Wal-Mart in Mexico!

Did you know that there are Wal-Marts in Mexico? Well, there are! The city that I live in (Fresnillo) is very modern, but not very "Americanized." In other words, there are lots of stores and other restaurants, but not very many are the same as the ones we have in the U.S.A. In fact, the only two you might have heard of would be Domino's and Auto Zone.

However, in Zacatecas (a city about an hour from where I live), there are a lot more stores and restaurants like the ones we have in the U.S. These include McDonald's, Wal-Mart, Sam's Club, Burger King, Subway, Blockbuster, and my personal favorite, Starbucks. :) Sometimes we go to Zacatecas to buy supplies at Wal-Mart or Sam's Club that we can't find here in Fresnillo. It is always fun to enjoy some Starbucks while we are there, too! Here are some pictures from the Wal-Mart in Zacatecas...

"Siempre" means "Always"

Looks pretty similar, just in Spanish!

Back to School

Last week was the first week of school at my old school in Birmingham. That means my sweet 4th graders are now the 5th grade leaders of our school, and I am sure they are doing a great job at it. :) The beginning of school makes me think of various childhood memories--buying new school supplies, back-to school clothes shopping, and the excitement of finding out who my teacher was and which friends were in my class each year. Even as teacher, I loved the excitement of finding out which students were in my class each year. Another aspect I love about the start of a new school year is that it is a new beginning. We all need fresh starts sometimes, and the beginning of the school year is exactly that.

While it's not quite time for the kids in Mexico to go back to school, I thought I'd post a few pictures so you could see what schools are like here...

School Zone!

A Local Kindergarten