A Year Later, An Update

It's been a whole year almost! I'm sorry I've been neglecting my blog but I'm back!

This year has been a rollercoaster for us, it has simultaneously flown by and dragged along. I kind of can't believe it's almost over. I'm not usually one to wish away the time, while I enjoyed 2017 and all it brought, I am so ready to be done with it. I pray that 2018 is less of a rollercoaster and more of a smooth sail across calm waters for us all.

Here is a look back at some of the highlights of our year...starting in July because honestly, January through June were basically a blur of sleep deprivation and trying to manage the balance of being a working mom and wife.

So, we made the long flight home when school ended in July for Rhys to meet my family. I had my brother call everyone together for lunch and we surprised them by casually arriving to surprise my mom. We learned that it takes Rhys a minute to warm up to people, just like his mama :) so he was a bit hesitant at first but eventually warmed up to everyone.

*maybe* his favorite uncle

cousin Jerica

Meema

Also in July, I took my first trip without baby and went to Cuba. I have to say I don't remember much about it other than I got to sleep a lot and eat good food but I really missed my baby. Most of my days revolved around walking to the main hotel in the area that sold internet access cards so that I could try and call home to facetime with Rhys, and pumping every 4 - 6 hours so I wouldn't get engorged and to maintain my supply. Luckily, Uncle Jamie was on the job and kept me updated with pictures like this.

Here are some other photos that I took on the trip. Looking back at them now, I don't think I truly appreciated the open availability of pork products and rice and beans while I was there. I sure wish I had some right now.

ready to go

yes to all of this

 

bath time at grandma's

 

"that was fun, now let's go home"

After Cuba, we only had a few weeks left in the states before heading home so we tried to get in as much family time as possible. We also squeezed in a quick trip to Virginia to spend some time with my dear friends Tara, and Renee and her family, who I unfortunately didn't get any photos of.

Rhys learned to walk while at my friend Sara's, and he met lots of his cousins and other family too.

uncle Jie

the fam's all here!

all the uncles

cousin Darian

Rhys immediately fell in love with cousin D

When we got back to this side of the world we still had a little time left before school started so we took a quick trip to Salalah, Oman. Although it is right next door, Oman experiences a monsoon season called "khareef" from June to September where it rains and is much cooler than here in the UAE. The rains cause it to be foggy in the mornings and provide water for plants to grow lush and green. The resort we stayed in had a nice children's club and little petting zoo that we enjoyed, but it was just nice to hear the sound of the ocean waves crashing all day. I'm very easy to please.

Next up was my birthday (snooze) and then Rhys' birthday. I can't believe I have a 1 year old! We did a cake smash photo shoot for him a few weeks before his actual birthday and then on the day had a pretty simple day of opening gifts, eating his favorite meal (chicken nuggets & fries), and then cake, which he wouldn't eat.

Since he's turned 1, we have been able to get out and do a little bit more so we made a few trips to Abu Dhabi within the last few weeks. First, we went to Emirates Park Zoo for a weekend. The zoo is pretty small as zoos go, but they have a small hotel and resort attached, so you can literally just step out of your room and see the animals. Rhys recently developed an affection for lions and has learned to roar like them. I'm pretty sure he thinks all animals roar, it's really cute. Of course, I was most impressed by the giraffes.

On another weekend, we went to the grand opening of The Louvre in Abu Dhabi. We did sort of a power walk through it because Rhys was cranky, but I hope to one day be able to take my time and appreciate all of the art there.

Finally, since we normally have a long weekend the last week of November for Martyr's Day and National Day, I took advantage of our 5 days off and booked a trip to Malaysia. We spent a day in Langkawi at the Berjaya resort, which was breathtaking and just the change of pace I needed, and then spent the other 2 days in Kuala Lumpur exploring the city.

Langkawi is a beach town in the jungle, the resort we stayed was surrounded by huge trees on one side and a beautiful beach on the other. There was a little tram that took us from the hotel lobby to our room, so we got to ride through the jungle and see monkeys and a few other animals. We were somehow upgraded to an over the water villa that had a nice balcony to sit on and enjoy the view. As great as I've become at packing, I always manage to forget something. This time it was the outlet piece of my phone charger. So after I took a few videos of the monkeys and tram ride to our room, my phone promptly died and we slept for 13 hours, right through my alarm. We woke up late for our flight, missed breakfast and made a mad dash to the airport while I prayed that we wouldn't miss our flight. All of my worries were for naught though, because in true island time fashion, our plane was delayed and the security check was pretty much nonexistent, so we made it to our gate in under 2 minutes.

"we've been traveling for 12 hours mom!"

From Langkawi we took an hour flight back to Kuala Lumpur. I wanted to take advantage of every hour we had there so I booked a city tour for an hour after we landed. We got to see a batik fabric factory, the Royal Selangor pewter factory (the world's largest), and Batu Caves.

handprints of workers are put up after 5 years of service at the pewter factory

pewter models of Petronas Towers

the steps to reach the top of Batu Caves

The following day we tried to go to the aquarium but the line was wrapped around the building, so we walked around and found KLCC Park which was right next to a mall and water park. Rhys enjoyed every single moment of his time at the park, he was in heaven and rightfully so because the playground is literally the size of ten regular ones combined.

Good morning Kuala Lumpur!

Unfortunately, we both got sick after our splash in the water and I learned that it's probably best not to let your child take a dip in a public pool if you're unsure whether it's chlorinated or not. Gonna tattoo that lesson on my arm so as not to forget it. We had a great time in Malaysia though, and would definitely visit again if we had more time.

So that is what we've been up to this year. We didn't get to travel as much as I would have liked but I'm happy with where we've been. Traveling with a baby isn't easy but it is so worth the experience. We've got 4 more days of school left before winter break and our next trip. We're going to my ultimate bucket list destination; the Maldives. I can't wait!

I Accomplished Exactly 0 of My New Years Goals

Boy, writing things down can be a gift and a curse. Having a written record of what you said or said you were going to do keeps you honest and accountable, and is a reminder when you don't follow through. I was just looking over the goals I made almost a year ago and sadly, I have achieved none of them. I haven't been anywhere except Greece this year, but I did have a baby and he's pretty awesome and super cute :)

I have the itch to travel though. Like, really bad. I just want to go somewhere and living vicariously through other people is not gonna do it. My body needs to be on a plane, my passport needs more stamps, and I need to explore new places! I don't exactly know how that will work with a baby but I'm up for the challenge of figuring it out...once he's a little bit older. A few people I follow on social media have been to Marrakech lately and it looks so enchanting and colorful. I hope that is where we get to go first. I'm looking forward to posting more travel related photos and commentary.

For now here's a ridiculously cute photo of my munchkin for the holidays

(he gets his serious faces from me)

Probably the Greatest Adventure of All

bun in oven :: bake gently :)

I never thought I'd be one of those people to write or share their birth story, but I'm so... in awe of the experience I figure I should probably record it somewhere to look back on. Maybe one day Rhys will stumble upon it and think it's pretty cool.

So, when the picture above was taken I was heavily pregnant and ready to meet my little munchkin. The aches and pains of pregnancy were all amplified by the desert heat and taking their toll on me. I still went to work though, and pushed myself to try and keep up with all my duties, even teaching an extra PE class to cover for another teacher. I'm pretty sure that's what pushed me over the edge because I went into labor that same day. Well, early labor is what they called it.

I was getting ready for bed that night and felt what I thought was my water break. We waited a bit while I timed my contractions and finally decided it was go time. My grandma, two aunts and I walked into the hospital around 2am with my 3 bags and birthing ball ready to meet baby. Looking back, the fact that I could walk into the hospital on my own should've told me that I was a long way away from delivering. After walking the halls and rolling around on a hospital bed for what seemed like forever, I was sent home to wait it out a few hours later.

I already had an appointment for my 39 week check up scheduled for later that afternoon, so I went back for that hoping that there would be more progress and they'd go ahead and admit me. Still only 1 cm dilated and having sporadic contractions, a sweet nurse gave me some advice to help my labor along and sent me home again. Nurse Veronica must have been sent by God just for me that day. I stepped into the hallway after having waited an hour to be seen and she walked by and took me in even though I was not on her patient list and she had other things that she was supposed to be doing. I will always remember how comfortable and at ease she made me feel that day. She talked to me as if I were her own child and I could tell that everything she said would turn out to be true. Even though I wasn't being admitted then, she told me to go home and eat some prunes, sweet potatoes, and okra (not all together), drink water, and "baby will come today", so that's what I did.

That night, after forcing myself to eat as much prunes, mashed sweet potatoes, and okra as I could, I tried to sleep but was obviously restless. My contractions were coming closer together but my water still hadn't broken, so I waited. Around 4am the contractions were getting more intense so I got in the shower to relieve some of the pain and decided that I needed drugs. This time going to the hospital I didn't care about a birthing ball or my snack bag or really anything else, and there was no way I was getting to the maternity ward without the help of a wheelchair.

I was taken directly to a delivery room where I met my midwife, Emma, who I promptly asked for some pain relief. I had said throughout my pregnancy that I wanted to do a med-free labor, but that went out the door after having been up with labor pains for 6+ hours. Not wanting to dope me up right away I guess, Emma said that she could give me something to "help me relax but I would still feel the contractions", and I remember thinking to myself, "what kind of oxymoron is that?!".  She was right, it did relax me and made me want to go to sleep, but every time I got close to dozing off another contraction would come. So I asked for more drugs. I really don't know what kind of super women they have over here in the Middle East, but Emma offered me oxygen (I'm not kidding) or an epidural. Grandma really wanted me to take the oxygen. I think she must have forgotten what childbirth feels like. I got the epidural.  Dr. Matthew, the anesthesiologist, became my new favorite person.

Things progressed nicely from there.  I could still feel the pressure of contractions and move my legs but the pain was gone and I was able to rest and talk with my family. Around lunch time everyone left me to go eat while I thought of the victory cheeseburger I was going to have later and talked with the nurses. Since Emma was away delivering another baby, a new nurse came in to check me and broke my water. I'm so happy my water didn't break at school, that was a serious gush of liquid! 

After that, things moved really quickly and before I knew it it was time to push. Thanks to movies and Kourtney Kardashian, I really thought I was gonna push 4-5 times and then the baby would just come out, but it didn't quite work out that way. I think I did a pretty good job of staying calm and focused for the most part but that final push really showed me who was boss. I really wanted to tap out and allow my little guy to just go on living his life inside my womb, I would just have to figure out a way to make it work for the both of us. Thankfully, he decided to help himself out and just kind of came flying out on his own.

just a few hours old

I'm very glad there's no video of the whole ordeal.

The midwives did their weighing and measuring and checking and then we were finally able to rest and get to know each other. The hospital rooms were very nice and comfortable, and the nurses were all so helpful, but anyone who knows me knows I have a hard time sleeping away from home, so I was ready to go. After making sure baby and I were both healthy and he was free of jaundice, I got the okay to go home the next day. I don't know if I was more excited to sleep in my own bed or eat real food.

"breakfast"

For some reason I kept expecting a doctor or some sort of counselor to come by and give me the low down on motherhood/parenting/how to keep this baby alive, but no one ever did. I kept thinking, 'you guys are just gonna let me leave with this kid? no test? no presenting proof of purchase? just take him home and keep him?'.  Bananas!

going home :)

I'm still waiting for some one to sit me down and say this is how its done, but it hasn't happened yet. So we'll just keep taking it day by day and learning as we go. So far all of my lessons have had to do with poo unfortunately. Baby will undoubtedly have explosive diarrhea the one time you forget to pack a change of clothes for yourselves and are out and about, so always pack extras. A smile on the changing table usually means "I'm still pooping, mom." Don't try to change middle of the night diapers in the dark because you can't see the smile that says "mom, I'm still pooping".  I'll be glad when this kid is potty trained!

Eid Adha Mubarak!

I made it through the first two weeks of school! Being in kindergarten again after a year in 2nd grade has been an adjustment but I'm enjoying getting to spend time with little people again. One thing that has struck me about this class is how well behaved trained they are. From what I gather, the classes at this school (it is a kindergarten only school but there are two levels of kindergarten, one for 4 year olds and one for 5 year olds) are kept in the same groups so the whole kg1 class just moves together to the next kg teacher. Whoever had my class last year really had them trained. I can say "clean up" once and they all start singing the clean up song and then go sit quietly on the carpet in a U shape, waiting for whatever is next. Same thing with lining up to come in from recess. They line up and wait to be led back to the classroom, I don't even have to be anywhere near the line, they just go to the right place. I don't want to jinx myself but I hope it continues  throughout the school year.

Although they are for the most part, pretty well behaved, these past few days I've seen a lot of them come out of their shells more and show their personalities. There was one day where they were just off the walls after snack and I thought to myself, "What. The. World!?" Then I remembered that Eid Al Adha is coming. Not that this holiday can be compared with Christmas, but every teacher knows how anxious and sometimes forgetful of their manners and rules students can become in the days leading up to it. So I had a little bit more understanding about their behavior and just reminded myself that if I could make it through a few hectic days I would have a whole week to relax and recuperate.

And what holiday would be complete without some sort of celebration or festivities? To prepare for the festivities our school prepared a little celebration that we had in our indoor play area today. The Arabic staff set up different stations for the kids to visit that had to do with Eid, I did my best to try to understand the significance of everything but since it was all done and taught in Arabic, my understanding is basic to say the least. What I can tell you is that Eid Al-Adha is an Islamic festival that commemorates the sacrifice of Abraham and takes place every year after the pilgrimage to Mecca. It is really interesting to learn about, and I now understand why all of the men on my flight to Jeddah last summer changed into white towels during the flight. If you want to know more about Eid Al-Adha click here

If you want to know how we celebrated at school, I took pictures of our whole day, so enjoy!

children dressed in traditional attire

my co-teacher made each child their own passport for the 'trip'

the principals set up an immigration office for the children to get their passports stamped

photo of the actual site

children reenacting it

this reenactment relates to the story of Hajar and her search for water for her son

during this time many people will sacrifice a sheep or goat

a sheep at school!

     

the end of our trip: the children got to rest and have a drink of water

several parents sent in cupcakes, cake, and chocolates

And that was our day! The kids really enjoyed it and it was nice to see all the staff pull together to make it happen. I learned a lot of things that I hadn't previously gotten in my two years living here, but of course I still have questions and am curious to learn more.

Another thing that I love about my school is that every day the Arabic teachers bring in lunch for everyone. It is usually Emirati foods that I don't know the name of and a really good but strong tea. I love trying the new foods and it's nice to be able to sit down and have tea or a meal with your co-workers to get to know them.

there were little buns and breads in the middle and the small jars around had things to put inside like meat, cheese, or beans

I chose a curried chicken with sweet potatoes and rice, yum!

And now, I will leave you with a funny that one of my teammates sent :)

Year 3 In The UAE

This year marks my 9th year of teaching and my 3rd year living in the UAE. It's hard to believe that I've been here this long. In some ways it feels like I've been here forever and in others it feels like I just arrived yesterday.

This has been a year of change for me, and it all started with a simple prayer that God really show out in my life, to the point where I look back at the end of the year and say, "Wow, You really outdid yourself!".  The year isn't over yet, but already I can say that He's giving me every reason to be able to say those five little words at the end of the year.

So, one of the changes this year has been taking on a new job which in turn led me to a new home in Al Ain, which is about 90 minutes from Abu Dhabi. I can't say that I wanted to move here or that I've ever met anyone who said that they would choose to live here, but by way of work I've been forced to accept it as my new home. And when I found out, I was really not happy about it, although I knew that it was a possibility.

My main concern was that I'd be farther away from my friends and my hubby, and that I would go into labor and he wouldn't be able to get to me in time because he's always on the road for work. Then I learned that my apartment was actually only an hour drive from Dubai, and therefore closer than if I were in Abu Dhabi. Cross that worry off the list! Next, I got my school placement and it was literally 5 minutes from the Oman border and a 45 minute drive each way. Not ideal but I sucked it up and put on my big girl panties and made the best of it because what else was I gonna do? But then, I went down to HR one day for another reason and they told me that I had been transferred to another school. A school that was only 15 minutes from my apartment, and has a nursery, and a few other amenities that I won't get into here. So, inside of a week all of the things I was worried about were worked out and I can only say that it was by the grace of God. Now I can focus on getting ready for baby Graham, who will be here in less than 7 weeks! Where did the time go?!

I'm still adjusting to my new home and the new roles I've taken on. I'm so happy that I at least have the benefit of having been through the international move before and can navigate getting things done without as much of the frustration, and I can try and be of some help to the other new teachers who are new to this experience. Still, it isn't easy starting a new job,  setting up a new home, and getting to know a new city all at the same time and while being pregnant, but I'm managing.

Here are some of my observations about the ways in which Abu Dhabi and Al Ain are different:

1. Abu Dhabi is a major city, Al Ain is a small, sometimes rural, town

the view coming into Abu Dhabi

the view driving into Al Ain

There are so many things to do and see in Abu Dhabi, and one of the major draws for me was that it is on the coast and surrounded by water, which means...beaches! I'm so sad that I'll now have to drive over an hour to get to my favorite beach club. Al Ain is more inland and therefore, there are no beaches nearby but there are some really scenic sand dunes and of course, Jebel Hefeet, that big mountain I visited two years ago when I first arrived, but these things also mean there isn't a whole lot to do because of the location and size of the city. To prove my point, one of the main things people do for fun on the weekends here is to go to the grocery store with the entire family.

2. High rises vs. complexes

my old apartment complex

a complex similar to my new place

Both places are more than suitable to my needs, especially since I'm not footing the bill, but I'll admit I did have to check myself for complaining about first world problems (no pool, balcony, or assigned parking space?) when I first got here. Now that I'm about 85% moved in those things aren't as big of a consideration for me.

3. The people

I don't think I've ever been gawked and stared at so much in my life. Al Ain is a bit more conservative than Abu Dhabi, so you will find that many of the local women will cover their faces in addition to wearing the abaya and sheyla, and there is not as much mixing of men and women in public places. One of the things we were explicitly warned about in training was to not extend our (women's) hand to men in greeting, and to be conservative in our dress. Whereas in Abu Dhabi I could go out in shorts or a short sleeve shirt without a thought and nobody cared about my tattoos, I made the mistake of running into the grocery store wearing shorts and a long shawl and was stared and pointed at by some little boys. Other times I've been out and had my natural hair out in a big puff and gotten some stares. I'm not sure if it's because I don't cover, because I'm black, or because I have tattoos. Maybe it's all three. There doesn't seem to be as much of a presence of expats or different nationalities here, so maybe it's just lack of exposure.

Another thing that has been different is working in a school where all of the students first language is Arabic and working with an Arabic speaking co-teacher. At my old school, the students came from a bunch of different places but most spoke English, and even if I had one student in my class who didn't, there was usually another kid who spoke that language and could help translate. When we had meetings they were given in English, but at my new school meetings, announcements, and everything else are done in both. Working in a place where my first language is everyone else's second has been challenging in a way that I've not previously experienced. It has caused me to think a lot more and I have to work harder to make myself understood, and it's really made me have to rely on another person to help me do my job. None of these are bad things, I know that they will help me to grow as a person and teacher, and I will for sure learn some Arabic, but it is mentally taxing at the end of the day.

One thing that is the same, though, is that the kids are all sweet, and curious, and have already taken up a special place in my heart :)

Here are some pictures of my new classroom:

indoor play area for recess 

      

Second Graders are Cool

I am winding down my 8th year of teaching. I can't actually believe I made it this long, considering for a long time I didn't like kids. Well, not enough to want to be stuck in a room with them for eight hours a day. My, how times have changed. I have to say, taking the leap into teaching has been one of the best decisions I've made in life thus far. Having long summer breaks is cool, but the kids are what do it for me.

For most of my career I taught kindergarten, and then I spent two lovely years in first grade after looping with my final kindergarten class. This year, I wanted a change and a challenge so I decided to try second grade. It was challenging at first, but I've come to love my group of students and this age group in particular. Here's why:

They have opinions and they aren't afraid to express them...



The minds of 7 year olds can be fascinating places. This is the age where they start to develop a sense of self and begin to explore how they want to express themselves, which I think is pretty cool. I told this little guy to write a persuasive piece about anything he felt really strongly about and he chose school lunch. The funny thing is, he is normally such an agreeable little guy, I was not expecting him to take this turn in his writing. I think he got a kick out of my reaction to this piece, so he has since written several persuasive pieces about things he does not like.


They're incredibly thoughtful and funny...



Sometimes we teachers really do bring things on ourselves. Like giving kids punishments that turn out to really be more of a punishment for ourselves. Take for example, my talkative little love bug who can't handle sitting at a table with others. I'm quite sure she'll be in the entertainment business in some form very soon. To keep her from talking to others I place her desk beside mine and she took that as an invitation to talk to me. Nonstop. I needed a break so I told her that we weren't going to talk for the next 20 minutes...so she decided to text me. Gotta love her creativity!


When they love you, they really do love you a lot...

                

And I do mean a lot. I think what I love most about this is that they can actually express their love in written form. I am always getting little love notes from students which is a nice little way to brighten up anyone's day. This love note happened to come from a little girl, she may need a little lesson on the birds and the bees but this is no doubt, a lot of love.

There are, of course, so many more reasons to love my kiddos, but these are just the top three. I've been blessed with a special group this year (thanks, God!) and I've enjoyed my time with them. Sometimes they make me want to bang my head on a table, but that just makes life interesting :)