Eat, Sleep, Bathe

This isn’t my first rodeo. We’ve moved enough times, I know the formula for a smoother transition. If we have the ability to sleep comfortably, eat breakfast at a table and take a shower, everything else can be worked out. That’s the trifecta.

I am happy to report we exceeded expectations for our first full day in our new casa. Yesterday we were able to get mattresses delivered, pick up the sheets and towels that had been washed right out of the package, get some groceries, meet up with the internet guy (we only got 10 Mbps of the 20 Mbps we ordered… more on that in another post) and we ate dinner at our future homeschool table thanks to Aunt Kim and her famous Spaghetti Pie. We all slept in our beds and woke up to coffee and food for breakfast. Es bueno. Super bueno. We even had a few places to rest and use our faster internet. We purchased Adirondack chairs for the patio but we have no living room furniture yet so they became the go-to for taking a break. We only bought 4, though, so it’s like a constant game of musical chairs.

But the house is not without it’s quirks. There is one, just ONE, outlet in the kitchen other than the one for the fridge. I swear I thought I was missing something, how can there be just one outlet? And that outlet is no where near a counter. And to top it off, this morning when I tried to use it with the coffee maker, that outlet does not even work! What?! So the coffee maker and the toaster have to share an outlet on the floor of the dining room. It’s just weird. We will be hiring an electrician to take care of that issue.

There was no hot water in the house this morning. We think the gas was low because we can’t get the water heater pilot light to light. So we tried to order gas but despite lots of practice in Spanish, I simply could NOT understand what they were asking me on the phone. So I had to ask the property manager to call [head hung in shame]. They arrived a few hours later and we are now full of gas and the water heater is working.

We can’t drink the water in Mexico. Even most Mexicans do not. So Dan did some research on a pump system that goes from bottled water through the fridge which will make ice and give us cold water. But it’s not hooked up yet so for the moment we are working with big bottles of water. And waiting for more to be delivered. I called them yesterday and they said they’d be here within an hour. So far we are going on 24 hours. OK.

The master bathroom has an interesting shower. The way the doors are situated you can’t get out of the shower if the bathroom door is open. And there’s no place to put a rug for your wet feet. But the part I (dis)like the most is that when you are showering you can see yourself – full body – in the bathroom mirror. And not just catch a quick glimpse, you can’t NOT see yourself if your eyes are open. There’s absolutely no need for that. None. Nada. Zip.

The guest room occupies the 3rd floor. It’s the only thing up there. There’s no door but it’s private because there’s no need to go up there unless you are visiting the guest. We call it The Tower. Aunt Kim sleeps in The Tower. She reports it’s quite comfortable. I told her she needed to grow her hair long to fit the part.

Zoe went out exploring a bit yesterday. Most kids are still in school but when she went out around 5pm there were lots of kids around, as well as a Santa who visited the park, a live petting zoo next to the manger scene and Christmas carols in Spanish.

Today’s goals are minuscule compared to what we’ve been doing the last few days. We dropped off laundry, we hope for bottled water and gas for hot water (got that!), we are picking up our new (used) car and last but not least, making our own dinner (the budget likes that). Now that we have internet I have a feeling Daniel will be returning home with a TV in short order (the budget hates that). When I see him pull up I will park myself in an Adirondack chair. There’s no way I’m going to be the loser in that game of musical chairs.