Date Night

On the week before Spring Break began, Jeff was invited by one of our new friends to participate in a local golf tournament hosted by oil and gas companies here in Dubai. The tournament scramble was held at the prestigious Emirates Golf Club and lasted for two days in the beautiful spring weather. Jeff had the best time with his new friends and really enjoyed the comradery and sunshine.

To conclude the tournament, the participants and spouses were invited to a gala with drinks, dinner, awards ceremony, live entertainment, and fireworks finale. Our friends were gracious enough to let our kids stay with theirs, the oldest of which could oversee the group. It was an opportunity for a fun date night and I luckily found something suitable to wear hanging in my closet. It was also the first time I fixed my hair in months, ha! We felt so blessed by our friends to enjoy a night together in great company with the spectacular Dubai skyline in the distance.

3rd Grade Updates

Scrolling through my photos, I realized that I had several pictures of Kaitlynn's recent fun in 3rd grade at Dubai American Academy. It seems like there is always something new and exciting happening at school.

Sometimes I accompany Kaitlynn into her classroom if I happen to be on campus for another reason. She loves having her Mom walk her inside. :-)

One of her 3rd grade projects recently was to visit a grocery store and study the location and price differences with products from around the world. I've mentioned before that when I started grocery shopping in Dubai, it was a new experience for me to recognize the different countries of origin for meat and produce. Kaitlynn was learning in 3rd grade to spot these things as well, in addition to the price differences based on where the items came from. Her assignment was to find several of the same items, like oranges for example, and document the different origins and prices of each, along with making assumptions based on why the prices might be different.

Kaitlynn took her project quite seriously, even bringing her trusty clipboard along for the task. (My family and friends that know me well will certainly laugh about the clipboard, haha!) It was actually quite eye-opening for me to see the price differences in oranges from say, Morocco, versus those from somewhere else, like USA or South Africa. I noticed that it wasn't always distance of the imported product that would cause the price to go higher or lower. I'd say Kaitlynn and I both learned some things from her assignment and I've actually been more productive in my grocery shopping as a result.






The elementary kids had a spring Track and Field Day recently where each of the classes competed against each other. They were happy to be outside soaking in the sunshine and running off some energy. Her teacher shared some photos with the parents.






On the eve of the kids' Spring Break, Kaitlynn's class had a classroom party to kick off the fun. Everyone was excited at the prospect of being out of school for two whole weeks!





But before Spring Break could begin, the entire school participated in a group photo on the school grounds to commemorate the 20th year anniversary of the school. They posted the aerial photo on social media and I thought it was pretty cool. Connor and Kaitlynn could tell you exactly where they are standing in the picture.




After all of the busy school activities, who could blame any of us for being worn out and ready for the Spring Break ahead?!




Springtime Update

It's been a busy spring for us here in Dubai. We are trying to make sure we stay involved with fun activities to keep our minds off of the difficult adjustments.

The temperatures are steadily climbing, and so we are soaking in all of the outdoor activities here while we can. One of our favorites is Al Barsha Park. We have a lot of playdates here and the kids never get tired of the family bike. Connor also recently started taking basketball lessons here, so we are usually at the park twice per week after school.










We often find ourselves at one of the many malls around the city because that's where activities tend to be located. The Dubai Mall (largest mall in the world!) never disappoints and offers several fun things to do. After several visits, I'm actually becoming quite familiar with the mall and finding it easier to navigate now. Some of the frequently photographed spots in this mall tend to be The Waterfall, which is an indoor fountain with diving men sculptures, as well as the Apple Store's balcony overlooking the Burj Khalifa.






We were excited in February to see a familiar face from back home in Katy. Joe is a great friend of the family -- our former neighbor and Kaitlynn's former softball coach. He travels to Dubai frequently and invited us out for an incredible dinner at Russo's NY Pizza, which is owned by his company. We had the best night catching up over delicious food.

Dinner with Joe

Later in February was my birthday and we made sure to celebrate as a family. We were planning to go to Olive Garden (who knew it was in Dubai?!) for my birthday dinner but the traffic was too bad by the time we were ready. So instead we went back to Russo's and enjoyed a super yummy dinner and birthday desserts. (Yes, that word was intentionally plural! haha)






Lauri birthday dessert

Recently the kids had a couple of days off from school for various reasons. Connor had an entire week at home to work on a project while most of his classmates participated in the school's Week Without Walls program. It's a week each spring where students take trips to other countries to study various topics and experience learning outside the classroom. We weren't prepared to send him out of UAE just yet, and he was happy to stay at home and complete a personal project on his own. We took advantage of the time to enjoy some one-on-one activities including lunch and movie dates while Kaitlynn was in school. Then Kaitlynn had her own one-on-one time with me when the elementary kids had 2 days home from school for parent-teacher conferences.















Baseball is still keeping us busy this spring, as Connor has practice and games most weeks. Connor's Red Sox team ended up placing 3rd out of 4 teams for the regular season. Now he is playing for 2 other teams at Dubai Little League; one is a tournament team and the other is a recreational league with some older players. Kaitlynn tags along begrudgingly to baseball but loves it when a better offer comes along. Recently our church hosted the UAE Kids Games as a children's outreach ministry. Kaitlynn and her friends had a fun time playing at church while Connor played some baseball.





Kaitynn's First Piano Showcase

I mentioned in an earlier post that Kaitlynn began taking piano lessons a couple of months ago when we arrived in Dubai. She has always been musically inclined and loves to sing, and she had been begging for piano lessons for quite a while before we finally gave in. Then she spent her own money to buy a used keyboard so that she could practice at home.

After her 6th lesson, her teacher asked her to participate in a local musical showcase. We were surprised but Kaitlynn was very excited to show off her new skill. The showcase was held at an outdoor venue on the Palm Jumeirah in Dubai, and Kaitlynn made sure to dress up for the occasion.

We arrived early and took our seats. Kaitlynn was so excited to see her name in print on the program. Side note: It is interesting to navigate the British spelling of certain English words here in Dubai like program vs. programme, color vs. colour, and realize vs. realise. This is so confusing for Kaitlynn, ha!

When it was time for the performance, I was surprised at how nervous Kaitlynn was feeling. For a girl who has had solo singing performances in front of several hundred people, this piano showcase didn't seem like a big deal. She is older now and this was a more intimate setting, so maybe that was why her nerves were kicking in. She told me that her heart was beating so fast!

For her performance, she played a simple melody while her instructor Ms. Marina played the accompaniment. It was a short piece, which was perfect for her first time on the "stage" playing piano. I was so impressed with her courage as well as how she actually read the music while performing instead of having just memorized the keys. She was poised and beautiful, and I was so proud of her!

After the concert, Kaitlynn and the other performers were presented with a certificate.

We were so proud of our girl for her hard work and dedication to her new hobby, as well as her courage for playing the piano in front of an audience after such a short time of lessons. We made sure to celebrate her big accomplishment with her favorite treat, Baskin Robbins ice cream!

Kaitlynn's 3rd grade Field Trip to the Desert

In early March, Kaitlynn was thrilled to find out that her 3rd grade class would be attending a field trip in the UAE desert. They had a full day of activities planned, including hiking, sandboarding, ropes course, a falcon show, and all kinds of desert games. I admit, it was a bit nerve-wracking for me because the field trip involved a chartered bus taking the kids to another emirate about an hour away for the desert location. Parents weren't invited to chaperone, but we were happy to receive photos and updates throughout the day of all the kiddos and their fun activities.

Knowing that the field trip was in the desert, I anticipated that there might be some sandy socks when Kaitlynn returned from the field trip. But the amount of sand she brought home far surpassed what I imagined. There was a trail of sand everywhere Kaitlynn walked when she got home that night. It wasn't until her teacher later posted the following photo that the excess of sand made a lot more sense. She was making sand angels, ha!




The kids in the class all received a cute t-shirt to commemorate their desert adventure, and so of course they had to coordinate their outfits the following day at school. It was a perfect first UAE field trip for Kaitlynn. Smiles all around!




International Food Festival

Connor and Kaitlynn's new school, Dubai American Academy, is comprised of students from over 100 countries around the world. In celebration of the school's diversity, the Parent Association puts on an annual fundraiser each spring called the International Food Festival where parent volunteers host dozens of booths with sample foods from various countries. Parents, children, and community members are invited to attend the Festival and enjoy food from around the world. In addition to the country booths, there is a flag parade, international stage performances, a handicraft market, and bouncy houses for the kids. The 2018 event was the biggest one yet, and we had an amazing time!

The event planning began in January and I jumped right in as a parent volunteer. As in prior years, the plan for the USA booth was to serve hotdogs, macaroni and cheese, chocolate chip cookies, brownies, and chips. The only problem was that we needed to serve about 600 hotdogs but we couldn't grill them onsite at the event due to safety restrictions. Jeff stepped in to save the day. He ended up grilling all 600 hotdogs at home before the Festival, and then we transported them to the school to serve at our booth. Poor Jeff, he worked so hard and did such an awesome job. The hotdogs and our USA booth were such a huge success!









We had SO much food, and yet our USA booth was so popular that we ran out of food with over an hour left on the night. The entire event was such a success, with country booths serving incredible food from all over the world, including India, Turkey, China, Korea, Pakistan, Palestine, Australia, France, Italy, Lebanon, and so many more. What a fun way to celebrate the diversity of so many cultures represented in the kids' new school!

Connor and Kaitlynn were right in their element throughout the event, running around enjoying food and fun with all of their new friends. They definitely dressed the part to represent their country, too. The Festival lasted 3 hours, but we were there early and stayed late as volunteers. We were all pooped by the end of the night!