Something about Puerto Peñasco changes your perspective on life. The house is hectic with 7 (yes,, I said 7 – there were two cousins there to spend time with the family) kids running in and out of the house, each time bringing with them a little more sand for the floor. Giggles and screams and sometimes little arguments involving screaming and hitting and just little children noises in general become the background to all that happens around them. The noise level is high, the Little Mermaid dvd plays on the television, children are asking me things that I cannot answer since I do not know Spanish. (that has to change!) And somehow, in the midst of the chaos, the giggles, the Little Mermaid, and the noise in general – the mood is surprisingly relaxing. Katia’s Grandma Maria makes homemade tortilla soup and then you float these little crunchy noodles in them and it is heaven in a little cup. Maria’s sister, Berta, is visiting from Hermosillo as well as Berta’s son Chuy, his wife, Auxi, and two daughters Bella & Cynthia. Meals are like clockwork. No one asks Maria to get the kids lunch. She quietly gets out 7 little bowls and ladles the soup in each one. Places the Dora place mats in front of each chair and then calls the kids to sit. While the soup is slurped (hard to get those noodles in your mouth in one bite) Berta and Maria get some small plates and dish up refried beans for each child. The kids do not whine or complain or ask what something is. They are grateful for their meal and simply enjoy. One by one as they finish, they scoop up their plates and drop them into the kitchen sink. Then Maria and Berta wipe the table and serve the adults much the same way. After that, Maria feeds Marluce and finally, herself. Other meals are handled much the same way – no one asking anyone to do something. When Maria sits down at the table to start preparing for dinner, Berta quietly gets something from the refrigerator and begins her preparation while Auxi joins them with yet another part of the meal to prepare. Everything they do in the kitchen is similar to a ballet – every step carefully choreographed. It is a wonder to watch.