so much for bloggin daily....(lol)
Things are pretty crazy around here. The weather leaves us with the daily "are we having school or not" drama. WOrking so much is making it difficult to have the kinds of meals I want for myself, but still healthy/organic with some raw at each meal is always the case.

I am lifting weight 2x a week which is really fun again! I am surprised at how strong I feel from all these years of yoga. My trainer even keeps telling me how strong I am. This is a true testament to the practice-love that!

CB had wine with dinner last night ( we had hummus and veggie wraps) I was able to say "no thank you" . ;) I didnt get up for yoga/meditation as I thought we were having a snow day, but at 6:51 it looks like we won't be having that....so off to wake the monkeys!!

Brushing of the keyboard..

Its been quite a while since Ive blogged. My life is so different ehre than in the Middle East and I havent even wrapped my head around it yet. so, Im gonna start and see who is still there.

As most who know me know, I come from a family of alcoholics. Not something people like to talk about, but something I have always talked about in the spirit of openess and awareness. I myself have gone through period where I drank nothing for a while, then very little, and sometimes a glass of wine each evening. Lately I am having a glass of wine each evening. I enjoy it. Still, I like the idea of spiritual discipline and also giving my body a break. So...Im going to go on a little cleanse here and do 2 things-no clcohol for 2 weeks and bloggin daily. habits are tough to break and even 1 glass of wine can be a habit-so I can't imagine it will be easy. We'll see......

Kids are thriving by the way. Pictures soon xo

SPring Break in ABu Dhabi

Layne's Mama#2

Well, so far I haven't fulfilled my commitment to blog more. Im kinda addicted to FB with my new Iphone so I'm going to wean myself off that! The kids have been on spring break for 2 weeks and its been heaven. They both have really been able to decompress a bit. Their school is an awesome school, but neither of them LOVE school. I think the homeschooling option made it difficult. I assure them both that they are older and if we are able to homeschool again, they'd be putting in much more time.

We were really lucky that we got to accompany Chris on a business trip to the Middle East! I have wanted to visit my friend Debi in AbuDhabi for a while. I couldn't imagine we'd every spend the money to go back to Bahrain, but this opportunity was too good to pass up. We stayed with our dear friends the Axtells. We miss the slow pace of our life there and the relaxed attitude of the Axtells! We got to spend time with friends and visit our our complex. Berlin is doing well, but was a bit sad to see us go again. She is retiring in December and I told her for me, that's great because I'm ready to visit Sri Lanka! 3 days was enough, and my overall impression after going back was it was dirty, and the Saudi influence was strong. Abayas, the villages, the sense of separation of the haves and have nots-it can weigh heavily. Seeing my friends again-priceless.

Abu Dhabi was amazing. We loved it here. Cleaner, and more expats it seemed, the energy was not as heavy. Lots of opportunity for fun in the sun-water parks, swimming, beach etc. My favorite part was 4 wheeling in the desert and the desert camp for dinner. The kids took the obligatory camel ride ( which is old hat for them) and sandboarded down the dunes. The desert is really pretty there-gorgeous rolling dunes. Very different from the flat rocky desert in Bahrain. Seeing the Douglas family again was really great. The boys jumped right into their friendship again and Layne was soon calling Debi Mommy#2 just like before. Debi is an amazing mom to 2 active twins and has a great insight into parenting. I learn a lot from her and just enjoy the comfortable nature of our friendship. LOVE YA DEBI!

Our return to Germany has been smooth. Its spring and gorgeous in Deutschland. Flowers blooming everywhere, cherry blossoms blooming, birds singing. It amazing what a little sunshine can do for you! I have lightened up the calendar and am trying to keep a lot of weekends open for just "being". After school activities have been reduced so the kids can just play, climb trees, be outside. Luke is still playing the trumpet, enjoys boyscouts, and is starting basketball on Friday ( he has decided this is his favorite sport!) Layne is singing in the choir and enjoys Daisy Scouts.

I am committing to post a minimum of once a week....here we go!

March Madness

Everyone is Okay!!! We have had a rough, rough winter but a quick trip to Barcelona where Chris booked us at a lovely spa for 3 days really helped. Layne and I couldnnt shake bad colds, so spending 3 days in big, fluffy, white bathrobes really was what we needed!!!! Jacuzzi, swimming, facials, massages...just what we needed. We are always super busy-Scouts, band, Choir, football, birthday parties, lacrosse-never ends! We are heading to the Middle East at the end of March in search of more sun and rest--cant wait to see my ladies!! Hoping that APril will slow down a bit for us (I'm working on that!) Here are some pics of March!

Barcelona

Pasta and Paella

Webelos Pack 13

Luke, Hunter and Christopher at Luke's 10th!
Luke is 10!!!

OR>>>>

...maybe I just need to back off and let go?????????

Square Pegs in Round Holes??

So....I just got my children's progress report from school. They actually are great, but its the little things that concern me.

Layne- academically doing great. She doesnt really like going to school though. She is extremely creative and expressive and loves to do this through drawing and writing stories. Her teacher, who I like, has been pushing her to write her stories down instead of drawing first. Layne says that she has a picture in her head and wants to get it on paper before the words. She then is scolded for "not following directions". As a Montessorian, I am feeling her frustration. Why should she not be allowed to continue with her work as long as she completes it?? She can even bring it home. This leaves her frustrated and irritable. She also is in a very small class and while I think socially she is struggling with a few of these children, intellectually she is not with her peers either. She's not interested in Hannah Montana and the things that these other FIRST GRADERS are interested in...she prefers the boys because they are funner! Where that leaves her is roughed up a bit by some rambunctious little guys and in tears from that. She's in a tough position--highly intelligent but not up to speed with pop culture enough to really hang with the other girls ( and there ar only 4)

Luke- is also doing great academically. He got perfect grades in most subjects. For his self esteem I think he needs some kudos for this (no praise, god forbid). He's not always interested in what is going on at school, but he does his work-on time and as directed. He got a lot of comments from his teacher that he could and should "do more". I can only feel that he would if he were interested in the material. He is in Scouts and is just thriving there...exploring his interests, setting goals, earning badges. WHy the need to push push push?? Its stressing him out!

Those are my thoughts. I very much miss homeschooling and meeting their academic needs while also giving them plenty of time to explore their interests. Luke likes nothing better than a sick day when he can build Legos and listen to Jim Wiess "Story of the World" on CD ( HISTORY) . He will sit for hours!!! Layne will hang out in our Montessori room and also "work" for hours. Now, they are gone all day, tired, stressed and in return what do I hear--"They are doing great but need to do more....Layne needs to follow directions....Layne gets easily frustrated."

Let me tell ya, mama is getting pretty damn frustrated herself!

Random Thoughts on a SNOWY evening

Yesterday we had a snow day...it was unexpected so exciting for the kids. The German schools were open, but because so many children live so far out and our school radius is about 60 miles, I feel the decision was appropriate. Surprisingly, my children are OVER the cold snow and ice and spent most of the day inside...Luke designing and building a new Lego ship and Layne reading, baking and just "being". The cats enjoyed the extra snuggles and we all took Angel on a short walk down to the market for some TP ( why do we always run out of tp when it is snowing??) Anyway, overall a good day. What I found interesting was all the people complaining on FB about how this messed up their schedules! For me, a lazy day at home is always welcome. Everything can wait...be present in THIS moment. We didnt need to get together with anyone, we didnt need entertainment. We talked about this and I just said to Luke and Layne I felt that US just being together is the most important thing...we have always had that motto. Its really about the 4 of us, wherever we are, that is the most important consideration. I like that.