March 20th

Wowee!!! I know it doesn't feel like "spring" for many of you back home, but today we found GRASS to play on and this traveling trio couldn't be more pleased.  It really does feel like the first day of spring on this beautiful campus in sunny, sunny Doha.  Nory is soaking it all in :)  (While the rest of us are soaking wet.....with sweat.....from chasing her...)  Sounds romantic, eh?

We flew out of Kuwait yesterday evening, after a whirlwind day of 65 sheep heart dissections, some VERY LAST-MINUTE PACKING (I threw hair clips and socks into my backpack as we headed out the door), and a one hour flight delay.  Nory rocked the flight (I keep holding my breath until the day she doesn't) and, despite having a live Falcon on board, the rest of us rocked it too!  We made it to our hotel by 9 and Nory crashed at 9:15.  She slept like a log until 5:58 this morning, too!  Phewf.

We have been at the tournament all day today - making friends, storming the court during half-time's, and playing with anything we can get our hands on.  The team definitely enjoys having Nory here and I think the other schools see her as some sort of a "team mascot".  I suppose that's a fitting description ;) Phil's team has been working hard but has yet to secure a "W".  They play again at 5:30, so please send all your warm wishes this way!

In other basketball news, with March Madness coming up, we are busy making our selections.  We found THE BEST thing online for kids/people-like-me.  You can find it HERE if you too would like to take this "March Madness" approach :)  I think the lady who invented it is a genius!

Wishing you all a happy first day of spring and an even happier "WORLD HAPPINESS DAY"!!!

XOXO

The First Rule of Fight Club: Don't Talk About It!

Today Girlie earned another war wound.  It happened while Phil and I were getting ready for school this morning, just after K-POP arrived.  We heard Nory start to cry in the other room and then an urgent knock on the bedroom door.  When I opened the door, there was a hysterical Kumari with a hysterical Nory - blood running down Nory's face and tears running down Kumari's.  Nory had slipped and fell on her "Busy Town" box toy and both parties were OUTTA CONTROL.  I, embarrassingly, added to the drama in this "OMG, DOES SHE NEED STITCHES?!" moment and my mind was torn between rushing to the hospital or quitting my job and firing the nanny.   Thank goodness Phil kept his cool (two thumbs up, Daddy!) and was able to settle Nory down (eventually!) and stop the blood too (eventually!).  No stitches.  Phewf.

I realize the whole thing was an accident.  Nory has gone through a growth spurt and she hasn't quite mastered the art of walking with that extra inch.   But in the moment, I didn't so much see it this way.  I was completely irrational and not very nice towards Kumari.  Cruella de Vil comes to mind.  I couldn't believe that Nory had now been injured TWO TIMES in less than a week - both times under Kumari's care.  It blew my mind.  I was convinced that she was being careless but in actuality, I think K-POP just ran into some really bad luck.....

These things could happen to ANYONE.  Nory moves about 100 miles per hour and has become a huge fan of running while shaking her head (where did she get this from?!).  She jumps from one activity to the next without warning and always manages to find the things with the greatest potential for danger to be the most interesting.  It's impossible to shield her from every sharp edge or slippery surface.  She's a mover and a shaker and the scratches, bumps, bruises, and fat lips are all part of growing up....RIGHT?!

Too bad I didn't approach this morning's situation from this realistic stand point.  After crying it out in the bedroom, I got ready for work and then came out to apologize to Kumari and give her a hug.  I explained to her that it wasn't her fault and that it's happened to me before too.  I know she does a good job and loves Nory like her own.  Phil echoed my concerns and we distracted Nory with toys before rushing off to work. 

ANYWAYS.

When your kid has an injury that is visible to others, the horror of the incident goes on forever.  "Oh no!  What happened?!"  "Where did that come from, Nory?!"  "Ouch.  That must have hurt!"  These are the remarks we heard at tonight's basketball game.  It drove me CRAZY!  But, rather than pulling another Cruella, I decided to diverge from the original tale with a simple "first rule of fight club" comment.  Turns out there is a God and his name is Brad Pitt.  Worked.  Like.  Magic.  Haha.

Oh parenting.  I really do think you're making me a better person.  But at the same time, it's become very apparent that I'm a flawed woman!    

Some of the things we did this weekend (when we weren't watching basketball).....

Watched the hallway streamers blow in the wind.  (And discussed the fact that after you do something, you CLEAN UP.  Ah-hem, A/C Repair Man!) 

Went for a BEAUTIFUL walk along the water.  (Is there such a thing as an UN-BEAUTIFUL WALK ALONG THE WATER?  I don't think so!).  Nory made many friends and clapped for every runner we passed!

Enjoyed some apple pie in honour of Pi day.  It's become an annual tradition for Cathy and I :)

Had brunch at the IHOP.  Nory was given a VIP tour around the place by the various hostesses.  Hence why her spot at the table appears empty. 

Nory played near/on just about everything that I wished she didn't.  Odds of that metal thing collapsing and Nory falling deep into a dark hole?  Ugh.  Remember where we are, people!

Collected some leaves at our new school campus and did a really bad job of dodging puddles.  I suppose that is what puddle-jumping is all about.... 

Whipped up this "toy" in 0.2 seconds.  Tupperware lid, painter's tape: a 13-month-old's DREAM!  Haha.

And today we added stickers to said toy!  (God bless those stickers, too!  She held onto those suckers like honest-to-goodness TREASURE!)

Talk about some serious SELF CONTROL!

I went (almost!) three full days without checking People.com, Instagram and Facebook in an effort to avoid Bachelor spoilers!  For some reason, I could not secure a good copy of the finale and so after five attempts, Steve Quinn came through with a WIN!  He came over last night with a really, really precious USB stick and we watched the show I'd been dreaming of all week long.... 

Too bad it was on the lame side of things.  We JUANted details, Juan Pablo!  We wanted stories of LOVE and ROMANCE and HAPPILY EVER AFTER'S and 100%'s!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Oh well. 

There's always next season. 

AND REAL LIFE!

You see, although there wasn't a proposal on the Bachelor finale, there WAS a proposal at our place last night.  As per Phillip's annual tradition, he got down on one knee (with Nory this time!) and the two of them asked me to marry "Daddy" again.  It was just as smooth as round one, with a phone call interruption and an uncooperative child on the floor....... 

My kind of perfect. 

I SAID YES!!!!!!!!!!

IF YOU WERE HERE FOR TEA.

*  The Bachelor finale is taking forever to download.  Three hours in and it's only at 32%!!!  Do you know how difficult it is for me to avoid Instagram and Facebook all day?!  Perhaps I should risk the spoilers and give in to my social media urge.......

*  Have you heard of Feedly?  It's up there with my most favourite apps of all time - letting me know when my most favourite blogs have new posts!  No more time wasted checking each blog individually.....they are all stream-lined by this one ULTRA-EFFICIENT APP!  (And I can thank a really good professional development session for that one!)

*  In other app news, blogging from my phone has it's challenges.  I haven't used my computer to check my blog in a few days.  It annoys the heck out of me that the picture in the last post wasn't centered the way my blogger app said it was!  UGHHHH.  Oh well.  It's since been fixed to my liking :)

*  Next week we are dissecting a sheep's heart in class.  The kids are going CRAZY about it, in a good way (for the most part!).  I can't wait to see their faces and watch their eyes light up with curiosity and intrigue!  (Or so I hope the scenario goes.....)

*  Nory got her first real "boo boo" today - a fat lip.  When I got home from work, Kumari was all teary-eyed and nervous.  She told me that "there was a problem with Nory".  Judging by her body language, I thought something WAY WORSE had happened to my little darling.  But, nope!  Nory fell face-first on a toy and smashed her bottom lip (which didn't stop her from giving me the HUGEST AFTER-WORK SMILE!).  Then I realized that Kumari was petrified that I was going to fire her on the spot.  I told her it was okay and I also told her a few stories of things that have happened to Nory while she was in MY CARE.  It didn't seem to help that much....I felt like she was going to burst into tears at any moment.  Oh Kumari.  Nory is perfectly FINE - she was running around and giggling and smiley all evening!  (P.S.  Her balance has been a little rough this week.  Perhaps a growth spurt is happening?!)

*  It's back to t-shirt, skirt, and sandals weather in Kuwait!  YIPPEE!!!

*  Phil's got his work cut out for him over the next week and a half.  This weekend the JV basketball team is participating in a tournament at our new school.  Next week, the Varsity basketball team is participating in a tournament in Doha, Qatar.  Nory and I will be in attendance at both events.  YES!  I am taking two personal days to travel to Doha with the team!!!  Emily is too!!!  I can't wait!  The boys are thrilled to have Nory with them on the trip :)

*  Tomorrow Nory is 13 months old.  THIRTEEN!!!!!!!  Figure that one out.

*  Sometimes the silliest little things can make me feel EXTRA AT HOME here in Kuwait.  Prime example?  Advertisements on our beloved OSN network that they are picking up TLC!  The premiere air date is March 24th!  (Channel 212 people!!!!!)  It's not even so much that I watch the shows on this station.  It's simply a channel that I'm familiar with.  Familiarity goes a long way when you're longing for HOME SWEET HOME :)

*  I don't understand how an airplane can simply go missing.  I don't usually have a fear of planes, but I just might have a mini-freakout before boarding one next Wednesday night.  Sending prayers to everyone involved in the Malaysia Airlines tragedy....

*  Cheers to being 7 hours away instead of 8, Ontario!  I like when we're one hour closer together :)  XO

It doesn't really matter that they lost...

...because they have already won!

In front of a crowd of screaming fans, the boys fought hard and played their hearts out. We're talking a 12 point comeback and diving for balls sort of stuff!  In the end, the last 6 points were scored by their opponent.  You can imagine we've had our fair share of tears in this house but HEY, that's sports!

Two international tournaments to go!  The season doesn't stop here.  

You've ALREADY WON!

Today was a full-blown BASKETBALL DAY.  Both of Phil's teams were competing in the playoffs, with the JV team losing the semi-final game and the V team winning the semi-final game.  Tomorrow the Varsity boys will compete against another strong team for the first place title.

Anyways, the placing of the teams isn't really what I intended this post to be about.  This post is about how much the boys (and Phil!) have won already.

I look at the boys.  The way they high five each other during substitutions.  The way they help other players off the court.  The way they cheer for each other from the bench.  The way they play their hearts out until the final buzzer goes.  The way the "scrubs" play like it's a gold medal game.....even when they are down by 20.....even when they are down by 20 and there are only 30 seconds left.  The way they shake hands with every single Bulldogs fan following the game.  The way they take care of each other off the court.  The way they represent our school ALWAYS.  The way they act with "Baby Nory".............Did I tell you that, after Nory was born, they showed up at the hospital with roses?  Did I tell you that two of them had first birthday cakes made for Nory?  Did I tell you that one of them made a beautiful collage of photos for her birthday?  Did I tell you that one of them gave her their most favourite childhood toy for her birthday?  Did I tell you that they treat me like I'm the most important woman on Earth?  Did I tell you any of this?  I mean......you couldn't find a more kind, hard-working, dedicated, thoughtful or CLASSY group of young men.

Now, let's talk about Coach.

I look at Phil.  The way he spends every waking moment thinking about basketball - how can we improve this, how can we improve that?  The way he takes late night calls because one of the boys just needs to "chat".  The way he coaches until the final buzzer.  The way he treats his "scrubs" like his starters.  They way he turned a group of students who knew nothing about the game into an incredible squad of basketball players.  The way he made the incredible squad of basketball players become a closer "family" than you could ever dream possible.  They way he loves the heck out of this tight-knit group of men.  The way he HELPED THEM BECOME MEN. 

Tomorrow is the Varsity Boys Final.  I know my husband won't sleep tonight.  I know he'll skip breakfast, lunch and dinner tomorrow because his stomach will just feel "off".  I know he'll be in class, but not actually.  I know that I will talk to him very little between now and then and I get it because the game is an important one.  But, PHILLIP, the truth is this:  no matter what happens tomorrow, please remember that you have already won!  And that your boys have too.

When those boys of yours walk onto that court tomorrow, make sure you take a moment to REALLY LOOK at this program you've established.  Take a good, long look.  You'll see "special" written all over it and know exactly what I'm talking about.

You're one-of-a-kind, Phil.  I love you so, so much!

Linds xo

Pharrell Williams - Happy [Kuwait] #HAPPYQ8

I'm pretty sure I'm the last person on Earth to have heard this song.  In fact, I just recently learned how to properly pronounce the name "Pharrell" (WHOOPS!).  Anyways, now that our second home has done this AWESOME video rendition, I can't get it out of my head.  There really couldn't be a more appropriate title for this song.  Something about it just makes everyone so........HAPPY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Even the SKY screamed "THURSDAY"!!!!!!!!!!!

Today was one of those awesome days where you go into work feeling like the whole universe is on your side.

Oh Mr. Sun.  Perhaps we could reach some sort of an agreement, you and I.  One where you strut your stuff every single morning and I stand all wide-eyed and smiley, jumping up and down with awe and approval.....

I confess!

THIS was the book I read on Friday and I fully support ALL 4.6 stars awarded to it on Amazon.com.  I'm really not sure how I went from "Wonder" to this one, but the language shift was rather refreshing and her writing is HILARIOUS.  I vote you read it too!