Happy! Happy! Happy!

We are moving back to California!!! ha Life takes you where you need to be and sometimes you do not expect some things. We are very happy with this new move, it will be great.
Pat has a nice job and we will have a nice house in the redwoods. I will stay home with Mateo until I feel ready to put him in child care or until I found a great job, which ever comes first...
I guess, I need to start a new blog named: Back in California again! who knows. I will wait and see how my life unfolds. I won't have family help this time and Pat will be working so I am on my own taking care of Mateo but I think it will be really fun. I have several friends to have play dates with and the community of people where we will live sounds very nice.
Life is good and full. Thanks for reading...

Maybe someday I write a book about our 5 month experience in Ecuador. ha ha

Added 12/30/2010

My new blog: Loma Mar Chapter

Up in the air

Well, life in Ecuador did not turned out the way we thought. We are waiting to see what happens in the next few days. Since we move homes and I have not had a good internet service, I lost interest in posting in this blog. I will take a break.
In the mean time, we are so happy as a family and close to family. We are positive and trying to learn from what it is now. We will be fine, just don't know if in Ecuador or EEUU.

Going everywhere

On the past 10 days we have been really busy. After returning from Yanapana, Pat and I had a date and went to watch Karate Kid the movie. It was a nice escape for us. Thanks to my mom who took care of Mateo. Then, Mateo was a bit sick for few days, later I discovered that he was teething. We also spent few days in my home town Puellaro. We really enjoyed spending time with my grandma and aunt. After that we had Nikki from Hidden Villa visiting us and we took her to Yanapana for couple days. We enjoyed nature a hike in the forest and a refreshing soak in the river. Finally today we went to Papallacta, to some hot springs one and a half hours from here. It was great to soak in hot water with Mateo. As usual he is so happy in the water.
Now I look forward to some weeks at home and get Mateo in some sort of routine.

Mateo and my grandma Anita

Hiking in the forest with Nikki

Happy with dada

Back in Quito/Snakes

It is nice to go to Yanapana for few days and recharge in nature, it is also nice to come back to Quito and have a hot shower, do laundry that actually dries with the sun, and be away from mosquitos! Both of our homes have their good and not so good, we try to enjoy them well when we are in each place.
Last Monday after 3 1/2 hours of driving through green and beautiful scenery we arrived at Yanapana. We usually unload the truck and set up the kitchen and bedroom before it gets dark. It gets dark by 6:30 pm sharp! We also like to have early dinners and head to our cabin to read books to Mateo before he goes to sleep. Remember we do not have electricity yet so everything is lighted by candles. We like this cozy life. I especially enjoy sheltering inside our mosquito net that hangs above our bed. After Mateo goes to sleep I love to write in my journal and read, my bedtime is around 8:00 pm or so since there is not much more to do. It seems like we sync with nature and go early to bed and early to rise.

Snakes:
I have seen 4 snakes on my way to the out house so I do not enjoy these trips anymore since I am very alert and think I will see another one hiding. The last one I saw this week fell from a tree above the pathway and when I looked back to see what it was, there she goes sliding in my direction at a fast speed. I scream! She stayed quiet and I do the same. After realizing I wont do anything to her, she leaves in the other direction and disappears in the green bush. It was a bright green, thin and long snake. Our caretakers told me that this one is not poisonous. The one they found the day after, as they were making a new trail in the forest, was a poisonous snake and Lucho was glad to not have been attacked by it. After this snake theme of the week I realize that I respect snakes very much and I hope they live in our property but never harm us or any of our visitors. It is good to be aware of their presence and very careful always. They could be anywhere!!

Snake "X". This is poisonous

This was near the out house and likes to climb trees. It is harmless.

Things falling into place

Seems like life is getting easier and we are loving it! The first thing we have been focusing our attention on these past three days is in allowing Mateo to have a nurturing environment here at home. I have been cooking for him good meals and making sure he snacks often so he can recuperate from last weeks dehydration. Pat has spent time reading and playing with him. Yesterday, my mom stayed home with Mateo for few hours while we went to get him toys and new books. He is so happy and entertained with the new things we got for him. Also, we notice that this boy is changing and able to hang out around the house while we do things. Before he would not let me do much in the house because he wanted to be held or he wanted me to be near by him at all times. Maybe he was getting used to his new environment and since we went out of the house pretty often on the first weeks here, he was not sure what was going on. It is all in the past and I feel like he is ready to continue to thrive in this his new home. He is even making new sounds and trying to say new words. He sure understands everything I say to him in both languages. We are so grateful that Pat and I can be home and watch this kid grow.

This afternoon as we were looking at the window, we noticed that our neighbors dog, cat and white rabbit were playing on the tile roof of their house. Mateo was very entertained for few minutes.

No time to write

Three weeks have passed since my last post. On the few days we have been in Quito and had access to internet, I have been so busy during the day that when the night comes and Mateo goes to bed, I barely keep up with the house chores!

Since my last report, we went back to Yanapana with a truck full of stuff, food and people (my brother's family and my mom) to spend the holidays. We had a great time, specially when we went to the river. Mateo could live in the water easily.

We also saw interesting insects on this trip and Mateo got to play fearless with a firefly.

In our way back to the city, we started the process of getting Pat's residence. Now we know what papers we need and where to go. Looks like once we submit the required documents he might be getting the ecuadorian ID in less than two months.

I also found a good pediatrician for Mateo. On his first visit, he was healthy and no so happy to be touched and look around by an stranger. Later we came home and after a nap, Mateo wake up sick with high fever that lasted a whole day. He had some diarrhea but went away quick, so since we had a planned trip to the beach with my brother's family, we went on our adventure hopping that we would all have a great time. We did not! Mateo was sick the whole time with vomit and diarrhea and after trying very hard to keep him hydrated, he lost enough fluids to bring us back to Quito to the hospital. We spent this past weekend in the hospital letting my child recover from what it seems to be sensitivity to the ecuadorian food. Pat and I have learned a big lesson and have decided to let us all settle well in this new ecuadorian environment before we embark on any other trip.

Look at the sky

This week we went to Yanapana once more. This time we had a truck full of stuff needed for us to set a comfortable camp, specially at the kitchen, the place where goodies happen. Pat had fun cooking and made a new list of things needed to prepare the best meals. One night, I was reading in the cabin and preparing for bed when Pat says: " you should come out and look at the sky". I went out and I saw the most beautiful night sky ever! I don't think I can describe with words my feeling but it was amazing. The sky was full of stars, so many of them and so clear. I did not know this view was possible in our farm since it is usually cloudy or rainy at night. This day was special and I felt like driving to a higher point to have a better view or stay up all night or do something to not let this moment end. Hope to see the sky like that again soon...

Back in town, Mateo and I attended to my high school friend's birthday party. She is my best high school friend and since we both have children around the same age, we should see often. I am so happy! Today, we spend the day at my brother's cooking green banana soup with my sister in law. It was a good week again. 

Little town we go by in our way to Yanapana

Road to Yanapana 

Birthday Party

Mateo growing up fast and running 

Home sweet home

Our apartment is looking more like home now. Last Friday, we finally received the boxes with our stuff and little by little we are unpacking and finding a place for each thing. No much time to get things done during the day when Mateo needs our time and attention but since we do not have a deadline or jobs to go to, we are enjoying the process. Here are some photos of our place as it looks now. Soon we will have things on the walls. 

The office

A little bit of this and that

Last weekend we went to visit my brother's family. We had a nice meal and afterwards we went to let the cousins hang out and spend some time at a nearby mall. We found a cute toy car for $1.50 rent after no more than 15 minutes Mateo was done with the ride! Isaid was happy in his stroller. 

Mateo and Isaid 

Every Monday at 11 am there is an event in front of the presidents house (few blocks from our house). We were there on time and got to see a nice parade and we even saw Rafael Correa our president! Mateo was very interested on the huge horses that were part of the parade and ofcourse the band. 

Later that day, we went to pick up our pick up! We really like this truck and we hope it will take us safely to our property many times. We also hope to discover more of the beauty of Ecuador on it. I'll like to call it voyager. 

On Tuesday, we made our first trip on voyager to my home town Puellaro. My grandma still lives there and I wanted to spend a special day together. To celebrate we eat cuy, which is a traditional ecuadorian dish. Pat and Mateo preffer not to share that particular tradition with me :). 

To my surprise, my baby started to use the spoon on that day. Most of the food did not make it to his mouth but I was so excited to see him try. This kid is growing so fast!!

That is it for now. The rest of the week we hope to receive some office furniture we order, finally get our boxes and get ready for a family reunion on the weekend. 

Walking in our neighborhood

We love living in down town Quito. Life in the streets is so rich and entertaining. We just need to walk around without any specific mission and we find lots of great things to see. There are many churches, shops, restaurants, hotels, etc within walking distances. Today after spending all morning cleaning the house, doing laundry and making a yummy lunch, we went walking around our neighborhood and came back very happy.
Our surroundings in Quito are so much different than our surroundings in the farm where all is peace and quiet. The richness of nature prevails. We love this contrast!

plaza de San Francisco

plaza de Santo Domingo (two blocks from home)

San Francisco Church

at one side of La Catedral

Yanapana our land

Last weekend we went to Yanapana our property and it took us 7 hours to get there. First we got a taxi to the bus stop, then the bus for 2.5 hours, then had lunch while we waited for the next ride and finally hop in a ranchera for another 2.5 hours in a primitive road. Mateo did very well for his first long bus ride and just the whole experience. At the end, we were so glad to have made it to our beautiful piece of land. Everything is so magic and rich. We were received by our care takers and then visited our dear neighbors. Soon it was time to go to bed and rest. On Sunday, we spent the day seeing the progress our caretakers have made in the past 6 months and looking at things we need to get to make the place ready to receive guests. Casa grande (the main cabin) is almost finished and on our next trip we will bring a stove and kitchen stuff so Pat can start having fun in his big kitchen. And, no, we won't take the stuff by bus and take 7 hours; by then we will have a truck and will be there in 3 hours or so. I also saw our future garden fenced, so it will prevent wild life getting in there. I plan to have a nice garden with lots of things growing there. The pathways and flowers all around the place look great. It does feel like a great place to settle and make it home.

Casa Grande

Caretakers cabin

Guest cabin

Efficient Ecuadorian services

I have been pleased to find that my country has become efficient and organized when it comes to public services. They have state of the art computer systems in a brand new building. Before, to get an Ecuadorian ID (cedula) for example, one had to be prepared to spend a whole day standing in line and usually outside. This week we have focused on getting Mateo’s cedula and our marriage registered. Everyone is so polite and informative and the whole process went very smoothly. We did go back 3 days this week for several reasons but now everything is done. Now, I need to get my updated cedula. The cedula in Ecuador is as the drivers licence in U.E., it is required for everything from opening a bank account to getting a loan to getting a new credit card.
We are also happy because our stuff arrived in Quito on Thursday and my uncle is helping us get them out of customs. It is a long process but I am glad we have someone to help. Next we expect to get the boxes delivered here to our apartment and from there start the unpacking party! It should be fun to have our belongings here with us and make us feel more at home.
Tomorrow we will go to Yanapana and see how things are going there. This time we will adventure by bus and see how it goes. We can’t wait to recharge our energies in nature.

Still waiting for internet so no photos yet…

Taking care of business

We had a busy day taking care of business today. First we went to get Pat’s stitches out from a cut he had last week. Since we contracted medical insurance here the total cost of this procedure was $7 and it was done in the emergency room in less than 30 minutes. We will be paying for medical insurance every month around $30 for each of us. After the doctor visit, we headed to the Registro Civil to ask about legalizing our marriage in this country and getting Mateo’s Ecuadorian ID. Since we did not have all the papers, we need to go back another day. Then we went to get our immigration records which will help us with other business. Later we visited two car dealers looking for a good truck to buy. We were very surprised at the high taxes, interest and hidden costs we would have to pay buying a new truck. We will look some more for use truck and hopefully decide this week what will be in our best interest. We made it back home just as the heavy rain fell in Quito. Usually the mornings are warm, sunny and beautiful and in the afternoon the rain, lightning and thunder takes over.

Hopefully this week we will get a high speed internet service so I can add photos to my posts!

Weekend with the family

Our first weekend in Ecuador had a little of everything. On Saturday we had our first adventure taking the bus from Quito to my brother’s house in the valley which took us a little more than an hour and cost us 0.80. Mateo was fascinated by all that goes on in a bus ride and the busy streets of the city. Then, we saw my grandmother who turned 88 years old this year and my brother’s 6 months old baby who we had not met. It was great to see them and be together again. Later, we went to a graduation party where we saw more family members, some who I have not seen in so many years. It was good to be back. After some good food and some dance with loud music (Ecuadorian style) we left for more peaceful grounds. We spent the night at my brother’s letting the cousins get to know each other. Today, Sunday, we had a B.B.Q and watched the final game of the soccer world cup. It did not have the same taste for me because I was watching Mateo and not the game most of the time, and because we did not have any South American team in the final game. At the end, we had a great time. It is good to be back and have the time to just be and do not feel like we are just visiting for a short time.
(It takes forever to add photos since I have a dial-up internet service, hope to have high speed conection soon)

Here we are!!!

Here we are in Quito, in our little and cozy apartment and we are loving it! The trip went VERY smooth despite few things that could have caused us to be very upset and frustrated. We arrive in Quito with a 3 hours delay but all that matters is that we are here, starting our new lives!
To start, all of us slept in, had breakfast and unpacked. I went down the street with my green whole foods bag to find some groceries and I came back with almost a full bag of fruit, veggies and other and spent only $9! Later, Pat suggested that we go out for lunch so we walked to this very nice restaurant on the 4th floor on the corner of plaza de Santo Domingo. The views of the city, the ambience and the food were amazing and we only paid $7 for all! The rest of the day we have been at home napping and relaxing and looking forward to making few improvements in our apartment.
We already have plans for a big family gathering on Saturday where we will see everyone and have a great time. Life is so good!!
I will add photos to my newt posts …

Almost there!

I am trying to have inner peace while we take care of last minute details of our lives here in California. There is not more time left and we still have many things to do. I need to keep it together! Keep my cool :)

Today is my mom's last day here so I need to take advantage of the help she provide us, specially taking care of Mateo so I can focus of getting something done. We still need to clean the house, we have many things to give away to goodwill. We need to cancel the cable, cell phone, insurance, make arrangements for the car to be picked up and wash the car, go to the library, last minute shopping, have dinner with friends.  All in the middle of making sure we have all our bags packed and with the proper weight. Tomorrow we will get up very early (4:30 am) and take my mom to the airport. On Wednesday we will do the same, this time to catch our flight. I look forward to the moment we are in our seats and all has been taken care of, ready to embark in our new lives! 

Bitter Sweet

This is our last full week here in the Bay Area. As we are slowly and surely cleaning up our house, finishing up our jobs, saying goodbye to friends and coworkers and removing our names from so many mailing lists, days go by with a bitter sweet taste to them. We are VERY excited to go but these final days here as we close this chapter of our lives, are much work!

Today, Monday, it will be my last day at the office. I will be there for a couple hours and then head to do some errands as I am preparing for a volunteer event on Tuesday. 

Tuesday, this will be my last day with so many of the wonderful EVs I have worked on the past four years. Wednesday, will be my final day of work and we will be moving boxes from an storage place to a new office (like I do not have enough boxes with stuff to deal with!), after that we will have lunch and say goodbye to coworkers. Then in the evening, we need to finish packing our boxes. Most of them are finish and sealed but we have few that need stuff we use everyday, like kitchen stuff. Cooking will be fun without all the utensils. Thursday, we will take our 27 boxes of stuff to the airport and send them ahead of us. Hope everything goes very smoothly. Friday, house clean and yard clean up and any other errands left. Saturday, party at our house! Many friends will be coming to wish us farewell (far and well?). Sunday, give away few pieces of furniture and last goodwill trips. Monday and Tuesday rest and last minute things.

Hope to keep it together...

Looking forward to...

Life will be so much fun in Ecuador now that I won't have a regular job. I will have all day everyday to do anything I want. How cool is that!

I look forward to spending quality time with my family. I have so many close family members and I have missed them very much these past 8 years. I look forward to holidays and special dates together. Lot's of food and sharing.

I look forward to the three of us (Pat, Mateo and I) in our apartment, in the land, traveling, discovering Quito, discovering Ecuador, growing as a family.

I can't wait to start decorating our places and make them feel cozy for us, family and friends as they visit. As soon as possible I will start developing our business too! 

In the middle of everything I think we will also enjoy a more relaxed pace of life. Time to read, write, love, appreciate, teach and just be. I look forward to whatever will come our way in our new lives. 

Quito view from El Panecillo

El Panecillo

What would I miss the most

I have been thinking about what would I miss the most when I am gone, and few things come to mind. I would probably miss...

1. going to swim in the mornings on my way to work

2. listening to my books on tape in my car on my way to work

3. going to yoga classes  and reconnecting with myself at least once a week

4. walking to the Palo Alto Baylands when I take a break from work

5. walking around the farm with Mateo and hiking in the forest

6. our wonderful library and all its resources

7. Whole Foods and all it's goodies 

8. Friends over for dinner and happy hours

9. The EVs - Environmental Volunteers, the people I have worked with the last 4 years.

10. Lunch out with coworkers and friends

I know that I will find a way to do some of these activities in Ecuador but I know it will take sometime to get into new routines. We are indeed re-inventing our lives and it will take a while to figure out what we will do with our time now that we will be unemployed. 

I look forward to the opportunities that this present but I will miss many people and activities from our lives here. 

In just one month

In just one month we will be arriving in Ecuador! We are several steps closer to our final move. Today we went to the Ecuadorian consulate in SFO and got Pat's 12-IX Visa. This visa will give us time to go through the process of applying for his residency. I have heard that is a long and painful process and I have also heard that it is very simple now that many Ecuadorian institutions are modernized. We will see. What we know is that we will not hire a lawyer and pay $1,200 for all this business. It will be a good experience for us and we will have time to do it. Besides, I am Ecuadorian and I have dealt with Ecuadorian institutions.

Meanwhile, our lives here are changing rapidly. I am training my replacement at my job. It is both tiring and easier as Laurie learns more and more. I am letting go little by little of my responsibilities. I will really miss a lot of people I have met all these years. I am sure many of them will come to visit us.
Seems like I am more aware now that some things I might be doing for the last time, some places I might be visiting for the last time, some people I might be seeing for the last time, so I try to enjoy myself and make the most of it everyday.

Here are some photos of the place I have lived these past 8 years. I have great memories of this farm. 

Here I worked 3 years

Here I lived few years

Here I lived few others

In my path to home or work

The white barn

Moving sale

This past holiday weekend we had a moving sale in our backyard. We were able to sell many things, collect some money and continue to empty the house. More things are still to be sold and we will use craigslist for that. After that I will post things in freecycle and the rest take it to goodwill. I am glad we don't have many expensive things and we are not attached to what we have. I feel like from all my possessions the photos I have in my computer are the most important thing, which reminds me I should make a back up soon! 

It is amazing how much stuff we accumulate in life and it is also interesting to see how we need some time to let go of things and memories. After all a simple life sounds very good but having the basics is also nice and brings comfort. 

In other news, we finished the list of boxes that will be sent by cargo. We had a very productive weekend! Only 5 weeks to go, 36 more days!

Packing

First we though we will take with us only our suitcases. Since we each could check two 50 lb bags and a carry on, we though that should be enough. As time went by and as we discovered that we could send boxes by plane on reasonably price, we have been packing and packing! Now we have 25 boxes of all sizes. Well, it makes sense to take what we have instead of buying everything new in Ecuador. Also, since they want Ecuadorian immigrants to come back they have pretty nice benefits for us now. For example, I won't pay taxes on the stuff we bring as long as they are household items. I like this.

But still we need to do some paperwork before we ship the boxes. We need a detail list of what the boxes contain, then this list needs to be notarized and then it needs to be signed at the ecuadorian consulate in SFO. We are working on that these days - among other things...

Some of the boxes

Yet another blog

I really enjoy blogging that is why I have started a new blog where I can record my life back in Ecuador. In a little more than six weeks, I will be returning to my home country after being away for 8 years. I have been an expat and I have enjoyed it very much. I even became a citizen of this country! I am packing with me great memories, friendships, dreams and my stuff. I am also bringing a husband and a beautiful son with me. I am very excited to go back home, it seems like it is the right thing to do now that I have a child to raise. We will be fine, we will be happy and we will do good, I know it. Only time will tell the amazing experiences awaiting for us there. I can't wait!