We're still alive! (and well)

Sorry folks! Our computer died just after we left Puerto Vallarta and we have been a bit lazy about keeping everyone up to date. So, a lot has happened in the last month. We spent 5 days in Mantenchen Bay awaiting a favorable weather window to travel the 120 miles to Mazatlan.
There were a lot of no-see-ums after 5pm on the beach, but we kept the boat screened and almost a mile off-shore. I (heidi) always get the most bites, I counted over 40 at one point. I think the scratching scars have healed by now! We all went a bit stir- crazy but survived. We left for Isla Isabella on a Thursday night around midnight and arrived there the next am just after 8 am. There was some wind and swell but we were the only ones anchored in the main anchorage so that was a little less nerve racking. We went ashore and hiked around for a few hours and met hundreds of blue,brown and green footed boobies. Gabriella was promptly snatched from my arms by a local woman (one of a small colony of probably 20 fishing families) just after landing and paraded around the little fishing shacks. We left that afternoon around 4pm and started bashing our way north in 25knt winds and 3-5 ft seas. My stomach couldn't handle it so I sent Ian down below to hang out with the kids and Hans and I watched the whales breach for over an hour!
The wind moderated by 10pm or so and we were cruising along at 5-6kts. We pulled into El Cid just in time before they closed the channel entrace for dredging at 10am the next morning.
Mazatlan was great as usual, we left just 2 days later to catch some very rare southly winds up to La Paz. The wind was really light so we motored for 2 days but that was fine as it is normally a windy and bumpy crossing. We did pay our dues, however, as we made the last 15 miles into Bahia de La Paz. The wind gradually increased as we approached a narrow chanel into the bay from the Ceralvo Channel. It was sketchy enough looking for the dim navigation aids that mark the shoals and reefs in that passage, but we ended up with 35-40 knot headwinds and 4-5' swells only 4-5 seconds apart. Chaitanya does not like these conditions and protests by slowing foward progress to just 2 knots or less. As we turned south after rounding the (Coyote?) peninsula, the wind also veered and we ended up scratching our way into Ballandra cove. We set the anchor at 4 am in pitch black night and settled in as Chaitanya sailed back and forth on the anchor, getting blown over 30 degrees or so every ten minutes when a gust came from a different direction. But the anchor held well, and we practiced enough patience to wait until about noon that day. By then the winds had subsided below 20 knots and we departed for the final 15 miles to La Paz. That was an uneventful motor. We tied up at Marina de La Paz and imediately set out in search of ice cream! We were not let down. Fuente ice cream shop on the Malecon in La Paz is second to none we've had-anywhere. It's all made on premises and we enjoyed sampling many of their unique flavors over the two weeks or so that we stayed in La Paz. Favorites were Yerba Buena (made with fresh mint), Fresa con Agua (just frozen strawberries and sugar) and Limon con Crema (tastes just like key lime pie- excellent when combined with the frozen strawberries). Another interesting flavor was rose petal. La Paz has something of a European feel to it- especially near the waterfront. There are many upscale shops and restaurants along with the strreet vendors and tourist trinkets. We enjoyed somewhat authentic chinese cuisine, cafe lattes, and even sushi. But Ian's favorite of all was the Bistek Arrachera. It is prime rib marinated and then diced for tacos. You add onions, guac, salsa, lime and hot sauce to make a sumptious and inexpensive (1.50) meal. For the first time on the trip, we were meeting lots of younger cruisers. Some of them were even just entering Mexico, so we were able to share our experiences with other cruisers who had not just done the same thing. Tom and Amy on Sandpiper www.sandpiper38.blogspot.com left Zihuatenejo for the Marquesas Islands while we were in La Paz. It has been a treat following their crossing on their blog- check it out. After talking it out, we decided that we had had enough cruising for the time being and were really looking foward to being around family again and that we were ready to head home rather than sail further into the Sea of Cortes. I know, it sounds crazy, but if this trip has taught us anything, it is that we really need the support system of family and friends in a community, and that while adventuring and seeing new people and places is wonderful- especially in the tropics- there can be such a thing as too much of a good thing. We are ready to do something more meaningful for others and Mother Earth. We want to really contribute to the advancement of our commuity. We will do that by raising two conscientious, loving humans and through our Chiropractic practice in Florence, Oregon. Check back soon for another update from Oregon. Ian will return to La Paz on the 16th of May to load Chaitanya on the Dockwise Barge for Nanaimo, B.C. and then we will be cruising the waters of Puget Sound.