Life as usual with a picnic!

I have been a very bad blogger and it has been almost a month and a half since my last blog. So to start us off, we'll talk about Valentine's day.  My Valentine's Day was actually the Friday before.  Diego's flowers arrived early for me and I couldn't believe how beautiful (and large) they were!  It was pretty cute, because he was so worried that the flowers weren't good/big enough.  I have no idea why he would have doubts, because I thought they were incredible especially with the "Birds of Paradise" which are the orange flowers in the shape of a bird's head.  Later that night we ate at an incredible restaurant with the most delicious steak with blue cheese dressing along with the tomato filled with beef, cheese and an amazing sauce. Oh....and we can't forget the sundae!! 

There was some nice music and candles as well so it was a good atmosphere. However, on the actual Valentine's Day, we discovered we were broke so we decided for an in-house celebration.  A bit of wine with chocolate and some empanadas and some candle lighting was a perfect treat.  We also watched "The Prince & Me" which most guys would hate it, but Diego loved the movie since we shared part of the story. Obviously we didn't share not the royalty part, but the sandwich making, crushing on your boss, and the girl playing hard to get, serious student was pretty similar!!  Anyway, I enjoyed my nice calm Valentine's day with my husband.

After Valentine's day, Diego took a mini-vacation after a lot of nagging on my part. While he loves his job, it is very stressful so he went to visit his family in Bogota and Ibague. I have to admit I enjoyed having some time to myself and doing as I pleased. One of the things I enjoyed was that I didn't have to remake the bed every morning because someone (Diego) always messes up the covers! I even took pictures as proof! But, by the end of the 5 days, it was nice to have him back. Considering we spend all day, every day together, I think it is important to have some time apart. Plus I kept forgetting my keys (a lot of extra walking and some extra work to get into the house!

Other than that I have been sticking to my normal routine.  Wake up at 5, exercise, go to work at 7, eat lunch for 1.5 hours, leave work at 6, teach English classes until 7:30-8. By the time I do all that I eat and rest just for a little bit.  I like to get to bed no later than 9 or so and Diego used to not like that, but he just started going in to work at 6:00 (so he starts when the east coast goes to work) so he doesn't mind it as much.  Now we both get up at the same time!! We still walk home every day so we can eat there (we still go out to eat once a week as a treat).

Finally, the only other special activity that we have had was over the weekend.  I have to say that when it comes to Colombia, if the day is nice then it is BEAUTIFUL, but if the day is bad then it is HORRIBLY UGLY.  Having said that, I can say that both Saturday and Sunday were "nice" days---so incredibly beautiful.  Diego and I took advantage of the weather and on Saturday we went to the park for a picnic! It was nice to go on a Saturday, because it wasn't so busy.  There were a few youth groups playing some kind of a scavenger hunt of sorts and some families with little kids and dogs (always cute!). I still think it is funny that inside a very natural park they would have a miniature fun park.

Anyway we had a nice lunch with sandwiches, carrots and blue cheese dip, and chips. It was nice to just have a lazy day at the park, but Diego and I have decided we need to buy a volleyball and an American football.  I miss playing sports even if it is just playing around. 

On Sunday, Diego and I went for a long walk and were on a hunt of our own. From the apartments we used to call "heaven" we could see a few other apartment complexes that were absolutely gorgeous.  Recently, there was a mudslide directly below "heaven" and since it is on a cliff we decided we should demote it to "former heaven" or "Alto perro" which is the name of the neighborhood.  Anyway, we were searching for the apartments we saw, but we had no idea how to get there so we just kept trying every street.  Eventually we found them and OMG they are so pretty.  They are surrounded by a forest area and the only thing you can hear are the birds.  All of them have perfect size (big enough for 2 chairs) balconies and it's the same distance to work that we are now.  The only problem is that it nicer so it's too expensive to rent there and Diego and I are a few years away from buying a place (damn student loans hehehe) plus we are still unsure of future plans.  I think when it comes to the US vs Colombia debate, Diego and I could be fine living in either country so it just depends on opportunities.

Anyway, to wrap things up our scuba trip planning is going well.  May 13-21 in Taganga and we are staying at a hostel called Casa Holanda that has a 2 for 1 Happy Hour every night and a breakfast included!!! We are so excited!  Diego especially since this is his first scuba diving trip and I am excited for sharks....maybe I'll get to touch one this time (I missed my chance last time).  I feel pretty good about going scuba diving now that I am healthier and more active....now to get Diego playing futbol (soccer) again!

Speaking of healthier, the "let's-get-healthy" plan is going very well for me- 33lbs and counting.  Diego even tried my pilates video on Sunday....it was a lot of fun to watch him, but at the same time I was so proud of him.  I am running for about 45 min M,W,F and pilates on T,TH. I hope to keep going with it until my birthday then maintain whatever weight I'm at then until Christmas.  Fingers crossed for keeping up the good lifestyle!