Grandpa Comes to Doha

Grandpa was here and all was right with the world...almost I guess, just needed grandma.  It was a great visit and we were spoiled having him here. The kids got to play hooky a few days and just enjoyed their Grandpa time.  Unfortunately, we worked the whole time and didn't have near enough time.  Good thing he'll be back with my Mom in January.

Museum of Islamic Ar

Sling Shot Swing at the Park

Grandpa comes to Family Math Day

Bromance on the Beach

Commemorated

Kite Surfing at Fuwairit Beach

Beach at the InterContinental Beach Club

An evening at Ikea

Champagne Brunch

Math Calculations with Adam

Grandpa and his boys at the Singing Sand Dunes

Family Math Day at School

Jay and Elias...Everyone gets them confused.

Cultural Center near Souk Waqif

Museum in the Souq

What's Happening???

HALLOWEEN 2013!!!!  The smallest pumpkins ever, but who can afford them here? 

Kiwi make pretty good pumpkins with some paint :)

Minecraft is EVERYWHERE!!!!

Gangster Minecraft Creepers!!! Very Creative

A day out in Doha!

Museum of Islamic Art...designed by I.M. Pei  We still need to visit the inside :)

Working out on the Corniche

Jay gets one off of his bucket list...skating at the mall :)  He did awesome!

SUPER DUPER LOOSE TEETH!  

Headed to a birthday party slumber party with a Teen Beach Movie Theme???  I guess he is a biker named Brady from the show.

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Miss Bella...our sweet cat!  Jay took this photo and brought it to school and now she is their class mascot!  :)

Sweet boy.

Zig Zag Towers...very cool architecture.

ADAM's Choir Festival Performance

GAME NIGHT WITH FRIENDS!  Adam and the ladies :)

Eid Al Adha

We are on vacation for 10 days right now because of one of the two most important feasts in the Muslim religion.  Muslims around the world are celebrating Eid al-Adha, the Muslim festival of sacrifice, which began on Tuesday and continues until the end of the Hajj pilgrimage.

Eid al-Adha commemorates the Prophet Ibrahim’s sacrifice of his son, Ishmael, to Allah as an act of obedience. Allah spared Ishmael after seeing Ibrahim's devotion and instead gave him a sheep to kill. In the Bible version, he is named Abraham and it is Isaac, not Ishmael, who is almost sacrificed.

The three-day festival also marks the end of Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia, Prophet Muhammad's birthplace. Muslims are expected to make the pilgrimage once in their lifetimes.

On the Eid, many Muslims celebrate and pay tribute to Allah, who gave mercy to Ibrahim, going to a mosque for morning prayers followed by slaughtering animals. Much of the meat is given away to others as a symbol of Muslim’s willingness to give up on behalf of Allah’s command. The sacrificed animal is cut in thirds, with one third eaten in a celebratory dinner by family, one third offered to friends, and the remaining portion donated to those less fortunate.

Worshipers of the holiday typically wish each other “Eid Mubarak,” which is the standard greeting during observance of Eid al-Adha, meaning “Have a blessed Eid.”  

We have been enjoying our time off, indulging in opportunity that we would NEVER have had before.  We started the week at Fuwairit Beach up north, sunbathing and enjoying the Gulf waters, just the four of us.  The temperatures have been beautiful and seeing the cooler temps back home in Minnesota and Wisconsin have given us cause for celebration as we are still recooping from the harsh winter we endured last year.  We joined some friends from school at the Four Seasons Hotel on Monday and lived it up in a huge suite, at the pool, and on the beach.  It was absolutely phenomenal and the fun and relaxation we came away with was completely worth the money :)  We did get a discount because of where we work so that was helpful, thank goodness.  This isn't bragging, mind you...it's just quite surreal to us to be able to do some of these things now that we are where we are.  It's a privilege that we don't take lightly and are embracing every experience that presents itself...big or small.  We are definitely missing our family and friends back home, but facebook, facetime, viber, and skype have been brilliant in keeping us in touch and getting our fix.  

Date night

Four Seasons Paradise

Our babies...intertwined at bed :)

Not sure Santa can deliver, kids :)

please don't fall, please don't fall

Here's to vacation...the apple juice was a wonderful vintage.

Hotel room balcony

Fuwairit Beach 

Sand man or Mer man or something

We could get used to this, Mom and Dad!

What?  No winter here?