When Living In Texas

In just a few weeks of staying here, these are the things we had considered a need (we may also consider that some of these are also applicable transferring to other parts of the world):

Enough Money.  In going to places within our country, in case we come short of cash, there would be relatives and friends that can always extend a helping hand.  But that won't always be the case when moving in a foreign land, we didn't immediately had people around to help us.  So, we brought at least a considerable sum that could help us pay off necessary expenses and survive the days until our first pay.  It is really a thing to prepare for because even the minimum amount wasn't small, just consider the exchange rate of peso to dollar.

Establish a Relationship.  First thing we did was we got in touch with family and friends nearby.  Lucky for us, my sis-in-law is only in Dallas.  And she visited us during her long break to give us a hand and introduced us to her friends in Houston.  They helped us get to know the city more and find the solution to our biggest problem... owning a car.  Also, friends from within the city and the other states helped us provide answers to our (so many) questions.  We treasured every help we got, since it was a great ease to our part.

Car & Vacuum are a Necessity.  It's not like home that one can easily ride a jeepney or tricycle to work (they don't have one here).  A bus ride is available but the station is far away from us, and taxis cost a lot (around $40 to downtown Houston from our place).  So we got ourselves a car (which is easy here).  Not a brand new one but cars here are certified in good condition.  And the best part is, we are now mobile...

We also purchased a vacuum cleaner.  Why is it a need?  Almost all houses here are carpeted, and we hadn't resist the temptation to lie down on it.  As a result, we all had rashes (at first we thought the cold weather caused it).  When we vacuumed our place, you just can't imagine how much dirt it removed from the carpet.  Lesson learned.

Know the Regulations.  And follow it.  If in our place we can just fit all our children with us in one bedroom, here, each room can only be occupied by 2 person and only infants and very young children can stay with their parents.  Also, they had the car seat law which I mentioned on my last post... among so many others.  The point is, things might be different in other countries, so ask friends or Google when in doubt.

Living in another country isn't easy, we're far away from our comfort zone.  But here, there's a lot of things that we can do with our lives, tons of opportunities for better life and future.  So, it's also not that bad at all... definitely, not bad at all.  All of these are because of Him, and there is nothing He will give us that we can't handle... because He's always there for us no matter what.  The Lord is good... all the time.  Yahweh bless.