A very warm "Happy New Year" to you each! I hope you enjoyed a restful and refreshing time with your family and friends over the holidays. Based on what the children shared with me, it sounds like most everyone had a really great time and I'm so glad.
My holiday was just wonderful, as I went home to Florida to visit my parents and sister, Julie. (Unfortunately, I didn't get to see my brother, Peter, and sister-in-law, Melissa, but we were able to Skype as a family on Christmas morning, at least.)
After landing in Miami on Friday, Dec. 16, my family picked me up from the Miami Airport and then we checked into the lovely and retro Miami Beach Hilton. The next morning, we set off for a week-long cruise to the Western Caribbean and Central America, visiting Mexico, Honduras, Belize, and Grand Cayman. We had a fantastic time and our days were spent swimming, scuba diving, resting, reading, eating, sight-seeing, and so much more. I even got a haircut while at sea, which was a first.
We returned home on Dec. 24 a little bit rounder, a little bit tanner (even with sunscreen), and a little bit concerned about who was going to be cooking our dinners now that we were on land again. (It's all too easy to get spoiled on a cruise and come home completely lazy.)
It was nice to still have another week at home and I spent it seeing friends, walking the dogs (and burning up all of those extra cruise calories), going to the beach, more diving, and enjoying many long chats around the Christmas tree with our dogs surrounding us. It was all so lovely and I feel thankful that I was able to go home. As a bonus, on my return flight, I was upgraded to first class on Qatar Airways, so even though it was a quick 50-min. jaunt to Dubai from Doha, I was one happy camper. In fact, I think it was the first time I actually wanted to stay in the air longer!
The children seemed to be very happy to return to school, though they seemed just about as tired as I was on Monday, our first day back. (Was it just me or did that alarm sound louder than usual?) It was a very calm, quiet, and easy-going day as we spent time sharing our happy news, holiday highlights, and getting back into the general swing of things.
As the week is progressing, their energy seems to be return and things are getting back to normal in our classroom. I just posted the latest Assignment Sheet and News, so please avail yourself of that, so you are in loop of what your darling will be learning for the next two weeks.
I want to take this opportunity to sincerely thank you for the generous Christmas gift you gave me as a class. The Arabic tea set is just beautiful and will be a treasured and practical cultural memory for many years to come. I will also greatly enjoy the large box of Patchi chocolates, although I may share some with my colleagues, so I don't end up carrying around the chocolate permanently. (I'm still working on individual thank you notes for those of you who shared personal gifts with me.) I feel so grateful for your kindness and generosity and I sincerely thank you each. You really blessed me and it feels good to be appreciated.
Lastly, I wanted to add that I have some pictures to share from our December fun; however, I'll post those this weekend, as jet-lag has made my eyes so heavy. (I know many of you can relate.)
I think that's it for now. Thanks for all of your wonderful support and I hope to see you soon. :)
Looking forward to a fantastic 2017!
No comments:
Post a Comment