Blue or Pink, what do you think????

Week 17

December 15, 2014

Since I learned I was pregnant I have felt like baby Klump is a girl. I’m wearing a pink shirt in this picture (taken before the doctor’s appointment) because I am thinking pink! I really don’t know why. I have never had a dream about it, like most do. I think I am just afraid to have a boy. I have many nephews and they are definitely movers! Girls seem a little less crazy, except for my niece Emily. She never stopped moving when she was young! I also think I want to be like three of my older sisters. They all had a girl first. And now, my sister in law Marcie just had a little girl, so I have been hoping that little Addie won’t be alone with all the Klump boys. So, blue or pink, what do you think???? Keep reading to find out.

This last week has been a mix of feeling good and feeling not so good. Generally, I am not sick. However, mornings are pretty rough again. I wake up really hungry and when I wait too long to eat, I get really nauseated and feel like I am going to get sick. Then, breakfast takes forever to finish. I have found that I need to eat at least every 3 hours and now I need to eat a little more than I used to eat. Meals and snacks are becoming a little bigger, just in time for Christmas! My belly continues to grow and every night it feels like it doubled in size from the morning. I can’t wait to get to America and eat Jet’s pizza, bacon, sausage and home cooked food!!!

Here I am at 17 weeks:

Today we went to the doctors. I have been patiently (or impatiently) waiting for this appointment for five weeks! I love to be planned, prepared and organized. I always knew that I would want to know the sex of the baby ASAP! So today was really exciting for both us. We had boy and girl names picked out, well, narrowed down to a few favorites. Now we know that Baby Klump is a…

 Girl! I knew it! Travis had to run to the grocery store tonight and found this balloon. :)

Other than baby news, we have had a lot of holiday celebrations this week. Last Wednesday I had my book club Christmas dinner and book exchange. It was held at the high school principal’s home on the British Embassy. We sat outside talking, eating and exchanging Kindle books. It was such a great night! Then Thursday Travis and I went to our friend Marcelle’s house with Tracy, Ian, Allison and Derrick for a delicious Christmas dinner there. I ate so much, my stomach hurt. Friday was our staff winter party back at the British Embassy. It was amazing food, great entertainment (teachers dancing) and perfect company. Saturday was another party filled with some amazing food at our friend Josiane’s home. We played games, ate and had a gift exchange. Finally, Sunday I went to our friends’ Liz and Jon’s house for some Christmas caroling. It was a really great night. I just love this time of year and can’t wait to make more memories in Michigan.

Maher, Marcelle, Tracy, Ian, Travis, Christy, Derrick and Allison

Staff Winter Party

Tracy and I ready to go to the staff party!

Mama and Baby this week:

• Mama has a bigger belly and it makes getting comfy at night a little more difficult now.
• Mama craves fruit, cheese bread, cupcakes, hot chocolate and cheeseburgers (thanks Laurie!).
• Mama gets needs to start exercising again! She gets out of breath way too often!
• Baby is a girl!
• Baby is slightly more than 5 inches and is the size of a pomegranate.
• Baby’s cartilage is hardening into bones now.
• Baby is practicing sucking and swallowing.
• Baby girl has a ovaries full of eggs already.

16 Week Update

It’s been a while since my last update. I’ve been trying so hard to do one each week, but by the time I went to write the week 15 update, it was closer to week 16. I decided to just combine them. A lot has happened over the last two weeks. We have been really busy with fun stuff and work stuff. Here is a little recap of that time.

First, I am feeling really good lately. I eat more and sleep a little less. My belly is growing and my pants were not fitting. Luckily, Krystle has let me borrow lots of clothes! It was so much fun trying it all on last weekend. The jeans are my favorite! I feel like I will never want to wear regular jeans again!

Today Travis and I were supposed to head to the doctors and hopefully find out the sex of baby Klump. However, Travis was unable to come with me. Luckily the doctor allowed us to reschedule to next Monday. I will be further along, which makes it a better chance of seeing boy or girl parts! And of course, Travis will be with me. I really wanted him to come to all the appointments. I am really happy it all worked out. Stay tuned to next week’s update to find out if baby will be wearing pink or blue!

Here I am at 16 weeks:

On to life in Riyadh…Thanksgiving this year also happened to be UN Day at school. It was a great combination of one of my favorite American holidays and my favorite international day. I went to school all dressed in my American clothes and colors and enjoyed seeing some of my students dressed up in their home country traditional clothing. The big celebration was planned to be outside. But, just as school was starting, the sky was darkening. Before we knew it, the desert looked more like a rain forest! It was pouring rain and the pavement started to flood quickly. It was only one hour until the celebration was supposed to begin. It didn’t look like it was going to happen. However, the rain stopped fairly quickly and the amazing workers cleaned up the water, put out new rugs and had it ready for the school almost on time. It was amazing! We heard speakers, watched dancers and sang Wave Your Flag! My eyes filled with tears many times. I always cry when I see so many different cultures in one place. It’s one of my favorite things about living and working abroad. You learn so much and see such pride. It was an amazing morning!

That evening we celebrated Thanksgiving with some friends. The food and company were perfect. It’s hard being away from family during the holidays. Luckily, when you teach abroad, everyone is away from family so we celebrate with our new ‘framily’ (friends that are your family abroad). We had a bird, stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, salad and pumpkin cookies for dessert. When the night was over, my belly and heart were full. It was a perfect evening.

The celebrating didn’t stop there though. Saturday was the Turkey Trot and AIS-R Thanksgiving celebration. Travis and I woke up early to head over to the race area on the compound. The social committee planned, organized and set up the route for us. You could choose a 2.5K, 5K or 10K. When I signed up I thought I could do the 5K since I have been running for a few years now. However, between working a lot, sleeping a lot and feeling sick a lot, I haven’t run in a LONG time. I was still hopeful that I could jog and walk the 5K. After the half way mark, you could stop or keep going. I decided the 2.5K was enough for me. I jogged almost the whole thing, so I was happy. Shortly after I finished, Travis finished his 5K. It was a fun morning. 

Later in the evening we had a big celebration with a lot of teachers on our compound. The school provided the turkey and stuffing and everyone brought a dish to share. It was honestly some of the best food I have ever eaten! It was such a good time.

Then things got REALLY busy at work. I may or may not have had a few break downs… This time of year is always crazy, but being at a new school makes it even crazier. We are trying to finish up many assessments, grades and report cards. I was really overwhelmed at first and didn’t think I could possibly get it all done. Once I calmed down, I prioritized and planned out how I was going to get it all finished on time. I am impressed with how much work I have done and I am no longer stressed. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel!!! Ten more days and we will be in Michigan!

In other fun news, it was also Krystle’s birthday last week. We decided to do a little mini celebration on the actual day, December 3. Travis and our friends the Jeffersons always bowl on Wednesdays and we all wanted to help Krystle have some fun that day. So we all went up to the bowling alley (on our compound). Krystle and I did a little bowling. We ate some food and then went to Tracy and Ian’s house to eat some cake. It was a fun night. Then Friday night we went to the Winter’s house for some more celebrating.

That’s it for us. A new update will be coming next week…ballet shoes or soccer cleats????

Mama and Baby this week:

• Mama has a bit of a belly and maternity pants make her happy!
• Mama is feeling SO MUCH better now! Certain foods are exciting to eat again and I feel like I have more energy.
• Mama craves fruit, juices, cheese bread and salad.
• Mama gets headaches and dizzy sometimes.
• Baby is nearly 5 inches and is the size of an avocado.
• Baby hears external voices. I should really sing more often now!
• Baby sleeps and dreams.
• Baby knows how to breathe.

Week 14 & life in Riyadh

Week 14

November 24, 2014

It’s officially the second trimester! Can I get a woot, woot!?!?! I am still not feeling great everyday, but there are many more good days than bad now. Everything I have read says that this is the trimester that is the best. Supposedly I get more energy, nausea continues to retreat and my belly won’t get that big yet. Sounds great to me!

Here is what’s happening this week…My pants don’t fit, nope, not at all. I cannot zip them all the way up. I rely on hair ties and belly bands. Luckily, I do have some work pants that I bought this summer that are bigger, so those fit. I am looking forward to getting some maternity pants and jeans over the Christmas vacation so I can really be comfy and can look a little better.

Some days I definitely have more energy than others. This weekend was busy and I was able to stay up past 10:00! That is a first since September. However, last night I was in bed by 8:15. These last few months have really worn me out. I have never been so exhausted in my life. I know most of it has to do with growing a baby, but I have also not worked this hard in my life! This school year has been a lot more difficult than past years. So, needless to say, I am looking forward to Christmas Vacation!!! Luckily, I don’t have to wait long. Three weeks from Wednesday we will be on a plane headed to snowy Detroit! Hopefully it will be just a little snowy. I don’t want to jinx it like I did last year. 

In other news, our home is starting to feel much more like MY home now! This past weekend Travis and I did some shopping and decorating. We went to IKEA Thursday night, which is always a treat! I will NEVER, absolutely NEVER go there on a Thursday night again. First, it took us an hour and a half to get there! This was because we missed one turn and then it takes FOREVER to be able to turn around and get to where you meant to go, there was a ton of traffic, we missed the exit and had to go to the next one and then there was a grand opening at a store near by so there were cars everywhere. Then, once we got inside it was a zoo! I have never seen more people in one store. You could barely walk. It was so frustrating. When it was all said and done, round trip was a 4-hour adventure. We managed to get a new coffee table, end table and TV stand though. I guess it was worth it. Then Friday night we went to the Clock Tower Market. Another teacher and her husband took us. It was a great trip. It reminded us of markets in Asia, but nicer and more expensive. We bought a dining room table cloth, pillow covers and I got a new Pashmina. It was great! Travis and our neighbor Ian then put together our tables from IKEA that night. The next day we decorated for Christmas. I love being home now. It is so cozy and comfortable. It took a while to get there, but it feels good!

We also had the International Festival at school this weekend. This was similar to the International Food Festival we use to have at SCIS, which was my favorite day of the year! This festival had less food from different countries, but did have some shopping. It also had some great entertainment. It was a lot of fun.

That’s all from over here in Riyadh. I hope all those that celebrate have a great Thanksgiving! I am looking forward to the fun we will have here.

Mama and Baby this week:

·      Mama’s pants no longer fit!

·      Mama still hates eating breakfast and loves eating in the middle of the day the most.

·      Mama still craves fruit and juices a lot!

·      Mama gets heartburn sometimes, headaches often and gets dizzy sometimes.

·      Baby is the size of a lemon or beet (3 ½ inches).

·      Baby has fur-like lanugo covering most of her body to keep her warm.

·      Baby’s weight has doubled since last week!

Week 13

Week 13

November 18, 2014

For those of you just finding out about Baby Klump, I have been writing an update each week. I write about how I am feeling, what I am doing and what is happening with the baby. Quick catch up- to say that we were excited when we found out we had a baby on board is an understatement! We are beyond thrilled for this new adventure. Each week I will write a post to tell you all about what is happening. So if you are interested, check back weekly. It is hard to be so far away from our family and many friends during this exciting time. Because of that, I thought weekly updates would help everyone understand the fun stuff and everything else that comes along with pregnancy. Be happy you are tuning in now. The first trimester was FULL of whining and complaining about how sick I felt. :)

I am officially in my last week of the first trimester and feeling pretty good. First, I feel like I have a LITTLE more energy. I asked Travis if he thought I was staying up later and he said no, but I totally disagree. I have stayed up until after 9pm a few times lately! This is a huge improvement because I was falling asleep after school and then again on the couch at around 7:45 each evening! I never knew I could sleep so much. Also, nausea has definitely gone down a lot. I am still eating every 2-3 hours and so far I am good. A friend here in Riyadh also shared a little treat called Preggie Pops. Those help in the mornings when I don’t want to eat breakfast.

The highlight of this week was our exciting weekend in Jordan. I cannot wait to tell you that story! That will have to be it’s own post though. You should look forward to hearing about me crying hysterically at the airport, yelling at Travis at the airport, freaking out about a 3 hour drive because I pee every 5 seconds, holding on to my uterus with one hand and holding the “truck” we drove in with the other hand, mountain climbing, floating in the Dead Sea and overeating! It was a great weekend. I will write that post this weekend.

So that is really it for this week. The real story will come with the Jordan post…stay tuned!

Mama and Baby this week:

·      Mama continues to feel better!

·      Mama still eats a salad after school almost everyday.

·      Mama craves fruit and juices a lot!

·      Mama’s pants are getting VERY tight and uncomfortable!

·      Baby is the size of a peach.

·      Baby has tiny bones forming in his or her arms and legs.

·      Baby’s body is trying to catch up with the size of his or her head!

Only in Saudi...

Or that is what I think anyway. I could be totally wrong, but the two things I am writing about today probably couldn't happen anywhere else. If they can, let me know. I am curious to know if there are other countries as strict as Saudi.

The Bank

We are not in America anymore...Here is my story about going to the bank for the first time. All new hires are taken to the bank, two at a time. Our HR director can't go with women because we have a different door and section. So, his secretary took us. We ended up leaving later than expected and it was a bit of a drive. Once we got there, I was just shocked. I don't know how or why I still get surprised by these things, but it is just so out of my 'ordinary'. We walked in through a back door and up some stairs to the Ladies only section of the bank. It was just so bizarre. Only women in this area. Why? I don't understand why women can go to the same stores as men, covered, but not the bank. If someone knows, fill me in! :) In addition to this, the workers were not covered. They were wearing regular everyday work clothes. Their hair was not covered either. However, all the customers were wearing their Abayas. It was very odd and not what I was expecting. Something else to get use to I suppose. It's the little things that I miss right now, like wearing my clothes and not an abaya, to go out.

My First Restaurant Trip

I finally went out to eat! Yes, we have been here for almost two months and it was my first trip to a restaurant. We have had take out, but I have not ventured to a restaurant until now. One of our staff members that is Lebanese set up a girls night out to go to a Lebanese restaurant. We all met at the parking lot of school, put on our abayas and set out for the evening. It was a fun bus ride, chit chatting with friends. The restaurant was a little farther out since we live in the middle of nowhere. Once we got there, I felt like I was somewhere totally different. The street, which I now call restaurant road, was beautiful! There were palm trees that lined the middle of the road, lit at night by colored lights. The buildings were all new, clean and gorgeous! There were so many restaurants on the road. I can't wait to go back! Getting back to dinner now...As women, we again entered through a back door for the family section. In Riyadh there are men only sections and family sections. Within the family section there are also curtained tables so that women can uncover their faces as they eat with their families. All of us ladies sat at an open table and dined with our abayas on. That was very strange! However, the food was delicious! Also, there is no alcohol so you get asked if you want some juice. I had a mint lemonade that was fantastic. I ate so much I felt sick. It was some of the best food I have ever had. Amazing!

So, I just wanted to paint a few more pictures of what life is like over here in Riyadh. As fall sets in, I am feeling a little homesick. I always loved the fall in Michigan. It is still about 100 degrees here everyday. I look forward to the cool down, which is supposed to come in November. I also miss rain. I don't want a lot, just one day with one thunderstorm. I am not quite sure I will get that! :)

In other travel news, we cancelled our trip to Ethiopia and are officially on our first staycation in 5 years! We plan to relax, go out to eat, have some pool time and hit the malls and markets. It should be a nice week of sleeping in! We have also booked a trip to Jordan in November. We have a three day weekend, so we are going to Petra. I cannot wait! We will be going home for Christmas, which I am also looking forward to. Travis will be able to work on the lake house a bit and I can hang with my mom, sisters and friends! Then we booked a trip to Byblos, Lebanon in February for a long weekend.

The year is already flying by! I can't believe Christmas is only 2 1/2 months away. I am ready to sing Christmas songs and make cookies. ;)

That's all for now.
Christy

IKEA 1- Christy 1

The first time I went to IKEA in Riyadh, I went with a group of new teachers in a big bus. I didn't feel good, I felt rushed and Travis couldn't come because he was working. However, we were home within 3 hours or so (including travel time). On top of that, we didn't run into any prayer time issues. Because of that, I think I won that round and IKEA lost.

Our trip this weekend was not so successful. I have never been a huge fan of IKEA because it is always so crazy. Shanghai was especially crazy. I have to say, though, Riyadh IKEA takes the cake. Oh.my.goodness. It was a disaster. Let me tell you how it all started...

Krystle and Zach also wanted to go shopping. They drove in their car, we followed in ours. Luckily, Zach figured out how to get there ahead of time. We got there in roughly 30 minutes. I felt optimistic and happy. I was so relieved that we had made it there in one piece, safely. As we were driving, there were two VERY seriously car accidents. These accidents had clearly happened a while ago, but had not been cleared. The first car was upside and quite smashed up. I guess he wanted to go too fast on a curved exit ramp. It didn't turn out well for him. As for the other car accident, I wouldn't really call it a car anymore. There was not much of it left that was in the shape of a car. So, with that said, just arriving at the store was fantastic.

Shopping was fine. They didn't have everything we wanted and needed, but there were plenty of things to buy. I had a long list and knew we didn't have a long time. We got to the store around 9:20 and prayer wasn't until almost noon. We figured if we were in line by 11:30, we could make it. That gave us 2 hours of shopping. It is amazing how quickly that time goes by. Before we knew it, it was 11:05. Travis and I decided to head in the direction of the check outs. Thank goodness that we did. This line was the longest line in a store I have ever seen, no exaggeration. We got in it and I quickly texted Krystle and told them to hurry and get in line too. Our lines were creeping along very slowly. It wasn't long until we decided we were not going to make it before prayer time. As noon got closer and closer, we were right up to the register. We were certain that they would stop selling right before me and Travis or right after us and before Krystle and Zach. When our turn was up, we threw our things up on the belt as quickly as possible. The cashier checked us out and then stopped. Travis explained that our friends were behind us and asked if he would just do their check out as well. The guy looked at the amount they had, as the call to prayer came over the speaker, and said no. Ugh. We now had to wait an additional 30 minutes for prayer to end. Yes, we just sat there waiting, along with everyone else in line. It was so strange. I guess we had to go through it at least once. I hope, never again. After standing in line for an hour, checking out and then waiting another 30 minutes for our friends to check out, I never want to go to IKEA again. I have also decided that IKEA Riyadh is much harder to shop at than IKEA Shanghai.

Finally, we drove home. We kind of got a little lost-ish and ended up at the airport. We went through it and drove to our homes, which are only about a 10 minute drive from there. The entire trip was about 5 hours and 15 minutes. What a great Saturday! That was then followed by 3 hours of working to get ready for the week. :(

As for everything else, we are doing great. Work is very busy and hard for me right now, but I know it will get easier as time goes on. I don't like the unknown and it's hard being a new teacher again. I am really enjoying all the awesome people and we are having a lot of fun. Friday night we went to a school party at the US Embassy. That was a lot fun, great food and dancing! Oh, and we also booked our October Holiday to Ethiopia! We are headed to our fourth continent. Our friends Tracy and Ian invited us to join them. It should be a great experience. That will happen at the beginning of October.

That's all for now. Talk to you all soon!
C

The kids come to AIS-R!

Today was finally the first day with students! It is 6:45 and I am just now sitting down at home. To say it was a busy and chaotic day, is an absolute understatement. Today was, by far, the craziest first day of school I have ever been a part of! And I wasn't the only one feeling that way. I think there were a number of reasons why it was so nuts...

First, I am new to AIS-R. You forget what it feels like to be the 'new' teacher. When I taught in Southfield, I was there for 5 years, but had done my student teaching for a year there and also did some subbing in between my student teaching and when I was actually hired. I look at that as 7 years with Southfield. I knew how things worked, even if I was in three different schools during that time. I was familiar with the district and everything that went along with school. The last four years were spent in Shanghai, three of which were in grade 2. I felt really comfortable there. I knew SCIS. I knew how to get supplies, how to print, copy, find things, who to email, who was in charge of things, how things worked at the beginning and end of the school days. I had systems in place in my classrooms. Baskets that I used to organize stuff. I had accumulated so many helpful, useful things. When we left, I didn't think I left important things behind. If I could go back...I would have brought more with me! Now that I am new again, I feel a bit lost. As I have said before, I am VERY supported, but when you are new, it's hard. At SCIS students take the bus to school. They come straight to your room and the day begins. At AIS-R, many parents came with the students. I wanted to talk to them all and get to know them a little, but it was just too busy to do that. These students also brought with them huge bags of supplies. At SCIS, all the supplies were provided. I knew that these supplies would come, but I had no idea how much was coming. I was warned, but I just could not have imagined the bags that were brought in! All of this set up a very chaotic start to the day. Looking back, it wasn't a big deal. In the moment, I was stressed! One other thing caught me off guard as well. I went to shake hands with a father who was Muslim, as I did with so many other parents that morning. He told me he couldn't. I was so thrown off by the chaos that I forgot that some conservative Muslim men do not touch non-relative women. Both he and his wife were very polite and understanding and told me not to worry that I had put my hand out to greet him. They explained that not everybody is the same. The wife said some Muslims will shake hands, but they do not. They were both very nice about it all, but I was a bit embarrassed at the time. More on the first day in a bit...

Second, the campus is new. Basically, we were extremely organized and ready for it all. But of course, some of those things just didn't quite work. The end of the day dismissal was probably the hardest for me. I was so worried about losing a child, it was stressful. Again, in the end, it all worked out.

Third, everyone is new! I mean that everyone is new because the campus is new. If you go to work at a school that is already operating, someone knows exactly what to do for just about everything. Today, all the teachers and admin were figuring things out together.

The combination of all of that created a bit of a stressful and crazy day for all! Everyone I talked to said that the day was just nuts and we were all exhausted by the time 2:45 rolled around!

Anyways, here is a recap of my crazy day!
It started with the students and supplies being dropped off. Shortly after that, we went for a campus tour. I will try to take some pictures to show you the massive size our campus is, for now, you will just have to imagine. We walked around for about 10 minutes finding different important parts of the elementary buildings. As we were walking, one student's nose began to bleed. I was ready to send him to the nurse and get it taken care of. Then I realized that I don't know where the nurse is located. Epic fail on my part. I am sure I learned at some point, but I couldn't remember. I took the class back to the room and we got him a tissue. Luckily, it wasn't a bad bleed. While in the room, almost all of the students had to use the restroom. Not a big deal you think. It is now. We only have one stall in our classroom. No joke, it took a good 10 minutes for everyone to go that needed to go. Finally, we went back out to finish the tour. I would say the whole thing took at least 30-45 minutes. It took FOREVER! We also had to have indoor recess because the play areas are not quite done yet. That was a bit hard on the kids. Teachers had to also eat lunch with the students so they could learn how it would all work. I had about 10 bites of my salad, which was more than most teachers, and then it was time to go. Grade 2 had a fun activity planned for the kids in the afternoon. They rotated through classrooms and learned about our school theme this year, 'true to yellow and blue.' It took longer than expected and we couldn't finish. Then packing up was rushed and crazy and then we quickly went to PE at the end of the day. Finally, after PE ended, I met up with the kids to help get them to buses, nannies, drivers, moms, dads and compounds. It was nothing that I had expected!!! In the end, it all worked out, but WOW am I tired! I stayed at work until after 6 to get more organized and be ready for tomorrow. I can't wait to sleep and I am not even sure I have the energy to eat dinner!

So that was it. Day 1 at AIS-R with the students. It flew by. My students are absolutely adorable and I am really looking forward to teaching them.

Oh, and of course my fitbit battery was low!!!! I am sure I racked up 10,000 steps today, but I will never know because it didn't record them. Boo!!! :(

That's all for now. Sorry for the grammar/spelling/confusing parts. I wrote this fast!!!
C

Just another update

Well, I haven't written a post for a bit, so here we go. It has been a very busy week, which is why I haven't done an update. Last weekend Zach arrived and Travis went to the airport to pick him up. It is so nice having a familiar face around here! Krystle should be here in a week, and I can't wait! Anyway, we did some more driving again and it went well. We followed another colleague to the grocery store and learned how easy it is to get there and how close it is. That made me feel better. I was little worried about getting food. We do have a grocery store here on the compound, but it is not as big and costs a little more. This was one stress that quickly went away. Then we went to Saco World the next day and got more things for the house. That was a little more difficult to get to, but totally doable. Again, one less stress. We started the week feeling really good. And now ended it exhausted, but ready for school to begin!

I can't say enough about how wonderful work is going for the both of us. Yes, Travis works A LOT! Yes, I am a bit overwhelmed. Yes, it is hard to be the 'new teacher.' But even with all of those things, I feel good and I know Travis feels really good. I truly feel supported by admin and other teachers. We have friends that invite us over and make sure we are doing well. It's great to know people are there for you.

The school has offered many learning and wellness opportunities that I have absolutely loved! There have been two learning session days so far. Many different things are offered. You, as the teacher, choose what you want or need to go to! I have learned a lot and have really enjoyed it. The wellness I have chosen has been yoga, T25 and reading for pleasure! And we get paid for it since it is during the work day. I just can't say enough good things about the planning and organization. Our staff meetings are well planned, thought out, told to us in advance and really are for us. I could go on and on!

Well that is all for now. School starts on Monday, so stay tuned for classroom pictures and an update on that.

C

Our Little Blue Lake House

Today we closed on our Little Blue Lake House! Thanks to Jackie and and our realtor Stephanie, even though we were in Saudi, it happened. We are so excited to have our own little home during the summer.

Many of you didn't know that we were buying a house, and neither did we. It just kind of happened. One day we were going for a run around the lakes by Jackie. There were two cute little houses for sale and we decided we wanted to take a look. The first house we looked at was the little blue one. We loved it right away, but wanted to see more to make sure we wanted it or even a house in general. After many, many properties and lots of discussions we decided to do it. We chose this one because we LOVED the lake it is on. The colors are like the Caribbean Sea, seriously. We also felt like it needed a little updating, but we could totally live with it the way it is...that didn't last long though. We have lots of renovation and construction plans! ;) We love it and are so excited to have our own home in Michigan and a pontoon on a gorgeous lake.

Here are some pictures!

I miss...

I have been writing about all the wonderful parts of our new life here in Riyadh. Of course I am making it sound like it's all sunshine and cupcakes. And honestly, it is going much better than I expected. The reality is though, when you move to a new country, it's hard. It doesn't matter if it is your first time moving, second time or twentyfifth time. It will always be hard. Everything is new. The people, the work, the grocery store, the washing machine, and everything in between has changed. There are many wonderful things about our new city, school and home, but there are many things that I am missing. This blog is about what I miss from living in Shanghai...

1. My friends- We truly made the bestest of friends in Shanghai and many of us are now scattered all over the world. I miss them all so much! I know I am making new friends, but for now I long to call up some of my old friends to see if anyone wants to come over for a girls night or out to dinner somewhere...
2. Being able to go to a restaurant or bar whenever I want to go- I miss Yongkang Lu, Liquid Laundry, Lost Heaven, Sichuan Citizen and so many other places.
3. Being able to go out into the city wearing anything I want- I loved that in China, anything goes, like anything. I could wear Hello Kitty sunglasses with a blue and green striped top and orange and brown polka dotted hot pants with sequin shoes and no one would like at me twice. Here, I can do the same, but it is covered by an abaya! ;)
4. Knowing how to get to the grocery store- Here we drive and we don't know where we are going yet. I miss the easy transport system in Shanghai.
5. The theater- Yes, I never thought I would say that, but I miss going into the SCIS theater, even if I was there for many hours after school.
6. Food delivery- I miss that convenience of everything being delivered.
7. Fruit markets- Fruit was everywhere and was so cheap!
8. Dragonfly- I am in desperate need of a pedicure and it looks like I will have to do it myself. :( I could also use a nice oil massage after moving all of these boxes and unpacking.

I am sure there is more I will miss, and of course there is plenty that I don't miss! I just thought I would let everyone know that I am still a normal person and everything over here in our Pleasantville Compound and School is great, but I still miss things from my former life in Shanghai. ;)

Now my weekend begins!

C

What day is it?

I went to name the post 'day 5' or 'day 7'. However, I have no idea what day it is and I am too tired to figure it out. I think that is a good thing! We are so busy and there is so much going on that I can't keep track of the day of the week, the date or how long we have been here. It's also a little harder because our work week is Sunday-Thursday. That will be a bit strange, but I am sure I will get use to it quickly and forget that it is not the norm where we come from.

On with today's activities...It started with another healthy breakfast and some classroom work time. Nothing too exciting there, but lots of time well spent. After lunch I had a refresher in Reader's Workshop. I have said it before, but I will say it again- the organization at this school is so amazing! We use Lucy Calkins Reader's and Writer's Workshop. I love Lucy. I mean LOVE Lucy. I think her work is fantastic and it really works with my students. I am so happy that we are using her program exclusively and that there is a written plan of which units and lessons we will do. As a team we can modify and change as needed, but we have something to work from right away. In addition to this, we also have a Learning Coach. She is unbelievable! She will be coming into classrooms to help us teach, model for us, co-teach, whatever will work for us. This is so nice to have and she is a very valuable resource to have, I can tell already! Literacy is my thing and I am so excited for it this year!

Another thing I want to brag about, before I go on to the rest of the day, is our Educational Assistants (EA). I have never had an EA in grades higher than Kindergarten. The two EAs we have in second grade are awesome. They are hard working and have already done so much for me. I can't wait to have them all year! Today they organized and distributed all of our Everyday Math (another exciting thing for me!) materials. It is so nice to not have to do that stuff and to have things brought to my room.

One more thing to brag about- SCIS teachers you will appreciate this one. I have 1200 books (approximately) in my classroom library. They are checked out to me, but I don't have to go and get them. They are in my room and then someone comes to me to check them out and back in. No walking up and down the stairs to the warehouse! To be fair, the resource room is on the second floor and my room is on the first floor, so I will be doing some hauling of books and materials. ;)

I lied, one more thing...We work in trimesters this year! That means only 3 report cards and I am pretty sure conferences are at a different time than reports. I am so happy about this! It makes sense for younger kids and it makes planning all of our units easier! Also, we get a half day to write the reports! Yahooooooo!

Ok, on with the day. We had another wellness session to go to today. I went to something called T25. It was a high impact cardio workout that lasted 25 minutes. Let me tell you, it was the longest 25 minutes of my life! Not really, but it was pretty intense. I am not sure if any of you have done it, but I really like the one we did today. It was hard, I was dripping in sweat and I was done in 25 minutes plus a 2 minute stretch.

Thanks to that workout, I reached 10,000 steps on my fitbit by 4pm today! Yesterday the only workout I did was yoga, but I walked around so much I also hit 10,000 steps. This summer the only way I reached 10,000 was when I went for a 3 mile run. That is just to give you an idea of how much walking I am doing and just how big the campus is!

That is all for now. My next task for today or tomorrow is to try and figure out how to do the ALS challenge when we don't have cold water! It's luke warm. I have some ice cubes, so I will have to be creative. I have to say I had mixed feelings about this challenge because it seems to be a little silly to waste clean water to raise money. However, a friend pointed out that at least it is raising awareness. My plan is to use just a small bucket since we are in the desert and I don't believe in wasting water. I will also donate money to help the cause! Those of you that have donated to the cause, congrats!

Ciao!
C

Another fun day at AIS-R!

Today was an especially fun morning! It was the first day that we had a wellness session. From now until school starts (I think) we get to participate in an activity of our choice. They last one hour and range from reading to skateboarding to working out at the gym to talking tech stuff. I chose to go to yoga and really enjoyed it. The teacher that ran the session was amazing! It was a great workout and was really hard for me since it has been so long since I practiced yoga. Anne, Meagan, Michele and Jules- I was thinking of you the whole time (and of course Bob and his socks)!

After our wellness session we had a healthy breakfast. I love the emphasis on health right now. We got to choose from yogurts, fruits, museli and cereal. This was a really energizing morning. And today, we needed it!

Following breakfast we did a scavenger hunt with our team. There are only three people on my team right now since we are waiting for the other two (Krystle and Shelley) to arrive soon. It was Jon, Joji and me. We had so much fun! The purpose of this hunt was to really learn the new campus and find out where important things are located. It was so much fun running around trying to find things. To make it more interesting, you had to take pictures of each place you went to and put it on instagram. Those of you that follow me on IG probably noticed the pictures. Our campus is so big, we compared it to a community college campus, although maybe not quite that big, but darn close! Here are some of my favorite pictures from today.

 This is Jon picking up our HR director, Mike Laird. Mike helped us get into the country and has helped us settle into life in Riyadh and at AIS-R.

 This is in the faculty lounge area.

 One of our tasks was to go to the principal's office. Jon is sitting at Travis' desk and was worried he was going to get in trouble for doing it. ;) He didn't. The three leaders all enjoyed our little disturbance.

 I don't think they encourage climbing the flag poles, but we did it anyway!

This is my favorite one! This room is where we have all of our meetings. Usually our superintendent is behind the podium. I'm sure the school will use this picture at some other time in the year. :)

There was one more I wanted to share, but it won't upload for some reason. Anyway, it seems like a really fun school and my team is great! The rest of the day was spent in our classrooms. At the end of the day the three of us went into Krystle and Shelley's classrooms to rearrange furniture and figure out where to put bulletin boards and white boards. I think we will be great at working together!

2 more work days to go this week...
C

Classroom time!

Today was the first day back with returning teachers. This year we get 2 weeks to set up because of the new campus. School does not start until September 1. It was a great day with everyone there. We started with breakfast and coffee in the dining hall. The returning teachers were so friendly saying hello to their friends from the past, but also introducing themselves to new teachers. There was a lot of mingling and it was a very positive vibe. I always love the beginning of the school year. Everyone is excited for the upcoming year and a new, fresh start is always a good thing.

After breakfast we had a full staff meeting. Honestly, it was truly enjoyable. Our superintendent is fantastic and I really like what he had to say. He kept it fun, light, positive and gave out chocolate to teachers every now and then throughout the meeting. :) Each year there is a theme for the school to stick to. This year it is "True to Yellow and Blue". He talked a little bit about what that meant and told us we would be doing a lot with it.

Next, we had time to head to our classrooms for a short while. I was able to talk to the two other grade 2 teachers that were there. They were both very enthusiastic, welcoming and helpful. We will have 5 teachers on our team this year, 3 of which are new. I am really looking forward to a great team! And especially can't wait for Krystle to get here so we can finally teach together!

Each division had their own meeting for a short time before lunch. Elementary School (ES) started with a game about our two new assistant principals, Travis and Mike. She gave us 15 clues and we had to guess Travis, Mike or both. I thought for sure I would win, but I didn't! I couldn't believe it. I came in 2nd place. The 'both' answer through me off a bit. We learned some interesting stuff about our new leaders. :) Then, we talked about "True to Yellow and Blue". We did an activity and then brainstormed how we would bring this in to our classrooms. It was WONDERFUL to have such organization and collaboration right away. I truly felt like every minute of these meetings was worthwhile and helpful.

Now, let's talk about organization. Anyone that knows me, knows I like things to be organized, planned ahead, focused and purposeful. I can say, wholeheartedly, this school is ALL about that. I have been blown away by the organization in everything that has been done. Our new school is also all about helping and supporting each other. It has been an amazing feeling!

After our yummy subway lunch, from the restaurant on our campus, I spent the rest of the day in my classroom. I got quite a bit done and am happy with my progress. I will leave you with some pictures of what it looked like at the beginning of the day. I have already rearranged things, unpacked boxes and put some books away though. Bulletin boards, white boards and posters are coming soon. When I finish, I will post pictures again. :)

Oh, and if you are wondering what Travis has been doing...I don't know. He does whatever it is principals do during the day behind closed doors. Just kidding! He has been running around like crazy making sure everything is going smoothly and checking on rooms and people and doing lots of planning and organizing. Yesterday he worked 12 1/2 hours!!! Today he got to come home early, so that was really nice!

One more thing, we worked more on organizing the house and also got our new barbecue delivered. Also, our maid should start tomorrow or Thursday, which will be great. Things are dirty and need to be cleaned! ;)

Now, here is my classroom at the beginning...

Happy Monday to all!
C

IKEA and Prayer Time

IKEA...what would we do without it? Shop somewhere else? Probably. However, when living abroad, it's an easy place to go. I love the fact that you can get so much there. I love that everything is so cheap. I hate that everyone else in the world loves the same things about it, so it is always so busy. I hate that it is CHEAP stuff, but the convenience makes me buy it anyway.

Ok, now to my first IKEA trip in Riyadh. This was a trip without Travis because he had to work. I knew it wasn't going to be a pretty trip. IKEA is never fun on the weekends! And when you are alone, it's even worse. Everyone planned to go off on their own so they could get as much as possible while there. We planned to leave early so we could avoid prayer time problems and have plenty of shopping time. We ended up leaving late and then it took longer than expected to get there. This meant we only had a short time to shop because of prayer time...

Here is a little fact that I learned about Saudi Arabia. There are prayer times each day, five times a day. Right now as I write this, it is currently one of their prayer times. These times change every day according to the moon. When it is prayer time, stores close, everything closes. We had to be in line by 11:30am to make sure we checked out before prayer time started at 12. That only gave us about an hour and 15 minutes to shop. If we didn't make it before 12, we would have to wait at least 40 minutes to check out...

I had big and small items to buy. I was getting stressed without Travis and with being so rushed, I had to skip all the big items. Then I realized that I forgot my list at home, so that made even the small items difficult. In addition, I had a hard time finding many of the things I needed. Anyways, I got a few things, checked out and learned a few lessons from this trip.

1. Go shopping well before prayer time.
2. Take Travis when I want to get big things.
3. Expect IKEA to suck and not have everything you want. (The IKEA in Shanghai had so much more!)

I look forward (sort of) to the next IKEA trip and Saco trip so I can get all the rest of the stuff we need. In retrospect, we probably should have shipped more of our stuff from Shanghai...

xoxo
CK

Driving in Riyadh!

In Shanghai we loved the public transit. It was super easy to get almost anywhere in town. Taxis were cheap and there were plenty of them. The subway was a 5 minute walk from our door and was even cheaper than the taxi rides. Not to mention the many shops, restaurants and bars that were just a short walk away. Here in Riyadh, you have to drive. Now, first, I will say that we have a lot on the compound that can help us survive. The grocery store has plenty there and is not too much more expensive than the other stores. There is a Costa Coffee, Burger King and more restaurants coming. The pools are gorgeous and the rec center is fantastic! Here are some rec center pictures.

 indoor pool

 indoor basketball court

 Soccer field

gym

But, if you want more than that, you must drive. I know to those of you living in the suburbs that may not seem like a big deal. When you live in a big city, it's a pain to drive. When you live in a big city in the middle east, it's scary to drive! The drivers here are fast. Fast as in 180 kph! There are not many lights and other traffic rules are more suggestions than anything else. Now, add in the fact that we live in the newer section of town that is under major construction and is very confusing because of roads randomly closing or no street signs, or streets with names that are too long to remember and you will picture our driving situation!

Our first few days we were driven around in a bus. It gave us a chance to see things and understand a little bit about the driving. On Friday, it was time for us to do the driving. And by us, I mean Travis, because women can't drive in Saudi. All of the new teachers, that are currently here, got in their cars and followed our HR friend to Saco. On the way there, it was not bad. We were third in line out of six cars and the traffic was light. We all made it, surprisingly, without a problem. Then we did some shopping. Saco World is kind of like a Home Depot or Canadian Tire (I'm told) but without all the lumber (HD) or tires (CT). We spent some big bucks on a microwave, juicer, blow dryer, straightener, shoe racks and of course Travis wanted a barbecue. All went well until we had to stand in line for delivery and installation of the barbecue. Travis literally waited for 45 minutes to pay and tell them where we live. He only took 5 minutes, but the people in front of him were drawing a map to where they lived and it was taking a while. Finally, we were done. Oh, also, there were women working there. That was the first time I saw a woman doing some sort of job. On the way home, traffic was worse and we were last in the lineup. It was a bit scarier, especially because we had our friends' two kids in the backseat, so we were trying to drive extra carefully. It was not easy with others driving fast to pass you or cut you off, you having to cut someone off because you don't know where you are going and you don't want to lose the group! We made it home and Travis said it was much better than he expected, so that was great! There was only one really scary time when he had to floor the gas pedal to catch up, but then slam on the breaks as to not run into the car in front of us. ;)

Here is Travis driving and a picture of what it looks like ALL around us, sand, sand, sand, construction, construction and more sand and construction.

Travis did a great job driving! When we got home, we went next door to take a look at how they arranged their living room and dining room. We have noticed that the villa we live in is beautiful, but not really functional with the space and furniture provided. Tracy (teacher living next door) had explained to me how she did her space so I went to take a look. We ended up staying for hours and eating dinner over there with Tracy, her husband Ian and then two other friends (from Michigan that looked at the exact same lake house as us!!! How crazy is that?!?!) that also work at our school. The four of them came last year and were so welcoming to us. It was a great, unexpected night! 

One of my favorite things about living abroad is the people you work with. I have said it a million times before, but they become not just your friends, but your family. You are here alone and you need others in so many ways. When you live in your home country, you are usually a drive or short flight away from family. Abroad, it is so different. Everyone bonds instantly, and you rely on each other and would do anything for others. We were so blessed in Shanghai to have the friends and family that we had there. They will NEVER be replaced. But, it is so nice to see that this is another place where we will surely make more 'framily'. 

I will leave this post with a picture of our first sunset in Riyadh that we actually saw. :)

Love and hugs from the Riyadh Klumps!