Valentines Swap

I just finished these for a Valentine Matchbox swap I'm in. I love the beautiful metal work they do in Mexico, and since I just came back from there- I was still very much inspired by the art I saw. Since the recipients haven't yet received their treats, I won't show the goodies inside, but all of them come from Mexico! I had fun shopping for tiny treasures down there!

Fun in the Sun

I'm back from a much needed vacation in the sun. Puerto Vallarta is our home away from home, and it never fails to delight us each and every visit. Seeing as it's so gloomy here in Ohio, I thought I'd share some e-sun with everyone. Since I was on vacation, Mike manned the new camera he got for Christmas, although he did let me use it for a couple of these shots. I'm prouder than ever of the real eye he is developing for photography.

We drove from the state of Jalisco about 45 minutes into the state of Naryit and found this pristine, uninhabited beach. We spent a couple of days here.

This is a view from the doorway to our condo.

This is the courtyard area of the condos. Lovely plants and walkways over streams stocked with tons of koi.This is my favorite tree that grows down there. I haven't been able to determine what the name of it is. (Anyone out there know what it is called?) The blossoms look a bit like orchids, and they hang down in these fabulous full vines.

It wasn't always peaceful around the pool...(notice that MY pool chair is EMPTY!) Mike took tons of photos of the iguanas- this guy was chasing another male out of his territory. For almost 2 full days these guys dropped out of trees, jumped in and out of the pool while fighting each other. They landed on and broke a couple of umbrellas in their haste to do each other in. I only read my book with one eye on those 2 days!