Sunday is the beginning of the work week as well as rugby for Jack. Then Mondays and Wednesdays have become my evenings with the kids due to Stuart's rugby practices. We are back at the rugby club on Tuesdays for Jack's second practice of the week. Then we usually hang out at the rugby club on Thursdays after a long week. I sense a habit forming.
The weekends have recently been consumed with either rugby matches or birthday parties and this week was not an exception to that rule.
Prior to the rugby match for Stuart and the birthday party we attended, was a full week of school. I started out Sunday with a belated 'birthday' present. One of my students brought me an Itouch. It was not new, nor did it have an adaptor or any charge to it. I quickly went to the social worker and asked them to call her house to see if anyone had given her permission to bring this rather costly item to me. It was a bit odd because all the adults involved at school were trying to tell me that maybe she had just brought it as a gift for me. I was pretty sure no one knew she had given it to me, but then again maybe they did and were okay with it.
On Monday I brought a charger from home to school and thought I would plug it in. As I did, I noticed it was code locked and everything on the screen was in Arabic. Well duh! I am not sure why I was so delusional (or so arrogant) to think it would be in English. At any rate, when the girl who had given it to me couldn't remember the code to unlock it, she told me she would take it home and ask her sister what it was. So I told her that was fine. Then a couple of my students reported to me that her dad had told her she could bring the Itouch to me, but that her mom yelled at her for doing so and she was to bring it back home. I told her I had thought that might be the case which is why I had the social worker call her mom on Sunday. Bummer! Really thought I had scored there.
On Wednesday I woke up with a sore throat and by Wednesday evening my neck was so achy that I knew I had strep throat. I went to the hospital at 9:30 pm, once Stuart was back from rugby, and 56 dirhams later ($15.12) I was back home with antibiotics and a doctor's note giving me Thursday off from work. I truly did feel like a truck had hit me. In order to not be docked a day's pay you must have a doctor's note, stamped of course, to hand in when you are off from work. I was hoping to have perfect attendance this year, but not going to happen.
Jack had a field day at the rugby club. He went with his school and they had different events in which they participated. Jack has been having some issues with wrestling at school, which I think I have mentioned. But what I was told today about Jack made me stop and put things into perspective. I have focus so much on what he has been doing wrong at school that I have totally neglected to celebrate the things he is doing right. I hate lessons like this. As adults you would think our rational brains wouldn't need to be jogged in order for us to know some of this, but being human, I guess it happens.
So what happened that jiggled some sense in me, also made me cry. A grade 1 teacher, whom I happen to know, had asked Jack to do the sack race for the second time because there was one kid who hadn't done it. She asked him to go slowly and said he didn't question why and just did it. Apparently he went ahead of the other child at one stage and when he realised it, he slowed down and waited for the other child to pass. The other kid just stopped with him and Jack encouraged her to go on. In the end Jack let her win! She said she was so pleased at how grown up he was. Naturally, I cried because I know how competitive he is and know that he must have sensed that this child needed to win worse than he did. It's moments like this that make parenting so rewarding.
I started feeling better Friday morning and it was a good thIng because we had a birthday party to go to and I was on my own with the kids. Stuart got up and headed to Dubai for a rugby tournament. We went to the birthday party and got a text halfway through telling me he was having a blast. He is definitely in his element right now.
The birthday party was so cute. Jack got out of the car ad said, "I'll take the present because Ava really likes me." He's right. Ava just turned two and follows Jack around like a little puppy. She loves him! So adorable.
We came home, I made brownies and we headed to Karen's to make homemade pizzas. She is a little more 'Betty Crocker' than I am so of course Millie and Jack love hanging out at her house with Thalia and Penny.
Before we went to ther house the kids were playing in the living room. Jack was being silly and dawned this saying that these were his Arabic clothes. He's a character for sure. At least he notices. He has never mentioned the Kandoras or Abayas that a large number of people wear around here. So now I know that he at least is aware that some people dress differently here.
Saturday when we got up we headed to Abu Dhabi for another Ikea run. We needed some bedding for our spare bed, a couple of lamps, a few pictures and of course we had to have lunch there with Gina. It's always such a bonus to see Gina when we go to Abu Dhabi. We sat at Ikea for over an hour after we ate to talk with Gina. It was wonderful, as always.
We got home, Stuart put a few pieces of our new furniture together, saying choice words as he went, and we had dinner and were off to bed in anticipation for another week to start. It's been a great week.
Dana
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