Mexico

[sraplayas]

I live in Tijuana, Mexico and have a baby girl. Looking for other natural parenting mothers out there who are bilingual (I am studying Spanish but not bilingual yet.) I hope to start a mom´s group here soon. Has anyone else done this in Mexico or as an expatriate to another country?

[ihathi]

i'm new to posting, but i'm really anxious to connect with other mothers like myself so i'm giving it a shot...

my husband is mexican and we expect to move to mexico sometime in the next two years. i am very worried about finding a place where we can find a community of people who are into AP like us. i also worry about the general lack of organic foods and poor air quality (in the cities, anyhow...)

in any event, we are totally a bilingual house with a "bilingual" eleven month old (first words: ball and agua!) i totally support your plans to start a mom's group! have you connected with a community of expats? have you been connecting at all with mexican mamas?

please keep posting!

[JenInMexico]

I live in TJ and have an almost-3-year-old boy. Where in TJ are you at? I'm in Colonia Real de San Francisco. I'm not fluent in spanish, but I do speak it okay.
Anyway, you aren't the only one.

~Jen

[mami_guera]

Wow, I'm so excited for you. I have been trying to find other spanish speaking families. I am half mexican and american. My husband is mexican and will have to be deported to wait for his papers very soon. I'm not quite sure what me or my girls will do but I'm glad to see that natural living is spreading to other hispanic cultures as well. Keep up the good work and write me when ever!

[sraplayas]

I just posted another thread in search of mamas, forgetting that I posted this in the spring--oops! How fun to hear from you all. I am still trying to connect with other moms, as you can see, in my area of TJ. I hear your concerns about air quality, organic foods, etc.. and have doing research on those very things. Anyway, sorry for the delayed response! I would be interested in an update on your (plural) situations.

[ananas]

I live in California, but spend a few months each year in Guanajuato, Mexico. We're hoping to make a permanent move very soon, and I am currently in Mexico for a month.

I have no doubts that Mexico is where I hope to raise my children, when I have them. I love it here :)

I'll be keeping an eye on this thread :D

[sraplayas]

From what I remember, Guanajato is a beautiful place. In fact, we would really like to take a family vacation there next year.

Do you have family there? Are you Spanish-speaking? I am wondering because I think that makes an incredible difference, at least here where I live. I do not have family here and I am culturally N. American which is a reality that can make it difficult to make friends. I think it also has to do with living in the urban border region, where people tend to be more cautious. I am curious how you have found Guanajato?

[ananas]

Do you have family there? Are you Spanish-speaking?


Nope, no family, just some good friends. I'm slowly but surely learning Spanish :lol


I am curious how you have found Guanajato?

Some people we knew moved here about three years ago, and my parents came with some other friends to visit them. The next trip, I came along and fell in love with the area as well.

[Brazilianmommy]

I did High School in Mexico in Guadalajara it's really beautiful and we wnet to Mexico in our honey moon, I can speak Spanish really well I will say..

[Cuau]

Hey Mammas,

I do not live in Mex, but I'm from Mex lived there my entire life, and I'm planning on moving there when I'm done with school.

My first baby is going to be born here, so if I ever move to Mx I wonder if there are any midwifes or anything available, do you have any idea?


About organic food, I guess it depends where you live, but I'm almost sure that the quality of non-organic food there is better than here (of course making a few assumptions). I mean if you go to the market (mercado) instead of the super-market (i.e. Gigante, Soriana, etc) then you'll get better quality

Air pollution is a big concern BUT ONLY for a few cities i.e. Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey, other than that you shouldn't worry about that at all. If you are planning on going somewhere else, then is not a big deal.

I just went to visit Mx for a week, and I eat all the fruit and milk that I could, there is a lot of quality, and diversity there (again if you buy at the mercados). Milk really tastes different!! yummy!

[Mackenzie]

I do not currently live in Mexico, but may very well in the semi near future. DH is from Coahuila and we may move there in the next few years. My stepmom and her husband (she WAS married to my dad, she STAYED married to me), who are also our compadres, are headed down there, to the Oaxaca area, in a month to start scouting potential homesteads for us.

[Cuau]

Oaxaca,

What a nice place, I visited there a few years back, where exactly in Oaxaca, are you going to the city or somewhere else.

I love their food!! and their people!! and their nieves in from of the Church in the main street.

Have you been there before?

[Mackenzie]

I have not been able to go yet. After my parents get settled, I may take a kidlet or two down there for a visit.

[eldadeedlit]

oh, my! i've never heard of Guanajuato before, but i looked around online and read a bit about it after reading this thread and it looks fantastic!! what is the cost of living like there? my husband and i are considering relocating somewhere easier to afford for awhile, like maybe a year... an adventure i guess. :) any info or links would be appreciated.

[ananas]

We rented a two bedroom, 1 bath house for awhile in Guanajuato that was $250 (USD) a month. The rent for a 3 bedroom house would be about $350-$600 a month. Food and transportation is inexpensive (you can get fruit at the market for ridiculously cheap prices! :lol).

There are two books written by people who moved to Mexico- I'll try to find the names of them for you.

One thing I forgot about, Guanajuato has a Waldorf style school. I've never visited, so I don't know what it's like, but it's something to keep in mind.

According to this (http://www.solutionsabroad.com/a_costoflivingmexico.asp) site, the cost of living (including housing, food, education, transportation, clothing, recreation, health, furniture and appliances) would be about $1913-$3852 a month.

[ananas]

I have a question for mamas living in Mexico- how do you handle vaccinations? Did your children get them (or will they)?

[Flor]

HI, there. Before I met dh, I was all set to move to Mexico. . .then love and all that happened. Before I met dh, I used to go to Mexico every summer. I love Guanajuato!!! I love the buildings, all the college students, the cafes, plazas, plays, music, shopping, just wandering around the cobblestone streets. I also spent a year in Guadalajara during college at the UAG. I would love to go back. A friend of mine, roomate from the year in Mexico, is married to a man from Michoacan, so we talk about taking our families down together for a visit. My dad's family is from Jalisco, around Lake Chapala.

[sraplayas]

I have a question for mamas living in Mexico- how do you handle vaccinations? Did your children get them (or will they)?
We live in the TJ area and have not vaccinated our dd. I have been told by a few doctors (homeopathic and pediactric) that it is "required" in Mexico but some people have their papers stamped by their doctor who does the regular check-ups so that they can enroll. Private schools are supposed to be an entirely different issue and could be more lenient. I think the endorsement of the family doctor is key here. I am sure there are some other Mexico moms who could chime in!