Dubai Activities

More visitors arrived Thursday afternoon including Andy's parents and some friends of my sister-in-law.  That means from Thursday afternoon to Saturday at noon I had 14 people including my family at my house.  There were 8 adults and 6 children aged 20 months to 5 years old.  Sounds like fun??  The adults and children had a very nice time with each other with lots of activities to boot.  Read http://www.jrobfamily.blogspot.com/ for the latest adventures of our family vacation.

Parks, Playgrounds, and Plowing Over Children

Funny blog post at http://www.jrobfamily.bogspot.com/. 

Blue Souq

I love my sister-in-law being here because (1) she loves to blog and (2) she is a really good writer.  As a result, my blog gets updated quite frequently.  Check out our latest adventure http://www.jrobfamily.blogspot.com/. 

Visitors

My sister-in-law arrives in just a few hours.  She is coming with my nieces and their, babysitter Kiley.  They've been in India for 9 days and now they are headed to Dubai.  This trip has been planned since we moved here and is now finally here.  There are so many activities from which to choose when you live in a touristy city.  We are going to the Burj Khalifa, Ski Dubai, beach, little league baseball games, Sophie's 3rd birthday party, dhow cruise through the Marina, bus tour, shopping, the pool, and maybe even a waterpark.  Needless to say my 3 little muffins are beyond excited and can't wait to show their family our life here.

The roller coaster swing at Mimi and Pops's House

Watching cartoons

Aunt Emily taking a fancy picture

Be on the look out for posts.  That is if I have the time and energy!

Spa Day



Before my body scrub and massage

  In all of my 33 years I have never been to a spa.  What better way to experience the relaxation and grandeur of a spa than when my mom and sister visited.  After very little debate on my part about the many, many spas from which to choose here in Dubai, I decided on the Atlantis Dubai.  That was an excellent decision.  The hotel was exquisite and the spa was oh so delightful.  I'm ready for another visit!

In the changing room

Looking at the hot tub

The 2nd lobby for the spa

Outside the spa.  This is after which is why our hair looks funny.  That chandelier looks like a piece of fruit here.

In the hotel lobby

That is intertwined glass.  Isn't it beautiful?

Mom and Elizabeth outside the hotel

Mom and me outside the hotel

1st Tourist Stop

Our first touristy adventure was to the infamous, sprung a leak a few months back Dubai Aquarium. Andy and I surprised the kids last night because (1) I needed to go to a food store at The Dubai Mall, (2) I wanted Andy to drive me since I was tired of the stress of driving to a new place, and (3)the kids and Andy had already went to the pool and had a nap earlier in the day. Therefore Andy, Boston, Olivia, and Sophia would all be in good moods even while going to a mall.

We kept the kids in suspense for a couple of hours. Once the "surprise" was visible in the distance, Andy began watching the kids' faces. Olivia figured out what the behemoth blue thing was in the distance, but Boston was the first to put it in words. Needless to say they couldn't wait to walk through the tunnel. The pictures don't do this justice. The aquarium is packed with fish, sharks, eel, stingrays, and coral. There is also an underwater zoo, glass boat rides, scuba diving, and a cage encounter. It is really quite magnificent.

One of the sharks.

Taken from the outside of the aquarium.

The kids and me taking a break.

Look at those teeth.

Walking into the tunnel.

Sophie, "How'd he get in there?"

Family photo time.

This was a lot of fun for us, and the kids loved being so close to the animals. There was one fish lying on the bottom of the aquarium floor. We stopped to look at it and noticed that only one "eye" was moving. Boston said with great sympathy and sincerity, "Oh, look at that poor fish. His other eye was poked out." He said this over and over, and I agreed with him because it looked liked the fish was blinking. Smart Daddy walked up and said, "That's not his eye. That's how he breathes." Oh well. That's why daddy is around.

Stay tuned for our next tourist adventure. What will it be?!?!?!?