Parties and Carnivals

Friday Robert and I joined my friend Tanja and her two boys at their school carnival. Robert and the boys played some games...beanbag toss, arm wrestling, wet sponge toss, and stuff like that. I wanted Robert to get to know her boys and plus I got to spend time with Tanja(from Serbia). We have fun together. By the way, at the carnival they even had a camel race. Not your everyday school carnival. :)

We had Sallie's birthday party yesterday. Some of her friends will be gone next weekend so we wanted to be sure all of them could make it. We did manicures at Violet Flower Salon and then went to the mall for Papa Johns Pizza and Baskin Robbins ice cream. Mike and Robert and Ryan stayed away...imagine that. :) Mike was tired anyway because he woke up Sat. morning at 3:30 to watch basketball with his friend Brad who went to Davidson. Brad was happy and so was I when I heard the Horns are still in it. :)

This week we are wrapping up some school before Spring Break . We are excited because on Sunday we will be heading to Istanbul to see our friends the Palmquists for a few days. I have wanted to go there for a long time. I can't wait!

Middle East Easter

Feeding the camels on the way to the desert picnic. Sallie and Robert playing on the dunes.

Below..Church Easter picnic. Bottom right...Me, Nadia and her daughter Rachel at Friday breakfast after church.

It's Sunday morning and our Easter is over. Mike is ready for work and I have started my day. We had a very nice weekend though...albeit it is strange not going to Easter services today. Actually, we could have gone early this morning to a sunrise service but we just couldn't get out of bed. (pretty lame, i know...) Yesterday we were went to a desert picnic with some friends of ours and we were beat this morning.

So the weekend began with Good Friday church. When the guests stood up to say their names and country of origin, we had people from Malaysia, Phillipines, Myanmar(Burma), South Africa, Korea, and Nigeria. I love that. You could hear the different accents as we sang "Christ the Lord is risen today..." Pangs of homesickness did wash over me. I can't deny that, especially when the special music was Via Dolorosa...lots of memories from Tres Dias. But it was beautiful and kind of cool to be here and sing of the Resurrection...Loud and clear. I love that.

After church we joined our friends the Philips for lunch. We originally wanted to have brunch but the hotels closed their brunch lines at 10:30 and we got there at 10:40..so they don't serve again until 12:00...I confess we were all a bit frustrated but we headed to a little place that was serving breakfast still..The only place in the city. :) We all had a nice time together. Tom and Nadia have been so kind to us. (Good grief...everyone here has been great...) She had Mike and the kids over when I was in the States at Thanksgiving with my mom and sister. According to Mike she is a great cook. :)

Friday evening we had an all-church Easter egg hunt at a park in the city. A new couple was there. She arrived 3 weeks ago. She is from Chiapas, Mexico...he is Palestinian from Lebanon...but both have lived in the US forever. Two young boys and they homeschool. The best part is they live around the corner from us. Lots of the homeschool moms were at the picnic so she got to meet them and connect. This is her first foray into the realm of homeschooling so she was relieved to see she wasn't alone. :) He works at a bank here...in the Islamic finances department or something like that. I think that will be a very cool place to work. Considering his background and all...enough said.

Saturday was off to the desert. We joined Brad and Sharon Kerr and some friends of theirs from Kuwait. The gang went to Dune Bashing(SUVs driving up and down the dunes...sort of like fourwheeling but in big cars...:)) Sallie and Robert wanted to just play on the dunes so they stayed with Sharon and me at the picnic sight. Apparently, not long after the cars left, they got stuck....both of them. Ok, so middle of the desert...hmmm...BUT out of nowhere comes a local guy..Ali who knew exactly what to do and bam! they were free. He invited everyone back to his place where they had tea and met his wife and 8 kids. Got to watch them milk the camels, drink some camel milk and make new friends. Ali is from Abu Dhabi but that tent is their county retreat...you know, just like some folks have in Dallas, a place to get away from the city:). I don't have pictures yet, but I will soon. When they got back we started the grill, had our picnic and sat by the fire while we watched the moon rise over the sand dunes. It really was amazing. On the way back home we had sort of a detour...We're following Brad who was whipping thru this Camel farm community(the camel race track stables is our best guess) and he zips thru this one gate and WHOA we have just turned into the camel corral. I mean, there were a bunch of camels just staring at us...not to mention the camel guys who saw us go in their...I'm sure they were thingking..Where are those crazies going??? Backing up to get out Brad beeped at us...and Mike said why is he honking at me..Sallie looked back and said.."Oh, cuz you are about to back over a camel...":) The guy was just sitting their looking at us with VERY WIDE eyes. :) The fine is only about 80,000 dollars...actually we don't know but we are really glad we didn't need to find out.... Eventually we found our way thru the maze and arrived back home sandy but safe.

It was a wonderful Easter. Different for sure...but very special.

Robert just woke up...Time to go.

Blessings,

Mattie and the Gang

Arabic in the Park

I've been walking in the park every morning for the last week and a half or so. I decided that I better do this before the weather turns really hot. It's been beautiful lately. I could get used to this but everyone reminds me...DON'T! :)
It was such a pretty day yesterday that we had an Arabic lesson in the park. Our teacher, Boushra, had a joint class with all the homeschooling families in the park down the street. The children, all 12 of them, worked with Boushra and the moms worked with our friend Mary Jacobson who speaks Arabic very well. Jean Page and I didn't say a whole lot :) but it was fun to practice with everyone. Anytime we can be outside is a plus. We actually had to change parks from our original choice. Apparently it was closed for the day...It's next to one of the palaces and there must have been important things going on in there. We drove up and up the street came a military truck with a machine gun mounted on the top...right at us. I must say my heart started beating faster..They just told us to leave as it was closed for the day. :) Still, it was a bit scary for a second.
The kids wore green for St. Patrick's Day but it was pretty uneventful. The church will have a family picnic for Easter but it will be on Friday. Sunday is a work day. We are going to miss our Easter dinner with the Pearces...sigh...or our trip to Kansas with everyone...but we have made plans with some of our friends here. Maybe we'll all go to the desert for a picnic on Sat.
Happy Resurrection Sunday,
The Hildebrands

Flights

Some weeks I have so many things to write about while others are pretty routine. Well, routine...hmmm..maybe we are adjusting. :)
A big deal this week was getting our flights confirmed for our trip to the US. It is a relief. Jennifer and John Paine generously gave us their AA advantage miles..so Sallie and Robert and I will be flying back on those. This is an answer to prayer. Originally moving over here we thought to stay two years and then make a trip back...but after my dad and mom died I have felt this overwhelming yearning to return and be with family and friends there...especially my sister. And our family in Kansas. It's like I need to feel connected..I can't explain it even to myself so I won't try and write it out here. Getting the tickets was pretty funny...I called Jenn, who then called AA and we had this three way conversation..via our internet phone, her cell phone and the Groezingers land line (she was over there when I called...). I had one of those moments while we were talking...Jenn kept chatting with the gal...and asking questions..and I kept thinking Jenn, don't confuse her. Don't distract her. She won't get it right. Shhh...I almost laughed out loud when I realized that the gal she was talking to REALLY understood English. She could actually talk and work at the same time... Over here if you veer off the expected converstional path then you are totally lost...blank stares, deer in the headlights looks..and when I say veer off the path I mean like..change an order in a restaurant and say..no mayonnaise and only pickles on that burger...:) I was so relieved when I realized that this gal was able to talk about the weather and find flights at the same time. :)
So, we'll be in the States from June 17 to Aug. 5. Mike and Ryan will come later. Haven't got those figured out yet.
By the way, Ryan had a great time in Kuwait. They won first place in the basketball tournament. He is now planning his mission trip to Ethiopia in June. Oh boy.
Can't wait to see you.
Love, Mattie for the Gang

What a Week!

Wild Wadi..Tallest slide on the left...4 cold but happy kiddos.

Below and right..Global Village...

This is the second time I've tried to post this one. Something happened yesterday...so here I go again. :)

So much happened last week. On Saturday we joined a family for a trip to Global Village in Dubai. Global Village is kind of like a state fair with dishdashes(men's white robes) and abayas (women's black coverings)everywhere. There are rides for the kids and exhibit halls with goods from all over the world. We bought things from Nepal, Senegal, and Iran. The fun part was they were ready to bargain because it was the last day until Oct. when the Village will open again.

On Wed. I took the kids to Wild Wadi in Dubai. (There's a lot to do in Dubai...but oh the traffic..) My friend Rebecca had tickets and they were about to expire so we piled in the car and had a day of it. Wild Wadi is a water park with the tallest water slide in the world. No, I did not go down it...so don't ask..but I sure was proud of Sallie and Robert cuz they did!

Yesterday was fun, too. I had a last minute opportunity to join women from the city in a symposium with 5 local Emirati women sharing about their lives here. Later we toured the Women's Club that was donated by Sheikha Fatima. Many women were there demonstrating some of the hand crafts from the area...embroidery, weaving, henna, and others. The time flew by and I was thrilled to have the opportunity to talk one on one with a local gal thruout the morning. It was great.

And then today..went to church..and then the all church picnic in the park. We're beat but it's been such fun. We have begun to feel a part of the community here. So many people from all over the world.

Ryan returns on Sunday from basketball in Kuwait...Sure hope they are winning.:)

Hope you all have a nice weekend! We're going to relax!

Friends from Home

Hanging with the team.

Marganne at the park.

Ryan and the Tea man at the restaurant Sat. nite.

Boushra, Gina and Jackie at the Grand Mosque.

All day yesterday I tried to sit down and tell you about the visit from our great friends. So much happened that it has been hard for me to condense it enough so you will read it. :) Let me start off by saying it was a wonderful time of fellowship...and Mike and I came away feeling refreshed and reconnected to everyone. I can't describe how we felt as we saw our friends come out of the baggage claim/customs area and walk toward us. Let's just say there were not just a few tears....:) Gina, Kurt, Joanna, Eric, Jackie, Todd, Monty, Gary and Marganne...it was one big hug that just filled us up.

We spent the day on Saturday eating, laughing, talking, crying, eating and touring the Grand Mosque with my sweet friend and Arabic teacher, Boushra. We also took them to see our new church building and had a time of prayer with Boushra, which was a blessing for all of us. That nite, we ate a leisurely dinner at a Lebanese restaurant by the port. Mike and I like this place because it has Middle Eastern atmosphere and good food, but not toooo expensive. :)

Marganne, thank the Lord, stayed a few extra days..which really helped when we said good bye to everyone at midnite on Sat. nite. Our time with her was great. She just did life with us and I loved having her go with me and see what it's like here. Carpooling Ryan, buying groceries, the Beth Moore Bible Study, hanging out at the park with Sallie and Robert, Perspectives...and life. We played games, laughed, shopped and cried...It was so good.

I guess the best part was seeing our home thru their eyes and being reminded of why we are here..sort of like a short term trip for us right in our front yard. :) And we loved answering questions and seeing the interest everyone had in our life here. Let's just say, it was fantastic and we are so glad everyone came.

But, just in case the team returns to you all and says "It's just like the States there..." My friend Nita came up to us at the Bible study and I asked her how the move into her new apt was going...She answered with a laugh and said...Well, when we turn on the airconditioner the doorbell rings. I kid you not. :)

Thanks for sharing your families with us. Thanks for praying.

Love, Mattie, Mike, Ryan, Robert and Sallie

Valentine's Day 2008

HI Everyone...Wanted to share some Valentine's pictures with you...We had a party out in Khalifa City for the kids. Here are a couple of pictures of the kids and the party table. Robert and Sallie are in the middle of the line of kids. We had about 25 homeschool kids there and lots of fun party foods. The other picture is when we adults went to dinner at Al Arish at the Port in Abu Dhabi. It was a fun evening.

Had my English Club yesterday. This time we dined on Finnish food. It was also very tasty. Marganne will be here on Friday and I hope she gets to meet my new friends. I wish she could stay longer. I know the visit will feel way too short. :) By the way, next week we are not going to have a feast for our Club...maybe snacks and more English work. We'll see how that works out. :)

Had a long talk with Russell this morning. Always good to hear from him. The weather is heating up..it was 90 yesterday. Hmmm..not looking good here. :) Love you all.

Mattie and the Gang

Creative Parking

You've heard us talk about parking in Abu Dhabi...Here are some creative Parking ideas...From just today. :) Enjoy.

On the sidewalk...fair game. On the right you see a whole row of cars parked down the middle of the street. Plus a car parked at the entrance. This is why I like my little Honda Civic...So far no scratches. :) Below on the left...double parking in the middle of the street. On the right side you see the mosque courtyard...now a parking lot. Mike's car is the Expedition on the right side sort of golden tan. He pops her into 4 wheel drive and rolls right over the curb. So do about 10 other SUV owners.

These last two shots...notice again...the sidewalk is fair game and the other car in the left picture is parked between the dumpster and the sidewalk..not sure how they got there. Those dumpsters are very heavy. Not shown...a picture of the BMW that was parked on the sidewalk with its front wheels on the street... Wish I'd gotten that shot. :)

Wonder how we'll drive when we are back in the US...that's something to think about. :)

Russell's 20

Russell turned 20 yesterday...Feb. 11. I can't believe we have a 20 year old. All day long memories would hit me. He's loving UT...course, he is...:) and had a great day with all his buddies...but we sure wish we could have been there with him.
Sallie and Robert had a fun day yesterday as well. They went to the desert on a field trip to see the Sheikh's falcons. A friend of ours knows the Sheikh's Falcon Veternarian and he taught the kids as well as showed them some of them. It was quite an experience for them.
So, where was Mom? Well, it was time for my English club with my apt. friends...But we are now changing the name to Eating Club...
Tanja made several dishes from Serbia for us. We laughed and ate and ate and talked. I guess when it's at my place again I will do TexMex or maybe barbecue. Next week we go up to Tejia's house. She is going to make Finnish food for us. Don't know if we will ever do official teaching but we sure are talking A LOT!!! :)
Our friends leave this week for India..We are praying for them. It will be fun to hear about their adventures in person....
Love, Mattie

New Building

Today we held our first service in our new church building. Although Mike and I haven't been here very long, we felt the excitement in the room. There are now 20 different congregations who meet in the Evangelical Community Church with a combined attendance weekly of about 2500 people. Since we moved here we have been meeting in the old half of the building while the new one was being built...and it has been quite cozy. So today was a big day. An extra blessing was that Stuart Briscoe was here to do the first services. It was fun hearing him and it felt like home. Tonight there was a Chinese outreach. The Chinese believers bused in about 500 Chinese workers from the Labour Camps in honor of Chinese New Year. We are praying for a wonderful time of ministry and changed lives.
This week I have also been busy learning my way around Facebook. Poor Ryan has put up with repeated questions and my total lack of computer knowledge...but I think I am getting the hang of it.
Mike and I are so excited that we will have friends from Dallas coming thru in a couple of weeks. We can hardly wait. My friend Marganne will be staying a few extra days. We are anxious to just sit and visit.
Well, it's time to head to bed. I have some pictures of the church services that I will post later. It was a wonderful day.

Japanese Tea and Tacos

I have been trying to blog for a couple of days now. The internet has been kind of funky. Not to mention that I still have to log in in Arabic. I just guess where to type everything...:)

Thursday was really fun. My Japanese friend Junko invited the ladies from the Holiday Tea to join her for coffee at her apt. So about 10am I headed up to the 9th floor. I thought we would drink tea or coffee, chat and then I'd head back down to finish school with Sallie and Robert.... Hah. When I walked into her apt. the first thing I saw was food spread out on the dining room table. She was disappointed that I hadn't brought the kids cuz she made tacos. Yep. My Japanese friend made tacos for her Serbian, Finish, American and Iranian friends. :) Actually I didn't think much about it until I heard Tanja(from Serbia) ask Junko what they were eating and how to fix it. :) Then I noticed that Tejia and Alice were waiting to hear how to eat them as well. I smiled and gave lessons on tacos. You know, it's this kind of stuff that I love. It was so fun. We had Japanese tea and tacos. If Adrian and Diana come and visit us ever I will have him make his famous fajitas for my new friends. A real feast. By the way, we start our English lessons this week. It looks like they all want to meet each week and practice. I pray it is a good time.

Had a sandstorm yesterday. Our first official one. Couldn't see the buildings. The cars look tan now...all of them! :) It kind of reminded me of that scene in Hidalgo where he is outrunning the sand....Lots of things here remind me of Hidalgo. :) Then it sprinkled, by the way.... yuck.

In the picture...it is left to right...Tejia, me, Alice, Junko and Tanja.

Adios,

Mattie

Fujeirah

Last November our friends, Jeff and Mary, asked us if we would be interested in going with them and another family to a Fujeirah, a coastal town in the UAE, in January. January seemed far away but we said, "Sure, that sounds like fun." Only God knew how much we would need to get away this weekend.

We stayed at a hotel called Sandy Beaches. Each family had a bungalow with two bedrooms, a kitchenette and a teeny weensy bathroom. :) It was heavenly. Palm trees and water stretched in front of us, and mountains spread out behind us. ..there was a playground for the kids on the beach, a swimming pool, kayaking, snorkelling and lots of time to relax and laugh. Each bungalow is equipped with a grill so all of our cooking was done outside together. Sort of camping with bathrooms and beds. :) Very low key with just the right amount of sightseeing...the oldest mosque in the UAE..around 1400, a palace fort in the mountains, etc. and then volleyball on the beach, and hanging out.

Saturday morning I took some time by myself and had a long talk with God. So much of the weekend reminded me of my folks...(we used to take weekends with friends and hang out just like that, when I was growing up in Aruba and Bolivia. ) the Supertankers lined up on the horizon, the beauty of the water and being on the beach in January, just being a family together...I kept wanting to call my folks and tell them about it. So instead...I cried a bit and told my Father how grateful I am for such special memories of my mom and dad. And yes, I did mention the timing thing...I probably will think about that for a long time.

It was a refreshing time....the whole weekend was. For all of us. We had a big group play volleyball on the beach...with Mike and Ryan eating sand on a regular basis and me being glad I even hit the ball...:) Some families from Iran even joined in the fun. Mike,Robert and Ryan went kayaking while Sallie and I built sandcastles. Before we left Ryan went snorkelling and saw some beautiful fish. We will try and go back in April for all of us to snorkel...I just could not bring myself to get in the water...a wee bit too cold for me. :)

It was perfect timing...much needed...and we are ready for another week. Thanks for all of your prayers, dear friends. We feel them and could not do this without you. So many of you have sent emails...thank you. We are humbled and feel very loved.

On the journey,

Mattie and Mike, and the Kids

ps. if you send cards..please use the Hill International address...Mike Hildebrand, box 5201, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. in fact for all letters that is the best address... Thanks for everything. We love you.

Mom

It's almost 4 am here. Can't sleep. It's kind of nice cuz the city is so quiet.

I just spent about 30 minutes reading my emails...from the best people in the world. I don't even know how many I have received, but I am saving them to a folder and want to print them out. People have called too. But yesterday the phone was down so most of their messages came to me on voicemail.

I don't really know what to write but I wanted to write something. I keep thinking about my mom and how glad I am that I got to see her in November and hug her one last time and laugh over memories of dad and life together one last time, and cry with her. I called her a lot these last couple of months and I am so glad for that. I remember Kristen Young telling about her Dom. Rep. trip and how their team used a verse, although which one escapes me right now...but they also used the rallying cry...No regrets...as they worked on their site. I'm glad I told mom how much I love her and I'm glad I saw dad in July before we left the US and I hugged him and we visited and laughed and remembered together. No regrets...but you know, I think I still have some..cuz well, I do. But I think we all do no matter how much we try to dot our i's and cross our t's and do it "right". It's just life. I'm so glad that God knows me and loves me anyway. And He is here...in Abu Dhabi hugging me and holding me up....and He uses His children to do it. My treasured family in the US from Bent Tree and Tres Dias and Kansas, Carrollton.Carlsbad and all over and my new family here in the UAE. And my sweet, sweet husband who knows how to make me laugh even when I am soaking his shirt..and my sweet ,sweet kids who hugged just a bit longer and tighter yesterday...or made me laugh all the way from Austin....

(Let me tell you something folks...if anyone thinks you can do this pilgrimage, this journey, alone...Well, just forget it. Who would want to, anyway? Pride and independence...what a bunch of.... nothing.)

I am so blessed by the most wonderful friends and family........It overwhelms me.

I know I am rambling again....maybe this blogging thing isn't a good idea cuz it will be here for the rest of my life....oh well, who cares? Life is way too short to sweat this stuff....

I miss her ya'll. My mama...Nancy Neal Deahl...born Dec.23, 1931 died Jan. 21, 2008. Funny, kind, obsessively clean,faithful, loving and married for 54 years....I love you, Mom. No regrets.

Two Words

I wanted to write this down before the days got away from me. If I wait too long then I forget what I wanted to tell everyone. :) Last nite, I was driving home from an Arab culture class that Mike and I are taking at church(really fun as there are South Africans, Indians, Filipinos, Americans and Germans in it...and we are all learning how to live and work and minister in this culture)...anyway, as I was driving home I actually understood two words in Arabic that were on the radio!!! I had just learned them that morning so it was so fun to hear them and know what they meant!! We have had 4 classes and with each class I realize that this is going to take a long time....a long, long time. It can be discouraging but hearing that on the radio helped me want to stick with it and not give up. At least for now. :) The words, by the way, were Eid Milad...which means Birthday feast...sort of. :) They are the words used to say Happy Birthday...Eid Milad Saeid. So there you go...Arabic 101. :) Love, Mattie

Come on Down...It's a New Car!!!

I am excited to announce the arrival of my new Honda Civic...Yep! Picked it up today. So we are really, really here. Two new cars, a bunch of new furniture and so on. We have arrived.( And some days that scares us to death. :))
Had an unusual thing happen to me today. When I signed on to add to my blog...everything came up in Arabic. The sign in thing...and everything. I screamed. Sure hope this posts in English. :) Now the kids and I are learning Arabic but ummmm, not quite ready to blog in it...or read directions. Wow.
Well, that's all for now....if you would like to read more...go to Sallie's blog...sandymound.blogspot.com...cuz last time I wrote I posted it there. Just can't keep it straight. but I sure do have a fun car! :)

A Big Day

Big news here! Yesterday I became official. I got my UAE license. (Not a word out of you Mark Pearce!)
Mike unexpectedly had the day off....On his way to work he noticed an unreal amount of police cars at every intersection. After he'd been at the jobsite for about an hour a couple of policeman came in and said...You need to close the site and send everyone home. Yes sir. How high....:) So Mike and about 300 employees from the site left. President Bush is in town. Traffic was so snarled that it took about an hour to get to our house..normally a 20 minute drive. My friend Mary has today off as well. Her office building is across from Emirates Palace where the meetings are taking place. She got advance notice though. It would be nice. Mike may have today off as well but he won't know until he gets to the jobsite. He would like today off though...He stayed up from 1:30am to 5am to watch the Cowboyscowboys....lose. He is hurting this morning. :)
Anyway because he was home yesterday we ran to the Dept. of Vehicles Ministry building to get my license. It was actually less confusing than it could have been. There is a separate ladies section where you go in a closed door and everything is handled right there. We were one picture short though...naturally...passport photos are required for everything here and we only had one but needed two. Sigh. So they told us to go 3 buildings down...ha. We walked out the door and laughed...3 buildings..which way? which ones? Asked another guy who pointed us to the right place...or sort of. We decided to walk and then had this hesitation...3 buildings could technically mean three blocks but we kept walking. :) Good news though...it really was just down the street. Went in...two guys standing there taking pictures for a few dirham(this picture thing is a lucrative business around here....) got our photos, walked back, she clipped ALL my paperwork together...I say ALL because it was a stack of stuff, and then I went for my picture in the NEXT office for the license. :) The guy takes my paperwork, tosses it over his shoulder, literally, and then takes my picture. Two minutes later I am out of there with a very official license....Picture isn't bad either. I mean, at least I don't look dead like in my passport picture. :)

So, another day, another item checked off our list. As Mike says....each thing makes us feel more and more entrenched and more entrapped. It's kind of a love hate relationship. :)

Here's to driving legally....:)

Just as I hit publish, Mike's phone rang...He is up and ready to leave for work...Oops, nope...job site is closed again..just letting him know. Another day in the UAE.....

Mattie

Familiar but Different

Some days things can be so different yet so familiar as well. Like on Wednesday when I dropped Sallie off at her Music lesson and then took Robert to the park to play with his friends Ben and Josh. I sat on the park bench and thought about the many park benches I'd sat on in my life while my kids played on the playsets. It made me smile. And then I began talking with a lady next to me....:).... I don't remember her name but I do remember she was from Sudan. We visited for quite awhile. I then began talking with a lady next to me on the other side. She was Chinese...a Chinese Muslim, in fact. Fascinating....I tried to learn her story but she was sketchy with English. Familiar day at the park...but different. :)

Or like today, at church. I've told ya'll how neat it is to worship with so many people from different countries....Well, today Joe asked Mike and me to help with the announcements. Why us? Next week ECC is starting a Perspectives Class...every Tuesday nite until May. So, there we were...pushing Perspectives...very familiar, but in a whole new place. Different. :)

And tonight. We had our Bridge Club. That group of likeminded folks that I told you about who meet every other Friday to encourage and pray for each other. A small group. A lifegroup. A minichurch....familiar...and yet....different. For example, my friend Mary was going to a wedding tonite....the ladies' side of it. The men had their wedding festivities a couple of nites ago. She was heading out the door at 9pm. They will eat at midnite. We prayed for her. That God's love would shine thru her to all the women there. Can't say I had prayed for someone attending an Arab wedding before coming here....:)

Familiar yet different. Perhaps that is what Culture Shock is....not just all the new stuff but all the old stuff that looks different and what do you do with it? Mike has been here 6 months now...and I've been here 5. Some days it feels like yesterday and others it feels like we got here years ago. I think that's part of Culture Shock, too. :) OH, by the way, we were really shocked two days ago when we got 5 parking tickets in the same day. Yep. Apparently January is bonus month for the police and it helps to give lots of tickets. Mind you, we were parked in the same places we have been parking since August. Now that was Culture Shock. :) We thought about protesting them...ha ha ha ha ha.

G'Night All.

Things I learned...

It is Monday morning here. Ryan is back at school. The Fords left on Friday morning. Russell headed back to Texas last nite. I have so many things to write about....but how do I do it? I could be very sad....which I am...or ignore my feelings and just fill everyone in...so I think I will tell you all this way.
Things I learned during our first family Christmas in the UAE:

10. It's beautiful weather here in the winter.
9. Holiday busyness is not limited to the US...I am pooped.
8. Mail...snail mail...feels like a hug, especially during the holidays.
7. I love having a phone that connects me to my family and friends in the US.
6. Being far away from everyone is really hard, especially when they are hurting and you can't be there with them.
5. Friends who come all the way from Bulgaria to spend time with us are worth their weight in gold.
4. Laughing with old friends is priceless, and loving their kids like your own, just can't be beat.
3. Youth pastors never grow up....one day I will share the story of Darren giving Mike a peanut butter face slap...just picture it.
2. Saying goodbye to your oldest boy heading halfway around the world is really really hard...and waking up to a new day with him gone, is even harder.
And the last thing I learned this Christmas is...with God all things are possible...even making a go of it in a strange land....Sandyland.

So there you have it. It was a great Christmas and New Years. Very different but very special. Mike and I loved watching the Ford kids and our kids hang out together. We enjoyed showing our new life to the Fords and having Russell be a part of it. We are blessed.
Happy New Year, Everyone.

Sisters?

Russell's here! The Fords are here! On the 23rd we picked up Russell in Dubai and then last Thursday morning...at 2:35 am. we picked up Pat, Darren, Austin, Jared and Jason at the airport here in Abu Dhabi. It has been non stop chatter and laughter since everyone got here. It also feels a bit surreal to sit in our dining room with our one window, tiny view of the Arabian Gulf...and play spades. Felt normal when we women beat the guys though.....:) Stomped 'em is more like it..... ( I can say that cuz this is MY blog.):)

Yesterday the teenagers...Russell, Ryan, Austin, and Jared headed to Dubai with our church for a weekend retreat called Desert Challenge. It is sponsored by Youth For Christ. I hope they all have fun. Supposed to be a pretty big deal with kids coming in from all over the Gulf Coast...the Arabian Gulf Coast. We toured Emirates Palace and then ate at the new Papa Johns pizza place...topped it off with a blizzard from the new Dairy Queen. :) The Fords are really enjoying our food choices here. :) It's always nice to have treats from the west.

My mother's heart is full up with my boy here. Russell looks great. He was so good about playing the pack mule and hauling all of the stuff from home for Christmas. Robert got a Wii and Russell hauled it in his backpack...along with Ryan's xbox360 and the acoustic guitar(Russell checked that in baggage but still had a load to deal with....). He also brought surprises from friends and they all made the day so very special. A couple of cards brought tears to my eyes...Christmas in the "Hood" was always a special time. But overall we feel so blessed with having him here and knowing how well he is doing. He and Ryan are having fun hanging out and it is especially fun with the Fords here.....

Pat and I had quite a deja vu experience at our little grocer's on Friday...We walked in to buy bread and my friend behind the counter asks..."Sisters??? :) Look same..." We smiled.

Happy New Year everyone.
Mattie

My Friend Kim

Many people close to me know my story...my growing up years in Latin America, becoming a Christian in Aruba, growing in my faith at the University of Texas thru Campus Crusade, meeting Mike on a summer project in Galveston, and so on. Some of these same people know about the friendship with a girl in my college dorm.... She was tough as nails when she moved into our dorm. A partier and a loner at the same time. As the fall semester went into full swing I found her watching me...when I worked the front desk, at breakfast, sitting in the lobby...She intimidated me. Then one nite, during my shift at the front desk, she cornered me. She seemed so tough to me...like she had it all together. Hey, what's up?... Nothing. How are you? ...Can I talk to you a second? ... For the life of me, I couldn't figure out what she would want to say to me.... "Why are you smiling all the time?" I was floored.
And so began my friendship with Kim.
Several weeks later, in October, Kim accepted Christ. She asked me to disciple her and for the next 3 years we spent many, many hours together.... Lots of hard times, we were both growing up, and lots of wonderful times...
As the years passed we didn't get to see each other like we would have wanted but we still were in each others' weddings and celebrated the births of our various children and encouraged each other in the tough times and laughed together in the good ones.
But today is kind of hard for me....I can't be with her...and I so want to be. Her sweet husband Carl passed away in his sleep this morning... I received the email when I woke up. She has family with her and great friends.... I know Kim. She'll stay strong and be there for her twin girls..Brooke and Anna...and she'll find strength and hope in her Saviour. She'll cry when she needs to and she'll find things to smile about and she will cling to Jesus.
It is my privilege to call her friend and sister. She taught me so much about faith thru our years together, and she still is.
But if you wouldn't mind...as you read this blog....please pray for her and for her girls...
Kim and Brooke and Anna.

We'd appreciate it..
Love, Mattie

We spent