we've been busy . . .

. . . And unfortunately it's this space that's taken a hit.

Emy has been writing quite a bit more on her personal blog, and last month she also started a school blog, so feel free to check those out if you need a fix.

While it's hard to imagine this blog will stay quiet forever, right now we're going to focus on actually living our adventure without any pressure to document it for the public. Hope you'll understand!

cheers (and bye for now), andy&emy


- - - - - -

UPDATE: Click on "our new home" above to read a little more about our current corner of the world. We're also gathering together a few of our favorite places and spaces around Abu Dhabi to add soon. (See? Told you we couldn't stay quiet!)

oman, unedited

Last weekend we went to Oman . . . 

Looking out over Wadi Guhl, the "Grand Canyon of Arabia"

Staring into the sea from the top of a crumbling watchtower

Saturday morning sky

Mountain sunset

We were blown away by our next door neighbor. It was magical and magnificent and somehow felt so undiscovered. These photos above are completely untouched, straight from my camera to your computer screen. Just looking at them settles my soul. Andy and I are already rethinking our spring break plans, as we simply can't wait to go back to Oman!

More pictures (and stories!) to follow . . . xo

day job: week of jan. 7

Last week in Kindergarten* . . .

. . . we enjoyed the beautiful weather and went outside to explore foam shapes on the easel. (We dipped the shapes in water to make them stick.)

Someone made a lion with her shapes!

We practiced writing with markers on the whiteboards . . .

. . . and with our fingers in some colored sand.

Some of us drew portraits of our friends . . .

. . . while others played with playdough.

One person pretended to be the teacher . . . 

. . . while another pretended to be someone else :)

Our favorite game of the week was "In the Box," a Mrs. Emy original. (What else?)

Some of us liked getting ALL the way in!**

During math time we worked with partners to sort cubes into equal groups . . .

. . . then we turned our cubes into patterns!

And when we were finished with our work, we put everything back in its place.

Sometimes on our own . . .

. . . and sometimes with a little help.

So there you have it -- a few glimpses into our first post-break week. Hope you enjoyed seeing some of what we do all day.

xo, emy

*Kindergarten I (or KG1) is like preschool here. While the kids do come everyday, they're still just three and four years old. I try to incorporate as much play- and sensory-based learning as possible, though I'm also currently required to teach sight words and letter-of-the-week, do guided reading sessions, and issue worksheets as homework. Like anywhere, it's a balance between doing what I'm told and "doing my thing." So to speak.

**Lest you think this wasn't educational, here was the point: The children were practicing the short /i/ sound and a new sight word, "in", as well as learning positional language (in English). They needed to take turns, and they were cheering and laughing with their classmates. In fact, they were all having so much fun that every single student wanted a turn and actively participated the entire time.  In one lesson, we hit literacy, numeracy, social studies, and, of course, foreign language. A small miracle, if I do say so myself :)

contrast

Andy hates soda (any carbonated beverage, really), and I rarely drink it, but there was something so appealing about Coke in glass bottles and the idea of drinking them with old fashioned paper straws.

I couldn't resist.

They ended up sitting in our fridge for months (like I said, we aren't exactly soda people), until I had a major craving after work today (I've been feeling homesick, so it was bound to hit). As I sat on the couch reading and watching the sun go down, I was struck by the juxtaposition of the Arabic script on the bottle and our Chicago map coasters. Abu Dhabi is a land of contrasts (sand/sea, tradition/modernity, luxury/poverty), and our apartment is no exception.


PS - If you haven't been able to tell (and, judging from the comments of family and friends, I'm sure you have) it's been mostly me, Emy, writing this blog. And I haven't been doing a very good job of it. But there isn't a whole lot of this adventure left -- 18 months is nothing! So we need to revamp/rethink a bit. The goal is to post here at least once a week from this point on, with some Andy-authored posts finally in the mix. (Yay! He's already been working on a "Top Five" Abu Dhabi about some of the main attractions.) I'd also like to share a bit more of actual daily life with you all, including that thing I do all day. We hope you'll stay tuned!