East Texas Girl in India!

Happy Birthday Fiona!! 

Fiona is my new friend.  We met on facebook when I first moved to Dubai.  Fiona manages the facebook  page for the area where we live.  I think we actually met face to face a couple of times and then, BAM, we went to India together!!

I was minding my own business, lol... reading facebook,  when Fiona posted that she was planning a trip to India all by herself because her two friends that were going had to cancel.  Before giving it any thought, I asked if she was up for traveling volunteers.  And there a new friendship started. 

We got together, made some super fast plans, and off we went.  Fiona had planned this trip as her 50th birthday bucket list item.  I just wanted to go have fun and see a new part of the world.  And, I can happily report, we both accomplished our goals far and above what we had planned. 

We had an amazing trip and shared some once in a lifetime memories.  The above picture shows us in front of the Taj Mahal, in Agra, India.  Probably the highlight of the trip, but everything we did was great!!  I especially enjoyed the history behind this famous monument.  Did you know that a man had this built (took 22 years) for his wife who had died??  As we toured and saw the magnificence of the structure, it occurred to me that my husband probably doesn't love me quite this much, but then I remembered, when I die I will have a mansion in heaven that far surpasses the Taj!!

However, for right now in this life, I can with confidence say about any other site I see... "Oh, I've seen better!".  The Taj Mahal is indeed one of the few wonders of the world.  And, we were there!

New Digs!

 Side/Front Yard

Back Yard

Living area

So, this is where we will start living as soon as paperwork is finished.  Which is supposed to be today at 3:00 pm by the way.
The pictures sorta make things look more stretched out.  It is a very modest townhouse/villa. We are thankful to be able to get it because of the great location. It is on a cul-de-sac, so no traffic, and the backyard faces a large lake area where we will enjoy walking our dog.  Notice there is no gate in back yard... I will have to walk down the road to gain access to walk area, but I'm pretty sure the son and hubs can step over the fence.  The locals here have been referring to the husband as Mr. Long, so that is how I will continue to address him on this blog!!  I thought that was funny.  Notice I didn't say they call me Mrs. Short, and they better not!!!  They usually call me Mrs. Steve..
Anyway, we are more than ready to move in.  Our air shipment is in country now so we can get it right away.  I have never looked so forward to seeing my oldest towels in all my life.  The rest of our things may take another couple of weeks to arrive.  That's ok.  I packed 2 lawn chairs,  2 plates, forks, cups, towels, pillows, etc so we can have enough stuff to camp out.   Sew ready to set up a home here!

Burj Al Arab - Sky View Tea

Here are a few pictures of our Saturday tea at the Sky Bar in the Burj Al Arab....

This shows our initial approach!

This is view of inside of hotel as we proceed up the escalator. There are also huge wall aquariums on either side of the escalator that you can't see here.

Here we are getting started. We really didn't know what to expect, so it was fun for us as they brought out the different courses of the tea.  7 Courses!!!  They were small servings so we didn't realize how quickly we would become stuffed! 

And this is why it is called the Sky Tea.  This was our view from one side of the lounge.  It was a hazy day so I don't have a picture from the other side, but it shows the Jumeria Palm with the Atlantis Hotel.  We could also see all the little man made islands a little further out in the water.  I guess we will just have to go back on a clear day to get the rest of the pictures.  I know you are gonna want to see them. 

Anyway, it was a great day and a great weekend to celebrate Easter.  The next morning we met up on the beach you see in the middle of this picture for out church's Easter sunrise service.  Incredible! Incredible weekend and Incredible Savior!!

That Dirty Dog!!

Does this sand make me look long and skinny?

Ok, this post is old. I found it when reacquainting myself with my neglected blog.  I think it was 2011. Josie, has since passed away, so this post is in her sweet, dear, memory.

Fun walk on the beach!

Swimming...

Yes, you guessed it! Erin, mom and I went for a road trip to High Island a few weeks ago and decided to take our pets. We actually took a miniature dachshund each. Nanny took Rags, whom we were pet sitting for Carryl, Erin took her dog, Shotzie,and I took Josie. Of the three dogs, Josie had the most fun. Rags sat in mom's lap the entire time and Shotzie stayed with Erin. Josie's leash broke just as we got there so I spent most of my time yelling at her and chasing her down. She loves going after the seagulls. We did learn our lesson and there will be no more trips to the beach for the dogs anytime soon. I don't think they liked it much and it was a lot of work for us. Imagine us trying to get them cleaned up for the ride back home! Oh yea, we did get two horn blows while we were there. I think Erin got one when we were unloading and I got one when we were loading back up!! All good for fun and laughs. We stayed long enough to get some sun and eat our lunch and then packed back up for 2 hr trip home. It was a good day and beautiful on the beach. We hope to go back before the end of the summer!

Let's Catch Up!!!

Ok, A lot has happened since my last post almost 2 years ago.... So at a glance:
Ethan started senior year in high school.
Ethan ran cross country and did great!
Ethan played varsity basketball for Zavalla Eagles and dunked the ball in a district game!
Ethan went to senior prom
Ethan graduated High School
Ethan started first job
ERIN still in college in Galveston, working and doing great during all this time.
Ethan starts Jr. college
STEVE gets job transfer to Dubai
Ethan gets 2nd job and begins second semester at Jr college
Lisa moves to be with Steve in Dubai

And that pretty much brings us up to date. With the exception of a few details here and there. 
I flew to Dubai in December 2012 to 'check things out'.  Came home for Christmas and stayed until movers packed and shipped some of our stuff. In March I officially moved to Dubai to find a place to live and set up housekeeping.  I arrived in Dubai, spent one night, and then headed off with Steve on a business trip to Cairo, Egypt.  That is where we are in the picture above. 

Now I have been back in Dubai, living out of suitcases until our little townhouse is ready to be inhabited.  Paperwork takes a while over here and so we are hoping to move in within the next few days which will be really great since I am traveling back to Texas in 11 days!

Run and Not Grow Weary...

There's Ethan, in the middle. They thought that his "glow in the dark" shoes were funny. Actually, they are silver Nike's, not really glow in the dark, but when I looked at the picture I immediately saw God's blessing on Ethan and our lives. When we moved to Zavalla to help Ethan complete high school, we never even dreamed that he would do so well in sports, let alone in cross country running. But God did. I have always told Ethan that God has a plan for his life, as for all of our lives, and to me, this picture holds a spiritual message. God has used Ethan's physical stature to help his emotional and mental one. He has enjoyed sports and making new friends. This picture is him with his Fellow Christian Athlete's. The kids here have made Ethan feel welcome and included in their activities. I have always believed that God would honor our faith in Him, but I never hoped that we would see the benefits so soon! I thank God daily that he has blessed us with Ethan, and his sister, Erin. They make our lives more complete and joyful!