What's New Since Terminal 4

Apologies for the lack of postings (and emails) from our end of late! Being back in Dohot has meant that there isn't a whole heckuva lot going on. We get up, Markus goes to work, Ellie and I have breakfast and play before heading out to anywhere (to preemptively avoid cabin fever). Most days, we meet up with other babies and mommies and have a play. Then, it's home again for nap time. Up again for a snack and a play before heading to the club and meeting up with Markus. Splashing about in the swimming pools, maybe meeting some new friends there. Then it's home again for dinner, bath and bedtime for Ellie. Markus and I usually watch a DVD to round out the evening, because by then, we are both fried from our days and the utter lack of variety here. Somewhere in the middle, there's a lot of cooking, cleaning, grocery shopping and errand running.
Nothing particularly thrilling for the daily blog, thus the lack.

Another factor has been a growing source of frustration on Jennifer's part at being so far away from the States right now. Markus has generously offered to send us back there to sort more things out, but it would be at too great a cost to his time with Ellie (and me!) and also too unfair to Ellie, who has just settled into a routine here. We really are having great times together as a little family again! I will post more pictures soon!
For those of you who wonder and ask how things are going on the estate, read on. For those who would rather not know, skip on to the end. There's more news to come...

While it's WONDERFUL being together again, it's VERY frustrating knowing that remaining estate things are ticking along in a negative way back in the States. The estate sales guy didn't finish clearing things out until after I left (despite weeks of me trying to get him to come earlier), and apparently he left mountains of trash and filth in his wake (I understood he'd make the trash be gone as part of the job). He promised to completely empty the house, but apparently, he didn't do that either. So for well over a week, the yard was filled to capacity with CRAP so mountainous that random strangers felt safe leaving their crap their too. A toilet appeared in the front yard. Interesting. Finally, the city came to remove the mountain, but left small bits of trash, scrap metal and broken glass in the yard...which our wonderful family friend Mary has been dutifully removing bit by bit. The front yard is being mowed by a neighbor, but the side yard and back yard have gone completely wild and are now snake havens. And finally, to round out my gripe, the contractor who I finally got on board the last day I was there hasn't been able to get started because it has rained EVERY SINGLE DAY since his agreed start date. Gulf Coast summers always involve rain (usualy for an hour or so each afternoon), but the real joy here is that it actually wasn't raining much at all while I was there trying and trying and trying to get things moving. Now that they are fully set to move, it's pouring down rain and it's a no go. ARGH!
By deciding to keep my Dad's house and repair it, I was trying to reclaim a bit of something that was very important to him and preserve our good memories there. I felt the least I could do was fix his house. Even if we don't keep it in the long run, I couldn't stand the idea of it falling into ruin after he left us. And now IT HAS FALLEN INTO RUIN! It is clear to anyone with eyes that the house is abandoned (BAD NEWS) and insurance won't cover us for theft or vandalism if the house is vacated for more than 30 days (that's us!). If only the rain would let up so the contractor could get started... At least that's progress! Right now, all we have is hurt and worry. Oy.

In other news, it seems our Dohot days are numbered! The word has been passed down through the mighty bureaucracy that is Markus's employer that we are set to move to The Hague! They are expecting us there on the first of October! We are very very happy! When we first gave them the personal reasons for moving away from Doha, we felt those would be the best bet for helping us leave. Over time, however, those have really become THE reasons. Life in Doha, though remote and unvaried, is what you make of it. No, there's NOTHING to do, but people are generally very friendly and it's easy to find someone to chat with. Most other young moms stay at home with young kids, so it's easy for Ellie and Jennifer to find play partners. We could ride out the time here if we had to. But this year has been a doozy, to put it mildly. Starting with Katrina, it has been a year of strain and loss on so many levels, that it just seems wrong to be this far from our families right now. We're happy that the company is being understanding in that department and that they are moving us so soon. Once we get settled, we will be very happy to have visitors!

Recently, we were attempting to plan a weekend jaunt to Dubai. While reading the Lonely Planet guide, Jennifer came across this passage about the large business class in the population:
"Housewives left with little to do at home spend much of thier time with other women in similar circumstances. It's fair to say these women keep the cosmetics and spa industries alive and the coffee shops ticking over during the day."
My gut reaction is HOW SHALLOW AN EXISTENCE, but then I realized that I met with another mom at Starbucks that morning and that afternoon, we went to the Four Seasons spa (that's our club). Yes, we went there for the pool, but still...it hit a bit too close to home! Time to run away!