The Move: Mexico to New Jersey

Seven months since my last post, I have decided to update my blog name and continue posting.  In November 2011, we moved from Mexico City to New Jersey, just over the George Washington Bridge from New York City.  We are about 15 minutes away from midtown Manhattan and trying to take advantage of living on the East coast!

Before I get into life in New Jersey and New York City, I should go back to the end of our time in Mexico City...

Our time in Mexico went very quick and was hectic at the end.  We kept Annabelle in school until the day before we left.  Seven months later, Annabelle still says "I miss Pao" - her teacher at Mi Montessori in Polanco!

Mike made two separate week long business trips to New Jersey in October.  Then, my sister came to visit.  We celebrated Halloween with our playgroup and by trick-or-treating with the families from Mi Montessori.  And, we had to sell mattresses, rugs, furniture, as well as return our rental furniture.  All the while coordinating everything with the date the movers were coming to pack us up.  It was a bit crazy, as the movers weren't confirmed until two days before our packing date.

Then, when the movers arrived, they started packing boxes...but didn't bring a scale to weigh anything.  I was told we could bring back 40 pounds more than what we arrived in Mexico with.  However, with our language barrier and lack of scale, we came home with much less.  A woman from the relocation company called to make sure the movers had arrived...but she was calling from London and wasn't able to help or do anything.  Once the movers had finished, a woman from their office in Mexico called to tell me my shipment would be taken back to their warehouse, where it would then be weighed.  At that point they would call me to tell me if I was over or under my weight allowance.  Not surprisingly, I never received that phone call.

The other small issue we had was our satellite service...  When we moved in, we signed a one year contract with SKY.  They wouldn't allow us to break our contract and were going to continue charging our credit card monthly.  Luckily, we were able to transfer the service...not to the U.S. but to one of Mike's co-workers in Mexico.  Mike's co-worker added our remaining 6 months to his contract and took over the payment.  Thank you Carlos!!!

Two days before our flight back to Chicago, we took Molly to the vet.  She got her shots and documents for flying.  It was all very easy and cost about $40 USD.  Super cheap.

On the morning of our flight, we sold of our last mattress, paid our last utility bills, had our apartment walk thru with our relocation lady, and cleared out...taking our 8 checked bags, 6 carry on bags, car seat, stroller, dog crate, dog and child to the airport!

Checking our bags was relatively easy and painless as Mike is an American Airlines gold member...which also meant we got three checked bags per person for free, since we were also flying business class.

What was painful was checking Molly.  At first, the woman checking Molly in said she couldn't fly because it was 42 degrees in Chicago and it had to be at least 45 degrees.  So, I found our original vet document from April, when Molly flew from Chicago to Mexico.  On that document, the vet had checked the box stating that Molly COULD fly in lower temperatures.  She didn't want to accept the document, since it was from 6+ months before, but after debating it with her co-workers and photo copying the document, she said Molly could fly.  Phew!!!

My joy only lasted for a minute...until the woman came around the ticket counter with her tape measure.  She looked at Molly's crate and said "no, this crate is too big.  She can't fly".  I was livid and freaking out.  I must have said five times "But, this is the crate that she flew down to Mexico in."  The woman said "but that was a different flight".  To which I replied "No, it was the SAME flight.  Every day, this same plane goes from Chicago to Mexico City, then straight back to Chicago.  If it fit then, it will fit now".  To which SHE replied "well, it would fit IF you were going to Chicago."  To which I yelled "I AM GOING TO CHICAGO".  The woman then checked with her co-worker, who was checking our bags TO CHICAGO, verifying that yes, Chicago was our destination.

So, at that point, Molly was allowed to be checked.  Oy vey!  And by this time...the temperature had reached the 45 degrees normally required for a pet to be checked...So, had we checked in a bit later, I may have had a bit more patience for the crate situation!!

Once we got on the plane, in our business class seats, Annie fell asleep, and Mike and I de-stressed with a beer and glass of wine!  The business class seats were nice!  Much nicer than coach!  More leg room and better food!

In Chicago, we spent two nights.  During this time, we had dentist and doctor appointments, and had to get our large shipment packed for the move to New Jersey.  We didn't do the best job of packing up our house when we left Chicago for Mexico, so the moving company had to load our storage unit and also pack boxes at my parents house.  Plus, they had to take our car and load that in the back of their truck.

The next day, Mike and I left Annie and Molly with my parents and we flew out to New Jersey.

On one of Mike's business trips in October, he had found us an apartment and signed a lease.  He only spent a few minutes in the apartment.  So, when I asked "is there recessed lighting?"  "ceiling fans?"  "a microwave?"  "closet space?" ...His answers were all "I don't know.  I don't remember."

He did a good job though!  We like our apartment and the location.  We spent a lot of time in Mexico debating whether to live in NYC and get a one bedroom apartment with NO space.  Or to live further out.  In the end, we have a three bedroom, two bath apartment that is about 3 miles from Mike's work!  We are pretty happy with it.  I'll blog more about it later!

One Week Left in Mexico

Our time in Mexico is coming to a close. We have about one week left until we move back to the U.S. and things are starting to get busy. Utilities have to be cancelled, same with Mike's gym membership, a painter has to come in and paint the unit (which is ridiculous as we have hung nothing on the walls, and the only marks on the walls are from bug guts - as we have had to kill numerous spiders, mosquitoes, etc). We have to get packed up - although we do not have confirmation that the movers will be here on Monday. We have a few more items to sell, but can't get rid of until the last minute (mattress and high chair). We have to get the dog to the vet for her paperwork and blood test. And, Mike has to work until the very end.

I think Mike may be most sad about leaving Mexico, as he has to give up the NFL Sunday Ticket. In our new apartment in New Jersey, satellite dishes are not allowed. So, it will be years until he can have the Sunday Ticket again. So sad!

I am most sad about leaving Annabelle's school. She LOVES her school and is learning so much. She is constantly saying things in Spanish and we are tremendously sad that her Spanish education is going to slow down. Even if we find her a tutor or babysitter that speaks Spanish to her, it will not come close to equaling the twenty hours of Spanish that she speaks a week right now.

And, we don't think Annabelle understands that she is moving (again). She knows that her choo choo trains are in New Jersey, as Mike took some clothes and toys with him on a business trip last week. And, Annabelle knows she is going on an airplane again soon. But, she travels frequently, having been on five round trip flights this year. So, once we get to New Jersey, we think she'll miss her friends and her school. Perhaps she'll even ask to come back to Mexico City, as she knows that is where she lives.

It certainly is sad to think that as Annabelle ages she will not remember her time in Mexico. Our goal is to try and keep her connection with the city, by continuing teaching her Spanish and coming back to visit. But, it would have been nice to live in Mexico City for a few more years, so that Annabelle could have a firm grasp on Spanish and have some great memories!

With a week left, we have a lot of things we still want to do. Some will get done and others will have to wait until we come back for a visit!

Domino's Pizza in Mexico City

With Annabelle in the midst of the terrible two's, we have pretty much stopped going out to eat. She gets bored with the paper and crayons, as well as with the iPhone. So, we order Domino's Pizza regularly.

It is fantastic because we can order online at www.dominos.com.mx and the pizza is delivered within 30 minutes!

Ordering online is super easy, even with everything written in Spanish.

Ordering on the phone is so much more difficult with pronunciation and our lack of fluent Spanish.

So, online is the way to go! And, the order is always correct and on time! Very easy...although Annie is scared of the delivery men, as they drive motorcycles and come to the door with their helmets on!

+KOTA Dog Grooming, Mexico City

As Molly was extremely shaggy, I went in search of a dog groomer in Mexico City.

From time to time, I see dog grooming vans around town. Back in March, I even took a picture of one van, so that I would have their number when necessary.

But, I was hesitant to call because most small places don't have any worker that speaks English.

So, earlier in the week, I went to +KOTA, a dog supply chain, that has many locations in and around Polanco. They don't do grooming there, but gave me a name and phone numbers of who to call.

I went home, called said numbers, only to have the calls not go thru. So, I googled the name and found their website: http://www.maskota.com.mx/home/listado_cont.asp?cve_cont=152.

I called the number on the van pictured...and after a minute was able to speak to someone in English.

The guy took my information and said someone would be there between noon and 4 pm the next day.

At 12:07 pm, the groomer knocked on my door! Less than 40 minutes later, Molly was bathed and dried.

There is some debate between my husband and I on whether or not Molly actually got a haircut. I don't see it, but Mike says she DEFINITELY got a haircut and that the hair around her eyes and on her back is much shorter.

But, regardless, well worth the cost of just $270 pesos for the "estetica"!

Vet in Polanco / Mexico City

Molly and I survived six months in Mexico City, before having to seek out a vet. But, due to an ear infection, our streak ended this past Tuesday.

We went to the vet recommended by two friends. It is in Polanco, about a mile and a half from my house. So, armed with directions, and knowledge that they accept walk in appointments after 10:30 am, we set out to a new part of Polanco!

No one spoke English, aside from the vet, who said he spoke "a little English" when I told him "yo hablo muy pocito Espanol".

But Molly's ear infection spoke for itself!

We only waited about 30 minutes...which is not bad at all for a walk in appointment! The vet cleaned Molly's ear out, rubbed some ointment on the ear, gave her an antibiotic shot, and sent us on our way!

Here is a photo of the "invoice" (factura) that I was given! In the U.S., the invoice would look drastically different (and the total bill would be MUCH higher!!).

So, the cost was $765 pesos. Not bad.

We'll be going back in a month to get help with Molly's papers to get her back into the U.S.!

The vet's office is located at Presa Pabellon #8 in Polanco. I would highly recommend them!

Girls Night Out in Polanco

Last night, I went out with a bunch of the playgroup moms! We went to Ch!, an Argentinian restaurant, in Polanco.

It was FANTASTIC!!!

Wednesday night happened to be 2 for the price of 1 martini's. So, we all took advantage of that! Excellent apple martini's. They had awesome empanadas as appetizers. And the entrees all looked great too. I split the pechuga de pollo al chimi with one of the other ladies. It was really good.

I will definitely take Mike there soon!

It was my first girls night out with the ladies and I look forward to our next night out! At playgroup it can be very difficult to finish a conversation with another mom, because the kids are all running crazy and have to be constantly watched. So, it was great to get to know everyone better and not worry where the kids were!

Leaving Mexico City...

Last week, Mike got word that he is being offered a promotion and we'll be moving near Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. EC is just over the George Washington Bridge from Manhattan. We have yet to see any paperwork, but are told everything is in the works. They want Mike to start working in EC at the end of October.

So, while we have no official word or dates, we are anticipating a crazy end of the year. First, we'll need to repatriate from Mexico City back to Chicago. THEN, we'll begin our relocation to New Jersey. It will be a permanent move.

We are excited and looking forward to moving to the East coast! But, we know it will be a logistical nightmare for the next several months!

As we get more information, I will continue updating the blog!