Camels and Four Wheelers

Tim had a couple of friends that he has met from work invite us to go out 4-wheeling with them... We had a really good time getting to know some new people and being outside. It was a pretty day.

 This is a picture from the car as we were passing a camel farm. 

 While we were waiting to get 4-wheelers these boys were being completely crazy and showing off.  We were unsure if we even wanted to go because of them.  No helmets, no shoes and totally OUT OF CONTROL!! This is right before one of them wiped out and the owner came and took the key. Thank goodness. 

 Mason riding around a little track. He had a blast! 

 Me on a camel! That was a first and something I have wanted to try.  They are really amazing creatures. I was fascinated with their joints and great big mouths.  I didn't go far because I started thinking about how high up I was....

 This ride cost 20 Sar... 1 US dollar is 3.75 Saudi. So it cost me....$5.30! 

 This nice fellow was not going to leave me alone until I got on the horse... This is right before the saddle started to fall off and Tim caught me!! Yee Ha Ha Ha Ha :)

 Karenna (new friend) , another friends baby, and Allie.  Allie was not interested in 4 wheelers or camels. She stayed close to me.

 Sydney and Ash had a blast out on the dunes.

 Scary picture! This is Syd and her new bike. She is on her way to seminary. We bought her a basket for her scriptures... :) It is early morning and she is a trooper! Way to go Sydney. 

Allie's new bike at the bike shop.. We are excited to be able to go for rides now.  There is a great BMX track that Tim, Mason and Ash went and tried last night. 

I talked with Grandma Henrie, Mom and Laurie this morning! I am feeling really happy about that. They are all women that I love,admire and miss always. Thank you for the chat and know your always in my thoughts and prayers. President Uchtdorf in his last conference address talked about communicating with our loved ones.... He said,

In our day it is easy to merely pretend to spend time with others. With the click of a mouse, we can “connect” with thousands of “friends” without ever having to face a single one of them. Technology can be a wonderful thing, and it is very useful when we cannot be near our loved ones. My wife and I live far away from precious family members; we know how that is. However, I believe that we are not headed in the right direction, individually and as a society, when we connect with family or friends mostly by reposting humorous pictures, forwarding trivial things, or linking our loved ones to sites on the Internet. I suppose there is a place for this kind of activity, but how much time are we willing to spend on it? If we fail to give our best personal self and undivided time to those who are truly important to us, one day we will regret it.

Let us resolve to cherish those we love by spending meaningful time with them, doing things together, and cultivating treasured memories.

I have pondered this and wondered and worried how I could meaningfully cultivate my relationships with those I love from such a distance... I want you to know that YOU, my family and friends are at the forefront of my prayers and thoughts.  I love you and hope that somehow through my postings you will feel a connection to me and my family.  In return I would love to hear from you. I miss you but am doing good and feel this new adventure will bless our lives in good ways. All my love, Mol

The Weekend

Today is Wednesday...that means that we made it through another week of school.  It is the beginning of the weekend here. It has been a good week. I am trying to figure out how to manage my time during the day and get things accomplished.. I am really anticipating getting our first pay check and being able to begin painting and buying some furniture. 

 The water in the showers is really really salty water. We have a fresh water spicet in the kitchen that is treated at a water plant here and is okay to drink and is much nicer on your hair.  Sydney fills up her jugs and takes them to the shower to rinse her hair.. brrr

 I found an Acorn Lane in Saudi Arabia...

 A really good combination.. The cookies are called biscuits and so they are better for you. :)

 A different kind of morning than we have had since being here. It was really wet and foggy but burned off by the late morning.  It threw the buses off a little bit.

 A grain store I went to with some ladies from the branch.. It was a great find and I am looking forward to making bread out of the flour.

 grinders

 Ash Court

 Ashlyn is learning to play the clarinet.. she is getting pretty good. 

a great way to clean the bathroom! filled it with hot water and it worked magical...  

The Weekend

Good morning! We had a three day weekend this week. Wednesday we went to Schwarma night.They set up tables and tables of yummy traditional foods. Cheese breads, stir frys, schwarma is flat bread with chicken and a garlic spread. Its yummy. It reminds me of a Gyro. There is a game room and playground that the kids have fun at. The community kinda comes together on this night, and I don't have to cook!



Thursday we went and found the Aramco beach.  It is about 15 minutes from the camp.  It was beautiful and will be fun to enjoy. Its called half moon bay. The kids found lots of starfish, shells, and crab.

 The place looks deserted, I know.  I just tried to be respectful and not photograph the Arabic. We were the only white Americans on the beach. 

 Is it alive? 

 Then we came upon a road side bazaar I guess. It was bizarre! It was like shopping at walmart from your car with Arabian children flying around you on four wheelers, men running on horses, camel rides, pony rides. It was very interesting... I bought a rug that I thought was pretty... not so pretty when I got it home.

 Friday we went to church and enjoyed our branch and time to worship and reflect.  I am so overcome with gratitude and amazement for the blessings of a restored gospel. Our district president spoke as well as another visiting authority.  Elder Ketchner I believe.  Did you know that they are going to be dedicating the first chapel in the Middle East in a few weeks. It is in Abu Dhabi. This area is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. I found this so interesting.  I realize that some of you reading my blabber do not share my same faith.  I hope you don't mind me sharing my truest feelings when I write. I am considering this blogging venture to be my families journal.  I am going to print it out and have it bound in a book.

 Chips and salsa.. yummy. Tortilla chips are hard to find in the Kingdom and so we were told to go to Chilis and they would bag them up for you.. Sure enough, we came home with chips.

 Cheese burger on its way=Mason is very happy!

 Us after Pizza Hut, Sydney was annoyed because she is trying to eat healthy and we took her to Pizza Hut. How RUDE!!

 Someone asked why we wear the abaya... Well, this is what I know. The women here are all covered and if you don't want to stand out more than you already do then you should wear the abaya..It is their culture, and their belief. We don't want to offend or seem like we are better. We want to appear modest and doing our best to respect their cultures and traditions.  Besides if you eat to much pizza you don't have to worry as much :)

The ladies in the Branch tell me you can count on gaining the "freshmen fifteen" when you first arrive here. I think that I am beginning to believe them.  We are finding lots of comfort in the good old American Fare.  We visited Chili's and Pizza hut over the weekend. Besides the beef pepperoni and beef bacon it was good. :) At the Commissary on camp they have an in house flat bread oven. I am quite enjoying that!

I heard this song for the first time the other day and couldn't help but think about my sister in law Elise... I miss her in my life very much and think of her everyday. I know she would think I have lost it here in the Middle East but she would tell me to be brave, I know it!!

(copy and paste the URL)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYWyVUljrQ8#

Just for today

  I remember when I was little and Emily and I would go out in the top of the pasture and make huts.. We would pretend to be setting up house and taking care of our families.  We made huts out of knocked down trees and cleaned our dirt floors... Sometimes I feel like that is what I am doing here.  I can't just hop in my car and go to target and get what I want. I have to make a home out of what I have....Maybe its all the sand I keep sweeping up that made me think of the forts. :)

 Ashlyn's 5th grade class made these balloons out of tissue paper and glue sticks.  Not many of them took flight because it was to windy.  She had fun making it and getting to know other kids in her group.

We have been in Saudi for 2 weeks now!Today is Wednesday which is our Friday. The kids made it through their first full week of school. Here are some pictures of our house outside and Ashlyn's balloon day at school.