Happy Holidays everyone! We've been in our new home for about 6 weeks and are starting to get settled into a routine which is so nice after a few months of change. Let's give you a brief run down of what's happen since that day in November when we arrived at the airport.
November 2 we departed Dulles International Airport at 5:30pm (or thereabouts) after being dropped off by Grandma and Grandpa Jackson (and Uncle Brenton). The girls did well on the flight considering the masks and small space. We've said it before, our girls are great travelers and we count it among our blessings.
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| Bye-bye America! |
We landed in Germany after 6 hours of flight on the morning of November 3 but it was actually the middle of the night for our bodies. We had several hours of layover then boarded a mostly empty flight for Kuwait. We took advantage of the open space by moving to open rows to spread out and get more sleep.
Germany
We arrived in Kuwait around 7pm and spent the next hour and a half doing paperwork or rather, waiting for it. Easily got our bags (since they were the only ones left) and got in the van to take us to our temporary housing. Luckily our kitchen had a few items so we ate cereal for dinner then it was off to bed... kind of. None of us got any real sleep that night because our bodies were telling us it was the middle of the day! Time to play! Finley ended up in the pack n play in our room and Kiersten spent some time on the floor in Mackenzie's room. We were all asleep finally by about 4:30am and the girls slept in until 9 or 10.
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| Call to prayer from the Mosques happen multiple times a day. |
Anyway, the next week was a haze of not enough sleep, unpacking, ordering groceries and figuring out the quirks of the new house, time zone and neighborhood. We weren't able to do any exploring until our 14 days of quarantine were over which meant that Kiersten spent her birthday indoors with not a whole lot to do. We did order Shake Shack for dinner which was delicious.
Our first Pizza Night in country. Giant and not very good. 
We were given fun indoor activities. 
Baking cookies of course
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| Kiersten's "cake". A Nutella Babka. |
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| Drawing on the windows with fun washable markers. Thanks Grandma! |
After the 14 days we were eager to explore! The first day out of quarantine we took a walk. Wahoo! The next day we went to the Embassy to do some necessary things and let Scott meet his office mates. The girls were thrilled to be free and play at a playground with some other kids.
That weekend we did a lot. We went for a walk along the gulf with some new friends, went to dinner with a member family, went to the grocery store, played at the beach and swam in a heated pool. Then when the work week started on Sunday it was back to nothingness. Kiersten and the girls were at home to fend for themselves and Scott was tossed back into work. Luckily it wasn't a full normal week because Thanksgiving was that Thursday. We spent the day playing and ate dinner with the friends from the beach. It was very nice and almost normal.
Who needs toys? 
Embassy playground. An improvement. 
Our family picture from our coastal walk. 
Doing that letter learning 
Our accidental playground discovery near the temp house!
The following weeks were kind of sad. Our unaccompanied air baggage (UAB) arrived in country and even though we were in temporary housing we had it delivered so we could have a few more home comforts. Our real house was in the works and we didn't know exactly when we'd get to move in. We bought a Christmas tree and set up some decorations and then got word the house was ready to move in on December 6. The house instantly felt like home and we finally felt settled after a long time.
Making salt dough ornaments 
Drawing Christmas pictures with hands and feet. 
Tree skirt taken literally.
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| Ready to grocery shop! |
Even though we had officially moved in things did not get easier. After months of uncertainty we needed to give the girls time to adjust to their new surroundings, again. The biggest toll was with Mackenzie and some ... issues. Won't go into too much detail but those first 10 days in the house were very stressful. Full of worry and anxiety and the brunt of it falling to Kiersten (not complaining just that's the way it goes sometimes). Her issue got resolved and there were tears of joy shed by all parties.
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| Sunrise near our home on the beach. |
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| Little complex playground. |
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| Christmas decorations! |
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| Spent hours putting this up but it was worth it! |
Since we've moved in we've been able to meet a few new people, have 1 outdoor playdate, try out some of the neighboring restaurants (Five Guys and BurgerFi right next door!), go to the pool (it's heated right now), do some Christmas shopping, go to church and give talks, have dinner with some members of our ward and do an Embassy Holiday celebration. The days might be tough but we are really excited to get started fresh and see what Kuwait has to offer. The beginning of any move is tough but we know it will get better.
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| Enjoying the Holiday goodies from the Embassy party. |
- The driving. Man they weren't kidding when they warned us how fast and dangerous some people drive here. We were told 3 times in the same day to be cautious when driving and to just move over. Sage advice.
The sign says, "Watch for road surprise". - 8 hour time difference from the East Coast has been a huge adjustment. We need to do some real planning if we want to FaceTime with family or do a game... day.
- The weekend is Friday and Saturday. Work week is Sunday -Thursday. So the only "normal" feeling day is Saturday. So confusing.
Kuwait Towers.
- She is drawing a lot and really building on her creativity. She has also started to copy drawings done by others.
Caught reading to Finley - Before we go out to meet someone new or go to a restaurant she'll ask, "Do they speak Spanish?" No, not here. It's Arabic AND English!
This was taken at Grandma and Pop Pop's before we left. - If you ask her where we live she'll tell you, "Kuwait!"
- She is branching out on her independence in the kitchen. She can now make toast and butter it.
- She is thrilled any time there are other children outside at our complex park. We love seeing her interacting just as much as she loves playing with them.
Yes, that is her face mask on her head like a bandana.
- We have been working on her speech for months now and are starting to see the fruits of our labors. At her 2 year check up she only had about 6 words, English or Spanish. Since that time she has added to that list and we are beyond happy.
- New words include, "bye!" and "down". She still reverts to grunts and gesticulations but we're working harder on reminding her to use her words.
- One of our new favorite things she does is to tell you a secret. She'll get right up to your ear and mumble a few sounds. It's so cute and hilarious.
- She acts like she wants to be potty trained but she doesn't really know whats going on down there. She grabs herself and makes a tinkle noise after she sees one of us going to the bathroom so we'll put her on the potty but she just sits there. In time.
From our trip in Florida - She is still wary of other kids. Maybe it's because we've been in isolation for so long or because she's usually the youngest. She'll sit and watch them and eventually warm up only once she sees how much fun Mackenzie is having with them.
