Barefoot Diary

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September 19, 2018 ~ San Ignacio, Belize

I love chocolate. Always have, always will. But, to be honest with you, I've never given much thought as to where it comes from. I’ve always been aware that there was such a thing as a cacao bean, but frankly, prior to being here to Belize, I couldn’t have told you whether they grow on bushes or trees. I was choco-challenged!

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September 29, 2018 ~ San Ignacio, Belize

If you really enjoy eating, it's great to have good friends that are professional chefs. We lucked out with Chef Rick, here in Belize!

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September 18, 2018 ~ San Ignacio, Belize

This is the first story in our Belizean food series, and what a way to start...with bacon! There is no one that I know that doesn't like bacon, and I can't think of any other food that isn't a great bacon go-with.

Listen to this story about a cooking contest that John and i entered and an incredible couple that beat the socks off of us with their scrumptious bacon delicacies!

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September 18, 2018 ~ San Ignacio, Belize

This is the introduction to a series of three stories about the delightful food here in Belize.  On our website we've included recipes as well! Better warn you, listening and reading these three might make your stomach growl and cause excess salivation!

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September 10, 2018 ~ Hurricane Territory

September is definitely hurricane month in the Caribbean part of the planet. After what we went through with Hurricanes Irma and Maria, we learned a lot about recovery and the items that could have helped us. This article explores the things we could have used as well as provides a list of things we wish we had.

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July 22, 2018 ~ San Ignacio, Belize

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May 22, 2018 ~ San Ignacio, Belize

Before coming here I thought that Belize was basically one big jungle. I thought we’d see exotic jungle animals everywhere, like monkeys, toucans, and maybe even crocodiles. But we’ve never actually SEEN any of these remarkable critters. What we have seen is…COWS!  Lots and lots of COWS!

Listen to how my baby brother, David, became a dairy cow ergonomic guru in this a-moo-sing tale of everything you ever wanted to know about cows...and then some.

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July 1, 2018 ~ San Ignacio, Belize

One of the most popular tales told here in Belize, to even tiny children, is one about a troll-like characters called Tata Duende.  He is creepy, tricky and downright scary, so before you listen to this frightening tale, be afraid, very afraid.

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July 1, 2018 ~ Housesitting

This is the fourth in the series of posts about housesitting.

We travel with 4 suitcases and 4 carry-on bags. Everything we own is fitted into these 8 receptacles.  Because of our pared down minimalist lifestyle, we’ve learned to be smart about what is important for our existence. Here's how we do it!

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June 6, 2018 ~ Housesitting

This is the third article in our housesitting series. In November 2016, John and I made the decision to join the ranks of traveling, housesitting nomads, which was, for us, monumental. We had a business and a lot of STUFF we had to get rid of to make our dream life happen. So, here’s how we did it.

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April 10, 2018 ~ Housesitting

This is the second post in our series about housesitting.

If you are seriously considering a life as a housesitter, we're here to rescue you from hours of frustrating searching and combing the Internet looking for the next sit. Check out our comprehensive list of housesitting websites!

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MARCH 24, 2018 ~ Housesitting

This podcast is the first in a series about housesitting. All the time we get asked why on earth we chose a life of taking care of other people's houses and pets, as well as how we find the opportunities. In this series we "tell all." Believe me, we are by no means touting ourselves as experts, but we learned a lot through doing our research, making a lot of mistakes, and every now and then getting it right!

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MARCH 11, 2018 ~ Mexico & Belize

Each time we have visited Mayan ruins in the Yucatan Peninsula and Belize we feel like we've been dropped into an Indiana Jones adventure story. And even though we never had to crack a whip and never fell into a pit of snakes, each new ruin site provided us great insight into an incredible people (the Mayans) and a thoroughly entertaining experience.

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MARCH 10, 2018 ~ Mexico & Belize

Growing up, I feel like I got a pretty good education in the public schools of Texas, but since we've explored the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico and Belize, I've discovered that I knew very little about the Mayans. Okay, okay I knew they had slopey foreheads, and some were cross-eyed, but that's about it.

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FEBRUARY 27, 2018 ~ Xcalak, Quintana Roo, Mexico

Did you ever go on a scavenger hunt as a kid? Fun times, huh? We felt something akin to our childhood exhilaration when we walked the beaches in Xcalak. No messages in bottle, or Spanish doubloons, but we did find some fascinating things that had washed up on the shore. We also found mounds of trash! Not good!

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FEBRUARY 22, 2018 ~ Xcalak, Quintana Roo, Mexico

We felt a little like cavemen when it came to finding food during our Xcalak house sit. unlike our time after Maria in Puerto Rico, there was an abundance of food, but it just took time, as in HOURS, to get to it.

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FEBRUARY 2, 2018 ~ Xcalak, Quintana Roo, Mexico

I'm kind of a klutz. Balance, grace and charm are not my strong suits and, believe me, I've never been tempted to quit by day job and join a travelling ballet troupe. I've taken tumbles and all out falls in many countries of the world, but this time, here at our gorgeous beach house sit on the Mexican Riviera, the fall served me well and turned me into a fish monitor!