GOOOOOOOOD MORNING VIETNAM!!!!!!!

Moving to Texas

2009-04-19T19:51:00.000-07:00

I think most of you know this by now but I will post it anyway. The kids finish up the school year June 23rd and we will be moving back to the states shortly after that!!! Danny will have to work in Saudi Arabia every other month for the rest of this year then will be back in the Houston office. So we will be in Louisiana most of the summer and then move to Spring! (The same location we were before this crazy year of moving) We are all very excited to return to our "normal" life back home. We will miss all of our help here!!! I might go into shock and have to learn how to wash clothes again...but I think I will manage!!! I will keep everyone posted and can not wait to see you all.

Natalie= Before we left Houston she was a Blue belt in Tae Kwon Do. She started taking lessons here with a Korean Master and he wanted her to learn the way they do things here...so she has just received her Blue belt and is now at the same level in 2 different forms of TKD. We are very proud of her!

Grey= He is 100% little boy! And I think he is part monkey due to the fact that he climbs on everything and loves bananas! HA!!! His scar is healing very nice. It still has a small scab on the bad side of the wound but the rest of it is barely visible. He said he can not wait to go to Louisiana! I think he just wants to get spoiled by everyone! He wants to be like his sister and take TKD so that should be fun having them both kicking and punching around the house. Maybe we will make a padded room in the new house!

APRIL

2009-04-08T03:54:00.001-07:00

Is it really April already???? I guess we have been very busy since my last post in Feb. Most of you know we went on an awesome vacation to Australia and New Zealand. I want to post my favorite pics but this site has changed things and I have yet to figure out how to post pictures! As soon as I figure this out, you will be the first to know! I hope everyone is having a great 2009!

2009-02-26T01:55:00.000-08:00

After the "kids" had a peanut butter sandwich

they decided it was time for a nap.

2009-02-26T01:46:00.000-08:00

Grey decided he wanted a birthday party at the ice cream shop. They had never had a party there before so I had to ask them if I could show up the next friday with about 20 people. Well you know the answer was YES....They gave me some nice plates to put the cup cakes on and they had balloons inside and out. $50 later...36 scoops of ice cream or sorbet had been consumed with lots of M&M toppings! Grey must be very popular at school. Lots of friends showed up and he got some pretty awesome toys! I made the cup cakes!!!!

Mardi Gras

2009-02-26T01:36:00.000-08:00

At the school they encourage us parents to go to the school to teach the kids about different cultures. So since it is Mardi Gras time I decided we could make some mask and necklaces. I brought in my i pod and had the mardi gras music playing...I told them about the floats and beads and king cake. (I did not think the kids would understand why the parents sat in the back of trucks with alcoholic beverages so I left that part out!) We made necklaces with colored noodles...Purple, Gold and Green. Grey and I painted them a few days before so they had time to dry. I think

I had just as much fun as the kids!!! I had to celebrate Mardi Gras in some form!!!!

Rubber Trees

2009-02-26T01:29:00.000-08:00

This is a rubber tree farm. All of the trees have little bowls attached to them to collect the rubber. Small incisions are cut into the trees’ bark at night so that latex sap will drip longer before drying out in the tropical sun. Workers collect the tapped latex the following morning. Progressively lower cuts are made in the rubber trees, allowing them to be tapped for many years.
After sufficient amounts are collected, basins of latex are processed with an acid to coagulate it, making the latex more solid. The acid is then removed by rolling the latex under pressure into thin sheets, which are smoked over a fire to stabilize the rubber. In that form the rubber can be exported.

Cu chi Tunnels

2009-02-26T01:14:00.000-08:00

These are the tunnels that were used during the "American war" The little Vietnamese men would live underground as long as they had to and set traps for the Americans that would try to get in them. They cooked food in the little kitchen and made trails up to the surface for the smoke to escape. They also made little oxygen holes and made them look like ant hills on the surface. The tunnels are very small. I was very proud of myself for going down in them! It was not a happy place to visit because they show a film on this one guy that was known as the best "rat" killer...aka Americans that found their underground hide out. The kids enjoyed seeing the big holes in the ground from the B 52 bombs!

Happy Chinese New Year

2009-01-28T01:30:00.000-08:00

This pic was taken for The Graham's

Festival in the Park

2009-01-28T01:21:00.000-08:00

Chinese New Year Celebration

2009-01-28T01:12:00.001-08:00

The Flower Festival

Greys trip to the "Kaboda" (pagoda)

2009-01-22T00:59:00.001-08:00

Grey was giving the Buddha lucky money

"I am thankful for my scooter"

im sure Buddha loved that one!

This was a field trip set up by the school. We traveled about 1 mile to this Pagoda. Grey calls it the Kaboda and can not change it even we correct him. The kids had a great time learning all about the Buddhist and how they pray. I think they enjoyed feeding the fish and turtles after the tour the best!

The Shack

2009-01-21T05:23:00.000-08:00

If you have not read this book already I highly rec. that you go out today and get a copy of it. I have had a lot of spare time and have been reading a new book every week....or every 3-4 days it seems!!! But this book has really touched me and I got a good cry out of it as well. The book is about God and I will leave it at that. I also want to thank one of my very best friends for telling me that I HAD to get the book before I left the states...Thank you Ashley!!!!!

A day in Ho Chi Minh City

2009-01-18T05:12:00.001-08:00

anyone in need of a haircut?
fruit stand (very cheap)

Happy New Year sign

bikes only on this side of the bridge

Buddist Temple

baskets for sale

delivery!

Jill and Danny going out on the town!

2009-01-16T00:29:00.000-08:00

My friend Liz decided it was time for her to get a bike to ride around HCMC.

She came over to show off and to take me for a ride

We went around the compound and giggled way too much and came back to the house and found Danny outside with the camera. I guess he thought we looked just as funny as it was! Maybe I will get brave and drive the one we have.....or maybe not!!!

2009-01-15T23:55:00.000-08:00

Pics of Grey and Braxton acting very silly Christmas night. (maybe all of the sugar they had during the day)

I think Stella (my brothers dog) had just as much as everyone else!

All of the kids on Danny's side of the family. Mine are #10 and #11

Christmas day at Aunt Anne's house. We had a great time playing Guitar Hero. I wish I would have had room in my suitcase to bring the game back with me! Maybe next time....or maybe one will just appear in Vietnam....hint hint....

2009-01-15T23:46:00.000-08:00

This was Christmas morning at Nonnie and Poppy's house. Natalie woke up before everyone else so we did not get to see her look at all of her things she got from Santa. Grey was so excited because he got the puppy he has been asking for and her name is Apple (not a real dog...the one he is holding)

Happy new Year!

2009-01-11T16:39:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a great time during the holiday. We got to visit with so many people and we also missed a bunch of people! It is always difficult around Christmas time to visit everyone. I have a plan for the next time we come in town. So we are back in Vietnam....school starts back up today..YIPEE! Danny is back at work and I am slowly getting back to my normal routine. We are very excited that we will be able to watch American Idol. (I also get to watch the Golden Globes live this morning)

Abby is still alive...as some were worried that the Vietnamese were going to eat her while we were gone! And we also have a pregnant fish. Not sure how that is going to work out but we will find out soon enough! I stare at the tank and "Alice" stares back at me....Danny tells me to just leave it alone and quit worrying about them but my motherly instincts are kicking in (and not to mention I have been working with OB doctors for the past 10 + years) I know they are fish and they will take care of themselves...
I want to let everyone know how wonderful it was spending time with most of you! And our doors are still open for anyone to come on over for a visit!!! We have plenty of room....and a good Vietnamese cook!!! We will start acting like tourist again around the city so be on the look out for new pics! xoxo

Christmas Around the World

2008-12-10T06:45:00.000-08:00

My computer is deciding to give me a hard time...so yes some of these pictures look the same and I was unable to delete them....anyway, tonight the kid's school had a wonderful celebration about the different upcoming holidays in all of the different cultures. Each class sang a few songs. Grey's class sang a song in Vietnamese and then sang Jingle Bells and We wish you a Merry Christmas. Natalie's class sang Jingle Bells, but the Australian version they created. (that would explain the kangaroo ears she has on) All of the kids were awesome! One little guy in pre k 4 discovered he could hear his voice in the mic and had a good ole time singing at the top of his lungs!!!! Ihave a few videos I will try to post later....I am suppose to be making sure I have everything packed up and ready to go! Can not wait to see everyone!!!!

Happy Birthday Natalie!!!

2008-12-10T06:35:00.000-08:00

Natalie decided yesterday that she wanted to celebrate her birthday at school so her friends could sing Happy Birthday to her. SO....our driver has a sister-in-law that makes cakes for birthdays and weddings. I paid about $8 and it was great! The kids sang in Vietnamese! What a great memory for her!!! (the first pic is of natalie's good friend from Korea...Soo Young)

Oh Christmas tree, Oh Christmas tree....

2008-12-10T06:21:00.000-08:00

As you can see, we got the biggest fake tree they had!!! Just kidding, they had bigger but since we were not going to be here for Christmas we chose to get something small to decorate. The lights are pretty fancy. They only worked 1 day. They still light up but we are no longer able to choose the blinking speed....so the top of the tree blinks 90mph and the bottom half blinks every few minutes. But at least we had a good time. Tis the season!!!

Happy Birthday Dad

2008-12-10T06:16:00.001-08:00

Soccer Stars

2008-12-10T05:57:00.000-08:00

Natalie and grey have been playing soccer every Saturday morning bright and early! It is more of a soccer clinic than an organized league with games. There are a lot of ex-pat kids playing and also some Vietnamese kids. The first time Grey went out on the field he was so ready! But as soon as the coach made the kids line up to warm up, he did not want to participate at all. So the following weekend we told him that santa was watching and if he did not play soccer he was going to bring back some of his toys....SO needless to say, he was on the field warming up and participating! Natalie's picture was in the local magazine (that we could never find) promoting the clinic.

Something New...

2008-11-17T04:01:00.001-08:00

We are proud owners of a Yamaha Sirius Night Rod Limited Edition 110cc's of pure MOPED power!!! Why do we have one you ask? Well...our driver ends his work day around 530pm and is off on Sunday....SO since we have sooooo many places to go during the hours he is not here we need transportation! ( only kidding...Danny NEEDS the moped!) Danny felt the need to add to the 4,000,000 other bikes on the street. Everything we need is within 2 miles so no need to worry! I am not sure who is more excited...the kids..or Danny!

2008-10-28T22:07:00.000-07:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

2008-10-27T06:30:00.001-07:00

Watermelons make great Jack O Lanterns!

TRICK OR TREAT

OOPS!!!!

2008-10-23T08:36:00.001-07:00

OK I WORKED REALLY HARD ON TRYING TO GET THE BLOGS IN ORDER ACCORDING TO OUR TRIP....BUT THIS ONE TIME I ACTUALLY TRY IT CAME OUT THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT I WANTED. SO IF YOU SCROLL DOWN TO THE BLOG THAT SAYS OUR TRIP TO HANOI....THAT IS THE FIRST BLOG! (I JUST WANTED TO CONFUSE EVERYONE!!! SORRY)

HA LONG BAY

2008-10-23T08:04:00.000-07:00

The Red Dragon was the name of our boat. There were 6 other people besides the staff on the boat with us. The kids were shy for about 30 minutes and became friends with everyone pretty quick. Our new friends were from London, Australia and Germany. So we had a nice mix of people on the boat. We had excellent service and great food! The water was a bit chilly but it made it a great swim!!! We had a big room with a connecting room for the kids! We only stayed on the boat one night. We want to go back and stay on for a few days!

If you come for a visit we will make a trip North as well...

More Halong Bay

2008-10-23T07:51:00.000-07:00

Floating village School

Cement boat??? how is it floating

The floating village

Our water taxi

The Cave

2008-10-23T07:40:00.000-07:00

We left our nice big boat and got on a smaller boat to the cave! Not so long ago about 60 people were living in this cave. There was an area where they could get fresh water. There was a darker area in the back where they slept...and yes what comes with all caves...BATS. They continued to hang upside down and did not bother us! There were lots of stalagmites in the making. It was a neat lesson!!! If you have an imagination you can see the picture with the dragon in it. This is where people got married and had babies. The people that were living in the cave now live in the floating village. The government provided them with housing. The boat outside of the cave is always there with 2 men on guard to protect the cave.

The Village of the Black Hmong people

2008-10-23T06:38:00.001-07:00

Little girl cutting some veggies

A house in the village

School

A pet monkey...he is missing his left hand :(

And he did not like us on his property

The Hospital

(my thoughts exactly)

These were a group of ladies

that walked the trail with us

My group of friends that were all saying

"Buy from me?"

A village from up above

Sapa

2008-10-23T06:15:00.000-07:00

This is the town of Sapa. The girl to the left and her baby became my friends. I would have loved to take them back with me!!! This people live in a village in the mountains. The women come down to the market to sell the things they have made. I wanted to stay just so I could clean these people up. I wanted to line them up and clean their feet and the babies faces!!!! But this is what they are use to. We bought a purse a wallet some earrings a blanket, a hat for grey...so they gave us some bracelets they made. A little girl about 5 years old was walking on the side of me with a 6 month old baby strapped to her back. She wanted me to buy stuff from her. I had an American dollar in my purse and gave it to her. Her face lit up and she was so grateful and so excited that she ran off! So I definitely did my good deed of the day!!!!! The girl in the picture with Natalie was our tour guide. She was from a bigger village and learned English from her younger sister. Most children only go to school until the age of 9 (if that) then they have to go away for the next years and it is too expensive.

Our first train ride!!!

2008-10-23T05:01:00.000-07:00

This was the Victoria Train that we rode on from Hanoi to Sapa. We left at 9:55pm so we were able to sleep the whole way there since it was an 8 hour ride. Well the object of having a room with beds was so we could sleep....if anyone has been on a train you know what i am talking about. The ride is not so smooth!

This was our room. As you can see it was pretty small

This was the bar! So we were able to spend some time here instead of our "large room" In the back left corner is our new friends from Chicago! We met them on the train and then got to chat with them the few days that we were in the mountains

Water Puppets

2008-10-23T04:45:00.000-07:00

This is the theatre where we saw the water puppet show. It was very good! This started a long long time ago as entertainment for the king. There was a story but since it was in Vietnamese we did not understand the whole thing. But it was still very good!

These were the people singing and playing instruments during the show

The people came out from behind the screen to show how the puppets move

This is the crew that it took to make the show happen

Hanoi

2008-10-22T07:08:00.000-07:00

a mock tomb

this is a tomb that was recreated...no one was really in it! But these statues were for good luck and long life...pretty graphic! we did not stay in this area very long!
What? Did you say something?

This is called a Long House. And as you can see it is a long house. Starts out with mom, dad and the kids, then when the kids get married they make the house longer and they move into that part...have kids, and so on.

This was our tour guide in Hanoi. He was Grey's best friend instantly
This is called a cyclo. We went on a 1 hour cyclo ride. We almost got run over a few times by oncoming traffic...well the traffic moving in all directions. The kids fell asleep!
This is how they do it here. Run out of hands so you stick it on you head.

Hanoi Hilton

2008-10-22T06:50:00.000-07:00

I am missing pictures from the prison but here are a few. This one is a sign out in front stating this was a prison built in the 1940's and was also used in the "American War" for the pilots that were captured. They had beds and pj's...unlike the previous vietnam prisoners that were there.
Piece of a B-52 that was shot down
Hopefully our next President...visiting the prison where he was once held.
Another picture of McCain being treated after being shot down and captured. Half of the prison was torn down so we just had pictures to look at of where the Americans were held.

Our Trip to North Vietnam

2008-10-22T05:21:00.000-07:00

Oh where can I begin. A few weeks ago we decided that we were going to take a 7 day trip to North Vietnam. With the help of our friend Trung (i travel), we were all set for take off! We had a wonderful time!!! There was a lot to see in Hanoi (the capital of Vietnam) Lots of history there! Then we took a train to Sapa and spent a few days in the mountains. I never imagined that people still live the way these groups of people live. Some people stay in the mountains and never go to the village. The women make clothes, blankets and purses to sell at the local market and speak pretty good english. They can all say "Buy from Me???" They would repeat most of the things i said. Thats how they learn english. Then we finished off the trip on a boat in Ha Long bay. The pictures do not even compare to how it really was!!!! We will definitely go back!!! So enjoy the pics!!!!! I tried to pic out some favorites out of about 500...

Handmade Quilts and Country school

2008-10-12T01:58:00.000-07:00

In Vietnam there is an organization called Vietnam Quilts. All of the money made goes back to this community to help them survive and keep the children in school. Some ladies work alone or some in groups. They can also work at home if they have enough experience. Most of the ladies work all day, and some work part time. These quilts are absolutely amazing. These ladies get a lot of training before they are able to work. If there is 1 mistake it has to be corrected before being sold. Each group has a leader that designates what pattern they will do. The office in the city has a book of all of the quilts you can order. It takes about 5-6 weeks for one to be made for you. It usually takes a solid 20 days to complete a quilt once it is started. They also make things like computer bags, yoga mat covers, Christmas ornaments, place mats, wallets, purses.... They all have so much detail and most of these ladies move very fast! After visiting the ladies making quilts we went to the local school there. The kids have to demonstrate each week how to brush their teeth and get a fluoride rinse. They do this to make sure most of the kids are at least doing it once a week (omg!) And to make sure they are doing it the right way. The kids were so happy to see us and were not camera shy at all!! They all wanted their picture taken. We were really impressed when we heard the sound of a drum and all of the kids got in lines in front of their classes. They each had a tooth brush and a cup with water. They brushed their teeth and then they each got a little cup with the fluoride rinse. They were very proud to show us that they knew what they were doing! Each class had about 30 students. Very cute kids!!! It was a perfect ending to our long day!

NGO

2008-10-12T01:32:00.000-07:00

This is 3 hours North east of the city. "The countryside" There is an organization called Non Government Organization that goes to these homes, does an assessment, and gives them small loans. These families are visited 3 times a month by the organization and pay back their loans. Everyone is more than willing to work so they can make money to keep their family alive. Since they are on this type of program they are able to send their children to school. As you can see, these houses are not made very well. No real doors to close and no glass windows. The house in the first picture has 9 family members living in it. The lady is the oldest, she is 71. They raise pigs and sell pepper to make money. This pig was the biggest pig I have ever seen! They also had a few cows roaming in the yard...but I am not sure if they were pets (for dinner) or just roaming around....and as you can see they just have dirt roads. These people were just as interested in us as we were of them. very friendly, happy people. I wish everyone in America (the non working government funded ones) would be able to see what these people have to do to survive instead of just waiting for a hand out by the government. This was an eye opening experience!!!!

Calling All Cashew Lovers!!!!!!

2008-10-11T23:08:00.000-07:00

This week I went on a little outing with 21 other ladies. We drove 3 hours North to an area that is not so fortunate. These people are not looking for hand outs...instead they do whatever they can to survive. This group of people shell cashews and get them ready to go to the factory. Each worker makes about 38,000 Dong a day. Sooo roughly $2.25. We were told that this is enough money to support their family. In the first picture is all of the empty shells. I forgot how many tons of shells they go through in 1 day...but I know it was a lot! The kid in the picture is 12 years old. This does not fall in the category of child labor. The mother was sitting at the same table. Since mom has to work all day and school is only until 11am, the child goes with her to work so she stays out of trouble and not roaming the streets. The way they shell them is with a foot pedal. They work very fast because the ones they shell are weighed and this is how they get paid. So if you are having a slow day...less money you get! Did I mention this was in an open building with NO air conditioning. They had a few fans but none of them were on! We were able to taste some and without being processed and salted...they taste more like a walnut. Once they have a certain amount, the cashews are then brought to a factory where they are made so pretty and tasty and then off to everywhere in the world. So now you know the process..The Making of a cashew!

Just a little update....

2008-10-09T06:50:00.000-07:00

Well everything has been going pretty good over here. Eating good food...meeting great people from all over the world. The kids are having a good time at school and meeting kids in the neighborhood. Natalie is taking Tae Kwon Do classes again. Mr Phuc is a great teacher and he keeps the class in order. If the kids get out of line they have to stand off to the side and do 40 knee jumps! Grey likes to watch the class and pretend he is part of it! He is still too young to take the class for real! Roller blades seem to be popular with the kids here so Natalie had to get a pair. She is pretty good now. The first day of practice, she skated for 5 hours. The next morning when she got out of bed she sat on the floor saying she could not walk because her feet hurt too bad! We told her it was going to be that way but she did not believe us...we are parents, we do not know anything! Grey has been a very picky eater and just recently has started to try new things. We have a star fruit tree outside and he would never try them...then out of the blue, he came up to me with one in his hands and was taking bites out of it like there was no tomorrow! So now he thinks we really are not trying to trick him when we tell him things taste good and he would really like it! I only ask one time if he wants to try and then let him think it was his idea to try it...and Voila!!! Tomorrow they get to dress up like someone they want to be when they grow up. Grey decided he wants to be a rock star. So I will definitely have new pics to post tomorrow! Natalie has to dress as a giant because she is in a play tomorrow! Then....next week we are going on a fabulous trip to North Vietnam. Hanoi, Ha Long Bay and Sapa. If anyone knows a thing or 2 about the war that took place here...Hanoi is famous for the prison that was nick named "The Hanoi Hilton" I am excited that we will get to see so much history! SO be on the look out for some spectacular pictures!!!! I also found out today that there is a little trick or treat action that happens in our compound! I am very excited. Still no pumpkins so we will have to get creative with the other fruits that grow here!!! We hope everyone is well and we miss all of you!!!

itsy bitsy teenie weenie....

2008-10-09T06:24:00.000-07:00

Last week I went to the Ming Long factory. This is where they sell their local china. They had an area upstairs with hundreds and hundreds of these little tiny figures. Since my children adore these things i had to search through them all. They were anywhere from $0.25 to $1.00 I had a lot of fun and can not wait to bring Natalie back to get more! They are all hand painted. They have just about any little thing you can imagine!!! I will go back before we come in town for Christmas so if anyone is interested.....just let me know!

Mekong Delta Adventure

2008-09-24T06:55:00.000-07:00

This weekend we decided to take a little adventure. First we drove (well the driver brought us) about 1.5 hours away to the Mekong River. We got a tour guide and a tour for all of us for $30. Our tour guide referred to himself as Uncle Henry. The kids really liked him! We got in a boat and went to Turtle Island first. About 400 people live there. They make money by selling the fruit that grows there. We walked across the island (not very big) and got on another boat that took us to Coconut Island...which is described below. Then after that we got in these little boats and went through a canal. No engines on these things. There was a person in the front and a person in the back with paddles. They did not seem to mind since this is their income. At the end of the tour we got back on the boat we started with and had a coconut drink served in a coconut. Then when we were finished they cracked it open and made a spoon with part of the shell so we could eat the meat of the coconut. Very exciting day for all of us! There are a few more islands that we did not go to...due to it being another tour. So I am sure we will go back soon to the other islands!

Coconut Island

2008-09-24T06:35:00.000-07:00

If I remember the story correctly...I think 4000 people live on Coconut Island and they make their money by selling....coconut products. Natalie helped the process of making coconut candy. Very good stuff. They even use the shells to keep the fire going under the pot. The first picture is of the kids standing next to the local taxi. Yes it is a donkey...and he brought us down the road to the bee farm where we had hot tea and very fresh honey. That is when we purchased coconut spoons, a coconut tea set, coconut candy, dried coconut pieces and coconut sugar coated peanuts. Oh and the name of the yellow fruit is a Jackfruit. Have not tried that one yet. Im sure we will soon enough!

2008-09-24T06:07:00.000-07:00

More pictures of our adventure. Natalie was scared but willing to touch the snake. Grey was as far away from it as Danny was!!! The animal in the pic is a water buffalo. He was just hanging out on the island. At the end of the hot rainy day...Grey said he had a "very great day!"

FULL MOON FESTIVAL

2008-09-13T06:08:00.000-07:00

Last night was the Full Moon Festival. For the past few weeks the kids have been learning about the vietnamese culture and the celebration of the full moon. Traditionally...the kids go all through the streets with a lantern and people give food and gifts to the children. They also celebrate by eating moon cake. So the kids made their own lantern at school. Natalie made the star and Grey made the boat. The first performance was from the K, 1st and 2nd graders. They sang a song and did a dance. I also filmed this occasion as I took pictures. I am a multi-tasker!! I did not get a good picture of Natalie because she was in the back row. After that we walked to the front of the school and watched a wonderful performance. There were drummers, stunt people, dancing dragons and the all lit up dancing dragon at the end. As soon as my battery is charged up on the video camera I will down load it to you tube and email the link. We all had a really great time! It can be so much fun learning the different culture!!!

I also want to take a time out for those affected by IKE. I have been keeping tabs online...looks like no power for my houston friends for a while. I wish everyone well and hope that you did not get too much damage!

Things found in my back yard today!

2008-09-11T06:39:00.000-07:00

Pictures of the house WITH furniture

2008-09-11T06:08:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of the house with things actually in it! We were able to move in August 26th. The furniture in the bedroom is for Natalie. It is all hand made and for a very good price. The bamboo furniture was also made here for a really good price! The little screen on the wall is a door bell with a monitor attached to it. SO when someone rings the bell we can see who it is. We usually have the gate closed so you have no choice but to ring the bell so we can see who is there and talk to them as well. The house has a ton of windows so we rarely have any lights on during the day. We have also come to the conclusion that the wood floors are VERY slippery...I have slipped down the stairs twice already! So the rule is "NO SOCKS ON IN THE HOUSE" unless you are playing slip and slide as the kids call it!

Our new friends in Vietnam

2008-09-11T05:47:00.000-07:00

These are our Vietnamese friends that help life much easier over here. Hanh (the lady) is the one that cleans, cooks, watches the kids when needed and does so much more than expected. She does not know english but it is amazing how well we can communicate. The kids..well me included...enjoy her freshly squeezed orange juice and everything else that she makes! She would always have these star fruits cut up for me and I had no idea where they were coming from until she showed me that I have a fruit tree in my yard. Abby REALLY likes having her around because she feeds her things that she is not use to getting. (surprised she is still eating her dog food) She is 50 years old and is married and has a few children. She goes home on Sunday mornings and returns on Monday morning. The next guy is our driver Hao. He has lived here his whole life so he knows every street and what they sell on every street! He is married and has a 5 year old daughter. SO we have been passing things on from Natalie and she loves everything we give her. He has introduced us to several new fruits! He speaks very good english. We have to talk a little slower so he understands what we are saying...He lets me know when he has no idea what I am talking about! We have a picture book that has english words and vietnamese words! The last guy is Nam. He is the gardener and the pool man. He does a very fine job! We have some really wonderful plants and trees all around the house. And I think we have the cleanest pool in Vietnam! rain or shine and he is scrubbing away. He can write english better than he speaks it. We have been really blessed to have such wonderful people working for us!

Vietnamese Celebration

2008-09-03T05:32:00.000-07:00

We were invited to spend the afternoon at our driver's in laws house.(Hao is the one in the picture with Natalie) I agreed to going knowing we would be the only ones there that knew how to speak english. When we arrived everyone came out to see "the new puppies in the window" That is what I felt like since everyone was gawking at us! They were smiling and talking vietnamese so we had no idea what all was being said about us...one of them even got her camera and took a picture of us!! The kids kept asking why were they all looking at us like we just stepped off of the mother ship! After a few minutes it was back to normal. Hao's wife is from a family of 8 girls and 1 boy. And then all of the girls had baby girls...so there were lots of girls at this one house. A younger guy was sitting on the couch across from us and said it was his first time going to the house as well. WOW SOMEONE SPOKE ENGLISH!!! He was very friendly and said he has been to Houston a few times and also to California to perform. So after many questions as to what he did...he is very popular here in Vietnam. He is in a band and was on a reality TV show here...kinda like the show "Making the Band" So they have made about 10 records so far. He is the guy playing the guitar in the video! The guy singing is the father in law of our driver. The more he drank..the more red his face turned!!! Oh I forgot to mention that part...When we sat down to eat...they opened a bottle of champagne and once that was gone we started drinking beer (bia as they call it) It seemed like with every sip someone took we had to toast. What we were toasting to I had no idea...So i kept toasting and kept drinking. Natalie was being a good sport at trying anything they put in front of her...even the steamed squid! Ok so once dinner was over with...father in law asked me if I Karaoke...I thought he asked if I knew what it was....So the next thing I knew he was pulling out his fancy system and handed me a microphone and a book. LUCKY FOR ME...it was in vietnamese and I do not know how to speak it just yet!!! HA! So he took the stage! This will definitely be a celebration we will not forget! Too bad Danny had to miss it all since he is in Texas! Maybe next time they can all come over and we can watch them!!! (sorry no video...i could not get it to work...I will try to email it)

GECKOS and GUSTAV

2008-08-31T00:06:00.000-07:00

I thought that Geckos a.k.a. nasty little see thru alien lizards...were over populating Texas and Louisiana...but then they were everywhere in Dubai...and they are everywhere in Vietnam as well. I can not escape them! And I really find them disgusting (grey's word) People here like to save energy and turn their AC off and open all of the windows...windows here do not have screens...so I apologize to the earth now because I will not invite the creatures to come and go as they please!
I hope all of our family and friends stay safe during Hurricane Gustav! Especially those of you in the New Orleans area! Please say an extra prayer for the Rougeou Family since they are at Children's Hospital with their new baby girl.
I promise to have new pics posted this week. I have not been taking many pictures...I am trying to learn my surroundings with my eyes instead of the camera lens!!! We miss you all...

$$$

2008-08-24T03:57:00.001-07:00

Grey was in serious need for a hair cut so we went to the place next door to the hotel and it cost so much money...only kidding...It was $1.20 and Natalie HAD to have her fingernails and toenails painted and they charged me $0.60 Today while we were walking around the city I found several spas that charge $7-10 for massage and facials. So tomorrow while the kids are in school will be MOMMY"S DAY!!! I hope everyone is well...

2008-08-20T02:03:00.000-07:00

Move your cursor over the pictures and you will see a description!

2008-08-20T01:45:00.000-07:00

BubbleShare: Share photos - Play some Online Games.

First Day of School

2008-08-20T01:36:00.000-07:00

The first day of school in a foreign country can make one very nervous. As you can see Grey chewing away at his fingernails waiting for our driver. Once he got there we met the teacher and started making fish...a distraction so I could make a run for it! He did very well with no crying. Now today was a little different. He was fine until I had to pry away my fingers from the death grip they were in....But we all know what happens once mom is gone...the show is over and the crying stops! On Mondays and Fridays they wear the same uniform. The rest of the days Natalie wears the cute little dress. They match the colors of the school...blue, white and orange! So far so good!!!

2008-08-18T01:14:00.000-07:00

Well it has been a few days since I last told some stories. I will post the pics later. We have been furniture shopping the past few days and it is nothing like shopping in the states! There was 1 store that was pretty big but they just had a bunch of leather couches...in different colors. Then the next place we went to did not have anything that we would even think about...then another place and another place....you get the picture. The stores other than the 1 big one, were very small...like smaller than your living room small. We then found a place near our house that was very pleasant...with hand made furniture. We managed to find a bedroom set for Natalie and we will get more stuff down the road. So we are still on the hunt for a few more things.
We went out to eat at a Vietnamese BBQ place. We sat at a table that has a burner in the middle and a propane tank under the table. We had a great time. We had a local with us so she took care of the ordering. We cooked our own food that was already seasoned! We also had some steamed clams that Natalie was slurping out of the shell. The shrimp came out on wooden skewers and they were still moving. (Please no one get mad at us...the kids had a good time) Well I guess you can guess what happened next....We had several little bowls of different seasonings and sauces. My favorite was the salt pepper and lime juice! Very yummy!
Today was the first day of school for Natalie and Grey. Natalie was excited but Grey did not want to put on his uniform and kept shouting that he was not going!!! Well once we got his clothes on and his book sack on his back...he was fine. He had a great day and wants to go back...so I guess he had a great time with Ms Emily. Natalie also had a great day. She only has 12 kids in her class and 1 other girl. So I am sure she will get more attention than necessary! We had the option of packing a lunch from home every day or pay the restaurant that caters. Of course we took the easy route. They have an awesome menu! I wish I was having lunch with them!
It has been raining every day! Today a lot of the streets were flooded. I don't think they have a very good drainage system. I felt really sorry for the people on motorbikes. They were getting soaked! There are soooo many vendors on the streets selling ponchos...They have all colors if anyone wants to place an order!!! We are hoping for no rain tomorrow because we are out of fruit and the best place to get it is on the side streets from the little ladies on their bikes. I will take pics tomorrow if it is not raining. Well I hope everyone is doing well. We are having a great time learning about this different culture!!!

2008-08-15T01:31:00.000-07:00

Does anyone need any bricks delivered to their house? I found a guy that will do it for pretty cheap! Or does anyone need to transport their family anywhere? This vehicle will take groups of 6 and higher!!! (I think there were 7 or 8 people in there)

China Town

2008-08-15T01:19:00.000-07:00

We decided to take a ride to Chinatown. It is one of the districts here. LOTS of people in the streets. There are hundreds of little shops lining all of the main streets and alleys. They seem to have different sections because we saw a lot of fruit in one area and a lot of art in another area and a whole street of fabric. And a lot of junk in between! Kinh Do is a cake that is very popular. They have these big stands on almost every corner. With the sweet tooth we all have I am sure it will not be long before we try it. I did not want to get out and walk without Danny because there were a lot of people and I would rather get lost with him than by myself with 2 kids. It was a neat place to see!

Ho Chi Minh City

2008-08-15T00:32:00.000-07:00

This is Notre Dame Cathedral. It was built in the 18th century and still has service on Sunday. We will have to make a visit there this weekend. (say some prayers for Grey starting school)

Our First Sites when we arrived

2008-08-09T21:35:00.001-07:00

The bowl of soup is what they call Pho. They have a few places in Houston that have it...I have not seen it in Lafayette. Anyway...you get a huge bowl of noodle soup with chicken or beef and then they give you things on the side to add to it (spices, herbs, bean sprouts...) It was very good. The best place to eat Pho is on the back street of the hotel we are in so I will try it today and let you guys know the outcome. The little brown fruits are a local fruit that Natalie can not get enough of. They have a weird texture once they are peeled but taste like grapes..sweet ones! There are several other local fruits we did not find at the grocery store but can be found at the market. So we will try to go there today if weather permits. The high has been around 88 degrees...so a big change from the states and Dubai!!! It has been raining here for 30 days straight but we have not seen any since we have been here. This is getting close to the end of rainy season...lucky us! I can not imagine what a typhoon looks like! Hope you guys are enjoying the scenery!!!

2008-08-09T21:13:00.000-07:00

The first picture is the little supermarket down the street from our house...the next one is of a gas station on the corner of the street you turn on to get to our house. Notice the power lines...and these look good compared to the rest of the city where there are 100 power lines forced together. The next pics are of Natalies school and this lady must be the street cleaner!!! I am sure we will get hats like hers the first place we see them for sale!!!

Our new casa

2008-08-09T20:55:00.000-07:00

So here are some more pictures of the house. The kids have found a few hiding places inside...which may not be such a good thing! We got to meet the gardener yesterday. He is going to be working every day except for Sunday. He comes to our house in the morning and the neighbors house in the afternoon. I think our house has a total of 7 bathrooms! And we have a steam room by the pool. The other houses are the neighbors. The Chinese house is right in front ours and the other one is across from the side of our house. We live on a corner so we can see several houses looking out of the side. The stone walkway goes all around the house with lots of flowers and plants. The sign with the silver letters is the entrance sign to our little neighborhood. Most of the roads are gravel but they are suppose to make them black top roads soon. We will get to move there in a few weeks. We were told that the port is backed up! nice. The picture of the blue/green box is the box I spoke of in my last blog. This is our generator if the electricity goes out. Everyone has one since it is common for the lights to go out here. The power lines look like a nightmare to me! But this place is considered 3rd world so they get what they can take!!!

HO CHI MINH CITY

2008-08-09T07:39:00.000-07:00

Today I am considering to be our first real day here. Yesterday..due to all of the traveling was a blur to us all. We started the day by getting in our Toyota mini van with our driver Hao . I will never attempt to drive on these streets! As soon as I get my pictures downloaded you will know just what I am talking about. We got to see Natalie and Greys school first and Grey still insist that he is not going to school. Then we went to our house. The gardener was there and he seems to be very nice. (We do not know his name) The flowers and plants look amazing so I guess we will keep him. In the garage there was this huge blue box with a bunch of Vietnamese writing except for the all caps bold word : DIESEL...When I asked what this was for...well it is a generator for when the electricity goes out. Apparently this is a common thing here. I mean, there are only 10 million people here soaking up every ounce of electricity offered. The lights even went out at the hotel for a minute today...and so did the street lights but no one seemed to care...everyone just kept driving in 1 million directions...next was our grocery store visit. Nothing was in English!!!! we had to guess at things and we recognized a few brands so that helped. The bill was $1,676,872.00 The exchange rate is $1 = 16,580.00 dong. So it was around $100.00 We needed some basic things and also got some new things to try. It was hot in there so we tried to hurry. We did manage to get some Tiger Beer and some wine!!! We picked up Pizza Hut on the way home! The pizza was the same but they also have some shrimp things wrapped in potato strings...I can't explain it but they were very good. We took the kids for a walk and there are so many places to eat it is hard to choose one. We had our first experience with a vendor. She was an older lady with some kind of fruit (looked like a brown potato on a branch) and the kids stopped to look at what she had. Well she peeled one and Natalie was the first to try it..(Danny tried them on his last visit here in July) Of course she liked them very much and we had to buy the bundle from her. It was $2 for the whole bundle. I took a picture and will post it later when I locate my cord for my camera. Oh we also met a guy from California who loved the LSU shirt I had on! He is retired and has been here for 6 years... (he must have had some voodoo put on him) SO...I guess we have survived our first real day here in Vietnam. I cant wait to show pictures so you can see all of these things I speak of. Signing off for now!

Leaving the USA

2008-07-30T21:32:00.000-07:00

Well the day has come and we must return to Danny and Abby (the dog) I came here with 2 suitcases and a duffle bag I was forced to use at the airport because my bags were over 50 pounds...anyway, I am going back with 3 suitcases and 2 duffle bags. I did not buy that much stuff while I was here...did I??? We will fly back to Dubai on Saturday 8/2 and then fly to Vietnam 8/7. Once we are settled I will post new pics and find a new name for my blog as "Davidson's in Dubai" will no longer be so true. Im sure I will come up with something! I hope everyone is well. I am so glad we got to spend time with everyone! We will be back for Christmas. Everyone will be missed soooooo much! Keep in touch!

WE ARE ON THE MOVE.....

2008-07-15T15:03:00.001-07:00

Well if you have not already heard the news....We will be moving to Ho chi minh City, Vietnam. AKA Saigon. Natalie is already enrolled in the Australian International Academy and Grey will go to the same school 3 days a week. Danny is there now and said dinner cost a few american $$$ and they have really good food! He did a great job finding a great house for us. It is in a compound with about 20 other houses with a security guard. It is 3 story with a pool. The kids are very excited and can not wait to get there. It was not fun having to tell the parents that we were on the move again...but we are only moving another 7 hours (flight time) away...I will also have a personal driver. Most people ride mopeds and Danny already has his picked out. We are looking forward to the adventure. We fly back to Dubai August 2 and will fly to Vietnam some time between the 5th-8th. As soon as I know I will let everyone else know!!!! We will be back at Christmas. We are at the beach in Gulf Shores for this week...oh and today is my birthday!!!! It is sad turning 29...again!!!

more pictures of Vietnam house

2008-07-15T14:58:00.000-07:00

Gone fishin'

2008-07-12T20:19:00.000-07:00

We have been having soooo much fun that we have not had a chance to update the blog. We went to Uncle Jeffry's house and went fishing with crickets and worms! We also got to play with his dogs...Max, Bubba and Grasshopper. After playing for about 4 hours we did not smell so good!!! Our next trip is the beach. We will send new pictures very soon!!!! Hope everyone is well...

2008-06-24T17:32:00.000-07:00

WE MADE IT TO THE U.S. THE FLIGHT WAS NOT SO GREAT...BUT AT LEAST NO SCREAMING AND CRYING.....CAN'T WAIT TO SEE EVERYONE!!!!!

1 more mall....

2008-06-22T05:11:00.001-07:00

Yes guys...here it is...the moment you have all been waiting for! Pictures of another mall!!! This mall is on beach road and is small but very nice. This is where Grey got his new fancy har cut. Danny has had it with the malls. Little does he know but at the end of summer when we return 2 more malls are opening. The Mall of Dubai is suppose to be....guess???? The biggest mall ever!!! I dont know what it is with this place but they want to have the biggest everything! Sounds to me like someone has little man syndrome!!!!

Grey's New haircut

2008-06-22T05:02:00.001-07:00

Grey was in great need of a haircut if you could not tell from any of the previous pictures. So we went to a new mall...yes another mall...and got a hair cut. He only wanted a small trim so he could see without wearing sisters hair bands! When the guy was finished he put lots of gel (just like his) and then started spraying all of these colors in his hair....yes sister was mad because it was not fair for him to get that and look like a punk rocker, and not her! Needless to say he will be getting another hair cut very soon when Daddy is not around.

2008-06-22T04:56:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of Burj Dubai a.k.a. tallest building in the world...It looks quite different than the previous picture I posted due to dust and sand flying around. It has been very bad the past few days. It is hard to see anything in the distance. Today was a little clearer. I am told that at least we can see in front of our face as these dust/sand storms can get pretty bad. We are in the middle of the desert, if anyone forgot! The kids have been coughing and my contacts are glued to my eyes! Gotta love the desert!!!

SKI DUBAI

2008-06-16T01:44:00.000-07:00

Well here is our first experience at Ski Dubai. We had a lot of fun! Natalie had a private lesson and did pretty good for her first try. I am not sure if he taught her how to stop. She said he did but she was not showing any signs of knowing how to!!! She decided after an hour of lessons that she was ready to go down the mountain, so her and Danny went up....and she eventually made it down after a few falls...but no broken bones...and wanting more lessons! The mountain has a few different slopes to go down and they start at Blue...no greens for the new skiers. It was pretty cold in there! (how else are they going to make snow and ice) For being in the desert...you would have never known it in there. It was very real and they even had hot chocolate....Grey and I played in the snow park. They had a bob sled area, tubing and areas to climb so you could see the whole place. It is connected to a mall so there are lots of restaurants with a view. I felt like we were in a snow globe because there are lots of people standing on the outside looking in! The cost was not too bad. About $45 to ski for 2 hours and $20 to play in the snow park. After a couple of hours of the cold, we were ready to get back to the desert heat! So if anyone wants to come for a visit...we can show you how to ski in the desert! The t-shirts said: The Coolest thing to do in Dubai...i would have to agree!!!

2008-06-16T01:13:00.000-07:00

BubbleShare: Share photos - Find great Clip Art Images.

2008-06-15T01:21:00.000-07:00

These are some pictures we took when we went to a hotel Habtoor Grand. It is a very nice, always booked hotel on the beach. One of the guys Danny works with was staying there so we went for a visit. Guest have to pay 225 dhs ($61 US ) to visit the beach and the pool. And that is per person. Danny gave him enough money for one and that was accepted! The kids enjoyed the water slides for 4 hours! They have a swim up bar that is pretty nice too! One of the pictures at the end is a picture of The Atlantis being built on The Palm. It looks far away because it is! The Palm is going to be really big. There are hundreds of men out there everyday all day working on getting this thing finished! The wind has been pretty fierce lately so the red flags were out on the beach. The waves were huge! The life guards will not let you go too far out b/c a few people have drowned in the past month. The last time we went to the beach is was so calm there were really no waves! The Peacock must be a pet on the resort. It was just walking around like it owned the place. We heard that the few days prior to our visit they had a few camels on the beach and were offering rides! Too bad we missed that!!!! We will go on a desert safari when it gets a little cooler...like in October!

Belly Dancer

2008-06-15T01:12:00.000-07:00

Natalie has been seeing these lovely outfits everywhere and she just had to have one! So finally we went somewhere that had them. She wore it all day! It kept her entertained...she was singing and dancing for several hours. I'm sure when she gets home from school today it will be right back on!

Camel Milk...want some?

2008-06-11T23:45:00.001-07:00

So if you can not read the bottle double click on the picture to see it better. Yes it says Camelicious ... Camel Milk. So when I saw this in the store...I had to get some. I did not get to taste it...shucks...but the kids did!!!! ha!!! Natalie went first...and she made a face but said it did not taste that bad and it really taste like regular milk. So then Grey had some...and he said it taste like blueberries...(he says that when he gives kisses as well) So the neighbor, Ethan, came over...and well i got him involved as well. He said he had never tried it so...he did today...and I told him to make a face for the camera...and I guess he liked it! I do not think we will be buying this on a regular basis...We will stick to cow's milk...oh and it was very cheap! I think it was 20 cents...So the final report....the kids agree that it is not....Camelicious!

Dannys trip to Singapore

2008-06-09T04:22:00.001-07:00

Last week Danny had to travel to Malaysia and Singapore. The rig that is here will be going to Miri at the end of October. So Danny and the rig manager, Doug went for a visit. I am sure we will not move there because the school is only open for Shell employees and not for the people they contract. And I am not a home school teacher....nor do I want to be....and to all that are...good for you!!! My kids know how to take advantage of me and they would not learn like they are suppose to! While Danny was there he said he had the best fried rice ever!!!! He said the food is very good and they serve noodles, noodles, and more noodles...very good ones! Maybe we will get to go for a visit. It took all day to get there...It was a 7 1/2 hour flight from here to Singapore and then they had to wait 8 or 9 hours to get on the next flight to KL, then another hour on a flight to Miri....They are 4 hours ahead of us...so 13 hours ahead of you guys in the U.S. For fun they go running in the Jungle... Anyway....he said it is a pretty nice place!

TKD

2008-06-09T03:37:00.001-07:00

Natalie is officially a Blue Belt!!! She has worked very hard and is very proud of herself.(so are we!) Sometimes she does not like to go to practice...but she also wants to stick to her goal of becoming a Black Belt so she can teach classes. The guy standing with her is her instructor. He calls her "his little champion" At class he always ask Grey if he wants to get out there with sister, but he tries to hide behind me and act shy. He likes going to watch his big sister! He is proud of her too!!!

2008-06-05T00:01:00.000-07:00

Natalie decided that it was time to cut her hair short! I do not blame her because I will be doing the same thing due to the heat...This morning I really felt like we were melting because the humidity was just like TX and LA. It is usually pretty dry here!
Grey decidied that he wants some goggles for the beach and the pool. He said he does not think he is ready to go under water but in case he does he will be ready! So he picked out these! I told him the purpose was to keep your eyes open...so he wore them for a while around the house.

Gas in the U.S.

2008-06-03T21:45:00.000-07:00

Well since I received my 3rd email regarding the gas prices I figured I should comment. I agree that all of the money is coming here to make this a paradise everyone will want to come to....And I will also add that we have a SUV and it cost about $27.00 to fill up and someone pumps your gas for you and washes your windshield...I'm sorry, I just had to rub it in a little!!!! I will go into shock when I have to fill up this summer over there!!! c'ya soon!

DAY AT THE POOL...

2008-06-03T00:33:00.000-07:00

Here we are at the pool again!!! When the temp gets up to 110 we try to stay cool...Grey is now swimming around the pool with his floaters and sometimes with just a ring float..(he use to be afraid to let go of me) The other girls in the pool are usually the only other people at the pool. One girl is from Canada and the others from Boston...but parents are from Lebanon. Natalie is only wearing goggles that cover her eyes instead of her "magic" ones that covered her nose too! I say magic because she would not put her head under water unless she had the mask on...But now that the bigger girls only wear the ones that cover the eyes...well you know the saying "monkey see monkey do" Now Grey wants goggles...it will be a while before he goes under without me pinching his nose!!! We are also conting down the days for the big flight home!!! We can not wait to see everyone!!!!

Messing around with macro lens...i need a teacher!

2008-06-03T00:26:00.000-07:00

Children's City

2008-06-03T00:08:00.000-07:00

These are some pics from our day at childrens city. It reminds me of the childrens museum in Lafayette but a little bigger and much more to do. (and i do not think they have a wooden camel to ride on there) We went when natalie was at school so she was not very happy with us. I convinced her that we had to check it out first before we paid for all of us to go! It worked! Anyway...we had a great time and it made grey tired! They have an area where you can try on clothes that people wear in other countries and grey would not participate...I know Natalie will so I will make sure I put pictures of that.

Grey going a little crazy

2008-06-03T00:01:00.000-07:00

grey was standing on a desk so he could see Natalie get off of the bus....and he got tired of waiting so he decided to start dancing...i guess to the music playing in his head!!!

The mall again...

2008-05-25T23:56:00.001-07:00

As you can see we like to frequent the mall...yesterday was 107 degrees so not much to do outside, not to mention the wind was blowing so hard we could not see the high rises 1/2 mile away (due to flying sand) Grey kept saying "gosh its foggy outside"....So this is the China section of the mall. I have to send pics of the ceilings because they are so neat. It must have taken a lot of hard work to make this mall with all of the small details. There is a huge boat with a fountain in front of it...the kids were inside this little area that has big tv screens inside showing the ocean, fish and sharks swimming around...the kids love it....Natalie was out of school yesterday so we went to the movies. It was $8 a person to get in...including grey...But the snacks were $8 as well for Popcorn, large coke, big bag of m&m's and 2 packs of sour skittles....so i will not complain about the entrance fee...This was a really nice theater...when you buy your tickets you get to look at a seating chart and pick where you want to sit. So it is like buying tickets to a concert. It did not matter though because we were the first to walk in...4 other people came in a few minutes later... we watched Nims Island....very good movie. Grey and natalie did not move the entire movie...Grey got a little emotional at 1 part when the girl could not find her father...i thought he was going to cry...It was a great movie. Anyway...28 more days and here we come!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-05-25T23:51:00.000-07:00

This is natalie's friend ethan. I am not sure if I ever put a picture of him ...he lives next door and they play together almost everyday. His dad is from new york and mom is from south africa. if natalie gets any darker she will look just like him!!!

2008-05-24T11:59:00.000-07:00

BubbleShare: Share photos - Find great Clip Art Images.

Scenes from the souk

2008-05-24T10:45:00.000-07:00

This is the big souk in Jumeriah. Great views of The Burj...and if you are wondering what that is...well it is the big hotel that is shaped like a sail and it is on an island. To stay there 1 night is $1500.00 I have only stayed there a few times this month!!! Hee hee!!! We will go to dinner one night...they might allow cameras! some places don't...

Shopping!!!!

2008-05-24T10:29:00.001-07:00

Today we went shopping and to the beach. I will talk about the shopping first. this place is on the beach and is very nice. It is a "souk" so it has a bunch of little shops in this one area. The picture to the left is a miniature restaurant in the desert. I do not plan on eating in the middle of the desert in this heat. Although today was only 94...so i will not complain. Natalie wanted to buy everything...so she started saying "I love this" instead of saying "I want this and have to have it" she did something right because her daddy got her a few things. She wanted the big lion she is next too but i didn't have enough cash on me to buy it!!! HA!!! They have boats that go through the souk but we did not go on them today because we were ready to go to the beach...If anyone would like a souvenir let me know because I do not mind going shopping again!!!!!

2008-05-22T11:34:00.000-07:00

These are some pics we took today. Someone mentioned to me that I was not posting enough pictures so I will start taking more of Dubai!!! Once i put them in the slideshow it cut off my descriptions...so just email me if you have any questions as to what you are looking at!!!

BubbleShare: Share photos - Powered by BubbleShare

Bon Jovi

2008-05-21T22:22:00.000-07:00

We can thank my new friend Krissy for some pics of the concert! Once again..it was a great show

2008-05-21T03:55:00.000-07:00

These are some paintings that we got at a Souk a few nights ago. The guy had just painted the one on the left and was starting the middle painting. We told him if he had it done by the time we finished dinner then we would buy it as well. As you can see...2 hours later, the painting was done. He was not using a paint brush...only a painters knife (not sure what it is called!) but it looks like a butter knife! He told me this was his hobby...he is a chemical engineer!

BON JOVI

2008-05-21T03:40:00.000-07:00

Yes we went to a bon Jovi concert last night in Abu Dhabi. It was awesome! We would have had some great pictures but I wanted to have a full battery for the camera and when we left the house I grabbed the camera and left the battery....Yes i wanted to die! But we met some nice stranger sitting next to us and he is going to email his pics to us...maybe!!! When that day comes I will share them! They sang every song that you know the words to! It was an outside stadium that holds about 20,ooo people and it was full. I am glad my neighbors convinced me to get the more expensive tickets with seats because the 2 sections that were standing room only were packed and it was slightly HOT outside. We were up in a stadium on the water so at least we had a breeze. The Scorpions are playing tomorrow night...we have not decided if we are going yet. BUT....we should be going to the beach this weekend so look out for new pics! Take care- jtd

Wild Wadi water Park

2008-05-17T23:04:00.001-07:00

Welcome to Wild Wadi Water Park! On friday we decided to go check out this water park. It cost as much as Big Kahuna's in Destin...but it is also in between the 2 biggest baddest hotels in Dubai. They had several water slides and lazy river and wave pool. Danny also got to "pretend surf" NO i did not have my camera to show everyone his skills! HA!!! There were so many people there and the crazy thing was the ladies were FULLY DRESSED. They had on long sleeved shirts and long pants and going down the water slides and playing in the wave pool....what are they thinking????? Not to mention it was 110 degrees! Anyway...we had a great time. In the picture is the Burj Hotel right behind us. We have not been there yet but we will soon! You cant just walk in!!! You have to be staying there or having dinner at one of the rest. Maybe that will be out next destination...without the kids! Tuesday we are going to see Bon Jovi at the Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi. I hear it is a very nice place...it should be since it is called a palace!!! I will have pics in a few days!

Christmas in May

2008-05-15T01:08:00.000-07:00

Well the kids received a package from Nonnie and Poppy and this is what was inside!!! We have all enjoyed eating this junk because we have not had this stuff since we moved here. They do have chocolates from different countries but thats it! None of this stuff has ever been heard of over here. We also got yogos and roll ups!!! We are so excited!!!! And if i did not mention a month ago...we received our first package from Aunt Anne full of fruit snacks and gushers!!! They are still eating those. The neighbor from South Africa probably went into sugar shock when he was here!!! I have started making a list of things that I need to bring back with me when I return this summer! xoxo

2008-05-15T00:54:00.000-07:00

Natalie has decided on her own to decorate the plain walls in her room. Aunt Anne mailed her and Grey some pictures to color. Can you guess which one she colored???? She also got some new soft pillow covers, and had so much fun stuffing them and making her own pillows.

Bath Time

2008-05-15T00:48:00.000-07:00

grey wanted everyone to see how he takes a bath. and also how he turnes into "grapes" (he is referring to his fingers and toes after being in the water for too long) AND we had to add a picture of natalie..could not leave her out!!!

Dubai under construction!

2008-05-11T01:25:00.001-07:00

Dubai decided that if they had a monterail going straight thru the city it would get less drivers on the road. So it will go for miles. So the main road here looks like this the whole way! They have also added cameras to take pictures of speed racers! We drive 70-80mph and then someone will just whiz by us...going at least 110! So we heard at the end of the year they send you pictures and a bill for traffic fines. I hope we never get one! I know i won't but the speed racer I live with might! His motto is to drive like the crazy people and you will be ok! Oh and the traffic is not this bad all of the time...there was a wreck up ahead....and everyone had to slow down to view the cars on the side (rubber necking)

Kids in the Mall

2008-05-11T01:19:00.000-07:00

More pics of the kids in the mall. It is very clean and on Friday it is almost empty!!! Good for us!

2008-05-11T01:14:00.000-07:00

More pics of the same mall. Grey loves this mall because if he is good he gets M&M's. And this is the hot air balloon that you can go in. It goes up in the air pretty high and then comes back down. We have not done this!

Mall

2008-05-11T01:09:00.000-07:00