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We've Moved!

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To Be Continued...

Saying Goodbye

There are many ways to say goodbye.
Sainara, Au Revoir, Adios, Arrivederci but....
for some of Chris' co workers it's a Diet Coke and a little Shisha with a feather boa type Hookah.
(Shisha is the tobacco used in the Hookah water-pipe.)
Even though Chris doesn't smoke it was a thoughtful gesture.

Others say farewell with a 50 Mile social ride or an 80K hammer fest under 2 hours.

Some tear up, hug, or just say, "See ya later!" trying not to get
too emotional.

For me, saying goodbye has been bitter sweet. I will miss many aspects of the Expat Life: the travel, the 6 weeks of vacation, a nominal house payment and free utilities, saving money, having house help, a small close knit yet diverse community full of activities for the kids, everything on camp within walking distance, and dear friends such as these and many others not shown. It is very difficult for this kind of life to be replicated although I know small pockets exists all over the world.

I will not miss 36 hours of travel time home, sand storms, the 4 hour commute to church each week (other than the talking time with Chris), insanely crazy drivers, camel crossings, security checkpoints, imported American foods that just don't taste right like stale cereal and shredded cheese that arrives all melted and globby, the absolute inability of some nationalities to queue up properly, not driving, my Abaya in 100+ heat, and holes in the ground as public toilets.....just to name a few.

Saying goodbye to our houseboy Golum was also very difficult. Not only because he helped me immensely around the house but because he felt like family to us. We hope he felt compensated for a job well done. He will be returning to Bangladesh in September after working abroad for 10 years, 7 of which were here in Saudi. During his 3 month break he will marry and try and start a business so that after he fulfills his contract in Saudi he can be home with his wife and family. He was always kind and helpful and he adored the boys. They loved to go out and work in the yard with him causing him to get teased by the other workers for having little white boys as his helpers. We wish him the best and hope that he won't have to work abroad indefinitely to support his family.


This experience has enriched me in so many ways. My eyes have been opened by the things I've seen. I have served and been served. I have loved and been loved. I will cherish this time as it has helped me to stretch and grow and better understand the diversity of the world we live in. We do not regret our decision to move to Saudi. It's funny because when we decided to move there the common response from friends and colleges was, "What?! You're moving where?!" Now that we are leaving the common response from our expat friends was, "What?! You're leaving already?!"

Much thought and many prayers went into both the decision to come and to go and we feel that we are doing what is best for our family and Chris' career at this time and although the money was exceptional.....sometimes it's not about the money.

On that note we not only say goodbye to Udhailiayah but also to the Uda-Where Blog.
If you want to continue following the Jenkins Family Journeys you can find us at
www.thejenkinsjourneys.blogspot.com

Jet Lagged

The boys got along pretty well this voyage home making our trip happily uneventful except for the two bouts of motion sickness, one pair of soaked through clothing, a new potty trained little one who can't go without taking practically everything off, and going through customs with 8 pieces of check luggage (one over-sized), two carry-ons, and three car seats. Normally I go home with little and return with lots however, since we aren't returning I had to bring 4 months worth of clothing, sundries, and a few favorite toys.

(Amsterdam Airport during a 4 hour lay over. They ran around with other Expat Kids the first 1.5 hours then settled in for a few cartoons before boarding the next flight.)

On previous trips I over packed the carry-on with things to keep the boys busy and all they wanted to do was watch the non-stop movies. This time I brought practically nothing....I even left the stroller behind and they complained of being bored at times. I've found that every time we travel they are at different stages and I don't always anticipate what they'll want during these insanely long voyages. Thankfully Graham was happy to watch episodes of Handy Mandy and Phineas and Ferb repeatedly....and I mean around 4 times each. Also starting off the journey on a red eye makes the boys want to sleep for a portion off each flight and they still flip times fairly quickly upon arrival.

But every so often something like this happens.

When I left our second night here to go biking with my Dad around 7 pm I warned my Mom that if Ethan stopped moving and sat down he would fall asleep as he'd been up since 4:30 am. True enough when I returned home at 10:30 he was asleep, fully dressed, on the office floor and he been so for quite a while as my mother had been unable to move him. I decided to just let him lay there while I got a few things down. Just as I was ready to head down for a shower he began to stir but when I tried to guide him down the stairs he refused and went to lay down and snuggled up by the oven on the kitchen floor instead. Boy was he MAD when I tried to pick him up and carry him down the stairs. He began kicking and screaming so much I set him down mid way where he fussed for a while. After that he decided that he would indeed come down the stairs but refused any help getting his PJs on or going to bed and decided to curl up on the bathroom floor. At this point I just gave up for a few minutes and let him just sort out his feelings. After about 10 minutes, while gently rubbing his back, I sweetly and softly asked if he wanted to sleep in the bathroom all night or get in bed and he finally chose the later.

Of course this morning, as I suspected, he has no recollection of the event.

That's Jet Lag for ya.