Getting Ready to Go

After find out we were going to be going to Brazil I reached out to a few friends who work for the US Foreign Service ( James,  who I grew up with in Boise, and Alex, who went to Jerusalem with me and also his sister Patty went to nursing school with me at Ricks College), and they emailed a few contact of people who work for the US Embassy here in São Paulo. Lucky enough for us too a few of them also happen to be LDS, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. We are so blessed to have such a network of LDS friends all over the world. I think belonging to a global Church that sends missionaries all over the world must make LDS members a little more adventurous when it comes living over seas. I have friends who live, or have lived with their families in Germany, Brazil, Mexico, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai, Jordan, Jerusalem,  many cities in China, Australia, India, France, Morocco, and The Republic of Georgia. 

Our list of friends who have lived here was also quite long because during MBA school there were a few families from São Paulo who were in Eric's class. A girl who lived in one of our Church congregations while we lived in Utah and a few friends in St. Joseph who also work for Whirlpool. We had plenty of people to ask for advice. One of the first things that would come out of their mouths is that São Paulo is EXPENSIVE. Eric and I went on our LDS missions with only 2 suitcases and a carry on for 2 years, but this is the first time I have left the US for an extended period of time with 3 kids! Trying to bring stuff so that we don't break the bank buying goods we are use to at home and also making sure our kids will be happy made us bring a LOT of stuff! Plus even though our apartment is furnished. We had to bring our own towels, bed linens, and a few household items. 

The total was 20 checked bags, 2 carry ons, 2 strollers, 1 pack in play, 1 car seat, and 2 booster seats.

Of course we didn't have enough suit cases, so Eric did a lot of research and found out that these yellow/black Tupperware bins were the exact size allowed by the airlines. We thought about boxes, but they usually aren't durable enough to bring back. Not that we are bring it all back!!!!

We spent quite a bit of time organizing and cleaning the house before we left. It takes quite a bit of work to shut down a house for 4 months and make sure that it's going to be safe and sound while we are gone. We hired a property management company and have enlisted friends and neighbors to keep a close eye on the house. 

I have been buying stuff to take for a while, but since we have been waiting to go for so long and we didn't really know when we were leaving the last minute stuff had to be done last minute. 

We found out Sept 18th that our visa had been approved, but then we had to wait 3 days to go to the Brazilian Consulate in Chicago to finalize everything. There was another delay in the finalization. In fact it looked like for a few days we might not be going after all, but once that was worked out Eric and I went to the Consulate on Sept 27th to give them all of our documents. Then Eric had to go back and pick up the visas on Oct 1st. So until the 27th we didn't really know when we were leaving. 

It was a big task that took more work than we thought. It doesn't help that I am pregnant and very TIRED and also that Carli is very active these days and someone must watch her at all times or she gets into trouble. Luckily I am married to the most amazing man in the whole wide world that almost single handily pulled all the finally preparations. 

Here is all of our stuff waiting to be loaded in the van. The scale is out because Eric weighted each bag to make sure that we weren't over the weight limit for each bag. 

Plus after all of this packing I am sure there are a few things I am going to forget and wish I had brought. Oh well. They have stores in Brazil too, even if they are expensive.

UPDATE: After arriving and unpacking I realized I forgot my favorite black beach hat, Carli's swim suit (although I have swim diapers to last the whole time we are here), dryer sheets, my library card, a space heater (It's pretty chilly here and our apartment doesn't have any heat.), my jeans, some warmer clothes, the duvet cover for our duvet and a towel for Carli. It could could be a lot worse, but right now I am cold so I am hoping it warms up soon. I should have remembered the coldest winter of my whole life was the 2 winters I spent in Hong Kong and at least brought a coat!