Former Expat Teacher Acclimating to the American Way!

Brace yourself. It's coming. Piles of things with nowhere to go and an impending deadline. You have a million things to do so you begin the arduous task of figuring out what to keep and what to let go of. In the beginning, it seems easy enough. Maybe you don't have lots of things. In which case, the above picture will never be you. In most cases, however, just get your tissue ready. Or your bottle of libation. Whichever suits your fancy. Let me start with the process of letting things go. Because I am so smart, I began paring down months ago. It felt good and I was so proud of myself for being on top of things. After that, I began to walk around my house and think about what I would post things for when the time came. I decided I didn't want the hassle of bargaining so I would post things for a ridiculous price. Satisfied that I had time, I continued on with daily life. Fast forward some months and we get the paper work. It is so confusing that I set it aside a...

As I try to prepare for my impending return home, I find that I am more nervous than when I left. Not because of any political issues that are going on at home-not that those things help the situation. I feel it is because so much has changed in the world of education. Even when I was at home, I was in a Pre-K program and under a different set of rules. Stringent nonetheless I might add.  Being that I left before moving up, I am afraid I am at a disadvantage. I talk to other teachers who point out some of my strengths. It makes me feel better and I am reminded that I shouldn't sell myself short. It is a very bad habit I have yet to leave behind. It takes a lot of a person to stay here for 7 years and to actually work and make a difference. I can honestly say that I haven't had a year where I didn't do either of those things and for that I am proud. It takes skill to get children with little to no English to be able to work in a classroom setting and be successful and exc...

Very interested in doing photography walks in AD with others who are interested in photography as well as possibly having a photography mentoring session and critique. I am interested in: lifestyle photography candid photography street photography black and white photography architectural photography toy photography (a recent interest) ...and I dont shoot nearly enough. If you are interested or know someone who is interested, please message me. Sometimes its so easy to sit at home and snap nothing...or have small periods of being snap happy before reverting to nothingness

Feeling a little 2nd home sick and wondering what this school year will bring. Call me crazy but working is what I do and as stressful as it sometimes is I love it.

Ive been home for awhile. I cant say that I experienced this grande feeling for being on US soil as others have described. I guess that home is wherever Im comfortably making my living and enjoying life.idk. Im enjoying family and food. Ive mostly been relaxing and trying not to eat too much tainted food.Ive also been doing a lot of SHOPPING. Ive gotten some things for myself but a LOT of things for class. Things that werent on the list but were needed anyway. My buggy was running over at the dollar tree. I also went on a spree at thrift stores for books as well as discount stores. Today I placed a pretty big order of items from oriental trading  and Im excited to get those things. Im going to have to get another luggage for the things Im taking back EVEN THOUGH I packed lightly and only had things in a couple of our luggage brought over. Luckily, some things I already had here but didnt bring initially. Im going to go through the things again to see what I may not need. Im e...

Many teachers are coming over soon and,understandably,have budget concerns and constraints. It took me awhile to figure out I could buy food from the deli and save money. This is not only great when one doesnt feel like cooking and the food tastes good. They have food from various cultures but I dont stray too far from what I know. You can get plain rice,chicken fried rice,vegetables (though notably doused in butter),beef meals,chicken meals,and fish meals. Just to give you an idea of what you could get and the prices. I got a whole chicken (lemon herb) today for 12.99 dirham (3.50 US) . They also have 3 or 4 other types of seasoned chicken If youre not into meat, you can get potato salad, hummus, cold slaw,or arabic salad for around 5 dirham for 1 serving which is less than 2 dollars. The deli has pretty good options if you are close to a supermarket. Although I LOVE shwarma, I wouldnt recommend trying to live on it for any extended amount of time though you HAVE to try it whe...

The Arabic teachers make some of the best food. We enjoy eating on a daily basis. However, I dont think they like our food as much as we like theirs. Its ok,scrambled eggs for breakfast are wonderful but Id take this spicy Arabic dish any day over something I can have any time I feel like it. Still packing my room. Man, I have a lot of things. Also got some things from a teacher who is going to another country. So grateful for those things. A bit sad to see her go but its an opportunity for her family so thats always good. Also another teacher is leaving. She and I had a lot of the same ideas about approaches to learning and bounced ideas off one another. Shes moving up in the ranks so thats a good thing for her. I know shell do well. WHO ARE WE GOING TO HAVE NEXT YEAR? idk but not going to worry my little head over it now. Currently prepping for my PD on wednesday. Have to collaborate with my AT for translation else all this will be for a lost cause. I hope we have some goo...

ok,so I made a new link that has vids,although I know it needs updating but on top of procrastination,Ive actually been doing a bit of work! Today,after eating at a new restaurant,Im thinking of a new link that gives my review of the place. aaaaaalsooooo, been thinking of another link that gives ideas for activities or additions to centers and/or small group lessons in AD because we all know that seeing something that may have worked great at home may not do so well here. It would seem this girl has big aspirations because I ALSO have plans of starting another blog about using natural products for health and beauty as I use a lot myself. There are many places to find ideas I know but I figure Id put my own little take on it and I use so many things myself and can give an honest take on them. Ive been finding more things as they tend to have more natural things here that dont cost a fortune, as they sometimes do at home. All I need is a title . . .and that may take awhile. So TO...

I havent been blogging as much but things are still going on. I have pics,once more,that should have BEEN posted... More importantly, I have WORK to do. unlike many days where I finish it AT work,lol. Thats one major difference here though not sure thatll last forever-or at least the time I am here. We are set to turn in portfolios to be reviewed by someone,not sure who. And I started one upon arrival but stopped because things werent in place for me to do one. Im used to doing one and basically it shows that you are actually doing your job-or at least its SUPPOSED to. Changes are trickling in. Sometimes it feels like its pouring in. Like before they were knocking but noone was opening the door but now it is and,at least at my school,its welcomed by the LTs...I suppose. Maybe I should only speak for myself :-). One of my KG1 teachers says that she enjoys when I come to her class because I bring center activities and the kids learn. It made me feel good to hear that. Her class is ...

So Ive been thinking about a move to Reem Island  . Not because I have a bad place (I dont) or because Im in a bad location (Im not),but because we plan on being here long term and this place has much more of a home feel as there are so many amenities there. The only drawback is the the location, which is also nice as far as I know right now. Only thing is its too close to Tourist Club and thats not a place I care for too much. And if the link above doesnt convince someone maybe the future plans  will! We have all that we would need to stay there pretty much and this place has...drumroooooooollllll-CLOSETS! Once of them even a walk in. It may sound like it but I dont have my hopes up and Im not even excited about it at this point. Im just looking at my options.This would be the one and only time youd catch me living on an island. My only requirement? That I live on a  bottom lower level floor. Should be an easy enough request as most people want to be higher...

But the TRUE key to happiness is being content where you are while striving toward the next place in your life. So while people are doing things that I would love to do... travel to Greece, East Africa,Thailand,etc, I will be here in little Abu Dhabi (to which I never,ever thought I would be anyway), enjoying a break from work (which isnt too hard anyway), doing some work (gasp!) because I need things for when we return. Well, make that the kids. THEY need some new activities and what better time to print,cut,laminate. Is it weird that I enjoy those things?? If so, oh well! Ill be enjoying the weather (while I can), possibly the beach, enjoying my husband and the time we have together because life is too short to do otherwise. And even if I dont set foot in Dubai (for which Id only do if I were going to have GERMAN CHOCOLATE CAKE),Ill enjoy myself because happiness is inside of me and there isnt really a heaven on earth.Oh, and a little wine always makes things better :-) Bu...

After shopping today I realize that I can shop at the deli of Lulus for 3-4 days worth of food (which is the shelf life of most things gotten from the deli) and pay less for groceries this way. The food is good and already cooked. Not sure what Ill like and not like but Im pretty sure they give samples. Im not the happiest about paying 1000 dhm for food BEFORE eating out comes into the picture but the man has to eat,lol. Today lunch was good at home:chicken pasta with fresh diced tomatoes. PB&J for "dinner",lol. NOTICE: PORTOBELLO at Al Wahda Millenium Hotel has good,italian food, nice ambiance, and great service. Theyre new and waiting on their license for alcohol. IN THE MEANTIME. . . the food is 50% off which is a treat!!! lowest thing on the menu for dinner is 50 dhm and the highest I think is 150 or so. The fresh juice is wonderful and thats 30dhm a glass (no refills). I had the canneloni and he had the chicken parmesan ( i think). Cant wait to go back to taste ...

The time is winding down and things continue to become more real. I have yet to become anxious or nervous about anything save this upcoming operation and how it will affect my travels. My bags have been packed for a week or so but, as I look around, I am beginning to wonder about what needs to be rearranged. I have so many things around here even though I have given away and sold most large items. We have dwindled our life down to about 3 containers of things we would like to save. Although many people are getting storages or renting out their homes, we don't have that issue and I am glad. Fortunately for us, most things were his before I got here and others were either given to me or things that were repurposed so $ was minimal. I thought it would be difficult but it proves to be a cleansing experience because I do tend to hold on to so many things "just in case." Travel documents came, my passport came, and I was able to meet with a group of Atlanta teachers here. I sta...

In preparation for this change I have spent countless hours reading blogs, threads, watched videos, read personal blogs, read wikipedia, and pretty much consumed every piece of information I could about this country I was considering relocating to. Whats important to note, or so I thought, is the fact that there was no real hesitation or nervousness on my part. After praying about it, I continued on with my life as usual and waited for the indications that would tell me whether this was for me. The process went rather smoothly. After looking through job posts for someone else I saw an ad that piqued my interest. I decided to apply with no real thought that I would get a response. Not even a week later I got a call and was surprised as well as a bit scared. Did I really want to call this woman back? Is this a legitimate company? What are the pros and cons of leaving and teaching abroad for 2+ years? Would I get homesick? How would I cope? All these questions were in the back of my mind ...