Taking a clue from some Asian cultures, we released balloons to the ether with our secret wishes for a new year.

I suppose technically we should have done this on New Years Day, but we decided to wait for better weather. We wrote our hopes for 2015 on a piece of paper, affixed it the our balloon, lit the fuel, and then craned our necks to watch them fly away.

Jasmine’s purple balloon soared the highest. My green balloon got singed on take-off, but soon recovered.

Many thanks to our neighbors Sam and Damian for inviting us to join them in their annual tradition.

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We discovered a new Mexican restaurant in Hillsboro, Oregon called Amelia’s. Well the restaurant isn’t new, but it was new for us. They have the most amazing thick and flavorful homemade tortillas. They are almost a meal to themselves sprinkled with some salt and spoonful of salsa. They are served instead of the standard bowl of chips.

As you can see, we ate them so fast, that we didn’t get a chance to take a photo. So you’ll have to use your imagination and instead view our entrees.

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We got invited to our neighbors Quinceañera. A quick web search told me this was a ceremony on a girl’s fifteenth birthday to mark her passage to womanhood, to give thanks to God for his blessings, and to present a young woman to the community.

It was all in Spanish, so I can’t relay too much of what was happening. But it certainly looked and felt special. And the cake was delicious.

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We had a bear of a time at our monthly book club meeting today. We dined at the Black Bear Diner. Which proved an appropriate setting for discussing the “The Fourth Bear” by Jasper Fforde.

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Jasmine had her last Guitar 101 class. While she was not quite brave enough to do a solo, she did join in an acoustic version of ‘The Kids Are Alright’.