Arabic Amy

Okay....most of you don't know what on earth I am talking about. Let me explain. Due to some wonderful Middle Eastern friends of ours, I was introduced to the Arabic language this past Summer. It wasn't long before a couple of them were trying to teach me some words and phrases in their own language. I also purchased a computer program on Arabic which helped add to my growing vocabulary.About a month ago I discovered that a college nearby was offering a course in Arabic, so I dove at the opportunity. Thinking I might have somewhat of a head start on the others, I was feeling quite confident as I walked into the classroom. Boy, was I wrong!!! Five minutes into the class and my confidence nearly bottomed out! As we went around the room and gave the reason why we were interested in the course, I was about the least knowledgeable one there. To my left were two women who had lived for a few years in Saudi Arabia and were far more advanced than I in Arabic. To my right was a lady who is actually more on my level but will be in the class only four weeks and then joins the Peace Corp in Morocco. Next was a young man from Saudi Arabia who knew Arabic only as a child but has lost the language due to being in the US for many years. Then there were two more women, one of which was late and did not share her reason for taking the class and another who was absent. The teacher is from Syria/Sudan.Our first lesson was learning the alphabet and its sounds - for two hours we did this. We studied out of a book that a child just entering kindergarten might use, so it was very basic. To me however, there was nothing basic about it. I now understand why my Middle Eastern friends told me time and time again that I couldn't learn Arabic because it's too difficult. Yes, it is!...but I am determined and I will learn this.

Meet the family

Eric - software engineer; US army officer (preparing for deployment to Afganistan); Seattle Seahawks/Mariners fan; a.k.a. "Spence" and "Stinkydad"

Amy - domestic engineer (fancy name for stay at home mom); the queen of organization; notorious for her big dreams and zealous ideas

Madison - an ambitious 7-year old whose nose is always in a book; 2nd grader; loves school; a.k.a. "Sister"

Jordan - a 4-year old who dreams of one day becoming a superhero; preschooler; loves dressing up and building things; a.k.a. "Brother" and "Son"

Autumm - an energetic and carefree 3-year old whose zeal for life is contagious; notorious for having her hands in everything and leaving her mark wherever she goes

Our Christmas

Can you believe we celebrated three Christmases in 2005? Amy's parents came for a visit from New York in November, which warranted an early Christmas with them. We actually had a Thanksgiving dinner before exchanging gifts. Two holidays in one evening! Our second celebration was the weekend before Christmas Day when we gathered with Eric's family for a night of fun. Our last celebration was actually Christmas weekend when we took a spur of the moment trip to New York for three days. The drive was long as always, about 15 hours, but we drove through the night so the kids could sleep. This always seems to work best. We enjoyed our stay in New York albeit short. We were of course welcomed with snow upon our arrival, making us ready for Spring now more than ever. We have only seen snow here once so far this Winter.