Nutella!

Our family is quite fond of Nutella. We only really started eating it in the past year, when we found out Jacob had a pretty bad peanut allergy. We eat a lot more of it here in Cairo than we ever did back home. I swear we go through jars and jars of the stuff.

So, in honor of our love for Nutella, I am posting this link of a recipe for some delicious Nutella chip cookies with homemade Nutella chips. Enjoy!

Days Like This...

All in all I had a stressful, exhausting day. We headed over to City Center to eat lunch and do some grocery shopping. After our lunch, I left Ariel with the kids at the play area so I could attempt to do all my grocery shopping quickly.

Carrefour was a freakin' madhouse. And I mean MADHOUSE. And I'm from the Valley, people, where madhouse shopping is all the rage with the gigantic amount of Winter Texans and Valley residents and wealthy Mexican nationals that live and visit there.
Anyway, today it was just ridiculous there and those stupid shopping carts they have are worthless and I could find nothing I needed because it was either out of stock or mysteriously missing from the shelves (?) and then to top it off my debit card was declined (which happens from time to time when using our credit cards overseas), I had no cash because the ATM was out of order, and my husband was in the play area at the other side of the mall. So, I had to run to the other end of the mall, get money out of a different ATM with the same stupid card (it magically worked this time) and run back to complete the transaction.

Ugh. I was in a foul mood after that. Yes, I know I will have days like this anywhere, but it seems to me like I have them a lot more here in Egypt.

Resolutions

Sadly, I am neither crafty nor talented in anything really. I would say I am mediocre at art, an average cook, an average baker (although I do enjoy baking), a pitiful singer, and a poor crafter. So, besides reading, I have pretty much no hobbies whatsoever. Being a SAHM to three kids here in Egypt can be pretty boring. The oldest kids are in school and soon Jacob will follow. I'd like to find a hobby, some hobby to keep me busy and mentally challenged, which brings me to my resolutions for 2011.

1. Lose 10 pounds.
2. Start running at the track at Jackie's school 3x a week.
3. Take an arabic class.
4. Find a hobby.

I turn 31 in a few months and would love to get in better shape physically. We do walk a lot here in Cairo, which has been good, and we cook more at home. I'd like the kids to eat more veggies, especially Jackie, and drink more water as opposed to juices. I also need to cut back on soda and pastas.

Here's to Twenty Eleven!

Vienna

Vienna was amazing. It was cold, and I mean COLD, but we had a wonderful time. I loved breathing the fresh air, eating some pork, and riding the very efficient Underground. I hope we will go back one day soon.

2010

2010 has been a year of many changes for us. My oldest started kindergarten, my husband got a new position, I said goodbye to my twenties(!!!), and we moved halfway across the world. It's been a year of both good and bad, and I really think I have learned many lessons in the last 12 months. One thing I have learned is that we are stronger than I could have imagined, adjusting to life in a new country, surrounded by a completely different culture than our own. We have been taken out of our comfort zone and experienced a whole new world.

We ended our year in Vienna, which was a wonderful experience for all of us. I don't know what 2011 has in store for us, but I am hoping for a year of health and happiness for us and all our family and friends.

In 2011: A trip to Disneyland in Paris, a summer at home in Texas, a trip to Vegas in June, and possibly a quick trip to Rome in the fall.

Merry Christmas Eve!

The kids are all tucked into bed, the gifts are lined up nicely under the tree, and the Christmas cookies have all been eaten on this warm Christmas Eve in Cairo. Tomorrow the kids will open presents, we'll have a nice Christmas lunch, and then we'll start packing for Vienna. I really never knew how much I loved the hustle and bustle of Christmas until I moved to a nearly Christmas-less place. Next time we are in America I'm doing it up BIG for Christmas. Really, you don't know what you have until it's gone. :-)

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I look forward to what 2011 has in store for us.

Finally..

The school week is winding down and next week the winter holidays begin. Before the holiday, both girls are having Christmas parties in their classes and a visit from Santa Claus at their school! We have finally put up some Christmas decorations- our nativity scene, a lone nutcracker, a small but very festive Christmas tree, and some lights our housekeeper brought us. The weather has turned cold here and many of our friends in town have left or are preparing to leave for Christmas vacation. FINALLY it is beginning to feel like Christmas here in Cairo!!