It's Raining! It's...

Pouring would be a HUGE overstatement! We had some drops of rain yesterday and today!!! What a surprise to all! Everyone was calling and texting each other to make sure they got a quick glimpse! By the time I got my camera, it was already dried up!!! lol

I have caught some slack for not updating lately, but since I have been working that seems to be all of our excitement! We wake up, go to work, come home, eat dinner, then go to bed and do it all again! Maybe I can get Macey to come up with some posts for you!

Right now we are counting down, eagerly awaiting our summer trip home!

First Catholic Church Opens in Doha

Last Saturday, the Catholic Church of Our Lady of the Rosary opened in Doha. The Rites of Consecration was conducted over about a 5 hour mass and there were thousands and thousands of members in attendance!

I know some of you are wondering how this is the first church when there have been Catholic masses going on for some time. I guess the location of the masses was not considered a church but more of a place to worship. The Emir (ruler of Qatar) donated the land to any religion wanting to build their religious institution. So far the Catholic Church appears to be the only one.

So my friend, Lucy, and her kids and I met at the church for The Rites of Consecration. First of all the church is in the middle of nowhere, dust and dirt as far as the eye can see! There were people coming from everywhere, by foot, car and bus! It was amazing. There were a large amount of security, police officers, special forces, and metal detectors. I got there an hour early and there was not a seat to be found. I found us a spot right by the door, you can never be too safe! It was truly something, at some point they stopped letting people into the church yet broadcasted the mass outside. To be honest we probably would have been better off out there. We couldn't see anything and had to struggle just to hear.

After about 3.5 hours, I left as I had a million and one things to do now that I am teaching. Lucy stayed until the end and the traffic to get out once mass was over was a nightmare.

We are looking forward to going to church more often! ;-)))

Working 9-5

That is right, I am back to working once again. The school had a teacher resign and so I will be filling in for the remainder of the year. So posts may seem a bit infrequent!

Texas A & M in Qatar?

You all know that we have been here a year, but it is a bit strange for me to watch the blog repeat itself!









We went to the Texas A & M Boot Scoot last weekend! I know you aren't going to believe this but this event sold out in like 10 minutes! We were so lucky to have some wonderful friends who included us at their table!

Of course, it was a lot of fun. Mexican buffet, and two steppin'...can't get much better! The most noticeable difference between last year and this year was that we knew so many more people! Last year we still had that deer in the headlights look to us! ;-)

BTW-Lucy, I know you are going to kill me for including the picture of us with you looking a mess, but I love it!

So We're No Picasso

Well we have finally finished painting. I know that some of you may wonder why we just didn't pay someone to come and paint for us. Now come on, that would have been the easy thing to do! Michael and I LOVE doing these little projects together! Luckily for both of us, the rest of the painting in the villa will require the use of very tall ladders...so looks like we are done for now!
Okay, well we still need to hang some pictures and drapes! We are almost done!

Remember that our villa was fully furnished. So while the paint does help things seem a bit more Western, there will always be an Arabic sense to it! ;-)

Oh No, Not Another Project!

Those of you who know us know that Michael and I love to do little projects together. Some of you might recall us landscaping at midnight in the middle of a thunderstorm. Or how about that kitchen counter tile job we did in Mobile! Each of these projects really just strengthens our marriage!!!

Well I had a wonderful idea Thursday night, remember Thursday is our Friday. I decided that we should go to the paint store and buy a couple of gallons of paint! So at the paint store at 7:30 at night, I turn to Michael and "ask" we are going to start tonight, aren't we??? Our villas here are pretty big, but there aren't a lot of walls, so there really isn't much to paint. But of course there are things to be moved and cleaned up...etc. So we got one coat on our entry way!

Friday morning as we were looking at what we had done the night before, we decided that we wanted to move around furniture as well. So Michael started moving and I started painting our next project, area leading to the stairs. Of course while all this is going on, we noticed that a little neighborhood toddler was coming up to our porch to pet my very unfriendly feral friends! UGH! So I went running out to make sure she didn't get too close. (These two cats really just act like they live here!) So of course, I quickly explained to the parents that the cats are not friendly and NOT mine. Come to find out they are new to Doha and from Houston! Of course, then Michael invites them in...UGH! I of course have a panic attack because the house is a HUGE MESS...stuff everywhere...we have had a lot of wind lately so of course there is too much dust for my taste! But sure, come on in! They must have thought we were nuts, Michael in his Halloween pjs and me in my "Don't Be Crabby" pjs! Priceless!

I am happy to report that as of 6 pm, we are done. The house is rearranged and clean, very important! Starting to feel much more like our home.

Yes, you are seeing correctly...Michael holding a bottle of 409!!!

I will post pictures of the transformation tomorrow!

Happy Valentine's Day

Michael's Valentines!

Okay, well a couple of days late! Michael planned a wonderful evening for us at the Movenpick Hotel. Their Valentine's Day special included a 6 course meal on the 26 floor around the indoor pool. It was very nice! Four out of the six courses were wonderful. I even tried a taste of Michael's lobster, which for those of you who know me is a big accomplishment! They raffled off many prizes, one of which was a trip to Africa! But, unfortunately our name was not called! So our consolation prize was a teddy bear and a rose.

Macey just wanted you all to know that we went out to this really nice restaurant and all we brought her was ANOTHER stuffed toy and rose.