I was just cleaning out the drafts on my blog site and came across this little Joy. Made me laugh and also glad Im in a totally different place in life. This was written only a year after I moved to Mexico.
Interesting...
So the owner of my building is aparently off to the states to try and make some money for his family. Aparently he went broke building this place. He had to close his store and we will be paying rent directly to his wife. So they cleaned out the store yesterday. I watched from my window as they halled everything to their van. Yesterday evening when my husband came home he went in to chat with them a bit. He wishes he hadnt. Ok we all know these litle tiendas have to be crawling with roaches. But we buy what we need and move on, its not like we are living there. This particual tienda was one of the cleanest and neatest Iv ever seen. There was no product on the floor everything was up on shelves and the floor was mopped with bleach more than once a day. My husband said when he went in to chat he was so grossed out. The owner was even taking the curtains down and had to shake them out and bugs were falling off of them. My husband shuddered as he was telling me which made me glad I didnt see it. Like I said we all know but who wants to actually see it. So we sprayed our door and window frames
Showing posts with label Bugs in Mexico. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bugs in Mexico. Show all posts
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Monday, November 21, 2011
¿The Normal Life?
The other night I was talking to my husband and I said, "I actually have time to blog now and I feel like I don't have anything to write about."
He says, "Amanda you have tons to write about you live in Mexico."
"Yes but everything seems so normal to me now." I responded.
He looks at me, almost exacerbated,"Then write about that." (somewhere in here I'm thinking oh gee how boring), he continues, "I remember when you first started reading blogs and when you saw that Leslie from Motherhood in Mexico said something to that effect, it gave you hope. That is why you write is to give those other people hope about their life here. I think you need to write about how you feel that your life is normal."
So here is that post.
I'm a mother of three beautiful girls, who every morning wake up at 630. I get them dressed, brush their hair, make a quick breakfast they can eat in the truck and rush them out the door. When I drop them off at school their is almost always something I forgot to put in a book bag, and if not at least one aviso (message) for me to give to a teacher or caregiver. I then zoom off (well not really my truck is a bit broken and I cant go over 30mph) to the hospital. I park and chat with the garage attendant if I have time then run inside to work. On the way in I say buenos dias to everyone I pass even if they are in the middle of a conversation (I guess Im still getting use to that part). After finding out where I'm working for the day I go and care for patients. At the end of my day I'm watching the clock because I'm anxious to get my girls and go home with them. As soon as I can I run out to my truck, of course saying adios to everyone I pass and from time to time stopping to chat. Their is no real running in and out of places here. I pick up my girls, the older two are always running to me for hugs and the baby loves her teacher so much I have to pry her from her arms. I listen to any report from the teachers and we are off. I talk to the older girls about their day on the way home and when I get home I read their report books and check for home work. They do their homework while the baby plays. Then I have Alana do an English website while Joslin watches and repeats. At aruond 530 the baby takes small nap with her milk while I cook dinner. By the time dinner is ready papi is home, and is welcomed by lots of hugs and kisses all around. We eat dinner around 6pm and then the girls get to play and talk with papi about their day. Bath time at 730 and off to bed for the girls. My husband and I then either spend some time alone doing our own thing or doing something together. Traffic and driving here in the city feels a lot like St. Louis, I have Wal Mart (which I cant stand anymore) Sams (which I love) close by and fresh fruits, veggies, and meat on every corner. We have a doctor that we really like. He only costs us 30p a visit, and he is wonderful with my girls. I have figured out how to keep the bugs out of my house. And I actually like the idea of black widows better than brown recluse. (black widows stay home and are usually in a place out of reach for my kids, brown recluse hide in your close and bed).
On days off my girls wake up and crawl in bed with us for a little snuggle time then want to eat. After eating we clean the house, let them do crafts, maybe walk to the park, or play games. We go to church from 11-130 I help in the nursery and my husband helps with translation. We have friends who come over for Sat night collage football, and my girls are happy and healthy. To me this all seems like what I would have been doing in the states. Although I must say Im ALOT more laid back than I would have been if we stayed their. My digestive system is healthier because Im less stressed, and I am able to brush off things much easier than before. Some of this my have come with age (no Im not old) but I know it came a lot faster because of Mexico.
I barely notice anymore that when I'm a pedestrian I don't have the right away, and that I have to teach my kids to run across the street instead of walk. I barely notice that my tissue goes in the trash can and I have to empty that can every day if not twice a day. And what were the other things that were different living here than in the states. I just read a blog this morning that talked about them all and seriously I cant repeat it if I wanted to.
Yesterday we shopped for food for Thanksgiving and for the babys birthday. Lily is turning one this coming weekend. I still have to finish her whole scrap book and baby book and make all the decorations and invitations. This should be a pretty fun week.
This post is for all of you out their who may be struggling with the idea of raising your family here, or who have just moved and need some hope. It took me three years to get to this point. Dont push it, take things one day at a time or how people love to say here poco a poco. Adopt that phrase and do your best to live it. You can do it and you can be happy here. One thing is for sure though you need a supportive spouse who loves you enough to love on you when its hard and encourage you when you get frustrated. Believe me my hubby is far from perfect and has screwed up pretty badly in the past but this is one thing that he has done so well.
I think thats it for now.
He says, "Amanda you have tons to write about you live in Mexico."
"Yes but everything seems so normal to me now." I responded.
He looks at me, almost exacerbated,"Then write about that." (somewhere in here I'm thinking oh gee how boring), he continues, "I remember when you first started reading blogs and when you saw that Leslie from Motherhood in Mexico said something to that effect, it gave you hope. That is why you write is to give those other people hope about their life here. I think you need to write about how you feel that your life is normal."
So here is that post.
I'm a mother of three beautiful girls, who every morning wake up at 630. I get them dressed, brush their hair, make a quick breakfast they can eat in the truck and rush them out the door. When I drop them off at school their is almost always something I forgot to put in a book bag, and if not at least one aviso (message) for me to give to a teacher or caregiver. I then zoom off (well not really my truck is a bit broken and I cant go over 30mph) to the hospital. I park and chat with the garage attendant if I have time then run inside to work. On the way in I say buenos dias to everyone I pass even if they are in the middle of a conversation (I guess Im still getting use to that part). After finding out where I'm working for the day I go and care for patients. At the end of my day I'm watching the clock because I'm anxious to get my girls and go home with them. As soon as I can I run out to my truck, of course saying adios to everyone I pass and from time to time stopping to chat. Their is no real running in and out of places here. I pick up my girls, the older two are always running to me for hugs and the baby loves her teacher so much I have to pry her from her arms. I listen to any report from the teachers and we are off. I talk to the older girls about their day on the way home and when I get home I read their report books and check for home work. They do their homework while the baby plays. Then I have Alana do an English website while Joslin watches and repeats. At aruond 530 the baby takes small nap with her milk while I cook dinner. By the time dinner is ready papi is home, and is welcomed by lots of hugs and kisses all around. We eat dinner around 6pm and then the girls get to play and talk with papi about their day. Bath time at 730 and off to bed for the girls. My husband and I then either spend some time alone doing our own thing or doing something together. Traffic and driving here in the city feels a lot like St. Louis, I have Wal Mart (which I cant stand anymore) Sams (which I love) close by and fresh fruits, veggies, and meat on every corner. We have a doctor that we really like. He only costs us 30p a visit, and he is wonderful with my girls. I have figured out how to keep the bugs out of my house. And I actually like the idea of black widows better than brown recluse. (black widows stay home and are usually in a place out of reach for my kids, brown recluse hide in your close and bed).
On days off my girls wake up and crawl in bed with us for a little snuggle time then want to eat. After eating we clean the house, let them do crafts, maybe walk to the park, or play games. We go to church from 11-130 I help in the nursery and my husband helps with translation. We have friends who come over for Sat night collage football, and my girls are happy and healthy. To me this all seems like what I would have been doing in the states. Although I must say Im ALOT more laid back than I would have been if we stayed their. My digestive system is healthier because Im less stressed, and I am able to brush off things much easier than before. Some of this my have come with age (no Im not old) but I know it came a lot faster because of Mexico.
I barely notice anymore that when I'm a pedestrian I don't have the right away, and that I have to teach my kids to run across the street instead of walk. I barely notice that my tissue goes in the trash can and I have to empty that can every day if not twice a day. And what were the other things that were different living here than in the states. I just read a blog this morning that talked about them all and seriously I cant repeat it if I wanted to.
Yesterday we shopped for food for Thanksgiving and for the babys birthday. Lily is turning one this coming weekend. I still have to finish her whole scrap book and baby book and make all the decorations and invitations. This should be a pretty fun week.
This post is for all of you out their who may be struggling with the idea of raising your family here, or who have just moved and need some hope. It took me three years to get to this point. Dont push it, take things one day at a time or how people love to say here poco a poco. Adopt that phrase and do your best to live it. You can do it and you can be happy here. One thing is for sure though you need a supportive spouse who loves you enough to love on you when its hard and encourage you when you get frustrated. Believe me my hubby is far from perfect and has screwed up pretty badly in the past but this is one thing that he has done so well.
I think thats it for now.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
buggen out
Oh yes its time for some bug stories. Thanks to the rainy season I have a few for you. This year is a little different for us as far as the bugs go. For one reason we are in a house and not in an apartment above a tienda, also we have a cat. The first means that roaches are not our biggest culprits this year. And the second means we have a different way of dealing with any other bug that comes in. When we moved into the house the kitchen cabinets did have a major roach infestation but thanks to a friend we found this miracle paste that got rid of them in just a few days. I did see one roach the other day but it looked like it came in through the door and wonder cat ate him. But just in case its about time to buy the paste again and put it out to be sure we keep them away.
A few weeks ago I was awaken in the night to the lovely singing of a cricket in my room. As you know crickets songs are far from lovely in the middle of the night and in your bedroom. I tried my best to go back to sleep and ignore it (my husband was sleeping like a baby). We have high ceilings and the way our room is it was just so loud I couldn't sleep. I sat up and looked around to where I thought the sound was coming from. I soon saw a large black spot on the wall very near the ceiling. My groggy mind didn't register the fact that most likely a cricket large enough to make this noise would not be just sitting on the wall. So I proceed to grab anything that wouldn't break and started to throw it at the spot. After about try number five or six (in between which the cricket would shut up a min then start back its melody) my husband rolls over and says, "what are you doing."
"Trying to kill that cricket." I say.
"How do you know its a cricket?" he asks. At this point I am just pissed that he seriously hadn't heard it and was sleeping soundly this whole time, so I throw one more item then sit down to let the bugger start up again.
While we wait my husband looks at the dark spot and says it doesn't look like a cricket. I wear glasses but my sight is not that bad and I can tell there is something up there. Im to mad to reply and I continue to wait on the sound. Finally he starts back up and my husband says, "huh, must be a cricket." He of course since we are both awake now decides to turn on the light. The dark spot after all was not a cricket but a whole in the wall. At first we mistake this whole to be where someone must have put a rod for cloths hanging, although I was confused as to why there was not another whole directly across it. From up on the bed and shoving items into the whole to kill the cricket my husband realizes it goes all the way to the outside. I want to cry at this point because how do you kill or get a cricket to go away who can safely run away and then back to the whole when he is ready to hear his legs resonate again. Thankfully hubby wasn't as exhausted with the situation as I was and thought about the bug spray. He filled the whole and thankfully we have not heard another vocalist or legist (jajaja) in our room. (Ok that prob wasn't that funny but I liked it)
Also a few weeks ago I was standing around in the front area of Soriana watching Alana play with the toys, Joslin sit in the cart and eat crackers, and waiting for my husband to get off work. I looked over at a pallet that was on the floor for mattresses that looked welcoming to sit on. I was tired so anything but the floor would have looked nice. Something made me decide not to go sit there and not even a few min later I was so happy. A huge wood spider that had a body about and inch and a half long came crawling out of the same spot I had just been looking at. He of course saw me and my fear and walked right over to where I was and stood under my cart. I like to kill things that scare me but when they are that big I dont like to use any body part that will fill it like my foot. So I start trying to run over it with the cart. I was not successful and I'm sure anyone who saw me thought I was nutz. Eventually he ran back under his pallet, it was like he came out just to let me know that was his spot and I shouldn't have been looking at it like I wanted to use it.
Today was much worse than that though. My one year old is fascinated by bugs. She will point and squat for a better look and shout "bu.. bu.. bu" and so on until she decided it would be a good idea to step on it and see what happens. This was really cute until she tried to do it to a bee. I quickly explained to her that bees could hurt you. Now when she sees a bug she will say, "bee?" and look at me if I say no then she will go on with the other ritual. Any time she says either my four year old also runs over to make sure if its harmful and then goes to get the cat. The four year old hates bugs. Today while I was cleaning I hear Joslin say, "bee?" and the four year old says, "no its a dead fly." and she proceeds to get some tissue and throw it away. I thank her and go about my cleaning. Then I hear Joslin (the one year old) practically screaming "Bee?!?!?!?!" and Alana scream as if shes going to die. "dont touch it its a spider." I turn fairly slowly because just last night Alana was in tears in the bathroom over a spider that couldn't have eaten a fly if it wanted to. Then I about puck and scream "Joslin come here." This thing was no wood spider, or maybe it was but not one I have seen before. Im pretty sure it was a small tarantula from what I have seen in pictures. Ok shivers are going through me again. For a tarantula it was small I guess but the body alone was about an inch long and very fat with fat fuzzy legs. I look for Ke Ke and realize that she is the one that ran the thing into the house. Shes at the door trying to get in. Ke ke is no more than 5 months old and although I have seen her eat many bugs I wondered if this one was to big and dangerous for her. So I threw a shoe at the spider and wounded it. I then let ke ke in and was surprised to see her, nose on the floor, go the direct way the spider had (she looked like a blood hound). This has been very interesting to me because any cat I had before seemed to be afraid of bugs or just liked to play with them. I'm so glad that ke ke finds them to be a good part of her diet. She gobbled it up and I wanted to puke but let her while I had to hold Jolsin back. She wanted to see what Ke ke was doing to the bee. Then I noticed ke ke kept biting at her paw and I got worried. What if the spider bit her or something. I make her let me check out the paw and there is a horn nosed black beetle stuck to it. So she was chasing this spider with a beetle stuck to her paw. I pull it off and she proceeds to try and eat it. Some how this little guy managed to evade her and get back out to the patio. I was fine with that because I was sure ke ke would win out later. I'm still getting willies about the large spider but I am glad the way Joslin asked before she touched and that she listened when I told her to get away from it. Also whoo hoo for having a bug eating cat. Shes an inside/outside(closed patio) cat so I'm hoping she will keep us safe from the biggies as she gets bigger. I still dont know she may have been able to track and tackle this spider with out my help but I didn't want it running around in my house.
That is it for my bug stories for now, things like these come with the territory around here.
A few weeks ago I was awaken in the night to the lovely singing of a cricket in my room. As you know crickets songs are far from lovely in the middle of the night and in your bedroom. I tried my best to go back to sleep and ignore it (my husband was sleeping like a baby). We have high ceilings and the way our room is it was just so loud I couldn't sleep. I sat up and looked around to where I thought the sound was coming from. I soon saw a large black spot on the wall very near the ceiling. My groggy mind didn't register the fact that most likely a cricket large enough to make this noise would not be just sitting on the wall. So I proceed to grab anything that wouldn't break and started to throw it at the spot. After about try number five or six (in between which the cricket would shut up a min then start back its melody) my husband rolls over and says, "what are you doing."
"Trying to kill that cricket." I say.
"How do you know its a cricket?" he asks. At this point I am just pissed that he seriously hadn't heard it and was sleeping soundly this whole time, so I throw one more item then sit down to let the bugger start up again.
While we wait my husband looks at the dark spot and says it doesn't look like a cricket. I wear glasses but my sight is not that bad and I can tell there is something up there. Im to mad to reply and I continue to wait on the sound. Finally he starts back up and my husband says, "huh, must be a cricket." He of course since we are both awake now decides to turn on the light. The dark spot after all was not a cricket but a whole in the wall. At first we mistake this whole to be where someone must have put a rod for cloths hanging, although I was confused as to why there was not another whole directly across it. From up on the bed and shoving items into the whole to kill the cricket my husband realizes it goes all the way to the outside. I want to cry at this point because how do you kill or get a cricket to go away who can safely run away and then back to the whole when he is ready to hear his legs resonate again. Thankfully hubby wasn't as exhausted with the situation as I was and thought about the bug spray. He filled the whole and thankfully we have not heard another vocalist or legist (jajaja) in our room. (Ok that prob wasn't that funny but I liked it)
Also a few weeks ago I was standing around in the front area of Soriana watching Alana play with the toys, Joslin sit in the cart and eat crackers, and waiting for my husband to get off work. I looked over at a pallet that was on the floor for mattresses that looked welcoming to sit on. I was tired so anything but the floor would have looked nice. Something made me decide not to go sit there and not even a few min later I was so happy. A huge wood spider that had a body about and inch and a half long came crawling out of the same spot I had just been looking at. He of course saw me and my fear and walked right over to where I was and stood under my cart. I like to kill things that scare me but when they are that big I dont like to use any body part that will fill it like my foot. So I start trying to run over it with the cart. I was not successful and I'm sure anyone who saw me thought I was nutz. Eventually he ran back under his pallet, it was like he came out just to let me know that was his spot and I shouldn't have been looking at it like I wanted to use it.
Today was much worse than that though. My one year old is fascinated by bugs. She will point and squat for a better look and shout "bu.. bu.. bu" and so on until she decided it would be a good idea to step on it and see what happens. This was really cute until she tried to do it to a bee. I quickly explained to her that bees could hurt you. Now when she sees a bug she will say, "bee?" and look at me if I say no then she will go on with the other ritual. Any time she says either my four year old also runs over to make sure if its harmful and then goes to get the cat. The four year old hates bugs. Today while I was cleaning I hear Joslin say, "bee?" and the four year old says, "no its a dead fly." and she proceeds to get some tissue and throw it away. I thank her and go about my cleaning. Then I hear Joslin (the one year old) practically screaming "Bee?!?!?!?!" and Alana scream as if shes going to die. "dont touch it its a spider." I turn fairly slowly because just last night Alana was in tears in the bathroom over a spider that couldn't have eaten a fly if it wanted to. Then I about puck and scream "Joslin come here." This thing was no wood spider, or maybe it was but not one I have seen before. Im pretty sure it was a small tarantula from what I have seen in pictures. Ok shivers are going through me again. For a tarantula it was small I guess but the body alone was about an inch long and very fat with fat fuzzy legs. I look for Ke Ke and realize that she is the one that ran the thing into the house. Shes at the door trying to get in. Ke ke is no more than 5 months old and although I have seen her eat many bugs I wondered if this one was to big and dangerous for her. So I threw a shoe at the spider and wounded it. I then let ke ke in and was surprised to see her, nose on the floor, go the direct way the spider had (she looked like a blood hound). This has been very interesting to me because any cat I had before seemed to be afraid of bugs or just liked to play with them. I'm so glad that ke ke finds them to be a good part of her diet. She gobbled it up and I wanted to puke but let her while I had to hold Jolsin back. She wanted to see what Ke ke was doing to the bee. Then I noticed ke ke kept biting at her paw and I got worried. What if the spider bit her or something. I make her let me check out the paw and there is a horn nosed black beetle stuck to it. So she was chasing this spider with a beetle stuck to her paw. I pull it off and she proceeds to try and eat it. Some how this little guy managed to evade her and get back out to the patio. I was fine with that because I was sure ke ke would win out later. I'm still getting willies about the large spider but I am glad the way Joslin asked before she touched and that she listened when I told her to get away from it. Also whoo hoo for having a bug eating cat. Shes an inside/outside(closed patio) cat so I'm hoping she will keep us safe from the biggies as she gets bigger. I still dont know she may have been able to track and tackle this spider with out my help but I didn't want it running around in my house.
That is it for my bug stories for now, things like these come with the territory around here.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Christmas Day and weekend
When I was young Christmas morning was always full of presents, candy filled stockings, laughing, screaming, camera flashes from mom and dad putting together all our new stuff. Being the second to youngest of six kids one of my favorite things Christmas morning was my stocking. My mom had us all take turns opening our gifts but stockings were free reign. I enjoyed my little bit of control I got with it. Last year we tried this approach with Alana and after getting her stocking she didn't even want to open her gifts. Seriously Issac and I opened her presents for her. This year we decided we would just make her and Joslin take turns but no stocking till after presents. She was so busy playing with the first 2 items that were opened that she didn't want the rest. I actually had to bribe her with the stocking to get her to open some more of her gifts and even then I had to help her. Abuela Tina (mi suegra) stayed the night with us Christmas Eve so she helped the baby open all her gifts. And somewhere between all that we managed to open our own gifts also. This was all finished before nine am. Oh I didn't mention that early in the morning as I was giving the baby her bottle I spotted a roach on my mother in laws pillow. I was mortified and told her it was there. She calmly flicked it off and killed it. I apologized and she laughed at me and said, "you should see the ones in Monclova they are this big." and she held her fingers an inch apart. Geess nothing like her not freaking out to make me feel better. But seriously Yuck Yuck Yuck.
Then we packed up the car and headed to Tuxpan which is only a three hour drive from where we live. I was again reminded that having Issac in my daily life is so important. I will never be thankful for our two years of life apart but I do know it has made me so much more grateful for him. He and his mom and I worked as a team and I don't think we forgot anything. Issacs sister lives in Tuxpan and in the year and a half I have been here we have never visited her. I was very excited to get to see some more of Mexico and I was most definitely not disappointed. I'm sad to say that I have now lost all my pictures from the trip but I am holding them in my heart. I love the mountains and to actually be driving in them was so great. We of course saw the typical random cow on the side of a busy street, and the people haling items you would swear were much to heavy for there carts. But aside from all that we saw the splendor and imagination of our God. He really is so amazing and nothing can remind you of this as much as nature. We actually took the Cuotas which are the toll roads and I was afraid we wouldn't see as much nature but boy was I wrong. To all sides of us where tall rippled mountains. At times they looked like a blanket you could curl up in. Everything was so green and fresh and I just felt like I could reach out and touch each mountain. Thats the funny thing about mountains they are deceiving like that, you always feel so close to them but it takes hours to actually drive up close to them. Issacs mother had warned us that there would be part of the drive that we wouldn't like. She was talking about the stretch of desert which we actually loved. For the first time in my life I saw a true glimmer on the horizon that looked like an oasis. Mind you I wasn't hot and dehydrated so I knew what it was but how cool to see it. I read a lot and flashes of all the stories I had read that were in deserts and mountains came flashing back to me. How you can look for miles and miles and see nothing absolutely nothing except far in the distance the mountain that is you destination. I did get to see one of the famous huge aunt hills. I so didn't believe my husband at first when he said that's what it was. It would have come up to your knees!!!! The whole way there we had the volcanoes in view. There are two but one is so tall that it has snow on it and no smoke. The slightly smaller one was smoking the whole time we were there. The view was truly beautiful and has inspired me to try to paint it. I'm getting all excited again just thinking about it, and could go on and on about it but your my readers sake I will leave that as is.
We stopped at the rest area before getting off the toll road because knew it would be our last chance for a fairly clean tinkle with the hopes of toilet paper (we did have our own in case). Getting into Tuxpan we were privileged enough to have to wait for a heard of cows to cross the street without any one to push them a long. I don't understand how the owners of these free roaming animals are not afraid for their safety.
Tuxpan has a great statue of an Indian as you drive into town and I so wanted to show you but maybe next time.Finally we arrived at his sisters house. We were greeted with hugs and kisses and Alana was so excited to see her cousin. He is two years older than her and she drives him batty but they are so cute playing together. That afternoon Issac and I left the girls with the family and took a walk alone. It was so nice we never get to do that kind of thing. We happened upon these people who were dressed in strange costumes and doing an Indian style dance in front of a little house type thing that had a baby in a manger. We decided to take a closer look because we assumed it a Catholic thing due to the baby Jesus. They had sticks in there hand and at one point this kid jumped in on their dance and one of the older dancers bonked him on the head. After watching close up for a min or so we got an eerie feeling and headed back home. On our way home we saw them round a corner and they were dancing up the street we were taking to get back. We rushed so we could get Alana outside to see them. His sister then explained to us that the town of Tuxpan was originally a canable town. When the Spaniards come they not only killed them but ate them. She said these people state that they practice the religion but don't eat humans and instead of idols they worship baby Jesus. Sounds like they have Jesus a little confused. As most of you know every town in Meixco has a certain meal that they are "famous" for. Well in this town it is a soup that was originally made out of human flesh, but now they use chicken. That is just weird and gross and no we didn't try any.
The next day we headed to the beach and for the life of me I cant remember the name of the town. Ill ask my husband later and post it in a comment. This was another beautiful drive but I also get motion sickness very easy so I wasn't feeling to hot upon arrival. I wasn't really sure what to expect because they kept saying we were going to the beach but when they showed me pictures it was a pool. Then when we got there and said we were hungry they said it was a restaurant that we were going to. By now I was pretty confused. This place was so cool and there were others exactly like it all up and down the strip. Basically you walk in the front of this open air restaurant and it had a pool for the kids with slides included and if you just walk strait through and out the back there is the beach. So you have the comfort of the table and chairs and the safety of the pool and the view of the ocean. What a great idea. The sand on the beach was very dark but Im not huge on sand no matter the color so to me it was as pretty as any other beach. I love the sound of the waves and grabbing stones and shells as the waves recede is fun. Issac of course had to go as far out as he could into the ocean and had to be called back in by the life guard. It really wasn't that warm but Mexicans are crazy so the beach and water was pretty full. The food was marvelous and was seafood of course. Issac got a grilled fish, it was the whole fish simply cut in half and slapped onto the grill. It was a little over a foot long. My meal was the same old same old cocktail because Issac was gone when it was time to order and his mom and sister were not to patient about helping me pick something. But I got to sample Issacs and my brother in laws. He had marlin with a bar-b-q sauce and shrimp and octopus under it. Yummmmm his was the best.
The last day of our stay there we got to out to where my brother in law works. He does fishery and they actually lived out on the fish farm for seven years. They only recently moved into Tuxpan. It was actually interesting to see the huge fish tanks and to hear how they keep them cleaned out. Alana of course loved seeing the fish and had fun running all over with her big cousin. He obviously loved being there. There is a lot of land and lots of stuff to get into. We got to knock pecans off a tree and eat them and go next door to see some cows. This day was a blast and a great ending to the trip. We headed home after eating and once back in our apartment decided it was the perfect time period for a trip.
I look forward to going back and will have pictures the next time. Thanks for reading.
Then we packed up the car and headed to Tuxpan which is only a three hour drive from where we live. I was again reminded that having Issac in my daily life is so important. I will never be thankful for our two years of life apart but I do know it has made me so much more grateful for him. He and his mom and I worked as a team and I don't think we forgot anything. Issacs sister lives in Tuxpan and in the year and a half I have been here we have never visited her. I was very excited to get to see some more of Mexico and I was most definitely not disappointed. I'm sad to say that I have now lost all my pictures from the trip but I am holding them in my heart. I love the mountains and to actually be driving in them was so great. We of course saw the typical random cow on the side of a busy street, and the people haling items you would swear were much to heavy for there carts. But aside from all that we saw the splendor and imagination of our God. He really is so amazing and nothing can remind you of this as much as nature. We actually took the Cuotas which are the toll roads and I was afraid we wouldn't see as much nature but boy was I wrong. To all sides of us where tall rippled mountains. At times they looked like a blanket you could curl up in. Everything was so green and fresh and I just felt like I could reach out and touch each mountain. Thats the funny thing about mountains they are deceiving like that, you always feel so close to them but it takes hours to actually drive up close to them. Issacs mother had warned us that there would be part of the drive that we wouldn't like. She was talking about the stretch of desert which we actually loved. For the first time in my life I saw a true glimmer on the horizon that looked like an oasis. Mind you I wasn't hot and dehydrated so I knew what it was but how cool to see it. I read a lot and flashes of all the stories I had read that were in deserts and mountains came flashing back to me. How you can look for miles and miles and see nothing absolutely nothing except far in the distance the mountain that is you destination. I did get to see one of the famous huge aunt hills. I so didn't believe my husband at first when he said that's what it was. It would have come up to your knees!!!! The whole way there we had the volcanoes in view. There are two but one is so tall that it has snow on it and no smoke. The slightly smaller one was smoking the whole time we were there. The view was truly beautiful and has inspired me to try to paint it. I'm getting all excited again just thinking about it, and could go on and on about it but your my readers sake I will leave that as is.
We stopped at the rest area before getting off the toll road because knew it would be our last chance for a fairly clean tinkle with the hopes of toilet paper (we did have our own in case). Getting into Tuxpan we were privileged enough to have to wait for a heard of cows to cross the street without any one to push them a long. I don't understand how the owners of these free roaming animals are not afraid for their safety.
Tuxpan has a great statue of an Indian as you drive into town and I so wanted to show you but maybe next time.Finally we arrived at his sisters house. We were greeted with hugs and kisses and Alana was so excited to see her cousin. He is two years older than her and she drives him batty but they are so cute playing together. That afternoon Issac and I left the girls with the family and took a walk alone. It was so nice we never get to do that kind of thing. We happened upon these people who were dressed in strange costumes and doing an Indian style dance in front of a little house type thing that had a baby in a manger. We decided to take a closer look because we assumed it a Catholic thing due to the baby Jesus. They had sticks in there hand and at one point this kid jumped in on their dance and one of the older dancers bonked him on the head. After watching close up for a min or so we got an eerie feeling and headed back home. On our way home we saw them round a corner and they were dancing up the street we were taking to get back. We rushed so we could get Alana outside to see them. His sister then explained to us that the town of Tuxpan was originally a canable town. When the Spaniards come they not only killed them but ate them. She said these people state that they practice the religion but don't eat humans and instead of idols they worship baby Jesus. Sounds like they have Jesus a little confused. As most of you know every town in Meixco has a certain meal that they are "famous" for. Well in this town it is a soup that was originally made out of human flesh, but now they use chicken. That is just weird and gross and no we didn't try any.
The next day we headed to the beach and for the life of me I cant remember the name of the town. Ill ask my husband later and post it in a comment. This was another beautiful drive but I also get motion sickness very easy so I wasn't feeling to hot upon arrival. I wasn't really sure what to expect because they kept saying we were going to the beach but when they showed me pictures it was a pool. Then when we got there and said we were hungry they said it was a restaurant that we were going to. By now I was pretty confused. This place was so cool and there were others exactly like it all up and down the strip. Basically you walk in the front of this open air restaurant and it had a pool for the kids with slides included and if you just walk strait through and out the back there is the beach. So you have the comfort of the table and chairs and the safety of the pool and the view of the ocean. What a great idea. The sand on the beach was very dark but Im not huge on sand no matter the color so to me it was as pretty as any other beach. I love the sound of the waves and grabbing stones and shells as the waves recede is fun. Issac of course had to go as far out as he could into the ocean and had to be called back in by the life guard. It really wasn't that warm but Mexicans are crazy so the beach and water was pretty full. The food was marvelous and was seafood of course. Issac got a grilled fish, it was the whole fish simply cut in half and slapped onto the grill. It was a little over a foot long. My meal was the same old same old cocktail because Issac was gone when it was time to order and his mom and sister were not to patient about helping me pick something. But I got to sample Issacs and my brother in laws. He had marlin with a bar-b-q sauce and shrimp and octopus under it. Yummmmm his was the best.
The last day of our stay there we got to out to where my brother in law works. He does fishery and they actually lived out on the fish farm for seven years. They only recently moved into Tuxpan. It was actually interesting to see the huge fish tanks and to hear how they keep them cleaned out. Alana of course loved seeing the fish and had fun running all over with her big cousin. He obviously loved being there. There is a lot of land and lots of stuff to get into. We got to knock pecans off a tree and eat them and go next door to see some cows. This day was a blast and a great ending to the trip. We headed home after eating and once back in our apartment decided it was the perfect time period for a trip.
I look forward to going back and will have pictures the next time. Thanks for reading.
Monday, December 21, 2009
possiblilities
A job, a new town, dead bugs, relearning typing and raised rent is a run down of this blog.
First off apparently me telling the landlord that I didn't think we would be able to pay the raised rent and that her husband needed to talk to my husband did the trick. He still isn't back from the States so my hubby hasn't had a chance to talk to him. But when she came to pick up this months rent she told him they decided they were not raising it. So way to go me. :)
The job and the new town are all in the same. I may have mentioned in a previous post how I had a phone interview for a job. This job would be in San Luis, Potosi and I would be teaching Mexican nurses how to pass the NCLEX (or state board test). This is perfect for me. I love nursing and I love to teach. Most likely I will also work some hours at the IMSS because apparently this program works closely with them. Also these nurses will have just come from a fairly strenuous Medical English course so my class is to be in English. I'm sure from time to time I will need to speak in Spanish to help them to understand more clearly. This program has been started in 4 other locations in Mexico all of which were on the coast or near the boarder for the States. The one I will be working for is a trial because they are unsure if it will work well in central Mexico. I received an e-mail the other day that said that I was for sure the candidate for the job. I'm sure all contracts and such will end up waiting till after the beginning of the year. But my husband is already asking about if he can transfer and stay with the store. He doesn't really like his job but it has good benefits and he has almost 2 years in there and doesn't want to loose that. Hopefully when I'm also working he can eventually go part time and get some schooling so he can do what he wants to.
This brings me to the typing thing. We decided to get a PC finally, so far we have been using a laptop. We bought that laptop in 96 when my husband got deported so we could chat via web cam and he could use it anywhere including cafes. That poor thing has been used like a PC for almost 4 years now. Plus we figure I will be needing a separate computer with the new job. Of course we bought it here and therefore it is a Spanish keyboard. Apparently you can put it into English mode but I figure its a good lesson for me. Its a little frustrating and I cant seem to find some of the punctuation keys, thankfully spell check catches most of those words. Although I just noticed that cant is not underlined. Well I will have to ask Issac about that when he gets home.
And lastly the bugs, oh yes the never ending war against la cucarachas. We may have found our solution and it had been suggested a long time ago. Its borax powder, now that's not what it was called where I got it but its the same thing. We sprayed about a week ago and only saw dead bugs for a few days. yesterday and today we have seen some live ones so I sprayed again today. This stuff is suppose to be safe for my girls but to be safe I am only spraying places out of reach. Its the first thing that we have tried that later we have actually found dead bugs. And actually any live ones we have found are walking funny or out in broad daylight which is odd so I'm thinking they are a little doped up. So if any of you want to try it just go to your closest pet store (they are everywhere here) and ask for the powder to kill cucarachas. That is what I did and they knew just what I was looking for. Its a powder which in my case we added to water in a spray bottle and sprayed everywhere. When it dries you will see the dust and be able to avoid it pretty well.
So that was pretty long but a good update on life here in Tepa for the Hernandez clan. I'm nervous about our up coming move and the new job but I know God is with us and will carry us safely to where we need to be.
First off apparently me telling the landlord that I didn't think we would be able to pay the raised rent and that her husband needed to talk to my husband did the trick. He still isn't back from the States so my hubby hasn't had a chance to talk to him. But when she came to pick up this months rent she told him they decided they were not raising it. So way to go me. :)
The job and the new town are all in the same. I may have mentioned in a previous post how I had a phone interview for a job. This job would be in San Luis, Potosi and I would be teaching Mexican nurses how to pass the NCLEX (or state board test). This is perfect for me. I love nursing and I love to teach. Most likely I will also work some hours at the IMSS because apparently this program works closely with them. Also these nurses will have just come from a fairly strenuous Medical English course so my class is to be in English. I'm sure from time to time I will need to speak in Spanish to help them to understand more clearly. This program has been started in 4 other locations in Mexico all of which were on the coast or near the boarder for the States. The one I will be working for is a trial because they are unsure if it will work well in central Mexico. I received an e-mail the other day that said that I was for sure the candidate for the job. I'm sure all contracts and such will end up waiting till after the beginning of the year. But my husband is already asking about if he can transfer and stay with the store. He doesn't really like his job but it has good benefits and he has almost 2 years in there and doesn't want to loose that. Hopefully when I'm also working he can eventually go part time and get some schooling so he can do what he wants to.
This brings me to the typing thing. We decided to get a PC finally, so far we have been using a laptop. We bought that laptop in 96 when my husband got deported so we could chat via web cam and he could use it anywhere including cafes. That poor thing has been used like a PC for almost 4 years now. Plus we figure I will be needing a separate computer with the new job. Of course we bought it here and therefore it is a Spanish keyboard. Apparently you can put it into English mode but I figure its a good lesson for me. Its a little frustrating and I cant seem to find some of the punctuation keys, thankfully spell check catches most of those words. Although I just noticed that cant is not underlined. Well I will have to ask Issac about that when he gets home.
And lastly the bugs, oh yes the never ending war against la cucarachas. We may have found our solution and it had been suggested a long time ago. Its borax powder, now that's not what it was called where I got it but its the same thing. We sprayed about a week ago and only saw dead bugs for a few days. yesterday and today we have seen some live ones so I sprayed again today. This stuff is suppose to be safe for my girls but to be safe I am only spraying places out of reach. Its the first thing that we have tried that later we have actually found dead bugs. And actually any live ones we have found are walking funny or out in broad daylight which is odd so I'm thinking they are a little doped up. So if any of you want to try it just go to your closest pet store (they are everywhere here) and ask for the powder to kill cucarachas. That is what I did and they knew just what I was looking for. Its a powder which in my case we added to water in a spray bottle and sprayed everywhere. When it dries you will see the dust and be able to avoid it pretty well.
So that was pretty long but a good update on life here in Tepa for the Hernandez clan. I'm nervous about our up coming move and the new job but I know God is with us and will carry us safely to where we need to be.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Ill get by with a little help from my friends...
I'm gonna try with a little help from my friends...
So I'm doing pretty good when I'm on my own but I get a lot more accomplished with friends. First off I had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Some good friends of ours who live here in town decided to throw a Thanksgiving dinner. Really it was for me but everyone who came loved it. The wife of this couple is Mexican/American and was raised in the US and the husband is from Nicaragua but lived in the US for 20 plus years. She has a lot of family here in town who are Mexican/American and who were raised most of their lives in the US. So she set up the rule that everyone had to speak english. This didn't really last all night but it was fun to see them catch each other and make each other try to speak English in my presence. Her family really have welcomed us in as their own since meeting us about 8 months ago. I am so thankful for them and there place in my life. They also had a huge garage sale this weekend where I managed to buy about 250p worth of Christmas, Thanksgiving and Easter decorations and a few other things we liked. But I was also able to sell some stuff we bought that cant fit in our apartment anymore. I came out about 50p ahead.
Also I have posted a few times that its almost time for Alana my 3 yr old to be in school. Apparently here you have to get to the school you want early on Feb 1st or you wont get in. A friend of mine has a daughter the same age as Alana and we have play dates with them a lot. We decided it would be good if we could get them in the same class. So Sat we walked up to a school which is about 15-18 blocks away or so. This means we can walk them there if we need to. Its also a government school so its free except books and stuff. So we walk all the way there with the girls and DUHHHHH its closed on Saturdays. By then were so close to the Red Cross that I ask her if she can wait outside with the girls while I run in to see whats up with me volunteering. Well they also said I needed to come back lunes. I must have looked confused when she told me this because she proceeded to tell me that was in 2 days. lol I did know this and understand her I was just trying to remember what we had going on on Monday. But this is the part of the trip aside from the walking that made me feel like a true Mexican. We went on an almost 2 hour walking trip and didn't get accomplished what we meant to but got other things done. We stopped at the Carnaceria (think I spelled it right) and with her help I got to buy meat from there instead of the gross stuff at the grocery store. Yummm it really is better. And after seeing my excitement she said she would be more than happy to go with me on a weekly basis when I need to buy meet. Then we stopped at a fruit store where things are so much better and cheaper than at the grocery store. And I ran into a dulceria to get candy for my advent calendar. (more to come on the calendar in another post)
Tomorrow we are off to renew my FM2 in Guadalajara so that will most likely be another post. I think I'm getting the hang of things around here more and more
each day.
The only bad thing that happened this week is that we found out our rent is going up in January. This is a bunch of crap really. We moved in here in July and haven't even had a lease until this week because I need it for my FM2. When she wrote it up she put 1800p on it instead of the 1700p we have been paying. And she said "oh and your rent will be going up to 1800 in Jan." I told her I thought she should talk to my husband about this because I didn't think we could pay that. And to be honest if and when I get a job we could pay it but this is a little bitty 2 bedroom cockroach ridden apartment. We have seen whole houses for only 2000p a month. Which means we are on the look out again and will most likely be moving again. UGGGGG I hate moving.
So I'm doing pretty good when I'm on my own but I get a lot more accomplished with friends. First off I had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Some good friends of ours who live here in town decided to throw a Thanksgiving dinner. Really it was for me but everyone who came loved it. The wife of this couple is Mexican/American and was raised in the US and the husband is from Nicaragua but lived in the US for 20 plus years. She has a lot of family here in town who are Mexican/American and who were raised most of their lives in the US. So she set up the rule that everyone had to speak english. This didn't really last all night but it was fun to see them catch each other and make each other try to speak English in my presence. Her family really have welcomed us in as their own since meeting us about 8 months ago. I am so thankful for them and there place in my life. They also had a huge garage sale this weekend where I managed to buy about 250p worth of Christmas, Thanksgiving and Easter decorations and a few other things we liked. But I was also able to sell some stuff we bought that cant fit in our apartment anymore. I came out about 50p ahead.
Also I have posted a few times that its almost time for Alana my 3 yr old to be in school. Apparently here you have to get to the school you want early on Feb 1st or you wont get in. A friend of mine has a daughter the same age as Alana and we have play dates with them a lot. We decided it would be good if we could get them in the same class. So Sat we walked up to a school which is about 15-18 blocks away or so. This means we can walk them there if we need to. Its also a government school so its free except books and stuff. So we walk all the way there with the girls and DUHHHHH its closed on Saturdays. By then were so close to the Red Cross that I ask her if she can wait outside with the girls while I run in to see whats up with me volunteering. Well they also said I needed to come back lunes. I must have looked confused when she told me this because she proceeded to tell me that was in 2 days. lol I did know this and understand her I was just trying to remember what we had going on on Monday. But this is the part of the trip aside from the walking that made me feel like a true Mexican. We went on an almost 2 hour walking trip and didn't get accomplished what we meant to but got other things done. We stopped at the Carnaceria (think I spelled it right) and with her help I got to buy meat from there instead of the gross stuff at the grocery store. Yummm it really is better. And after seeing my excitement she said she would be more than happy to go with me on a weekly basis when I need to buy meet. Then we stopped at a fruit store where things are so much better and cheaper than at the grocery store. And I ran into a dulceria to get candy for my advent calendar. (more to come on the calendar in another post)
Tomorrow we are off to renew my FM2 in Guadalajara so that will most likely be another post. I think I'm getting the hang of things around here more and more
each day.
The only bad thing that happened this week is that we found out our rent is going up in January. This is a bunch of crap really. We moved in here in July and haven't even had a lease until this week because I need it for my FM2. When she wrote it up she put 1800p on it instead of the 1700p we have been paying. And she said "oh and your rent will be going up to 1800 in Jan." I told her I thought she should talk to my husband about this because I didn't think we could pay that. And to be honest if and when I get a job we could pay it but this is a little bitty 2 bedroom cockroach ridden apartment. We have seen whole houses for only 2000p a month. Which means we are on the look out again and will most likely be moving again. UGGGGG I hate moving.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Back in the swing of things
Well after getting back from my visit to see my family I got sick. My first two days back consisted of doing laundry and trying to debug the house. I asked my husband how often he moped while I was gone and he said twice. I was gone for 3 weeks. Yikes. Well then I started to feel pretty sick. Honestly I don't remember ever being that sick since I had pneumonia when I as 18. So after the third day of not being able to get off the couch Issac took a day off work to take me to the doctor. Also the baby had a cough but didn't seem as sick as me. Like most government run operations the seguro had kinda screwed up the information they had given us. You see during one of my visits alone with the baby I asked what we should do if one of us gets sick and I was told I should come in very early even at 6am if I could. When I told my husband this he said there was no way that was right. So on our last visit where we all got check ups he asked the same question. This time they told us we needed to come in at 1pm that this was when the appointments start. So the day my husband took off work we sat around until 1pm and went to the seguro. It was packed and when we told the lady why we were there she looked at us like we were nutz. She held up a stack of books in one hand and said that was all the people who got appointments and then another stack in her other hand of people who wanted to see the doctor if he got through the appointments early. She then explained to Issac that we are suppose to come in early and drop off our book to "make and appointment" And then they start seeing people at one. So third times a charm and at least we know what to do now. As far as this time around we went to the private clinic I went to when pregnant. They are efficient and not to much money. We paid 400pesos for me and the baby to get checked by a doctor, diagnosed, and given a list of medications to get. That is less than 40 usd for two people to see a doctor. Of course her list of medications were all brand names and way more expensive than the ones we ended up actually getting. Also I didn't like the cough medication she prescribed it made me feel all shaky and sick. That is the great thing about here you just go get the one you know works for you. Oh it ended up that I had Strep which was trying hard to become bronchitis and the baby had a slight ear infection which was causing drainage and a cough. I'm pleased to report that we are both done with our antibiotics and aside from a slight cough and sometimes sore throat on my part we are doing much better. I spent the girls 2 hour nap today reading up on blogs that I hadn't read much of since before my trip. Its so nice to be back to a place where I'm understood. Thank you all for posting about your lives with all the ups downs and funny happenings.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Home again, Home again, jigidy jig
Well I am back from my 3 weeks of visiting friends and family. I must say it was nice but I missed home badly while there. I also realized that most of what I was freaked out about here really wasn't to much different from there. And that a lot of the things I thought I missed so much were not all I had made them to be in my crazy little mind. Over time your mind will play tricks and make things larger than they really are. For example I thought I missed fountain soda which after tasting seemed to be missing something. Ice cream also is something that I ate a lot of while there but I realize that I have found supplements for my Ice Cream addiction it just took me some time and tasting of different ones. I come home with a renewed spirit and mind knowing that this is my life and I am prepared to live it. I also know that another visit to the States is far far in the future if ever. As much as I missed everyone I realized that everyone has a life going for themselves and not only am I adjusting to not living there so is everyone else. I was happy to know and see this. My family understands and is happy with my decisions. They are still very emotional about the whole immigration issue and with so much press its a hard place to be. Being here I finally don't have to deal with questions or rude remarks as much but they still do on an almost daily basis.
On a lighter note something I had seen on face book is that people are posting something everyday that they are thankful for. I wanted to make a list of things that I was thankful to get back to for each day of November that I have missed.
Day1) waiting on the hot water- this may sound weird but I'm thankful for the patience in everyday activities it has given me.
2)saying good night and good morning to my husband
3)seeing him play with my girls, or read to them.
4)The wonderful weather
5)being conscious of what electricity I'm using. (this was driving me batty during my visit to the states)
6)NO CARPET.... can you believe it. It was only a few posts ago that I posted how much I missed it and that I was giving in and getting rid of my rugs. But every time I turned around even if someone had just vacuumed my baby was putting a fuzzy in her mouth.
7)Our nighttime routine. My girls didn't sleep through the night the whole time we were gone. I have now gotten 3 full nights of sleep. Yeah for our own beds.
8) Little use of diaper bag and help when I do need it. Our town is very small and most of the time I can do with a diaper and a bottle in my purse, and when we do go to visit somewhere for a long time I have my husband to tick a list of before we head out the door. Twice I left with out enough bottles or diapers during my visit.
9)TORTILLAS- I literally groaned when we had fresh tortillas last night. Holy cow I missed them.
10)Hanging my cloths to dry- I realize this is now a stress reliever and a time of peace and reflection for me. That sounds odd but seriously I missed it and I felt myself unraveling as I hung and took down my loads of laundry after I got home.
11) Laid back driving. Man I was so nervous the whole time driving in the states. I was afraid Id forget to really stop at a stop sign.
12) Talking to my husband about our days. This I missed so much, we do a run down of our days almost every day even when hes off. We just talk about what we did all day.
What I love is how easy this list came out. I seriously didn't have to stop to think. Mind you I still have roaches and they were kinda having a hay day when I got home because my husband only mopped twice while I was gone and every bit of cloths he had were dirty and there was a pile of dishes. But I have already got most of them dead and will keep fighting the new ones that I know will come in daily. But I'm oddly enough ok with this. I know people in the states get them and its not because they are gross.
Our newest goal is for me to find work. Most of you know I am a nurse. So I'm looking for a clinic in an area that may cater to Americans. Our first plan is to check out the Chapala area. My husband lived there for a few years as a child. Its a nice area and I hope that my English will be so needed in a clinic that they will work with me on my broken Spanish. If any one has any ideas they will be welcome.
Oh and if you didn't figure it out from that last paragraph Canada is not going to work because the government has put a hold on hiring nurses for a year or so. And because of that the private facilities are flooded with Canadian nurses application. Luckily we were not putting to much stock in the option in the first place so no harm no foul there. Moving on to look for work here.
On a lighter note something I had seen on face book is that people are posting something everyday that they are thankful for. I wanted to make a list of things that I was thankful to get back to for each day of November that I have missed.
Day1) waiting on the hot water- this may sound weird but I'm thankful for the patience in everyday activities it has given me.
2)saying good night and good morning to my husband
3)seeing him play with my girls, or read to them.
4)The wonderful weather
5)being conscious of what electricity I'm using. (this was driving me batty during my visit to the states)
6)NO CARPET.... can you believe it. It was only a few posts ago that I posted how much I missed it and that I was giving in and getting rid of my rugs. But every time I turned around even if someone had just vacuumed my baby was putting a fuzzy in her mouth.
7)Our nighttime routine. My girls didn't sleep through the night the whole time we were gone. I have now gotten 3 full nights of sleep. Yeah for our own beds.
8) Little use of diaper bag and help when I do need it. Our town is very small and most of the time I can do with a diaper and a bottle in my purse, and when we do go to visit somewhere for a long time I have my husband to tick a list of before we head out the door. Twice I left with out enough bottles or diapers during my visit.
9)TORTILLAS- I literally groaned when we had fresh tortillas last night. Holy cow I missed them.
10)Hanging my cloths to dry- I realize this is now a stress reliever and a time of peace and reflection for me. That sounds odd but seriously I missed it and I felt myself unraveling as I hung and took down my loads of laundry after I got home.
11) Laid back driving. Man I was so nervous the whole time driving in the states. I was afraid Id forget to really stop at a stop sign.
12) Talking to my husband about our days. This I missed so much, we do a run down of our days almost every day even when hes off. We just talk about what we did all day.
What I love is how easy this list came out. I seriously didn't have to stop to think. Mind you I still have roaches and they were kinda having a hay day when I got home because my husband only mopped twice while I was gone and every bit of cloths he had were dirty and there was a pile of dishes. But I have already got most of them dead and will keep fighting the new ones that I know will come in daily. But I'm oddly enough ok with this. I know people in the states get them and its not because they are gross.
Our newest goal is for me to find work. Most of you know I am a nurse. So I'm looking for a clinic in an area that may cater to Americans. Our first plan is to check out the Chapala area. My husband lived there for a few years as a child. Its a nice area and I hope that my English will be so needed in a clinic that they will work with me on my broken Spanish. If any one has any ideas they will be welcome.
Oh and if you didn't figure it out from that last paragraph Canada is not going to work because the government has put a hold on hiring nurses for a year or so. And because of that the private facilities are flooded with Canadian nurses application. Luckily we were not putting to much stock in the option in the first place so no harm no foul there. Moving on to look for work here.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Tijerilla
This has to be the most interesting bug I have found in Mexico. During certain seasons they can be more abundant even than the hated cockroach. Although much easier to keep out of the house they still get in sometimes. For sure everything out side is covered in them. Including the cloths on the line, you have to shake all your cloths really good this time of year and you might still miss a few like I did yesterday. At the grocery stores there are always some hiding in the clothing and on the shelves this time of year. Yesterday I saw the biggest one Iv ever seen ( which inspired me to write about them). His little pincer actually looked like it might cut my skin, just maybe. For the most part these little guys cant even try to pinch your skin and though they supposedly have some venom its so little that they are harmless. They are nocturnal and actually move quite slowly during the day. But man they sure are creepy looking when they raise their little scissor butts at you. Last year I frantically searched for information on them because I was afraid they would bite us or make us sick. Neither happened and apparently wont happen. They come around twice a year it seems right before winter and right after. I suppose the weather needs to be just right for them. If anyone has any other information on them Id like that. But really they are just cool looking innocent bugs from all I can tell. This is the best picture I could find but the ones here in Tepa have little yellow strips on their backs they are kinda pretty. But man they freak me out when I see them unexpectedly.
Because I can't figure out how else to get this picture on here I placed a link that went to a picture of on. Really I should just take a picture of one as many as we see everyday.
http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:sK3WZN_JKzqTOM:http://maximinadefe.eresmas.net/tijereta.jpg
Because I can't figure out how else to get this picture on here I placed a link that went to a picture of on. Really I should just take a picture of one as many as we see everyday.
http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:sK3WZN_JKzqTOM:http://maximinadefe.eresmas.net/tijereta.jpg
Thursday, September 10, 2009
opportunistic little creeps
I realize I haven't bloged in what is a long time for me. But Iv been a little stressed out actually. Its funny because it seems like when your busy you think Oh that would be a fun thing to blog about. But then you never get the time to type it up. So honestly I cant even be sure what all Iv been doing. My English classes are weekly and I still only have one of the students. But shes here every week although shes always late. Sometimes even and hour or so, I even made the class an hour later and she still comes late. She is learning English because she wants to go to the states and I think I need to tell her soon, that in the states its considered rude to be that late for things. Other than that they are going well.
So back to the title of this post. Cockroaches...need I say more... Oh yes I do need to say more... Mexican Cockroaches or you could say Cockroaches in Mexico. They are freaking impossible. Ok so here is my little sad story. I clean with bleach, we spray for bugs, we have screens on all our windows. Well do you want to know what happened. Here I'm all excited because its been a few weeks since Iv seen even one bug in my kitchen or living room. Whoo Hooo so I'm a candidate for The Mom or Spouse of the year award right...
Big fat NO. (Wish I could make that no bigger)
My daughter kept getting little bumps on her torso. Almost like a rash but to random. Finlay it dawned on me to check for bed bugs. I mean they happen right sometimes even to people in the states. We change her sheets almost two times a day depending on how often she pees the bed but I thought what the heck better check anyway and go with my instincts. (I just typed insects instead of instincts, is there a such thing as Freudian typing errors?) Ok so I go in her room and raise her mattress. If you get squeamish don't read the next part. (no its not really that bad). I saw a momma roach and two babies. After further inspection there was a daddy and a couple other babies. They were all on the wooden frame. I flipped out. Seriously I almost threw up, and cried for at least a couple hours. Geesss was the mom award that important you may ask. Well yes to me it was even though it was only in my head. What made it worse was the night before Alana had yelled for me to come in her room and said a bug was on her leg. I did a quick look in the dark and told her to lay down and go to sleep. (I'm seriously cringing as I relay that memory) So there now you know why the award was snatched form under me. My husband takes it all in stride when he gets home we move the bed to the roof and spray the heck out of it. An I checked everything that was under the bed and nothing else had any bugs. I searched and searched trying to find out why this happened. Well apparently if they don't have enough food to eat in the normal places aka. my kitchen then they will try to find it on sleeping humans. Usually you see the nibbles around the mouth and hands but we wash her mouth and hands well every night. Also they were not actually biting her apparently but trying to eat something off her and would accidentally get the skin. The only thing I can assume is that they were going for the moisture from the urine. Yuck Yuck Yuck double yuck. Bugs on my baby in her sleep . AHHHHHHHHHH....Did I say Yuck, and how freaking sad. Ok So maybe I'm still freaking out when I think of it. Gee this was like a week ago and I'm totally not over it. So this week we are again going to take the bed out and spray spray spray in case there were any eggs. So its a catch 22 if you clean to much in the kitchen be sure to watch your beds. My husband kept telling me the same thing I told a fellow bloger, that it wasn't me it was Mexico but that's a huge pill to swallow.
So then a couple days after this I had done the dishes and left them in the drying rack on the counter. The next morning I found a mama and some babies clinging to the bottom of my drainer. That thing only sits there when there is dishes in it and hadn't been on the counter more than 10hours when I moved it. Dang they move in and have babies awfully fast. We have now added roach houses to our arsenal and put them where the girls cant get to them.
I hate these gross stupid bugs and it gave me a little satisfaction to get to kill the ones that were in Alanas bed but not enough. Sigh... my poor baby.
I actually was telling a friend ( who is Mexican) about it and she was so not mortified by it like I was. And then I knew I will always be so American. Some things I will never see as a normal thing.
So back to the title of this post. Cockroaches...need I say more... Oh yes I do need to say more... Mexican Cockroaches or you could say Cockroaches in Mexico. They are freaking impossible. Ok so here is my little sad story. I clean with bleach, we spray for bugs, we have screens on all our windows. Well do you want to know what happened. Here I'm all excited because its been a few weeks since Iv seen even one bug in my kitchen or living room. Whoo Hooo so I'm a candidate for The Mom or Spouse of the year award right...
Big fat NO. (Wish I could make that no bigger)
My daughter kept getting little bumps on her torso. Almost like a rash but to random. Finlay it dawned on me to check for bed bugs. I mean they happen right sometimes even to people in the states. We change her sheets almost two times a day depending on how often she pees the bed but I thought what the heck better check anyway and go with my instincts. (I just typed insects instead of instincts, is there a such thing as Freudian typing errors?) Ok so I go in her room and raise her mattress. If you get squeamish don't read the next part. (no its not really that bad). I saw a momma roach and two babies. After further inspection there was a daddy and a couple other babies. They were all on the wooden frame. I flipped out. Seriously I almost threw up, and cried for at least a couple hours. Geesss was the mom award that important you may ask. Well yes to me it was even though it was only in my head. What made it worse was the night before Alana had yelled for me to come in her room and said a bug was on her leg. I did a quick look in the dark and told her to lay down and go to sleep. (I'm seriously cringing as I relay that memory) So there now you know why the award was snatched form under me. My husband takes it all in stride when he gets home we move the bed to the roof and spray the heck out of it. An I checked everything that was under the bed and nothing else had any bugs. I searched and searched trying to find out why this happened. Well apparently if they don't have enough food to eat in the normal places aka. my kitchen then they will try to find it on sleeping humans. Usually you see the nibbles around the mouth and hands but we wash her mouth and hands well every night. Also they were not actually biting her apparently but trying to eat something off her and would accidentally get the skin. The only thing I can assume is that they were going for the moisture from the urine. Yuck Yuck Yuck double yuck. Bugs on my baby in her sleep . AHHHHHHHHHH....Did I say Yuck, and how freaking sad. Ok So maybe I'm still freaking out when I think of it. Gee this was like a week ago and I'm totally not over it. So this week we are again going to take the bed out and spray spray spray in case there were any eggs. So its a catch 22 if you clean to much in the kitchen be sure to watch your beds. My husband kept telling me the same thing I told a fellow bloger, that it wasn't me it was Mexico but that's a huge pill to swallow.
So then a couple days after this I had done the dishes and left them in the drying rack on the counter. The next morning I found a mama and some babies clinging to the bottom of my drainer. That thing only sits there when there is dishes in it and hadn't been on the counter more than 10hours when I moved it. Dang they move in and have babies awfully fast. We have now added roach houses to our arsenal and put them where the girls cant get to them.
I hate these gross stupid bugs and it gave me a little satisfaction to get to kill the ones that were in Alanas bed but not enough. Sigh... my poor baby.
I actually was telling a friend ( who is Mexican) about it and she was so not mortified by it like I was. And then I knew I will always be so American. Some things I will never see as a normal thing.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
The Cricket
As best I can remember this is what it looked like. One night we heard one out in our laundry area and my husband went out and sprayed everywhere because he couldn't find it. Well the next morning I had a dazed half drugged cricket in my kitchen. Then the next day I found something that looked similar to the one above on my wall. To me it didn't look like a cricket but I could tell it was not a roach. So what was it. I expressed this to my husband and he said "what makes you think its not a cricket?" Well I said it didn't have big pointing up back legs. He then gave me that smile like, oh your so cute sometimes. (this ticks me off sometimes lol) and says "Honey not all crickets have big pointy up legs." "Really, are you sure." I say. So I look it up online and sure enough I find lots of pictures of bugs that I don't think look like crickets but that's what they say they are. Ok fine....
So now Im thinking what the heck is a cricket if it doesn't have big pointy up legs... Right? So I pulled a Bob and looked up the definition (hee hee) and here it is.
crick·et 1 (krkt)
n.
Any of various insects of the family Gryllidae, having long antennae and legs adapted for leaping. The males of many species produce a shrill chirping sound by rubbing the front wings together.
Well my bug had long antennae and I guess long legs adapted for leaping but you know I killed and disposed before I got that good of a look. Next time I think I will examine a bit longer.
Amanda
Monday, May 25, 2009
buggen out!!!!!!
Fiddledee dee, Fiddledee dee
The fly has married the bumblebee,
Will you marry me sweet bumblebee.....
I made a book of short nursery rimes for Alana. This is one of my attempts for her to be familiar with all things American. (I found it on a website full of hundreds of free printable books for kids, http://www.enchantedlearning.com/books/spanish/words/, they have books in English and Spanish)Anyway the point in bringing it up is that we keep getting bees in the house. This is totally freaking me out because neither of my girls have been stung and I don't know if they are allergic. I seriously need to get an epi pin in the house then I will feel much better about this. The other day I saw one and a huge fly was right behind it. The fly was trying to mate it I think. I'm not sure but it was right on top of the bee and the bee didn't seem to happy about it. They flew around the house for a bit then out the window they went. Then I wonder is this where this nursery rime came from.
So we found lavender coils for the mosquitoes that cost the same as the green ones. They still stink but not as bad. We had been using them outside of each bedroom door and kitchen window for about a week. They work great. One night we forgot and didnt get eaten a live. So we got lazy and didnt put the coil outside the bedroom doors the next night. Bad idea.....
I got four bites that night, one of which I'm wondering if its not a mosquito. And it hurt when I got bit, although so did one of the others that I do think is a mosquito. But the first one is on the inside of my leg and got the size of a 10p coin, and stayed big for like a week. The others didn't get so large or stick around as long. Its still pretty red and I'm keeping a close eye on it. So now coils are being used every night regardless. We also have managed to get a mosquito net type of thing over both girls beds. Although Alana keeps knocking hers down, I'M still working on making it permanent with out it being to permanent. Also we bought some plastic screen from the hardware store. This was no easy task. The the windows on the doors in both bedrooms don't open. So we have to screen the whole door. We bought Velcro and silicone glue to put the screen on the doors. This way we can take it down if we need to. For the laundry area we are just going to use the silicone. I hope it works, I haven't gotten that far yet. The baby got a couple bites on her face and the next day my husband also bought me some bug spray that doesn't stink, it smells like lemons. I have been putting it on me and my 2 year old every day and on the baby's cloths before putting them on her.
We have to get rid of our scorpion eater (cat) because she is starting to spray and my husband refuses to pay to get her fixed. I do agree with him partially but I wanted a scorpion eater. Ill be dropping the cat off Monday at his aunts house in the country. Maybe while were out there we can find a male and exchange it.
Well I suppose that's all for the bug situation at them moment.
The fly has married the bumblebee,
Will you marry me sweet bumblebee.....
I made a book of short nursery rimes for Alana. This is one of my attempts for her to be familiar with all things American. (I found it on a website full of hundreds of free printable books for kids, http://www.enchantedlearning.com/books/spanish/words/, they have books in English and Spanish)Anyway the point in bringing it up is that we keep getting bees in the house. This is totally freaking me out because neither of my girls have been stung and I don't know if they are allergic. I seriously need to get an epi pin in the house then I will feel much better about this. The other day I saw one and a huge fly was right behind it. The fly was trying to mate it I think. I'm not sure but it was right on top of the bee and the bee didn't seem to happy about it. They flew around the house for a bit then out the window they went. Then I wonder is this where this nursery rime came from.
So we found lavender coils for the mosquitoes that cost the same as the green ones. They still stink but not as bad. We had been using them outside of each bedroom door and kitchen window for about a week. They work great. One night we forgot and didnt get eaten a live. So we got lazy and didnt put the coil outside the bedroom doors the next night. Bad idea.....
I got four bites that night, one of which I'm wondering if its not a mosquito. And it hurt when I got bit, although so did one of the others that I do think is a mosquito. But the first one is on the inside of my leg and got the size of a 10p coin, and stayed big for like a week. The others didn't get so large or stick around as long. Its still pretty red and I'm keeping a close eye on it. So now coils are being used every night regardless. We also have managed to get a mosquito net type of thing over both girls beds. Although Alana keeps knocking hers down, I'M still working on making it permanent with out it being to permanent. Also we bought some plastic screen from the hardware store. This was no easy task. The the windows on the doors in both bedrooms don't open. So we have to screen the whole door. We bought Velcro and silicone glue to put the screen on the doors. This way we can take it down if we need to. For the laundry area we are just going to use the silicone. I hope it works, I haven't gotten that far yet. The baby got a couple bites on her face and the next day my husband also bought me some bug spray that doesn't stink, it smells like lemons. I have been putting it on me and my 2 year old every day and on the baby's cloths before putting them on her.
We have to get rid of our scorpion eater (cat) because she is starting to spray and my husband refuses to pay to get her fixed. I do agree with him partially but I wanted a scorpion eater. Ill be dropping the cat off Monday at his aunts house in the country. Maybe while were out there we can find a male and exchange it.
Well I suppose that's all for the bug situation at them moment.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)