On My Way to Mexico

Last year, when my parents got called on their mission to the Mexico City Temple Visitor’s Center, we thought it would be so great if we could go as a family to visit them the following summer (this year).  We got all the kids’ passports when we were getting Gabe and Josh’s to go to Puerto Vallarta last summer, in anticipation of this year.  As this year rolled around, though, it was clear that we couldn’t afford for the whole family to go, but we decided I could go by myself and have a little vacation and see my parents.  Then it worked out that the cheapest way to go was through Dallas, on Southwest to Dallas and American to Mexico City.  I have a couple of good friends that live in Dallas, and since I was taking different airlines there was no problem just putting an extra couple days between the flights so I could spend a little time visiting Debbie, my awesome friend through middle school and high school, and Kristie, another dear friend and roommate in my college days.  Scott was even up for taking care of house and kids by himself for a week and ready for the challenge!

I left on Thursday, June 25, and managed to get on the first flight with no problem, which is always nice when flying standby.  Debbie picked me up at the airport and I was also greeted by 100+ degree weather.  To compensate for the heat outside, the inside of the airport was chilled to arctic temperatures.  Too bad there’s no way to save up that extra cold for when you’re outside!

It was so fun seeing Debbie again, and her kids too.  They were so cute and happy to see me, even though it had been 4-5 years since I’d seen them and I’m sure they didn’t remember me.  We had a really nice, low-key evening together.  Debbie made a yummy dinner and we visited and caught up on each other’s lives.  Gary got home later because he was at a dinner for business.  I really enjoyed seeing what a sweet, patient mom Debbie is.  She was so kind and gentle with her kids and I was impressed with how they did their chores, sweeping the floor and setting the table.  They had such a good routine with reading scriptures, prayers, and singing a primary song, which they knew every word to and sang so well.  Alexis and Timothy let me read them bedtime stories while Debbie put Nicholas to bed.  Then they went to bed without any trouble.  I was really impressed with the order and peace in her home.  I visited for awhile with Gary and Debbie before getting a good night’s sleep.  The next morning we had more fun together before meeting Kristie for lunch.  Part of the fun included lots of picture taking!

I got some authentic Texas eating with Debbie and Kristie at Rudy’s, a barbecue place, and it was really good!  After our nice meal I said goodbye to Debbie and the kids, with hopes of seeing them next summer when they come to Oregon for a family reunion.

My visit with Kristie was also wonderful and she also has super cute and sweet kids.  We took them to the neighborhood pool and in a fairly short time I managed to get a pretty crispy sunburn on my legs.  (The rest of me was pretty much in the shade.)  In fact, they are still peeling more than two weeks later!  It was fun, though, and I was impressed with the friendly neighborhood.  Everyone at the pool talked to each other and introduced themselves to people they didn’t recognize.  I got to meet quite a few of Kristie’s neighbors and she seems to know all her neighbors really well.  That’s Texas hospitality for you!  It was fun catching up with Kristie and getting to know her cute family even better.  Kelsie had a birthday party to go to, but Kristie and I went to dinner with Meghan, Spencer, and Tyler.  Chris was at work.  We had a really good Mexican dinner and a fun time.

Again, I had to be impressed with Kristie’s parenting skills and how polite and well-behaved her kids are.  They have obviously been taught and trained well.  One thing I noticed, too, was their prayers and how sweet and heartfelt they were.  My friends are such good moms and it was a good example for me to see the things they did to help me want to do better too!  We had a fun night.  The kids went to bed great and I stayed up way too late talking to Kristie and Chris, which was so much fun, kind of like back in the college days where time doesn’t matter.  I realized it’s probably been about 10 years since I’ve seen Chris, but he hasn’t seemed to change at all and still makes me laugh.

The next morning it was off to the airport to try to get to Mexico.  I knew the first flight didn’t look good, but figured it was worth a try.  I ended up spending a good part of the day there reading (Sherlock Holmes Hound of the Baskervilles–really good!), listening to my ipod, snacking, watching as much TV as I could stand (with nonstop Michael Jackson coverage), and closing my eyes here and there.  Luckily there were some comfortable chairs and tables to kick my feet up on.  I also had my camera, so I could entertain myself trying to take pictures of what I was doing (here watching TV).

I was lucky to get on the last flight of the day, the last seat on the flight, which happened to be first class!  Yay!  It was very comfortable and nice to be spoiled with a delicious dinner of grilled chicken, rice, salad, bread, and a yummy dessert.  Good thing I hadn’t really eaten dinner before I got on the plane.  I loved looking out the windows, especially as we flew into Mexico City.  I was amazed by how far the city spread out.  It seemed to go on forever.

By the time we landed I was getting nervous.  My cell phone didn’t work there and I wasn’t sure what I was going to do if I couldn’t find my parents.  I had to go through immigration and baggage and customs.  It took a long time, about an hour and a half, but luckily there were no problems, other than just being exhausted and wondering how long I would be able to stand without passing out.  Finally I was finishing up with customs.  (They asked if I had any “fruit” and I thought they said “food.”  They laughed at the brown sugar, cream of chicken soup, and instant pudding mix that I brought for my mom.)  When the sliding doors opened and I saw my mom and dad standing there waving I was so happy I wanted to cry!  No more worries, just time to have fun in Mexico!

~ by Kathy on July 12, 2009.