Election week was emotional no matter who you voted for.

Cathy had girlie surgery on Sunday, which meant she would be off work for 6 weeks.  I am a little bit jealous, but not enough to have THAT surgery.  Mandy and I planned to go and see her after we were finished with school, but her surgery was not as simple as they had thought it would be.  So, in the end, Mandy came to ours for dinner and we decided we would wait until the following day to visit. 

School on Sunday was a farewell to Wayne, our cluster manager.  He was told when we returned to school that his contract would be re-evaluated in two months because of his age.  At the end of the two months he was told his contract would be terminated.  I am not sure that was how he wanted to leave, but it happens.

We had a little senior leadership celebration for him and presented him with a plaque.  He nearly cried.  He was a good advocate for our school.  We can only hope we are treated as well as we were with him once our new cluster manager arrives.

I ran/walked while the kids trained and then it was home for bubble and squeak (which was all the vegetables from the previous night’s roast, plus some baked beans and cheese, all baked in a bubbly goodness.  Mandy, Dylan and Sean came to eat with us, but the kids went to bed before the adults ate.  Sundays and Tuesdays for the kids are rushed.  In order to get them in bed in a timely fashion, we have to do some juggling for sure.

Although Mandy and I had said we would go and see Cathy on Monday, she was not up for visitors even then.  I had told her I would pick Claire up from school on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays until she could drive again, which I hope helps, but didn’t help her state on Monday at all.

On Monday, at school, I was very busy in a teacher's classroom. I was helping to organize and sort out learning centers in accordance to The Daily 5, the prescribed program we have chosen for our school.  I hardly had time to breath on Monday, which was a nice change.  My job kind of goes in spurts of work and no work.  Monday was definitely a work day.

I got home and took Millie to play with one of her friends who is moving back to Australia.  We went to the new soft play area in Al Ain Mall.  I’m not going to lie, the germs that must abound in that place freak me out, but I suppose it also helps build up the antibodies in Millie.  After the hour of play, and a latte (albeit it had to be a Chestnut Praline latte because the Pumpkin Spice has now gone), we headed to McDonalds to feed the kids dinner.  They had their own table and Jody, Sophie’s mother and I shared a table.  They acted so mature.

After dinner, we bid them farewell and headed to order KFC for Jack’s dinner.  We would get home just in time for Stuart to go to rugby.  While we were standing at KFC Millie decided she wanted to get her hair cut.  It has gotten long since we chopped it off this summer and we had decided to let her grow out her bangs.  As I was asking her about trimming her bangs, she said, “No, Mama, I want them cut short again.”  So, ‘short again’ they became.

We got home and Stuart left.  Millie had a bath while Jack ate his KFC.  Millie was ready for bed and in it shortly after our return.  Jack was up for about 45 minutes after Millie, so I took a shower as he was finishing his chicken.  Just before I hopped in the shower, Jack came to me with a huge scratch on his wrist.  I asked him what had happened and he told me he was carrying Oreo down the stairs and she jumped out of his arms.  We tell the kids all the time not to carry the cats around, especially down the stairs because it scares them.  I told him he would be fine and maybe this was his lesson learned.

There was no television for any of us to watch because a crew of men were replacing the water pipes in front of our houses.  When they dug them up they also cut the internet cable.  When that would be repaired would be anyone’s guess.  So Jack went to his room to read a book just after I got out of the shower.

I went in to sing him a song and tell him goodnight.  When I had sung the song, he said to me, “Mama, do you ever do something mean just to see what will happen?” I probed at him until he finally told me what he was talking about.  It turns out that he wasn’t carrying Oreo down the stairs, Oreo was walking on the outside of the stair rails, which means he is exposed to falling to the bottom floor very easily, and Jack had pushed him to see what would happen.  That was when Oreo clutched onto his wrist, probably scared and not wanting to fall.  Okay, now I have never made it a secret that I am not terribly fond of cats, but I LOVE our cats, and the fact that Jack would do something like this made me cry, literally, on his bedside.  I told Jack that if we did things to the cats that caused them not to trust us, they would not want to be around us.

Since Millie had picked Pumpkin up the previous day and thrown her out of our room, literally, it made me think we needed a serious conversation with the kids about the care of their animals.

I told Jack that evening, and Millie the following day, that if they did something of this nature to the cats again, we would have to consider giving them to a family that would treat them better.  We didn’t want them to not trust humans.  I think they understood the seriousness of what they   had done.

I also went to bed early because of the cable not working. There was no reason to stay up if there was no television to watch. 

On Tuesday morning I spent the first three periods doing observations. I ended up leaving school at 10 am to go and pick Cathy up from the hospital. I had the Land Rover so ended up having to go to her house and collect her car. There is no way she would have been able to hoist herself up into the Land Rover. 

After I dropped her and her mother at their house, I headed to the supermarket to get things to make enchiladas. I made two batches and put them in the freezer. I had told Cathy that when she was feeling well enough to eat I would bring a batch over. 

While I was in the cooking/baking mood, I also decided to take out some of the bananas that were in our freezer and make banana bread. I made 4 batches and still had enough bananas to make two more batches at some stage. 

We went to rugby early and stopped at Cathy's to drop off some banana bread. She was a bit perkier, but still clearly in a lot of pain. We then headed to the club. We were there about 40 minutes early so I got my workout down almost before anyone showed up for training. It was great because then I was able to watch Millie practice, which is a total comedy show. 

I ordered pizza for the kids that they ate on the way home. They were showered and up reading books just before 7. The cable was still not fixed but there was someone working on it so we had hope it would be fixed before we went to bed. At around 8 pm we both got onto the wireless with our phones. We shed tears of joy for sure!

We were up early Wednesday morning to see what was happening in the presidential election. To say it was surreal is an understatement. When we went to bed on Tuesday evening I was sure the election was heading in a different direction. I haven't expressed my views a great deal during this election because it's been such a volatile race. I couldn't concentrate at school, and the other Americans I work with felt the same uneasy feeling. 

When Stuart called me to tell me Hillary had conceded, I truly cried, not because I LOVE Hillary, on the contrary. I cried B because of the horribly vile things Mr. Trump had said over the past 18 months, yet still the majority (or at least enough for the needed electoral votes) voted him into office. Had they not heard what he had said? Had nothing of his behavior offended them enough as decent, respectable human beings? 

Don't get me wrong, I realize there are things around Hilary's career that have been questionable, not respectful, dishonest and iffy, but where this all hits a personal note with me, his election was unacceptable. So now what?

I read this and felt it was worthy of sharing. I know some of you who read my blog will totally disagree with my views and that's okay, I probably disagree with some of your views. I still have respectfully listened and read as much as I could about why people are so hurt, and I totally get it. And although I know that no matter what God is still on the throne, that statement doesn't console real, hurting people immediately. Over time, it will, but sometimes you need someone to come along side of you and hold you. It's no different than when my kids get hurt. As much as I want to say, 'Suck it up', and I often do actually say that, my mother has taught me that sometimes they just need me to (as my dad would say) 'tag gone' them a little bit. Don't ask me what 'tag gone' means, because I really don't know the definition. I just know that's what my family used to say when you just needed someone to care. 

Here is what I read. It was written by Austin Channing Brown:

 "God being on the throne" doesnt make those real implications less real. God was on the throne during Hitlers regime. God was on the throne during slavery and Jim Crow. God was on the throne during Japanese internment. God was on the throne during Native American genocide. The very suggestion that marginalized people dont have to worry because God is on the throne is an extraordinarily privileged theology. If you want to be a help to hurting people, dont wash your hands of this election with platitudes that only work for those who will remain largely untouched by the policies and attitudes perpetuated and promised during the campaign. If you want to offer something helpful, consider sharing with those who are hurting that you are willing to take larger risks because God is all powerful. Tell some people that are hurting, that you will confront the racism in your family because you serve a God who is all powerful. Tell people that are hurting that you will stand up for them when its frightening and unpopular because you serve a God who is all powerful. Tell people that are hurting that you will not stand for your church to dehumanize anybody, any body because you serve an all powerful God. Tell us about how this all powerful God is moving you to greater action, greater advocacy, greater passion. If all you have for me and people I love is: "dont worry; God is still on the throne" you are telling me more about you than about God.

So what's now? The election has come and gone and we have a new president elect, whether we like it or not. Now we pray that God has the glory in all Donald Trump does. And if that does not happen, we still pray for Mr. Trump. It is our only hope, whether it was Mr. Trump who got the 270 electoral votes or Mrs. Clinton. I hope and pray that we stand up for those who may be mistreated during this time. I hope that no one looks at any of Mr. Trump's attitudes toward women as acceptable (no matter how long ago the recording were). I hope we can unite and love one another as Christ has asked us to do. We don't have to agree, and trust me, I haven't agreed with many I hold dear, but I still love my friends and family and if they needed anything from me, I would give it. I hope the nation can come to a place where all lives, even if they do not have your same beliefs or ideals, can matter to each of us. 

On a much lighter note and back to being egocentric, I got a call from Brighton College telling me that Jack had kissed a little girl at school. Hang on, didn't I get that same call (well, actually it was an email) two weeks prior regarding Millie and her kissing a little boy? Really? How have I encouraged this or promoted the kissing as a way to show emotion or care? Oh! Never mind! 

He was having a play date with the little kissable one after school that same day. Did I mention it? Should I have? Well, I spoke to the girl's mother and together we decided we would speak to the kids separately and try not to embarrass them. I try not to do anything that would make him not want to share things with me anymore. I spoke to him after his friend went home and made it very clear that no more kissing was to take place unless it was with me, his dad, or his sister. Oh, Lord, help me guide these kids!

Since Jack had someone over to play, we felt we should have a friend over for Millie to play with. Five year olds need WAY more guidance in playing than 8 year olds. After a few trips downstairs, they finally sorted themselves out and played very nicely until we had the ever so healthy dinner of fish fingers and chips (fries). They also had apples and a Galaxy cake. Both kids were wiped once their visitors were gone, and they went to bed having been very entertained for the afternoon. 

I stayed up, and Stuart was home just after 8, which was early for him. Since they didn't have a match this week they were not doing their normal training. They were just playing touch rugby, which is not Stuart's favorite. 

I was up Thursday morning and face-timed my bother, Mitch. Since we've discovered we can do this now, we talk about once a week. It's really nice. I'm not sure how we couldn't ever do this before, but strange things like this occur from time to time in the UAE. 

I went to school and was busy all day. It made the day go faster, which was perfect as I was anxious to get home and start my weekend away with Stuart, just the two of us. I got home just before 2 pm and then went and picked Claire up from school. Since Cathy had surgery, and until she can drive again, I said I would pick Claire up on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. 

Stuart and I were excited because we were going to Abu Dhabi for a weekend away. We haven't been away from the kids, other than a Grammie and Pop sleepover since we were back in the states. We were looking forward to it. 

Cathy had volunteered to keep the kids, but since she had surgery and we had already booked and paid for a hotel, she just volunteered Kayleigh and Claire instead. I think they might have been looking forward to the weekend as much as we were. The kids were super excited as well. 

We left Al Ain around 4 pm, having given a checklist and instructions to the girls. We arrived at the Shangri-La just before 6 pm. We checked in and decided to go to the Qaryat al Beri Souq and have a wander around. We made dinner reservations at the Meat Company for Friday evening, and then decided to eat at a Lebanese restaurant for dinner, followed by sheesha, which gives me a headache the following morning, but is nice while you are in the moment. Once dinner was over we headed back to the room, all alone, no kids. 

We woke around 6 am, got up and went to breakfast around 8 am. We then decided, since neither of us are pool dwellers, we would head to the World Trade Center to walk around. Friday mornings are very quiet and a nice time to walk around the malls. There is a wonderful souq in the World Trade Center. Since we are going to Australia for Christmas, gifts from the souq are the best choice for the adults at least. It would have been perfect except that those who run the souq typically are at the mosque on Friday mornings so many of the stalls were not open. We still managed to purchase a few items which will make beautiful gifts. We had a latte, did some shopping, and then ended our time at the World Trade Center with lunch at Macaroni Grill. 

We came back to the hotel and decided to spend a few hours by the pool. We had bought some books on our shopping trip, so were occupied. Stuart had his rugby book and I had my Lonely Planet's Best of Italy book. We are going there next July and Grammie and Pop are going to join us. Since Jack has been studying Pompeii and Mt Vesuvius this term, he is especially excited. 

Our time at the pool was beyond relaxing. And while we were not looking after one child, Kayleigh and Claire were at the zoo with Jack and Millie, having an equally wonderful time. I'm not really sure Jack and Millie knew we were gone. 

Around 6 pm we decided to head back to the room to get ready for our 8 pm reservation for dinner at the New Zealand restaurant, The Meat Company.  We listened to music in the room, and really enjoyed the time without the kids, although missed them as well. We had a couple of cups of tea and then headed out to dinner. 

I decided to have a burger with no bun while Stuart enjoyed a T-bone steak. I got full rather quickly, but took the burger back to the room for a midnight snack. The dinner was gorgeous! We sat out on the balcony overlooking Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. It really is picturesque. We walked back to our hotel and sat by the pool for sheesha and tea. Once we were back in the room, I turned on Animal Planet, and Stuart dropped off to sleep. It's exhausting doing absolutely nothing. 

Saturday morning I woke up at 5:30 am and after a half hour on Facebook I went back to sleep until 8:30 am. I never do that, but it was nice. I think the only reason I woke up that early was because I heard Stuart open the sliding glass door to the patio. When we were all pretty, Stuart and I went to breakfast. We were going to go to the pool and have a late check out. However, since we had already declared we were not sun worshipers, we left early and went to Al Dalma Mall to shop. It was great. This is becoming my new favorite mall. We bought a few things, had a late lunch, and then headed home to relieve the girls. 

Once we were home, we discovered that Cathy had been put back in the hospital because of a fever that arose. It turns out that she had a Super virus of ecoli. Had it traveled to her kidneys it could have been fatal. Thank goodness she went back to the hospital. 

Once he girls were gone and we had sorted out our bags and washing, Stuart headed to urgent care regarding the hematoma he had developed from an injury that occurred a few weeks ago on the rugby pitch. It was a lump of fluid that didn't seem to be going away. 

While he was gone, I fed the kids beans on toast, a new favorite, and we put up the Christmas tree. I realize it is early, but since we are leaving for Oz on December 15, we want to be able to enjoy a good month of the tree and decorations. I love Christmas for so many reasons! As we were putting the tree up, Jack asked if I was going to move the ornaments when they went to bed. I promised I wouldn't, and I didn't. He was thrilled, saying, 'Good, because you do that every year'.  I really didn't know he noticed. I have to stick to my promise this year for sure. 

After both kids were in bed, I assumed my regular position on the sofa. Stuart didn't get back from the doctor's until almost 9 pm, telling me that the doctor said to give it another 2 weeks and if it didn't go away they would re-evaluate. 

I fell asleep during a television program called The Crown, about England's royal family. At the end of one episode I heard Stuart talking to someone. He was Skyping his mother. I finally got up and joined in on the conversation. They will have a stop over in two weeks on their way to Australia. They are excited and so are we. 

School picture of the week. Millie meets a camel. 

So ends another week in the UAE