furniture, I'd be a lounge chair outside. (preferably looking at an ocean!)
If I were a liquid, I’d be lemonade with Key West limes!
If I were a gemstone, I’d be Imperial Topaz. (Brasilian stone, alive with color!)
If I were a tree, I’d be a pine.

If I were a tool, I’d be a pencil from which children begin to find a new way to express themselves.
If I were a flower, I’d be an iris. (so regal and beautiful)
If I were a kind of weather, I’d be the warm sunny days of Spring with promise in the air.
If I were a musical instrument, I’d be the violin. (Lively, mellow and everything in between!)
If I were a color, I’d be the ever changing colors of the ocean.
If I were an emotion, I’d be love.

If I were a fruit, I’d be a raspberry. (tangy and sweet all at the same time)
If I were a sound, I’d be the crashing of waves.
If I were an element, I’d be water. (forever flowing)
If I were a car, I’d be a Hybrid.
If I were a food, I’d be a dessert that includes chocolate!
If I were a place, I’d be the world. (so much to learn and see and do!)
If I were a material, I’d be soft.
If I were a taste, I’d be sweet.
If I were a scent, I'd be jasmine.

A few favorites

Here are a few of my favorite statues from Recoleta Cemetery.

I find them to be striking, with such an impact when I saw them, that I had a mix of emotions...

How beautiful, touching, filled with sorrow and hurt, sadness and even showing the beauty of life..

No one, (at least in my opinion), is prepared for death. You can be sick for a long time and know that you are terminal...you may accept the fate that God has bestowed upon you, but still...

no one knows what is awaiting them exactly....yes, my personal beliefs tell me that there will be a beautiful Heaven with God accepting me into his Kingdom, where I can reunite with my lost loved ones and live forever....

but I still believe that no one is ready for death to come...

I have lost all of my Grandparents, and I do miss them...I have not lost anyone, though that is of my immediate family...I am a little afraid truthfully to feel the emptiness that death brings. I know it is a part of life, and that we all have a finite time here on Earth. I will deal with it when it comes, but this statue for me shows what I imagine my emotions over death to be, and is my absolute favorite:

Recoleta Cemetery

El Cemetario Recoleta is a famous cemetery in the Recoleta neighborhood of Buenos Aires. There are many famous Argentineans buried there, including Eva Peron.

There are past Presidents and other famous Argentines alongside many other families.

The cemetery is amazing. It has some incredibly interesting architecture that includes statues and figurines, made from everything from fallen down bricks and stones to the most beautiful granite.

We were fascinated with the main thoroughfares with tree lined sides that broke off into little paths and "streets".

There were graves that had dates from the 1800's!

Some are down stairways and some are right there in front of you...

Some have beautiful stained glass while others are covered in dusty cobwebs...

We were lucky enough to have our hotel right around the corner from here, so we visited a few times. I know it seems morbid, but the structures were just astonishing. There were people there praying, delivering flowers and then tourists, just visiting.

What an interesting place to visit, though a cemetery might not be on the top of your list!

My favorites in another post coming soon....

What a show!

Last night and tonight there have been rain showers with a beautiful display of light!

I am trying to get some good shots with my new Canon 50d...

Enjoy!

A beautiful phrase

This phrase was sent to me in an email,

and I think it is beautiful:

"La mujer salió de la costilla del hombre, no de los pies para ser pisoteada, ni de la cabeza para ser superior, sino del lado para ser igual. Debajo del brazo para ser protegida y al lado del corazón para ser amada" (Anónimo)

Translation:

"Woman came out of the rib of man, not the feet to be stepped on, nor the head to be superior, but rather the side to be equal. Under the arm to be protected and next to the heart to be loved"

Wow, Buenos Aires!

We returned home after a wonderful, albeit quick, trip to Buenos Aires.

I was truly impressed by this city that is called the "Paris of South America"

It is a large city that spreads out over miles and miles...

the lights coming in our flight seemed to go on for 10 minutes, big city lights all around!

BA is beautiful. They have many beautiful parks and squares, and an equal amount of statues, figures and monuments in them! Some of the trees are just enormous. The buildings are very reminiscent of Paris. There are corner cafes all around...

We walked all around the area of Recoleta, which is where our hotel was located. The famous Recoleta Cemetery was right around the corner from us. I have many pictures of the cemetery which I will do a separate post on.

Our first day we took a double decker bus tour to get to know the whole city. We rode around for almost 2 hours, sitting on the top seats, enjoying the sun kissing our skin, the headphones on explaining different parks, monuments, and neighborhoods. It was a great way to see the whole city. We got off and had a nice late lunch of pizza and empanadas...a traditional pastry filled usually with meat/chicken and sometime potatoes and veggies. It was a yummy meal and after all that sun, the fresh squeezed OJ was delicious!

I like they Argentinean accent. They sing their words and seem to always end on a high note. The double "ll" in many Spanish speaking countries is said like a strong "y". There in Argentina they pronounce it like a soft "sh". Very endearing and not as annoying as I thought it would be.

We had a wonderful trip. I really fell in love with this city...

I wish we could move there, but the offices of my husband's company are not that big there :( Oh well, all the more reason for another visit!

More info and pics to come in another post...this city deserves a few posts!!

What was I thinking?

I guess I really wasn't thinking...

In a few days we will be heading to Buenos Aires, known for it's tango, yummy beef and....

ICE CREAM!

Buenos Aires has a lasting Italian influence and especially with their ice creams. I have been reading about dreamy mixes of flavors...yummy, creamy concoctions....

rich, dark chocolates and vanillas......

So what is the problem?

I gave up sweets for Lent! Lent is the 40 days starting on Ash Wednesday, which is the day following Carnaval/Mardi Gras; where you are to sacrifice something or do a good deed to show our love and admiration of what Jesus did for us by suffering a hard life and death.

Every year I tend to "give up" something...something that I really love:

Sweets...

which includes ice cream :(

That's ok though, I will take many glorious pictures of my family eating theirs...my son's favorite food must be ice cream :)

I'll be posting again after the weekend!

Have a great week!