IKEA Bus Trip

Well, we finally made it to IKEA in Jeddah.  We decided to take the bus over the girls' Spring Break.  The store here is just like IKEAs elsewhere except on the particular day we went they were out of meatballs and only had chicken nuggets for the kids.  This was a little bummer because I has been looking forward to the Swedish meatballs.  The coffee was fantastic and we got free refills!  The girls loved looking at all the setups.  We let each child select one item- Marcella chose a mat for the base of her bunkbed ladder, Theresa chose some artificial zinnias, and Eben and Eleanor got a little red fox music box.  We had a nice time but most likely will not need to return- it's much more pleasant visiting the IKEA in Austin if we feel the IKEA urge again.  Jeddah is like Juarez, MX with an Aston Martin dealership.

Easter Tute

Over the girls' Spring Break we made their Easter Tutes.  (pronounced too-tah) This is a new Easter craft for our family.  In the past we have always made Easter Nests from flowers and other nature, but this year I thought we would make Tutes.  This idea comes from a German tradition for school children on their first day of school.  The children receive Schultute, which are cones filled with goodies and school supplies. 

Our kids will hang their tutes the night before Easter from their chairs and see what goodies the Easter Bunny brings them in the morning.  The whole family took part in the tute making and when all was done we hand some beautiful, though rather large, Easter Tutes!

A Belated St. Patrick's Day

I was just perusing my pictures and realized I have not yet written about our St. Patrick's Day.  The day before the 17th I invited the moms over for a St. Patrick's Day tea which was a lot of fun.  I was most impressed by the twins- they had no problems sharing their toys.  I had prepared zucchini bread muffins and green dyed rice krispie treats as well as grapes and kiwis.  It was a lovely morning and most everybody wore green.  Next year I need to remember to take a group kid picture because all the kids looked adorable in their green outfits.  One mother had brought the most refreshing lemonade.  It was a blended mixture of lemonade made from concentrate and mint.  We all loved it and the best part was she gave me a bottle to share with my family.  I'll definitely be making the drink in Texas this summer. Our dinner on St. Patrick's Day was Oma's scrumptious Shepherd's Pie and Oatmeal Bread with Shamrock Cookies for dessert.

Here are the twins waiting for their guests: