Hump Day!

Well, it's hump day of our first week of school. 4th grade is a doozy! Not sure if it's the school here or just 4th grade in general. The kids come home from school and work on their homework and it takes literally all evening and sometimes past their bedtime of 8pm. I guess no more 7-7:30p bedtimes. 1st grade is not so bad but the twins are roughing it and we've had a few tears of frustration (not me, the kids). We'll work out the kinks but I guess it's good that I don't have many friends here because I don't see myself getting much done in the afternoons besides playing 'teacher' to 3 kids.

The week in general has been rough. Besides juggling the kids and their homework, I've been trying out an "ayi" (pronounced ah-yee) which translates to "aunt or auntie" but basically is what we know as a nanny. Ayis here typically cook, clean, babysit, etc. Some do all, some do only one, some do a couple. To have one, seems to typically cost a few US dollars an hour unless they speak English and then they are maybe 5-7 dollars an hr. Labor here is so inexpensive (I think its because there is just too many people) that many families have ayis. I chuckle because some have an ayi to watch their kid (note NOT plural) and one to cook. Hmm, I have 4 kids so that comes to 4 ayis.... :*) Anyway, I have had a few do some half-day trials but no one has struck me as ...Mary Poppins as my friend says. This week I tried one for 2 days and I was going bonkers with her so I let her go for the sake of sanity. She was young and extremely eager to be my best friend. Long story short, she was not particularly good at anything and drove me nuts w/how she wanted to help me like I was a queen yet it was all talk and no show. Today was so nice and peaceful w/o her and while the house was a mess, I was more relaxed and the mess looked quite 'lovable' ... for now. I'll start again tomorrow in my search but the breathing room was nice.

Took my mom today to the underground (next to the subway) market where they sell all kinds of goods - iPods, clothes, luggages, scarves, fake stuff, etc. It's like Harwin for you Houstonians and it's *kinda* like Sam Moon in Austin but with much more variety. Anyway my point has nothing to do with the market but that we caved in and ate at the KFC located there after we shopped. Oh, I fear the day I return to the US even for a moment b/c I will probably spend every waking minute in every restaurant I have missed. Biggest Loser here I come...