¡Feliz Cumpleaños a Lukas!

Thursday was the little guy's big day, and we celebrated with lots of Mexican style. ¡Lukas tiene cinco años hoy! (Lukas is five years old today!)

We started the day with breakfast at 'Old McDonalds' so Lukas could have the hot cakes he was asking for all week. Then we treated him with a visit to Happy Toys so he could pick out a couple of birthday presents all for himself.

He got a bucket of dinosaurs AND a Spanish-speaking Buzz Lightyear: "¡A infinito... y más allá!"

In the afternoon, we met up with Cherie, Greenwood, and Aliza to throw a birthday fiesta at the park in Cholul. The children we had videotaped for the EducaTE project came out to celebrate with Lukas, plus there were plenty of other kids in the park as well, all curious about the gringo parade in the center of town. When white people show up in a Mexican park with sandwiches, cake, and a piñata, it's bound to attract attention!

The kids played tag and enjoyed the playground as well. Lukas was invited into a fútbol game that was going on (using some kind of tropical fruit for a ball!) and being the soccer all-star that he is back home, he fit right in.

After some sandwiches and refreshments, it was time to string up the piñata, which of course gathered a huge crowd of onlookers. Lukas got a few good hits in, and so did Emma, but the Mexican kids clearly have more experience when it comes to thrashing a piñata!

It wasn't long before it was torn to shreds and kids were on the ground scrambling for goodies. We had extras, so Jenn handed candy out to the other kids in the crowd.

Aliza gave Lukas some Spanish activity books, while Cherie & Greenwood gave Yucatan shirts to both Emma & Lukas. Such a nice surprise!

They put them on immediately and wore them for the rest of the party, because nothing says Mexican more than wearing double layers of clothing in 90 degree weather.

When it was time for cake, the crowd was so densely packed, you could hardly get through. Word about the gringo birthday party must have spread through the town like wildfire, because every child in the village must have been there.

The crowd sang Happy Birthday to Lukas (in Spanish of course, check out the video link below) and then Jennifer & Cherie managed to cut the cake into about 80 pieces or more, so that everyone could enjoy a taste of the cake.

No exaggeration...the crowd was unbelievable! Mexicans do NOT miss a fiesta.

The party was lots of fun, and it was great for Lukas to have so many people join him to celebrate. This was certainly a birthday party he's not likely to forget!

We left Cholul to head back to the house for some recovery time, and to get cleaned up for dinner out. Lukas opened a few small presents, then we headed out to Friday's to eat, since we let him choose the restaurant for his special day. We wouldn't want to disappoint the birthday boy, ya know!

Love and Life

Having just returned from our jungle excursion to Uxmal, we spent Wednesday in Mérida, preparing for Lukas' birthday. We started the day with a trip to La Piñateria, where there were dozens of piñatas to choose from, in various shapes, colors, and characters. Lukas selected a traditional Mexican piñata, trimmed in shiny red, green, and silver streamers.

From there it was off to Costco to pick up the cake plus goodies for the piñata. We got lots of crazy candies like Krankys, ChocoRetas, and Bubu Lubus. Surprisingly, everything else was identical to the same stores at home, just the prices are posted in pesos instead of dollars. We got some lunch and frozen treats, then raced back to the house before everything could melt in the hot trunk.

Later in the afternoon, we took a ride with Greenwood to an orphanage named appropriately 'Amor y Vida' or 'Love and Life'. He visits with an associate every Wednesday to provide the children with art instruction and encourage their creativity and self expression.

This was a great opportunity for our children to play with some local children their own ages, who were in need of attention. While some kids were understandably shy and wary of strangers at first, others were ready immediately to welcome with a hug and share some conversation.

Jennifer broke the ice by asking some little girls to help her with her Spanish words. Then, we helped out with some art projects while learning a bit more about the orphanage and the art program.

Greenwood gave Emma and Lukas some silly bands and candy to pass out to the children, and soon they were all running around playing together.

The thing that really got the kids to open up to us was the camera. Once we snapped a few photos and showed then to the children, everyone wanted to get in on the action. These were kids who seldom get to see themselves in pictures, so everyone began posing for photos and mugging for the camera. It wasn't long before a hundred photos had been taken.

A group of girls played with Jennifer's blond hair and tried on her fancy sunglasses, posing like movie stars. Soon, even the boys were trying them on! We plan on printing the pictures before we leave Mérida so we can forward them to the orphanage for the children to keep.

We were struck by how the simplest things can sometimes make a difference. A friendly greeting, a little bit of attention... just being silly together and having some fun. We didn't give these children their parents back or give them homes of their own, just some friendly distraction. It can't solve all of their problems, but it can bring a smile to their faces, if only for a little while.

Our visit to the orphanage was another one of those life altering experiences that really made us pause for a moment and think. It was truly heartbreaking to see so many children without families, having to band together to form a collective family under one roof...

all during the most formative years of their lives.

We left the orphanage with the children in our hearts and minds, hoping we had made some small difference today.