A selfie with some of the crew.  Three of us are at an American football game.

We didn’t feel like throwing our annual Thanksgiving bash at my complex this year.  Ashley has moved to another place, and Haneefa and I didn’t feel like doing all the party prep.  Instead 10 of us rented a 5-bedroom apartment in Dubai, and 11 of us feasted and got merry together.  Of course we had a great time.  Oh, and we got to Skype Suzanne whose back in the states.  We missed having her with us, but we’re so happy she gets to be with her family this year.

It was great to be with my UAE family, but I’m really missing Joe and the kids.  Kaylene and Kelly cooked dinner at their place; Joe and Aaron joined them and Kelly’s mom.  It looked and sounded like they had a great time.  Kyle was busy in Sedona.  On Saturday Aaron moved into his first apartment, so all of my children have officially flown the coop — how weird is that.  Joe was there to help him, but it’s weird for me to not have been there to see him off.  Hahaha perhaps Mama bird just wanted the chance to do that final shove out of the nest.

I’m so hoping I’ll get to spend the holiday season with my family next year.  Three years away is perhaps too much.  Regardless of where my next job is, I will be home for Christmas next year.  InshAllah Halloween and Thanksgiving as well, but that all depends on where my next job will be.

I’m in an odd place right now.  I’ve stopped putting in applications at other schools because Joe and I have decided that he will continue to work until I begin my next job (and I’m so glad he’s willing to do this! it was his idea).  We’re hoping a DODEA interview will come up last minute , and that I’ll be free to take the job.  Anyway, in a perfect world I’ll get to be a housewife (with grown children on their own!) for a few months with a miraculous January post.  For the first time in my life I’ll be a kept woman, and I am soo soo soo good with that.  Unless, of course, a job comes up that I can’t refuse.  Then Joe will be the kept one.

The odd place I’m in is being excited about reuniting with my family for more than a few weeks while at the same time being depressed about leaving here.  I know that once I come back from Christmas vacation time will fly by — and that’s a good and bad thing!

Work has been busy, but by Tuesday night I will be finished with this trimester’s real work.  All I’ll have to do is proctor and mark some exams, and plan for January.  In a few days my friend Brandy and I will be decompressing in Cyprus — woo hoo!  And two weeks after that I begin my Scandinavian adventure.

So, my depressed side doesn’t get a whole lot of time to pity party.  And, on the plus side, friends I’ve made here are now also family, so we too will celebrate together again.

How many revelers can you fit on a Dubai balcony?  Some of our food and a glimpse of our apartment’s view.  Dubai is always so good to us.