"Did you ever think I would hand wash your underwear?"

I never thought my husband would say "did you ever think I would hand wash your underwear?" ...Nor did I ever think he would.

However, after 8 days of having a broken washing machine, Mike broke down and hand washed some clothing.

I had offered to do it earlier in the week, but I don't think Mike was confident in my hand washing abilities...which was just fine with me!

So, while I was on baby-wrangling duty, Mike broke out the buckets.

Last Sunday, our washing machine stopped draining. I emailed our building manager Ruth, who replied Monday morning, saying she would tell the other building manager. I emailed Ruth (who is the only one that speaks English) again on Tuesday. Again, she replied. She told me that she manages the building on the outside. She doesn't manage the individual units, but that she would pass along my information.

On Thursday, the "individual units" manager Betty was in the lobby. I flagged her down and tried to tell her that my washing machine was broken. She told me someone would come to look at it "manana". However, a few hours later the maintenance man stopped by. He came to fix something...but it wasn't the washing machine. I think he thought he was supposed to look at my dishwasher. But, he looked at the washer, determined he couldn't do anything, and indicated (in Spanish) that he would talk to Betty.

On Saturday, my maid showed up. She looked at the huge piles of laundry and headed straight to the washer...as if I left mounds of laundry for her to do! With my Spanglish, I told her that the washer (lavadora) was broken (no trabaje) and that I wasn't happy (no me gusto!).

Minutes later, she had Betty's phone number in hand and was asking how to work my home phone. A moment later Betty was on the phone and Patricia was on her case!! (Have I mentioned that I adore my maid Patricia?!?!)

After hanging up with Betty, Patricia indicated that Betty wasn't going to do anything and we needed the manual. I pulled out the manual...that was actually written in English...but did not solve our problem, as the hose was not kinked. It is a GE washer and the manual gave us a number for GE...but it was an 800 number.

In Mexico, you cannot dial 1-800 numbers! If you pull out your credit card, on the back, it will give you an international number to call when outside the U.S.

The manual gave us no such number.

But, Betty called back a minute later and said she would send someone out to look at the washer...again. A few hours later, a man showed up and Patricia told him what the problem was. The guy stayed about five minutes and then left.

Patricia indicated that he (or someone) would be back on Monday.

At this point, I am not holding my breath that the washer will be fixed in the next week. But, I am grateful that Patricia will be back next Saturday, in order to get on Betty's case again.

I am also grateful to Mike for his new skill - hand washing laundry!

And, I have realized what a great landlord I am! My tenants get quick responses and repairs! Apparently, the same is not expected or required in Mexico City!

What Was I Thinking??

Why did I wait so long to hire a maid???

Our maid started this morning! Our house has NEVER looked better! She was WELL worth the money!!! And, despite paying her more than others have reported, I felt like I didn't pay her enough! She arrived a little after 9:20 am and left around 4:30 pm. She worked nonstop, cleaning all four bathrooms, sweeping the floor, mopping the floors, polishing the floors, washing the windows (no streaks!) and tidying up the kitchen a bit!

She is coming back next Saturday!

While I definitely don't need a live-in maid and/or nanny...I am very happy to have a maid one day a week! And, Mike was certainly glad to have someone else do the mopping!

Maid... Starts Tomorrow!

We have hired a maid.

She'll be working every Saturday, starting at 9 am. 300 pesos for the day.

300 pesos is a bit expensive, as we have heard reports of people paying less. However, this woman comes highly recommended, as she works for our neighbor upstairs. And, she'll do everything we need on Saturdays.

We are going to start with her cleaning the floors and bathrooms. Doesn't sound like much. But, there are four bathrooms and there is no carpet. She'll have to mop and dry the interior floors, as well as our outside patio/walkway.

I don't feel the need for her to do laundry. I can do that! And, with only four plates and bowls, our dishes will be minimal. So, I will probably not leave any of those for her.

Floors and bathrooms for now! We'll see how it goes!!

A Maid...A Mexico Must Have.

I think I am getting a maid.

Everyone has one. It's the thing to do!

In actuality, it hasn't been an easy decision, nor have we taken the thought lightly. And, I don't particularly want a maid.

But, what I want less is me down on my hands and knees cleaning 1,800 square feet of wood laminate flooring every week. I don't find that fun and enjoyable.

Right now, Mike does the floor cleaning. It has always been his chore. Wasn't a big deal in the U.S. We had very little flooring that wasn't carpet. And, the suburbs of Chicago aren't as dusty as Mexico. Dust and dirt are EVERYWHERE here, especially with my building still under construction.

With Mike working 70+ hours a week (or so it seems), he has had enough of his chore! Plus, all his co-workers tell him he needs a maid, and they smile at the mere thought of going home to their perfectly immaculate homes!

In Mexico, the options for a maid are abundant. You can have a live in maid...which we could do, as we have maids quarters upstairs, on the roof of our building. You can have a maid five days a week, that doesn't live in. Or you can do a few hours a day, as many days as you want.

I've gotten leads on two maids. One would only be available about 4 hours, one day a week. The other...I am not sure of her availability. I need to get someone to translate for me when I call her!

I personally like the idea of a maid once a week, for three or four hours to clean the bathrooms, the floors and the windows/glass walls. Beyond that, what do I need a maid for? I don't mind the laundry and dishes. We are picky eaters, so we don't need or want anyone to cook for us.

Mike likes the idea of having a less-busy maid. Someone who can work longer, if ever necessary.

For three or four hours a day, we would pay a maid less than $250 pesos or $21 USD. I can deal with that!

I'm not sure what I'll do while the maid is here...aside from feeling bad that I am too lazy to do the work myself!

But, I think we are going to pull the trigger and get a maid. It is part of the Mexico experience! Certainly once we go back to the U.S... I won't have a maid!

Talking to all the women at playgroup about their maids is interesting. Some maids take care of the children almost solely. Some maids aren't very interested in the kids, and veer more towards doing all the cooking and cleaning. Some maids eat with the family at night. Others will/do not. Some maids do all the grocery shopping, take the kids to the park, and take care of the dog(s). In Mexico, babysitters are VERY rare. That's what maids are for...or so we are told.

And, the maids are of a variety of ages. I have heard of one maid who is 16 years old. When I think of a sixteen year old, I think "why isn't she in school?". Here, her family needs her to work, to help pay for their home. So, she lives with and works for a family 6 days a week, then takes her paycheck home with her on her day off. School was never in the cards for her. The family she works for is doing her a favor by hiring her and giving her a good home to live in.

It is a different way of living and thinking here in Mexico.