Rocky Point Roaches.....

OK, I am going to take a break from my China talk, to talk Mexico for a minute.  We have a full schedule between J's work trips and our upcoming trip to Thailand.  With that said, we are trying to book something relatively easy for a spring break, break!

Here's the thing,  I love California, but I hate to be cold, so really,  March there doesn't work for me.    So Mexico: warmer water, beautiful condos and houses, you can drive there, its close, all this makes it relatively easy to me.

But here's where my Nervous Mom Issues kick in!  I'm going to say maybe 10 years back we rented a house in Rocky Point.  A big, beautiful home on the ocean where we could invite our entire family to stay and the price was a screaming deal.  This was back before all the security issues with traveling to Mexico really hit the news, or maybe just before I watched the news and knew about them.  We packed our food, because I knew I would not eat theirs, grabbed our swim suits and headed out for 2 weeks of sun!

The first week we were going to have my family stay with us, and the second week have J's family stay with us.  The subject of traveling with family I will write about in another post, because it has issues all of its own worth blogging about.

Mexico, on the other hand topped any family situation with the arrival of my family to the beautiful, ocean front home, filled with Roaches!!
(I need you to understand that when I say filled with Roaches I really mean filled with Roaches!!)

Roach Heaven...

To start, I hate the food.  I remember going there in high school and literally starving because I wasn't smart enough to take my own food, and not adventurous enough to try the tacos that had hunks of meat that I was sure was dog!  I chose instead to beg for cheese filled hot dogs that someone else had brought (if this was my situation today I think I would have found grass or sea weed to eat before I would eat cheese filled hot dogs!).

This High School memory was not my finest moment, and not going to happen again.  I was prepared.  I knew J would eat all the street tacos he could get his hands on, and I knew, I would eat the spaghetti I had made myself.

Taking the food issue out of the equation I thought this trip was going to be Amazing!  (insert high pitched Amazing voice)  At this time we had a 1 year old, a 5 year old, and an 8 yr old.  Family that was traveling with us had kids of similar ages, and so playmates for everyone!  I was excited for all the memories we would create together!

We arrived at the house and got settled in.  I do not remember why, but J chose the room where we were going to sleep, and for some reason I was not happy about it.  I, with age am learning to handle situations better, but back then, I am sure I let him have it for going against my desire in room choice!

Loved my B's hair in braids.

Within hours of arrival, and settling in, we spotted our first cockroach!  I was extremely unhappy about this, but became the most unhappy when in the middle of the night, J felt something crawling on him and brushed it off right onto me!!!!!!  

Great room choice, J!!

If you have seen me react to bugs, you have a good picture of what is going down.  I have a great, high pitched, loud girl scream and I used it!!!   I'm sure the roach wishes it would not have found me, and I continue to wish it hadn't touched me, but the damage was done.  Crazily, I stood with my baby, in the middle of the family room, watching my other children sleep to prevent bugs crawling on them the rest of the night.  To make matters worse, if I did see a roach I proceeded to scream that girl scream I had mastered over the years, making every ones night really long and loud!!
I wanted to pack the car and abandon the trip.  I didn't care if family was flying in, I was leaving!!!

This is where J steps in and tells me I am not leaving my family, and need to figure out how to calm down.

The rest of the trip is a blur!!! I am sure we had moments of fun but all I remember is the roaches!!

And, side note,  I do remember the random electrical blackouts that occurred everyday that you could do nothing about but wait for it to come back on, hoping it would come back on!!!

So here comes my 1st Rocky Point advice,   Ask Questions!!!  Even the weird ones, like do you have roaches running freely in your home and random electrical blackouts?

Ocean and a pool table, in theory Paradise!

I have called the owners of several homes who have clarified that most homes have roaches.  "It's Rocky Point they say, you cannot avoid them."  I have not had one tell me their home would be roach free and so no matter how great a deal, or nice the home is, I am out.  Homes with lots of bugs are not for me.

Unfortunately, I still really want to go to Rocky Point, although as I write this I am wondering why????   I guess a maintained hotel is my next alternative to a house on the beach.

I have narrowed it down by several people telling me the "Sonoran Sun",  is my best option due to required monthly pest control.  I am hoping this is right, and we will be roach free!

I am still leery of driving in Mexico, and leery of the bugs, and food, and doctor offices, but in the spirit of adventure am willing to try this again!

(this same roach trip one of our family members busted his face on some rocks in the ocean, and had to seek medical care.  J told me there was blood all over the walls of the doctors office, YUCK, and hopefully I am never going there!!)

2nd, check with the hotel for security practices and if there is medical doctors available on site.  My youngest has had several health issues over his life so this is extremely important to me!  (Again, another blog post that will dive into traveling with a child that has extra needs.  It takes effort but can be done!)

My little K, sun screening up for a day on the beach.

3rd, don't forget insurance for your vehicles.  You can buy it online or at most convenience stores on the way out of the US.

4th,  check the latest citizenship requirements for you and your family, because you don't want to stay forever! (Last checked everyone under 16 only needed a birth certificate, but everyone over 16 needed a passport)

5th,  Plan your food, either take it, know the restaurants on property of where you are staying, or plan to eat some street tacos, which J swears are delicious.  Try not to resort to begging your neighbors for food, although if it is me, I will share!

6th, and really the most important, remember to think smart, be safe, check travel advisories, know any language terms you may need, and let family or friends know your travel schedule and accommodations while you are there.

If you are prepared, hopefully some of the nervousness will subside,  and if you have roaches, you won't die, but for sure, let me know, so I don't stay where you did!!!!!

I would love any tips you have regarding Rocky Point.  Everyone I talk to says its safe as can be, but when you are a Nervous Mom, you can find things to worry about.

I am excited for the warmish water, (62-65 degrees) and the sun (in the 80's), and to a roach free condo!!!

Fingers crossed......

2006, The Year of the Roach...

Massages gone wrong....

My first overseas trip  to Asia was full of adventure! So many things literally took my breath away, a  taxi cab hi-jacking, toilets that were so wrong on so many levels, and countless social situations I am still moved by, but I will save these for down the blog road.   This entry is solely for the art of massage.  

Now,  I will declare that I am an open book.  I tend to share way to much and don't seem to be bothered by it.  J, on the other hand is a closed book and prefers I keep my stories to myself.  This is one of those times he would like me to keep my stories to myself.  In the spirit of  sharing my experiences in a real, honest way,  I am going to overlook this small detail.  Hopefully, husband censorship does not take effect so early on in this process!

(censorship took effect and this post waited 4 days for clearance)

With that said here goes....

I had heard massages in China were amazing,  I was so excited!!!  (Go back and read this sentence again, and insert a high voice and emphasis on amazing so you will know I how said it in my mind as I wrote it!!)

So when we were headed over, it was declared we were getting a massage every day.  I was thrilled!!  A massage everyday??  I was pretty sure I died on the plane and was headed to heaven!

Here is where the story takes a turn.  We were new at this, so no preparation was put into where we would get these massages everyday.  We were in nice hotels but as we walked around the streets of Beijing, there were numerous massage salons.  We decided in the spirit of adventure,  Lets do this!!  

Here comes problem #1.  I did not bring anything with me that gave us translation of English words into Chinese.  I did not know how to say 'hot stone massage', or 'foot reflexology', so as we walked into our first salon, a lot of hand waving started as we tried to explain what we were there for.

 I think we should have read the writing on the wall, and left when we first saw the purple beach towels on the beds, but again, I was in China, and I was there for adventure.  This first massage didn't actually turn out to be so bad.  It was in a basement, and they did use buckets to give pedicures, but all in all, it was ok.  The massage lasted about 2 and 1/2 hours because they would come in, say something we didn't understand, we would nod, and they would add time on the timer.  Can you believe we actually finally shut it down ourselves??? Never before was I happy a massage was over.  No rashes or weird ailments seemed to follow in the next few hours so I assumed all was well!

Now this is where the tale turns really sour.  Problem 2... The picture above was before our second massage.  J was reluctant at this point, but I was still embracing the adventure for everything it gave me.  This massage was in a nice salon and mine turned out to be a great, normal, USA kind of massage.  J's on the other hand was not!  When I saw him afterward he was pale and I was unsure what had transpired.  When he  turned away from me and I saw his back which had deep, bruises, I gasped.  He told me that after a few times of asking the masseuse to ease up, he decided to see if he could endure some Chinese torture!  He counted her rubbing his back more than 500 times in one spot!  OUCH!!!!

AHHHH, can you believe the bruises??

At this point, J is done getting massages, but I was still not ready to throw in the towel!  Even though these massages were not like any I had in the past, I was committed to a massage everyday and was not ready to dismiss this luxury.   The truth was I should have been!!

We traveled to Hong Kong from Beijing  and as we wandered the streets of a new city, behold new massage salons.  I encouraged him to go in, and he agreed to a pedicure.

A sweet, Chinese lady led me into a private room which was only private for about 1/2 the massage.  About 1/2 way through they hung up a sheet, and brought a Chinese man in.  Awkward!!!  Thank goodness I couldn't see him through the sheet but I knew he was there and that as enough to make this massage uncomfortable.  That was Problem 3, and Problem 4, the huge one is headed my way!

Here it is... Some of the most important advice I will give you!!  If you cannot understand what a massage therapist in China, or any other country is asking you, do not assume your answer is YES.  You may end up with your "boobs" being rubbed when you were not interested in having them rubbed!!   Yep, you read right, I heard the little lady say something, and not knowing what she said just nodded my head yes.  That was when she grabbed me, and I am sure my eyes have never been so big!!!  In shock, I realized this was not what I was expecting and said 'NO" which luckily she responded too and moved on.

Unfortunately for me, in this Chinese massage world,  I seem to be an extremely slow learner.  I was persuaded immediately after  to let her rub behind my ears to drain a lymph node.  I didn't know my lymph node needed draining but again said yes. This draining practice hurt, I had a knot for weeks, and still have a lump to this day!!  Not sure she drained anything, and more sure she caused scar tissue behind my ear!

Every time I think about it, I shake my head in disbelief that this all happened.  I am still unsure if this practice of 'boob' rubbing is part of their normal massages or if she thought it is something we do in the US.  Either way it became part of our story and one J wishes I would keep to myself.

So lets recap massage travel tips for foreign countries especially Asia:

1.  Have Wi Fi at all times with a translator app or a book with translations
                       
                Top 3 Translator Apps (in my opinion)
                                 iTranslate Voice
                                 Google Translate
                                 iTranslate

2. Preplan where you will get Reflexology or a Massage.
            (I have no good suggestions at this time:)

3.  Do not say Yes unless you actually know the answer is yes.

4.  Still embrace the adventure and take the experiences as memories that will last a lifetime       (and may cause you to go to therapy:)

I went to Asia with the desire to embrace whatever came my way.  The many situations that I experienced here definitely put me so far out of my comfort zone, but gave me the ability to embrace the variations of another country so much easier.

I believe attitude has everything to do with how you will feel on your trip and remember it for many years to come.  If you go with the thought you will hate it, you will.  If you go with the thought you will love it, you will!!  No matter how many crazy things happened or went wrong they added to the journey of being in a foreign country and gave me new perspectives to rely on for years to come.

I loved Asia!   And Even with Massages gone so wrong, so many other things went right!!   

Temporary Delay....

I am having a temporary delay in posting due to some censorship issues with DJH.  I will resume posting soon!  I am excited to share some great stories from our trip to Asia.

Stay tuned.....

I Can Relax On A Plane!

The view out my window as we flew over Alaska in route to China

First order of business, I hate to fly!!!!  I mean, I really hate to fly!
I was that lady on the plane you didn't want to sit by.  I listened to every sound trying to figure out if the plane was broke  and shouldn't take off, and then continued to analyze all the sounds of the plane as we flew, trying to decide which sound eventually was going to take us down!

 I was grabbing the arms of my seat and making heavy breathing sounds as I tried to figure out how to save myself.  I have been known to let out a few screams during turbulence, and guarantee I have made some other nervous travelers flights, much, much worse!!

Remember the Alanis Morissette song, where she talks about the "guy who waited his whole life to take that flight, and as the plane crashed down, he thought well isn't this nice".  I sang that song in my head as I flew, convinced it was going to be me!!

When I decided to fly to China, I knew I better get my ducks in a row.  So here it is, this is how I cope.  I have googled many different articles on flying, and these are the points that stuck!  Now this is what I say in my head as I travel:

If you fly every day of your life, probability indicates that it would take you nineteen thousand years before you would succumb to a fatal accident. Nineteen thousand years!

I love the plane trackers on long flights!

Turbulence is essentially just a "rough patch"  I think of it as driving on a bumpy, dirt road! (a car does not fall apart due to bumps, why would a plane)

 Even if an Engine fails the plane will still fly with the other one!

No flying bird can stop a jet engine.   

Planes are completely new every 4 to 5 years by the overhauls done to them in safety checks

Most planes can land in 0/0 visibility (heavy fog) 

Ice is safe (due to all the defogging technology)

There are people watching to make sure the planes get no where near each other,  I Wish someone did that with my car while I was driving!

lightning simply “passes through” the aircraft 

Planes take you here, Hong Kong 

There is no such thing as an “air pocket”.

According to the NY Times, of the 760 million passengers who flew on commercial airlines from the United States in all of 2006, 760 million passengers flew and lived with a zero fatality rate. 

As I prepared for China, I took information from many articles that answered questions i had, and simplified it to make it easy for me to remember.  As I searched for this same information today,  I saw so many articles discussing the recent tragedies in the airline industry.  The underlying answer in every article still was that Flying is safe, and continues to be.  Safety records and statistics, don't lie.  Flying is safer than riding in your car.

Now my last point:  Have any  of you ever drove and texted at the same time? Have you looked at instagram, or watched your husband check his email while driving down the road with you, and all your children aboard?

For me the answer is yes.  I am guilty of texting and driving, guilty of yelling at my husband for checking his email while driving, and guilty of complete distraction while  navigating  through my music playlists.

These days, I rest easy knowing my pilot is paying 100% attention to what he is doing and that the airplane has been thoroughly checked out and had all scheduled maintenance performed.  So much safer than my everyday transportation!

          

   

              Sony MDR10RNC Premium Noise Canceling Headphone

Headphones are a must on flights!  We have a few pair, and these are my favorites!

No matter what brand you go with, make sure they are noise reduction headphones or you will spend hours with your hands to your ears trying to hear your movie through the sounds of the plane.

 ( i have done this, it sucks!)

Now put on your headphones, turn on a movie, read a book, listen to music, take a nap, or just relax with confidence that fun awaits you when you land.

*If you have any tricks to making your flights better, I would love to hear about them!!

Just in case you wondered!!

DEATH BY: YOUR ODDS Cardiovascular disease: 1 in 2 Smoking (by/before age 35): 1 in 600 Car trip, coast-to-coast: 1 in 14,000 Bicycle accident: 1 in 88,000 Tornado: 1 in 450,000 Train, coast-to-coast: 1 in 1,000,000 Lightning: 1 in 1.9 million Bee sting: 1 in 5.5 million U.S. commercial jet airline: 1 in 7 million Sources: Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of California at Berkeley

Most of my facts above are from “Confidently Flying: Arm Yourself with the FACTS NOT Fears" eBook as part of the GoGetter JetSetter system to answer all of your fearful questions and to unequivably about flying safety, click here to overcome your fear of flying.

Places I have been....

Oh the places I have been....

Shanghai China

I have been to places of sorrow, places of fear, places of regret, and places of guilt.  I am by nature a nervous, easily guilted, tender hearted, yet tough kind of girl.  I am a contradiction in so many ways when I try to figure out who I want to be.  I am still, at 39 figuring this out, who do I want to be?

Places I have been like, Virgina, Georgia, Miami, Salt Lake City, San Francisco,  New York, Chicago, Shanghai, Bejiing, Venice and Rome are part of a different me that came to existence in the last year.

I have a husband that travels.  He travels all over the US, and travels all over the world.   He went to Europe, Brazil, and China before I started to question why I wasn't going with him.

Why wasn't I????  Easy Answer,  I was too nervous.  Nervous to fly, nervous to be somewhere I wasn't familiar with, nervous to leave my kids, nervous they would get sick, nervous the sitter would get sick of them, nervous my house would be messy, and on and on and on.

I could come up with a million reasons why I was to nervous to go, but I couldn't come up with one reason I shouldn't experience life with J! (J is how I will refer to my husband)

I realized that with, or without me he was going to travel, and I quickly knew I needed to figure out if I really wanted to be a part of his life in this way.

The answer was an overwhelming YES!

I knew I wanted to see places, and I knew the oppurtunity was there to go.  I just had to figure out how to overcome all the negative reasons I could create.  I was holding myself hostage with fear of the unknown.  I had to break free of this and the only way I knew how was to commit to a trip!!!

I told J, whatever the next overseas trip he went on, I was in!!!  I hoped it would be Europe, but nope, it turned out to be Asia.  I will be honest, my heart sank!  Asia??????  Don't they eat crazy food and not have real toilets. Isn't there millions of people who all want to stand right next to you???  Is it safe, will I survive, how far do I have to fly????

Traditional Chinese Lunch= SLIMY!!

The doubts started creeping in, but the best part was the decision was made, I was going!  Now I had to embrace it and figure out how to enjoy it.

My next few entries will share my experiences in Asia.  It truly changed my life and I am so grateful that Asia was the first place I went.  I experienced so many culture differences, and really learned to embrace the adventure.  I will share some of the tips I learned, and some of the facts I embraced to help me cope with the flights and the different methods of travel.

My visit to Asia has given me a desire to travel the world.  I want to see how other Moms just like me are living in their countries.  I am fascinted by all the different ways I see laundry being done (I do a lot of laundry and so this speaks to me).  I am fascinated by the way they care for their kids, how they get them to school, and how kids are surviving in very different places than my city of Gilbert, Arizona.

Before I left on one of my last trips someone said to me, "How do you leave your kids?  My kids are my everything and I would never leave them like you do". (this really happened)

My response to that after a lot of soul searching was, "How can I not leave my kids!  How can I not teach them to embrace the world, to not live in fear of what could happen but live for each day as the gift it is." 

It has taken me along time to find the courage to actually live life outside of my comfort zone on occasion.  I hope they learn as children to seek opportunities that will help them to grow and experience new things.

J & I at Robot Restarrant

I also, love my husband.  I want my kids to know that.  I want them to see despite my busy life as their Mom, I have time for their Dad.  Marriage is amazing and marriage can be really hard.  I have a good one, I picked a great companion and still somedays are brutal!  Life can be brutal, but these trips, they are magical!!!!

I have decided to relax. I try to just love each minute of where I am, and the time I have with my husband.  We get to talk uninterrupted, we get to see things, we experience where history really happened and make memories that are just ours.  I love my time with him, and although I still work at calming my nerves, I plan to travel anywhere he will take me.  ( I do have a few places I won't go until our kids are older but thats for another time).

Oh the places I have been..... and Oh the places I plan to go!!!