Holiday Time!

Without having posted anything since MAY I have quite a bit to catch up on! Of course the biggest adventure was our trip to the US this summer for two months. The boys and I were able to stay and Chip came to visit long enough to take a cruise with us at the end of our stay. It was a nice time getting to visit everyone this summer..we rented my friend Michelle's beach house for a month (which is LOVELY) and visitors came to see us. It was so nice to have everyone we loved visiting and getting to spend time with them (but never enough:) Will and Weston enjoyed a weekend with MeMe and Papa B at the Villages and  after the beach we headed to Sassy's house and kept visiting as much as we could. Will's best friend from KC came to FL - we did Disney World - and then he went back with them for a week to visit. What a great time he had and flew back to FL all my himself. We took a cruise with Chip's parents and that was such a nice ending to the summer. Not sure if we will head back to US next summer so the time there was much needed and enjoyed!

Swimming with the Dolphins on the cruise was a highlight of the vacation!

Special times with MeMe and Papa B!

In Mexico by our cabana - another great day!

Summer seems so long ago now..it is November and we are headed out today for the Eid holiday. We are driving to Abu Dhabi (capital of UAE) for a couple of days. There is a hotel where they do the F1 races next week and we will be visiting Ferrari World. It's basically a "staycation" since we are only driving an hour away from Dubai, but something different to see and do. A couple of weekends ago we went to Fujairah, another Emirate of the UAE. Will became certified in scuba diving - the highlight of his year so far! We were very proud of him. Chip is getting his certification now so they can dive together on vacations.

The mountains in Fujairah, UAE

Elvis and the Grim Reaper! 

The boys have just celebrated Halloween and enjoyed it very much this year since we could do "traditional" trick or treating at a friend's house that lives in a proper neighborhood. Living on beach in apartment is great but not really for trick or treating! The school also had a great trick or treat night - so there was PLENTY of candy this year!!!

School started with no problems in September. The boys just got their first report cards and are doing great so we can't ask anything more..they are happy and adjusted to life in the Middle East. They are making friends with all different kind of cultures and learning Arabic. Weston seems to know more than Will (I think the age makes it easier). Will's close friends are from Iran, Argentina and Lebanon. Weston's close friends come from Pakistan, India, Dubai and US.

The boys (and us) are especially enjoying our new live-in housemaid, Marie. She is a 21 year old from the Philippines. Many people come over from her country to work her and send all (or majority) of their money back to their family and extended family back there. She has a husband in Abu Dhabi that she visits on her day off (Friday) but other than that she is living here for 2 years. It is a sad situation for them but they need money very badly and we try to make her like part of our family so it provides the best possible situtation for her, I hope. She tells me I am a "very nice madame" - so I think she is happy! It is nice to have her around..she assists with cleaning, cooking, childcare, etc. It was a bit strange at first but we are all adjusting well and we are happy to have her here!


Life in Dubai continues to be very good. The weather is now fabulous and we are having a great time with some new Cerner people that have moved here and making new friends through the school too.  I am still trying to play tennis three times a week, Will and Weston are both playing soccer and Weston loves Mad Science. Chip just tries to relax when not working and the travel this month has slowed down because of the holiday. Pretty soon it will be Christmas and we will be visiting Bangkok and Koh Samui, Thailand. Living in Dubai you must take advantage of Far East travel since the plane ride is only about 6 hours. We hope to travel more next summer too.

We are hoping this year might bring us some visitors from the US (hint, hint) but if not we will try to keep in touch as best we can through the blog and Facebook. We do have a US telephone number but it is hard to call us because we need to have the computer on and of course there is the time change difference too.

Until later, As-Salāmu `Alaykum (السلام عليكم) 
(Peace be upon you)