Zzzzzz... (that's me sleeping at the keyboard, FYI)

Hello again.  Nothing too dramatic to report from here... 

We hosted our first major playdate at the house yesterday (4 loaner kids in addition to the 3 that we apparently own)... This, despite the fact that Screamer had puked several hours earlier in the day (we had chalked it up to car sickness at the time; that theory was later discredited when Screamer puked again *during* the actual playdate, yes, you may be mortified on my behalf).  She was okay today, though, so I am going to go ahead and officially file the episode under Carsickness and Carsickness Aftershocks.  You know, because the kids are STILL ON BREAK FROM SCHOOL and I flat out refuse to entertain a stomach bug in my self or my offspring at this time.  

In other news, I tagged along and spent some time at this gorgeous beach today (pictured above) where on their last visit PopPop and Daddy and Sushi and Screamer supposedly saw a real, live camel (!!!) all decked out in tourist-trapping garb meandering down the shore... but on this day, he was nowhere to be found (perhaps he, too, observes the Middle East workweek of Sunday-Thursday and thus he had the day off).  No matter-- the kids have become quick studies in shell collecting (they are pictured giving their treasures a bath on the front walkway), and Daddy and PopPop were able to observe some fancy speedboat races from afar.  So, camel-related disappointment notwithstanding, it certainly wasn't a total loss.

Mostly, I am just tired tired tired (if the schools are going to be closed for this long then I am going to insist that, for what they charge in tuition, they also send us on a freaking vacation somewhere to kill the time) and looking forward to getting these rugrats out of my hair for a little while each day so that I can finally UNPACK (we have become so accustomed to the brown boxes stacked up near all the doorways that I would not be at all surprised if one day Daddy comes home to an unpacked house and earnestly inquires, "Did you change the furniture in here?  Something looks different...").  Thankfully, school reopens on Sunday, though it's almost more stressful to have them go back, since I am absolutely obsessed with the fact that it's only for FIVE DAYS and then they will be HOME AGAIN FOR MORE BREAK.  (This, in a country where you need a government-issued license to consume alcohol in your own home???  I am about 2 days away from drinking a bottle of Robitussin and hoping for some slight mind-altering effect.)  (Which reminds me: there is a blurb in the newspaper today about how this guy who tried to sell $50 worth of marijuana here in Dubai is potentially going to get the DEATH SENTENCE... um... kinda makes that friend of mine wish she hadn't removed that tricycle part from that store a while back... even though it is insanely obvious that she was totally justified in doing so...!!)

Since I have nothing else pressing to discuss, here are some personal updates (and then I think I may fall off my chair in a narcoleptic seizure, but please don't worry about me, I'll be fine).

BABY:  Turns 7 months today.  Is beginning to show interest in crawling.  Still refuses to ingest baby food in flavors other than banana.  But she has taken to devouring these nondescript infant cookies, which suits me just fine because, even though she ends up painted forehead to chest in glue-like crud, it's a welcome alternative to always sticking a pacifier in her face when she's bored.

SCREAMER: Has taken to singing-- solos, only-- sorry, Sushi.  Botches the songs every time.  It's impossibly adorable.  Is also becoming distractingly pretty, if I may say so (and since I'm not posting up-close photos of faces here, in deference to a completely irrational fear of child predators, you'll just have to take my biased word for it).  I have already resigned myself to her being the pretty, dumb sister, which Daddy tells me is not a very constructive or motherly expectation to nurture.  (I kid, I kid!  All of my children will be brilliant, or else!)

SUSHI: Displayed an explosion of unexpected maturity last night when she nonchalantly proposed, during a rare one-on-one bath time, that she and I "have a conversation, just the two of us."  We started discussing how many kids she wants one day (six) and what happens to food after it's eaten and I honestly caught myself just shooting the breeze with her as if she were 30 instead of 3.  As in, I literally forgot for a moment that she was the kid and I was the parent.  I was having the best time.  This morning, I woke up with the same feeling as if I had gone on a surprisingly successful blind date the night before.  Strange, but cool: it made me think for the very first time that Sushi is going to grow up to be a person I'm really going to enjoy the company of.

DADDY: The poor guy, he scrambles over to his laptop to eek out a few minutes of work whenever the kids (who are we kidding, I) give him a momentary reprieve from all of the unreasonable demands we put on his time.  He has also been trying to go for a quick run after we get the kids to bed, which makes me happy because I know that he honestly enjoys it (Daddy used to run marathons) (again, before I became his wife and began draining all the life out of him) and because it allows him some peace and quiet to think all of the masterful thoughts that have allowed him to rise to such prominence in his company in such a short period of time.  Because I do not tell him often enough: I am so proud of you, Daddy!

POPPOP: Get this-- PopPop has taken to PUMPING IRON at the gym.  Every day!  We spied on him through the window yesterday and, I am not kidding you, he looked fantastic!  Cutoff shirtsleeves, rad tattoos, iPod earbuds... I will not tell you how old PopPop is, but let's just say he *looks* at least 20 years younger than he is.  Also, PopPop has become impressively good at retaining his composure in the eye of a toddler tantrum storm (I was perpetually worried during our first week here that PopPop would come downstairs and loudly, so as to be heard over the din of children crying, declare, "I AM GETTING MY OWN PLACE!"), and I have truly loved watching the kids and him play together.  Sooo much.

HARRY:  Just lucky to be alive.  ahaha everyone knows I don't like Harry.

ME: Did I mention I was tired?  Going to bed now...

Hope all is well with you, whoever you are, my reader friend.  And I hope you keep coming back to visit us, because I have come to look forward to our time together.  Talk soon!