Take things slowly, if you are having problems don't add anything else to the tank.
A question for the cichlid keepers out there, are bolivian rams sensitive to conditions like blue rams - Mikrogeophagus ramirezi?
Blue rams require a well matured tank with stable conditions, as do clown loaches.
I have the same test kit that Carlos & Siran have mentioned, used it religiously when I started out fishkeeping, but rarely break it out now.