What's new with us!

Ok, I know it has been a REALLY long time since I posted anything. I've been a little bit overwhelmed with stuff.

So here's a quick update. We are all healthy and fine - no we didn't die from the so-called deadly Swine flu - we had it - IT WAS ONLY A FLU!! We're pretty sure we got sick from it, but no hospitalization or medication necessary for myself and the kids, Bill took antibiotics. The hype is ridiculous. It was no different than any other flu.... Ok, so enough about that rant.


Bill returned to Canada to sell more houses and work at the end of May, and myself and the boys have been living in Paso ever since. We are definitely not the typical family. Is it difficult to live in Mexico without my husband? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Bill and I have often been apart for weeks, and months throughout our courtship and marriage, so for us it is somewhat normal. This particular time will be the longest, and the furthest apart. It sucks taking care of all the business matters, family matters, and household matters myself - but lots of single mothers do that, so what do I have to complain about? Thankfully, I've been blessed with talents and abilities that make it possible....

As of July, we have been here for one year. My Spanish still isn't as good as I would like it to be. I want to take a course in Veracruz later this fall to fill in some of the gaps and concentrate my efforts. There is a great Spanish Immersion school that customizes their approach to each client, first sending you out into the community to test your skills ( or lack thereof), then based on what they find, they develop a plan to teach you what you are specifically missing. Even if you don't know anything. Don't get me wrong, I can function very well, I understand most of what is going on around me and I learn more all the time. Phone calls are far more difficult than personal conversations - it is surprising how much I interpret through facial expressions, hand gestures, etc. The boys however are not learning as quickly as I am, they just don't have to use it as much.

So what's our life like? We spend a great deal of time at the beach, I work on various things, like maintaining the property, cleaning, etc. while the boys play. We buy our veggies and fruits from a local market in the neighboring town of San Isidro on Mondays and Fridays. We go into Cardel ( or nearest small city) to get groceries or run errands for the company about once a week. I home school the boys for a few hours a day, and the rest of the time I check emails or do housework. Sundays we go to church. That's it. Exciting huh! Actually, every day holds some kind of new adventure. Chasing crabs or Toads at the beach, digging for burried treasure, or swimming in the ocean are the kids' favorites. For me, I have more to do than I would like, but I always have been busy. I have to stop and remind myself of where I live and stop to look at the beautiful ocean every once in a while. Thankfully, the kids help me to do that when they demand to go swimming.

What do I miss? Chinese take-out, pickles, ichiban noodles and rootbeer. Quite a combination, I know, but these are the things that are really hard to find here. The boys say they miss snow and building snowmen - I think they forgot that the number of days where that was possible were few either due to the cold or the type of snow. Most importantly we all miss our friends. There is a lot to keep us busy enough that we don't dwell on it, but the boys still think that we could go back to our old house and all their friends will still be there. For sure they won't be able to go to our old house - we sold it -and I don't know if all their friends will still be there or not. I miss getting together with my friends for a playdate and letting our kids play while we visit. I have great friends in Canada, who I miss a great deal. Each of them edified and uplifted me. I do have some friends here, but hmmm how do I explain..... Ok, having a conversation in Spanish takes a lot of concentration on my part, and most of the time, I still don't have the vocabulary to truly express myself the way I can in English. So even though I may understand most of what my friend is saying, it takes a lot of work to understand her, then formulate an answer to it, which is nowhere near what I would really like to say - if that makes any sense. I think I understand the mind of a two or three year old. Visiting with a friend certainly isn't a relaxing activity like it was.

Anyway - that's our life here in a nutshell....