Whatever Lola Wants Lola Gets

I thought this title was appropriate for my new etsy shop - after all my little yorkie Lola does get everything she wants! My shop will soon be filled with some treasures I am working on....be on the lookout soon for some great vintage creations and some whimsical crafts that I will be putting up for sale!

The City of Havana

Some images of the sights of Havana City, Cuba (click on images to see larger).....

The "Reading" Room

Remember this.....

Well, now the room has been "outfitted" and is ready for its reveal. Can anyone say red and white love?! It is definitely decorated in my most favorite colors and I am loving the way the sun shines through the skylight during the day - and even the noise it makes when the rain trickles on it. It is a "tight squeeze" in here and I am going to be on the lookout for a smaller and shorter daybed for this room - or, I am thinking of cutting the legs down on this one if all else fails. But, it serves its purpose - to read, to watch the t.v., or to just take an afternoon nap!

And don't you just love these rose pillows I found at Home Sense (my one stop shop!). The detail on these are amazing!

And this lampshade got a makeover as well...

With a stash of these sort of trims - the old boring lampshade got a new lease on life!

Just look at the beauty now - she is singing a new tune! And thanks to the talents of Jenn, this adorable adorned fan now graces the front and center of this new lampshade! LOVE IT!!

The Cuban Team

Our next day started early and we all went down to the "buffet" at our accommodations. The food takes some getting used to and by the end of the week we were all "used" to it in some way or another. The fresh fruit was great, but other items in the buffet were just not what we normally ate back at home. Boiled eggs were the safe thing to eat because sometimes when they made you an omelet it was very "runny" in the middle - gross!!

After breakfast it was time to load up on the bus again and head for the gym for a training session with the Cuban team. This is what greeted us as we walked in - not at all like the gymnasiums we have - it was sure an eye-opener for our girls.

The team that was at this end of the court trying to score had a real hard time seeing because of the glare from the blaring sun - you would've thought that it would be hot inside this gym because it was outside, but surprisingly it stayed cool no matter what time of day we were in it.

The gym was also a "storage" space for the hotel that was next door -see the extra mattresses, chairs and tables?

Above us the gym rafters...there were birds chirping around and yes, the occasional shoulder was the landing point for the relief of the birds...

And of course there was a mural of Che Guevara...

Our girls getting ready...

Our girls teaching the Cuban girls their warm-ups...

A view of the gym floor - there were many ruts in the court...

Another view of the gym from the neighboring hotel pool area...

The two teams together with their coaches...

My daughter's Cuban "mate" that she was paired up with - her name was Cardelia...

Being silly on the bus...

Our girls had a good time with the Cuban team and had three days of training and games with them. On their last day together the Cuban team joined our girls for a bus ride into Havana for lunch and to spend the day by the pool. Communication was hard, but by sharing a meal and having fun in the pool there wasn't much time for words - only smiles and laughter.

The Cuban team was very skilled and many of them were tall with wide arm spans. Their passing was quicker than ours and we were outplayed on all the games we had with them. The girls on this team are selected from the different provinces in Cuba so they are the best of the best. They train together and a few of them will be selected for the Cuban National team. So, we were not surprised at how skilled they were.

Next up - sights from the city of Havana...

The Cuban Life

Well, after a short week in Cuba I am back home and NOT loving the rain we are having - I am glad I was able to experience the warmth of the sun in Cuba and have that memory to hold me for a while. Somehow the furnace air coming up from my household ducts is not the same feeling as the hot sunny sun in Cuba - nothing beats blue skies, the sun shining down on your face, and the beautiful blue caribbean seas that Cuba had to offer. There were some downfalls to the trip though and I will explain about those later. First the good stuff! 

This is me and my daughter happy to arrive at the Vancouver airport for our flight to Havana, Cuba.

Now the bad part...the original pictures we had of the place we were going to stay DID NOT look anything like the place we pulled up to! Talk about ghetto...this was NOT a 5* hotel...this was as low as you could go....and I am not joking! We were all shocked when we arrived but later learned that this sort of accommodation is very "normal" in Cuban life. After a few days the shock wore off and we began to just accept what our fate dealt us. Even the fact that some of the girls' bathrooms did not come with toilet seats - Cubans don't use toilet seats! They sit on the porcelain! Eww!!

Our cabana - #28...

The room......

We arrived at 9:00 am and spent the whole day just "chillin" by the pool because we were so tired from our long flight. There was a beach nearby and some of the girls from the basketball team ventured there. Myself, I opted for the lounge and cool waters of the pool. I was able to get in a very long nap and felt refreshed. Others went for a long walk to the nearest village and found this - this could be labeled the "doll cemetery".....

Where all discarded dolls end up as someone else's altered art!The housing....

We had the bestest tour guide - Iovanni - learned so much from him - the history and life of Cuba - plus the fact that he was a cutie patootie! The girls all loved him and when we said our goodbyes at the airport it was a sad time - tears shed by everyone. 

Here is my daughter with Iovanni...

Tomorrow....our basketball girls meet the Cuban girls basketball team....

Wish I Were There

Well, this is about our third week of really COLD weather - not counting the last 4 months! As I drove my daughter to school this morning there were many cars, trucks, and vans in the ditches on the highway - BLACK ICE. If you live in a state, country, or town who has never heard of this BLACK ICE, count yourself lucky that you don't have to endure winters like these or ever have to experience the road condition called BLACK ICE. It is deadly...I was spared this morning as there was a sanding truck ahead of me on the highway sanding the roads so that there would be no one else perishing in the road condition called BLACK ICE. It usually takes me 30 minutes to drive my daughter to school - this morning it took 60.

How I wish I were back here:

With these people...

Soaking up the warm sunshine...

Having fun...

Just relaxin' and chillin'...

Oh, the life of being in Florida...

But, on the bright side - my youngest daughter Becca and I are on our way to Cuba this coming Saturday for a week long vacation with her high school basketball team. They have fund raised for 2 years and we are all excited for WARM weather...and sandy beaches...and blue Caribbean seas! They will play a few basketball games while we are there and learn salsa dancing and eat the Cuban cuisine (I have heard it is bland, bland, bland). Oh well, maybe the cocktails are tastier!

So, I guess I can put up with the freezing temperatures this week at home knowing that in a few short days I will be soaking up the rays in the Caribbean! :)