The first week of vacation

We started our Sunday by taking Jack back to the doctor to check his throat. When we walked in the doctor lifted Jack's shirt and said, 'Good, I told you it would go away.  So why are you here today?'  I had to remind him that Jack had strep throat and he had told us to come back in a week to have him retested. Obviously he had mistaken Jack for another boy that must have had a rash of some sort. 

He swabbed Jack's throat again and, again, Jack laughed hysterically. He was so silly and the doctor played right into it. We are pleased that the strep throat is done and we are once again a healthy family.....for now.  

We came back from the doctor and decided to make a run out to the mall for some groceries and a Toys R Us stop. Naturally both kids got something. Grammie bought Jack a scooter. Why not? And she bought Millie a household cleaning set. Millie is fascinated with kitchen gadgets, cleaning tools and baby dolls. She is going to make someone an excellent stay-at-home-mom one day. 

After the mall we headed home and the mattress topper was finally delivered. I don't know that the bed is much better than it was before, but we are most likely stuck with it. Ugh!  

We spent a quiet evening at home and had chicken, mashed potatoes, and peas. Jack kept telling Millie she needed to stay at the table because we were having family time. 

After dinner Millie was put to bed but Jack stayed up for a bit and watched tv. After he did finally go to bed, Stuart discovered how to get the March Madness games on the Internet and run it through our Apple TV. My dad was a happy camper. I decided to stay up with my mom and dad and watch the UConn/Michigan St. game. Naturally right at the end of the game, when it was really close and exciting, Millie screamed for me. Lovely!  Apparently on Suday night when Stuart put her to bed, because we were at a wedding, she did the same thing. 

That little booger stayed awake for over an hour.  I ended up laying in her bunk bed with her because I was exhausted. When she still wasn't asleep I picked her up and we both went to my bed. I put her back in her own bed around 4 am. Certainly not a restful night. 

Jack also woke up around the time Millie did. He was crying and complaining of his legs hurting. He seems to have had a growth spurt recently and we can't feed that boy enough. So leg cramps, here we come again. Poor boy!

Monday morning we went to the grocery store for some fruits and vegetables. We do produce shopping in a store owned by the British called Spinneys. Their things just seem to be nicer, and more expensive of course. After lunch we went to the pool. Grammie, Pop and I worked out at the gym while Stuart, the kids, and the Turner family (Wade and company) played in the pool. It was too cold for the adults to get in, but the kids just shivered and gutted it out. There is a little wadding pool that is perfect for the kids. 

Monday was our anniversary. So Grammie and Pop stayed with the kids while Stuart and I went out for the evening. We went to a Japanese restaurant to have sushi. We had our own private room where, initially, it looked as if we would be sitting on the floor. But it was an illusion. Really you walked up a couple of steps, sat down, and you could still put your legs under the table. We had been told that this place was really expensive but it seemed comparable to sushi places in Arizona. Nothing is very hoppin' on a Monday night so we went to Baskin Robbins for some ice cream and then called it a night. Seven years later and we are more in love now than we were then. I feel very blessed.   

Tuesday was a day out at the Sheikh Zayed Palace Museum. This is where Sheikh Zayed lived while he was the ruler. After his death in 2004, they turned it into a museum. Some trivia that might interest some; he had 19 sons and 11 daughters. His eldest son is the current Sheikh of the UAE. 

After the museum we stopped at a local Lebanese place for a take out. I'm not sure the 'rents liked the local food, but they will never complain, bless their hearts. Also to note, Arabic bread is not that good unless it is straight out of the oven. 

Grammie got delayed jetlag, we think, because she started feeling ill sometime on Tuesday. Both she and Pop took naps around 2 pm, which was my cue to go to the gym we just joined. This made it two days in a row that I worked out. Now if I could just stop eating, all my efforts might just have some physically obvious benefits. The never ending battle of the bulge!

After my workout we went to the pool for a dip. Well, the kids dipped and I sat in the shade by the wading pool. Stuart worked out and then joined us. 

On Wednesday Grammie and I, along with my friend, Cathy, headed to Abu Dhabi for a girls' day out. We picked Gina up and headed to The One for lunch. It's a quaint home goods store with a cafe upstairs. Of course I had to buy a thing or two as well. After lunch we headed to a local indoor Souq. I bought a rug (well, actually, Marinell bought me a rug) and Gina bought a top. Per Marinell's advice, I decided to put it on our dining room table. 

Both items were from Cashmere and quite beautiful.  There were some paintings and pashminas that we all liked, but we didn't buy anything because we knew we would be going to the outdoor Souq in Dubai later in our vacation.  That's where the real deals are. 

We then headed to the Sofitel Hotel, on the Corniche, for afternoon tea. There were plenty of little sandwiches that were devoured prior to this picture. 

We were also served scones and then little cakes. All was delightful! 

After tea we went to a fruit and vegetable Souq where we also found dates piled high and wide. We bought some dates, only after sampling a ton. Belly ache!

We dropped Gina off and headed back to Al Ain. The kids were in bed and we headed to bed as well, shortly after we got home. 

Thursday morning we got up and I helped Grammie recount the events of the last week so she could write it down. Although she doesn't keep a blog she does keep a journal of her travels. 

Stuart and Pop went golfing in the afternoon while Grammie and I took the kids to Fun City to play. 

We also went to Ace Hardware to get some paint for a side table in our living room. We bought a drawer pull at the unique gift shop in Abu Dhabi, so painting it is the next step. I will post before and after pictures when it's complete. A small grocery run and then it was back home. 

After golf was finished we went to the Rugby Club for dinner. It was relatively quiet because most people are on holiday this week. It was exceptionally hot, but we survived. Grammie and Pop got a taste of our Thursday evenings and I think our letting our kids loose might have panicked them a bit, but the older kids really do take care of the little ones. It is a very safe and comfortable atmosphere, one I have never experienced anywhere else in the world. 

We got up Friday and went to church. This week, when the kids went to the front, for their little message from the pastor, Millie went as well. Normally she just hangs back with Stuart and myself and then is terribly distracting during the sermon. But today she went to the front and then headed off with the other kids when they went to children's church. It was great. 

This was the scene on the side of the road as we were leaving church. I'm not sure I will ever see this as 'normal', more amazing I suppose. 

We ended up having the buffet for lunch at the Golf Club. It might have been the best meal I have had in the last 7 months, except for food Stuart has made :)

We got home and everyone went for a nap except for me, Jack and Millie. Millie had napped to the Golf Club and most of the time we were there so she didn't need a nap. I wanted to nap, but found it difficult with a 5 and 2 year old crawling all over me, and the other three in the house were smart enough to go to their rooms and escape the madness. 

After everyone woke from their slumber, there were Crazy 8 games and the like taking place. Jack and Millie are just so pleased to have Grammie and Pop here to play with them. 

The rest of the evening was chilled. We booked a trip to Fajeriah, one of the 7 Emirates, and will do that toward the end of next week.  It looks to be a fantastic beach town in the Oman Gulf, which feeds into the Indian Ocean. So of course you know when I go I will say I swam in the Indian Ocean. 

Saturday we headed out around 9, because you really should be out of the way of the cleaning lady. I am sure I have mentioned this, but I will have a cleaning lady the rest of my life. It is one luxury I will not give up, no matter where we live. 

We decided to visit a Souq we had never been to. It turns out that it was mainly fruits and vegetables. Because we were leaving for Dubai on Sunday we decided it was not the best decision to buy anything. We do know we will come back for our fresh produce in the future. It was beautiful. 

We then decided to go to the camel market behind Bawadi Mall. It made my mom's day. We were shown around by some of the people who tend to the camels, goats, and sheep. Naturally they expected a tip of some sort, and it was worth the small amount we gave them. We saw some new born camels and Jack was nearly pooped on by a camel as it walked past. 

We continued to the mall, shopped, ate at a new burger place called Shake Shack, let Jack tube down the slide in the top floor of the mall, while Millie played in the indoor playground, and them headed back to our place. 

We stayed in for the rest of the evening. Pop went to bed at 7 pm, as did the kids. Jack and Millie need that much sleep in the night, but Pop did it do he could wake up at 2 am to watch the Final Four games.  He desperately loves basketball as you can tell. 

Week two of vacation starts tomorrow and will include a bit of traveling. Stay tuned!

The countdown!

Sunday after school we went to the mall to by a GPS. Stuart decided that since we were going to be doing quite a bit of driving around in the next month, we should probably not waste our time getting lost. Smart man!  

While we were at the malll, I decided it was time for me to get a hair style. So I snuck off to get my hair cut while Stuart took the kids to Fun City, the play center. It was not as short as I wanted, so I went back after the kids were in bed and had her take off 3 more inches. Hello! One thing I so appreciate about this culture is that the malls stay open until 11 pm.....every night. 

Not the best view of the new do, but I did actually work all day prior to this picture, so you have to take that into consideration. 

A couple of weeks ago, when Jack was sick, i laid with him on our guest bed. At thay point I decided it was too hard. So we decided to buy a pillow topper for it, a new blanket and finally we were ready for Grammie and Pop to arrive. We went to buy that on Monday after school and were hopeful it would be delivered before their arrival. It wasn't delivered and therefore Grammie slept on the sofa the first two nights. 

We also went to the doctor on Tuesday afternoon. Jack woke up with a sore throat again, just two weeks after his last sore throat. When I was in college we knew someone who did not treat strep, developed ruematic fever, and died in a very short period of time. We don't do the doctor thing much, but when it comes to a sore throat the doctor is our first thought. Differently from last time, this visit we saw a pediatrician. Last time it was just the emergency room doctor who didn't even take a throat culture before passing out the antibiotics. That disturbed me because I truly thing meds, when they are not needed, can cause issues later in life. But I digress. The pediatrician was an elderly man, or maybe he was just a heavy smoker who had been in the sun too much....while smoking. At any rate he was fantastic! Prior to him swabbing Jack's throat, i explained to Jack that he might gag a bit. Sometimes Stuart thinks I tell Jack things that might scare him but I think Jack is better off to know what is coming. 

When the doctor did the throat culture Jack did, in fact, gag audibly. And then he started giggling uncontrollably. This was certainly not what I had expected. Truly, I thought he might even cry at the gagging. Nope, laughed!  The entire doctor visit was what I might describe as 'fun' for Jack. He did have strep throat and the meds were to be taken once a day, 2 hours before food and then he can't eat until 2 hours after the medication. Now if you have ever raised a boy, or any child, you know that 4 hours with no food just does not happen. So as you would guess, we woke him up 2 hours after he went to sleep and then the medication could absorb into his blood stream as it was supposed to. Hopefully this knocked it out. We have to take him back on Sunday to make sure it has cleared up. 

I found the doctor to be very interesting. He asked Jack where he was from. When Jack told him Arizona, the doctor told Jack he was from Texas. What? Trust me, I thought he was having a laugh with us, but he had just received his new passport and sure enough it was a US passport. He went on to tell me that he was originally from Persia and that he had studied in Texas and had become a US citizen years ago. He has been in the UAE for many years now and I would guess he stays because of the relaxed lifestyle we all find here. He was a delight. 

School was interesting this week. As schools attempt to move forward and change some past habits or sort, each school handles it differently. There are schools that during the week of testing, release students as soon as the testing for the day is complete. Sometimes this is only an hour and a half after students begin their day. Then there is my school. My principal has been very adamant about students staying in school for the entire day. I must applaud her efforts for trying to change a culture. It seems it's like a salmon swimming upstream, but as she always tells me 'It is a process' and you have to start somewhere. I do believe we are one of very few (maybe the only) school that has kept kids after their testing this week. From my understanding, what usually happens is parents come after testing and sign their kids out, but that was not been allowed this year. Those of us who are new know no different, but those who have been here for a few years, or even the local teachers, are caught a little off guard. Some were not thrilled about having the students the full day and others just got on with it. As the week progressed more and more parents showed up to get their children, only to be told that if there was no doctor note they would not be allowed to take them, or at least it would reflect negatively on the student's report. 

Wednesday it rained. Guess what? And Thursday? I probably don't have to tell you, because there was no testing at all, no child came to school. Surprise!

Thursday we left our place just after school and headed for Dubai. Gina came with us. Our plan was to do a bus tour on Thursday evening. However, the tickets I bought were 24 hour tickets, but were not good for the night bus tour. So what exactly does 24 hours mean?  Irritating! 

We haven't spent a great deal of time in Dubai so thought we would get a feel for the city and decide what we wanted to do all day on Friday. But instead we had to wait until Friday morning to get on the bus. We ended up walking to a mall and eating at the Noodle House, shopping a bit at the Spinneys across from our hotel and then heading back to get some rest. 

Our hotel was appauling! The pictures don't even do it justice. Because we got back from the mall so late, we just put the kids to bed and then I went to the front desk to complain. I initially spoke to the manager on the phone. This hotel has several complexes so I can only assume he was at a different location. I finally told him that I would appreciate speaking to him in person. When he did finally get to the hotel lobby 45 minutes after I went down to complain, he was not helpful at all. He continued to say he would move us to a new room. I explained to him that we had been out all evening and really didn't inspect the room when we first arrived. I also stated that I wasn't aware that it was my job to make sure the room was suitable. I, politely, told him that I paid a lot of money to stay here and I felt it was his responsibility to be sure the room was not in this state. In the end he did NOTHING for us. So if you are ever in Dubai do not book a room with Golden Sands Hotel Apartments. The Internet pictures are wonderful and it is rated as a 4 star hotel, clearly only to the blind. You be the judge. 

May I present the mattress on the pull out couch. 

The wall on the outside of the master bath. Hmmm, mold?

Cutting my apple on this cutting board was not an option. And these were just a few lovely examples. 

We tried to regroup on Friday morning, getting up and heading to the bus tour. Stuart went to Sharjah to play rugby so it was just the kids, Gina and myself, exploring what Dubai had to offer. We were able to hop on and off the bus as much as we liked until we had to go to the airport to get Grammie and Pop. 

It was a great, but very exhausting day. The kids were real troopers. They had their moments of meltdown, but for the most part they hung in there. 

Millie and me doing a 'selfie' on the top of the bus.

Gina and Jack were bus partners. 

This is the Burj Al Arab and this is probably as close as we will ever come to it. This is where all the celebrities stay when they come to Dubai.

We were able to ride on a boat on the river as a part of our bus ticket, which was great. After we for off the boat we were waiting for the bus. Jack kept sneaking around this pillar and basically not staying close enough to me. The last time I spoke to him about staying close to me for safety reasons, I noticed he had a rusty screw in his hand. I took it and tossed it down back where he told me he had found it. There were no trash cans around and a few minutes later I wished I had just kept it in my hand. Yet again, he had snuck behind the pillar. I turned to look for him and all I saw was his panged face with his foot angled up as if he were afraid to step down. I immediately knew what he had done. I walked over to him, asked him what happened as I was pulling the screw out of his shoe. Thank goodness he had worn his tennis shoes. Here was the conversation:

Me: What happened?

Jack: (through tears) I accidentally stepped on this nail (I suppose we need to do a lesson on household hardware, because clearly it was a screw). 

Me: You're a big fat liar. You stepped on this on purpose, didn't you?

Jack: (now bigger sobs) Yes. 

Me: did you just want to know what would happen?

Jack: Yes. 

Me: Well, now you know. 

All the while there were people looking on as this conversation was taking place. At the same time as the conversation, I was yanking the screw out of his shoe, taking it off and inspecting his foot. It had just barely broken the skin, thank goodness. 

I was brought back to my teenage years when I did something just to see what would happen. We had just bought a new car with electric windows. Woah!  My mom and I had gone to the grocery store and I had stayed in the car. I thought it would be funny if I rolled the window down on the passenger side and rolled it back up with my hair hanging out of the window. Oh but I didn't stop there. I stretched my foot over to turn the ignition off. What was supposed to be a 'couple of items' shopping trip turned into 45 minutes and a very sore head. What an idiot. When I told my mom my initial comparison of Jack's mishap with mine she reminded me that I was a teenager an he is 5. I'm pretty sure she meant my curiosity was dumber than his. 

Once he calmed down and we got on the bus, I could tell there was a couple talking about me. I am sure they were being critical about my parenting. Also they probably had no kids. Who cares? Know my kids, raise them, then you can talk about how crappy I do it. 

We finished our bus tour at the Souq where I bought some hand made pillow covers and Jack bought Grammie and himself a camel statute, but when Grammie and Pop got in the car, he gave each one of them a camel. He had said right before we got to the airport 'When they get in the car I am going to give Grammie her camel and I am going to give Pop my camel because that will make them happy to see me'. Gina told Jack that he didn't need to give them gifts, they would be happy to see him no matter what. It was a really sweet interchange between them. In the end, Pop asked Jack if he would 'hold' his camel safely here and he could just see it when he was visiting.

The bus tour map stated that the last bus pick up at the Souq was at 6 pm. We were there with plenty of time to spare, but the bus never came. I finally called the number on the map we had, told her where we were and that the map stated the last pick up was at 6 pm. Here was what she said to me, 'Oh, you have an old map'.  I told her that this was the map they had given me that morning. I made some 'suggestions' to her on the phone and then we hailed a taxi to take us back to our car so that we could wander around, trying to find the airport. 

We eventually just looked for planes taking off and heading toward them, which worked out well. 

The kids (and me) were so excited to see Grammie and Pop. We had to wait for them out on the sidewalk just outside the airport. There were few places to wait inside, and the loads of people coming into Dubai Friday evening was unreal. 

 

Thank goodness Gina was with us. She saw my parents first and because we were outside, they didn't know to look out there. They were scanning the inside crowd for us, to no avail. When they came past the sliding doors in front of us, Gina got on the gate we were behind and yelled 'Marinell' just as the doors were opening and they were walking past. Perfect!

Out they came and down the walkway Jack and Millie ran. When Millie was finished hugging both of them she ran under the rope and back towards where we were initially standing. I had to run after her and when I called her name she turned and looked at me as if to say 'how did you get there?'  She got a little turned around. 

Of course Grammie had a gift for each of them in her carry-on. Smart Grammie. 

We loaded up the cars and headed back to Al Ain. The kids were asleep within 15 minutes. They had a long day for sure. 

Once we got home we unloaded the cars, put the kids in bed and that's when it hit me. We had left monkey, baby, piglet, and blanket at the hotel. Jack has had this stuffed monkey since he was tiny and blanket, baby and piglet are Millie's special stuffed toys she sleeps with. I was devistated. I cried and cried. I just couldn't imagine how they would both feel when they realized they didn't have them. I called the hotel to see if housekeeping had found them. The lost and found department was closed so I was asked to call Saturday morning. 

When I was growing up I had this little pillow that I called 'pippie'. We left Pippie in a hotel room and they didn't find it. I can truly say the initial loss of these things immediately reminded me of losing  Pippie. It's amazing the memories of childhood can still impact us so greatly as an adult. 

When we woke up Saturday morning, we had Christmas with Grammie and Pop. We had the tree up and everything. They brought so much stuff for the kids, especially clothes, which they both needed. I spent most of the rest of the morning sorting out their old clothes. It was so much fun!

In the afternoon we headed to the mall and ate at Nando's, a chicken place. Grammie and I didn't eat because we were heading to a wedding later. 

After eating we popped into the Baby Shop. Grammie had told Jack and Millie that she would buy them some toys once they got here. Jack had his eye on a certain cowboy accessory so Grammie bought it. Millie picked out a shoppig cart with fake items in it. 

Pop and Jack had their own version of the OK Corral right here in Al Ain. 

Saturday evening my mom and I went to the wedding. The food wasn't as good as it was at the first wedding but we still were intrigued by the whole event. 

My mom was asking questions about the different abayas the ladies wear, earlier while shopping in the mall. She also asked why there were so many formal gown shops. When we got to the wedding she had her question about the formal wear answered. The beads that adorn their dresses are unlike no other. My mom compared it to dresses you would see on the red carpet on Oscar night, and she's right on. It's amazing!  The ladies can dress the way because there are no men around. However, this time at the wedding we stayed long enough to see the groom arrive. The room went from brightly colored, sparkly gowns to black abayas and shallahs (the head covering). It was surreal to say the least. The groom came down to a bride in a lovely white gown with her head covered with a black vail. Once the enterauge of men left the building and only family remained, the bride's dad removed the vail, sort of as a presentation to the groom I would guess.  

I love different cultures and their traditions. It will probably never become 'common' to me. 

What happened to this week?

I got to the end of the week and realized....it was the end of the week! Wow!

I can tell you that this week started off very exciting for us. We actually saw a police chase, just one policeman and one Range Rover, but exciting all the same. There was someone very important in the Range Rover and here is how we knew.

When we first researched the UAE Stuart found a very interesting fact about car number plates. Apparently the more important you are, the lower your number plate on your car. So when Stuart saw the Range Rover literally fly past us he notice the number on the car. It was 10! I think it was a Sheikh for sure. Naturally I started making up a story in my head as to why he would need to drive through town so fast. I'm sure he had a good reason. 

We spent the week at school preparing for national exams we will give next week. Stuart had very low student attendance all week. In fact, on Wednesday and Thursday there were no children in grades 1-6 at school. Well, there were three who showed up on Wednesday but were told to go home. The theory is that students take the week off from school in order to study for their exams. I'm not really sure there is that much studying going on. 

My school, however, had relatively good attendance at the beginning of the week, although I only had about half of my students on Thursday. Mother's Day is celebrated in the UAE on March 21. This really doesn't make sense to me since it is considered haram (sinful) to celebrate anything but Eid. At any rate, we had a Mother's Day activity on Thursday which brought in some of the moms, but since there was going to be that activity many of the students saw that as a reason to stay home because the thought was that we would not be doing anything.  By the end of the day I only had 7 students in my room. 

Jack had a Mother's Day stall at his school, which is a gift shop made up of donated items. The school uses it as a fundraiser. Each child brings 10 dirhams and buys something for their mom for Mother's Day. When I picked Jack up from school he immediately got into his backpack and got out a wrapped gift. Here is the lovely necklace Jack bought me. 

He was so pleased with himself. He asked me if I loved it, which I assured him I did. He also asked me if I would wear it to the rugby club that evening. I promised I would, and if you look closely at the next picture you will see I have it on. I must say, he has good taste. 

As you just read, Thursday evening brought another evening at the rugby club but this time we had a purpose; our NCAA tournament bracket. There were 5 of us who filled out a bracket and put in 100 dirhams a piece. We shall see who the victor is. 

As we were leaving the rugby club Jack checked to see if I still had my necklace on. I told him I did and then he asked, 'Mama, are you going to wear it a lot now?' I told him I would wear it every time it matched what I was wearing. He seemed fine with that. 

 

When we were home and ready for bed, just behind our apartment I heard the all too familiar sound of teenagers playing and yelling in the grassy area. Because this happens way too much, tonight was the night I complained. I thought there must be 'quiet' hours so I went to the security guard post and asked. Wouldn't you know, 5 minutes later there wasn't a kid in sight. Who knew complaining would work? 

Friday morning we got up, I put sheets in the washer, we Skyped Grammie and Pop and were ready for church. Because my cousin was at my mom and dad's the conversation lasted longer than expected, so the mall was the next best choice after realizing we were too late to go to church. 

We did some last minute shopping for the weeks to come and now the guest room has a place to hang wet towels. 

We returned home to wait for Jack's friend Louie to collect him for his very first......sleepover! I had stopped by Rochelle's house (Louie's mum) after school on Thursday and she asked if Jack could have a sleepover with Louie. I asked Jack and all he could talk about until they came to get him was the sleepover. He was so excited. Of course we had to buy him a new sleeping bag at the mall. 

Oh, and as you can see Jack has a new rugby ball that was promised to him weeks ago. Much to my displeasure, he loves rugby and is pretty good at it. Ugh!

Since Jack was having a sleepover we took Millie out for her favorite dinner.

Parents of the year, we realize. She was quiet in the back of the car and relatively calm in the grocery store. The dynamics of two is much different for sure. When I put her to bed she said,'I will wait for Jack to go to bed.'  She didn't quite understand the whole concept. Even as Stuart and I were watching tv after the kids' bedtime we both felt a little strange that Jack wasn't there. He had spent the night with my parents before, but never with a friend. We did miss him. I stayed up until 3:30 am watching tv, and possibly thinking about Jack. My mom told me that was the first of many sleepless nights when my kids are out of my house and I don't know what they are doing. 

Saturday morning we took Stuart's car in to be serviced and then headed to Louie's to pick up Jack. We ended up staying to have a cup of coffee and letting the kids play a bit longer. The Rouvis (Louie's family) live on the same street as Miss Janet, Millie's day care lady. I knew Jack had a great time because he had actually stayed the entire night, but I also knew he was super glad to see us because as soon as we drove up he went into the house and brought everything out that he brought to Louie's. He was ready to go home. I think I was probably 8 years old before I spent the night at a friend's house. I wonder if my mom stayed up watching tv until 3:30 am the first night I was at a sleepover? Probably not, mainly because I was the third child and it was probably a relief to be one child down for an evening. 

The rest of the day was spent grocery shopping and just chilling at home. Both kids were wiped out; Jack from his sleepover and Millie from too many late nights in the last week. Both were asleep by 6:15 pm. 

5 more sleeps! I can hardly believe my parents will be here Friday!

Stuck in the Sand

As you may have read from Dana's last post, I got myself stuck in the sand last week! 

In November I bought a new car, which was described as Kia's rugged SUV with "go anywhere" 4WD. Well, as you can see in the picture, it cannot go anywhere and the light sand in the middle of town caused a huge problem.

I car pool with my Head of Faculty, Wade, and he has been trying to get me to cut across the sand on our way home for weeks. As you can see by the picture, I almost made it!

Luckily, one of my colleagues owns a proper 4WD (Jeep Wrangler) and had a tow rope. He was able to pull me out, but not before a crowd of laughing onlookers had gathered.

I did look in the handbook afterwards and it does say that the vehicle is NOT designed for off road driving!

LESSON LEARNED!

Some 'firsts'

Sunday after school Jack asked if he could play with the play dough that Ms. Karen sent home with him. Those of you who know me know that I have no use for any activities that make a mess. But being in a new country, I have tried to turn over a new leaf. So mark this down in the books and save this picture. It is likely to be a one shot deal. 

As I revealed last week, Millie has started potty training herself. But what happened on Sunday evening was truly classic. The kids wanted to call Grammie and Pop, so we did. During the conversation Millie announced she had to pee.  So I took the iPad and followed her to the bathroom. Normally I feel the bathroom is a private place, but since these are her first encounters I feel it's fine to share them with family. Now Millie usually pees a couple of time before she decides she is done. Millie has never pooped, although I have tried to coax her to do so, on the potty. But Sunday night she decided was the night. She headed to the toilet while I was showing Grammie and Pop their bedroom. When she came into the room and announced 'I pooped!' And bent over....clearly she was telling the truth. Sadly, she had not left the evidence in the toilet but had dropped it on the floor in the hallway. I bent over and said, 'Ooo, Millie, it's a turd!'  She just laughed and laughed. Ah the pleasures of potty training.  A few minutes later I was putting her diaper and jammies back on and she said, 'Mama, where's my turtle?'  I said, 'Millie, I didn't say 'turtle' I said 'turd''. Gross story, but totally cracked me up. 

Monday Stuart went to rugby training while I dreamed of the kids having an early evening. It seems that every time I have something to do and Stuart is in charge, the kids rash super early. However, this is not the case with me. That little Millie was dozing on the sofa when I got home from school. I woke her up with M&Ms because she does not got to bed before 9 pm on days she has a nap. I thought I caught her in time to prevent the late bedtime. Turns out that was not the case. I think it is something I do to encourage Jack and Millie to stay up and not want to go to sleep. At any rate, finally at 8 pm both kids were asleep and I sat down at the computer to book some fun activities to do with my parents. We now have a safari booked and a trip to the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. 

Tuesday we woke up and Stuart had the flu so he stayed home from school. I had a headache but thought it would subside. Over here, not going to school is more trouble than it is worth sometimes. In order to not get docked you have to have a doctor's note. So every time you are out you have to go to the doctor. Because I thought I just had a headache I went to school. As the day progressed my headache turned into a migraine and I ended up leaving during my prep, which happens to be the last period of the day on Tuesdays. On my way out of school I get a call from Stuart and he tells me Jack's school has called and Jack is in the nurse's office complaining of a headache. Seems we were all feeling poorly. I went to collect Jack and then Millie. As we were driving home Jack asked me if I had to go back to school. I told him I didn't and that because we were all sick we were going to just go home and rest. Millie head 'we are all sick' and asked,'Am I sick too?'  Seriously? She doesn't seem to miss any conversation. 

Once we were home, all received medicine and here was what Stuart and the kids did for a bit (Millie didn't last there long considering she wasn't really sick). 

Jack perked up a little but then he reverted back to fever and head ache around bedtime, which might I say was 6 pm and by 6:18 pm both kids were asleep. Obviously they both were ready for slumber. As long as no one barfs, I can handle illness. 

Happily, no one barfed in the night. However, Millie was yelling 'Mama' at 1:40 am and I found her at the door of the living room. I tried to put her back to bed but ended up just putting her in our bed until my alarm went off at 5 am. I have Jack another dose of Motrin when Millie had her episode. His fever never did really subside. When I woke him up Wednesday morning he insisted he was fine to go to school. 

I kept hearing him talk and it sounded as if his throat was closing up. I continued to probe and finally asked him to open his mouth. He did and here is what I saw. Ick!  When it all finally came out, he admitted he did have a sore throat but wanted to go to school so he didn't miss gymnastics. Oh my!

Stuart got to school, signed in and left. I had to drive kids to school so just loaded Jack in the car, and after dropping off everyone, got to my school to deliver Jack to Stuart, who was waiting to take him to the doctor. This balancing act is when I miss family support the most, obviously. 

Stuart said the doctor told him Jack had tonsillitis and that if he got it chronically over the next few months then they might consider taking them out. We were told that his tonsils were exceptionally large. However, I think tonsils are something you grow into, right?  Who knows. Hopefully this is our only fight with his tonsils. 

By Wednesday evening he was back to his normal self, agrivating his sister and joking around, sometimes disrespectfully. Not sure how I feel about him feeling better:)

Thursday Stuart was dared to 'off road' by his school and he got stuck in the sand. Well done!  One of the students at his school, I'm assuming an older one, helped him navigate out. Oh, as well as one of his fellow teachers, a Jeep and a tow rope. Maybe the 4 wheel drive Kia is not the best 'off roading' vehicle after all. 

My second class on Thursday only had 10 students in it. I'm not sure what virus hit that group, but those 10 students were more noisy than the 23 that are normally there. We played games and spent some time on the playground. We have two more weeks and then a break. We will see how the numbers start to dwindle. We have the big state testing the last week before break so we are pretty sure students will all be in attendance that week, but this next week? Who knows?

Thursday evening we went to the Rugby Club for a birthday party and then we stayed for Jack's end of the season rugby celebration. The kids were back to normal, whatever that may look like. The only difference at the Rugby Club was that it rained. Rain here is like snow in southern Texas, it just doesn't happen very often so people get excited about it. 

Friday morning we got up and went to church. We have had so many Friday activities with rugby lately that we haven't been to church for a while. Millie was in rare form and during the singing part she wandered up close to the minister. I'm surprised he didn't just pick her up while she was there. There may be a total of 50 people in the whole congregation so if he would have done that no one would have thought anything about it. 

We had lunch at the mall and then headed to Dubai. There is a place called Global Village just outside of Dubai that is set up for about four months out of the year. Countries from all over the world are represented and sell their wares. There are rides for the kids and food vendors from many countries as well. Weather wise, it was a great day to go. Although there were some sprinkles here and there, it wasn't hot and thus a nice day. 

Prior to our visit to the Global Village we went to a Park and Shop. This is a market that has brands of food you can get in the United States but not always find in the grocery stores in Al Ain. In fact, I may have already said this is a post way back but when we first arrived here people told us if we saw something at a grocery store that we wanted, we should buy it because it may not be there the next time. This is certainly not an exaggeration. I found applesauce pots, the little individual ones, when we first arrived here. Bought them once, haven't seen them again. The same is true for my beloved creamer, you know the Nestles flavored? One shopping trip the hazelnut will be there, the next time there will be nothing. Frustrating! And it makes me laugh that this is my biggest stresser in life right now. 

We ended up being so excited that we spent silly money and are not exactly sure what we bought. It was a fun one-time experience. We discussed that there is really not anything that we miss and can't live without, besides good Mexican food. 

We got back late, and fortunately I remembered to put the kids' jammies in the car because then we could just put them in bed once we got back. 

Saturday morning we were going to go to the grocery store. But being unmotivated, we decided to stay at home. We also thought about going to have a BBQ at Zakher Lake, but it was windy and Zakher Lake is surrounded by sand dunes, so we decided against that as well. In the end we invited Cathy and her girls over for dinner and had a lovely evening. 

Two more weeks of school and then a break. We can hardly wait!

A Late Start

Usually each week I start writing the blog entry on Sundays. I write each day so I don't forget what has happened by the end of the week. I write in past tense so that years from now when I read the blog again the verbage will read like a book of sorts. 

This week I skipped Sunday and Monday all together. Tuesday was the first evening I sat down to write. Although it was only two days, I couldn't remember anything we had done for those days excluding the fact that we went out each day after school so Jack could ride his bike and Millie could ride her scooter (or as she calls it 'scoober'). I use the term 'ride her scooter' quite loosely. In fact, I carried the scooter, as well as Millie more than she rode. Fun for all!

Reading Jack's school newsletter the day it is emailed, as I stated last week, would  benefit me a great deal. Instead I read it in the middle of the week and realized that Jack needed to dress as his favorite storybook character for World Book Day and it couldn't be a super hero, which stinks because we could outfit Spider-Man, the Hulk, Iron Man, and Batman. At any rate, I had to run to the mall on Tuesday evening, the furthest one from our house because they have a Toys R Us store.  I felt that would be the best bet for a place to get a costume. I was wrong. 

I ended up buying him pajamas from a British store. They were Gruffalo pjs. It's one of his favorite books. He even had the theme of the Gruffalo for his 4th birthday party. When I got home he was asleep so I had to wait to see what he thought on Wednesday morning. 

I know this is random, but on my way to the mall I saw the sun setting in my wing mirror. All I could think was no matter which dessert you live in, there is something amazing about those sunsets. So here is the picture I took...and yes, it was while I was driving. Don't judge and be assured I never looked at my camera, just pushed the button. 

When Jack awoke on Wednesday morning I showed him what I got for his 'costume'. Although he loved the fact that he had a brand new pair of Gruffalo pajamas, he stated, 'Mama, it is supposed to be a real costume. That's not a real costume.'  I responded with an exasperated, 'I did my best. Wear this or nothing.' You'll be pleased to know he made the right decision for World Book Day 2014. 

I got to school on Wednesday and was informed there was food for us in one of the empty pods. At lunchtime I went over and this is what I saw. 

There was a full-on buffet for the entire staff. This was all provided to us by our art teacher. In Arizona we don't even have an art teacher, not to mention that most likely no one staff member would fork out the dough to feed 70+ staff members. It was quite incredible. 

This was my plate. It was amazing food. The downside was that I wanted to sleep after eating but it seems I had three more periods of work left in the day.  Random surprises like this happen a lot here. 

Thursday one of our grade 4 teachers came in with a swollen face because of a tooth issue. There were not enough people to cover classes (subs are not really used unless it is for a long term illness or maternity).  So I ended up having 2 classes in my room for the entire day. I felt more productive on Thursday than I had in a long time. Kids seem to sense when it's really important for them to behave and do as they are asked. 

Alright, so Jack and Millie are ruining some of the fun we were planning with Grammie and Pop. Pop was on the books for teaching Jack to ride his bike. Um, too late, he has already learned. Grammie has a well thought out plan for potty training Millie. Wouldn't you know it? Millie has come home every day this week and immediately said, 'I need to pee pee,' as she takes her clothes off, as well as he diaper, and proceeds to take her step stool to the toilet and climbs on. She does in fact pee and then stays in her panties for over an hour without peeing anywhere. No where near trained but working on it. Hopefully she can hold off for three more weeks. Then Grammie can work her magic and we can be well on our way to 'no more diaper city'!  And of course, when in ones panties and nothing else, it only makes sense to feed your baby. 

Thursday evening we made our usual trip to the Rugby Club. We actually tried to go to the Golf Club but there were no bouncies or trampoline set up for the kids because they had the horse races there Thursday afternoon and the play equipment blocks the view of the horses. So, back to our usual Thursday evening. The kids played hard and were exhausted when we got home. They took showers and went straight to bed. 

Millie slept until almost 9 am, but Jack was a different story. I woke up in the middle of the night and Jack was wedged between us. I asked him if he went to the bathroom and, because I was exhausted as well, didn't insist he go back to his bed like I normally do. Boy am I glad I let him stay. He had placed his feet up by us and his head was at the foot of the bed. I'm not sure how much time had passed between my conversation with him and the next thing that happened. Both Stuart and I sat straight up in bed to what appeared to be a cat throwing up a hair ball, arched back and all. Jack threw up on our duvet cover, but not all over the place. He was able to get to the toilet before heaving again. We stripped the duvet cover and put it in the washer (yet another day to be thankful for the dryer we bought). When I looked at the clock it was 3:45 am. 

We decided the top bunk was not the best place for a barfing kid. So Jack and I went to lay in the guest bed. I put a trash can right by Jack on the floor, which he used about 15 minutes after we laid down. He decided he would rather sleep on the sofa, the three seater, which meant I would be sleeping on the two seater, quite a sight I'm sure. 

I again placed the trash can beside him and between 4 am and 6 am he probably used it 5 more times. Poor soul! Each time we would travel into the bathroom and he would want to lay on the floor after each episode. I sat on the floor as long as I could (tile gets cold and hard quickly) and he would lay on my lap.  We traveled back to the sofa for the last time at 6 am and he slept until Millie came into the living room around 9. 

The rest of the day he just laid around and slept. We had plans to go watch the championship rugby match with the first team, but were thinking Jack shouldn't go. However, being up for Mother of the Year like I am (wink, wink), I decided a wise decision would be to take him to the match. He definitely was not himself, but in the end ate a slice of pizza and recovered a bit. He was still dragging when we got home around 8ish. He showered and went straight to bed. 

He came into our room Saturday morning, as chipper as a sweet baby bird. Recovered fully! So, as not to let the grass grow under our feet, we headed to Abu Dhabi for a day at the beach. Cathy and Claire went along and Gina met us there. It is definitely a treat to live so close to a beach, oh except that I hate sand. The kids had fun and were sufficiently covered with sunscreen, this time. 

We returned home and I decided a mani/pedi would end my weekend perfectly. Off I went for the mani/pedi and the kids ate and went to bed, well Jack went to bed. Yet another 'Millie' battle in our lives. As Jack says, 'Only 20 more sleeps until Grammie and Pop get her', which also means until we are off of school for two weeks. Can't wait!