Amnet

We finally got Amnet and it only took us 3 and half years to get it.

When I first moved to Costa Rica, one of the things that stood out as a negative to me was the cable. While it was sufficient, I was missing a lot of my favorite shows that I was used to watching and many of the shows that I loved were in Spanish, which took the fun out of watching them, for me.

Then I heard about Amnet and their SAP feature. Many shows could be Sap-ped back into English, including many of the cartoons my kids enjoy. Amnet has channels like FOX and ABC and my all time favorites: The Food Network and HGTV.

We tried for years to get Amnet... OK we started trying hard around the end of 08. We were given bad news every time: the cables for Amnet weren't long enough to reach our house to give us good reception. I thought that was a lame excuse; I mean come on, are you kidding me!!! It's a new millennium and you don't have the proper cables to outfit different houses. Each time an Amnet representative came out, they said the same thing.

I finally told my father in law that if we really wanted Amnet, we would have to go INTO the offices and talk to the head honcho. No way was I taking no for an answer. Well, father in law finally went in and what do you know: they sent a representative out to look at the house and we were hooked up to Amnet this past Saturday. Easy as pie.

I have to say, it's a danger for me having Amnet since most of my favorite shows are all now in English : I could watch TV all day. The other night I stayed up until after 1a.m. because House Hunters was on HGTV. I didn't want to miss out on an episode.

Also, now Boobie can watch all his favorites, like Cartoon Network, Ben 1o and iCarly in English and Princess and Fatty get Discovery Kids back... here we come Caillou!

I hope to get even more channels once we break in the cable a little bit, just to expand our viewing pleasure. Because while Amnet to me, is the better option in cable for us, it's not perfect. It is pretty bare bones too; not too many channels to speak of . But it has more channels that I can watch and that is what counts.

Not Typical Me

You know, Boobie's birthday is like 2 months away.... a good 60 days according to my countdown. Typically I would start planning his party or activity already, maybe even have a few party stuff tucked away in anticipation for the event.

This year is just a little different. I am not going to be doing the typical me stuff anymore. I am trying to be a little more thrifty and save money. And since I have been so preoccupied with finding Boobie a school and PAYING for it, a birthday party was the farthest thing from my mind. BUT I do love a party and even more so, I love planning them, so it was in the back of my mind the whole time.

Boobie mentioned wanting to have a party at the skating rink in San Pedro. I thought it a good idea. He could invite a few kids (friends/cousins) and I could take them skating, then head over to the Mall San Pedro for lunch afterwards. But Boobie didn't like that idea. He wanted a PRIVATE party! That means renting the entire rink for only his party guests for a birthday skate-a -thon. Yeah Boobie great idea... even more money out of our pockets, Huh? This kid has no idea how much his education costs.

OK, so I decided to humor the idea; what the hey right. Nothing wrong in asking. As I was passing by the rink the other day, I got the number to call to solicit party information. I finally called today (took me a couple of weeks; like I said, preoccupied with schools). Anyway, the price wasn't BAD but it wasn't good either: c90.000 for 2.5 hours of skating for up to 50 people. If I wasn't thinking money for schools at this point, I would have said, "sure sounds fine, lets do it." But then I have to think of food for the party and that's yet another expense.

I mean, it's not a no. I will think it over. I know what Hubby will say, so I won't even mention it to him YET. Of course the other option is having something small here at home, like we did last year. I just need to get all this school stuff situated before I can think of any more money coming of my pocket. I'm still for a few friends going skating then lunch at the mall after, then home for cake. Maybe he'll warm up to that idea.

I Get So Lonely...

Sometimes. I blogged about not having any 'real' friends here before. And it just gets harder and harder for. I guess I keep blogging about it because it's a sore subject for me.

My friend, my closest friend that I had here in Costa Rica, is no longer that to me anymore. She is so distant. Our relationship is strained and she is moving farther and farther away from me. Yes, she leads a different life than I do. She has no kids. She works. And she has family here... TWO sisters AND a sister in law. I just don't fit into her life anymore, like I used to.

She never comes over to visit me anymore. She was on vacation for like 2 months, and I could count the amount of times I saw her (minus the times we hung out as a group with Hubby's girl cousins or at family gatherings). She's never home and when I call her she never answers her phone. When I try to set up a girl friend play date, she always brushes me off... she'll tell me to come one day, but when I call her she doesn't pick up her phone and when I stop by she's never at home. It's like she's trying to send me a message and I think that message is "leave me alone"! :(

I really think I am reading more into it, making my mind play dirty tricks on me. But it's hard NOT to feel that way. I met up with her by accident at Boobie's best friend's house (which happens to be her mom's house as well; she's Boobie's best friend's aunt). I decided it was my chance to catch up with her; shoot the breeze so to speak. Well, the whole time I was there, she was on her laptop, barely making eye contact with me. The conversation was forced and one sided... I did all the talking and she barely responded. I got a little shame faced and ended up leaving. I try to get up with her, but like I said many times before, she's never home and she never answers her phone.. or at least she never answers when I call.

It hurts. And there are days I just wish I had even ONE close friend to talk to. I miss not having any family here, which makes the friend thing even harder. I know I shouldn't feel so lonely, after all I have my kids and Hubby. But it's not the same. And Hubby's cousins are only friends by default. They are related to me in some sort of way and so it's just not the same. They have their true friends and family here to fill the gap for them, so they don't feel too lonely or friendless.

I said in my other blog that a friend will come if I just wait. Well, I've been waiting and so far, no luck. Hubby thinks it's hard for me to make friends because I am not OUT there. Meaning, he has made a few 'friends' and many acquaintances because he works. It's easier to find people you're compatible with when you are either working or going to school. I never thought being a stay at home mom would make it so hard to find friends. If anything I thought it would be easier.

Anyway, Boobie will be starting a new school soon and I am going to put myself out there. Market ME, if you will.

I will try and volunteer more to get myself noticed (something I have always wanted to do but never took the initiative, mostly because I never felt right at any of Boobie's old schools). Hopefully, with me putting myself out there, a friend will be waiting in the wings; waiting for a friend like me.

We're All Sick

Yup. We all woke up today with little colds... me, Princess, and Fatty. I barely got a full night's sleep last night as I bunked with the little ones and since Fatty could not breathe well, he kept waking up at all hours of the night. I had a little trouble breathing as well, along with feeling a little pain in my throat and a lot of pain in my body. And poor Princess, who woke me up twice in the middle of the night to pee, seemed to have breathing troubles as well.

Fatty woke up with gunk in his eyes and a runny nose. Princess woke up with a stuffy nose and I woke up tired. I hope we don't get hit with full blown colds. I just don't need to be getting sick right now.

Not to add today my body aches so bad, from all the exercise I did yesterday and Saturday. I hope my body does not take that as a sign of weakness and an excuse to get sick. I think I'll try and relax today (after my meeting with the potential pre-school for Princess).

I need a nap.

Oh WOW!

What a perfect Sunday I had. I tell you, it does not get any better, and when it does, it's just heaven all around.

So Hubby called me Sunday morning and asked me if I wanted to run up to the apartment and meet him so we could hang as a 'couple' for the day. I LOVE couple time as much as I love family time, so I was 'gung ho' and said yes!

After getting the kids showered and fed, I got ready to jog the 30 minutes to San Pedro to Hubby's apartment. It was a good jog. After I showered, Hubby and I enjoyed each others 'company' then headed out for a walk to find a place to eat. We both wanted Jamaican so we headed over to the new Jamaican restaurant in Curridabat (a stone's throw away from the apartment right on the San Pedro line). I forget the name of the restaurant, but it wasn't very creative; something like Jamaican Grill or something like that. It's right across the street from Kai's Cafe (another one of my favorite spots).

The ambiance was perfect. A little fancy on the inside but not over the top fancy where I felt uncomfortable (I still had my jogging clothes on). I LOVED the music in the background... mostly old school R&B, like Whitney Houston, R.Kelly, Boys To Men and the like. I was jamming to the music while I waited for the food and Hubby enjoyed watching the soccer game they had on the huge flat screen TV.

The menu was impressive. I didn't even scan the whole thing. I just focused on the Jamaican cuisine. They had dishes like Oxtail, Curry Chicken and Goat (yum), Jerk Chicken, etc. I mean dishes I had never seen here before and food I hadn't eaten in the 3+ years since I've been here. I was salivating. Hubby ordered the Ackee and Salt fish dish (it was served with rice and beans... rice and peas... and a salad). I ordered the Oxtail and rice and peas (it also came with a salad), along with Te Frio (iced tea). They ran out of te frio so I settled for the frutas drink, which I wasn't too happy with so I switched my frutas for Hubby's Mora, which was delish.

Now the food was OK, satisfying for sure, but they could have given bigger portions for the price... each dish was about C4.000 colones (roughly about $7). While Hubby was still hungry after our late lunch, I was full. But I did wish they gave more Oxtail, as oxtail is a part of the beef with VERY little meat and lots of bone. But I enjoyed the food and look forward to going back and trying out the other dishes on the menu. Next time I'll remember my camera.

Compared to the other Jamaican restaurant we go to, I'd have to give this one a 7 in comparison (for now). The rice and beans was good but the other place makes it better. And service was terrible. I didn't mind as I was reading the map of Jamaica they had on the table with some very interesting information about Jamaica, but Hubby was not too pleased.

After our dining experience, we walked over to the Munos y Nane bakery shop and grabbed some sweets for dessert (I got a chocolate covered cookie and Hubby got a danish). Then I grabbed a drink and we headed back to the apartment.

It was still such a nice day (a little cooler than the morning), so Hubby and I decided to ride our bikes back home (I rode Boobie's bike that he had left at the apartment Saturday). Now I had not really ridden a mountain bike before and it's been a while, a long while, since I've ridden a bicycle period. Now imagine me riding my bike on the street... a 10 year old's bike at that. Boy did I need help. So Hubby and I switched bikes. It was a workout I tell you, especially going up hill. And today, in between my legs where I sit on the bike is SWORE. I am in pain still, but it was so much fun I look forward to doing it again (I need to learn). It was so awesome being with Hubby, spending quality time with him and even squeezing in a little activity.

Like I said a perfect Sunday.

We Made A Decision

Or rather, I made a decision. I finally chose a school for Boobie. Here's a hint: it's neither Conbi College nor Saint Benedict. I was losing sleep and stressing about which of these two schools to choose; one that was too far away but more affordable or the one that was closet but a little high in tuition.

Well, in the end, I went with a totally different school and it was just by luck too. Today I decided to visit Colegio Monterrey. I had written it off my list because it was too expensive (c140.000 colones... a little less than $250 a month).

But I decided to go see it all the same, hoping against hope that it would help me with my decision. Well, I called and made an appointment for today at 11 am. Boobie and I headed over there and to my surprise it is pretty close. Not as close as Conbi but much closer than Saint Benedict.

I wasn't impressed with the school at first sight so I thought I would still be battling over my decision of which school to choose after the visit. Well, let me just tell you this: We LOVE the school (the tour sealed the deal) and after a quick meeting with hubby to show him the brochure and tell him a little about the school, we decided to apply. Hopefully Boobie will be attending next month.

I have to call on Monday and set up a meeting for Boobie to take 2 placement exams in Math and English on Tuesday. He'll also have a meeting with the director and we'll find out for certain whether he got accepted. Then from there, it's time for the money to do some talking. We have to pay the enrollment fee of c120.000 colones, the one time fee of c15.000 colones, uniforms (which are fairly reasonably priced), books, school supplies, and the tuition for February. School begins the 3rd, so that does not leave us with enough time to do it all. Fortunately, uniforms and books are sold at the school so that is one stop shopping. And most every where else sells school supplies so I can get my shopping done in just one day.

Now why did I settle for an even more expensive school than my first 2 choices. I don't know. I guess the school just spoke to me. It is HUGE!!! Even bigger than Conbi and Saint Benedict. It has a library, computer and science labs, a ginormous gym and a cafeteria the size of half my house. No joke. Not to mention so many places for the kids to play outdoors (a soccer field, football field, basketball court, a play ground). It hit EVERY single point of importance on my list.

While the price is a bit high, it is still doable and won't stretch us too much, although I'll have to watch my spending from now on. Also, the school is NOT bilingual which puzzles me because they offer, I think it was, 14 lessons in English a week. Just as much as Conbi and Saint Benedict. But the biggest selling point: Boobie LOVES the school, even more than Saint Benedict so we have a winner. I cannot wait for him to start school now.

http://www.colegiomonterrey.ed.cr/

It Has Begun

Fatty has discovered the art of spitting. Yup. He's a 'spitter' now. You just gotta love these toddler stages.

He spits in your face, your clothes and takes your hand ever so gently and spits in it.

And of course the reaction he gets only eggs him on to spit some more.

Oh boy. What's next, huh?