Last year I had an idea for how I wanted to celebrate
turning 50. Some people dread turning
older and at times I’ve struggled with similar feelings. But this year I wanted to embrace all that
God had planned for me and celebrate the big & small things and recognize
them as a series of gifts.
So in January 2015 I began tracking the journey of 50 fun
things. I decided to take pictures cause
let’s face it…..I forget things and I didn’t want to forget these moments. Some things were big, some things were small,
some things were planned, and some things were spontaneous. This is my journey
and the pictures I took.
#1 – Birthday dinner with Erick at Casa Rolandi in the Hotel
Zone. It’s one of our favorite
restaurants in Cancun. We know the Chef,
Daniele Muller and his wife Yema both volunteer with Back2Back Ministries. The chocolate molten lava cake which they
call (Fondant) is amazing and one of my most favorite desserts!
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| Playa Delfines |
#3 – I love adventures so Erick and Sarah Nace agreed to go
with me to Puerto Morelos, which is a small fishing village south of
Cancun. We went in search of a book
store that had both English & Spanish books. I’ve been collecting books for the library at
the Judy Morand Center of Hope in Tres Reyes. I actually found a book: Ella Decidio ser Hippy a llos 50…She decided to be a Hippy at 50, which
was so funny! Puerto Morelos is a great
place to explore. It has fun little
stores, great food, and a board walk. On
the beach that day they were having sand castle competitions. The sand sculptures were amazing.
#4 – Birthday gifts. For those who know me, know that I love
scented soap. It’s probably because most
of my time here in Mexico I feel like I am sweaty and smelly. I typically don’t wear any perfume because I
don’t want to attract anymore bug bites then I already do. Thank you to my husband & friends who
made me feel special.
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| Spontaneous staff lunch |
#6 – I like to walk it helps relieve stress and often brings
clarity. I think that is because I use
the time to worship, pray, and listen.
Sometimes I listen to podcasts to gain insight from Pastors and
leadership principles. Sometimes I turn
everything off so it’s just me & God walking. Quite often when I’m walking I will be
“struck” by the beauty around me. This
was one of those days where I just had to stop and take a picture because the
flowers were so beautiful.
#7 – Making my first paella ever! I think it’s fun to try new recipes, explore
new flavors, and try new things so I made paella. Some people only put seafood into their
paella but when I had it for the first time in Grand Rapids, MI the restaurant
used chicken, chorizo, and shrimp. I
didn’t have any shrimp but the dish was bursting with smoky goodness from the
paprika and the most expensive spice I’ve ever bought….saffron, spicy chorizo,
and chicken full of flavor.
#8 – True confessions….a vitamin B12 shot may not exactly be
fun. However, it does provide the energy
to do fun things. So I included this
picture to remind me to take care of myself in order to enjoy those moments God
gives me.
#9 – Taking time to paint.
Before I moved onto the mission field I was a professional harpist and I also liked to paint. I sometimes can get so busy with the urgent
things that need to get done that I don’t take time for creative pursuits. So on this day I set aside time to
paint. Painting is one of those things
that calms me. I call this my blue
period.
#10 – Some friends from Michigan decided to leave the snow
behind and visit me in sunny Mexico. It
was great to join them for a day to rest, relax, and laugh a lot.
#11 – My husband is truly a saint because he will watch food
movies with me! We watched “Thousand
Foot Journey a drama that incorporates cooking into the story line…..love
it!
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| Coffee in my favorite mug! |
#13 – I seriously love these children, they are from a
community called Bonfil. We had an
educational field trip for them to experience Japan. They learned some Japanese words, facts
about Japan, as well as learned how to make sushi. We had tons of fun!
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| I'm so glad we still have fun together! |
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| My favorite sushi |
#17 – We were gearing up for a busy Spring schedule with
mission teams so I decided to take advantage of a free day the week-end before
and stayed in my PJ’s and read all day long!
#18 – Loved, loved, loved having our children – Eliza &
Nick, plus Eliza’s future husband Nate visit.
They were able to go to the community center in Tres Reyes and help with
reading time.
#19 – Jeny’s quince años (15th
birthday party) we started working with Jeny’s family when she was 11. She is one of Oti’s eight children, and at
that time she had never gone to school and couldn't read or
write. The night of her party I reflected on how much she has changed and grown. I’m so thankful for the investment of Fabiola
(her tutor) and Eloisa (Back2Back staff) who are making significant deposits
into mentoring and coaching Jeny.
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| Flowers from my honey...just because |
#21 – Marquesitas, street vendors,
and Las Palapas in downtown Cancun.
Marquesitas are made with a thin waffle cone outer shell with your choice of toppings inside. This one had Nutella, lechera (sweetened condensed milk) , and cheese...oh so good!
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| Water Spa! |
#23 – Art day at the community center in Tres Reyes – we
learned about the artist Kandinsky. The children love to paint!
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| Playing relay games in Tres Reyes |
#25 – We were in Nashville for Christian
Alliance For Orphans Convention – We were downtown and saw a long line at a
restaurant and thought it must be good so we joined the crowd and ate at Hot
Hatty B’s Chicken. It was a spontaneous
fun night and to top it off right around the corner from Hatty B’s was a gluten
free pastry shop! Yum!
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| Getting to see Eliza & Nick in Indiana |
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| Eliza's graduation from IWU |
#28 – Discovering Isla Blanca for
the first time! It’s an isolated beach and
not overly crowded. This happened to be
on Mother’s Day and Erick, knowing that it would be a hard day because we weren’t with
our children, told me that we could go wherever I wanted. So we went exploring and found this wonderful spot, plus we found
the best guacamole from a little shack on the beach!
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| 2015 Staff retreat lunch |
#30 – Before the summer teams arrived we had an excursion with staff &
volunteers to Xcaret for the day. We
had a great time together but we were missing Elo, Samuel, and Mariana.
#31 – Summer Interns arrived and
after a few days of training we had a fun day and took them snorkeling. We took a water taxi to Isla Mujeres. It
was the best snorkeling I’ve experienced since moving to Mexico. We saw rainbow fish, eels, star fish, and so
many more that I didn’t know the names.
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| Ellie, Anna, Jess, Abby, Vanessa, Me, Milan |
#32 My first 4D movie experience! We watched Jurassic World. The movie was just o.k. but the effects made it super fun!
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| Tina Lemmon & Me |
#33 – Seeing part of a dream become a reality! With the help of Sherri Filson and Daniel Zigler we created a wall mural for the community center in Tres Reyes. Nada Es Imposible Con Dios…Nothing is Impossible With God. This is the first day we started painting.
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| The finished wall |
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| Face painting in La Jungla |
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| Father/Daughter team |
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| Shirley DiRuiter, Me, Sherri Filson |
#42 B - Dinner celebration at Casa
Rolandi’s with the Morand family & their close friends following the
dedication of the Judy Morand Center of Hope in Tres Reyes.
#46 – Garrett’s
popcorn in Chicago!
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| Mom & Dad in Michigan |
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| Beautiful Fall colors in the Midwest |
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| Our permanent resident cards! |
So there it is....my 50 fun things. I'm so glad I have these pictures to cherish the memories from this past year. I definitely had many fun times. John 10:10 reminds me that Jesus came for us to have abundant life....to rejoice and be glad (Phil 4:4) for the mercies that are new every morning (Lamentations 3:23). Blessings to you in 2016!
