We were NOT on a break!

Apparently, there was a break...in spring. Commonly refereed to as "spring break". Even Webster knows about it. It can be defined as follows: Spring Break:/n/A period of recess, usually lasting one week, during the spring term at school. I do remember not going to work for a week and a huge rush of family in town, but I do not recall a "break". Here's what I do recall...

Attending the baptism of the newest member of our sunbeam class. Ok, so she didn't get baptized but her family did. It was amazing!

Lisa and Rocky came into town and we celebrated Emily's birthday. James is definitely workin' the hat. There was a pinata. The loop to hang it by gave way, and they ended up noos-ing the poor sucker. It was disturbing. With the Zamora brigade in town in its entirety we celebrated Grampy's birthday. Here he is with all his grand kids. However, we were still missing 4 dogs and 2 cats.

All the ladies! Woot-woot.

Someone poked me in the eye.

It might have been me. I do have curiously unruly phalanges..

A trip to Ikea? I'll never pass that up. Amy, Lisa and I got the best of the as-is section, scouring for the best deals and pondering the many uses of unwanted cabinet-fronts, drawers and mis-matched hardware.
The three little drama-mama's.

I want some fun pj's like they have! I always ask them if I can borrow them. They tell me they won't fit. I tell them they are calling me fat. They get a little frightened and end up backing away slowly. Nieces are so much fun!
Watching Lisa and Amy play the Wii is high-lare-eee-ous! Note to self: next time take video.

James was the cook! He made carne asada burritos and meat. Yes, just meat. The men wanted meat. Everyone else kept inquiring as to what would be partnered with the meat. They looked at us as though we had just taken crazy pills.

We were very fortunate to be able to take a jaunt over the San Diego for a few days. We stayed with my Aunt Zan and Uncle Larry in Poway. We also wrangled our friends Shaleb (short for Shanna and Caleb) into going as well.

The boys surfed. Well, at least made an earnest effort at the sport.

The beach was nice and FREEZING!! I stayed on the sidelines with Shanna, bundled up in blankets and towels.
I love this pic of Shaleb. Caleb's rockin' the surfer look and Shanna's got the beach babe thing covered.

James found it most convenient to surf with his head and ended up with a nasty bruise on his noggin.
We ventured into Old Town and ate practically all of Mexico. He had enchiladas, Chile relleno, tacos, etc. The best part of the evening was Caleb. We are unsure as to why, but he was awkwardly sweating the entire night.

No trip to San Diego is complete without a stop here.

Beautiful inside and out!

Shanna is with child and neither Shanna nor Caleb had never been before. So, we were off to see Shamu!

James doesn't like heights. Note to self: bargaining chip, could come in handy.

The flowers were beautiful and so well manicured. What are they feeding them I wonder?

At Sea world...at the beach.

I love the starfish.

Shanna... not so much.

This is her "OK, I realize I'm much bigger than this thing and it's not going to bite me" face.

We saw a few ships docked in the bay and then it was off to the outlets for some shopping, and then back home. My intention was to relax, go to bead early and have a little time to unwind before Monday, but alas, we pulled in our driveway and were greeted by 25 members of my husbands family... whom I love dearly. At 11 pm. They wanted to take a family picture. At 11 pm. After we had just driven for 6 hours. In a car. At 11 pm.

Seriously, Ross, we were not on a break!

The F.D.A. would have a cow...and so did I!

Whilst in Mexico we had the auspicious opportunity to sample some legitimately authentic Mexican cuisine. As previously mentioned, we initiated our voyage with Carl’s Jr at the airport, so our point of reference was presumably distorted. However, if the food was anywhere close to Monica’s cooking then I knew we were in good hands! It was my aim to capture every meal on camera for this very purpose. Does anyone know how to say “It’s for my blog” in Espanol?

The next morning we ate at Quetazallcoalt, which means "feathered serpent" which was the white God that was supposed to save the people. The Aztecs thought Hernando Cortes was Christ, which is why they greeted him so eagerly. So, basically, we ate at Christ.

This juice was seriously celestial. This wasn't a pitcher for the whole group, it was my cup!

The fruit had a "tree-of-life" quality to it! If this was any indication of the rest of our trip I was gonna have to break out the elastic waste band. We went to a market in Tepic. These were positioned right between the typical obnoxious Mexican knick-knacks (i.e suggestive mugs and tequila glasses) and the knock -off handbags.

After the market we stopped for some Auga Frescas.

Again, heaven in a bag!

The flavors of choice were Pina and Strawberry.

After the market in Tepic we headed to Club Del Valle (the valley sports club) for some more food and family fun. Almost a billion people showed up- all related to Monica. I don't even think she knew all of them!

This was a banana from their back porch. Delicious and adorable. A winning combination.

Late one night we ventured up and down the curvy streets of Tepic and ended up at a "house-by-day-taco shop-by-night" It was called tacos el guero. Which means "best-tacos-from-a-garage-I've-ever-had. period"

I had uno chorizo, uno asada, uno pollo, and a fresca! James had all of the above, plus a chili dog. And two Frescas. And whatever I didn't finish. And then he proceeded to spend the rest of the night keeled over in misery.

At the playa (beach) we had shrimp and chicken and some other types of fish. And fresca. And probably a little sand as well.

In Puerto Villarta on the boardwalk we sampled some tacos al pastor. They were twice the price and half the size as the "from the garage tacos". Still delicious though. Oh, yeah, we also had Frescas and Coke.
Later on the boardwalk we were hungry again. This time the team opted for some less traditional Mexican. We ate the Hard rock cafe. Can you guess what's in the glass? More FRESCA!!!

I had macaroni and cheese. I had been craving cheese. Cheese on tacos, cheese on burritos, cheese on enchiladas is more of a Carly thing...not a Mexican thing.

On the trip back from Villarta we stopped at a fruit stand for some pina and coconut.

The fruit is grown and picked across the street. Can you get any fresher?

James was quite the sport to put up with my camera antics. I rewarded him with a fresca.
You can purchase the fruit like this, or you can pick your own and they'll slice it up just for you. All the real Mexicans doused their fruit in chili. I personally like my fruit, well fruity!

If I recall we ate this for breakfast. It was supposed to be lunch, but we didn't get around to eating it until the following day. Long story- look for future posts to explain why. I don't remember exactly what it was, except that it was good and spicy.

The picture doesn't do this indulgence justice. Deep-fried banana wrapped in a tortilla and covered in caramel. By this point in the trip zippers are not only down, they've popped off!

Although we didn't actually partake, I had to capture this "ornament." Yes it's a Christmas ornament. Yes, it's ginormous. Yes, it's on a tree. Yes it's in a mall. Yes it's a Corona.

Snow Cones anyone?

This is Stephanie. My new favorite person. She is Monica's niece, and I tried to fit her into my suitcase and bring her home. Shhhh, don't tell I.C.E...I had the pina. It was good, but different than your run of the mill American version.

This is the guy who made them. Yes, he made them. Not a machine. That's the shaver he's holding and all the flavors are in the jars. Again, this was another shop right out of his home!

Just before leaving Tepic we had to sample Jorge's Tacos for dinner.

And for breakfast!

the salsa: too hot for my Gringo blood.

Did we mention we love Mexican Fresca. We ultimately had to upgrade to the 2 liter

bottle. Salsa in a Gatorade bottle. Why not!

These were the breakfast tacos. By the time we were done at Jorge's we had downed over 75 tacos.

In Guadalajara the Crowne Plaza offered a deluxe buffet breakfast. The juice and fruit were my favorite. Here, the women were cheaper than the men.

In telepaque there was an auga fresca called zarzamora. We're practically celebrities down there!

Yes that a snout. Yes that's fur. No, there is no administration to keep this from getting cooked and served to unsuspecting travelers such as ourselves.

Ice cream cones! Just like the golden arches makes 'em. I think we probably paid 5 pesos each. What a steal. It was the highlight of the day for James!

I know, it looks reminiscent of prison slop. Some taxi driver recommended this place. Apparently they hold the world record for speediest food-to-table service. Unfortunately, it was reminiscent of prison slop... I guess you can't win 'em all! You may be asking yourself, "self, where are the churro snapshots? Surely, no one could go to Mexico and resist the compelling lure of the churro?" And you are punctilious! I couldn't resist the churro, however, I captured my churro experiences on video! Besides, they didn't last long enough to even take a picture. And, as soon as I figure out how to get the video off the camera and onto the computer you have the chance to share the memories with me. Side note- we have a digital camera, and I spent an hour searhing for the eject button for the tape. I'm that smart.