We started the week with a birthday!

Of course Jack was awake almost before I was. He was excited to open his birthday presents. 

He got presents from Grandma, Grandpa, Aunty Cheryl and Granny. Grammie and Pop had given him money over the summer and we got him some cologne and a PlayStation gift voucher. 

School seemed a bit more organized for me. I felt more prepared and I anticipate this to be the case from now on. I had a STEAM committee meeting after school that lasted longer than I had wanted since it was Jack’s birthday and we would be going out for dinner to celebrate. Once we left school we took Johan home. He is a one-to-one teacher for one of the children at school and has started riding to and from school with us. We then got home and changed clothes. We headed out to dinner for Jack’s birthday. He wanted to go to PF Chang’s. 

And sushi was his dish choice, as it always is. 

Cathy joined us for the celebration. We ended up going to Dunkin Donuts for dessert as it was cheaper and yummier than anything they had to offer at PF Chang’s. We then headed home for a late bedtime for Millie, which is always fun. 

The birthday bliss did not last long as I got a message on Monday afternoon that Jack had an issue during lunch. He was okay, but had been punched in the head three times by another boy. Apparently he had raised his middle finger at this boy, then was accused of having said some choice words to him in the previous week. Now Jack can by all means be mouthy, so whether he said foul words to this boy or not, only Jack knows. He says he didn’t, but anything is possible. And as he described it, he was using his middle finger to point to things in Math class. I know he knows what he was doing and I’m sure he was just trying to be funny or something. We set a meeting to go and discuss Jack’s responsibility in the whole scenario for Tuesday. No matter what Jack said, no one should ever lay their hands on someone else. Never!

Monday after school the kids and Stuart had to do a border run. This visa process is about to kill us. The fact that they don’t have visas means Jack can’t play rugby yet, which really upsets him. Hopefully it will all get sorted soon. 

I helped out with basketball and tried to put the Jack incident behind me until I got the entire story. After basketball I went to the club and worked out in the gym. Stuart dropped Jack and Millie off at 6 pm and then ran home to change as he had training as well. Jack caught the last half hour of training and then stayed for an informational meeting regarding the touch rugby team he is going to play in this year. We ate at the club and we got food for Jack to eat once we were home. The kids and I came home around 7:15 and they were showered and in bed. Stuart and I stayed up talking about this ordeal with Jack. We really feel he’s being bullied and is trying to deal with it himself. We knew we would get more information the following day, but in the meantime it’s tough to go through these situations. 

Tuesday morning we were able to meet with the Pastoral Care admin and Jack’s House Master. We told them that he was really down about school and that his start hadn’t been the best. They told us the other boy had been excluded for the rest of the day and that they would get the boys together to sort things out if it was okay with us. I felt better after meeting with them but was still concerned about Jack. I hated my junior high years because of mean kids. I don’t want him to go through the same thing, but maybe it just happens to everyone. 

After school Jack had swim squad while Stuart and I were in a staff briefing. Then Jack had touch training at the club. We all went as we had to go straight from school. We came home and had dinner, showers and bed. 

Wednesday Jack seemed to have a better day. Stuart and I are still running around like chickens with our heads cut off. Millie, fortunately, is just getting on with life. She’s a fighter, thank goodness. After school we brought Alice and Tommy to the club with us because Joan had a seminar in Dubai that day and her nanny had to go back to the Philippines last week because her mother was ill. So there was no one to pick up Tommy and Alice. Joan can’t function without her nanny. It’s hilarious. We fed everyone at the club again. Thank goodness it’s half price for us. 

Thursday the Prep team provided breakfast. I brought waffles, as always. Usually Stuart is very competitive with these things, but he could only manage bringing bread, butter, jam and our toaster. I’m sure he will pull out the stops at some stage. 

After school we raced to the club to watch England destroy the US in the Rugby World Cup. We didn’t stay long after the game. We came home and Cathy and Sean came over and we ordered curry. 

Friday we headed to Abu Dhabi so Jack could buy an Apple Watch with some of his birthday money. He was so excited. He thinks he’s so grown up, but emotionally he’s still a little boy. On the way home he got a phone call from a number he didn’t recognize. The boy on the other end said ‘hey, mother f***er’ and then hung up. The next time the call came through I answered it. There was a bit of noise and then he hung up. We then texted the number from Jack’s phone and said that we had his number and if he ever called or messaged Jack again we would call the police and file a charge of harassment and the use of foul language. It’s a VERY serious offense. I ended up saving the contact into my phone and then going to an app called WhatsApp. If someone has the app it will show you a picture of the person. I was able to find out what boy called him. I would message the pertinent people the following morning as we are asked not to email on Fridays. 

When we got back from Abu Dhabi we went to Cathy’s for dinner. We hadn’t properly seen her new place and we never go to hers to eat, so it was time. The kids took their electronics and were fine until about 7:30, then the witching hour started and they started to lose the plot. We left for home and showers. Stuart ended up going to bed just after Jack did. I stayed up to watch television. 

Saturday morning I was up at 6:30 am. I came downstairs and did a bit of work for the next week of school. I wanted to also write the email to the Head of Pastoral Care and Jack’s House Master. I told them the story and basically told them I just wanted them to be aware of the situation. I was emailed back almost immediately saying they would alert the Head of the Senior School and the Head Master, who is like the superintendent of the school. I was shocked, but thrilled, at how seriously he was taking this. Technology might be the best and worst thing that has happened to our society. We monitor Jack’s phone use at all times. I check his messages every evening. Time will tell what will happen to the offender. 

We spent most of the day watching the Star Wars movies and the Jurassic Park films. Jack went to Ian’s for a while in the afternoon and Millie played upstairs. Stuart made meatloaf for dinner which was delicious, but not according to Millie though. Will that child ever eat anything but potatoes?

Week three has begun, and not on a happy note.

I dreaded going into school on Sunday. I knew at some stage I would be meeting with the head of Academics and the Teaching Assistant who said I yelled at her, even though there were two adults in the room who said they didn’t notice anything that was going on. Shewas being terribly over dramatic and it didn’t change over the weekend. 

The school day was weird, and got more weird at the end of the day when I had my meeting. Mrs. Johnstone started nicely by saying there had been an issue on Thursday. She said we needed to figure out a way to move on from this. She stated everything correctly and even said that Mrs. Telford had apologized and tried to make things right. The teaching assistant insisted I followed her out of the room and was yelling at her. She also said I told her she didn’t know how to do her job. Clearly our perspectives were different. She never relented and didn’t apologize for the part she played in the situation. She would not accept my apology. Itwss decided we would move forward and at least be professional with one another. It was so disheartening to think that a grown woman couldn’t accept that I may have done or said something that I shouldn’t have. It was also upsetting that she didn’t see the part she played in this issue. So I’m finished with her for sure. 

Jack had swim squad after school which meant we had to stay until after 4 pm. On the way home from school we dropped Stuart at the club. He had a meeting about the new menu at the club. I came home and fed both kids, then attempted to put Millie to bed. She’s at a very difficult age right now. I really hope these teens years are not always difficult. Wait! She’s still 5 years away from being a teen. Wow! Jack went to bed before Stuart got home. Since Stuart did a good tasting at the club he wasn’t hungry when he got home. We were in bed just after 9 pm. These first few weeks will for sure be early nightts for us. 

Monday morning I got into school and took the extra brownies I had made for the Favorites party. I had enough for all the teachers and teacher assistants in my year group. Even the teaching assistant who can’t forgive me decided she would have one. Maybe she will forgive me one day. After school I helped with the basketball club. It was really fun. It’s just girls and they are Year 5 and Year 6 girls. Once we left school, because Millie had behaved so badly after school, it was decided that she and I would not go to the rugby club for Jack’s rugby practice. She wasn’t happy, but her attitude may kill me. 

Stuart decided not to train so he came home after Jack’s training. Lara and Brian came over for a bit as well to ask us if we wanted to go for a hotel stay in Dubai. We decided against it as we aren’t terribly keen on leaving the kids for the evening. Plus, we are both still a bit overwhelmed with school at the moment. 

Tuesday after school we had our parent meet and greet. I only had 5 parents. The further up the school you go the less parent there are. This is mainly because they’ve heard the speech and don’t care to hear it again. Once that was over we headed home. When we got into the house Jack insisted I sign his school planner. It was then that I discovered Jack had no idea how to use his planner, nor had he been writing much in it or doing the homework he was to do. He had actually forged my name in the first week of the planner. I was livid. After a shout or two in his direction, I finally sat with him and we talked through his responsibilities. We both cried and I told him I would help him figure out what he needed to do so we could sort things out. This growing up thing is hard on everyone. 

Lara and I had decided we would start walking at night since we were struggling to get our lazy butts out of bed in the mornings. We started Tuesday evening. It seemed to work better as we were able to talk about the stresses of the day. 

Wednesday morning we got up and talked through what Jack would do when he got to school. We told him if school didn’t start becoming a priority his sport activities would start being taken away. He went and spoke to his house tutor who told him he knew Jack had forged my name, but wanted to see if Jack would fess up to it. I call total bullshit on that. I think the Senior School has a bit to answer for. Unfortunately the teachers there are not elementary teachers, yet in so many ways these children like Jack are still very young and needy. I feel many meetings with teachers coming my way. Initiated by me of course. 

After school we got home to the maintenance man coming to fix the water heater. He turned the hot water back on, or so I thought. In the end he didn’t and we would have to call him again on Thursday. When the maintenance man was finished Millie and I headed to the supermarket.  We shopped as quickly as we could and then headed to get petrol. The car was nearly out of fuel. We got home and unpacked the groceries, cleaned the children, fed the children and then Stuart and I watched Dirty Dancing once the kids were in bed. 

Thursday couldn’t be over early enough. At the end of the day I found out that my student whose answer to every question last year was ‘potato fork’ was coming back. Although I have the most children in my classroom, I told them I wanted him back in my classroom. I loved that kid, although most days he drove me bananas.We left right after school. When we got home, Stuart started to cook. The Raals came for dinner. Carel is Millie’s teacher. He is from South Africa and his wife Alex is from England. They have three of the cutest little girls. Ava is 5, Ivy is 3 and Una is 2 and talks all the time. They are adorable. We had a lovely evening, but when they left Millie was irritated as the little girls had ‘destroyed’ her room. I helped her to clean up and reminded her that they were much younger than she was and weren’t as good at tidying up. 

Friday we were up and I worked on my lessons for next week. We headed to the club for Jack’s birthday swim party. 

Our cleaner, who also waits tables at the club, put these balloons up for Jack. They say Happy Birthday Jack. It was so sweet. 

The pizza, chips and cake were delicious. 

He had invited boys from his rugby team and from school. He was so excited. Jack had requested that his friends not buy him a gift but consider just giving him money as he was saving up for a big item. He wants to buy either an iPhone X, and Apple Watch or a Go Pro. So we said that was fine. All of his friends gave him a card with money. His friend Zayed, who is the grandson of Sheikh Tahnoon, who rules Al Ain, gave him the equivalent of $270. That pretty much solidified his savings and now next weekend we will be going to Abu Dhabi to make his purchase, but he still hasn’t made his final decision. 

After the swim party the kids, Cathy and myself headed back to our house. We ordered burgers from Hardees as soon as Stuart got home from the club. The Rugby World Cup started on Saturday so the matches were all being televised in the restaurant. He had stayed to watch the first two matches. Sean came over a little later and then we just watched Michael McIntyre on YouTube for a while. Everyone was gone and we went to bed. It had been a full day in the sun. Jack was sleeping over at Ian’s and Millie had passed out in our bed and we had to move her to her bed. 

Saturday morning Stuart was up at 5:30 am. I woke up but then went back to sleep until nearly 8. I worked a bit while Stuart went back to the club to watch another rugby match. We will be in Rugby heaven for the next month at least. 

When he got home we headed to the store to get Jack a gift. We were going to make up the extra money he needed for his new phone, but since he got plenty of money for his birthday, we needed to get him a gift to open on Sunday. We also got donuts for his birthday breakfast. When we got home we loaded everyone up and went to the club for the South Africa versus New Zealand rugby match. The All Blacks beat South Africa by quite a bit. We stayed for a birthday party and Jack had a moan about staying, unfortunately. I ended up grounding him from his PS4 for a week because of his behavior. 

Once we were home the kids showered and Millie stalled as long as she could to go to bed. She was finally in bed just after 7. Jack went at his normal time and then Stuart went to bed. I fell asleep on the sofa as I do all to often. We would be up early the following morning to celebrate Jack’s day of birth. 

The busy days are in full swing!

Sunday Millie went to school in her PE kit with the intent to play bench ball, whatever that is, at lunch time. We had initially thought it was an after school activity but it wasn’t. Jack had swim squad after school so we ended up staying until about 4:30 pm. 

When Jack returned from swim squad I questioned whether he got into trouble for his issues on Thursday. He said that his House Master Just sat the boys down and spoke to them about their actions and how it was probably a good idea for them to keep in mind that these boys were a bit older and may not think their kind of play is fun. The boys agreed that they didn’t want to have this conversation again, and that they would be more careful and considerate from now on. Crisis averted, for now. 

Year 5 had their ‘hook’ day. Since their theme this term is How to Train Your Dragon, all the teachers dressed as Vikings.  

Once we were home from school Jack was complaining about a stomach ache. I ended up not going to our Committee meeting because of it. It’s tough for both Stuart and myself to be on the committee, especially with kids who need to be in bed on a school night. So I was a bit relieved to not have to go Sunday evening. Stuart had made salmon before he left. Jack didn’t want to eat initially, but in the end he did and actually felt better. I believe he has so much activity going on that he is not eating enough to keep himself going. Hopefully we will fix that soon. 

The kids went to bed as normal. Stuart was home from the club around 9 pm and went to bed. I fell asleep on the sofa and was awaken by Jack who had come downstairs to tell me he had thrown up. Lovely! Anyone know what salmon looks like 4 hours after it’s been eaten, not to mention what it smells like. 🤢 He’s so good at barfing, though. He didn’t hit any of his bed. He did, however, douse his Yoda rug. After cleaning up the mess and taking his rug into our shower to hose it off, waking Stuart up in the process, Javk settled back into his bed. I think messaged my head of operations to let her know I would most likely not be in on Monday. It was an eventful night for sure. 

I woke up at 5:20 am, relieved Jack had not been sick in the night. I went in to ask him how he felt and if he wanted to go to school. He said his stomach still hurt and he didn’t feel like going to school. Since he loves school I knew he was being truthful. Plus, Monday would be his first night of rugby training and he would miss that, so this was real. I got dressed, went into school to prepare for the people who would cover my lessons and then returned home to sit with my sick baby. He watched movies all day and just laid on the sofa. Around noon I made him some chicken noodle soup which he loved. He had some Sprite during the day and perked up. Then I started feeling ill. I was hoping it wasn’t a bug he was passing around. 

Tuesday we were back at school and all was well. Tuesday evening we had nothing to do so we were home and the kids thought we needed to have McDonalds. The normal routines ensued and all was well. 

Wednesday we were off to school before 6:30 am. We have started to pick up a co-worker this week, but he wasn’t feeling especially well so we skipped picking him up that morning. 

Millie had swim squad after school and Jack had football club. We went to the club for Jack’s first training. There weren’t enough for a full squad, but they have found a solution so the boys can still play through the entire year. That was all I was concerned about. I just wanted to make sure he would be able to play. When we got home from the club the Jack showered and ate. Millie has eaten at the club so she showered and went straight to bed. I fell asleep on the sofa. When I woke up Stuart had already gone to bed so I followed. 

When Thursday morning came I had a hard time believing that we were getting ready to complete our full second week of school. The day was relatively normal except for the last lesson of the day. One of the teaching assistance came in and interrupted my lesson just before it was over. She insisted I do something for her. She was making a bit of a scene and then when all was said and done she turned it around to say that I yelled at her. When I went to sort things out with her at the end of the day I discovered she had left. She had gone to the academic head and cried. I messaged her to tell her I was sorry I had upset her. She messaged the following back to me. Really?

This apology is not acceptable . We will meet in the presence of Mrs Johnstone, in order to know what mistake I did to you to deserve this kind of disrespect in front of all of the students and teachers . Kindly do not send massages on my personal Mobile any more.

So did she think that coming in and disrupting my lesson was respectful? Too much! At any rate, Mrs. Johnstone, the Head of academics, told me not to worry about it. So that was a fun way to end the week. Ugh!

After school we went to the golf club and Jack participated in his third tournament. He was excited. He scored a 39 on 9 holes which was a 3 par per hole. His handicap is now 8, so he was happy. When we left I asked him if he had everything. He said ‘yep’. We got home and I told him to get his clubs out of the back of the car. He opened the boot and, you guessed it, no clubs. ‘Oh,’ he said, ‘The guys asked me if I wanted them to clean my clubs and I said yes.’ He’s too much sometimes. 

I made waffles for the kids for dinner. They showered before dinner and then went to bed shortly after dinner. Stuart and I had eaten some nachos at the golf club so didn’t need anything once we got home. Stuart fell asleep on the sofa and I attempted to watch some of my trash shows but the internet was so slow that I couldn’t get any show to play. Stuart went to bed and I watched Netflix for a bit. I woke up on the sofa at 1 am and decided it was time to move upstairs. 

Friday morning I was up just after 6 am. Jack was already awake and every light was on down to the living room. It’s Jack’s way. I decided to do some school work so I wouldn’t have anything to do on Saturday. Around 9:30 am we headed to the mall to buy Jack some swim trunks and look for some birthday bag treats. When we were walking to the sport shop I noticed that Jack had a section in his hair that looked as if it had been shaved or cut. Clearly it had happened at school. I giggled and that offended Jack. I asked him how it happened and he said he didn’t know. He then turned it around on me and got mad, crying and being rude to me. Then he wouldn’t cooperate with us when we found him some swim trunks. Stuart got angry with him and said he wasn’t sure why we were letting him go with his friend Zayed to Dubai that afternoon. He had been invited to go to IMG World, an amusement park. I spoke with him about his attitude towards us and that it would only get him into trouble if he didn’t stop. He then told me what happened to his hair. He said in his Arabic class they were cutting things out and he and another kid were acting like they were going to cut each other’s hair. The other boy actually did cut Jack’s hair. This kid may kill me. Now that’s two incidents in two weeks. I’m not sure I will make it through these years. 

After getting Jack’s swim trunks we went to look for gift bag stuff. In the end we decided when you are 11 years old you don’t need to have birthday bags. We then went grocery shopping for the week. When we returned home Jack played on his PS4 for a bit. Millie’s attitude and sassiness caused her to lose her iPad for the weekend so she played with her babies. Carly showed up just before noon to babysit while we went to a 40th birthday brunch at the Rotana. Jack was picked up by Harry’s mum to go to the palace for their trip to IMG World. 

Harry and Jack are ready to be spoiled on their day out with royalty. 

Brunch was lovely as always. 

We left around 5:30 pm. Carly had a party to go to and we really didn’t want to stay out terribly late. Once we were home Millie had a shower and ate supper. Cathy came over for a chat. Millie went to bed at her normal time, thank goodness. Cathy left around 9 pm. Jack got home about 10 pm. He had thoroughly enjoyed himself. 

The boys were VIPs for the day and took advantage of the free juice in the lounge. 

They won these stuffed toys. Since Zayed paid for the games to win these items, he got to keep them, thank goodness. 

Jack was showered, had fruit, and was in bed around 10:30 pm. Stuart was in bed just before Jack. This new job is wearing Stuart out. 

Saturday morning the kids were up before any of us. I got up and Stuart helped me change our bed sheets. I went to see a swing set that the rugby club might be interested in buying. The one we bought over the summer was about half the size as we thought it would be, leaving half of our covered area looking very bare. The lady who was selling it wasn’t there, or so it seemed, so I went home and messaged her that I would come back in the afternoon. 

Once I was home I made cupcakes for our Favorites party at DeDe’s house. Cathy came over around 1 pm and we socialized for a bit before heading to DeDe’s. The party was a bit different. It seems that everyone who is still working for the government schools have lost that loving feeling for working in the UAE. It seems that the government schools are pushing out the westerners. I’m not sure how concerned they are about their people learning English any more. 

After the Favorites party Cathy and I went to look at the playground structure and purchased it. Then we were back at the house to have dinner. Cathy ate and ran while Millie went to bed and Jack watched television. Once the dinner was cleaned up I headed to take a shower. Jack then went to bed and Stuart followed shortly. I was in bed by 9:30 pm because I was starting my walking with the dogs the next morning at 5 am. I really do need more of a bed time than I have had over the past couple of years. So here’s to getting back into shape. 

Starting our 7th year in the UAE

Well, the lead up to the first of the year was quite exciting. Jack was so ready to go to the senior school, which happens for our Year 6 children, the equivalent of 5th grade. Millie could take or leave school. She was just excited to get back to her social life. Stuart was nervous and I was dreading my new grade level a bit, and the fact that I would be out numbered by men this year. 

The kids are growing faster than I like. 

We all dressed our best for the first day. 

School was rushed the first day, and a bit overwhelming, but my class was so lovely. It made me thankful I actually did move up with the Year 2s from last year. The day went quickly, but because we didn’t have special classes I didn’t get anything done, so I took it home with me to work. Once we were home we headed to the club for a committee meeting. The big Open Day that starts all the rugby festivities for the year was set for Friday, the 6th and there were things that needed to be finalized. After the meeting we all headed home for dinner, showers and a much needed early evening. 

Monday morning was another good start, but Jack wasn’t up as early as the previous day. He still got up and got his lunch fixed, breakfast made, dressed, did his hair and teeth, and was ready to leave at 6:30 am. Millie did all of those things as well, but not quite as cooperatively.  Monday after school we headed to get Millie’s new bed, which turned out to be a bit of a pain. It took two trips to get everything and it turned out that the lifting wasn’t good for my back at all. 

Millie kicked up a fuss going to bed because we hadn’t put her bed together. Oh my goodness 8 year olds are impatient. We didn’t have time to put her new bed together which upset her beyond reason. We promised we would do it the following evening. 

The kids had showered while Stuart and I were messing with the bed. They were fed and in bed. We followed shortly. My back had really taken a turn so I decided I would go to the doctor the following day after school. 

Tuesday we decided to go to school together as a family as Stuart didn’t have anything to do regarding his exit process with the government schools. We didn’t have a staff briefing as we normally do so we were thrilled. We left to go home and get Jack ready for his golf lesson. I decided to take him to his lesson while Stuart was sorting out the bed situation. Millie’s old bed was going downstairs where it used to be and her new bed would be constructed when I got home. She was so excited.  

Once Jack and I got home I helped Stuart finish building Millie’s bed while Jack showered. The kids ate dinner and Millie climbed the stairs to her new bed. She was so excited. Then she reported that the mattress was hard. Ugh!

Wednesday morning found me with severe back pain, to the point that I decided I would go to the doctor after school. The school day was busy, but that will soon settle and all will be calm again. Jack was still loving school and Millie was still tolerating it. However we did forget her swim kit so she came bawling to me. I ended up driving back home to collect it for her. It was kind of my fault. 

After school I headed to the doctor while Stuart and the kids stayed at school for a bit. When they got home Alice  and Tommy ariived at our house. Joan took the girls ice skating and Stuart took the boys to play football (soccer) at the rugby club. I got home around 6 pm with anti inflammatory meds. Everyone else arrived on the scene around 7:30 pm. Then it was showers and bed for the kids. Stuart and I stayed up for a bit to watch television. We have caught up on all the Netflix series and now need to find a new show to watch. Otherwise we just watch home shows which are not my favorite. 

We finally made it to the end of the week. Thursday was the best day of school to this point. Of course, with the end of the first week I knew that my lesson plans would need some serious attention for the following week. So I would be working through the weekend. 

I had to go to the bank after school. On my way back home I got a call from Jack’s House Master, which is kind of like a school counselor. There had been an incident at school and Jack had been a part of it. It was mainly the younger boys taking the older boys’ footballs and kicking them away from the older boys. And then Jack was accused of telling a local child that his mother was a dog in Arabic. In the Islamic culture the worst insult you can give to someone is referring to them as an animal. Oh, my poor little low man on the totem pole. He swears he didn’t say anything, but who knows. Either way, we are hoping this is a lesson for him and he learns the pecking order, so to speak. 

Once I was home, we spoke to Jack and told him there may be a consequence from the school. We’ve decided he’s an excited puppy who doesn’t know when to stop. I suppose he will learn that older children don’t appreciate him immature behavior. I’m not sure how that is taught other than to experience this kind of thing. He was a bit somber for the rest of the evening and kind of stayed to himself. I’m hoping he was reflecting on his actions. 

We had Cathy and Sean over for dinner. Cathy left relatively early, but Sean stayed until around 11 pm. When he went home, we went to bed. 

Friday morning we got up and headed to the supermarket. The idea was the kids would tell us some things they wanted to put in their lunches. We ended up buying a lot more than we had planned, but isn’t that the way it always goes?

We got home from the store and Stuart made chicken pot pie while I did some school work. I’m hoping this weekend is the last one I do any school work, but I fear it won’t be. Once we had a bite to eat we headed to the club for the Open Day. The only thing I really had to do was meet the foam guy and make sure he knew where to set up. The crowds were amazing. The kids had a blast in the foam and on the slip and slide, until Jack didn’t. He came to me and told me that one of the moms told him he was being a bully and if he was going to pick on someone he should pick on someone his own size. Well, don’t think I didn’t have words with that mom. I’m totally okay with someone correcting my kids, and telling them they need to be careful, but don’t call my kid a name. What a horrible thing for an adult to do to a child. I think I made myself clear about things. This is the same mother who told her son that he wasn’t to be around Jack as Jack is a bad influence. The reason we know this is because when Jack wanted to play in the pool with him early in the summer, he repeated what his mom had said. I told her she was welcome to have her opinion about my son because I had my own opinion about her son. However, I would never say anything to my son about her son or his behavior. It was a damper to the night for sure. I felt badly for Jack. He’s a kind boy and doesn’t mean any ill intent. He’s just a giant puppy and his mind is not terribly mature so often he acts before he things of the end result. 

We got home around 9 pm. It was a successful evening and we were all exhausted. Millie, Jack and I showered and they went to bed. Stuart took a shower and went to bed as well. I, of course, stayed up to watch television and ended up falling asleep on the sofa. 

Saturday morning we went to school to work for a while. The kids went to Lara and Brian’s while we were at school. We got back to the house and relaxed for the rest of the afternoon. We had left overs for dinner and vegged for the rest of the day. It had been a long week. 

Hi ho, hi ho, it’s back to work we go!

I was up earlier than I wanted to be. Stuart and I had a miscommunication.  He thought he was to go into work early to clear up our housing issues. Instead, he went to the property management office to try to switch the housing contract over to our new company. 

He ended up arriving at school before I did. I dropped the kids off at Joan’s and then she rode with me to school. We didn’t do much of anything. We had introductory meetings and then I printed off my labels for my pupil books this year. My teaching assistance got my boards all backed with paper and started organizing the room. Boy do I love a teaching assistant. 

We ended up at home around 4 pm. Stuart stayed for a while and then headed to the club for a meeting. Millie helped me sort out some of my clothes that were long overdue a shuffling through. I didn’t get rid of anything, but just organized my things a bit more. I decided to take a shower and put on my jammies. It’s not that wrong to be in your pjs by 5:30 pm, is it? Stuart got home around 6 pm. Millie had been fed and bathed and was ready to go to bed. Since coming home from our holidays she has woken up every night. I was hopeful she wouldn’t do the same Sunday evening. 

She went to bed with no issues. Stuart, Jack and myself ate dinner and then Jack went off to do his own thing for about an hour. Stuart and I watched television. Then Jack went to bed, but wasn’t happy. His claim was that he shouldn’t have to go to bed at his regular bed time because he was still on holiday. His argument didn’t work. 

Stuart went to bed around 9:30. As he was taking a shower, Millie woke up and started crying because Stuart had turned off the hall light and she claimed she couldn’t see to go to the bathroom, even though the bathroom light was still on. I turned the hall light back on and told her I would leave it on until I went to bed. When I did finally go to bed Millie was sound asleep, and she slept through the night. 

Monday morning we were up a bit later than the previous morning. Jack was actually up before we were, but Millie was a bit of a bear to get out of bed. Stuart left a bit early so he could get into his classroom. He was also planning to go to the cable and electric service office to sort out closing his bills with the old company so he could open them with the new company. It’s a total hassle to change jobs in this country. Hopefully it will be over soon. 

School was very productive. Sadly, I can already tell my team of men are going to be a bit too laid back for me this year. They are really nice guys, but not feeling terribly urgent about getting to work. I’m hoping there will be more productivity as the year goes on. 

I picked up the kids and met Stuart at the cable company main store. He has to clear his account and I have to be a guarantor, meaning I have to promise that if he doesn’t pay his bill, I will. Again, this is one of the things we have to go through to change jobs. I left and brought Jack home with me, while Millie stayed with Stuart and they went on to the mall to try to get our clearance letter from the electric company. 

Jack and I came home. I made dinner for the kids and he played with his PS4. The kids had the ever so satisfying grilled cheese sandwich. Jack wasn’t thrilled, but I couldn’t be bothered by that. He still had his usual bowl of fruit, yogurt and bowl of cereal afterwards so he really has no room to complain. Millie ate and then showered. I read her a book and then she was off to sleep. Jack was up a bit later and then was off to bed. Stuart and I watched television and then he went to bed, with me following shortly. 

Tuesday morning school was full of getting our rooms prepared. We have these things called learning loops. Instead of the boring circles we usually use to go behind the learning outcomes, I decided to use a thematic approach and put little Romans behind my outcomes. Then my teammates decided to do the same. Win for me! This is the reason I was put in Year 3, so I was told. 

Tuesday after school we did absolutely nothing. Millie and I put together a puzzle. I fixed food for the kids and then went to Lara’s to have a chat. She was struggling with family stuff and the new company the schools switched to this year. It seems they are making the free housing they provide not as free as it used to be. Being in the Middle East is really starting to be less profitable each year. When it’s time to go back to Arizona, I think we will be ready. 

Wednesday the kids went to stay at Lara and Brian’s. I was keenly aware that the Weir family needed to get things done, like get a new car battery, so we decided we would give them a break for the day and not send our kids there. I did my best to finish up school things, but spun my wheels for some of the day. However, I feel much better than I did last year. 

After school we went to the golf club for Jack’s lesson, then played foot golf with some other people from Brighton. It was a team building activity, but the attendance from the primary school was lower than I expected. Oh well, we had fun, and then we went to sushi night. Joan and Gene met us there later for a drink. Needless to say it was a late night for the kids. 

Foot golf, here we come. 

Ready for his first kick. 

She even plays foot golf in a funny way. Every kick found her sliding on the green. 

Thursday we were told we would have Sunday off for the Islamic New Year. The formal announcement was due to come on Saturday. So we all anxiously awaited that declaration. I finished work a bit after 4 pm. Gene had brought Jack and Millie to school. Millie left with Stuart a bit earlier and Jack stayed with me so he could get a gift voucher for his PS4 at the supermarket. 

When we got home Cathy came over. We had all had a bit of a long week, and I especially felt sorry for Stuart and Cathy, as they are now going through what I went through at the beginning of the year last year. There is just so much to learn when you move to a new school. It’s overwhelming to say the least. 

Stuart made chicken rolled with bacon and stuffed with asparagus, and potato wedges. It was yummy. We all decompressed for the evening. Around 8 pm Lara messaged me to tell me she was being admitted to the hospital for a bacterial infection. Huh? She was having tests run and they were going to leave her in ICU because they couldn’t get her fever to come down. This was just adding to her stress, as you can imagine. I told her I would come for a visit on Friday. 

Friday Stuart was up and headed toward Dubai airport at 4 am to collect Sean and his daughter Carly. He was home by 7 am which is when I rolled out of bed. We left for the mall around 9:30 am to drop Jack off at a birthday party and hopefully purchase Millie a bed at IKEA. We decided her queen size bed is needed in our spare room because we are hoping to have lots of visitors this year. We know for sure the pastor who performed our wedding ceremony, Roy Lawson, and his wife, Joy, are coming. Ken, Maytee and their girls will be here in March, and we hope Grammie and Pop will come for a long stay in March as well. In the meantime I found a bed on the local swap and shop that I think will work for Millie. She was thrilled. 

There are a few dings here and there but for the equivalent of $135, we decided we could live with it. 

We shopped around for odds and ends at the mall, picked Jack up from his party and then headed home for the afternoon. Cathy and I then went to see Lara in the hospital. She actually looked better than I thought she would. They were getting ready to start her third antibiotic because the first two didn’t work. She was told she would be in the hospital until they could get her fever gone. When we left the hospital we went to my house. Sean arrived a bit after we got there and we ordered dinner from a local Arab restaurant. Sean and Cathy left around 9 pm and then we headed to bed ourselves. 

I was awake at 5 am on Saturday morning. We had received an email stating that school would start on Sunday rather than Monday. So the Islamic new year was celebrated on Saturday instead of Sunday. So we had to go to school to get our rooms ready for Sunday instead of Monday. Boo!

Once I felt comfortable with the way my room looked and how prepared I was for pupils, I left. I picked up the laundry and bought some comfort ice cream, then went home. I had decided, since the kids complain about how I pack their lunches, then they could pack their own lunches this year. So I did some food prep for our second refrigerator. 

So, I’m not sure how long I can keep this up but I’m going to give it a go. 

I took Jack to get his hair cut and then spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing. Our dinner was low key and everyone had an early night in preparation for our first day of school. It’s sure to be an exciting year for all of us.