X-Pat Princess I am NOT!

The earth quake that hit our neighboring country to the west did not have any direct impact on us, but it certainly stopped us in our tracks and had us considering how we would be impacted if a similar incident were to happen in Argentina.  The “all for one” mentality here would escalate to a new level and we would no doubt need to find a way to exit quickly.  The fact that we are very far from home is very evident to us every minute of the day and this recent incident was just another stark reminder.   Lyndsey and I have been having a hard week; we are missing our life, family and friends in the Estados Unidos (USA).  We are a case book study of the X-Pat stages of culture shock.  We have our good days and bad days and never forget how vulnerable we are.

I am truly learning to live the expression “day by day”.  I have had to abandon my “control every situation” personality and I am currently in withdrawal.  You can try to plan things here, but inevitably something will happen completely abstract to change those plans i.e., flooded streets, loss of electricity, the store or restaurant just decides not to open that day.   So eventually you give up the fight and go with the flow.  Quite frankly it kind of feels good to not have to manage every situation to death; however the true test will be if I can sustain this philosophy in the states.  So as we continue to positively work at transitioning so many aspects of our lives we have open minds and hearts and are excited to understand what each of us will gain from this experience.

So perhaps it is because we are putting forth so much effort and we are working so hard at our transition, that I took such offense to term “X-Pat Princess”.   I could hardly believe my ears when I heard that slander for the first time at church on Sunday, from our pastor no less.  I was so stunned when those words came out of her mouth that I had to stop myself from standing up, snapping my fingers in the air, and saying, “Oh no you didn’t”! I looked around at my fellow X-Pat wife’s for a similar reaction and I found them shrugging their shoulders and nodding while casually agreeing.

Considering I was in church and no one else seemed too upset, I determined that perhaps I should just let this one go, but I simply could not.  When I saw my girlfriends for lunch later that week, I immediately informed them we should never let anyone refer to us that way again.  “X-Pat Princess” implies we are spoiled and we are anything but.  Believe me if I was so spoiled I would have said, I am not going to Argentina and that is FINAL !  But we are here supporting our husbands 100%.  Many people said to me before we left, “I could never do what you are doing, I could never move to another country”.  So I am here amongst the women who can and we never have it easy.  It is tremendous work as we try to work through this foreign system and maintain normalcy for our children, while not dwelling on everything and everyone we miss from home.  We are not princesses, but if we take a few perks along the way it is simply payment for our sacrifices.

Let’s be very clear, we are here for a reason and we are indeed enjoying it and making the most of this opportunity we have been granted. Given the choice most of us (american)moms would still rather be in the US scrubbing our own floors.  However, during our time here, we have been relieved of our cleaning duties as well as laundry and cooking.

I am pretty sure our Margarita is happy with her situation, as I am not very good at telling her what to do. Unfortunately, I am told these women are use to being treated horribly and working tremendously long hours and all for barbarically low wages. I do not tell Margarita what to do, I like what she is doing, I do not make her pick up after us, I need my kids to do that for themselves.  Margarita and I take trips to the store where we play charades and I grunt out a few words that I know and then she comes home and makes food that reminds me of my grandmothers cooking.  I determined over the years that cooking is truly a gift and she has it as did my grandparents.  I am sending an email to the food network to let them know I have their next “Chopped star”, she uses ingredients I have never seen in my life to make constantly good dishes.  The girls always ask when I pick them up, what did Margarita cook for dinner?  They can’t wait! I would not say it is gourmet, it is just really, really good food.  I am motivated to learn Spanish because I want to talk to her.  I want to know about her life.  Ball does an extensive testing and an environmental study at her home, so we know that all is good and legal (90% are not). She just seems so kind I want to get to know her.  I go to Spanish translator.com and write her notes to tell her how much I like her cooking.  My tutor laughs at me and tells me how terribly it was translated, but Margarita gets the point.  I drive her when I can to the bus stop.  My more knowledgeable X-Pat friends do not approve of any of this.  They tell me the maids are not use to such kindness and they will take advantage of me.  Maybe, but I appreciate her so much and the work she is doing for my family the least I can do is take her to the bus stop.  They just shake their head at me.  Doug reminds me we are paying her and we are following the Evita labor laws to the letter and she receives paid vacation along with contributions to her benefits and pension.  I still cannot believe sometimes what they actually get paid for all the work they do.  Margarita is thrilled to have a steady job and after interviewing lots of candidates, I believe she is the right fit for our family, and although I am terrible at giving any orders, she does so much work and we are in reality benefiting each other.

I do find myself thanking god about five times a day that I am an American.  The Argentines do not wish they were Americans this is their home, but their government so restricts any foreign influence they do not know what they are missing.  I am so thankful for our great democracy, although our current leaders are trying to satisfy their own agenda despite the wishes of the people, democracy will reign and we are indeed a blessed nation.

I am learning so much about my always interesting Argentine host and I try to be very gracious and remember always I am a guest.  I am in their country and I must make an effort to learn their language.  I always apologize and tell them I am trying and never act mad or frustrated when I cannot get anything accomplished.

There is internal conflict in the country with the beef industry.  Beef is the number one Argentine export and the government is significantly tampering with the process.   As a result, beef prices have jumped some say 100%.  Times are tough here for many people and crime is a factor.  Without committing heresy while in country, I will try to explain in my next addition why the situation is so damaging to Argentina because of the government controls. The Argentine government perceives their intervention is helping their citizens, but the result has been the exact opposite.   Do you think Obama is reading my blog?

Please say a prayer for us everytime we cross your mind.

Until next time,

>Lyndsey’s Youth Group took a train to downtown BA for an evening of Paint-ball.  unlike other parents, we were not quite ready to put Lyndsey on a train by herself so Doug joined the fun and they had a blast.  Doug snapped a few pictures with his cell phone and this is Lyndsey in her militia gear and one of her new friends/neighbor.

 

It’s the little things…

A few months ago when I envisioned my X-Pat experience, I knew I wanted our family to; slow down the pace, spend more time together, learn Spanish, and make the absolute most of our experience during the small amount of time that we are here.  Today is the one month anniversary of our arrival and we are starting to feel a little more at home each day and working a little closer to our goal.  One perk we enjoy very much is having Doug home with us in the mornings for breakfast before he takes the girls to school.  In our almost 17 years of marriage we have never seen him in the morning as he was always long gone at work, so this is a very nice benefit.  However our pace has not slowed down as much as I would have like, and I have resigned to the fact that our life no matter where we are is going to be crazy busy and that is just who we are.

My Spanish teacher and I spend more time discussing world politics and religion than we do studying Spanish, but I told her today, I am starting to feel a little more settled and I promise to study more.  She always say’s “oh Kelly, you are doing fine”.  Although she has told me the guards get very excited when they know she is coming to my house.  They know she is a tutor and they ask if she can please hurry and teach Senora Parker Spanish.  The guards need to call me whenever there is someone wanting to enter.  When they call I say, “Si, Gracious”.  I usually wait to hear the name of the person I am expecting to arrive, however if they told me an axe murder was on the way I would still say, “Si, Gracious”.   I am so obsessed with the correct pronunciation that I have to practically say the entire Spanish alphabet in my head so I can recall the proper sounds of each consonant and vowel before I will even attempt to pronounce one word.  And I think I may never venture out of the present tense.   Lauryn will be the one who is going to really learn Spanish.  Her pronunciation is right on, and already she is correcting me.  She practices a lot at school and I am just not sure how much practice Lyndsey is getting as in the land of 6^th grade you do your best to stay under the radar.  You would not want to look silly by improperly pronouncing the days of the week, someone might laugh at you.  Lyndsey will probably be like me, we will understand it, but we will not speak it beautifully.  Keep in mind this language is completely different from what is spoken in Spain and Mexico.  Of course it is still Spanish but the pronunciation is practically Italian.  Elizabeth tells me I need to practice speaking all day long, in the car in the shower, this is the only way it will become natural.  I pray for more motivation.  You would think being in a foreign country and not be able to communicate would be plenty of motivation; however I have many enablers that communicate on my behalf so I do not have an intense desperation like some of the other X-Pats.

There are so many opportunities at the American School; we have piled it on again.  As promised, we made our way downtown over the weekend to visit the rink where the girls will eventually take a few lessons.  The ride is long and the ice is tiny, but after our fun day in the city we decided having to come to the rink on Saturday will provide us with the motivation we might not otherwise have to explore downtown Buenos Aires.  The last time the girls and I were downtown it was August and our minds were clouded with all the details of moving and finding a house in this new world.  We had a city tour but I was so overwhelmed it was hard to enjoy the tour and listen to the guide.  Close to 20 million people call Buenos Aires home and it is truly massive. I don’t think this small town girl will ever wrap her brain around this massive city.

Each and every street you happen on is highly populated and full of shops and architecture that never repeats itself.  It is a mixture of old European meets modern day art.  We are enjoying an overload of new experiences, but you can bet every chance we get to grab our little slice of Americana, we take it.  We had heard there was a Hard Rock Café downtown and thanks to our navigation system we were able to find this needle in the haystack. We are immersed in the Argentine culture and we enjoy their foods and customs all day long, but oh the joy we find in ordering a chicken fingers appetizer with both honey mustard and BBQ sauce.  It is these little things that absolutely make our day.  I tried to see if I could buy some honey mustard, however given my limitations on communicating I was not successful.  I ordered nachos with salsa, also very hard to find and there was not one morsel left on the plate.  We walked around the outside market in front of the Hard Rock Plaza and I was happy to see lots of American tourist speaking perfect American English, not British English like the Argentines speak.  To hear people speaking American English outside of the X-Pat community makes me smile.  I wanted to tell them all “watch your purse”.  I leave mine at home when I travel to the city.

It is interesting to live amongst a socialist society.  I love to hear Doug talk about how the government regulates price controls on products so that no one shop can provide a better deal than the next, this way everyone is “equal”.  I have keys to our home that look like what was surely used by John Adams when he was given the keys to the white house.  The “key” industry has been around for a while and it employs lots of people so they keep it going as to not put anyone out of work.  Does this sound familiar?  I will try not to get to political but let’s just say President Obama needs to spend some time in Argentina.  Bailing out dying companies will not allow more evolutionary ones to evolve and it will not allow us to advance.

We are pretty sure we have stepped back in time to what we estimate is the early 1970’s but with internet for those Argentines who can afford it.  Most Argentines would never have enough money to buy a computer.  The electronics are not as advanced as what we are use to and are ridiculously expensive even for Americans utilizing the exchange rate.  I would never buy anything of value here, except for these awesome little furniture pieces I find from the old Estancia’s – more on that later.   The American products we are use to are just not the same quality here, it would appear because of the government fixed pricing and tax implications on imports, they need to send inferior quality products in order for them to make any money. The Argentine government would rather their population use what is available from their own country, they do not want foreign companies providing products that compete with what they already provide.  You all heard the horror stories of our family trying to get our visas.  They strongly discourage any foreign influence, the socialist mentality disagrees that foreign business would create new jobs; their view is very simply that it would take them away.  Ball of course is in the disposable products category and is doing very well as they manufacture in country a product in high demand and they do not import.  We had about two weeks of rain and the mosquitoes are in full force.  When we arrived there were no bugs and now we cannot even walk outside.  All the “Off” cans in Argentina have Ball written on the bottom.  “That’s my can man”, I tell everyone.  So business is booming.  Doug’s plant also manufactures Aerosol cans for deodorant, cleaning supplies etc.  Aerosol cans are quite popular here.  Ironically you would think our children have never heard of “Off” as they are covered in bites.

So I celebrated my one month anniversary by meeting Doug and Mercedes at the Baruge Lazulay near the colectora by the Panamericana.  This was a big deal as a month ago climbing Mt. Everest seemed more manageable than driving to this location.  Thanks to lots of coaching and map assistance from my Elizabeth and Mercedes, I made it on my own. I was complaining to our home owner, through my translators of course, about the loose tiles in the sunroom/breakfast area.  By some miracle, or my constant complaining, they told me I could pick out the color of the tile and they would install it.  I will keep you posted on this one.  That is very uncharacteristic of an Argentine owner to repair an item like this while the renter’s contract is already signed.  So Doug, Mercedes and I picked out a few tile options from The Baruge Lazulay.  I will post before and after pictures if it ever actually gets to that point. When we return to BA in the fall from the states, I will have one suitcase dedicated to gifts for Mercedes, I adore her. Doug appreciates her as well and tells me this is part of her job, but she does it in a way that puts me at ease.  She’s like my little guardian angel, thank you god.

Until next time,

Mucho amor, Huesto Luego

This is the guard station entrance into our neighborhood.  The Trende La Costa passes the front of the entrances to many of the gated communities and the San Isidro station is about 3 blocks down from our neighborhood and is a popular tourist spot.

 

Toto, I don’t think Were in Kansas Anymore

Well it had to happen; we transitioned last week from our vacation mode to the full blown reality of living and raising kids in a foreign country.  We kicked off the week with the first day of school at Lincoln. Both girls did great and said they liked it very much.  Lyndsey had what we call an Argentine day on Tuesday.  We bought her on the eve of the first day of school the only lock we could find, and it had a key, so we had to hunt around town to find a more traditional one the next day.  In short, the janitor had to destroy both locks so she could get her locker open.  I felt so bad for her as this is not your ideal 2^nd day at a new school. Not really Lyndsey’s fault as things do not always work like they are suppose to here and so we all have our Argentine days.  Everyone was very helpful and in true Parker style we made our typical grand entrance and now everyone including the janitor knows who we are.

Argentine days however are much easier because we are so blessed with an amazing support system, without them I would have abandoned ship two weeks ago.  Just when I think the communication gap is too much and I cannot take it anymore, God puts someone in my life to remind me we are here for a reason.  This week Elizabeth entered my life, my Spanish teacher/therapist.  Per my itinerary from Doug’s office, I was to tutor with her from 8:30 to 10:30 on Thursday and in the midst of all this I was to have three service people descending on our home to resolve some repair issues.  Funny how I still think charades will get my through the day.  While repeating again for the 10^th time “no entiendo”,  Elizabeth came in and took over.  You do not know how humbling it is to have zero control on what is happening in your life and home, imagine if I did not have Elizabeth and Mercedes whom I can trust immensely.  In addition to an unexpected therapy session, I had a huge lesson on working with Argentine service people, current events, and a little history of why Argentines are the way they are.  Elizabeth is taking me on a field trip this week to help me get my very complicated parking pass so I can park in front of the quaint shops in San Isidro, Love her!

Once Lyndsey got over the locker hurdle, she really seemed to enjoy school her first week of school.  Middle schooler’s have lots of freedom on their campus area and as usual Lyndsey seems to have lots of friends.  There is a neighborhood gang that rides the hood every night and she is right in the thick of it.  Lauryn tags along but it’s a little uneasy about the freedom she has in the neighborhood.  This community is gated with no less than four guards on duty at one time.  No one can enter the neighborhood without permission from a homeowner.  The guards know all the families and they are walking through the neighborhood as well.  This takes a lot of getting use to, but it is life in the big Latin American city.  Parents assure me that I need to let my kids go and let them enjoy running from house to house.  Lyndsey is so embarrassed because she has to call in every 30 minutes, but she knows this is how I roll.  They have never been allowed this independence and Lyndsey is truly enjoying this fringe benefit.

Lauryn likes school very much and always comes out in a good mood, her teacher is so amazing, and Lauryn has picked up right where she left off with the same math curriculum in Colorado.  This absolutely made her week! Lauryn is always talking with friends and really just seems happy.  She is enjoying the family time and less stress.  However next week activities start and we will pick up the pace a little but not like Colorado.

You could have knocked me over with a feather when Lyndsey said she signed up for soccer.  All those years of driving to Toledo for games and tournaments all over the state only to have Lyndsey say when we moved to Colorado, “I think I will take a break from soccer”.  She has been playing with some of her neighbors and with friends at school and evidentially has a desire to dust of her soccer cleats.  I love to see gods good work, the reason we did all that traveling is now very clear.  Unlike the pressure cooker competitive soccer days in Ohio, this will no doubt provide her with development in a little more relaxed environment, we will see.  I am so excited she is playing it is great exercise and maybe she will want to continue in Colorado.  Lyndsey also has to participate in band; oh she does not like this.  She will be picking an instrument soon.  But as promised she will also be taking guitar lessons outside of the school and has many activities at church with her youth group.

We are looking outside of the school for soccer for Lauryn, she will do a little at the school, but we want to see what more competitive options are available.  Most of the clubs are all Spanish speaking, so we will see how this goes.  This may be something we have to do next school year as Lauryn’s language develops.   These are very competitive leagues and not being able to understand the coach, could be an issue.  Lauryn is going to join the choir, and she starts tennis as well as Awana at church in a few weeks.  She is truly excited she will be doing some intense bible study. What a good kid!

Next week we are visiting the Skating rink and I anticipate this will make us all very homesick, but we will see what we can do to get them on the ice at least once a week.  I have to attend an evaluation next week for my spot in the tennis league and I need to get in a little/lot of practice.  I have had much fun running around with Mercedes this week to rustic furniture stores and beautiful fabric stores in downtown BA.  I am excited about the furniture as we are finding some beautiful inexpensive rustic items we can use someday when we finally finish our basement.

So the hardest thing so far about this experience is: missing my family and friends so bad I could cry; missing my household items so bad I can have an absolute nervous breakdown at any minute; and feeling like the biggest idiot on the planet for not knowing the language. Why do we not more aggressively teach foreign languages in the American schools from an early age?  All the Europeans speak Spanish, English, as well as the language of their country.  They always ask if I speak Spanish and when they ask me where I am from, I proudly say “The United States of America”; born and raised in the fabulous state of Ohio in the heart of farm country,  just south of the headquarters to the American auto industry and just west of the American entertainers Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the American Football Hall of Fame ; I am proud to be an American, and yes, we may not know five languages but we are amongst the hardest working ingenious entrepreneurs on the planet!  We are blessed to be members of a democratic society where our people determine the policies not our government. Our country is comprised of immigrants who came in search of freedom and the promise land.  Our dedicated troops continue to fight fearlessly for this freedom and I tell my kids everyday to thank god they are Americans!  I may not say all that, but I politely get my point across.

Argentine Spanish is hard and I am in the overwhelming stage feeling like I need to learn this by next Tuesday while most people learn a new language over years.  My newest realization in my language quest is that Argentines’ really do not pronounce their consonants’, and we strongly pronounce our consonants’.  So I realize I have work to do.  Doug is doing well, he is indeed a leader.  He can manage this entire experience with grace and somehow he knows less Spanish than me, but always seems to communicate just fine.  People just want to do things for him.  I would also say Lyndsey has the same qualities, she makes friends easy and once she has determined, I cannot avoid this situation, she makes it work.  Lauryn and I however if we let ourselves will just shutdown.   But Lauryn like her mom wants to do well and knows we should enjoy this discovery time in our life.

So this week will bring new challenges for sure, as we get more settled we hope to do more skyping.

Love you all,

Mesa Argentina

 

Argentina Lessons

What a difference a week makes.  Last week at this time I was not driving, I did not feel comfortable going much of anywhere on my own, and I thought our whole family was going to pass out from the heat.  Today the temperature has finally dropped, the kids spent the day at an amusement park in Tigre (teagray) with Doug and new friends, and I enjoyed meeting more new and interesting people as well.

I am now driving like a true Argentine, I am out an about feeling good and trying to enjoy all these new experiences, with the exception of the language barrier.  The few weeks I have been here has taught me that learning to speak Spanish in Argentina requires a strong ability to master their pronunciation.  As Americans we typically learn Spanish that is spoken in Mexico, the Argentines speech is its own unique blend of Spanish, Italian and German.  When you first hear it, it is so beautifully spoken you would think it is indeed Italian they are speaking not Spanish.  Their alphabet has quite a few differences from the one we learned in high school.  For example everyone knows chicken (pollo) is pronounced poyo in Mexico.  In Argentina they pronounce “ll” as J so chicken is pronounced pojo.  So my first lesson will be the Argentine Spanish alphabet.   For those who come here and know Spanish well, they have to learn to master the pronunciation.  My name here is   “Caaaaale”, you hold the “a” for about two seconds than a short “e”.  The girls and I in our new found independence went to McDonalds the other day and somehow Lauryn ended up with a hamburger plain!  I said “hamburguese con queso”- hamburger with cheese but my pronunciation was way off.  Thank god for my good eaters they just eat it and laugh and me.  Lyndsey says her goal is to be able to order for us.  I told her that will require lots of studying, practice and patience.  I will need to practice what I preach as well.

I have to admit I am glad to be back in my car, I did not enjoy having to call a driver (remise) every time I needed to leave the house.  With all the back and forth between the church and school this week, I am having a better understanding of my tiny corner of Argentina.  To quote a famous movie line from Grease when they are at Thunder Road, “The Rules Are, There Are No Rules” and that is how we drive.  So basically you get to drive everyday how you wish you could drive when you are running late to your kids practice again.  Most streets are one way, so in a street where you would think one car could fit, they manage to fit three with a motorcycle in the middle.  There are no stop signs just a universal understanding that at an intersection the person to the right has the right of way.  Non Argentine citizens are easily identified as they pause at intersections and run the risk of being rear ended because no one is expecting you to stop.  On some of the major roads, they do have stop lights which go: green, yellow, red, then yellow again before it goes back to green.  As a result I find myself sitting at a red light waiting for it to turn yellow, because people start honking their horns if you are sitting there for .05 seconds after it turns green, everybody moves on yellow.  You also never stop at a light turning yellow before it turns red or you will hear beautiful Argentine obscenities directed at you.  Managing the one way streets has been really challenging and pedestrians beware, they do not have the right of way and they know it.  Don’t even get me started about turning left.  Only a few streets allow you to turn left and you can do it from the far right lane, think about that one.  I can’t believe they just let us drive here without taking a test first.   Argentines are very proud, very loud, and they care primarily about themselves, so driving is no joke and quite frankly if I ever get pulled over, I will not handle it well.  Most of the X-Pats have extra pesos on hand just in case, I will not do this.

I try to keep my eyes on the road but there is so much to see, I can hardly concentrate.  On our way to school the other day I was thinking to myself, it’s just so old, and sometimes dirty, crowded and smelly.  As I was complaining silently to myself, Lyndsey says, “I love these buildings, they are so old and they look so cool, the trees are so big and it’s cool that it is so busy here, I want to live in the city someday”.  After hearing her say that right when I was thinking the exact opposite, I realized I am officially so old and so stuck in my ways that I cannot enjoy the new and different sights and sounds around me.  The girls in will be influenced by this experience that will hopefully be with them their entire life. I on the other hand am too far gone to be influenced.    But there are many benefits here that are turning me into an Argentine fan.  You can have your dog groomed for about seven US dollars and they will come and pick him up at your house and return him.  Every restaurant and grocery store delivers and you can have manicures and pedicures done in your own home for a fraction of what it cost in a US salon.  In sharp contrast they know us Americans well; I paid 10 US dollars the other day on a small bottle of ranch dressing.

It has became very clear to me this week after hearing other peoples stories our X-Pat’s transition has been tremendously easier than most.  Knock on wood I am so thankful!!! You cannot imagine the conditions in which families arrive here and start living.  Often families live in a hotel until they can rent an apartment or home.  90% of them do not own a home in the states or their home country and will wait months with for their shipments to arrive with everything they own. Then they have to wait about another month for customs to pick through and inspect everything.  Most of them do not have a car at all and they are forced to utilize busing and trains or buy their own car which is next to impossible for foreigners to do.  It is amazing to me how little work the Argentines do, so getting anything done is excruciatingly time consuming. It takes months to get utilities established here and out of absolute dire frustrations most X-Pats hire a relocation specialist.  We have been blessed with Mercedes’.  Oh I cannot tell you what she has meant to me.  She is a highly educated Argentine who speaks Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and little German, she is Doug’s assistant and I adore her.  “Well”, this is what Mercedes says before she speaks, you must say it with an accent and at the same time you are exhaling.  Mercedes has been immensely helpful to me since our first visit in August.  As you can imagine, many of the Argentine merchants take advantage of non Spanish speaking people and Mercedes deals with all the vendors on our behalf.  I have been a little sad that I did not bring more of our household items so Mercedes called me a driver while the girls were at camp last week and together the driver Mercedes and I went to a little place where they hand craft beautiful wood furnishings for a steal.  Next week we have plans to go to Belgrano (bellgraaaano) roll your g and r’s, which is in the heart of Buenos Aires to a fabric store to find some fabric that I will use to reupholster my old basement couch.  So while other X-Pats are making plans to visit Antarctica, I am making plans to visit the fabric stores. It’s just who I am.

Lyndsey had orientation on Friday and I am holding my breath that it is as awesome as it seems.  The girls appear to have enjoyed their two week vacation and I am praying they still enjoy it here once school starts.  We are learning some serious street smarts and trying to keep a lower profile and blend.  There are so many amazing things to do and see, but there are many poor citizens and crime is high.  It is no different than any other major city in the world, you have to be aware and not draw attention to yourself.  Based on our airport experience you can imagine this is something we need to work hard at.

We’ll update you on school next week. Love you all.

 

One Week Down!

Our first full weekend in BA turned out to be like our weekends in America, busy.  Friday and Saturday were spent attempting to purchase items for the house.  Why oh Why? did I not ship more household items.  It is extremely difficult to find furnishings, clothing, linens etc. of the same quality we have in the US.

In my opinion the Argentine priority list goes something like this;

(1).  Be constantly irritated at the government for taking half of my tiny pay for their own self indulgence, then concentrate on me and me alone while maintaining my stunningly beautiful appearance

(2).  After getting my beauty rest, wake up late and groom my beautiful hair then enjoy a relaxing morning with my cafe eventually arriving at work around 9:30

(3). Call friends at 10:15 to make plans for lunch at 11:30

(4).  Take a two hour lunch eating excessive amounts of carbohydrates while still maintaining my fabulous figure

(5).  Work until 6:30ish where I will go home for 1 hour before meeting friends for dinner out

(6).  Write a mean note to the maid for not ironing my cloths correctly

(7). Finally turn in early at midnight and start all over again the next morning.

My first impression is the Argentine culture focuses on themselves rather than others or their personal property.  So for us Americans obsessed with personal property, I am lost!  I called a driver on Saturday to drop me off at the Jumbo, pronounced “June Bo”, I spent 3.5 hours at the grocery trying to familiarize myself with their food and their packaging before Doug and the girls came to rescue me.  I must say despite the aggressive cart driving, I enjoyed this time very much! It was so interesting and we are all enjoying tasting new things.  Things we will have to live without include cheddar cheese and chocolate chip cookies.  Everything else we can find, it just may not be exactly the same and that is ok.

We live very close to the San Isidro Station, which is a huge tourist attraction, the buses drop of tons of Americans and I love waiving to them on the bus.  It is cool to live next to this major tourist spot, there are lots of craft booths, music etc.  We walked down on Saturday and enjoyed a great pizza outdoors and continue to try and work our way through the language.  Doug has been to enough restaurants during his time here that we can manage, but it is not pretty.  One thing Doug is very good at, is knowing his way around.  In Colorado a few weeks after our arrival, I could navigate very well the northern Denver suburbs and Boulder.  I am not sure I will ever master this city.  Some of the streets are over 300 years old and it is a one way maze of tiny streets that merge with millions of other streets, it is very scary.  If I were to get lost, that could be very dangerous.  I have a GPS but she does not speak English and it is tough to follow.  My driving, when I start, will include driving to the school and back, nothing else.  We made our way to our church on Sunday and everyone was very happy to finally see us.  It is such a tight American community and everyone is so friendly.  We had a pool party at our house on Sunday and I put out my best Argentine spread! Three families from church came over along with another family in our neighborhood.  It was very comfortable and I felt like I knew these people for longer than a day.  When you are all in the same situation you have a quick connection.  I am already over scheduled with a neighborhood bible study, The BAIN club, “Buenos Aires International Newcomers”, tennis in a few weeks and who knows what awaits me once school starts.

This week is busy with vacation bible school in the morning and Lincoln School camp in the afternoon.  The poor remise (my driver) tries to talk to me every day, just hoping I have made an effort to learn some Spanish… I will, just give me a minute to get settled!  I am trying to enjoy BA for all its uniqueness and we are not complaining about the vast differences but we do point them out.  The one that annoys us the most is the trash situation.  We will watch Argentine kids buy ice cream take off the wrappers and drop them to the ground.  You should see Lauryn’s jaw drop!  After coming from a Colorado school were they spent weeks studying planet earth, and recycling, I thought she was going to cry.  Doug explains to us that when they drop trash on the ground, they view it as creating a job.  It is a socialist mentality, however where is the guy picking up the trash, because he is not doing his job. Being the strong Republican that I am, I tell him it is not socialism, it is lazy-ism.  Thankfully in our neighborhood they pick up trash everyday and the streets are immaculate; outside the gates not so much.

We were so happy to see the Colts on our Argentine Direct TV, we lucked out an got American announcers during the Colts game, however the Minnesota Saints game was in espanol, so  we understand blah blah,…..Reggie Bush…blah, blah………Brett Farve.  We had been watching American idol on our sling box, but the girls found out through their channel surfing research that American Fox stations air their programming here.  It was nice to give our x-pat companions this news, they were grateful for the info.   Saturday night we stayed up too late watching back to back episodes of last week’s American Idol and we understand we will be able to see all the Glee episodes, this is exceptional news to the girls.

Lyndsey was off at camp today and was her chatty self all the way to the school.  Lauryn appears to have a small fever or I think she may be suffering from excessive heat and over stimulization. Either way she is lying in bed with Tug watching movies.

Love you all lots, Skype us.

 

No Hablo Espanol:(

Buenos Aires is treating us well so far! I remember warning myself that the first few days would be very difficult and that I just need to get through it.  I don’t know if all the time we had for preparation made our transition easier, or if it just gets easier every time you move, but day four into our life in Buenos Aires and I am missing my friends and family, but am enjoying our low key lifestyle. It’s interesting to me that every time it comes down to the day of the move, I would do anything in the world to stay right where I am at.  But after each move, I realize how foolish I was to think that way and despite my fears, change can be good!  Step one for me with any new move is telling myself to stop trying to find the similarities, recognize that this place I am in is very different and I need to appreciate the differences and enjoy them.  I had to remind myself of this a lot today. For example the trash pickup comes every day in a little basket in front of the house.  I should stop questioning why and just put the trash out every day.  Trying to buy my typical American groceries is so expensive so I will need to try and eat like the Agentines and learn something new.  Since juice is ridiculously expensive here,  I will do like the Argentines and buy a juicer and make my own fresh with half the sugar.

The girls appear to have the “make the most of your new situation down”.  However, Lyndsey likes to make her case a little before jumping on the band wagon.  For example the girls started summer camp yesterday at their school so we started our morning with Lyndsey proclaiming in a very loud voice that she was not going anywhere.  After finally getting out the door we made our drive to the school.  I told Doug as we stood outside the gym that I felt horrible for Lyndsey and I was going to take her out of the camp when she was done with the day.  Lyndsey continued to give us dirty looks from across the gym, and as I was not yet comfortable leaving, so I made my way to the office to read my book and Doug headed to work.  As usual I agonized over Lyndsey while Lauryn appeared to be having the time of her life.  After a good jet lag recovery snooze in the office, I made my way to the gym, and oddly Lyndsey was not giving me the look and Lauryn had a big smile.  In answer to our question “how was your day”? Lyndsey said “good”.  This is of course 6th grade translation for “I really liked it”, because if she even remotely did not like it, we would have heard about it.  I told her I went ahead an un-enrolled her since she was so upset in the morning.  This caused yet another loud reaction and when I told her I was joking this lead to a big discussion on relaxing and giving things a try before we freak out.  After one day at school she decided she would go to the 6^th grade event at the school that evening, where they walked to the bowling alley, had a bonfire and slept overnight.  When hearing about this, I announced in the car that I was not ready for this and that Lyndsey would NOT be going which then resulted in dirty looks from Doug. I got a lot of dirty looks that day.  Lyndsey went and had a blast.  For the record I do not know a lot of kids who would do that, Lyndsey has gained much adaptability with her moving experiences and makes friends easily.

Lyndsey’s camp counselors speak 100% Spanish throughout the camp so that the kids can get lots of practice.   The 6^th grade students Lyndsey is with are completely bilingual and translate for Lyndsey throughout the day.  Much of these children also speak German.  We are all feeling a little….foolish amongst this new community not knowing at least Spanish. When Lyndsey starts school she will be in a beginner Spanish class with about 4 other middle school students, I am not sure how it will work with Lauryn in elementary.   Meanwhile, I have to get going on my own Spanish instruction, this is getting ridiculous.  I start with the tutor next week. I just feel stupid not being able to communicate.

My new best friend is Alejandra; however we play mostly charades in effort to communicate. I have given her the title of peacemaker not a house cleaner, a clean home puts me at peace.  Most of my neighbors have an Alejandra living with them 24/7.  These neighbors can also communicate with their Alejandra.  The Argentines enjoy life and relax often with family and friends.  Kids are not shuffled from activity to activity; they participate in conversation and also learn to relax at a young age.  I am sure we will continue our intense schedule when we arrive back in the states but for now we will enjoy this beautiful break!  The girls have been in the pool at every opportunity and Lauryn is giving a water aerobics class tomorrow afternoon if anyone would like to attend.  In addition chef Lauryn has embraced the Argentine food and made for us last night a red pepper with cheese and ground pepper appetizer that included her own lemon sauce made from fresh lemons.  Someone call the food network.  I reunited with some of the moms from my first trip at that school today and will be going to the grocery store with one of the gals next week.  She is the mother of three picky eaters and has the skinny on all the American product hot spots.  I will be participating as a teacher next week during our churches vacation bible school and have already been invited to a ladies only pool party.  I hope there is a slide and water guns. We have lots of church activities this weekend and we are looking for tennis opportunities.  All in all, we are doing ok so far.  I miss my outdoor mall that was 55 seconds from my door.  Shopping is proving to be very difficult here.  Of course not being able to communicate does not help; I will keep working at it.  I do think when school starts life will be a little more hectic again, but with activities provided after school; this should be a nice break from my life in the car.  We will head to the “rink” in a few weeks and get the girls on the “so called ice” so they can keep working on their jumps and if they want they will skate a lot in Colorado over the summer.  The girls appear happy and relaxed and today they are exhausted from camp and the time adjustment.  Lauryn also had a friend over today to swim.  Natalie lives a few houses down and is from Missouri, her dad is here working as an attorney and they have SIX children.  Can you imagine their airport stories?  Doug is relieved that Lyndsey liked camp and I told him to not get too excited until she starts school. But for now there is a lot of laughter and I pray it continues.

Once we get this house in order we will post some pictures.

Lots of love, and we appreciate your prayers.

 

Buenos Dias!

We have finally arrived and our heads are spinning.  We made it into Buenos Aires Monday morning and were able to get through customs with little effort however our total travel experience was not without issue.  We got off to turbulent start with the driver showing up with a car unable to accommodate our “9” pieces of luggage.  Already running late we had to be on our way and when the driver could not find a solution my neighbors saved the day and we rode with the Borchlewicz to the airport while our driver followed with our luggage.  Once we made it to the ticket counter we had a representative with some attitude who felt the constant need to tell us how much luggage we had.  Of course she was dealing with the wrong gal on the wrong day and we had words as you can imagine.  Off we went to the security line with overflowing backpacks, a guitar, and webkinz in tow and by the time we finished pulling off boots, coats, and getting our laptops etc. into the buckets,  I commented to the security guard that we are great entertainment and he confirmed we were the best he had seen all day.

We landed in DC on time and had an uneventful flight.  Lyndsey begged us to turn the plane around and we both had tears in our eyes as we said goodbye to the mountains for a while.  How great it was to have a long layover in DC that allowed the girls to spend time with their grandparents and cousin.  We then loaded onto the plane at 9:30pm and continued our exceptional ability to make a scene wherever we go. By the time I was through a total of 6 people changed seats so I could be right next to my girlies. In my defense this was supposed to have already been determined, I blame the ticket rep in Denver.  Lauryn was lights out right after dinner and Lyndsey and I stayed up most of the night watching movie after movie.  BTW for those growing up with Michael Jackson in the 70’s and 80’s this is very good flick!  When I finally did fall asleep I woke up late and quickly needed to get my information together for customs along with all the forms they require you to fill out on the plane.  We had a longer time than most in customs as we needed to present our visa documentation. The girls were practically lying on the floor with exhaustion by the time we were done and we were finally approved to enter the county.  We sprinted to the baggage claim and found that our “9” pieces of luggage was most likely on its last round before going to auction.  I practically jumped on the luggage carousal and grabbed our luggage only to find there were no carts and no one willing to help me find one.  The girls stood on their own guarding “9” pieces of luggage and 6 carry ons’ while I desperately searched the area for a cart. I came across an abandoned cart and soon found out why as it was barely operational.  I finally found an Argentine airport worker to assist me and he eventually started walking away after having to work too hard to get our luggage to the customs screening area.  Sensing I was losing the only many willing to help, I flashed 10 US dollars   (about 40 pesos) and he was once again back to work for the Parker family. Curiously as we got to the luggage screening area, they looked at our pile of luggage and waived us through.  Living in fear that I would be in national headlines for a security breech, I attempted to ask the security personnel no less than 10 times if they needed to scan my luggage.  After my last attempt I told the girls, let’s go for it! We walked through the gates and I could see Doug but he could not yet see us.  I have to say I will never forget his expression.  When he finally saw Lyndsey, his face lit up and he started jumping up and down so we could see him amongst the sea of people.  He busted through the crowd and came running out to greet us.  My over paid steward quickly left as soon as Doug was on the scene and after we were done with our big  greeting we looked up and saw everyone staring at the crazy Americano’s with their “9” pieces of luggage and 6 carry ons.  I thought I would collapse when we finally got to the house. Doug made us a great lunch and we ate at the pool the girls were swimming and in a great mood.  Although when we were taking off for BA Lyndsey was once again begging to turn the plan around, and my heart was breaking.   The weather is hot and humid and I love it! It feels so good to be in the heat. Tug is getting use to the new climate and can hardly keep up with all the birds and sounds they make throughout the day.  I sat in the backyard for about an hour just feeling the heat and all these exotic sounds I had never heard before.  Funny how on our first trip I was so critical of everything, I complained about everything …”this is not anything like America”, “I don’t like this or that”, and now I found myself less critical and just taking it for what it is.  Summer in BA is very nice.  Doug’s assistant came over and spent a few hours with us going over some items with me and working with “Fibertel” reps to identify proper IP numbers in order to connect to Wi-FI . We NEVER could have done this on our own, Fibertel is 100% Spanish speaking and no English translation options. The TV and phones etc., are all working thanks to Doug and this has made our move a little less stressful!  We went last night to our favorite authentic Argentine restaurant “Kansas”.  As you can imagine they specialize in amazing American cuisine and we love it! Huge meal and drinks for all for about 60 USD with exceptional service and 10% tipping.  Come on down and enjoy.  The wait staff is very friendly and they try very hard to communicate with us.  It does not make me angry or sad I cannot tell the waiter I want my dressing on the side, it motivates me.  I am starting my tutor in a few weeks and I plan to start with learning to communicate in the streets.  I do not need to start out learning everything just the priorities to begin with.  Today we get the house in order and Wednesday the girls head to The Lincoln School Summer camp.  Lyndsey is thrilled…not! I will let you know how her first day goes.

We are available for skyping most anytime- and we are hoping to get Vonage connected this week- which means you can call us from the U.S. for the same cost it would cost you to call us in Colorado.

Keep the prayers coming.

 

It’s The Final Countdown

La Boca

Happy New Year!

It is January 2^nd, 2010 which can only mean one thing, our focus has moved from Christmas and New Years’ to finalizing the details of our move to Buenos Aires.  We spent some wonderful time with family and friends over the holidays and with all the love and support I am feeling more and more at peace with our move and even a slight twinge of excitement.  Lyndsey continues to be in denial and there is no doubt the day we leave the house and board the plane there will be many tears.  However we feel very blessed to be able to provide the girls with this opportunity and feel strongly that they will benefit immeasurably from this experience.

Tug and Doug will be leaving for BA next week and the girls and I will follow close behind.  Getting Tug into Argentina is proving to be just as difficult as our Visa process.  Tug under went his examination for his certificate of health this week and we are happy to announce he has been approved for travel to Argentina.  For safe measure we will be heading to downtown Denver where we will have the state veterinarian officially sign his certificate of health.  Our experience with the Argentine government has shown us the more documentation the better.  Tug currently has a reservation to fly in the cabin with Doug, however we have been advised that all this can change on a whim.  We pray that he can travel with Doug and will not experience too much culture shock.   Tug and I have made plans to Skype daily and I hope he understands the girls and I are coming soon.  It will no doubt take him a while to bounce back from his international travel experience, but we think he will appreciate the warmer weather and an occasional dip in the pool.  Tug will not be coming back until the end of our assignment as the plane travel is just too difficult.  I am sure he is ok with that.

The girls are schedule to participate in an amazing summer camp at the Lincoln school the week after we arrive.  You check out the link for the girls summer camp listed under my links or at http://www.lincoln.edu.ar/sports/Summer%20Camp%202009_0001.wmv.  We are hoping they will meet some friends in a fun setting before the first official day of school on February first.  Doug has a full schedule lined up for us when we arrive and I am looking forward to getting our house in order.  Doug has done a ton of work getting all the necessities including appliances, beds, internet, cable, security etc.   I look forward to filling my days initially on getting the girls acclimated with school and their activities and making our new house a home.  We shipped all the furniture from our basement and I am wondering if I will like my old basement furnishing any better in this new house, probably not.  The girls will be happy to know they can now eat, drink, and jump on the couch, something they have not been allowed to do in their previous homes.  This furniture will not be making its way back to Colorado; it has reached its final destination!  After we are good and settled step one is to learn how to navigate the grocery store on my own and improve my tennis game.  I will need to at least learn the Spanish translation for managing these tasks.  I am hoping to learn much more than that but we will start slow.

The next few weeks will be filled with much preparation and tears for sure.  When we walk into our new home in Argentina I will no doubt feel relieved to have arrived but also overwhelmed with anxiety and a strong desire for my familiar life and friends in Colorado.  This overwhelming feeling is one we have felt before, and we know that it will persist for many days, but eventually it will subside and we will begin to embrace and enjoy our new surroundings.

Remember to keep us in your prayers.

 

Hello world!

We are hoping this will be a great way to provide updates to our family and friends during our time in Argentina.  We look forward to recording our experiences our thoughts and our emotions as we go on a journey of a lifetime!