We hosted our first party of the year (well I count it as a new year, since we are officially in the second year of our contract) this past weekend. Had some newbies over to mingle with some of our good friends. It was fun, but whew! I forgot how much work hosting a simple bbq could be!
There are so many new faces here and many more coming. It's hard to keep up with the changes as an expat, but one thing is for sure, there is never a dull moment here!
I have to say though, I am so impressed with what she's learned in a short amount of time. She's already learning her Arabic Alphabet. This weekend we went to the mall and she looked at a sign and said, "Look daddy. A." I was so happy!
Her teachers also sent home some of the work that she had been doing this weekend for us to see. When we ask her what she did, we get:
"Colored."
"What did you color?"
"A basket."
"Were you learning the letter B?"
"Um, I think so."
"What was in the basket?
"Nothing."
"So why did you color it?"
"Because the teacher gave it to me."
This is the standard conversation about school. I now understand my parents' frustrations! But regardless we were able to say the basket was for the letter "B" and for the sight words "in" and "out" which she showed me on the worksheet!
She is starting to color within the lines and is learning to trace circles and other shapes. She is getting better and better at cutting, but most importantly, she is socializing more and more. Many of the kids in her Pre-K class are also in the college nursery so she spends the afternoon with the same kids while I'm teaching. It's good for her and good for me. I'm meeting more and more parents and slowly feeling more and more normal with life here and with Abby's schooling.
We work in the yard, play in the pool, have picnics and outings with friends and just enjoy the unique opportunities we have here. I still have to say I do enjoy the time that my family gets to spend with one another! It's something we missed in the US, with me working full time, Chuck traveling most of the time and Abby in daycare, the time we spend and the closeness of our family has increased so dramatically over the past year. Not to say there aren't challenges - when we aren't used to each other, there have been some ups and downs adjusting, but all in all it's been the best part of this whole adventure!