My tribute to my loved ones......xoxo!!

So the tradition in Mexico is to light candles for your loved ones that have passed away so that they can see the light and find their way back to you. I decided to take part in this tradition and I lit four candles of my own for my loved ones who are no longer with us: Grandpa Len, Grandpa Heidi, Uncle John, and Cousin Sara. When you light the candle you say a prayer and thank God for the time you were able to have with the person and then you let the candle burn all the way down. Once the candle has burned all the way down, you blow them out and say another pray for all people who have passed away and thank God for their lives.
I thank God for the time I was able to have with each of my four loved ones, however short, and I cherish the memories I have with each of them. I know that each of them follow me around and look over me with care. I can feel their presence near me and I know they are all here with me in Mexico. I miss Grandpa Len, Grandpa Heidi, Uncle John, and Cousin Sara very much, but I am so thankful for each of their lives and the time I was able to have with them. All four of them taught me something special about life. I miss them, but I know that each of them lives on through each of their children and their children's children. I love you, Grandpa Len, Grandpa Heidi, Uncle John and Cousin Sara! xoxo

Dia de los Muertos - Nov. 1st - Cemetary

On Saturday night we visited the cemetary after visiting the different houses and alters. I'm not gonna lie at first I was kind of freaked out about walking around a cemetary at night...which was only lit by the light of candles. It ended up being so cool. The grave sites were lit by candle light and we were able to walk through the cemetary and see all the different graves. Most of the pictures that I took are full of orbes, but these are the ones without any. As you can see the cemetaries in Mexico are a lot different than the ones in the U.S. There is no organization and each grave looks different from any other grave and everything is individualized. It was so neat!

Dia de los Muertos - Nov. 1st

After a fun day of costume making and celebrating Halloween we have spent the last two days celebrating and learning about the Mexican tradition of "Dia de los Muertos." These are pictures from one of the houses that we visited on Saturday night. We went to a small town close to Cuernavaca where the people celebrate Day of the Dead in a traditional manner. Anyone and everyone is invited to enter the houses where you can see the alter that the family has created for their deceased loved ones. After viewing the alter the family offers you food and drinks (inculding wine, cerveza, and tequila). To the families it is an honor to serve you food and drinks to honor and remember the people who have died. As you can see in the pictures, the families elaborately decorate the alters and spare no expense in doing so.

One of the increbile things about this whole celebration is that these families don't have very much money and they save their money all year long for a celebration that lasts only 2 days. An alter like the one pictured above would cost about $300 to put together. It would cost about $700 to $1,000 to feed all the people that come through the house as well. I can only imagine the sacrifices that these families make throughout the year so that they can honor their loved ones in a proper manner.

I don't even think these pictures can begin to explain how beautiful these alters are. You can tell that these people were loved very much. The amazing thing about this whole celebration is that the people aren't sad. There are no tears or sad faces becuase everyone is happy to celebrate the life of the people they love. They believe that on this day their loved ones come down to the alters to eat the food and drink the drinks, so they are happy to be in the presence of the spirits. I was blown away by how welcoming and warm all the people were. It was clear that we weren't some of their neighbors coming to visit and still they welcomed us with open arms and spoke with us about their loved ones. I hope the pictures do justice to all the hard work the families put into the alters.

Halloween and Pirates...a great combination!!!

Jodi, Ashley and I decided to show Mexico how we celebrate Halloween in the U.S. of A. We went shopping down in El Centro all day on Friday and then went to the girls' house to create our wonderful costumes! We bought t-shirts at the store and then cut them up and created individualized shirts. We had so much fun dressing up and going out. As if we don't stick out enough, our costumes made us stick out even more, but everyone got a kick out of us. It was such a blast!

Me making Ashley's shirt....I think I might become a fashion designer.

Man, I am such a good designer! You can find my collection at: http://www.katiesawesomeclothes.com/!! HAHA! Just kidding!

The girls and I in our costumes. You can call us the Tres Piratitas (the three little pirates)! Don't we look so cute!!

We had so much fun! I am such a lucky girl...Thanks be to God for all things!

Package from Momma Schult!!!

For those of you who don't know how AMAZING of a family I have....I am going to tell you! I am SO incredibly blessed beyond measure to have a family like mine. My whole family and all of my friends are so supportive of my time here in Mexico and they are all so happy for me. I am so lucky that they all love hearing about my stories and reading my blogs. Everyday I thank God for putting all of these amazing people in my life.

Also for those of you whole don't know, my Mom is so AWESOME!! She has sent me and my friends two packages with American goodies and treats since I have been here in Mexico and it feels so good to receive mail when you are far from home. Each time she inculdes individual treats for each person and everyone in Mexico loves, Momma Schult! Sometimes I wonder why I am so lucky to have such great people in my life and I am so thankful! So thank you to all of my friends and family who have sent emails or left commets on my blog. I love you all and miss you all!

And a special thanks to Momma Schult! Te amo!

Halloween Treats!!!

The girls and I decided that we should give Mexico a real TASTE of Halloween, so we made Halloween treats. We made so much food and everyone loved the treats! I think everyone enjoys that we all love cooking so much. We made popcorn balls, rice krispy treats,caramel apples and pretzels with chocolate, caramel, and peanuts. It was quite the spread!!

Girls Night Out!

My girls and I enjoying a night out on the town. It is always so fun when we go out because everyone wants to talk to us and know where we are from and why we are in Mexico. We end up meeting all different types of people, from all different walks of life. I am so lucky and extremely blessed to be able to have this experience here in Mexico. I am learning so much about myself and my faith with each and every day. The Lord is good!