Hello, 2008!

Eid marked the Holiday season for us this year. It was so close to Christmas that it added a real feeling to the Holiday Spirit all around us. Our tree is still up and lit. It was waiting for Santa's visit on the New Year Eve. This morning, I got up at 6am after noticing a light on in the hall, to find Moody reading in the den. He said he was waiting on all of us to come down so he could open his gifts. He'd been up for a while. Last night, he insisted that we leave Santa carrots and celery instead of cookies. He said Santa is heavy and cookies are not good for him. So we did.

Tala was ecstatic with the Aurora doll. She changed into her Aurora dress to match her "new little sister who is 4." Although it was not her favorite princess, Ariel, "she is related to Ariel" so Tala said. Moody and Tala found it funny that Santa got Sol and me booster seats for the kids. I told them he is saving us the time and money of buying the seats ourselves; they still find it funny.

Friday, December 28, was Mom's birthday and Ru'a's too. I tried calling them in the morning before heading to work, but couldn't get through.

Happy Birthday!

This is our second long weekend in a row with Monday and Tuesday off. We were fortunate to have awesome weather for this time of the year. We enjoyed many walks in the park. Last Tuesday, we spent about 3 hours in the park with the kids riding their bikes, and Sol and I enjoying a nice long walk. This week it started not that cold, but wet and gloomy, and is now snowing. It was a nice long weekend spent being lazy at home, watching movies, and playing board games and computer games.

We had a lot of the little things that needed to be done around the house taken care of during the holidays. The kids' activity room in the basement is all straightened out. The extra computers are gone. I managed to put together Safoo's care package (I'm talking DHL Jumbo box!) and sent it off yesterday. It had some of Tala's nice clothes for Safoo, some other goodies for her, Rahaf, Ru'a, Hamza, Yazid, and my newest 2-month old nephew, Mohamed Kanoun, of my baby sister Nahla! Tala was sad and crying when we started packing the box, saying that she would miss all those nice things we are giving Safoo. I told her that khaloo Ayman will send you something nice for the nice things you are sharing with Safoo. She was convinced and started helping me pack. She said, "I love when we work together as a team!"

2007 had been an eventful year for us. All in all it was full of new steps, new beginnings and lots of changes. It was a busy year and somewhat stressful, but the kind of stress that is needed for successful change. We started the year with me in school. Then in March, I started work while still in school bringing more stress and adjustment onto my little family. Come September, I only had work after graduation, but we were swamped with the kids' summer activities. The months that followed were marked by the adjustment to a new life and the quest for a nanny. This long weekend, I felt I am finally relaxed and caught up with my life. Part of it is settling in with Jeanne, the nanny; and finally, settling in with the new routine of work and home. For the first time in over 2 years, I realized today that I have time to grab a book and read.

There's more change coming our way and more new steps to take. That makes 2008 an exciting year to look forward to. Welcome, 2008... with couscous for dinner!