The Schellenbergs.com

Last night Jen and I had a date night. We got a call at about 4 pm that our kids were having a blast at friends place and that they wouldn’t be joining us for dinner that evening. then, about an hour later, we got another call saying that they were not really interested in coming home at all. NO KIDS!

Jen and I quickly changed and got ready for a night out on the town. Most things in Doha are closed till 6 because of ramadan, so we had some time to plan. We decided on Dean and Deluca and then off to a movie. Jen and I shared a goat cheese and pear panini sandwich and we each had a salad (very weight watcher friendly I might add) I had an americano and she had her tea.

Dinner was great. reasonable service, good conversation, great food. for those who are wondering, Villagio has awesome bathrooms too. hey… it’s important.

following dinner we went over to the cinema and watched the new Leonardo DiCaprio movie – Inception. Everybody and their brother have already seen it so the cinema was fairly empty. all in all, a great night.

Oh. one more thing, the kids are out again tonight! a prearranged sleep over means they are out 2 nights in a row and we are like teenagers again… Just waiting for the restaurants to open and we are taking in a sushi feast!

ok… so I have been neglectful. Apologies. I was on holidays last week and we did a ton of awesome stuff here in Doha.

One of the coolest things was the release of baby hawksbill sea turtles.

We went up to one of the beaches north of Doha where the government is organizing turtle protection activities for the state of Qatar.  Apparently the project is very successful and they are finding the transmitters that have been attached to the turtles in places from Cairo to Indonesia. Quite the swim if you ask me.

anyways, the pics.

Daniel is showing off his little dude.

And Thomas doing the same

Bit of a closeup

Thomas loved watching them go into the water, he was a big helper

Just after this was taken, Daniel jumped cause if you look closely you can see a turtle crawling over daniels foot… Scared the big man…

Ahh.. Holidays. I have actually been on holidays all week. The boys, Jen and I have been swimming every day, hanging out, playng a ton of uno and jenga. awesome way to spend a week in Doha.

Hey Everyone… It’s been a while.

Jen and I planned a super cool birthday for our little man. Thomas has always loved Dinosaurs, animals and trucks. Anything bigger than Mom and Dad is cool. For his 5th birthday this year, we rented a stretched hummer and picked up all his friends and took them for a little tour of Doha.  I will get the video uploaded and post it separately. Take a look:

K. I really like this one:

This morning Daniel woke up with a rash… he didn’t realise he had a rash so apparently it wasn’t bothering him too much, but we were a bit worried about it. We were supposed to hang out with friends at the Ritz today, but we didn’t like to be known as the family that brought the rashy kid to the pool… So we cancelled that. instead, Thomas went to his swimming lesson(did great) and now we are catching up on house hold chores around the house… Thomas and I planted some new tomato plants in the back yard, Daniel finished off his homework and now they are about to have a bite to eat. Yesterday we had Bell Curt and the boys over for lunch, always fun watching the triplets run around. Boy am I glad I am past that stage! Great kids but amazing amounts of work. This afternoon we’ll spend some time gettign ready for this week. We have a field trip on tuesday to a greenhouse in Daniels class… Think that;s it for them. Jen is doing some catering for a few separate events and me, well stuff in IT is going crazy.  We only have about 5 months to get all the approvals and plans done for the year. Work severely drops off come June. everyone runs away. it’ll be slow until the end of ramadan, mid September. then things will start to pick up again. Such is life in the middle east.

if a dog was the teacher you would learn things like:

• When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
• Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.
• Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.
• Take naps.
• Stretch before rising.
• Run, romp, and play daily.
• Thrive on attention and let people touch you.
• Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
• On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.
• On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.
• When you’re happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
• Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
• Be loyal.
• Never pretend to be something you’re not.
• If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
• When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.

Thanks for forwarding mom….

So. it’s supposed to be a quiet weekend for the Schellenbergs. I have a cold. so ironic that it’s +35 here and I have a cold. We spent the morning at the swimming with Bell and Kurt Jen is making Stuffed peppers downstairs fro dinner and I am upstairs watching Night court. slow weekend indeed. Kinda nice when you aren’t feeling well though. I should also mention that last night Jen made casts of the boys… Thomas had his hands and feet done, and Daniel wanted to do his face. they all turned out remarkably well. We are going to paint them when they dry properly.

Daniel and Thomas got their report cards from the school yesterday. Thomas did fantastic and got a letter of congratulations from the school for his work. Daniel did great, but is struggling with some reading and organization. organization… apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

Tomorrow we are going to Qatar Foundations weekend spring extravaganza. it will be the highlight of the slow weekend. bouncing around a soccer(foot ball) field with 4000 others. I’ll take pictures tomorrow to share.

thats all for now!

-r