A big athletic week for our two.

Sunday Stuart took me and the kids to school. I had dropped my car off to be repaired and it wouldn’t be finished until the end of the day Sunday. At school we practiced our play, which I’m quite over by now. 

We didn’t pick up my car at the end of the day as Jack had an athletic day that didn’t end until after 5 pm, and even made him late to rugby training. Both Jack and Millie ran in the events. Millie ran up a grade level as they didn’t have enough girls to run in the Year 3 group. The PE teacher asked me before the end of the day if I thought Millie would want to run. I said i thought she would. Mrs Teague asked me if Millie would be upset if she came in last. I told her Millie was tough and would be fine. I also said she was just going to be thrilled to be running with older girls.  Stuart showed up at 3:15, and I met them all out at the track after a meeting with a mom of one of my students whose effort is less than good. 

We waited for the races to begin. They started with the Year 3 boys in each event and ended with the Year 6 girls. Millie first ran 50 metre dash. And guess what? She won the race. She was so pleased with herself. Jack did well also. He won two of his races, one being the 800 metre run. He got a second place as well. Millie got second place when she ran the 100 metre race. She thought she was the cat’s meow. It was really sweet. 

Millie is the one in the inside lane. 

Once the meet was over, we headed to rugby. Remember the incident with the kid at rugby who keeps punching around on the other boys? Well, he was up to no good again. And this time I couldn’t help myself.  I had to jump in and defend Jack. I went down on the pitch, and though not proud of my method, I was pleased with the end result. I did have to apologize to the coach. I might have told him he needed to sort out this situation. I’m never going to let my kids think I am not listening to them or I won’t defend them, even if I may not go about it correctly and I might even have to eat crow later. I am pretty sure Jack felt I stood up for him. Sadly, as I may have mentioned before, I think this boy who is bullying the others is not terribly bright and he just doesn’t have any social graces, nor is he capable of learning. I ended up speaking to the dad and telling him I spoke to his son and I didn’t want his son to touch Jack again, nor did I want him to speak to Jack again. I’m so over it, and if the coach doesn’t handle it, I will. This is the first time Jack has encountered what I would call ‘a nasty kid’. So for that, I am so thankful. His friends are so supportive and encouraging to each other. They are so kind and polite. Some of that behavior I attribute to the expat life. I think as expats we have to be more like when we were growing up. We have to rely on others to sort our kids out when they are not doing the right thing. It’s a true ‘village’ helping raise my kids. Jack’s friends wouldn’t dare be disrespectful to adults, and I pray Jack is the same. 

After the rugby debacle, we headed home with our take away food and went home. The kids showered and Millie went to bed, as she had eaten while Jack was training. Jack followed shortly after he finished his tacos. 

Monday Stuart took us to school again because we hadn’t had the opportunity to pick up my car on Sunday. After school, Jack took the bus to the athletics day at another school. Millie and I took a taxi to the repair shop and picked up my car, then we headed to the school where Jack was competing. He did the standing long jump and set the Al Ain record for his age group. Then he did the  running long jump and took Stuart’s advice to throw himself forward as not to lose ground. He’s so easy to coach. He jumped the furthest in his age group. 

We came home and Stuart went to training. The kids had pasta for dinner and I made sausages and veggies for when Stuart got home from training. Lara came over just before Jack went to bed, and stayed while Stuart and I ate. Millie wasn’t well and kept complaining about her cheek hurting. She seems to have some type of absess in her mouth. I think it has to do with her silver tooth. She’s been complaining about it hurting recently. I suppose we are going to the dentist soon. She ended up sleeping in our bed, which is usually disturbing to my sleep. Three people in a bed is about two people too many. 

Tuesday morning we were up and out to school. Jack had swim squad practice.  At the end of the day I told the pupils to remember their reading books the following day. I said, ‘Tomorrow is Wednesday, so don’t forget your reading books.’  My teaching assistant questioned whether the next day was actually Wednesday. I told her she knew how much I hated Tuesday so she shouldn’t tease me about having to repeat it. Her comment? ‘I guess today was so fun that I forgot it was a Tuesday’. Although she had a point, I wasn’t sure whether it was a compliment to this particular Tuesday and my teaching/activity, or an indicator that most Tuesdays I’m an absolute bore. Ha!

I left school after our staff meeting. The kids had gone to their respective places that they go to every Tuesday. I went to sit and wait for Millie to finish dance. We stopped and ordered McDonalds and then headed home, Millie and Jack showered, as we arrived home around the same time as Stuart and Jack returned from rugby training. Millie went to bed. Jack ate his supper and watched his iPad. Jack informed me that the ‘bully’ was spoken to by the coach on Tuesday. And Stuart said the boy was made to sit out for a bit. Maybe the coach did listen to me. 

Once Jack was in bed, Stuart and I watched television for a bit and then Stuart was off to bed while I watched my usual trash. 

Wednesday we went to school with little drama. The rehearsal we had didn’t go as well as we wanted and I think we are all going to crack befor it’s said and done. After school the mother of the year finally took her son to the doctor to see what the things that had been living on his hands for the last 8 months were. She did a biopsy and I nearly barfed. I had to sit down. It was brutal. Turns out, the reason the two different antifungal meds never worked was because it isn’t a fungus. It’s called granuloma annulare and they have no idea what causes it. She gave us some cream and he is due to go back next Tuesday. 

Cathy came over for dinner on Wednesday night and Stuart was off to rugby training. When he got back, we ate, listened to music and both he and Cathy moaned of their horrible jobs. 

Thursday school was school. My year group provided breakfast so waffles were made again. They are a hit. 

Lara and Brian came over in the evening, as did Cathy. We just sat in our carport and listened to music, conversing about our weeks. It wasn’t a late night as we all had to be at the Dubai 7s rugby tournament the following day. 

Friday Was Jack’s last tournament of the year. Stuart wasn’t able to go as he had a match in Al Ain. So we put Jack on the bus and Millie and I followed shortly after. They started at 12:50 pm and we didn’t leave the stadium until 7:45 pm. We stayed around for the presentations. Jack’s team won the Plate. They won 3 of their 4 matches and also had a match forfeited to them. They were so thrilled. 

This was right after they won the Plate. 

And there they are on the podium being presented with their trophy. 

Once we returned to the club, we collected Stuart and headed home. 

Saturday morning I slept in a bit. Jack got up and did his homework while Millie pretended to do hers. For most of the day both kids occupied themselves. We went to pick up Stuart’s car from the club and then he took my car to get a nail removed from a tire. When he got home, we lounged around and watched television. I love Saturdays when we do absolutely nothing. 

Cathy came over again for dinner and we watched Bohemian Rapsody, a must see in my opinion. Once Cathy left and the kids were in bed, I showered and returned to the living room sofa for my nightly nap, before retiring to prepare for another week. 

Thailand for Stuart, Al Ain for the rest of us.

Stuart was off to Thailand early Sunday morning. Sean took him to the airport, thank goodness. I got up early in order to make sure I got to work in time. With Stuart not at home I was responsible for making my own coffee, getting the kids out of bed and making sure they had breakfast. 

We took our Year 2 students to the zoo for most of the day, so teaching was kind of out for me, which was nice. Millie decided she wanted to feed the giraffe. She’s the child furthest away from the camera. Her friend Alice is standing right next to her in the white shirt. 

We left school around 3:15 pm. When we got home we had dinner and then headed to rugby practice. 

I made dinner. Mic drop!!!!!!!

After rugby training Jack complained about one of the other players, the same one who was shoving him around at the beginning of the season. I told him the next time that kid touched him he needed to lay him out flat. Good advice? I can’t decide. How long do you take crap off of someone? It’s especially difficult when Jack has told the coach several times and it hasn’t been properly taken care of. Shortly after we got home the kids were both showered and Millie was in bed. 

Monday was full of planning and show rehearsal for our Year 2 pupils. Monday evening I made dinner again and Cathy and Claire joined us. Lara came over just before Jack went to bed. We stayed up too late just chatting away. 

I slept later than usual Tuesday morning. Before leaving the house I tidied it for our cleaner. I made lunches and headed out to take Jack to swim squad. He didn’t want to go because he had a cold. But he missed on Monday so I made him go. He has to go at least twice a week in order to be able to participate in the swim galas. So I had to force him. 

After school our staff briefing was short. Jack and I headed home around 3:45 pm. Millie was off to dance. Brian picked Jack up at 4:45 pm and took him to rugby practice. I headed to dance class because I had to pay. Since I was in an accident the previous week, I had to make it this week. In between classes I saw Millie. I then headed out to get the kids KFC for dinner. They eat KFC or McDonalds every Tuesday. I’m such a great mom! When I got back from KFC Millie’s class was almost over. 

We got home and Jack returned about the same time. The kids ate and Millie headed to bed. Jack stayed up and watched television. I was just thrilled Tuesday was nearly over. The one thing I love about Tuesdays is when they are done. 

Wednesday morning we headed to school and completed the day in good fashion. We took Alice and Tommy to their house as their mum had a class in Dubai and had to leave school a bit early. The kids begged for them to come back to ours but I couldn’t be bothered. I had an evening on my own and was thrilled to sit and catch up on my trash shows. 

Thursday couldn’t be over fast enough. It was decided the previous evening that Millie would go to Alice’s for a sleepover and Tommy would come to ours for a sleepover. So after school we stopped at the supermarket and got some food for the evening. We then went to the house and Millie packed her bag. Around 4 pm we headed to the Weir  household so we could swap kids. 

Once we were back at our house the boys disappeared. Cathy came over and I put bubble and squeak in the oven, along with sausages and chips. Unfortunately the sausages stayed in longer than they should have and they were a bit too done for the boys. I ended up making toast and sandwiches for the boys. They had plenty of chocolate and pudding so they didn’t go hungry. 

They scooted off to play the PS4 for the remainder of the evening. Cathy and I listened to music and Lara and Kayla came over for a bit. Everyone was gone and in bed by 11 pm. The boys gave me a bit of trouble, but in the end they were tired and went to bed. 

We were up Friday morning and I made pancakes. These were a greater success than the previous evening’s meal. As long as Tommy didn’t go away not wanting to come back, it was all good. Tommy was collected and Millie was dropped off at 10 am. The kids played on their electronics and Cathy came over around noon. We ended up watching two of the three Godfather movies. Stuart was due back around midnight so I ended up waiting up for him. Once he was home I stayed up for more television and he went up to bed. Apparently his flight from Bangkok was pretty rough because of weather. Below are some beautiful pictures from his time in Thailand. 

Stuart and Zoe. 

This picture was taken from a drone one of James’ friends has. 

This was the villa pool. 

The gang, minus me. 

The W. A restaurant in the water. 

James, Stuart and Matt!

Saturday morning we got up and I took my car to the repair shop. We had decided to postpone Jack’s snowboard lesson and go the following week. After dropping my car off we did our grocery shopping. The kids were nuts. Why do children behave so badly in the grocery store? A forever mystery that may never be solved. 

Once we were home and the groceries were away, we sat down to watch television. Millie had asked me to make her lunch so I did. When I told her it was ready, she virtually ignored me and pretended she couldn’t see me because she had her head set on and was watching her iPad. Stuart tried to get her attention as well. When he couldn’t, he grabbed her iPad and took it. She went ballistic. She threw such a fit that she went to her room for timeout. The timeout ended up being about an hour and a half. Every time one of us would go up to her room to get her, she refused to talk to us. She’s such a stubborn child. Argh! Once she was finally downstairs, she ate her chilled tortilla chips and cheese, and then she was off to play outside. 

Stuart started making our roast dinner. The lamb shoulder went into the oven at 1:30 pm. Sean and Cathy came over for dinner. It was delicious as usual. Another successful weekend of relaxation. I love doing very little at the weekend. 

Back at it!

Sunday I got up and walked with Lara. We had a good little catch up from our winter holidays. It was good to be back to walking. Stuart didn’t have to be at work until later in the morning, so when I got back from walking I showered and sat down for a cup of coffee with him. 

School was as usual. I was like a chicken with my head cut off. I just kept trying to catch up with the day as it passed by. Stu picked the kids up after school so I could do some work. I ended up realizing that I had the full planning day on Monday, so I really didn’t work much once he picked the kids up. Once I was home we went to the rugby club for training. Millie felt horrible and nearly fell asleep on the ride home. Her cough had really started to come on throughout the day. I had bought her some cough syrup so was hoping the night would let her rest. She was in bed as soon as she had showered.  Jack went to bed shortly after Millie, and Stuart followed a few minutes later. I stayed up to watch television but fell asleep, as I always do. 

Monday I spent most of the day getting my plans and activities sorted for the rest of the week. Millie was sick most of the day, but remained at school. Sadly, I’m THAT mom. I just tell her to suck it up and she will be fine. We left school around 3:30 to go home. Once home, Rochelle came over to drop off a fairy costume for Millie. She had a cup of tea while the kids played up. Neither of them even speak to me when we get home, but have a visitor over and see how much they hang around and bug me. 

We had a committee meeting at the club. We decided to let the kids eat dinner at the club. It is often easier. Once the meeting was over we headed home for showers and bed for everyone. Before bed, Stuart and I I had leftovers.....again. 

Tuesday we were nearly late again to school. With Stuart not having to leave for school early this week, it makes it difficult for us to want to leave at our normal time. When school was over Millie went with her friend Orla and I had a staff meeting. Then I went to the mall for no good reason. When I left there I headed to pick Millie up from dance. On the way I was rear ended. Super! The guy who hit me wanted to say there was no damage, which was wrong. It wasn’t a great deal of damage, but it was damage all the same.  Cathy ended up picking up Millie from dance as I couldn’t get there on time. I ended up going to McDonalds for the kids’ dinner. By the time I got home I was over it all. 

Wednesday was another day at school. The week seemed to last forever. When we got home we just lazed around the house. There is not one thing to report from Wednesday evening. 

Thursday school couldn’t end quickly enough. The first week back is always difficult. Once we were home we relaxed and the kids immediately got on their electronics. I can’t decide whether banning their electronics during the week is good or not. The weekends seem to be FULL of iPads and PS4. Cathy came over and we ordered curry. It was a totally chilled evening. 

Friday we were up early and Skyped Grammie and Pop. They were in Arkansas at Russ and Julie’s. We ended up getting to talk to everyone except Aunt Julie. She was ill so was in bed. After our conversation, we went to the mall and took the kids to Fun City. 

This was a simulated game the kids shared. 

Fun City always provides a few hours of fun. 

Our trade off was that they had to behave when we went grocery shopping. I can’t say they were angels, but we did get the shopping done for the week. We came home and chilled until about 4:30 pm. We went to the club to watch the conference team play rugby. It was a bit chillier than we cared for so we brought food home. The kids showered and were ready for bed. Cathy and Sean came over and had dinner with us. It wasn’t a terribly late evening, but we listened to music and had a bit of a sing along. 

I got up Saturday and took my car to have an assessment made for the repairs. I ended up getting home just before 9 am. I spent the rest of the day doing a whole lot of nothing. Millie was poorly so we ended up skipping Jack’s first snowboarding lesson in Dubai. Stuart and Jack took off around 2:30 pm. His lesson was at 6 pm. 

Gearing up. 

Stuart said he enjoyed the lesson emmencely. Jack concurred the sentiment. 

Millie and I hung out and watched Benji. She had popcorn and mashed potatoes for dinner. That makes me a great mom, right? 

A girl and her dogs. I made a deal with her. If she stayed in her nightgown all day, she wouldn’t have to take a shower that night. No shower for her. 

Jack got home around 9 pm, showered and was off to bed. The first week back to school/work was not terribly dreadful. Week 2, here we come!!!!

 

A couple of nights in the city end up leading to another night.

Last week I forgot to post that our cat Oreo died We got a message from our house sitter on Saturday morning. She sent me pictures, which were unnecessary, to confirm it was him. She said it looked as if he had been run over by a car. In spite of that he crawled back to our house and they found him under Stuart’s car. I felt so badly for her and her boyfriend who had to take care of the cat. The kids were beyond upset. We decided to tell them right away as we didn’t want them to feel we had kept anything from them. At any rate, we were all sad, but I’m not going to lie, I’m glad he died while we were away. 

We woke up Sunday morning and checked out of the hotel we had stayed in for the previous two evenings, reveling in the previous night’s party. It was unforgettable. We shopped a bit in downtown Sydney and then decided to check into another hotel, and stay in the city for another night. We seem to do this every time we go to Sydney. 

We shopped for a bit and then met Lou and James in Barangaroo, a new development in Sydney. 

The boys had all purchased 6ers cricket shirts and had names and numbers put on them. Jack now wants to play cricket. Really?

We went bowling and that was when the extra night was decided upon. 

Once the bowling was finished we headed to the Sofitel which housing a wonderful pool on the roof. That was the reason we decided to stay there, oh, and because Lou had points and we could stay there for free. 

Poolside with drinks and snacks was a wonderful idea. 

We had decided to take the kids to the food court at Darling Harbour to get them something to eat. Then the parents headed down to the Champagne Bar and had dinner before meeting Nicole and Matt at the casino. The babysitter that showed up was Irish and brilliant. She brought a Monoploy game and the kids seemed to like her. 

We stopped for a kebab on the way home from the casino. 

The following morning we were up for breakfast and then a bit of arcade time for the kids. We then went back to Oyster Bay to prepare for the new year. We actually lounged around for the afternoon. Stuart and James prepared food while the kids played outside. 

New Years was relatively uneventful. Cricket on the lawn was a must as always. Lou and James’s friends, Darren and Varity, as well as their three children, came to help celebrate. Auntie Joyce and Ev (Lou’s mother) we’re there too. The neighbors and their kids also popped over. It was a chilled evening and Millie was asleep before the stroke of midnight. 

Tuesday morning we were up and the kids went bumper tubing. The boat started overheating so bumper tubing was cut short. 

Bumper tubing is always a favorite. 

Since the boat was overheating, Uncle James got the slip ‘n slide out for the kids. 

Fortunately, we also had another activity planned for the day, so not all was lost. Lou, the kids (minus Josh and Zoe) and I went to see Mary Poppins Returns. What a fun film that was. The only issue I had was that the theater was so hot. It made me sleepy and it’s possible I missed a couple of minutes of the film because I was snoozing. 

We went from the theater to the RSL which is a support organization for Australian veterans and active personal with their Defense Forces, originally founded in 1916; with the latest name change in 1990 to reflect current times. It stands for ‘Returned Service League’. It’s a restaurant and has a pokie room, which is my favorite. We had some delicious seafood and then took the kids for an ice cream and a run around on the beach. 

Our view from the RSL. 

A play at the park was in order as well. 

We came home and the kids showered. Jack got a bit disrespectful because he claims I promised him we could go into the spa, which I did not. He then called me a liar. Oh, I can’t wait until the teenage years. 

We got up Wednesday morning. James went to work, Stuart and I went to get everyone bacon sandwiches and then we shuttled everyone to the mall. The kids went to Sky Zone, which is a rock climbing and trampoline place, and Stuart, Lou and I shopped the mall. 

Rock climbing. 

We ate lunch afterwards and then headed back to the house. 

Stuart’s cousin, Haley was to be at the house between 4 and 5, but didn’t show up until just before 6 pm. In the meantime, the kids fished while the brothers attempted to fix the boat. Millie caught a huge fish. Well, it was huge to her. 

She was so excited!

Once Hayley and her new boyfriend, Dallas, arrived, we had drinks down at the boat house. 

We then boated to the Thai restaurant and had a gorgeous dinner. It was the last dinner of the trip. It made me sad, but I always feel that way when our holidays end. 

I was in the second boat crew to go to the restaurant. 

But I was on the first boat back to the house. I assured the kids took showers and baths, even Zoe. 

We didn’t get to bed until after midnight. I had started to develop a horrible, barky cough, so that would prove to be fun throughout the night. I coughed so much that evening that I woke up with a horrible headache. It was way down in my chest and it made me dread the upcoming flight. 

Thursday morning we got up and went to Gannamatta Bay and let the kids have a play in the water and on the beach. We didn’t stay long as it was roasting. 

The kids began to build a ship on the beach. 

The finished product and the crew on the boat. 

We got back to the house and decided to go to The Prince pub for lunch. It became a longer lunch than initially planned. So once we were back at the house, we had showers, finished packing and left for the airport. We had scheduled an Uber, but it didn’t come. So in the end Louise had to take us, which was much appreciated. 

Our arrival at the airport and checking in was virtually seedless. We got through security a bit faster than normal because we had Emirates fast track security passes. We got those from Louise. She is our hook up for most everything. 

We had a bit to eat at the airport and then began our 13+ hour plane journey home. We had a layover in Bankok, but just long enough to get off the plane and get right back on the same plane. Both journeys were uneventful. The kids slept quite a bit as did Stuart and myself. Once we arrived in Dubai early Friday morning, we caught a taxi home. As soon as we were home we opened the presents we had left here from Grandma, Grandpa, Grammie, Pop and us. Millie was excited to play with her new dolls, but Jack just wanted to get on the PS4 and reconnect with some of his buddies here in Al Ain. 

The kids went out to play with Lara and Brian’s kids, Ian and Keith. Stuart and I lazed around and Stuart may have napped a bit while I unpacked the kids and myself. I also packed up the Christmas decorations, which always snaps me back into reality a bit. I made a trip over to see Lara and Brian and then came back to a sleeping Stuart. The kids came back to the house around 5 pm and showered. We had nachos for supper and then Millie fell asleep on the sofa at 6 pm, followed by Jack at 6:30 pm. I knew Jack would be up super early as a result, but fighting jetlag is a useless battle. 

Stuart fell asleep on the sofa just after 8 pm and then I headed to bed shortly after that. I’m not sure when he came to bed, but I had to get up at midnight and find some cough syrup and I was hacking up a lung. I ended up propping myself up on two pillows as to not let drainage flow down my throat. I did stop coughing, but was awake at 4 am, as was the rest of the family. 

All of us ended up downstairs, just waiting for the sun to come up. Stuart and I had several cups of coffee and started watching a new series. Around 5 am we heard Jack talking to someone on his PS4 upstairs. Stuart went up to investigate as it was too early for him to be speaking to someone in Al Ain. It turns out he was playing and speaking with his friend, Griffin, who now lives in China. 

Jack was collected by his friend Adam at 10 am. They went to the Hilton for a swim and then to Adam’s to play for the afternoon. Stuart and I sat down to watch television again while Millie went outside to ride her new skateboard. 

Stuart left the house around 12:30 pm to pick up our friend Sean and his daughter from the airport. Millie and I headed to the pharmacy for cough syrup for her cough. Seems we will all be sick soon. When we got back to the house we sat down to begin the 4th season of Fuller House. We love that show. 

We spent most of the afternoon watching Netflix. Stuart got home just after 3 pm and I went to pick Jack up at 4 pm. Cathy came for dinner around 5:30 pm and Sean joined us before that for a fast catch up. The rest of the evening was just relaxing and getting to grips with the fact that we had to start back to work the following day. The end justifies the means.