london calling!

oh HI london!!!  i'll be seeing YOU in just over 2 months.  oh and did i mention that my MOM will be coming too!!!!??  i CAN'T wait to see my momma in london!!  it's going to be GREAT!!!! 

my momma and me in vietnam on our last adventure together! xo

let it snow!

looks like this little cutie is LOVING the snow!!!  look at those cheeks!!!  (and the hat - LOVE IT!)

a very good mail day!

the other day at school i had the happiest mail box that a girl could wish for!!  i got a message from lindsay first thing int he morning saying that there were presents in my mail box!  naturally i stopped what i was doing and went straight to my mail box!  and what to my wondering eyes should appear?!  NOPE!  no reindeer! but about 8 cards and 2 presents!!  all from my wonderful friends and family back home!  how spoiled am i?!  i got beautiful cards from my aunt jo and aunt jen, my aunt melissa and jay, my aunt carol and her family, and barb and clarke.  i also got a gift from courtney and her family as well as one from my aunts!  it was the BEST mail day EVER!  thank you family and friends for keeping me connected to home!  love and miss you all!  xo

in a word cloud...

2011 in a word cloud...inspired by my good friend cindy @ cscribbles

in a blog post...

well out with 2011 and in with 2012.  as i was thinking about what to do for my "new year" post, i kept thinking "in a nutshell".  but instead, here is 2011, in a blog post:

• i started out the year in sri lanka, finishing up a wonderful christmas vacation with colleen and the parkinsons.  
• my family went through a loss with the death of my great  uncle bud.
• we had many wonderful people come visit us in vietnam, including my MOMMA!  it was so great to share that experience with her.
• march was tough for me with the sudden death of one of my former students from egypt.  at only 7 years old, my precious salma was taken from her family much too early.  she will always be in my heart.
• april changed my life in a different way.  on april 2nd i adopted my cat, cow (who has since been named cowboy by my parents).  he was exactly what i needed and i love him SO much!
• in may i traveled to china and was able to climb on the great wall.  it is one of those "bucket list" things that everyone should experience!
• june marked the end of my time in vietnam and though it was hard to leave my wonderful friends and colleagues, it is always great to be home!  i spent the summer with my family and it went by WAY too fast!
• this summer i traveled to new york city for the first time with my aunt melissa.  it was an AMAZING trip.  i loved every minute of it and i can't wait to go back again and again! in NYC i also got my third tattoo of 2011 (holy cow!), bringing the total up to five.
• i witnessed the marriage of two wonderful friends from our time in egypt.  kathleen and simon had a gorgeous wedding and it was so great spending time with them again!
• i attended the most wonderful CISE reunion hosted by the terrific ma and pa cairo.  it was a great weekend and i wouldn't have missed it!!  
• in august, another of my WONDERFUL friends got married!  and i got to see her after WAY too long!!  my dear friend sarah was married this summer and i am so pleased that i was able to share in her special day!  
• august marked the beginning of a new adventure.  i started my job in kuwait teaching grade 5 english and so far so good.  i like my job and have made some amazing friends here in kuwait.  of course i miss home a lot but i am enjoying my time here and as we know, time flies!
• throughout the fall i had the opportunity to visit two more countries in the middle east - qatar and bahrain.  i got to visit with an old friend in qatar and straighten out passport issues in bahrain (thanks again fedex for losing my passport! lol)
• the fall also brought great news in the form of new life and new family members!  tiffany is pregnant and due in may 2012 and my aunt melissa adopted a 2 year old boy named jay!  from the sounds of things he is fitting into the family better than anyone could have expected and he is as cute as a button when i talk to him on skype!!  
• finally, december delivered a wonderful christmas trip to italy with naomi and valerie.  i visited rome, venice, florence, and pisa.  it was all magical!  more to come on that!

i'm sure there are things i have forgotten and left out, but as you can see it has been a year of mixed emotions.  ups and downs would describe 2011 well for me.  some great times and some tough times...that's for sure.  and not just for me, or my family, but for many friends as well.  so, let's hope for a happy 2012 - with more ups than downs - good health, lots of laughs, and wonderful experiences! xo

happy new year!!!!!!!!!!!

to all my friends and family....happy new year!  may 2012 bring only good things to you and your loved ones. 

italy bound

tonight i leave at 12:45 for the airport.  my flight leaves at 4 a.m.  and i arrive in rome tomorrow at noon.  i am SO excited!!!  then i will wait for a bit and pick up naomi at her gate and then we are off to explore (and freeze in) italy!!!  i will try my best to blog while i'm away - i am bringing my ipad and the new keyboard, but i make no promises on how frequently i'll get online. 

so just in case, HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!  merry christmas. and happy new year!!!  xoxoxox

gloria is so smart!

while watching the christmas episode of modern family, i was touched by gloria's words...

family is family.  whether it's the one you start out with, the one that you end up with, or the family that you gain along the way.

thought it was very appropriate after last nights post and as i sit here missing my family at home.  xo

today.

today was a wonderful day.  a day filled with friends and laughter and sharing and giving.  a day that makes me thankful for the friends that become my family when i am away from home. 

last night i slept over at the parkinsons because with their love-filled pleas, i didn't have much choice.  i feel so at home in their home.  this morning we had some "family" time and watch americas next top model which we all love.  then as they went off to play basketball and tutor, i headed to the huffho's to bake a birthday cake and wrap secret santa gifts with alex. we wrapped and talked and laughed and it was really great to spend some time with her.  next we were off to the pantomime at the kuwait little theatre.  the "we" in this case includes: me, shelly, lindsay, phillip, alex, ian, cathy, shahid, pat, and kelly.  it was SO funny.  we laughed o hard we cried.  highlights included the man dressed up as a woman hitting on phil throughout the entire play and when he/she put a whole bag of skittles in his mouth and then couldn't talk.  hilarious!  so much fun!!  (and if you don't know what a pantomime is, like i didn't, you should look it up and try to find one to go to- fun fun fun!)  after the panto we all went back to the parkinson's to celebrate the birthdays of ian, shahid, and lindsay (all in december) as well as christmas!  we had a secret santa which was very amusing.  i had phil and after hours of deliberating i gave him 10 cans of lays potato chips.  kinda weird, i agree but it's funny because he LOVES them and lindsay HATES when he has them.  it was perfect.  also it was wrapped in the shape of a tree.  awesome.  i got the most WONDERFUL gift, because my secret santa, cathy, got me JUST what i wanted!  it's a mug from caribou coffee with little inspirational messages all over.  it's perfect!  i also got 6 ikea glasses which are super fun and blue! 

anyway, it was a terrific day, and the reason i was writing is because many times throughout the night when we were all laughing or oohing and awing over someones gift, i thought to myself that i am really lucky to have them all.  it makes being away from home that much easier when you know you have all this love and support right here with you.  they are an amazing group of people and i don't know what i would do without them!!

so to my dear kuwait family,
thank you for everything.  for the laughs and the tears.  for the support, for your trust, for your patience. 
i love you guys. 
merry christmas and all the best in 2012.  safe travels!  i'll miss you guys!!
xoxoxoxo

all the gifts under the tree!

loving my gift!!

phil and his love from the panto

phil's gift...what could it be???

thanks santa!!!!

santa loves phil!!

the other good news

remember last week when i told you i had two exciting pieces of news??  well the first was that tiffany is pregnant and the second is....
my aunt adopted a baby!!!!
my aunt melissa ha been looking into adoption for a while now and finally decided that this summer was the right time to start the process.  so she went through the paperwork and home visits and then the waiting begins.  but for my aunt melissa, the waiting wasn't for long!  she found out two weeks ago that she would be matched with this child and this weekend she picked him up!!!!
i don't know too much yet.  i know that he is two years old and has blond hair and blue eyes.  his name is james daniel which means that he has the same initials as my grandfather did; j.d. abbott!  also, his birthday is on my grandparents wedding anniversary!  can you believe it??  i think it was meant to be!
anyway, aunt melissa and james had their first night together last night and from what i hear he is already calling her mommy!  i can't wait to meet him! i'm in love with him already!

go blue today!

 

spread the word!  we ALL know someone who is living with diabetes, so let's spread awareness.  together!

my mo bro

my brother micheal is growing a mustache for movember.  it's slightly disturbing but super awesome, all at the same time.  here's a picture of how things are looking after week one:

pretty hairy.  after four weeks - who knows what will happen!!  anyway, i'm proud of him for working toward something that he believes in.  i think that movember is for a great cause and i am glad he is doing it!  i made a donation today and if you want to donate too, here's the link:  DONATE!

keep up the great/hairy work mike!!  i'm proud of you!! 

something good.

something good is on the horizon.  actually two "somethings".  i don't want to jinx anything or say anything prematurely, but i am really excited about something.  something to do with a family member.  something to do with a friend.  i will blog more when i can.  just know that there are good things on the horizon...

shokran

firstly, happy thanksgiving to all of my family and to my canadian friends around the world.  i hope that you have a wonderful weekend filled with love and happiness!

secondly, though we should be thankful all year 'round, thanksgiving gives us the opportunity to say a special "thanks" for the people and things that are important to us.  i am thankful, as always, for my wonderful family who are so supportive of me and my travels, even though i know that they miss me, just as much as i miss them.  i am thankful for my friends, old and new, who are there for me no matter if i see them everyday or once a year.  we are friends for a reason and a lifetime.  i am thankful for my health and the ability to do what i love and see the world at the same time.

so dear friends and family, "shokran".  have a wonderful weekend.  eat an extra helping of turkey for me!  i love you and miss you and don't know what i would do without you! xo

congratulations andrew and tania!

last weekend my cousin andrew got married!  i wish i could have been there to celebrate with them!  anyway, i wish them years and years of happiness and love.  congrats you two!!  love you both xo

andrew and tania, his beautiful bride!

my mama and her sister, the mother of the groom, carol.  do you think they could look more alike?!

andrew and my mama.  she looks so pretty!! :)

moms are always right.

as i was packing to leave this summer, on more than one occasion, my mom tried to get me to pack some scissors.  she insisted that i would need a good pair of scissors.  and i think i eventually agreed.  however, i forgot to get the scissors that she was trying to send with me. 

fast forward to kuwait, here i am, trying to unpack things in my apartment, and i just wish i had a pair of scissors!  then a few days later, i'm trying to wash my dishes...i need a pair of scissors! 

why didn't i just listen to my mom and bring a pair of scissors?? 

mom, you were right!  as usual. :)

what about YOUR aunt???

cause these two are wearing shirts that CONFIRM that their aunt is DYNAMITE!  hmmm.....i wonder who their aunt is.....

DYNAMITE!!!

she's learning!

yesterday i posted that i missed my cow boy.  mom commented on my post and it was really funny.  what she wrote was funny but i also think that it sounds like something i would write so i wanted to share it with you:

He's being pretty crazy right now, Em. A little on the wild side. And I don't want you to think we aren't taking care of him, but today Dad was outside sanding and when he stopped he heard this little "meow" behind him. He turned around and thought "that cat looks alot like Cow!" And guess what, it WAS Cow!!!! So, he casually walked over and picked him up and got lots of loving. I guess he forgot to latch the door and Cow opened it on his own. What a smart little kitty. Thought you might get a little laugh out of it. Ttys. Love Mom xoxoxo and Cow xoxoxo 

isn't my mama funny??  and isn't my dad a good cat catcher??  and isn't my cow a smart boy?!  

i think SO!

facts about today.

fact:  kuwait is very hot. like someone is blowing a hair drier in your eyes. 
fact:  i much prefer this heat to the humidity of vietnam.
fact:  i hurt my neck today and currently can't turn my head.  i don't know  what i did. 
fact:  i got my classroom keys today.  i'm going to make it awesome.
fact:  i am very happy to be living with the parkinson's right now.  they are awesome hosts/friends/family.
fact:  today i had a meeting with the rest of the new middle school people.  i think MS is going to ROCK.
fact:  i met the head of the english department today.  i am so excited to meet the rest of the english department and learn more about my job for the year ahead. 
fact:  lindsay and i baked cupcakes tonight.  they smell delish.
fact:  i napped today but hope i can still sleep tonight. because last night i was not very successful at sleeping.
fact:  tomorrow i don't have to go to the health tests with the other teachers because i don't have my work visa.  thank you fed ex.  NOT.  (p.s. will keep you posted on how i will go about this process). 
fact:  it's big brother time.  good bye!!

Good grief!!

I know, I know!! It's been a while. Also, it appears as if typing on my iPad avec auto correct is taking away from my signature style. ANYWAY, Linds said that I had to blog before I left so I could tell you about saying goodbye etc. Well, I'm sitting in the Soo airport and my flight is delayed and I am a bit nervous about getting to toronto in time for my next flight BUT I'm here. I'm not likely going to get an emergency exit seat so cross your fingers for an aisle!!!

As for this morning, I had to say goodbye to cow. That sucked. Huge. I cried, like a baby, starting at 6 this morning. Blah. Then we drove to the Soo
And every time I thought about him, I cried. FYI.

Then there was the cry saying bye to my aunts and then my parents. I hate goodbyes. So why do I choose a profession where I always have to say goodbye??? Who knows.

Anyway, I plan to be back at the blog faithfully once I'm in Kuwait and don't fret, I have a list of things to blog about because I am so far behind.

The end. See you in Kuwait. Xo