Mac Moments

Christmas this year will see us off to Sri Lanka , which I will tell you all about next year. We are very excited about experiencing a new culture and perhaps having pork for breakfast and gammon for Christmas dinner. So all my friends, what is left to say other than have a very MERRY CHRISTMAS and may 2010 bring you everything you would ever wish for yourselves. We love you all, miss those that we are apart from and truly are blessed to have such wonderful friends scattered all over the world. All our love Steve, Denise, Sean and Jessica

Shirley Visit – November / December Our first visitor since we have been here. It was so exciting and she loved the city! We did loads of things that Steve and I have not even done yet, Like the Desert safari, visiting the Islamic Museum of art, visiting the Pearl , shopping in the Souks and just taking in the culture and city.

A trip to London for a few days without the kids, it was a rather nerve wracking trip for us (me), but our friends in Doha looked after the kids like gems. From Traci looking after the kids while they were in school, Michela fetching and carrying from school, Helen and Abu looking after Jess and Sean on the weekend, we were well covered and have to say thanks all over again. We were really blessed for the support and love they bestowed on the kids and the break they gave us from our regular routine. London was marvelous and I enjoyed exploring on my own, from Oxford and Regent Streets, Hamleys toy shop, West End, Harrods, Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens , Notting hill and just walking in the green parks, I loved every moment. I also caught up with some friends from school days, who I had not seen for 20 years, scary figure that!! It was fun!

South Africa , Mauritius , Sun City in July/August 2009 July and August summer holidays were spent in the South African winter, we had a whirlwind visit and it was wonderful to see all our family and friends, who we miss dearly! The kids and I spent the first week in Johannesburg with Les, Paul, Cam and Lauren, Debs, Dave, Ash and Robyn and all our amazing friends, Aline put up with us with almost constant daily visits J then we visited Mom and Dad in Jeffries Bay, it was so lovely to spend time with them and the kids loved every moment. Steven joined us in JBay and from there we went to Durban to see Steve’s brother Andrew and we got to see my amazing Aunt Hillary, Uncle Rob and cousins, what a treat. We then drove to the Drakensburg where we spent an icy weekend, which was a wonderful change for us from the heat of Doha . My 40 th Birthday party was spent back in Johannesburg with my wonderful family and friends, who made it unforgettable, Paul and Les spoilt me with a limo ...

Cyprus - April 2009 Easter was spent in Cyprus what a beautiful island it is and we had a fantastic holiday. It reminded us so much of SA’s landscapes, from rocky outcrops, to swirling stormy seas, and fields swept with spring flowers and the bonus of ski slopes and mountains. It was also a welcome break from the baron landscape of the desert. Our friend Leonie from Qatar joined us.

TRIPS …… Ireland , London and Brighton December 2008 We spent a fabulous time in Ireland with Shirley, Adrian, Marco and Natalie for Christmas and New Year and felt thoroughly spoilt. It was also less daunting to spend our first Xmas away from SA on our own. We traveled through most of Southern and Western Ireland , where we visited a friend of mine from school days – Mark Cavanagh and got to meet his lovely family. We also went to London , Brighton (where we saw Alison and Sian and met Harry for the first time, he is very sweet), then on through to the New Forest, Stonehenge, Fordingbridge and London . The kids had an amazing time and their frame of reference was so different to ours, from Big Ben being Peter Pan to London Bridge being part of the Fantastic Four…. What fun!!!

DENISE - I have taken a while to settle as you all know J , but traveling to so many different places has definitely helped a lot. I have at last realized that I just need to be an expat and live an expat lifestyle. Once you get that, life can become so much more exciting. It is more like an adventure now than feeling like a constant daily chore. Although, the daily chores can be quite hectic without Betty, at least we have some help though! We have also made some lovely friends and it is great to have a support system when we need one. It is helpful from an emotional point of view and also when we need some help with baby sitting or going away for a weekend. The friends we have made in Doha are really special and I think we have all realised that we are expats in a country we can never truly settle in and the support and kindness that everyone freely gives to one another is amazing and much appreciated, along with the wine and daiquiris J I have started art classes again and am lovi...

STEVE …..(adding my piece) has pretty much adapted back to corporate after 12 years as a revenue generating consultant. Definitely a lot less stress and when I leave work I really leave work. After years of taking work on holiday and working the nights and weekends it really is fantastic. I walk to work and back most days. I have been back on the road the last 3 months running (40mins) one day and walking (60mins) the next, the old bones seem happier running every second day these days! I have a scenic 7.5km route along the Corniche around the bay. We have bought properties in Cyprus . The properties we sold in SA Rands merely made a dent in the Cyprus Euro price! So from April when we take ownership of the 2 apartments in Cyprus we will be paying off a mortgage again. I registered for my MBA (again!) and am scheduled to write my first exam in June 2010. We plan to spend July & August in Cyprus and you all have an open invitation to join us there. We have a growing group of frie...

JESS - is involved in making puppets at school, yes a strange extra activity, but they make puppets and she loves being arty so she is in her element. She comes up with the most amazing designs from books, to pictures, to 3D designed baskets, houses, chairs, you name it she will make it with paper, staples, tape and colouring pencils. She also includes feathers, beads, glitter and anything else she can get her hands on. She is still our little social butterfly and nothing gets her down, she is so happy and friendly that everyone loves her to bits, although she does tend to strangle most with her rather strong hugs. She still comes up with her little corkers like in Qatar there is an Education facility that they are building and one of the concepts is a tree representing, growth, structure, support, family, etc..... as we drive past the uncompleted building, Jess looks at it and says: "That's the biggest Tree house I have ever seen!" From the mouths of babes :-) Jess als...

SEAN - Mmm my gorgeous boy is very into his cooking, he does lessons at school and loves to cook these really interesting dishes at home, the best being omelets du frommage (cheese omelets), he has also baked biscuits, pancakes, muffins, helped cook spaghetti Bolognese, chops onions like a chef and mixes the perfect jelly desert. I’ll have him trained and cooking dinner nightly for us soon! He joined Cub Scouts this year and is in the Bears Pack. He is loving every minute of being a little cub….. he has already got his Bobcat badge for knowing his Cub promise, salute, etc etc, and another for model boat building and racing and has quite a few other tasks to complete by June 2010 to get his Bear badge. They went on their first camp out this weekend (10 th ), in the first rains in Doha for 11 months and he loved it (although Dad took strain with dust allergies!). Sean joined the choir in September and loves the singing and dancing. I love the fact that he is the only boy and it does no...

Merry Christmas for 2009 That time of year again, where merry is merry and it is time to have fun. Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year for 2009. It has been an exciting year for us with lots of trips, memories and adventures. Where to start?? The kids have settled nicely into a routine and have made some lovely friends. Sean and Jess are now both at the International School of London Qatar – ISLQ and they are loving it. It is an International Baccalaureate curriculum (PYP), which I am still getting used it. It is more about creating a foundation for learning and building confidence than about testing and exams. They are both enthusiastic gymnasts, with Jessica managing to do the splits and showing us her muscles all the time. Sean is growing stronger by the day and I think between Taekwando and gymnastics he has found two sports he really loves. He is very motivated to get his black belt, which may take a good couple of years. They can manage to get a belt eve...