Sunday, March 30, 2014

Our school

Here are a couple pictures of our little school room. It's pretty bare, but it works for us.


This is where we learn and whine and cry and learn and say "I can't" and "it's too hard" and learn and have fun and learn. 

Pyramids

We went with my parents about an hour out of town to the pyramids. It was super fun and we had a blast. It was a beautiful semi-cloudy day and windy. The weather was perfect for climbing big pyramids. My Dad, Ryan, Lauryn, Kyla & Brooklyn all climbed this giant pyramid. I stayed with my Mom and Abbie at the bottom. My Dad and the two older girls and I climbed a smaller one.

Such a neat place.

Saturday, March 22, 2014

Fabric store!

I did it! I found a fabric store within 15 minutes of my house that sells high quality fabric. It is a small room in a ladies house, so we call it the fabric house. Which is appropriate because the name of her little shop is "The Quilt House". Anyway, she has a few of the latest and greatest collections. I am giddy!
I walked in and looked at all the fabric lines she had and said, "I am in Mexico, I need to grab several of your fat quarters of totally Mexican fabric for a quilt I am doing." So, this is what we came up with.
And, Lauryn is doing all of the sewing. She is loving it.

Escorpion

This little guy was here to have breakfast with us in our breakfast nook the other morning.
I put a cup over him, waited for our maid to get here and asked her what to do. She grabbed a broom, whacked the heck out of it with the wooden part that holds the bristles, and scooped it up with the dustpan and took it to the garbage.
Yay for maids! Now I know what to do.... I need to find a baseball bat.

Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Scenes

Here are a few pictures of places we have been to and things around Mexico City.

Basket shop

We went on a "field trip" with a big group of ladies from the ward a couple weeks ago to a darling basket shop that is about 45 minutes away.
The girls had fun, I wish I would have taken more pictures. We are planning to go back in a couple weeks.
We watched the owner show us how they make baskets. It takes a LONG time. We learned that the baskets are made from the palm of palm trees. Who knew? Ok, probably many of you, but I didn't.
 
Brooklyn was NOT going to smile in this picture. Not for anything! 

Abbie's 2nd birthday!

We celebrated Abbie's 2nd birthday a few days back. How cute are these candles.
We found a cute baby bassinet basket at the basket store we went to. She loves it.
The girls made her an apron, a baby backpack carrier and a purse.

Blue door

My dear friend and neighbor told me she wanted to paint her front door "robins egg blue". Such a cute idea! I sent her this picture...
Hopefully it gives her an idea of what a house with a blue door looks like.
 

She said it is TOTALLY the look she was going for! 

A walk to the market

The girls wanted to see how heavy the gate was that the security guards lift. It's actually not that heavy!
We walk past a little park (no playground, bleh!) But the girls love to look at the little flowers and the giant cactus.

There is a little traveling market right by our house, only on Mondays. We went and bought fruit and bubbles and a yo-yo. We also saw a booth at the market where they were chopping up chickens. Luckily they were dead, but they were whole. My girls were grossed out. It was a fun adventure.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE Brooklyn's face in this picture. She was SO impressed with herself for being so strong and able to lift that gate! 
Abbie hates being in the stroller for pictures, and poor Brooklyn's hair. It was not staying in that day. 

A city of concrete

We went on a drive the other day, and came upon this scene. This is beautiful yet amazing. This is how there are so many millions of people in this city.

Sunday, March 16, 2014

Over a month!

Well, as I suspected, I would I start this blog and then the idea of posting to it is a chore. 

We have been here a month. I love it here! It is a great place. All of the garbage you read online and hear on the news. It is probably true, about some parts of Mexico. But certainly not where I am living. 

We live about 5 driving minutes away from the main shopping area. For those in Utah, my house is about five minutes from the District as well as Jordan Landing in South Jordan. Well, combine all of those plus a couple GIANT malls and wah-lah. We live in a safe neighborhood, with a security guard and 12 foot walls around our house. 

My girls are having a ball here. They miss being able to just play with friends at any time. Homeschooling has it's perks. Being able to take them places during the day. We get to go see things and do things we would not be able to do if they were in school. They are loving homeschool. However, they do miss the social part of a regular school. I really want to get them involved in dance or something, but they aren't really asking for it and I am not going to push the issue. Plus, it is dang expensive! 

Speaking of expensive ... Who would have thought Mexico is expensive, right?  Things are SO expensive here.  Milk is $ 4 gallon, shoes ... oh my gosh! Shoes, just regular $ 18 slip-on shoes from Kohls are at least $ 50. We had to buy some shoes for Kyla, the kids' feet grew in the month we have been here.  Just $ 5 Walmart croc-type shoes .... $ 13! RI-DIC -U-LOUS! Clothes are the same. electronics, paper, pencils, you name it ... it is way more than the States. Although, we did notice they have an H&M here. Which I am not a huge fan of that store. It just isn't totally my style. But here, it is the SAME PRICE as the States. So, I think it is going to be my style for 18 months.... err.. 15 months. We went there yesterday and bought a couple skirts for me. Mexico is doing wonders for my weight loss. You have a goal to meet when it comes to losing a few lbs, come here! 

Okay, this is ticking me off ... the stupid blogger is changing my words as I type. Every time it auto-saves, it changes a bunch of words, and adding words and changing punctuation. Sorry. Does anyone know of a fix for that?

Well, I am missing my family and friends. Oh my gosh, I miss them a ton. I was hoping for a wee-bit more contact from them (hint hint), but I guess their lives go on. I miss carpet. Oh, to be able to lay on carpet and roll around with my kids on the carpet. I miss my good ol' American ice cream. It just doesn't taste the same here. I miss my disposal. The ability to just shove food down the drain, how nice would that be. I miss my robe. Why in the world I didn't pack that... I am an idiot. I miss Kohls and Amazon. Although, Ryan LOVES that they aren't available here. No worries, I am still doing a wee-bit of shopping and sending it to my parents to bring down. A girl HAS to shop.  

I am NOT a huge fan of fruit. Partly due to texture, some of it is because I feel like I need a little sugar pick-me-up and so I go for the fruit before the chocolate, and it just doesn't give me that chocolate type of sugar I need. So, hence the weight loss in Mexico. They have some of my favorite chocolate here, but who wants to pay double the price?!?! Not I! So, I am learning to like fruit. Sorta. Ryan and I have a theory. You know how a lot of the fruit in the US comes from Mexico. Well, our theory is that they send all of the beautiful perfect fruit to the US and what's left is here in Mexico. They have AMAZING fruit here, but when you are used to your apples being waxed and shiny and your strawberries being PERFECT, it doesn't seem like the standard is quite the same here. But hey... we are enjoying it. 

We really are having a blast and we have met so many amazing people in the ward. It is a GREAT ward. I look forward to making life-long friends for me as well as my kids. 

I am SO grateful Ryan has the blessing and opportunity to work on the temple. How amazing to have a hand in a beautiful house of the Lord, that blesses SO many lives here in Mexico. I am blessed, I truly am! 

Okay, novel needs to be done. Blogger is messing with my words and making me look dumb. 

Adios Amigos!