MEXICO: Life Lessons – Climbing Parícutin Volcano

As a wife of one and a mom of four, it seems like I am always learning and discovering! I know I am not alone. Let’s just admit it: The world is a big place, life is a lesson, and children can be the best teachers.  Normally my series, Life Lessons with Mexico Mom,  is hosted on Los Gringos Locos, but today I am posting here on World Moms Blog.

Here are my insights and experiences as a Mexico Mom after we climbed Parícutin volcano in Southern Mexico. I don’t have the images edited yet or I would share! Stay tuned and watch for them on my blog. In the meantime enjoy our crazy experience.

Life Lesson 90: My butt screams torture after six hours on a horse.

I love horses and I love horseback-riding, but when you do this once every six months, your bum is not going to be a happy camper! Especially after six long hours! Getting off the horse to climb the volcano and see the sights was a relief. I was staggering around doing walk squats for the first few minutes but then I stretched my legs and ooohhh, the relief! By the last hour I was literally in pain with every step the horse took and trotting was definitely out of the question. When I sat down to go pee, and the toilet seat hurt and I whimpered! It has been three days and I am still sore.

Life Lesson 91: We are out-of-shape weaklings but we are determined!

Climbing a volcano is hard! You are trying to conquer ash and loose rocks with every step, climbing and slipping until you reach the summit. Every few feet we stopped to rest. The girls were constantly ahead of us and they were having a difficult time too despite being 10 and 11. Brad’s back was killing him from an accident he had in 2010. Sawyer was wearing skateboard sneakers and had no traction whatsoever. We were dragging the poor kid half the time. We were three-fourths of the way up and we thought about turning around. I am so glad we didn’t though! What an amazing experience to stare into a volcano crater. The volcano is venting although the last lava flow was in 1943. We could feel and see the steam rolling off the vents. Some of the rocks are hot to the touch. The kids loved it and so did we! We conquered Parícutin!

Life Lesson 92: Sunburn is for losers.

I am red and purple. I will probably peel. Aloe vera and apple cider vinegar are my companions. I don’t know what I was thinking. I wore a tank top and shorts, without any sunscreen and I am a fair-skinned gringa living in Mexico. I have been tossing and turning the last few nights because the sheets hurt! The fact is that the closer you are to the equator the stronger the sun’s rays are. We are also at a higher altitude living here in the mountains. Neither one bode well for peach skin without any sun protection 🙁

Bonus: Life Lesson 93: Don’t take small kids to Parícutin to climb the volcano.

I am so glad we didn’t bring Tristan! He is two. There is no way  we could have climbed the volcano and truly enjoyed the day. Sawyer is four and he had a hard time. His butt was hurting from riding the horses. He fell asleep on the way there and on the way back. Our guide, Juan, helped us carry him. Half-way up the volcano he gave up and started to cry. Poor little guy! I tried to carry him. That lasted four feet. Then he said he had to poop. When you gotta go, you gotta go. Sawyer pooped on the side of Paricutin. For a week this boy was walking around the house with a backpack, asking when we were leaving for the volcano. On the way back he looked at me and said, “I’m not coming next time. I am staying home with David.” It’s okay kid. As awesome as this was, Mommy won’t be back for a little while either!

What life lesson did you learn this past week? Please share it with us below. We want to hear your thoughts from around the world!

This is an original post to World Moms Blog by Tina Marie Ernspiker.  Tina can be found blogging over at Los Gringos Locos.  She is also on Facebook and Twitter.  

Photo credit to AC.  This photo has a creative commons attribute license.