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!

Flooded Parking Garage Update

I spoke to a neighbor yesterday, who told me what happened to our building while we were in the U.S.

Apparently, we had torrential downpour, even a bit of hail, and the water settled in the underground parking garage...and didn't drain.

She said the power was out for several days, along with the gas and water. They lasted for a few days, then checked into a hotel for a few more days.

She has also been told that our building was the only one in Polanco with a flooded parking garage. Perhaps the engineers here have some work to do! Almost everyone has an underground garage...but no one else's Honda CRV had soaking wet floors and had to go in the shop!

There is a clear watermark on the walls of the garage, showing that the water was standing over three feet high.

Next time we go away, we'll be leaving our car key with a neighbor!

Still not sure who pays for the repairs to the car... my husband's company, as it is their car? Or, is the building negligent due to the fact that the draining system failed?

Sam's Club vs. Costco

In Mexico City, we have both Sam's Club and Costco.

Sam's Club is close to our "department" (apartment). So, we got a membership there.

However, everyone at playgroup goes to Costco. They say it is nicer than Sam's Club. Truthfully, the Sam's in Polanco is a bit run down looking...a little older. The Sam's in Santa Fe (about 35 minutes away) is nice though!

The women at playgroup are often talking about what they've just found and purchased at Costco. And, they are recommending their new finds to everyone.

One woman belongs to both. She says both memberships are necessary, which I find fascinating.

I am going to keep my Sam's membership, as it is just too convenient. But, I may trek to Costco (about a 15-20 minute walk) one day with someone from playgroup...just to see if Costco is that much nicer here in Mexico.

But even if it is...a 30 second walk back from Sam's certainly beats a 20 minute walk from Costco, with Annabelle and a stroller full of items!

Credit Card and Debit Card Issues

While I was back in the U.S., I cut up my previous credit card. Then, called the number on the newly issued card and activated it.

We used it a few times, at O'Hare airport, then at the grocery in Mexico, etc last Sunday.

When I went to Sam's Club Monday morning...my card was declined at checkout. Lovely, especially with the language barrier between myself and the checkout person.

So, I left the line and called the international number on the back of my credit card. I got disconnected twice (lovely when you are paying 59 cents a minute for the calls), then got ahold of someone on the third call. He told me that my card was never activated. WHAT? How could it not be activated, yet four transactions had already gone thru on it?? Regardless, he "activated" it and I got back in line, successfully paying for my stroller full of items.

Then, today, I went to a Banamex ATM (remember Banamex = Citibank) to use my debit card and take out pesos, so that I had enough to pay my cleaning woman tomorrow! My debit card wouldn't let me take any money out!! It let me see my balance...but wouldn't allow me to take any denomination of money out.

Very frustrating! I should be able to go to Banamex here, hand them my ATM card and photo identification and get the pesos out....but, I am hesitant to try because my debit card has my maiden name imprinted on it (even though the account is now in my married name)...and my photo ID is all in my married name.

I feel like I have made things more difficult on myself than necessary. Perhaps, when I got married, I should have changed everything over immediately...rather than gradually doing so throughout the years. Perhaps then, my debit card would have my married name on it!

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!!

www.USTVNow.com

For over six weeks, we have not had a tv, or access to U.S. television shows... or so we thought.

Right before we left for the U.S. a few weeks ago, Mike discovered www.ustvnow.com.

It is free. You create a log-in username and password. Then, you can watch U.S. television thru your computer, iPad, iPhone, etc.

If you want to be able to record a show and watch it later, you have the option to pay for that. Otherwise it is completely free.

We caught the end of American Idol the other night. The website froze a few times, which we were disappointed in, as it hadn't frozen at all the first time we tried watching shows.

But, we'll keep giving it a shot!

Dormimundo - Mattress Chain in Mexico

In preparation for our first visitors next week, Annabelle and I walked to Dormimundo yesterday to order a mattress for the guest room.

First of all, I elected not to take our stroller, as Annabelle has been wanting to walk everywhere. All her walking apparently caught up to her. No less than a half block into our walk, she wanted to be carried. Needless to say, I got more of a workout than intended!

When we got to Dormimundo, I asked if the women spoke English. No. So, with my limited Spanish, I tried to tell them I needed a cheap mattress and boxspring (sorry future guests!). She directed me to a $9,000 peso Serta Beautyrest set. Clearly...she didn't understand "cheap"!

So, I said "menos", at which time she directed me upstairs to the cheap(er) mattresses. She quoted a price of one, I pulled out my iPhone, did a little division to translate it into dollars, said "bien"...and headed downstairs to do the paperwork.

All in all, it was an easy transaction. Speaking Spanish fluently would have made it easier. But, I feel like I did alright...and that the new mattress set will arrive as scheduled!