Mato Grosso

Our final excursion in Brazil was to the state of Mato Grosso, an area known for its wildlife and natural beauty. The four of us, along with my parents, ventured off the beaten path (sometimes way off the beaten path), visiting the three areas of Cuiaba, Nobres and Chapada dos Guimaraes. 

Highlights: lots of birds, namely "Blu" and "Jewel" from the movie Rio; lots of water activities; lots of animals, including super cute monkeys, delicious alligators (which we ate at a restaurant one night) and creepy Capivara, which are the largest rodents in the world (weighing, on average, 100 pounds), as well as very beautiful scenery, caves, and waterfalls.

Tidbits

Spandex: Just like seeing a baby drinking Coke (even if it is diet) out of his bottle, I can't stop myself from judging every time I pass a pair of crazy-patterned, tight pants here. Brazilian women of all sizes wear them as athletic gear, for going out-on-the-town, to children's parties -- just like Americans wear jeans. In addition to the patterns below, I've seen prison stripes, checkerboard, tie-dyed, every animal print possible and even a repeating pattern of Jesus' face. I've seen textured patterns, where the spandex is actually raised. I've seen the spandex paired with tennis shoes, high heals, boots or flip-flops. I once saw a woman wearing the pants with a t-shirt that read, "OMG." My thoughts exactly, sister friend.

In the foreground AND the background!
I'm telling you, they are everywhere. 

Look close, and you'll see THREE pairs of tight, crazy pants here.

They come in a variety of lengths, including three-quarters (see above),
mini skirt (see below) and, wait for it, full-body, that is a one-piece, neck to ankle spandex
outfit (unfortunately not pictured here, but is forever in my mind.)

Names: We recently received this invitation inviting "Herry" and her family to a birthday party. Our names are tough for Brazilians. For them, Geoff is "Jeff-y," Brye is "Brye-a," and, unfortunately, Eri is either "Air-he" or "Herry" (not to be confused with "Hairy.") Luckily for Leo, his name is Brazilian, though here they pronounce is "Ley-o."

Awesome: Brazilians love, love, love taking selfies and we thoroughly enjoy watching them take selfies. They shamelessly adjust their boobs, toss their hair and pucker their lips while clicking away for what seems like forever, or until they get it just right.

Awesome: On our way to the beach, we ended up behind a dude driving a goat around in the bed of his truck. 

And, awesome: Eri, 4, recently brought home this mask smoking a pipe, which she made at preschool with the help of her teacher.

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Father's Day / Dia dos Pais

Happy Father's Day to the dad who makes us Mickey pancakes on Saturdays (and any other day we ask for them); who plays with all the kids at parties instead of sitting with the other parents; who faithfully goes to swim lessons and ballet class; who always wants to ride the skateboard or have a race.  We love you. xoxo, Eri and Leo

Eri made Geoff a special shirt at school for Dia dos Pais 

(which is in August in Brazil, not June like the states) and 

she and Leo also got him a "Badass With A Paddle" hoodie to 

wear after he gets off the river. 

It seemed fitting to post a video of one of Geoff's proudest dad moments: 

Eri realizing his goal of riding a bike without training wheels before turning 5. 

Geoff shows this on his phone to everyone possible (it's only 10 seconds).