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UPDATE 7/16/18 – I wrote this article about living in Mexico after only three weeks of being in the country. I just reread it and everything still applies. What is amusing is that some of these differences I stopped noticing long ago. You really do get used to new things when you learn NOT to care so much about change :-)





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I wanted to post sooner but we have been potty-training this week. Fun, fun. Soooo I thought I would make this a crazy list blog about how life is different living in Mexico than in the States. Some good and some bad. Lots still unknown.

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I was rarely sick in Kentucky. Without getting into the icky, lets just I am having stomach problems. It comes and goes. Something in this new environment is the cause. Just don’t know what. I am without a dishwasher for the first time in 12 years. Our water heater is outside the house and our gas tank is on the roof. Our trash gets picked up 3 times a week. We have no central air or heat. Honestly, we haven’t needed it yet. We share one vehicle. Well, Brad does have a moped so make that 1.5 vehicles ;-) Tristan sleeps with a mosquito net over his bed. My whole house is tile. I have a beautiful plant garden inside my house. We have guards that patrol our little gated-community. We have a yard man because we don’t want to buy the equipment and he is very cheap! A cleaning lady comes once every other week and spends over three hours making the house shine. She charges 200 pesos or $15.17 per time. I am getting spoiled. Must admit it’s a big help. Her name is Tina too. We are homeschooling our children. I have no washer or dryer and we go to the laundromat every Monday morning. We have no pets thus far. The kids have a pool. We have a nicer home then we did in the States and we are paying less. (I talked about the costs in a prior blog.) There are bread and sweet stores everywhere. This is bad news for my diet. We are eating a lot more fruits and veggies. Our drinking water has to be purified. I hear bells on the streets to announce the milk truck, the water truck, the trash truck, and more trucks. And each bell is different. I see cacti and flowering plants everywhere. The flowers are beautiful. There are stray dogs roaming the streets. I mean, a lot of stray dogs :-( They pump your gas at every station. People earn money at traffic lights. They sell stuff, wash windows, and even dress up and dance like this guy. We gave him some change for his photo. Sometimes kids will beg for a peso at the traffic lights. I don’t like that much. I almost always have someone helping me take my groceries to our truck. Everyone has a pretty tan. Except for me. I am still peach. Everyone speaks Spanish. I am the minority. The people are generally sweet and kind. I don’t see many traffic accidents and we have a crazy amount of traffic. There are little Mexican food stands everywhere and they are usually pretty yummy. My furniture is all used. We left all of Brad’s handmade furniture with family in the States. There is more affection on display here. I can’t go to Walmart without seeing kissing couples while shopping. Even grandparents. It hasn’t gotten terribly yucky yet. They have a second afternoon school here from 1 to 8 pm because the school system is so crowded. At most junctions without a light, it’s “I go, you go”. Everybody takes turns and sometimes you have to be aggressive. But at least they drive slow. I have more time with my hubby, my favorite kids, and for the Bible ministry. It’s Celsius and the metric system here. No Fahrenheit, inches, and miles. There is an entire aisle of hot sauce at the grocery stores. There is also an entire aisle of milk in cans and boxes. Walmart carries alcohol. They actually had sample booths of tequila at Walmart and Costco. I can tell you both tequilas were suitable with lime and salt. The trees don’t lose their leaves and the grass doesn’t turn brown. It’s green all year long. All the homes are made from block, stucco, rock, and maybe a little brick. The military and the police ride around in pickup trucks with several men standing in the bed. They all have big guns. Their uniforms are just different. McDonald’s does not have iced tea. Many people are wearing winter clothing and it’s in the 70’s and 80’s. Most prescription drugs in the States you can just buy over the counter here. Even Prozac. Every home has a locked gate and you don’t open it. You knock or ring the bell. They paint the bottom of their trees white to protect them during flood season. More people seem to have an interest in the Bible. There is a doctor next to almost every pharmacy. He is open almost every day and you just drop by. Cost is 50 pesos or $3.79.

We have only been in living in Mexico for about 3 weeks. I know this is only the beginning of a different life. But that’s okay. Different is good. Usually. You just have to learn to go with the flow. Many times I just have to tell myself, “It doesn’t really matter.” or “I can’t change that.” I hope I can continue to do so. It makes life easier. Signing off, Tina

Originally posted November 10, 2013