Our latest adventure took us on a quick little day trip to Mexico -- Nogales to be specific. Well, it didn't start out that way, but that's where we ended up. Let me explain. Lately, we've been really big on doing a lot of things outdoors. It's good for us to get out of the house; away from the TV; have a little fresh air and sunshine; and get some exercise.
We want Shelby to grow up in an environment where she gets outside a lot, plays in the great outdoors and isn't always tied to the house, TV, computer, etc. So many kids today don't want to do anything if there isn't a video game attached to it (but that's a whole different blog entry). Right now, Shelby loves to be outside. It's a treat for her to play in the backyard. She gets super excited when she gets to water the plants in the front yard. We want to cultivate that, not squelch it.
Okay, so we decided to head to Pena Blanca Lake, a 45-surface-acre lake not far from the Mexican border. Mike did some research and it seemed like a picturesque and quiet place. It is quiet, but it looks like it could use a good cleaning. If we had been fishing, it would have been great. In fact, there were lots of people fishing when we go there.So, I decided we weren't going to take the planned dip in the lake and Mike thought rather than wasting the drive, we should head over to Nogales and do a little shopping. Everyone was happy with the plan, except Shelby made us promise she'd get to do some sort of water play before the day was over.
Shelby was in awe by all the things she saw. She was such a good girl. She held our hands when she wasn't up on Daddy's shoulders and was REALLY interested in shopping. Of course the locals loved her, and who wouldn't? Blond hair, blue eyes and cute as can be. Our first purchase was a traditional Mexican dress for Shelby. She picked out one with blue trim and was thrilled to carry her little bag around with her. Much to Shelb's delight, the shop owner even tossed in a yellow, bobble-head turtle.
We bought some things for our house, including a welcome sign for our front door and come clay pots to hang in our kitchen. I was hustled by one of the greatest Mexican salesmen and he talked me in to buying Shelby a gold bracelet. Mind you, I only spent $5, but it was a piece of junk! But, Shelby wanted it and loves it, so it was $5 well spent.
One of the coolest parts of the day was when Shelby got her hair done. She picked out pink beads and had hair hair braided beautifully. She sat perfectly still and was such a good girl. And the end result was so cute. Shelby kept saying, "Don't I look beautiful?!"
After her hair was just as pretty as could be ... we needed something to cool us off. Shelby seemed to know exactly where to go and we ended up at a little ice cream shop. As you can see, it was the perfect end to a near perfect (and very hot) day.
