Our Summer, Part II

July: It's true, we never dreamed we would still be displaced in another country. Crazy thing is, we were just in the next country! But we could not get KG's birth certificate, which meant we could not apply for a passport. Without that little blue book we had no chance of crossing the border to get back home. Why could we not get go get his birth certificate, you may ask. We found out at the beginning of June that our original marriage license was not enough to prove Hans and I were in fact married. (it is illegal to have a baby here out of wedlock) So, we had to get our license attested on the SC state level, then on the DC level, and then on the UAE in DC level...After waiting for a month we assumed out docs got lost in the mail. Fail :( So, round two. July was spend waiting...
     Just because we were in a holding pattern did not mean we were not busy. We were busy adjusting to being a family of 4! People were not lying when they said the adjustment from one to two kids was tough! I felt like we never slept that first month! When one kid would finally go to sleep the other would wake up. Alexis did really well with the transition, however. She loves her little brother. When he is sad she sings to him, and she insists that he always has a paci in his mouth! (maybe it was because she loved hers so much!)

4th of July

     Also, we got to celebrate 4th of July together as a little family. The 4th is one of my favorite holidays. I think its because growing up it was the one time when my whole extended family got together and gorged ourselves on Gumbo and fresh seafood. I have so many fond memories of the 4th of July. So this year, Hans was determined to make it special for me, despite the fact that we were walking zombies. He got me a Dr. Pepper and pop tarts for breakfast! (I know, I know, a soda for breakfast...but it was a holiday that deserved American treats!) For dinner we got dressed up in our Red, White, and Blue and went to Chili's.

Aug: And, still not able to go home...Aug. was not typical as we had to adjust our day to day schedule around Ramadan (I will post more about Ramadan in another post.) Everything was pretty much closed until after 7pm. So no more going out to eat or to play at the indoor park. Thankfully we had some wonderful visitors come to help pass the time! Two of our dearest Egyptian friends came. We got to explore some of Dubai with them! Then the day after they left Hans' parents flew in from Thailand. Also, a ton of fun! For two weeks we got to spend time playing games, watching movies, and finding ways to amuse the kids during Ramadan. We went to the zoo three times during this month! It was a tad odd walking around the zoo at night, but we got up close looks at a lot of the nocturnal animals.
     On Aug. 23, our 4th anniversary we got to come home!! KG was finally granted a passport! It was such a great feeling driving into our town. After an entire summer away, it was great to finally be home.

Surprised to finally have a passport! :)

Fun times with Grandma and Grandpa

     Well, that was our summer in a nutshell. Fun, eh?! We have learned as a family we really do have to be flexible. Thank you all for your prayers for us during that time!