New York continued

We were up bright and early again this morning and headed out to Rockefeller Center. We had Dunkin Doughnuts and hot chocolate with a view of the skating rink. Nothing like a major sugar rush first thing in the morning. We took the ride to the Top of the Rock for some outstanding views of the city.....and did I mention it was really cold this morning and even colder 69 stories up.

We tried hanging out at the Today show, but it was pretty boring for the kiddos and honestly, I didn't want my kids hearing all the terrible news they were sharing. Bill and the boys got in a short line for Nintendo World. Earlier there were about 100 people lined up waiting for a chance to buy a Wii. They get Wii's in everyday and everyday there is a line to get one. Abbey and I headed out to the American Girl store (again!). As we walked past the Today show, Mr. Al Roker was out doing the weather and with him was none other than Jordin Sparks, the reigning American Idol. Although, she didn't sing, it was still very exciting to see her and hear her promote her new album. I felt like a crazy paparazzi snapping photos of Jordin. I think I was more excited than Abbey.

After our brush with fame, Abbey and I continued on to the AG store and got her doll's hair done at the Doll Beauty Shop. Marisol, her doll, got the style of the month, the Triple Flip. Some of the dolls waiting to get their hair done looked pretty rough, they really needed the makeover.

We took a taxi to Max Brenner's Chocolate by the Bald Guy (recommended by my friend Patti). It was a pretty impressive place. It is a chocolate emporium. We had lunch and for desert ordered chocolate fondue which came with your own little "campfire" to roast your marshmallows. Abbey ordered a kids desert which involved a crepe, gummy bears, vanilla ice cream and a flask of chocolate syrup.

The rest of the day was uneventful....we came back to the hotel for a nap, trying to get our body clocks working correctly. Bill ended up going around the corner and picking up McDonalds for dinner. We ate in our room and watched "Nancy Drew" on pay per view.

Tomorrow is our last day here and we have to work in the Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island and the American Museum of Natural History. Abbey and I have another date with AG place for dinner and a show. Hopefully, we can stay awake all day and squeeze in everything.

We love NY!

We made it to NYC and we love it! It is absolutely the sparkliest city I have ever seen. We arrived about 6 pm in Newark and surprised our kids with a limo. I think it was the best idea ever. They were truly so shocked and we all felt like rock stars! After the obligatory photos, we all stretched out on the seats and fell asleep for the ride to the hotel.

The hotel is wonderful. You just never know when you book over the Internet, but the room is big, the beds and pillows are oh so comfy. We have a balcony and a little kitchen. We are staying at the Affinia 50.

We had breakfast the next morning at the Morning Star diner where we throughly enjoyed our eggs and BACON! Then, we went to Cirque Du Solei and saw the show, Wintuk. It tells the story of a little boy's quest for snow. Along the way, he meets all these unusual people that do acrobatics, juggling, balancing feats, etc. At the end of the show there is a blizzard of paper snowflakes covering the entire audience. It was magical.

We had lunch at a deli in Times Square and shopped a bit. We went to the giant Toys R Us, the Hershey's store and the M&M store. We walked back to the hotel and passed out around 6pm. Jet lag! We were up very early...Cole, Abbey and I walked around the corner to a bagel shop for breakfast. Then after dropping off breakfast for Bill and Will (they spent the morning hanging out in the hotel room), we walked to Rockefeller Center in the slushy, snowing, drizzly wet weather. It snowed a little during the night and the kids had fun throwing snowballs and getting wet. We are loving all the Christmas trees and decorations and music everywhere.

We were going to ride to the Top of the Rock to see the views, but the visibility was zero. We thought about taking the NBC tour, but it didn't open until 9:30, so we joined a small group of people lined up outside of The American Girl Place. Abbey was is heaven! She was so excited. She did some shopping around and bought Julie, the new historical doll from that time so long ago, the 1970's. It was fun and Cole was a real trooper. He did say it gave him the creeps, though. We topped off the morning with hot chocolate from Starbucks.

At 1pm, we had tickets for The Lion King. It was great. The opening scene with all the animals, Circle of Life, was stunning. Abbey got so sleepy during the show....jet lag strikes again. After the show, we passed a beggar on the street. I still remember the first beggar I ever saw. It made me cry. Will wanted me to give him some money. He was in a wheelchair and had both legs amputated. I gave him a dollar, while Will hid behind a huge planter. When I walked back over, Will said he wanted to give him $10. So while Will hid again, I gave the man another $10. Call me crazy, but I know what my little guy was feeling and thinking.

We took a cab to a nice Italian restaurant and all three kids were so sleepy, they fell asleep on the drive back to the hotel. We were in bed by 6pm again. Unfortunately, when you fall asleep so early, you wake up really early and it is hard to go back to sleep. I am sitting here awake at 4:00 am. Everybody else is sleeping, I think...I hope.

Today, I am not sure what we are doing. If everyone is up early, we may go hang outside the NBC studio for the Today show filming. So look for us, if you are watching this morning.

This time tomorrow we will be on a plane headed toward the USA....whoopee! I have quite a few things to get done before hand, as you can imagine.

There is no Internet at my Mom's, so this will probably be my last blog for a while.

I wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas filled with peace as we celebrate our Savior's birthday.

Santa Came to Doha

Santa came to Doha this weekend!

The kids were so excited to wake up Saturday morning to find that Santa came early to Doha. We are leaving this coming Friday to come home to Texas, so we are on the expedited Christmas plan. The kids were thrilled with their gifts. Abbey got an Ipod (so very cool, I want one!), Cole got a laptop, and Will got a new Game Cube. The older they get, the smaller and more expensive the gifts! Cole and Will got legos and new games and Abbey got clothes. She changed clothes at least 4 times yesterday. The girl loves clothes and accessories and shoes. The boys played together all day with their new stuff. I think that was the best gift for me, to see them playing and having fun together. Abbey proclaimed it was "the best Christmas ever!", so I guess Santa did a good job this year.

We did have one Doha disaster. Last night, in my eagerness to get Will's new Game Cube hooked up, I forgot that it needed a transformer (wrong voltage) and when I plugged it in, it made a big boom. I think I killed it!! I was so sad and mad at myself. I am going to let Bill work on it when he gets home from work today.

Whatever happens, don't worry, I'm sure Santa can swing by while we are in Texas and drop off a new one. It is just one of those things that happens to most people at least once when they live here. We blew so many fuses with our Christmas tree lights, it was comical. We learned when the transformer started to smell like smoke we had better turn off the tree lights.

Last night we attended the Doha Players production of "Almost Dick Wittington" which is a British Pantomime traditionally done at Christmas. It was funny and the kids enjoyed it. What may you ask is a "pantomime"? Well, I didn't know either until last night. Here is what wikipedia says about it.......

The leading male juvenile character (the "principal boy") - traditionally played by a young woman.
An older woman (the pantomime dame - often the hero's mother) is usually played by a man in drag.
Risqué double entendre, often wringing innuendo out of perfectly innocent phrases. This is, in theory, over the heads of the children in the audience.
Audience participation, including calls of "look behind you!" (or "he's behind you!"), and "Oh, yes it is!" or "Oh, no it isn't!" The audience is always encouraged to "Boo" the villain, and "Awwwww" the poor victims, such as the rejected dame, who usually fancies the prince.
A song combining a well-known tune with re-written lyrics. The audience is encouraged to sing the song; often one half of the audience is challenged to sing "their" chorus louder than the other half.
The members of the cast throw out sweets to the children in the audience.
Sometimes the story villain will squirt members of the audience with water guns or pretend to throw a bucket of "water" at the audience that is actually full of streamers
A slapstick comedy routine may be performed, often a decorating or baking scene, with humour based around throwing messy substances.

So, you learned something new today...

That was our weekend.....if you throw in a dinner party at OUR house, another dinner out with Bill's boss and some coworkers, soccer registration and tryouts and 2 baseball games. Whew!

Will woke up this morning all cranky with hurting legs (common ailment in our family) and I let him stay home from school. I told him he had to go back upstairs and get in bed. The little guy is still sound asleep and it is 9:00 am. I guess we wore him completely out!

Look out Posh Spice!

I got my hair cut on Friday. I wanted to take a picture in of the haircut I wanted, but I forgot. But, the cute Philipino girl that washed my hair had the cut I was wanting. She told me her cut was inspired by Victoria Beckham aka Posh Spice. So here is my new haircut, inspired by Grace, the hair wash girl, who was inspired by Victoria Beckham.

Party Time in Doha

We had a fun weekend! Friday night was the Blackjack and Black tie Gala for the American School. It was fun getting dressed up and going out. There just aren't a lot of opportunities for this sort of thing around here, so people really seemed to take advantage of the night and enjoy it. There was a silent auction and a mini casino set up and dinner and dancing.

We bought a "Spiderman" birthday party for Will at the silent auction. It was so cute. I wish I had a picture. It came with all the decorations, goodie bags and goodies (including spiderman beach towels for all the kids), cake plates (2), spiderman mugs for all the kids, invitations, inflatable spideys (2) and more. The clincher for me was plates shaped like Spiderman's face (ceramic plates). They were just too cute! Will's b-day is in January and it is always tough for me to pull together a party, so this should make it easy.

Today, was the Pegasus club Christmas party for the kids. It was fun, fun , fun. Santa rode in on a camel and delivered gifts. Their were games, face painting, hot dogs, cookie decorating, popcorn and cotton candy. And inflatable bouncy things.

Look at Cole's expression after Santa asked if he had been a good boy.

Extreme bouncy slidin'

Just in case Gayla is reading this....here is a picture of your friends the Carnahans.

These two were just so stinkin' cute, I couldn't resist getting a photo of them.

We are members of the Quilt Guild

I am an "O"fficial member of the Doha Quilt Guild. I went to my first meeting yesterday. I had to pick up Abbey from her after school activity, so she had to go with me to my meeting. It is basically a bunch of women who love to quilt. They have a business meeting and have drawings for prizes. Everyone gets to show off what they have made. Usually someone does a demonstration, but yesterday was the "Star Challenge". A contest where ladies entered their star themed quilt and we all got to vote for the winner.

Funny thing was.... Abbey loved the quilt guild and said as we were leaving "Can't wait til our next quilt meeting!"

She is already planning what she is going to make for show and tell.

Here is a quilt top that I made recently...........................

Now, I just have to learn how to put it all together.

3 weeks and counting!

The kids have 2 1/2 weeks of school and then we are out of here. Today is their 1/2 day (every Tuesday they get a 1/2 day) and the whole elementary is going to the circus. Will was beyond excited.

We are taking a direct (sort of...stops in Frankfurt, but I don't think we even get off the plane) Qatar Airways flight to New York. We are going to spend a few days in NY. I have wanted to go to NY for a long time, so this is kind of a dream come true for me. We are going to some shows (I want my kids to be surprised, so I can't tell which ones), going to the American Girl Place (always, always wanted to take Abbey there), the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Rockefeller Center (ice skating), the Museum of Natural History and lots of other fun places. There are so many fun things to do there. I am just hoping we don't freeze. It might be really cold and we aren't used to cold. And we will be dealing with jet lag, too.

Then we are on to Spurger, Texas to see my big ol' family. I really think one of the reasons Bill married me is he loved my family so much. He met them for the first time at one of our Christmas gatherings 14 years ago. My family is great....all 34 of us. We cram into my mom's house and eat, laugh and visit. Soooo fun! The kids love playing with all the cousins.

Then on to Dallas to see Bill's family, which is always a fun time, too. Cole, especially loves to play with his cousin Mark, that was born the day before him.

Sometime in there, we hope to see some of our friends in The Woodlands area.

WW

I am starting WW (that's Weight Watchers for all of you who haven't ever joined this elite club). I am just doing it on my own, because as far as I know there are no WW meetings around here. I am not telling you how much I weigh. A girl's gotta have her secrets. But, I have gained weight since I have been living in Doha.

I have been at it a total of 2 whole days and it is going well. I have a friend I walk with every morning. We have been walking 3 laps around the compound, which takes us about 45 minutes. I do not like to exercise. Every morning I secretly hope she will not ring my doorbell.

The secret to a good start on WW is the O point veggie soup. Make a big pot and eat it for lunch everyday, or whenever you get hungry. Guaranteed! Do not eat big bags of buttered popcorn...get the 94% fat free kind. And do not eat nuts. Learned these lessons, yesterday.

I really do love WW. I feel so much better when I am eating right. I'll keep you posted.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Pizza Dough

I searched and searched for a good pizza dough recipe and finally found it.....I thought you might like to try it. It is super easy.

1 1/4 cup water
1 T. honey
3 T. good olive oil
2 pkg. dry yeast
4 c. flour
2 t. kosher salt (if you don't have, just throw in a little regular salt)

Combine water, yeast, honey and olive oil in electric mixer using dough hook. Add 3 cups flour, salt and mix. While mixing add enough of the rest of the flour to make soft dough. Knead dough on low to medium for 10 minutes. (If you don't have a big stand mixer, just knead by hand until smooth and elastic) Dough should be smooth and elastic. Place in well oiled bowl and turn to cover lightly with oil. Cover with kitchen towel. Rest dough 30 minutes. Divide into 6 balls and cover for 10 more minutes. Use or refrigerate. Preheat oven to 500. If chilled take out 30 minutes early. Roll into 8 inch circles. Sprinkle corn meal on parchment paper (or foil). Place crust on top. Brush with oil and top with toppings of your choice. Brush a little olive oil on top of pizza before baking. Bake 15 minutes or til crisp.

I got this recipe from my friend Susan. She lives in Dubai. It is hard to find pre-made pizza crust in the Middle East. I have also learned to make pie crust. No pre-made pie crust in Doha.

Our kids love it when we make these pizzas!

Ciao!

Sweethearts!!

My Bee-yoo-tiful Gardenias

I am just not that into plants, but I thought these gardenias were so pretty. I could never get them to grow in Texas, but they seem to like it here. They smell so good, too!

More Dune Pics

Easy Rider

Will riding a camel when we went on our dune adventure a few weeks ago!!

You know you are in the Middle East when......

Talking 'bout the Weather

For those of you wondering if we are still burning up here in Doha,

We are not!

The weather has been wonderful. Like fall or spring in Texas minus the humidity. We definitely don't need jackets, yet. But, let's just say the weather is fine.

So, how's the weather in your neck of the woods?

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Some of the mom's organized a Trick or Treat Kick Off. Will is the star wars guy on the left end. Abbey is a gypsy third from left. Cole is second from right. He is a guy in a black robe with a huge sword. He threatened to boycott trick or treat if I didn't let him dress in something scary.
The kids were really anxious to get going with the candy raid as you can tell by Cole's look of utter despair in this picture.

Dune Pics

Dune Bashing

We had a great weekend. Lana and David Packer are here for two weeks to minister in our church. He is pastor of an international church in Germany. Lana is leading a women's conference for us this coming weekend.

Our family, along with several other families, went on a dune adventure with the Packers on Saturday. It was so much fun. The drivers picked us up in their Toyota Land Cruisers (definitely the vehicle of choice among the locals here) and we caravaned out to the dunes. It was very exciting going up and down the huge, sometimes very steep dunes. Abbey dubbed driving around the inner edge of the dunes "doing the toilet bowl" We made stops at the edge of the Gulf and let the kids get wet. It was so pretty. The water is gorgeous here and crystal clear! We could see Saudi across the water. We also made a stop to ride a camel. Will was the only one that rode. Then we stopped at a camp site where we were served an Arabic meal. We really enjoyed lounging in the tents while the meal was being prepared and visiting with Lana and each other. The kids had so much fun playing on the surrounding dunes. It is like the world's biggest sand box. It reminded me of times in Calgary when friends would gather and the kids would play and play and play and the parents would talk and talk and talk.

Other news on the home front....

Cole has started running cross country and really likes it! It is good for him and makes me realize he needed it to use up some of that God given extra energy! They run 4 days a week after school. He still loves school and is determined to take responsibility for his own work. He doesn't want me checking over his shoulder. He is doing a great job!

Bill is going to Houston on Saturday for a conference....and not just Houston, he is going to be in The Woodlands. I am so jealous! He is going to bring me some fajita seasoning and corn bread mix, so I guess I will forgive him.

I promise pictures soon!

Just pics...Bill's b-day, SkiDubai, Dubai friends, the beach

Dubai.....How Do I love thee?

Dubai was super fantastic....It is a shiny city in the desert, with lots of green spaces (thanks to soaker hoses).

10 things to love about to Dubai.....

1. World's Tallest Building....It is way taller than all the skyscrapers around it....very impressive.

2. Wild Wadi water park.....A fun water park that doesn't require walking up stairs. You set in your tube and are propelled up to the top of the stairs. Good for lazy people.

3. SkiDubai.....yes, an indoor ski slope and snow park.

4. Malls, malls, malls.......the most spectacular malls I have ever seen.

5. Ikea...

6. Public maintained beaches.

7. A huge Ace hardware store....like a Home Depot.

8. Macaroni Grill and Coldstone Creamery (coming soon to Doha)

9. A quilting store

10. Good friends....we had a blast hanging out with them.

The absolute best news is that our friends that live in Dubai told us they are MOVING TO DOHA!

October 10, 1967

Happy Birthday Bill!! We love you so much!!

Bill turned 40 yesterday! Abbey and I made a cake....we even broke out the Wilton Cake Decorating Kit. Mekedes got him a card...she called a taxi to take her to the mall to buy him a birthday card. She has a big heart.

We went out to dinner at a Korean/Japanese restaurant. Will was so glad to get sushi. He is our only kid that loves good food. Cole had bul go gi (thinly sliced flank steak, marinated and grilled or cooked in a fry pan) and he loved it. Bill's mom always makes this for him when we visit her. I had bi bim bop, which is rice with vegetables and a fried egg on top. I am not sure what Bill got, it was boiling, bubbling soup with dumplings (mondu) in it. We usually find ourselves going to more kid friendly restaurants, but they all seemed to enjoy their meal last night.

Afterward, we came home and had yummy birthday cake. Sweet and simple. We don't always do a lot on birthdays, but I can't let them go by without a cake.

Dubai.....Here We Come

We are getting ready for a holiday! The end of Ramadan is approaching and the kiddos get 3 days off from school to celebrate. We are so excited to be going to Dubai to see our good friends, Zac and Susan Crouch and their 4 kids. We met them at Cole's and Zane's (their oldest son, also 11) baby dedication. We were young moms together and have kids the same ages. We have lots of good shared memories.

We are planning on going to a waterpark and to the indoor ski slopes and snow park (www.skidubai.com). Can you believe that....an indoor ski slope? I know the kids are going to have a good time seeing their buddies and going to these fun places.

Dubai is probably 10 years ahead of Doha in development. Lots of spectacular buildings...in fact, I think the world's tallest building was just completed there. So, it should be a sight to see.

Quilting Craze

I am taking a beginning quilting class. The photo above shows the design of the quilt we are making and the one below shows the fabric I am using and my first squares (nine patch). I will have to buy some more fabric, but that is all I could come up with at the fabric souqs here.

My sister, Tricia got me started quilting this summer. Thanks Trish!!

Gardaland

These are just funny pictures from our trip to Italy this summer. We were at GardaLand...a fun theme park.

The Art of Henna

Last night I went with a group of ladies from the Pegasus Club (ExxonMobil club for families living here) to the Ramadan Tent at the Ritz Carlton. It was a grand experience. The ballroom is decorated like an elegant tent and they served a huge buffet of Arabian food, like shawarma, shish kebab and tandoori. My favorite was the whole roasted lamb. I haven't eaten very much lamb in my life, but this was delicious. They also served rose water tea, which tasted like.....roses. I didn't like it very much. They put nuts and spices in the juices and teas to bring out the flavor. My friend ordered a shisha. A shisha is a pipe used to smoke tobacco that has fruit flavors. I wish I had a picture of it (I forgot my camera last night...ugh) The actual apparatus sits on the floor and looks like it would be illegal in 48 states. She seemed to enjoy it.

I also experienced the art of henna as you can see in the photo. I kind of like it..what do you think?

I guess we aren't in the Bible Belt anymore

Today I was driving Will to a birthday party at a class mate’s home. The class mate doesn’t have a very good reputation (he gets in trouble at school) so I was a little concerned about Will attending the party.

On the way there Will said “Do you want to know something bad about Hunter? He doesn’t believe in God.”

Whoa, I wasn’t expecting that. He said Hunter didn’t believe God created the world, he believed science created the world. Will said he and his friend, Isis, discussed this with him and asked him “Well then, who created science?” That a boy! We talked about showing Hunter God’s love and praying for him….but, I never thought my 6 year old would be having discussions like this in his first grade class. I guess this is something you encounter when you move out of the Bible Belt….way out of the Bible Belt.

All Dressed Up

This is sweet Mekedas in her church clothes. Isn't she pretty? Actually these are special church clothes for singing in the choir or participating in the service(I think). She usually just wears a regular dress or skirt and covers her head with a white scarf. One day I hope to visit her church (Ethiopian Orthodox Christian, which is one of the first christian churches in history) and I am working on finding an English/Amharic bible so we can more easily talk about the scripture verses. She is very devout and last week when we didn't go to church (too lazy) she asked me if we "forgot" I really love having her here. She is a tremendous help around the house and we laugh a lot together. I am so thankful that God brought her to our family.

The Singing Sand Dunes

This is the day that the LORD has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it....Psalm 118:24