Flights and Fights!

Well, here we are, T-minus 12 hours until we leave! I am all ready, about 95% there. Just charging electronics, getting the toiletries together and thinking that I must be missing something! I always over-pack! I start out with good intentions, but things just keep hopping into the suitcases. Although I think we may be very close to perfection for this trip. Only two suitcases to check and our backpacks as carry-ons. Yes, you heard me right, Lydia really is packing and checking suitcases. I usually just send two medium boxes with all our stuff and we go bag-free, but I just didn't get my act together soon enough this time and we would have been waiting for clothes on the other end. That and Spencer is traveling with me to the States. Again, not usual. I'm always doing this alone. Entering the U.S. is usually more of a pain than exiting. You have to collect your suitcases, recheck them, etc. and I don't like to deal with that when I have 4 kids in tow! But with two adults, some things are just easier.

Eliza and Mairyn are pretty self-sufficient on the plane. As long as they have paper and pencil, they can be entertained for hours. Grant, well, since we traveled last year, he has finally taken an interest in watching movies. I don't think he'll be the crazy man that he has been in trips past.

Now, Jacqueline is an entity herself. As long as we can read One Fish, Two Fish nonstop for 30 hours, we'll be fine! We found a teeny sized version that is perfect for her to hold, so she may be independently entertained for 10 minutes or so!! Alright, that's all folks! We'll see you on the flip side!

Grant's Birthday!!

Can you believe it? Grant turned 4 on Sunday!!! He wanted a Spiderman cake and I did my best to fulfill his birthday wish! He is such a big kid now. He talks and everything!!

Grant's First School Picture

This is Grant's class at the Irish Nursery. Ms. Brenda, his teacher, is the blonde on the right and the 2 aides, well, I'm not sure of their names. They are rotated in and out regularly and I haven't learned the name of this batch! You have to click on the picture to see it really well. He goes 3 times a week, Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. In the fall, he will move up to the Primary classes and be going every day. The little boy on his left our right is called Tamine. The blonde girl at his feet is Alexia and the little boy beside her is Gabrial. Those are the only kids that I remember their names because they're Grant homies; he plays with them mostly!

Trip toAlamein

One of the great sunsets

Eliza and Mairyn in front of their lumpy "creation" that kept getting attacked by the waves. Hence, the "lumpiness" of it.

Jacqueline and Grant conked out on the beach


Visiting the cemetery at Alamein

We went to El-Alamein this last week May 21-25. It was beautiful weather. Perfect!! Swimming, beach play and sunset walks along the shore were the schedule for 4 glorious days. It was just so hard to choose which pictures to post. We had so many good ones. We'll be bringing home a thumb drive full of digital photos this summer to make into hard copies to distribute. Yeah, this summer starts in just 2 1/2 weeks. June 12th we'll be on American soil once more!!!

The Sandstorm

The Sandstorm blowing in
The tree that was blown down around the corner

Our little bedouin baby! I wrapped her up so that the sand wouldn't get in her eyes!

The other tree blocking a street I tried to drive down.

The Girls dressed up for Book Week. Eliza is Ancient Greece themed and Mairyn is Sleeping Beauty.

The Whole Family at the pool

Jacqui in pigtails!

Grant being Grant

Happy May Day!!

The gorgeous red flower trees that are blooming.

I can't believe it is May! Where did the last 4 months of 2008 go? It has been BEAUTIFUL the last week or so. Perfect weather, between 72 and 75 degrees, not like the 105 degrees we had the week before. Even a nice breeze when it go a little warm in the sun. We really couldn't ask for better! The girls have had a week long holiday, so they've just been knocking around town. Spencer had 2 days off this week. On Monday, April 28th he took the kids to City Stars and saw Horton Hears A Who. He said they were enthralled! Today, we went to Carrefour and ate at the new Chili's there. Great atmosphere! And then took the kids to the Magic Galaxy there. It's an arcade place with rides for kids and other games and a huge indoor soft playhouse. Like McDonald's on steroids. There are hanging punching bags and a rotating tunnel. You get 30 minutes of playtime for 8 L.E. (about $1.50) per kid. Then we played Skee-Ball, Whack-a-Shark, Moving Basketball Hoop, etc. And you can win tickets with each game. We totalled 81 tickets and redeemed about half and each kid got a Spiderman mask. None was more thrilled than Grant. He is a big Spiderman fiend. I made him a t-shirt with a you-know-who symbol on it just so he would quit drawing spiders on his chest with markers. Jacqui loved the mask and promptly ran into the wall. Think Boo from Monster's Inc.! ;) Anyway, that was our wonderful May Day!!