Dave supposedly went over the border into Mexico early this morning. In my last post, I wrote that Dave arrived in New Mexico on Saturday night. Sunday he drove a long day and got almost to Laredo, TX; only 4 hours away before he had to stop. Monday, he drove to Laredo and finished most of his paperwork early so that the crossing into Mexico might be easier this morning. He had to get an FMT (tourist visa) and a sticker for importing the car. He said those two things took him 1 1/2 hours, so hopefully this morning was much faster. My only concern was for customs. We've read conflicting reports about how to go about customs with the stuff Dave has in his car. As I understand there are two lines, To Declare or Not to Declare. Officially you are supposed to declare anything new you bought in the U.S. over $1000 (I think) or any goods you have for sale. We have only our personal items, but unofficially we have heard they will tax any desktop computers or items that seem unneeded on a tourist trip to Mexico. Dave, of course, has a desktop and two screens. Checking is also random, so he might not get checked at all. But if he does get checked, and he's in the Nothing to Declare line, they might hit him with an extra fine. But if he is in the Something to Declare line, they will tax him for sure. In Laredo, Dave got the oil changed on the car and happened to sit by a U.S. Customs worker, so he asked him what he thought. The guy said if it were him, he'd take a chance in the Nothing to Declare line. We'll see how lucky we get.
As for me, I've got a few more hours of cleaning on the house and some last minute errands to run and we're ready. The kids spent yesterday with some good friends, and I got a lot done. Thanks Deb!