Pink

While walking home from the library today, two of my newest art students came running up to me, pink flowers in hand. As they giggled and squeezed me around the middle, I asked them who their beautiful flowers were for. -You, of course!- they responded, pulling my face down to their level and sticking the flowers in my hair under my bobby pins. Then they were off, flitting on down to the library to do their homework with Profes Marco and Duncan.

Funny how something as tiny as pink flowers in your hair can turn a gray Monday into a delightful afternoon, and inspire you to bake blueberry muffins and fold paper cranes for tomorrow's art lesson.

Sigh. Holly

Jelly!

I arrived home in Colorado later than expected Sunday night (it just wouldn't be the holiday season in the states without a few airport delays), and since then have been involved in a whirlwind of Christmas dinner parties, cookies exchanges with my mom, painful mall maneuverings, hospital gift deliveries, and trips to the library to stock up on new and old books. While I won't be keeping up with the blog as consistently as I have while in Ecuador, I will be checking in every now and then, and also eliciting the words of everyone else to give an update on their state-side travels as well.

One thing that is just too good to keep from you, internet, is the package that was waiting for me on my bed when I stumbled in on Sunday. Postmarked from Texas, Mrs. Fulton (Dunc's mom, clearly) sent me my very own jar of her fantastic, amazing, home-made jalapeño jelly! My family is a little skeptical, which suits me just fine. I think I might tell them it's actually awful so that I can hoard it for myself. Mwahahaaa...

(I think I know what's in there...!)