We went on a road trip in the beginning of December through Arabia. It was very interesting. Our stops included Abu Dhabi, UAE; Muscat, Oman; Dubai, UAE; Doha, Qatar; and driving in The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It was a LONG trip! We had a great time and were so glad we purchased used Zune MP3 players for our children. The Zunes came through for us throughout the whole trip, especially at border crossings while we waited to get approval to go on to our next desitination. The poor men at the border crossings were always confused, if they looked closely at our passports, about the make-up of our family. I am sure they thought, where are these boys from and how did they get into this family? All border guards and personnel were very accomodating and kind, except in Kuwait. After living in Kuwait for over a year now I am comfortable with how they treat me. I was shocked by the kindness and accomodation of the Saudi Arabians, Qataris and Emiraties.

Oman is our absolute FAVORITE place to visit in all of Arabia. It is quaint, uniquely it's own, clean, filled with mountains, and very kind people. In fact we have told all living in Kuwait and around the world to visit Oman if ever they find themselves in Arabia.

Kelly has had some time off from work lately and we have been enjoying the cool weather in Kuwait. The other day the whole family went up to the viewing floor of the Kuwait towers. We are now beginning to check things to do in Kuwait of our list. The kids were able to ride camels at a U.S. army base that we have access to. Now we can also check that off our list ; )

In other BIG news we have gotten our orders for our next post. In late summer of 2011 we will moving to Bamako, Mali. We are so thirlled, as living in Africa is truly a dream. I am already in contact several people in Bamako to learn what to bring and what is readily available. I am excited already with the prospect of seeing Timbuktu which is in northern Mali. Our last six months in Kuwait will be filled with continuing to check "must do" items off our list and preparing to visit our homeland, the U.S. of A : )

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you all~~~~~~~~

We were enjoying our morning coffee and conversation, when Francisca said " Come, Ma'am. They are slaughtering a sheep outside for Eid!" We all filtered outside and found this, near where we park our cars. If you have a weak stomach this is not a post for you ; ) Happy Eid Mubarek to all and enjoy you animals slaughtered Halal style or per Islamic laws. The kids were fascinated. If you wonder if they are getting a good education, they are!!! They know more about many things at this age then most Americans, including the correct way to slaughter a sheep and a goat : )

Back in September I had the opportunity to travel back to Michigan to visit my brand new neice. It was such a treat! During that trip I was able to bring home the newest member of our family, meet Duncan : )

Duncan is a Cairn Terrier(orginally a Scottish breed) that was born and breed in my home state of Michigan. He is my baby and my buddy! I was in love with him immediately and so were the kids. They have been beggin me for a dog for the longest time. Kelly and I both wanted to wait until our oldest two could be trusted with taking the dog outside, feeding it and walking it. They have done excellent with Duncan! They love him so much and I am so glad we brought him into our home. He is such a fun addition to our family. He plays so well with the kids and RARELY nips at them, usually only if there is very high pitched running and screaming. He is learning to sit, fetch and wrestle with out bearing his teeth. He is truly my constant companion and sits with me while I knit, blog, surf the internet and watch TV. Kelly also has his time with "Dunky Do" in the evening when he holds him on his lap.

I am amazed at the Cairn Terrier's tolerance and enjoyment of youn g children. He is a sturdy little man and can hold his own, but he won't get above 20 pounds. He flew over in a soft carrier under the seat in frontof mine and he did great! He has been a trooper getting used to the warmer Kuwait weather. The bane of his exsistence has become all the feral cats that live on our block. He has a bog house to run in and the kids love to run with Duncan : )

If you have any questions about shipping a pet in the cargo hold I am not sure how to do this, because he flew with me. Thank you to Emberwillows Cairn Terriers in Caledonia, MI for trusting us with Duncan! We love our Duncan!!!!!!!

Wow, what a night!!! I was blessed with an invitation from my neighbor to her nephew's wedding. Weddings are very different than a standard American wedding here in Kuwait. I knew this would be all female, I knew the Abayas would be off and I was told from another Kuwaiti to understand that this is the women's chance to dress up and party. My friend told me the best way to describe the wedding scene is "if you got it flaunt it". I tried to do just that, but I was still alittle to monochromatic!

When I arrived at the basement of a large hotel here in Kuwait, my neighbor and her daughter immediately uncovered and entered a large ballroom. We were greeted by the female family members of both the bride and the groom. My neighbors family was so genersous and kind to me. making sure I had tea, chocolates, juice, and sharing with me who all the highlighted guests were. Let me describe the scene as best I can.

The ballroom is longer than it is wide. Upon entering on both the left and right sides are rows of theatre style seating facing a long strip of floor in the middle (it looked similar to a modeling runway). For the first hour or so we awaited the bride's entrance. During this time the DJ is literally blasting many popular Arabic love songs. Women are greeting one another and dancing. At the opposite end of the door to the ballroom is a large lavishly decorated stage and a huge sofa. For this young women she choose oodles of pink, flowers, pillows, beads and large curtains draped in the background.

The dancing is difficult to describe, but here goes. After hours of watching the dynamic on the dance floor I did end up taking a twirl. The dancing takes place in front of the "crowd" in the theatre seating to watch the action. The women dance around thrusting their pelvis and holding their arms elevated openly in front of them. Is that as clear as mud? TI have found some good videos on youtube, but I can't link to them for some reason. At one point the ladies that were dancing put on belly dancing wraps around their hips and they were also belly dancing. It was so fascinating to see and observe. You could tell certain women liked other women and snubbed others while dancing past them. I imagine I missed many social cues as this is not my culture, but I think I picked up on quite a bit of the body language.

Kuwaiti women also really like to have very extreme eyes for formal occasions. Here is an image of an example of the popular eye make up style here in Kuwait. About one hour into the party the bride appears and the excited yelling hits a crescendo. She is photographed with her family and her friends while watching the action on the dance florr from the comfort of her sofa. After an hour of watching the bride all the sudden the tone of the room changed. I noticed all the women pull out their black Abayas and Hijabs(head scarf). I knew instantly the men are coming. Sure enough once all women were safely covered the men arrived. I covered myself with my pashmina I had, not my hair but my chest and shoulders. My neighbor and her sisters all looked at me and said "Good girl!"

The groom arrives with his brothers and cousins. They come in to applause and the women throwing money over their heads. The groom and his brothers come on the stage greet all the important females and stay for about one song. The groom stays in the room of all women well after his brothers have left. He and his bride smile over and over again with every female that wants a photo with the happy couple. You could see their smile muscles were hurting toward the end of the photo session. After the photos the bride dances on the floor alone in front of her husband and then she goes back to his side on stage. Lastly the couple exits the ballroom together to the screams of the many excited women.

The last part of the evening is a huge meal served for all attendees at about 12:00 midnight. I enjoyed many of the Arabic and Lebanese foods offered. The desert table was overwhelming, so many choices!!! I was honored to get a peek into this private world. It was one of the best experiences I have had in Kuwait so far.

Hello, do you remember me? I am so sorry for my absence in the blogosphere. I will be very honest in this post. This summer that is just ending was the LONGEST of my life!

Do you remember when you were in grade school and you couldn't wait for the school year to end and summer vacation to begin. I loved my summers as a child. We spent from Memorial day to Labor day "up north" at my grandparents cottage on lake Huron. I dreamed of those long lazy summer days and prayed that the summer would never end. In Michigan summers are very short and Labor day weekend seems to arrive so quickly.

In Kuwait summer is the exact opposite. I knew it would be HOT and long, but it seemed to never end. This summer all five of our children were home with me trapped in a big house, with no green space and temperatures commonly exceeding 120 degrees. I couldn't blog because I had no free time. I have learned over my eight years of parenting five children that if you don't engage your children while shut up in the house, they can plot to vote you out of leadership and try to take over the house.

I worked hard this summer, playing, swimming, making crafts, joking, wrestling, reading, playing Wii, and most importantly breaking up fights. Summer in Kuwait is so different then winter in Michigan. I thought I would be prepared because my whole life I have been shut up inside for our long, cold winters. Let me tell you, I was not prepared. During the winter months you are able to add layers of clothing and get outside to play in the snow. In the desert, there is no option for being outside in such deadly hot conditions. Imagine having nine (myself, the kids, my in-laws and our housekeeper)people in your home for months with little outside time. I am so glad that my ONE full summer in Kuwait is over. I survived and so did the kids!!! It was truly an exercise in patience and endurance. I never want to do that again!!!!!

I have included some of my favorite photos from our Kuwaiti summer. We visited the Sea of Galilee, felt the grass on our toesin Israel, enjoyed the Mediterranean in Cyprus, learned at the Kuwait Scientific Center, enjoyed our new used clothes from the Friday market in Kuwait, and went to the Heritage Souk downtown often to see all the Kuwaiti men socializing. I will try to post more frequently and give you glimpses into our everyday life. I can now say I lived through a Kuwaiti summer! As the weather "cools" in Kuwait, we look forward to many adventures to come. Blessings to you~

Hello to all! I am sorry I am posting so infrequently. It has been a busy summer in Kuwait. I have all five kids home and we are trapped inside most days because it is so HOT! I will begin posting more frequently after school begins again. If the choice is to blog or play with my kids, the kids will always win. I have learned it is better to engage them and be a playful parent. If I spent time blogging more often, fighting would most certainly ensue. Thank you for being patient with me! I have not stopped blogging : )


Now, back to Israel. This day in Israel was my BEST day. We were blessed to drive to see the the Sea of Galilee, the Jordan River and the City of Nazareth. We had a picnic in a park near Galilee and had some time to stop for a photo with the sea in the background. It was absolutely beautiful! I could have spent a long time near Galilee. It reminded me of many of the beautiful inland lakes I grew up near in Michigan. The sea was full of boaters, jet skis, people swimming and many resorts alone the shoreline. Our picnic in the park was a much needed break from the car after a long drive.

When we were down at the Sea of Galilee we went on to Yardenit a baptismal site on the Jordan River. Our three oldest, Grace, Faith and Luke asked Jesus to be Lord of there lives between four and five years old. Since that time the oldest, Grace has asked consistently to be baptized. Over time and as the her younger siblings came to belief in Christ, they would ask us to be baptized as well. We had decided if we were posted in Kuwait that we would try to get to Israel and the Jordan River to baptize our oldest three.

On this morning, it was very hot and humid. This baptismal site is very popular with many Christan pilgrims. The parking lot was full of tour buses and many people were getting ready to be baptized. We paid a fee and the "Big Three" and daddy got dressed in white baptismal robes. Kelly had wanted to baptize them all, which absolutely thrilled my heart!!! Once all were appropriately dressed we headed for photos and the river.

I loved taking photos of this time in the river. The birds were singing and many people were watching our family. You cannot tell from these photos, but we had drawn a large crowd. Grandma and Granddad Briden, Timmy and Hope were watching from the background as well. I would be lying if I said I could see all the photos I was taking. I was very misty eyed as all this occurred, so I was glad the photos turned out as well as they did.

One, two, three in they all went with Daddy's help. They were making a public profession of their faith in Christ. This makes my heart swell with joy! I think the photos of them after show a little bit of each their personalities. Grace is peaceful and calm (Most of the time), Faith is full of life and excitement, Luke is a happy guy, full of a great sense of timing and humor. I am so proud of the fact that Kelly baptized them and that they have such a knowledge and love for Christ. God is so good and I thank him for this time on the Jordan. It gave me chills, while the water lapped my toes, to picture Jesus being baptized in the Jordan by John the Baptist. The river was very clear and full of fish. It was an amazing setting and I could feel God's presence as my oldest children walked in obedience to Christ and followed him in baptism.

After our time at the Jordan river, we drove up to Nazareth. Nazareth was the town Jesus grew up in. It was neat after all these years of studying the bible to see these places. Nazareth was up in the hills. It was actually more beautiful up there that I expected. We ate at a mall food court. The kids were all tired of being in the car for most of the day. We were able to eat, burn some energy and talk about the day. After dinner we prepared for the drive back to Jerusalem. The drive was so green and full of farm fields. I have missed green while living in Kuwait. After a long day we made it back to our apartment in Jerusalem. Thanks be to God for this great day!!! I will always remember this time in our lives. I remember clearly what my brother, Rick, said when I shared with him our first post would be Kuwait. Rick said "Wow, you will get to see the Holy Land! That will be amazing!" I have focused on that often as we have lived in Kuwait. It is hot here and there aren't many yards for my children to run in, but I have lived a dream. I have seen the Holy land!!!!!!! Thanks be to God for making this dream come true and for blessing us with safety. I will post some pictures of our second week of vacation soon. We spent that time relaxing (mostly) in Cyprus. God Bless you and I will be back soon~