Our first day at Camp

Monday was the kids' first day at camp! In Mexico they call it "curso de verano," like summer course" so the kids are calling it "school." To-may-to or to-mah-to, they had a good first day. For some reason they were put into separate groups, and we might try to get that changed. It is such a huge transition for them- to be thrown into this new atmosphere, all in Spanish, not knowing anyone... I'm worried if they will make friends, if they will try to fit in, if their Spanish will improve enough so that people can understand them, if they will have fun, if they will be teased... I guess all the parents worry about that, it's just that Tonito looks "different" than the other kids, and they both speak differently, etc. Tonio once told me that you're not a good mom if you don't worry, so I guess the sleepless night I had last night is worth something!?
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Anyway, so we dropped them off and watched our two cuties get smaller among the crowds of kids and teachers- each of them gripping the straps of their new princess and Lightning McQueen backpacks. Then we went back home to play with Maya and wait until noon, when we would return for the inauguration. The ceremony was spectacular- I have never seen anything like this in the US (haha, and I worked as a camp counselor for 7 years!). We were all in a huge auditorium, overlooking the kids parading in with their black t-shirts. Once they all found a seat we watched the show of acrobats and dancers (click on the pictures to make them bigger. Play where's waldo in the first picture by searching for Tonito waving in the top right and Vivi watching the show in the bottom right):

After the inauguration we took the kids home- when our eyes met amidst the crowds they were so happy (relieved?) to see us! I know this experience is going to be positive- it will help them with their Spanish and make them stronger, but it is always hard to watch your kids feel out of their comfort zone. After the show we came home and played with Inaki and relaxed. Phew, we survived day 1!

Burning Energy at the Park

On Sunday we decided to go to the park in Polanco so the kids could run around and get some fresh air. It was a beautiful day, and they loved running around with the other kids!

It was as if they play with Inaki all the time (my keyboard is not typing the ~ over the "n" right now!). Even though they would squeal something in English, and he would laugh it back in Spanish, they all understood each other and had a blast.

Here are the 4 grandkids with Abuelita (ita) and Abuelito (ito)

In the middle of the park, there are little cars that you can rent and drive around. It was hard for them to coordinate pressing the gas and turning the wheel, and luckily there were 5 adults diveting accidents!

On the other side of the park is a little lake, where remote control boats, yachts, submarines, etc, chase around the ducks. Tonio's mom told us that the same little old men have been coming every Sunday for decades! The best part for the kids was when one boat crashed into the other and almost made it tipped over.

That evening, Tio Mario and Tia Sandra came over to play. Vivi running and jumping into Mario arms was priceless- she was so excited to see him! Around Sandra however, she was a little shy (she thinks Sandra is a real princess ever since the wedding, the big white dress, etc). All the kids loved playing with the Tia and Tio and were being silly well into the night.

Driving Day 2: Monterrey to Mexico City!

Everyone had a pretty good night sleep, and then we headed to the amazing breakfast buffet at the hotel. I don't know why the continental breakfasts at hotels in the US are always blah- this free breakfast at the "Best Western" in Monterrey was amazing. Trays of fresh pineapple, papaya, watermelon, 4 kinds of freshly squeezed juice, quesadillas from fresh tortillas, and about 10 other hot dishes- eggs, cactus (nopales), veggies, pancakes, potatoes, etc. I didn't even make it to the sweet breads. Yum, now my mouth is watering.

We made our way out of Monterrey and back onto the highway after breakfast. For a long time, we were in this transition between desert and forest. The long straight stretches of highway were lined by the weirdest cartoon-like cactus-trees, which the kids called "spikey plants."

After a while we started to drive through the mountains. Tonito kept saying "mountains just like China!" (yes, very UNlike Illinois and Texas). Although the kids loved watching the mountains, these beautiful views and curves did not go over so well with Tonito's tummy.

Contrary to what you see in these pictures, Tonito was not feeling well in the car. This was our stop for lunch, when the carsickness started. Actually this is right after he got sick, I was trying to give him some fresh air and he was telling me about Lion King 1 1/2. (I've never actually *watched* the movie because I am always in the front seat, but I know almost all of the words!!!). This is Tonito in a nutshell- happy and smiling and acting silly (even when not feeling well).

Along the way, we saw lots of little stands selling products typical of the region. Here is "ajo" (fresh garlic)...

These are "tunas," which are prickly pear- a fruit from cactus. You can buy them in the US too (at my favorite Caputo's:) but they are SO much fresher from the side of the road! We bought a huge bag, and then a couple already peeled for a snack. This was one of our many "car sick" stops.

Almost to Mexico City! Here they are selling dried snakes, although Tonio couldn't tell me exactly how you cook them (he thinks soup). Also if you click on the picture and make it bigger you can see little birds in a cage, and then a table of cacti. This funny trio of dried snakes-pet birds-house plant cacti was sold at all of the stands we saw for about 30 minutes. I can't believe the picture is so clear even though I took it from the mini-van at 70 miles an hour.

This is *almost* to Mexico City, another little car sick stop. Poor Tonito! I think they sell bracelets or patches or something for car sickness for kids, and we will definitely need one for the trip home. Emil me if you know of any cures! The only thing we had was dramamine, and that came right back up with everything else....

Finally we made it to Mexico City- after many, many stops on the side of the road for a breath of fresh air and a change of t-shirt for poor little Tonito. We had called Tonio's parents from the road, and they had pedialyte-cocktail waiting for him:). The kids were so excitd to be out of the car they were dancing and jumping around, and no one could believe they had just driven more than 11 hours. Aaaaah, we finally made it!

Driving Day 1: We made it to Monterrey!

Setting the alarm for 3:30am, I thought it would be hard to wke up- but my eyes popped open at 2:45 and I was ready. As funny as it sounds, I quickly ran around the house turning on lights looking for cucarachas (because I am convinced these tropical beasts come out at night when we're not looking) and was thrilled when I didn't find any. Alone and excited, I came back to bed and Tonio reminded me when the alarm was going off. I pretened to sleep a bit longer, while my mind raced through the lists that seemd to constantly run along the bottom of the screen of my mind like a CNN ticker: bathing suits, lunch boxes, vitamins, wipes, books for kids, books for me, night diapers for Maya, summer clothes, one pair of jean for each kid... (aw man! as I am writing this at night I just realized that I forgot MY pair of jeans!). Finally the alarm "woke" us up. I packed the cooler with sandwiches and cold snacks, filled the sippy cups with milk and water bottles with ice water, made Tonio an iced latte, and then got dressed. "Come on Tonio! We're going to Mexico!"

The drive to Laredo was about 5 hours (1 Baby Einstein, 1 Rapunzel movie and a couple of hours of Disney songs on the itunes. We had some long delays at the border because in order to bring your car into Mexico you have to get Mexican auto insurance, and then get a certificate to temporarily import your car (loooooong lines in a hot building with crabby kids). After 3 sticky hours, we were on our way! The kids fell asleep right away, and we made it about a half an hour before we got to a checkpoint. The immigration official asked for my tourist visa- AAAAAGH. That was one thing we did not get at the border because someone said I wouldn't need it since I was with Tonio. Frustrating!!! So we turned around, drove back to the border, waited in the long lines again, and got back on the road. When we passed the checkpoint again it was a different officail who didn't even glance at the troublesome visa that I had just paid for and wait an hour for. ANYWAY, we decided to be in a good mood:).

The 2 hours through the desert to Monterrey went really quickly and the kids loved looking at the moutains and "spikey" plants.

Finally we made it to the Monterrey! We walked around the colonial old town, ate a delicious dinner, and then we all went to sleep after a long day.

Butterflies!!!

What a fun day at the Natural Science Museum!!! We saw butterflies, beetles, leaf-cutting ants, bees, and (ew) cockroaches. The actual butterfly center was a huge glass dome, filled with tropical plants and orchids, complete with a waterfall and the occasional Blue Morpho flittering around the winding paths. It reminded me so much of Costa Rica! One funny or amazing thing that MAYA said, as we walked up to the museum and its gigantic announcement of the Terra Cotta Warriors: "China mommy! To-to China too!" Seriously.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Happy 4th of July!

In the morning we visited a great Farmer's Market for the first time here, and everyone got to pick out one item to bring home. Vivi found some delicious local honey (and so cheap!) and we had a nice chat with the beekeeper who showed us pictures of their hundreds of beehives. Tonito picked out fresh tomatoes, and said that he wanted pasta with tomatoes- yum. I picked out some grainy bread, and Tonio got yellow tomatoes. We couldn't resist ripping off chunks of the fresh bread and dipping them in the honey for an early lunch- heavenly. We were, of course, dripping with sweat and decided to head back to the house. After more lunch and a nap, we went to a great red, white, and blue festival with Tonio's co-worker's family, and several other families. The kids enjoyed rock-climbing, slip-and-sliding, bouncing in the moonwalks, listening to the concerts, running around with glow-sticks, and eating a ton of picnic food. By the end they were exhausted and all 3 asked if they could sleep on the blanket until the fireworks came (but they were too excited to actually follow through!)...

That's our apartment

Checking out the turtles from the bridge

Painting huge part of a mural

Mommy, can we sleep just a little bit?

Again, they fell asleep before we left the driveway of our friend's house. My babies were so tired!

Happy Birthday USA!

In the morning, Tonio got to come to the kids' swimming lessons. Today went much, much better for Vivi. She has been having a tough time because she is scared of jumping in, going underwater, floating on her back, etc, etc. Pretty much everything they do. The past week there has been a lot of terrified crying, but today she did everything they asked, and then would look over, flip up her goggles, and give us the thumbs up (!!!???). Other parents, and even the lifeguards were joking with me that I brought a different girl to class. I have no idea what changed, but I am happy that she is not so scared anymore!
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In the evening, we had a fabulous time at a co-workers pool party, and capped off the night watching the fireworks from the golf course off their backyard. There were so many little kids in life jackets and floaties, jumping in and swimming around, going down the slide, playing with the beach balls- it was a challenge to keep an eye on our kids, but they had SO MUCH FUN!!!!:) They miss their friends, they miss playdates, and they just miss playing with other kids. This was a dose of chaotic fun that was welcomed and appreciated! The house had a gorgeous backyard and pool that was very kid-proof: a screen in porch looked over the pool, and then the pool had an iron fence around it separating it from the grassy play area. Both gates into the pool are had alarms that need to be deactivated every time a gate opens- very safe, and something to remember for later.

Vivi and I made and decorated a flag cake (egg-free!), and there were many other snacks and treats. It was cute because one of the kids said he wanted some of the "birthday cake," and then someone explained that the 4th of July IS the birthday of the US, and so the kids decided to sing "Happy Birthday." Maya was so excited to join in since she knew the song:).

All in all the kids had an awesome time with the other kids, loved watching the fireworks, and fell asleep almost before we could leave the culdesac.

Random

I'm really hot mommy- cool me off!

Love to take a refreshing bath

Melting in this heat

It is SO hot in Houston right now. It seems to hover near (or above) 100 degrees every day, and then at night it "cool off" to the 80's. It is absolutely not a "dry heat," but rather very humid. Kind-of like you're in a steam room with a hot, wet blanket on. We've got curls all over in this humidity! Fortunately during the hottest time of the day we have lunch and naps, so we are not outside during the worst of it. Like I said in another post, we go swimming every day, and sometimes I bring out tubs of cold water for the kids to play in after naps. The ice cubes last about 2 minutes. Finally one day it rained, and Vivi was shocked "It DOES rain in Texas mommy!" It's funny how they over-generalize about certain things- they also told me they were sad that "this TV does not have Dora or kids shows" (we don't have cable so they haven't really watched anything on TV and they have just gotten over their withdrawl)... No cable+not a lot of toys+terrible heat outside= lots of swimming and mommy-invented games

Scrambling up the Walls and Aladdin

At our new healthclub they have a climbing wall! Tonito was a little spiderman, and made it over halfway up- look at that first picture of him!!?? This is his first time rock-climbing, and he was awesome. All of the other parents were asking how old he was, and then nudging their 10 year olds to "try harder- even a 4 year old can do it!" What made us proud is not how high he went, but that he persisted in trying, even though he was a little scared. Tonito has a great personality in that he is a very determined kid, who works to overcome challenges without getting frustrated. He might get scared, but he doesn't let that bother or hinder himself- this willingness to try is what will make him successful. Vivi was a little more scared, but still tried to be a "spiderwoman" and got nearly as high as Tonito after many attempts.

After rock-climbing we ate dinner outside in the town center, and then headed to the square for a children's drama troupe performance of "Aladdin." It might have been the kids' first time seeing a play/musical, and they really enjoyed it. Here they are in the front row:

Quite a big crowd sitting on the very hot pavement in almost 100 degree heat:

Maya had the best seat in the house- relaxing by sucking her thumb and twirling her hair:

The grand finale:

Pictures with Princess Jasmine and Aladdin:

The genie:

After a fun night the kids are now all asleep and in bed!

Transporting Water and Maya's new sayings

Finishing up our unit on the oceans, we made and tasted salt water, played with our ocean animals in the bath, and experimented on the best ways to transport water. I gave the kids about 10 different "tools" they could use to carry water from one bucket to the next: baggies, paper towels, spoons, a sponge, slotted spoons, a straw, a dump truck, etc. They had to determine which was the "best" and which didn't work so well. I loved their observations:

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Me: Vivi, try this one (giving her a slotted spoon).

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Vivi: (dipping it into the water and watching the water slide through the holes) Oh man! The water fell though mommy. It can't work!

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Later, me: Tonito try this one (again, the slotted spoon).

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Tonito: (dipping it several times and watching the water fall through). Mommy. There's holes. It doesn't work.

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They voted that the sponge and baggies were the most fun and carried a lot of water as well. Maya had a BLAST. Seriously, she was working so hard, running from bucket to bucket as if she were on an important mission. She was so busy scurrying around and spilling water everywhere, and had a furrowed brow as she marched on the sidewalk holding the teaspoon perpendicular to the ground, dripping down her arm. Arriving at the bucket she would bang the teaspoon on the ground, trying to pound out any water left in it, smiling as she accomplished her duty. Had I only known that 2 buckets of chilly water and some spoons would have kept the kids busy for an hour in 100 degree heat (but we were in the shade!:)...

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Maya's most recent phrases:

Maya is a little parrot, talking more and more every day. Someone asked the kids how old they were. Vivi and Tonito each answered "I'm 4." Then Maya did too "I'm 4." "No silly, you're one!" "NO! I 4." "She's 1." "2!" she argued. Already lying about her age. But the truth is, she thinks she is a big kid; in her mind she is another 4 year old and wants to do *everything* the big kids do. She is obsessed with Lion King, and every night wants "bebe Nana" (baby Nala). Or "Mommy Nana" (mommy Nala). She doesn't like Simba and says "Scary!" while shrugging her shoulders. She asks us to read the Lion King book (Nana book) 100 times a day, though she really just wants us to point to the pictures and name the characters.

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THE GOOD:

Maya now asks for help in the sweetest voice: "You 'elp me, pease?" (she doesn't say her "h"'s). So adorable because she pauses and takes a breath after "me." She also says "I love you Vivi." "I love you Toto." etc. She even does it for Boudicca and Mingo, and then she laughs as if it is funny that she loves them. In the car she lists everyone in her little world that she knows, as if she is taking inventory. From the backseat I'll hear her shout "Gamma! Gampa! Co! Mimi!" and then she laughs "Leo! Sophie!" Everytime dogs are involved she thinks it is hilarious. She lists Timo, ah-een (Colleen), Didi, 'ita, 'ito, etc, etc. Copying Vivi and Tonito, she wants to buckle the top part of her carseat by herself and INSISTS "I do-ed it I-self!" She is very good at it. She loves princesses and can identify all Disney princesses "pin-cess." She calls her self "Maya pin-cess." When she wants her shoes off she says "shoes out." Every time she sits in her booster chair she insists on her "seatbelt" and won't eat until she buckles it. Then at the end of the meal she says "Seatbelt out (=off). all done."

THE BAD:

If I am rushing around while she is still at the table with food, she throws it all to Boudicca. The only problem is that Boo cannot catch handfuls of soup, rice, mac and cheese, etc. Handfuls. Her fur gets covered, the rug gets covered. Did I mention we are in a rented apartment?

THE UGLY:

So when Vivi and Tonito get mad at each other, they tell one another: "I'm not your friend now," until they make up and then they are "best friends" again. The other day I almost choked on my breakfast when I heard MAYA saying "No friend Vivi!" She was telling Vivi she wasn't going to be her friend! Monkey see, monkey do- and this definitely is a house of monkeys!

Happy Father's Day at the Beach!

We spent the whole day Sunday at the beach in Galveston, which is an hour away by car. Everyone from Texas has told us that it is not a good beach because we get the silt from the Mississippi River delta. Apparently the farther south you drive, (ie the farther from the mouth of the river), the "cleaner" looking sand and clearer water you get. Since we are from the midwest the brown sand, strewn with hundreds of little shells, was fine! We collected shells, made sand castles, and played in the water. The water was warmer than bathwater, and the waves were not too strong. Both factors cured Vivi of her ocean phobia, and enticed all the kids to run and jump in the waves for literally hours.

Tonito had a BLAST playing in the sand- his first real beach experience!

In the afternoon when the beach had less people, the dogs ran and played in the waves (Boo was terrified but obsessed with the driftwood stick, Mingo just jumped in the water oblivious to the stick).

We were so happy that Maya was not afraid of the water! Vivi at this age would yell "adios! Go away" to the waves. Maya just sat down and played even when a wave would come and wash her over. Obviously we kept a good eye on all the kids!

They loved jumping over the waves. Tonio took the big kids farther out and they LOVED it.

Tired and tan Tonito:

Vivi the Little Mermaid:

Sand Princess Maya:

Around 3pm we decided to drive along Galveston Island to check out other beaches. There aren't many rules that we could see about dogs or cars or bonfires, etc. On many beaches, people would just drive their cars onto the sand and have almost a sandy-tailgate party right there. They all had tents and umbrellas, grills, dogs, toys, we saw horses, etc. So here we come with our IL plates and minivan and try to drive on the sand to see the beach. You can guess what happened next:

Very stuck. I was laughing so hard my stomach hurt. We were the sideshow on the beach, even a police car pulled up next to us to watch Tonio try to dig us out. It was almost like quicksand, the more the tires spun, the deeper we sank. (that is wood Tonio tried to put to give me some traction- just for the record, I was not driving when we got stuck:). Finally some teenage boys and their dad came over and helped to push us out. Any tips? What do you do when you're stuck in the sand? I can get a minivan out of the snow using sand... but what do you use in the sand?

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Anyway, we had a really fun day and no one got too sunburnt or dehyrated in the extreme heat and sun. Besides the last mini-adventure in the sand, it was an awesome Father's Day!:)

Welcome to Texas

One of Tonio's extremely nice co-workers made us a "Welcome to Texas" basket, complete with tortilla chips shaped like the state of Texas (I'm not kidding). Yum, really good Tejana salsa, bottles of Texan red and white wine, Texan beer, some candied nuts and Swedish fish in Texas containers, and lots of goodies for the kids! Even the dogs got gourmet biscuits (although after Mingo's recent antics of chewing the walls in our rented apartment, I'm not sure if they deserve them!). The red, white and blue lei's, bubbles and chalk are already being put to good use, and we will be opening the wine this week! Thank you so much Nicole- the items were so unique and "Texan," I'm still smiling about the chips. We really appreciate you taking the time to put this together, and look forward to meeting your kids soon!

SEA WORLD WEEKEND!!!!!

We went to Sea World- San Antonio! Friday night we drove the 3 hours to the dog-friendly hotel (Boo and Mingo got to come along). We all went to bed after eating quesadillas, watermelon, and carrot sticks in the car. When we got to Sea World the next morning, I was amazed at how BIG and Disneyesque it was- I had no idea!? Also, in case you ever go, the daily admission price is the exact same price as the "funcard," which gives you unlimited admission the rest of the year. Perfect! We headed to the sharks and coral reef exhibit first. The kids were very impressed with the huge sting rays flying through the water, and the even bigger sharks in the next dark aquarium:

Next we went to the Shamu show- but we were scared enough by their multiple warnings of being soaked that we did not take out our camera much. We did in fact get wet, which freaked out the girls. Vivi told us that she likes when whales swim in the sea instead of in the Sea World and it broke my heart. She is the forever compassionate animal lover! We told her that Shamu is here to teach other people how to love animals so that they will protect the oceans, and she seemed OK with the answer. Wasn't there a movie about a kid rescuing a whale?

After Shamu, we went back to the hotel. It was 105 degrees out and time for a cool nap. Tonito slept from the moment his head hit the pillow, Vivi slept about 10 minutes, and Maya about an hour. It was way too exciting to be in bed with either mommy or papi (we kept switching her to see what would work). After a couple of hours, we headed back to the park, this time with a schedule and a plan: playing in the spray park, roller coaster, the pirate show, dinner, crocodiles, the finally, sea lion show. The pirate show was scary, and Tonito was in heaven.

Here is Vivi and Tonito's first roller coaster!!!! Smiles from ears to ears!!!

We rented a stroller the first day, which was well worth it. I miss my double stroller so much!!!!

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Day 2: We got to Sea World early, and went straight to the dolphins. You can buy a "tray" of fish for $4 and then lay on your stomach hand-feed the dolphins.

This was one of the most incredible experiences of my life. I love dolphins and might have been more excited than the kids to be able to interact with them for a couple of minutes.

Maya wasn't quite sure about it, but she liked to watch when I or the kids fed them (and actually got mad one time I took her down off the rim of the pool).

Look at these gorgeous creatures- honestly, this dolphin is smiling!

After the amazing dolphins, we walked over to the penguin exhibit and found some characters along the way (missing Maya was too scared).

Another ride on the roller coaster before we left, this time braver Vivi wants to sit by big brother instead of mommy or papi:

Our hotel check-out was at noon, and since the dogs were relaxing in the air conditioned room we had to rush back to get them. It was a fantastic weekend, so fun, so nice to leave our apartment without cleaning it for a showing or an open house! ha! But also just to enjoy the 5 of us together experiencing new things together, aaaah.

Starting the Ocean Unit

This is what our days look like:

8-12: run errands, go to the library or park, color, play

12: lunch

1-4: naps and snack

4-6: SWIM

6: dinner

7: art projects, read books

8:30: bed

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We are studying "oceans" right now, and the kids are making an ocean scene on our un-decorated wall. Here they are glue-ing cheerios to starfish (Maya thought the glue was a fun dip for her cheerios snack until I confiscated it).

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Here is a picture Vivi made for my dad for Father's Day. It is Nala and Simba and Zazu on Pride Rock, with a giraffe, cheetah, elephant and zebra watching. (the black figure is the elephant). She is so good at drawing- everytime she impresses me more!

All in all it was great first week! We are unpacked (yeah, once I found out cockroaches like the glue in boxes, I unpacked in a day and threw all boxes away), settled in, already have books checked out from the library, food in the fridge, clothes in the dressers, and toys strewn around.