John and Carolyn’s house in SMA is absolutely BEAUTIFUL.  I will take more pictures later so you can see it, but there are some photos on our SMA page.  It is the perfect home for a group of our size.  Elizabeth has a bedroom with a bathroom.  Norah and I are sharing another bedroom with a bathroom.  Adlani has the study, and las tres amigas have the guest bedroom and bathroom which are through the small enclosed courtyard.  There are several outdoor spaces within their home – the entryway, the courtyard where the girls’ room is, the roof, and a new garden that they are in the process of building.  There are lots of flowers blooming in the gardens and the smell is heavenly.  I’ll dedicate a whole post to showing you the house when I have some photos.

When we arrived from the airport, our housekeeper Maria was just taking muffins out of the oven.  We were so happy to settle in with a snack!  The water at the house is filtered, so we have plenty of water and ice that is safe to drink.  We explored the house and got all of our stuff unpacked and put away, then took a short nap before we went out exploring. 

Around 7 p.m. we walked up to the main square of town, el Jardin Principal.  On the way we saw a horse and carriage, a band, and giant puppets called mojingangas.  They were blocking traffic as they waited to begin their procession, and although there were a few beeps, the drivers seemed resigned to sit there waiting for 15 minutes or so.  Then everyone took off for the square.

There’s a webcam in el Jardin (you can see it here), and for the last 6 months Elizabeth and I have checked it whenever we’re feeling the need to “get away.”  Last night we were finally able to see it in person, and Ben saw us on the webcam!  There is a film festival going on here right now so there was a band on stage in the square and TONS of people.  We ate at the restaurant that hosts the webcam – a little thank-you for helping to keep us sane the last 6 months.  While we were eating, various people came to try to sell us souvenirs.  When Carlos came with personalized bracelets and said that he could make them for each of the kids then and there, we had to take him up on it.  It was pretty amazing to watch him make them.  We saw him again in the square this morning and it was like we were old pals.

We could see an epic lightning storm while we were having dinner, but nobody around us seemed too worried about it.  There was still quite a crowd in el Jardin.  After dinner we went straight home and it started to rain soon after.  It cooled off a lot and we all slept like logs. 

What we learned the first day:

• Don’t leave home without the (big) camera.
• Bring raincoats because when it cools down it happens quickly, and it could rain any time.
• Watch the sidewalks at all times because there are holes, steps, and other hazards.
• Mexican pizza does not have mozzarella cheese on it (maybe some does but we haven’t found it yet).

Thank goodness for Amazon Prime.  With only 9 days left until we fly away, we have come up with a few things to add to the packing list and no time to hunt around for them locally.  It’s almost magical to wake up during the night in a cold sweat because I just thought of something we can’t live without, order it via my iPhone app, and have a random assortment of items show up on my doorstep 2 days later.  How do they do that?  Here are my 9 necessities:

Mini Speakers – We will have an embarrassing amount of electronic devices – e-readers, iPads, a Nintendo 3DS, and at least one computer.  As much as I want to be the mom who leads a rousing sing-a-long of 99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall, I’m not.  There are some times when in order to keep everyone alive I need them to go watch a movie or play a game – educational of course.  I’ve told them that all devices will switch to Spanish when we cross the border, so at least they’ll be practicing their español.  But when two or more kids are trying to watch a movie on an iPad, we needed an external speaker so they don’t have to fight over proximity to the tiny sound hole.  So one of my most favorite Amazon items is the set of 2 tiny speakers that recharge via the USB, and provide amazing sound quality!  I love them!

Ball Bag – Yes, although we live less than a mile from 3 or 4 sources of soccer ball bags, I added them to my Amazon cart and saved myself a trip.  I can’t wait to bag up our balls and take them to the orphanages.  We ended up with 10 balls – all sponsored by various families.  I’ll definitely post photos so you can see how much the kids love them!

Underwear – While I was able to find A LOT of underwear for the orphanage on super-sale at Children’s Place, we had to supplement for the larger sizes.  The girls range in age from 3 to 19, with a 31YO mentally disabled girl too, so I’m assuming that some may need women’s sizes.  I think we’ve got enough to accommodate everyone…who doesn’t love getting new undies??

Culotte Slip – When we had our madres trip to New York City in the 95-degree heat, I had enough experience with the Moroccan heat to pack my trusty culotte slip.  I decided to add a shorter version to the Mexican packing list, and I found it in 2 seconds on Amazon, rather than spending hours traipsing around the ‘Ham in search of chafe-protection that didn’t involve “shapewear” (AKA garment that leaves you unable to breathe and causes you to contract a UTI because you’re so hesitant to pull it down in case you can’t get it back up).

Metamucil Wafers – Again, my Moroccan experience (and a sleepover with Aliya’s friend Victoria) taught me that these little magic cookies can reverse the gastrointestinal effects of an all-Mexican diet.  Enough on that, but I ordered a 2-pack.  They work!

Raincoats – There must be like a 2-week window in the spring when the stores are stocked up on raincoats, because it hasn’t been easy to find light-weight but waterproof raincoats for the kids.  It’s the rainy season in SMA, which basically means a short shower or 2 each day (we hope).  Our friends’ parents (I’ll just call them John and Carolyn because those are their names) told us that Mexicans don’t carry umbrellas…they just step into a doorway until the rain stops.  I LOVE the idea that the rain isn’t going to keep us home, and we have the free time to stop and watch the rain, and maybe chat with other doorway-dwellers in my mangled Spanish.

Thermometer – I think our old thermometer was used to measure the temperature of a science experiment, so I threw one on the Amazon order.  I’m hoping that we won’t need it, but just in case, we have Pepto-Bismol, Immodium, Motrin (adult and children’s), Benadryl, and antibiotics from the pediatrician.  The pharmacy doesn’t mix the distilled water and powder, so we don’t have to refrigerate them until we need them.  This worked well for past trips.  We are all up to date on our shots – Hepatitis A & B, Typhoid, Tetanus, and the other typical US shots.  The only time I’ve really gotten sick is after drinking a frozen drink in Zanzibar.  That was ugly.  We’re hoping for a doctor-free trip to Mexico, although this article almost makes me want to schedule a house call from Dr. Gorgeous.

Headlamp – Call me crazy but I always carry a headlamp with me, and mine recently resurfaced without a strap.  I may look like a coal miner, but I can use it to read, crochet, tip-toe to the tequila cabinet without waking the children, and lead us safely through the cobblestone streets after a Mexican fiesta.

Doors of San Miguel de Allende – Last year I took lots of door photos in Morocco and posted them on my work blog (www.iDigHardware.com).  The editor of Doors & Hardware magazine asked to publish them as a photo essay, and it came out great!  So imagine my excitement when I found out that San Miguel is know for its beautiful doors!!!  There’s even a book about them, which I purchased in used condition via Amazon for literally 1 cent plus $3.99 shipping.  I have another photo essay lined up with the magazine, and I can’t wait to get started!

I’m hoping that my purchases are complete…gotta save some pesos to buy a wardrobe of flowered skirts and a sombrero.

Right around January 1st I received an email about our friends’ parents house for rent in Mexico, and it seemed like a sign.  Yes, I think lots of things are signs.  The email was sent to A LOT of people and most of them didn’t decide on the spot to go to Mexico, but I’m easily influenced.  I immediately put the wheels in motion to rent the house for 4 weeks, and work remotely while also taking some vacation time.  The departure date seemed so far away…now it’s 10 DAYS until we will be south of the border!!!

Ben can’t work remotely or take 4 weeks off, so we will be spending the first 2 weeks with my friend Elizabeth and her twin daughters, Chloe and Hannah, who coincidentally are Aliya’s best friends.  I can’t imagine being 11 years old and spending 2 weeks in Mexico with my best friends (plus 2 more weeks after that for Aliiya).  I don’t think they know how lucky they are.  When they fly home, Ben will fly down and spend the last 2 weeks with us.

Given all of the bad news about Mexico in the media lately, a few people have asked why in the world we would go there, whether we’ll be safe, etc.  The answer is YES, we’ll be safe!  I met some people from Mexico the other day and they told me that San Miguel de Allende is “muy tranquilo”.  The areas of Mexico that are experiencing the violence and drug problems are not near SMA.  We don’t expect any problems but we’ll be cautious as always.  While trying to put mom’s mind at ease, I found this article – Top Ten Most Dangerous Things in San Miguel.  The list includes accidentally talking to a Republican, fallen seniors who have tripped on the cobblestone streets, and wine bottles clinking together in the trunk of the taxi.  No doubt we’ll come up with our own Top-10 list – we’ve already been warned about the drunk shopping…when you wake up in the morning and wonder how in the h*ll you’re going to get that giant piece of Mexican art home (thank you Priscilla!).

On Monday morning I told Norah that we had 12 more days and I felt that little flutter of panic that I get when I’m still doing laundry at 3 a.m. and leaving on a 9 a.m. flight.  So in hopes of some stress-relief we started getting organized and doing a little packing.  The kids and I already have our 4 pairs of matching socks ready to go into the duffle.  We are allowed one 50-pound bag each, and just like when we go to Morocco, a lot of what we bring will be staying there.  When I visit someplace I like to leave some sort of positive mark and teach the kids something, so on this trip we will be bringing supplies to a girls’ orphanage and doing some “social volunteering” (aka playing and visiting).

We’re bringing school supplies, soccer balls, and 270 pairs of underwear!  Here’s Norah sorting and packing the undies:

The soccer balls that we’re taking are really cool – they’re indestructible and they don’t need a pump.  We will be taking 10 balls with us, so we’ll have enough for the girls orphanage and also the boys orphanage!  If you’d like to sponsor a ball for $25, let me know!  Here’s a great story about the balls from the One World Futbal Project:

There’s more information about SMA, along with photos of “our” house on the SMA page.  I’ll try to do a good job of keeping up with my postings, for anyone who wants to travel to Mexico vicariously.  😀