Things to love about Raha International School

Can I just say we "Love, love, love" Raha International School!
Every month each elementary grade hosts an assembly- Last month 2nd Grade presented songs, art and letters about Endangered Species. They sang songs about Mother Earth and going to the zoo. The kids all played xylophones and sang their hearts out! The students also unveiled a mural they had painted in the stairway. It was so cute! Grace painted a grass hopper and all the 2nd graders signed their names. They were so proud of their work!

Grace and her amazing Music teacher!

Outside in the parking lot. It is getting hotter!

Inside waitng for the assembly to start.

Audrey's 4th grade assembly. The topic was "Our Heros". Heros included Superman, Michael Jackson, Muhammed Ali, Anne Frank, Joan of Arc, Martin Luther King, Monet, Christopher Columbus (Audrey playing him), etc.

After the assembly we gathered in the class rooms to meet each of the heros. The children had to reaserch and dress up for a living "Wax Museum". This is Sullivan with Tony Hawk!

Sullivan with none other that "The Crocodile Hunter"- Steve Irwin!

Audrey as Helen Keller! She was so cute!

Easter

We celebrated Easter a few days late this year. Lame - but hey, we did celebrate a Christian holiday in the Middle East. It wasn't as tricky as I thought to find the stuff-able plastic eggs. And much to my surprise there were lots of chocolate bunnies, easter cream eggs and jelly beans in most grocery stores. They were available for a price. I did splurge on some chocolate peanut butter eggs, but then got creative. A few dinosaurs were the same price as the bunnies and Hazel's new doll stroller was about as much as a bag of jelly beans.

Easter started with a traditional egg hunt, but ended up like a mini Christmas with a pet store twist.

The egg hunt was planned during spring break. The kids rolled out of bed and hunted through the garden for eggs before Quin left for work.

A few of their finds!

No, he was not in an egg...

Audrey's pet surprise. This little guy was barely keeping his nose above water when we found him.

Audrey and Quin coming back from their rescue. They dropped the drenched mouse off in the park. He's probably enjoying someone else's pool by now.

Our Abu Dhabi version of Easter Baskets.

Food stuff

This has become one of my main dinner staples. It's called fattoush- and yes, it is worth making and eating night after night! So delicious!

Fattoush-

5 ripe tomatoes
1 cucumber
1 green pepper
1 red pepper
1/2 red onion


Dressing-

1 garlic clove, crushed
4 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (or cilantro)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint


Chop all salad ingredients together. Toss. Mix dressing- whisk and toss carefully. Add fresh ground sumac- yes, if you can not find this you will find the flavor a bit lacking, but still good. Garnish with croutons or toasted pita bread. So yummy!

I will make a ton of this when I get to Utah. For sure our side at the neighborhood BBQ!
You can not stop eating it!

Enjoy!

My kind of Oasis!

The kids going Wild at Wild wadi water park!

We finally had an "official sleepover". We invited the Franks to use our guest room- they really don't live too far, just downtown Abu Dhabi. We wanted an early start for the day, so they decided just to crash here. We got up early, had a big breakfast of french toast, eggs and toast and headed out to Dubai. This is Julie and I excited to be there!
This picture cracks me up- yes, that is Sullivan's hair!

The Jumeriah- Scareah was awesome- that is of course what I hear! Quin, Jason, Sullivan, Grace and a few others dared this ride! They loved it. Best of all was the height requirements- only 110 cm to ride all the thrill water slides. Sullivan was tall enough by about 7 cm!


Most of the crew!
View from outside the park! Highly recommend Wild Wadi!

Back in the yard....

"Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair." Kahlil Gibran

"What makes the desert beautiful is that somewhere it hides a well." Antonine de Saint- Exupery.

I have always dreamed of having a swimming pool. Well, first a nice cozy yard, and then a swimming pool, well and a few fruit trees, and sweet jasmine, some musky gardenias, suculents, and strawberries...okay I dream of gardening. My great grandparents were prize gardeners, my grandmother had an orchard and enormous berry crop in her yard. My mother taught me the practical side of gardening and how to survive off your own crops. I have always felt one with the earth. I find beauty in each season and love that God has created these vastly different landscapes for us to enjoy. There is something so good for the soul in getting "dirty".
We have had grass and basic landscaping for the last 3 months now. What a difference that has made in living here. You walk in through our front gate and feel like you have stepped into your own secret garden. There are birds and bees and flowers blooming here. Not only does it smell heavenly from the jasmine and gardenias but you can smell organic soil- the decomposing and wetness of freshly watered earth. There is life here - and it makes me smile.
There is also the sounds of laughter and friends visiting. It has made our home one that is inviting and relaxing for friends. We can entertain and let the kids have their own roaming space. We have room outdoors for us and our dear friends to enjoy. This has been one of the many blessings from Heavenly Father while living here. I am so glad Quin found this villa. I am praying we are able to stay here next year.
Here in Abu Dhabi you are able to lease a villa /apartment for a year at a time. Foreigners are allowed to own if they want to buy a place; however, we are renting while we live here. Anyhow - our landlord is selling our villa. Depending on who buys - could be another investor who wants to rent it or maybe a family who wants to live here as soon as our lease is up - determines whether or not we will be living in Golf Gardens next year. I hope we can sign again. The upside is there are more and more villas becoming available to rent. I just love this one. I also like knowing where we will be calling "Home" for the next few years.

Grandma and Grandpa Seamons!

Visitors! We can hardly believe they are here! Shh...it's a secret.

On that Sunday night Quin tells our children he has a "business meeting" up in Dubai. I quickly get the kids bathed, teeth brushed, read and up into bed. Amazingly each of the kids fall asleep before Quin gets home with his "smuggled goods - Grandma and Grandpa Seamons!" We have waited a long time - exactly 8 months, for some family to visit us here. The flight for Janet and Larry was about 24 hours- starting in Salt Lake City, Utah, connecting in Atlanta then direct to Dubai. Considering the time change and the late arrival of Grandma and Grandpa we decided to send Audrey and Grace to school the next morning unaware that their Grandparents were sleeping in the spare room. We lazed around that morning in the backyard and pool until Sully and Hazel stirred from their beds. Quin hushed Janet and Larry and sat them out of view in the backyard. One of Sullivan's jobs is to take drinks out to the workers while they are standing in the hot sun cleaning the pool. I asked Sully to walk around the house to the backyard to take a drink to the workers. Quin and Grandma and Grandpa are hiding out, Quin ready with the video camera.

Sully comes around the corner and stops dead in his tracks! He stares and then wipes his eyes - all the while straight-faced holding two bottles of water. Then he takes another double take and runs up to hug Grandpa and Grandma Seamons! He holds on for a while then says to Grandpa "sometimes my eyes water when I get too close to the pool." whatever! He is so excited he drops down on the grass and lies there considering the reality of what is happening. He couldn't be happier!

We spend the afternoon swimming, eating good food and just enjoying being together again. Quin picks up Audrey after school and brings her back here for the same scenario. She comes inside drops her backpack, Quin sets up camera and grandparents and then I tell Audrey to take some drinks out to the pool guys. Audrey turns the corner in the backyard and just stares in disbelief! She stands stunned and then runs over to hug and kiss them both! She was never expecting this! I am so glad we kept it as a surprise! Grace had after school reading club so we get to replay this once again. It was pretty cool this way as each kid had their own moment to see Grandma and Grandpa. Same thing - the workers in the backyard story. Grace goes around the corner and stops dead in her tracks...stares...stares...stares even harder...then breaks out in a huge smile and runs over to hug and kiss her Grandparents! So worth the wait! We are so happy they could be here!

Good times at the beach!

We had a great time showing then around our city. We visited the Grand Mosque, Heritage Village - where Janet enjoyed her first camel ride. We explored the city, ate a lot of Indian food and even better Lebanese food, cooked and ate more...spent a day at the beach where both Janet and Larry tried out the stand up paddle board. After the beach we visited the Fish Market near Mina Port and picked out a fresh Hammour, a local favorite. We took it home and baked some amazing fillets. We did a few days in Dubai while they were here, with VIP guests in town we had finally had a good excuse to Ski Dubai! What a treat for us to actually feel the cold on the slopes, and with Grandma Seamons! That was the first time I have ever skiied with all our kids, excluding Hazel. A big thank you to Grandpa Seamons who spoiled Hazel with ice cream and love, I was able to enjoy the slopes with our kids, Quin and Janet too. The snow was not the type we've come to love back home but the kids remembered how and I was pretty impressed at their turns. It is definitely not a beginner bunny hill. We visited the aquarium in Dubai Mall and shot to the top of the Burj Khalifa - world's tallest structure. The kids loved the bike rides and school visits from their Grandparents and just singing and playing the piano with them. It was extra special for Grace who had her Grandparents here to participate in her baptism. I know she will never forget it, nor will we.

I will never forget the kindness and generosity and love felt from Janet and Larry being in our home. I honestly could not ask for better in-laws. I love them so much - and it is so evident my children think the same. It was perfect timing for them to visit. We have been having some rough times - really missing family and friends. It has been quiet here for a bit- no holidays, Quinton working long hours, kids sick, hearing about all the family stuff from home. My sister Rosie moving and us not being able to help her, or say a formal goodbye, my parents visiting Utah and us not being there... just stuff. Anyhow, we had a great fun filled dose of family, recharged our love for Abu Dhabi, a short break from school and work, and of course any kind of beach day rejuvenates me. So now we are set to go until we're back home for a few months in June. It was a great ten days! So grateful things worked out and Larry and Janet were able to visit! So... who's next? :)

Janet and Larry at Heritage Village, great skyline in the background.

Our amazing concoction of hot chocolate and goodies at Ski Dubai.

Janet amazed at the chocolate isle in Carrefour. I have lived here 8 months and still have the same reaction each time I see this much chocolate. And it is good chocolate!