Surviving real life.

 

Wow. What a month. Yes, can you believe on Wednesday it will be one whole month that we have been in a foreign country.  It doesn’t feel like it has been that long.  I can only compare the experience to the adjustment of becoming parents for the first time.  Similarly, you figure things out as you go, you are exhausted and everything is new and different.  It is physically, mentally and emotionally overwhelming at times.  Some of the new is wonderful and some not so much.  My days here are all about the kids, attempting  to tidy up the apartment… and completely. consumed. by. laundry. 

One load takes about 3 1/2 hours from start to finish (*sometimes longer)… the problem is with them being the same appliance, I cannot overlap loads… and they are so small…and the cycle is usually done when I am out so it is delayed further until I get back.  One load can hold only about 2 towels, two t shirts and some socks.   It is really annoying to constantly do laundry since is not my favorite chore in the world and there are always little piles to be put away. booo!

Beyond the laundry..

I have adjusted to things so totally different that what I ever thought I could or would do.  I have more patience and a better go with the flow attitude, but I have been too lenient with the kids (*because of the uprooting guilt) and now they just run amuck… BAD, i tell ya. 

In just one month I have more respect for other cultures and nationalities as well as a curiosity to learn more about them.  The people here (in general) are much more kind to everyone, especially kids than in America… however, things in Abu Dhabi happen in their own time and it is usually much longer than you anticipated.. hence the growth in patience.

There are many moments where I dream about our house and how comfortable life was in Sugar Land – but I cannot stay looking backwards… It makes it much too difficult to move forward here.   I am focusing on getting the Villa ready to move into – like outfitting it with all the necessities that we couldn’t bring over – TV’s, cable/internet/phone, certain furniture, curtains, rugs, etc.. so that when the glorious day arrives when we get our sea shipment all we will have to do is unpack boxes and voila.   The workload here with the two kids is much harder than I anticipated, but I know it will lighten dramatically soon when Espy starts.We are waiting on paperwork (legal stuff) to be complete and she will begin.  So it shouldn’t be too much longer.

It is difficult to explain why life is harder here than in the US, but it just is.  I believe that it is an a compilation of about one billion little differences and not one big thing.  I am thankful that I didn’t know the daily challenges beforehand, I know God was protecting me from arriving with a negative attitude.  I am trying to highlight the good and downplay the bad as much as possible.  There is so much i love about the city already and I know it will only continue to grow.  The scenery here is to die for!

After the first week I soon learned the only way to survive apartment life with an almost 2 year old and 4 year old is to get out every morning, come home for naptime and right back out in the evening.  It keeps the kids busy and there is less whining/crying that way.  It does put me in a pickle with less time to cook, clean and of course …do laundry. ha.. however, we are having a good time getting out and about and exploring our new surroundings.  I haven’t taken many pictures because we are doing much of the same things you’ve already seen.  

As far as the kids go, I feel like Will is adjusting better than he was in the beginning, and Audrey is starting to be more of a challenge.  Will has stopped screaming the entire time we are in a taxi – he has episodes, but it isn’t the whole duration of our travel anymore.  We bought a stroller to help with getting around the huge malls and around town – I resisted this only because I felt that he was too old to be buying strollers for, but it has been a lifesaver already.  Audrey is experimenting with sassiness and crying and screaming to get her way.  She even knows to throw out the “I don’t want to live here, I want to move back to Sugar Land” card or she even starts to fake cry and tell me she misses certain relatives or friends.  I know she sincerely feels these things, it is just the ‘timing’ of her saying them whenever she isn’t getting her way.  When she first started this it worked like a charm for her since my heart would break instantly and I would most likely cave… She is a smart cookie and has started to use this all the time… doesn’t work anymore, sister! I now just tell her, “Audrey, we live here now and we are going to make the best of it…” and move on.   She also is so destructive and makes the most incredible messes.  Will used to be our messy one and now she passes him with flying colors.. she just tears stuff up left and right.  Again, it is obvious to me that this is a subconscious way to express how she is unhappy at times… totally valid and I cannot blame her, but she is learning quickly that we take care of our things no matter how we feel.  I hate that she has a NEED to be in school/structured activity and to interact with other kids her age that we cannot fully meet and instead she gets a younger brother that doesn’t even speak.  I am trying to make up for the no school thing by bringing her to Abu Dhabi Mum’s activities (we went last week and she had a ball), we went to church (where she went to her age appropriate class, as well as I signed her up for AWANA.  After attending all of these three this week she was beaming with excitement and back to her old self.  I can see in the long run she will have all that she needs and wants socially, but to a  4-year-old 6 months is a loooong time… it is so far away that she will have school, I can’t even explain it to her effectively.   She will get better and I can already see improvement since we have started these new outings.

For all of us, it is a long transition time to be without the familiar for 2-3 months, but as soon as our belongings arrive, we will move into the villa and eventually Audrey will be in school all will be falling into place even more and become our new normal.  I am still happy with our decision to decline the air shipment so we could increase our sea shipment…  Delayed gratification is something grown ups understand, but the kids don’t.  It will be totally worth it in the long run.

 

this was fun for the kids to do.. Colette’s kids have a tricycle that can have a 2nd rider.. Will enjoyed Audrey pulling his weight.

 

i’ll never let him have chocolate ice cream before bed again.. he was up ALL night!

just me. at the park.  Audrey picked the flower for me. ;)

bye y’all! we miss you and love you!