There and Back Again

I started out this morning with the comment..Is it really February 1???  I can't believe it.( And then I realized that I sounded like my mom.  OH boy. )   I haven't felt much like writing lately.  Sallie is in the middle of exams.  Ryan finished up his term at SHMS in Caux with finals and projects.  He is in the middle of an intense search for an internship to complete his SHMS diploma.  Before he returns to Texas he is visiting a friend's family in Prague. (This is also on our top ten places we'd like to visit. Don't know if it will happen but we hope so.)  Then, only a few days after Russell solved some visa problems and returned to his office, he showed up back at our door.   It was interesting when Russell came thru the door with one large suitcase and his "grab" back full of his essentials in case he had to leave quickly with only one bag. Not something any mom wants to hear when their son arrives unexpectedly at her door. Mike and I helped arrange places to stay for Russell and some coworkers and that has pretty much been our schedule for the last week.  So Robert is sharing his room again.  Mattress on the floor. Suitcase and back pack in the corner. He is a good sport and always likes it when either of his brothers are around.
Russell is playing the host for lunch time everyday. Making sure his friends eat at all of his and Ryan's favorite places. Mike and I try to join them when we can. A couple of nights ago one of the families who are helping house some of the guys served up great hamburgers for everyone.  Another night we had them all over for Texas Chili.  Although they are here unexpectedly we are enjoying getting to know everyone and thankful we can be here to help out.
Huh. So that is January.  Wonder what February will be like.....
  
 

Happy 2012

A walk in the park.

Our Christmas holidays were filled with friends, family and lots of food. :) Ryan reconnected with many of his high school friends but also had plenty of time with all of us. He and Russell took an entire day to explore the Wadis in Oman with a tour guide and in the process saw most of the UAE. The boys said that most of the time was spent driving thru  the emirates..with stops here and there to get out and see things. Ryan has those pictures so they won't be on the blog.  They had fun together. Another fun event was the New Year's Eve concert the kids all went to...Coldplay.  Crowded and crazy but fun.  In between the big times were meals together, walks in the park, and hanging in the house.  Sallie had her Christmas conference with the Youth for Christ Arabian Gulf. Desert Challenge is held in Dubai every year. This year she was on the worship team helping with the media.  She ran the projector for the speakers and for the songs.  She learned a lot..not just about running the stuff..but about working with people and changing things at the last minute. It tested her endurance..hanging in there with all the cues and never turning her brain off. :)   As she jokingly says, "Kind of funny cuz the theme of the conference this year was ENDURE..." We didn't see a lot of Sallie as she was in and out with her friends. Her big brothers laughed as they were reminded of themselves at 16/17. Robert loved having his brothers home. It's pretty stinky when they leave though, although he does get his bedroom back. That's on the plus side. The maid/storage/junk room gets a bit cramped. But he's a good sport. 

The boys have left now. House is empty of Christmas decorations. The New Year has begun. Thankful for 2011 and looking forward to God's plans for 2012. Thankful for His continued faithfulness in our lives and the blessings of our wonderful family and friends.   

Coldplay bound

One of our favorite places to relax.

Lunch after church on Friday

Tree Sightings

Tree at the Sheraton Hotel

 Look at all the Christmas trees in Abu Dhabi. Seriously, they are everywhere! Way more than when we moved here 5 Christmases ago.  Christmas is tomorrow and we have enjoyed the month leading up to it.    

 There was the International Carol Sing at church, the Kid's Choir at the Millenium Hotel, and new this year: a ladies Christmas Cookie Exchange at Pattie's house as well as a citywide Christmas celebration with several churches in Abu Dhabi.
6 churches from Abu Dhabi came together at the National Theater. St. Andrew's Church, the Arabic Evangelical Church, St. Georges Indian Orthodox Church, Mar Thoma Church and our church the Evangelical Church. Each church prepared something for the celebration..songs, drama, dance. The guest of  honor was HH Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, the minister of Education in the UAW. He spoke about tolerance and diversity. It was the first time ever for something like this in AD and I loved having our family be a part of it.    

Nadia, Drew, Sallie, David and  Robert 

 

Small group Christmas party at the Pages

Cantina Laredo's Tree

The Spirit of the Union..40 years Old!!

Mike attacked by Robert, Sallie and friends with cans of silly string.Don't worry, he  got even.

Denise and Steve from the UK. This was their first National Day here.

On December 2nd we had our annual chili party to celebrate 40 years since the UAE's creation. Nearby neighbors came over for chili, cornbread, brownies and cookies. I say nearby neighbors as no one really wants to drive on National Day. Roads are packed with crazy cars and celebrating families! It can take hours to drive what would normally take 15-20 minutes. After our dinner we walked to the Corniche  to take in the festivities. People from all over the world joined in the birthday celebration. I look forward to this holiday every year.... Good times!!!

Thanksgivng Again

               Thanksgiving Table 2011

Ligia and Mary  

Once again the Kenneys hosted Thanksgiving at their villa. This is our traditon now.  Sadly, it was their last one in Abu Dhabi. After working here for 6 years, making many friends, and being a blessing to all of us, they are moving to Oman.  As I have mentioned before, the good byes over here are very hard.  On the bright side, we love Oman and expect to visit them often after they are settled.  We also expect that Jeff and Mary will pop in over here periodically, as well. :)  I'm not sure how we will do Thanksgiving without them....maybe our gang will have to rent a bus and head to Oman next year.  We shall see.  

Setting up for the Celebration

Getting ready for the big day! 

Inside all the malls are decorated.

And outside too!  The Royal Family.

All over the city preparations are underway for the big day! The UAE's 40th birthday.  For those of us who celebrate Christmas, it is double fun.  Lights going up. Malls decorated.  And everything in green, red, white, and black.  :)  This is our 5th National Day here, but this one is over the top.  Jets have been flying over with streams of flag colors winding out behind them.  Buildings covered in banners and flags. Little girls wearing patriotic dresses.  And the cars.... Rumor has it that one lady spent 150,000 dirhams to decorate her car.  That's over 40,000 dollars.  On Friday night these crazy cars will be parading through town, honking horns, racing engines and generally making lots of noise.  Tomorrow is a national holiday but the real day is Dec. 2.     Sallie's school will have parties all day long today.  No uniforms today. But the kids are required to wear the right colors....You got it. Green, Red, White and Black.  More pictures to come.  

Sorry about the slow entry on this one. I have had "technical difficulties" with my pictures.

Many Things, Many Thanks

Phil, Russell and Jordan: off to tour the Grand Mosque.

Russell wanted some Texas Roadhouse when we were at Dubai Mall.

Jeff and Mary joined us in Montreux for a couple of days. 

We can go for weeks without much happening over here. Just the daily life things...school, work, church, life. Then there are months like this last one. From my last blog entry until today: busy, busy, busy. :)  Hence the obvious lack of blogging.
Why were these last weeks so busy?
-  Starting after my return from Kabul, we had the Abu Dhabi Film Festival. One of my favorite events held over here. Lots of movies from all over the world, at reduced rates and at times that go all day and into the night. (My other favorite event is WOMAD that comes in the spring...come visit us then. It is so fun. Music on the beach. ).
-Tom and Bonnie Wright arrived on Oct. 27 for a week. Tom actually went to Kabul to hang with Russell for a few days and then was back here. Coffee, a little sightseeing, laughing, sharing, catching up...  We love having them here. On Nov. 20th they come back thru for a day. They are on their way back to Dallas from India. I am glad we get to see them one more time.
-At the same time, Russell and Tom show up from Kabul and two of Russell's good buddies as well. Jordan Hawley and Phil Santoro came for 5 days to see our life here and be with Russell. Originally they had planned to see Russell in Kabul but this worked better for them, and we
got the added blessing of being with them, too. :)  Russell is blessed with many good friends.
-Then on Friday Nov. 4 we headed out at CSD (crack of stinking dawn) for Geneva to see Ryan. We left Phil and Jordan  to fend for themselves and off we went.  8 days in Switzerland. 8 days of cool weather, fall colors,  mountain and lake views, family time with all 6 of us, great food, and fresh air.  Wonderful.

Realizing that I cannot blog on everything covered in this month, I will simply add pictures.  But before I do, a couple of things... It was one year ago that Mike was hired at this job that he is on now. I thank God for His provision these last 12 months.  Ryan being able to have this year in Switzerland, and us being able to visit him. Sallie being able to attend AISA, and serve in Thailand this summer.  Every time we get to be with Russell because we live this close to him, and for us being able to see his life in Kabul as well. Robert and the great friends he has made over here, and all he has learned over the last year.(still praying for good friends this year...)  This year we have spent time with many friends in the US and over here. We have had time to deepen friendships over here and see God work.  There are no guarantees on the future. Where we will be, or what is next, but we are thankful for this past 12 months, especially when we thought our time was done here.
Seeing how it is almost  Thanksgiving, I guess it is a good time to remember all these things. I really miss Thanksgiving over there...Hope you all have a great one.

Ryan's school in Caux, Switzerland. 

Our four, fantastic kids

My Boys. 

.       

3 Days in Kabul

 It was just a week ago that Russell took me to these beautiful gardens in Kabul. A group of us were there. We had a picnic and talked about life in Afghanistan. Except for Pattie, Linda, and me, everyone was under 30.  Way under.   Russell, wanting to show Pattie and me as much of his life as possible(in 3 short days) planned the picnic, bought the food, got the drivers, and invited his friends. I ate up every minute of our time together. His obvious love for the Afghan people, and his desire to see healing and peace in their country, gripped me for my whole visit.  

 Linda, having just moved into her new flat 4 days earlier, hosted Pattie and me for our visit. She also hosted Russell, who slept on the floor next to my bed for the entire visit. It was great as it allowed for extra time together to talk and just hang out.  Linda faces challenges settling into her new place. No water pressure.. A leak on the street in front of her house which keeps the dirt road nice and muddy.   But it is spacious and new, with lots of sunlight and a great view of  the surrounding mountains and the city.   Ok, the four flights of stairs was a challenge at 6000 feet but great exercise!!!

 Two of Russell's friends were married on Friday. We loved meeting many of his friends there. Pattie and I nearly froze as the temperature was dropping and it was an outside wedding.  However, the colors of all the beautiful Punjabis and long dresses were wonderful.  Blessings to Dan and Oksana.

Russell's front yard. I loved the roses!!

Some coworkers at SRS.  What a wonderful group of people.

My time in Kabul, though short, was wonderful. I loved being a part of Russell's life. I loved seeing his day to day challenges and meeting his friends. I'm glad Pattie went with me so we can laugh together about our adventures.  I don't know if I will get another chance to visit but I hope so.  For now I am counting the days until Russell comes to see us ...just 3 weeks.

Rise and Shine

First day of school. Only day to have cool lunch box. Forgot it at school and it disappeared. :)

 Sallie is in her 4th week of classes at AISA.  All of her teachers except for French and Chemistry are American. Her French teacher is from France...and her Chemistry is Turkish.  So far she is doing well and we are happy with our decision to go there.
High point for Sallie? She loves the Drama Club!  She finds out today what part she will have in the school play.  A promise to text me as soon as she hears was made this morning. Although grades 6 thru 12 are separated boys and girls, the Drama club is coed.  She said the kids in the club are lots of fun. It's also been fun to be in school with Nadia. They have been friends since we moved here. Certainly helps the transition when you already know people. :)
High point for me? It took one week of driving every possible route before I settled on the best way to the school. Even though we leave by 7 am. to get there by 7:45, the traffic is already slowing down so it took some planning to pick the best way.  Up 2nd. Left on 11. Right on 8th. Right on 29th. U turn on 2nd. And we are there. 26 min. Love it. Another high point? Replaced lost, cool lunch box with 2 dollar lunch box from Daiso the Japanese "Dollar Genearal" store.  And it is working out just fine. :)

Week four of school. Giving good friends Nadia and David a ride home. 

Ramadan is Over

So the day before Ramadan ended I took Sallie and Robert and Jessica (she was staying with us while her mom and dad went to Oman) to the NEW mall in Abu Dhabi. Mushrif Mall. Not that we needed a new mall here but this one has a WENDYS in it. There is a also a great candy/sweet shop. Here is Robert sneaking a bite of cookie from the store since it was still Ramadan..

Happy to have a Wendy's in town...and Happy that Ramadan is done!

  

And Russell came through Dubai on his way back from Cyprus to Kabul. We stole a couple of hours with him during his layover.  It is always a relief when Ramadan ends over here. It's like we all catch our breath again. Sallie starts school on Sunday. Ryan is about to start his year in Switzerland and soon the hot weather will break.  And now we can eat and drink in public all day long. :)

Done, Done, Done

Chicago-done. Kansas-done. Maryland, Virginia-done.  Dallas-done.

Joel, Robert, and Sallie at the aquarium in Chicago.

Abby and Bella let us stay in their home for the last two weeks of our visit..OH. and Darren and Pat did, too.

It is getting harder and harder to fit the whole Kansas Clan into one picture. We were only missing two of the gang.Matt and Laurie.

Sallie and Lolo had a whole week together. That was fun!

Grandma, Josh and Ryan catching up in Kansas. 

In my previous post I mentioned about all the Hellos  we were looking forward to.  They were wonderful. In Chicago we got to say hello to Gary, Candice and Joel..and to American soil. After two years the anticipation was fun as we waited for the wheels to touch down. Although the time was short there, we had a ball. All of us fell in love with Chicago and want to go back!!
In Dallas, my good friends, Marganne and Pat took me directly to a ranch for two days. Our hellos were filled with laughter, tears, stories and lots of hugs. I think we will make this a habit if we can. There is a lot of life to catch up on, even with skype, email, facebook and everything else. :)  And on my return to Dallas there were great hellos after great hellos.  It is fun returning to the place we lived for 20 plus years, people who know us and  knew us when.....
And then our trip to Kansas. Our nieces and nephews, all growing up or grown up, even. Brothers, sisters, FAMILY. What a blessing.  Ryan wrote a poem on facebook about Stafford. I think my kids appreciate roots more than before. As a kid I never had them so I love going to Kansas and just being there. My kids are learning about that. Mom Hildebrand looked great and as usual opened her doors wide and let us pour out all over the house.  We love our family!!
Several friends flew in from other places to see us. My friend, Anita, came in from Missouri, and the Hones all came in from Phoenix. I've known Anita since I was 15.  She has some stories to tell on me, but she behaved herself. :) Laurel Hone is one of Sallie's oldest and dearest friends. So it was great for the girls to be together. Robert enjoyed his buddies as well, and all his favorite foods.
In Maryland we reunited with some of our oldest friends. Greg was Mike's roommate when he worked at OU. He and Mary Kaye got married two weeks before us and we have been friends forever! In Virginia we attended a wedding of the daughter of our dear friends from Abu Dhabi, and then also had lunch with the Pritz's who lived in AD for two years and are so much fun! It was a summer of wonderful celebrations and reunions.
Driving the roads from here to there and back again, I found myself smiling at all the memories. Stores, restaurants, even intersections sometimes would jog a memory to the front. Old friends who were amazed at the kids and the changes.  Ryan, unfolding himself from a chair, to hug our old neighbors, Sallie and Robert answering questions about life in Abu Dhabi,  worshiping at our old church and remembering  many wonderful times but then recognizing that our church home now is halfway across the world: all of these things were part of a summer we won't forget.

Now we are back in Abu Dhabi. School started for Robert. Ramadan is nearly done...one more week. And life is moving on. It's good to be home. And it was good to be home in Texas, too.  

And It's Goodbye Again

Rebecca-leaving, Sarah-leaving, Emily, Jessica and Mackenzie-missing them already.

 June is normally a time of great fun and summer plans.So why am I so sad these days? It's like I am walking around in a fog.  Maybe it is the heat, unrelenting, night and day, living in sauna. Yes, it could be that. But it is more than that. It is all the good byes that happen this time of year. I try to focus on how in August more people will be here..new friends, new fun. But no, it isn't helping. We have 8 families leaving from our homeschool community. And several more leaving from the church. My poor friend's daughter (they have been here 7 years) has cried herself to sleep for two weeks now with all the goodbyes she has had to say. One week we had 3 good bye parties. Ugh.  

 Judy, smiling in the front in the picture on the left, packed up after 5 years here and like 16 in the Middle East. We will also say goodbye to two of Robert's best friends and their families. One to Canada the other to the US.  And the Harmons, the Bazzis, the Reillys, the Bakers(who left in April) , the Millers, the Hendrickse(back to South Aftica after years and years here) and Ian and Chris who have served in our church for 12 years. It's been one good bye after another. I know we will recover but the process is not fun.   

Daniel-leaving, John-leaving, Jerusha, Sallie-missing them already, Sarah-leaving

 My kids are grabbing what time they have with each departing friend. Having done this good bye thing so much growing up, I feel for them. Trying to create fun memories for them and help them to process the good and the hard. Very glad there is facebook now. And skype. It really helps. :) 

Another goodbye is to Sallie, Jerusha, Ethan and Jared. This is a fun one though. On Wednesday they head to Thailand to work in an orphanage for 10 days. They are going with Arabian Gulf Youth for Christ.  They will be with more students from Al Ain and 4 staff, including our leaders from here. Sallie is excited to experience a trip like this as she has heard about her brothers' many adventures!

Good-bye. Talk to you soon. Here's to the hellos that follow the hard goodbyes...
Mattie