The kids are officially in the last days of school. They have 45 instructional days remaining and about 10 of those days will be during Ramadan. We're all in a holding pattern to see how those 10 days will shake out. We know we will have "half days", but we don't know if that half day will end at 11 am, noon, or 1 pm. Will the cafeteria even be "open" on campus? Will the classes be shortened each day to squeeze them all in? Or, will be have a Day1A (morning periods), followed by Day1B (afternoon periods)? It's all a big mystery and the topic of much debated discussion at the bus stop each day. "Insha'Allah", as they say.....
But, I digress....
This week was an especially busy one. First, I got to teach... really TEACH in 4th grade. I was the "guest speaker" to help kick-off the new unit about "where we live in space and time". They are talking about the solar system. The 4th grade team lead knew I "could talk about science", so he called me and asked if I would do it. YES!!! Each class has given me about half of their day to work with the kids doing thought experiments and hands on activities.
I've had a great time visiting the various classrooms and leading discussions/doing experiments that help the kids begin to ask the questions about why we have life on our planet but not other planets.... and could life be possible on other planets somewhere "out there" in our universe? I taught twice this past week and have two more classes lined up for next week.
Truly, the only challenge has been finding cornstarch. I've already bought out the local supplier I know and I'm not sure they will be able to get more by Sunday AM. We are making ooblik to help understand the surfaces of the gas planets (specifically, why we cannot land on them with a space ship) and the kids are really enjoying it. Keep your fingers crossed that I don't spend most of today running all over town searching various hypermarkets for cornstarch!
So, maybe this week felt so action-packed because our evenings were just as busy as our days.
Devin had his last season game on Monday and they won! We ended the season second in the league overall. Not bad for a non-profit league that is still in it's infancy...
Then on Tuesday, we had a planetarium show to commemorate the Hubble Telescope's 25th Year. It was a full hour of amazing images.
Wednesday night, we attended the School Musical, "We Are Monsters", put on by the Primary Years kids. Olivia had originally wanted to be in this production, but she missed the auditions because I kept her home from school that day. She did, however, have several classmates in the show so we went to support them.
The show was amazing. It was funny and exciting.... and we had a great time attending. The kids ranged in ages from 7 to 10 years. It always amazes me how much these kids can do at this age. They had memorized all their lines AND all the songs. Plus, they danced, cracked jokes, and pulled off some seriously funny situational comedy. I don't even know most of the kids, and I was so proud of them!
Thursday night had the whole family meeting at the Park Rotana Hotel in Abu Dhabi for Devin's futball banquet. Devin had to wear a collared shirt (which he was not excited about) and us girls got to wear dresses (which we WERE excited about).
The awards ceremony took two full hours. There were awards for league play, participation, most improved, best player (peer voted), best player (coach voted), etc. It was a very long list. Devin was acknowledged 3 times and ended up taking home a medal, a trophy, and two vouchers for a local sports store. All in all, a good night....
Now we all know what happens to kids when they have cash, even "voucher cash", in their pockets. It meant we had a legitimate reason to visit Yas Mall! As it turns out, Devin couldn't find anything he wanted at the sports store, but both Madeline and Olivia did! So, Devin sold his vouchers to Olivia who bought inline skates and Madeline who bought a Ripstick.
I'm really proud of the way the kids have been budgeting. They get a weekly allowance (awarded every other week, actually) and I expect them to buy their own snacks and "extras" with it. Stuff is always coming up at school (dress down days, bake sales, etc.) and they are expected to use their allowance for these incidentals. However, they also have the option of saving their allowance and buying something BIG... like an RC toy (Devin's usual pick) or stuffed animals (Madeline's typical choice) or games (Olivia's current favorite).
This time, the lure of the skates and a Ripstick proved worth the expense and the girls handed over their cash. Devin did not go home empty-handed, though. He ended up at the Virgin Megastore (our new favorite) and found a foam tipped bow and arrow set (Lord, give me patience because you KNOW he's going to ambush his sisters.... It's only a matter of time....) and a small RC hovercraft boat he intends to run in the fountain downstairs.
I picked up a couple of golf shirts from the NikeGolf store, myself. I don't actually play golf, but apparently the clubhouses here have a very strict rule about "golf attire" on their greens and, frankly, I'm tired of looking dumpy in one of Lindsey's oversized shirts!
And, I know what you are thinking...
Yes, Yas Mall has a hypermarket. There's a Geant hypermarket in the basement... and, No, they don't have cornstarch. They have the thickener "corn flour" .... but it's not the same. But I appreciate you looking out for me and thinking about it....
So, we returned home from Yas Mall, the kids immediately took their new treasures out for a spin on the second floor, and I got busy making sangria and stuffed bell peppers. See, we are celebrating Uno de Mayo with a covered-dish affair with members of Lindsey's team.
What's Uno de Mayo?
... It's what you celebrate instead of Cinco de Mayo because the 5th of May is a work day and the 1st of May is not! (Hey, you have to be flexible.) And, seriously, you learn to take what you can get when you live in a country that has NO IDEA what you are talking about most of time.
Uno de Mayo is a perfect example... I'm sure it's very confusing to the locals why a group of non-hispanic Americans get all excited about a holiday that isn't really a holiday at all in a country that is NOT their home country and actually originates as a small victory (that is later a defeat) on Mexican soil between some Mexican locals and the French army. See?
This is the point where I get the blank stares... the questioning looks about my sanity...
I've had more than one non-American expat ask me to explain... and each time I end with the same phrase:
"Basically, it's an excuse to get together, BBQ, and drink margaritas..."
That's when everyone nods their head and suddenly totally understands... and usually wants to come along!
It was a fun evening and we all had a great time, but I don't have any pictures. It's probably safer that way... This isn't the first gathering of this group and the customary Pictionary game is always a highly competitive event. I do believe the unofficial "team captains" were lobbying for members all during dinner, and it still took over 15 minutes to get people settled to sides. It is clear that there are some highly competitive people on this project.... It boiled down to what we will call "Lindsey's team" vs "Sara's team". Most of the boys were on Lindsey's side... most of the girls were on Sara's.
Husbands and wives were not allowed on the same team as they may have some added advantage or be privy to insider information. Certain people were sternly warned about their use of hand gestures, full body mimics, and sounds during drawing. Control of "the timer" became heated at least twice! "Trash talking" was elevated to Olympic levels....
Whew! In the end, I believe the game ended in a tie... although I'm sure "Lindsey's team" would undoubtably claim they won "first". Plus, they are STILL arguing that we are at least one point down over the FOX drawing. Rubbish!!
Best drawing/guess of the night had to be the drawing of "grid lock"... which was actually guessed in time!!! I'm still amazed at that one.
So, here I sit on the morning after... nursing a good cuppa tea while the kids slowly awake. Lindsey was off at 6 AM for 18 holes with a co-worker on their ONE day off a week. (Crazy men!) I'm still sporing PJs but my thoughts are definitely headed out of the flat.... on the hunt for cornstarch...
... maybe LuLu's at Mushrif Mall? I can pick up cool whip while I'm there.... (the only place in Abu Dhabi I've found cool whip so far....)
Perhaps, Al Whada Mall? We can get Devin's haircut at the same time....
Dalma Mall? I haven't been there in ages....
.... Someone said the LuLu's by the gold souk always has lots of expat favorites....
Ug. I guess I better get dressed. It looks like it's going to be a very busy day....
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