Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Get "Wow'd" at Quinta Don Jose!


More of Quinta Don Jose
Tlaquepaque, Mexico


Wonderful art is everywhere!
This one particular painting I love.
The name of it is "Juanita" and the artist is Arturo Cuevas
and it sells for about $1,400.00.

The ceiling below is to me a work of art as well.
This sort of artisanship is just not seen often.
It is almost all throughout Quinta Don Jose.

The little nooks below are so wonderful. Each little "window" showcases Mexican pottery and small statues.


***

This slab of tiles rest over a small fireplace.
The figures painted on them depict daily life in Mexico.

Another beautiful and colorful painting showing a woman
with a basket of flowers in a basket that is being carried on her head. The arrangements of pots and greenery are
so pleasant to sit next to in the restaurant area.

I've featured a picture of this before but can't resist sharing it. It is the ceiling in the women's restroom in the lobby.
There is a combination of tiny painted figures as well as "milagros" nailed to the ceiling.


Catrina is the name of the popular Mexican skeleten character that is so popular during Dia de los Muertos. The mirror and then the piece of art above the hook were both in the restroom. The "happy" Catrina with the purple background was in the lobby.

A quick look at our bedroom shows the beautiful carved headboard that was attached to a very comfortable king-size bed.


Taking a picture of the restroom area without catching myself in the mirror was impossible... but at least you
see what beautiful tile work there is.
**

The modern part of Quinta Don Jose is a very large swimming pool, television with a few channels in English and internet.

I hope that I have "Wow'd" you this Wednesday.
Be sure to visit Savvy Southern Style to see the other
entries.



A little added note -- Tlaquepaque is sort of a "suburb" of Guadalajara.




Thursday, May 26, 2011

"Mi Casa Es Tu Casa"


"Home Sweet Home"
Quinta Don Jose - Tlaquepaque, Mexico

Our favorite bed and breakfast has become our
"Home Sweet Home"
as this is about our twentieth stay there.
I wonder if that beats any world record?!

When we were living in Tecoman we would make a trip to Guadalajara just for a little R&R at our B&B.
Tlaquepaque is sort of a "suburb" of Guadalajara.
The shopping is wonderful.

After a day of shopping though it is a treat to end the day
with a cool drink and a chat with Charlie at the bar.
Often times there are other couples who enjoy visiting with
other guests at Quinta Don Jose. It's fun to find out where
everyone is from and what brought them to Mexico.

This particular evening... which was just this past Tuesday evening, we enjoyed listening to the beauitful sounds of the harp. You can see the picture of the young, very accomplished harpist in the collage.

We enjoyed a meal of grilled lamb and also red snapper.
The meal was delicious. It always is.

I've written about Quinta Don Jose several times and I will again soon as I will want to show you what one of their bedrooms looks like.

I wanted to make sure that I featured the mirror in this collage as it is a work of art. The artist who constructed the frame also has his work at the Vatican.

Come back soon for more pictures of
this home and away from home for us where we are always made to feel like this is
"Home Sweet Home"!

I am linking to
The Charm of Home




Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Tabletop Tuesday at the Quinceañera

Tabletop Tuesday at
the Quinceañera


I just have to highlight again the beautiful tablesettings
and decor at the Quinceañera we just attended in Mexico.
I was really taken by the tiny lights used in the
centerpieces and the flowers. I have never seen battery
operated lights inside of water. Have you?
What an effect!

This is the perfect post for
Tabletop Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life

Sunday, May 22, 2011

The Quinceañera

The Quinceañera



We attended a beautiful Quinceañera last night.
The young fifteen year Marcela was the honoree and pictured above in a pirate's hat. She is our "niece"... actually our son's, but we claim her! She is absolutely precious.
The theme for the Quinceañera was
"Pirates of the Carribean".
If you enlarge the collages you will see the great length they went to for this theme.
This quinceañera took place in Mexico, not far from Manzanillo.
Approximately 300 people attended.
The evening started off with Mass at the Catholic Church in the center of the town. The music was beautiful with wonderful singers and violins.
Our son and his wife were the "padrino and padrina" of the traditional event. They were considered the sponsors.
The flowers for the whole event were amazing. What caught my eye were the very large "vases" that held beautiful arrangements of flowers. In the vases which were filled with water were strands of battery operated lights actually in the water. I'm still wondering how they did that.
After Mass we made our way to the events center that was decorated in blues and whites and of course the pirate ship and tables decorated with shells and an ocean theme.
Tiny lights were in all of the trees and small bushes.
As we drove through town we drove next to Marcela's vehicle, the white SUV which was decorated with flowers. It was driven by her older brother. She rolled the windows down so we could see that our two grandchildren were with her
enjoying be "celebraties" for awhile. Bless her heart. She and my granddaughter are inseparable and she was not going to leave her out of this once in a lifetime event. Now you know why I adore this "niece"!
As you can see, the tables were decorated beautifully.
The menu for the evening was

Trufas de Chipotle, Cilantro y Nuez
Mousse de queso cabra/hierbas cebollin

Suprema de Pollo en Espinacas y Requesor
Banada en salsa de hongos

Pasta a las Hierbas

Ensalada Primavera Con Frutas

Pan Surtido

Pastel

To put it mildly, the meal was "magnifico"!
The appetizers were wonderful cheeses as well as a mousse that was so creamy and yet light it melted in your mouth immediately. Cannot say that I've ever tasted anything quite like it. Tender chicken breasts were served as the main course complete with luscious, creamy sauce.
A fruit and vegetable salad accompanied the meal along with pasta with a sauce that was used on the chicken as well.
A date stuffed with creamy chocolate and nuts was served in a tiny paper muffin holder.
The cake was served later... and alas, I did not get a picture of it. I believe it was a white chocolate with a light frosting, drizzled with fine lines of dark chocolate.
Heavenly!!
A live band that played many types of music just would not allow anyone to sit still long. My husband and I love to dance and we could barely wait until after the meal was served to start dancing... in fact we did not wait!
The dance floor filled quickly and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.
The band had different dancing games which I always find fun and a little different from the U.S.



Our granddaughter and grandson were dressed for the occasion. It was the first time for a real tie for our grandson and he was quite taken with it. He was one of the few "men" who kept their ties on in the 80+ degree, ultra-humid weather.


I am just now realizing that I have included a photo of my son and his family twice in two of the collages. I suppose that just proves how proud I am of them!
There is also a picture of my husband and me along with our son's mother-in-law. I am wearing white.
Our son and his wife walked down the aisle after the honoree at the church since they were her "sponors".

Well, I am beginning to feel the wear and tear of last evening's fun and celebration.
It will be five years before there is another
quinceañera in this family... and then eight years before our granddaughter's. I've mentioned that to my son hinting that he needs to start saving now. His reply was that he was sure his daughter wouldn't be interested in having one.
Oh how little he knows....

This Monday I will be linking to
Little Red House

for Mosaic Monday
http://dearlittleredhouse.blogspot.com/

Here is a picture of Marcela that I wish I had included
in one of the collages. Isn't she a beauty?

By the way: Mass was at 8 p.m., dinner was 10 p.m. and
we returned to our hotel at 2:30 a.m.
Long evening, but so much fun!!


Friday, May 20, 2011

Seafood at the Beach in Mexico


Our granddaughter is a big fan of "langostino"...
a creature (for lack of a better word) which is a cross between a lobster and a crawfish. This is heavily seasoned with sauteed garlic. She ate the whole thing!
Our grandson prefers fried fish.. if you can get him to sit still long enough to eat.
Our daughter-in-law had wonderful crabs smothered in a red, spicey sauce.
The rest of us had wonderful grilled shrimp and fish.


The waves on the ocean were amazing. Our granddaughter
snapped this picture! The water was beautiful green as it became this foamy, white mass.

I'm linking to
Designs by Gollum on this Friday
for a fun Friday posting.


It's Foodie Friday!!!

Quinceañera - Turning 15!

Quinceañera

It's the celebration of a young girl turning fifteen.
We call her "niece" however she is actually our son's niece. It's just that we have known her for ten years. She is the namesake of our daughter-in-law, "Marcela".
Marcela when she was about 10 years old.

Tomorrow evening we will all go to Mass. Marcela will be "presented" at church by her parents. They will walk her down the aisle and probably be escorted by other relatives, including her older brother and sister. She will look beautiful and we will all be amazed at what a young lady she has become.
We have flown to Mexico to enjoy this special time for
Marcela. She is especially close to our granddaughter, Carmen who is seven years old.
There will be a wonderful party and dance after the Mass.
My camera will be clicking away so that I will have lots of
pictures to share with you very soon.
Chances are we will not get back to our hotel room until
around 2:00 a.m., but the party will still be going on!
Such a celebration!!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Congrats to Faded Charm!!






A few of my White Wednesday postings from the past!

I'll have to pass up blogging for a couple of days because 
periodically that is what happens in my husband's line of work. My camera will be clicking away though and I'll
have some wonderful pictures to share with you... full of color and another country's custom.
Can't wait!!


I'm linking to White Wednesday at
Faded Charm.

This is the 100th White Wednesday and there is a lot of
celebrating going on. Check out Faded Charm and see the
fun going on there!!

--also--

Happy Birthday to my dear friend, Laura,
at White Spray Paint



What a great friend you are, Laura!!

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Fields of Yellow!


Fields of Yellow!

There were roughly 2,000 acres of these sunflowers.
We had seen a beautiful crop of them months back and they were considerably taller, but due to the drought (Yes, deep south Texas is in a terrible drought) the sunflowers were "stunted". They're still gorgeous to look at though. Yellow is one of my favorite colors so of course I could not get enough of them.
This crop of sunflowers will be harvest and used for the oil.

I am linking to
Little Red House

for Mosaic Monday

AND

Mellow Yellow Monday

I want to apologize to anyone I was not able to reply to this past week. E-Blogger had erased my latest posting and I was unable to post at all. I know this is not uncommon and thank goodness with a little patience all was repaired. Now I just have some catching up to do!


Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Roseville I Cherish


This is Roseville I Cherish

I inherited the green pot and the two smaller bowls, but the vase I bought for an excellent price at an estate sale recently.
I felt so fortunate. The dealer pointed out it's tiny flaw which I feel strongly is less of a flaw than my inherited pieces.
After all... who is perfect?
My inherited Roseville came from my maternal grandmother, "Jean", who I love to write about.
I've often wondered... what is comparable these days to Roseville? MacKenzie-Childs??
Who knows?
Who cares??
I just enjoy it!

Today I am linking to Tales from Margaritaville

For Thrifty Thursday

Then I will hop over to My Romantic Home

for Show and Tell Friday


and here is a new one for me...



Friday at the Charm of Home
for Home Sweet Home!


My maternal grandparents -
Jean and D.V. DePasquale
Ithaca, N.Y.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Happy Mother's Day in Mexico!



Happy Mother's Day, Marcela!!

Today is Mother's Day in Mexico. It is always May 10th.

I am so proud of my son's wife. She is a wonderful mother, wife and also a very successful business woman.
Our son and their two children are blessed to
have you in their lives.
So are we!

It's White Wednesday so I am linking to
http://fadedcharmcottage.blogspot.com/