Fab Thursday...

Hey Peeps! It's Thursday...and I'm not going to get to my blog tomorrow...and I don't think I have 5 fabulous things...not because the week hasn't been fabulous, but because I've been working. That being said...I'll share what's been happening.

The kids and I have 62 days until we fly home to New York! 62!! I can't wait! I know it's time for us to head back as my patience for things, people, Poland...well, it's practically non-existent. I'm just ready to head back to 'Murica for a little breather.

The boys and I had a "date" for the middle school play at ASW this week. It was a fun afternoon watching the show and talking with them. They make me laugh!

And, we're gearing up for a few big weeks of travel. We area heading out on a 9 day cruise from Barcelona to Venice for spring break. My kids have never been on a cruise and are very excited. I spent last weekend booking tours for each of the ports - and have to say I dealt with some truly responsive tour folks. Quick replies to my emails, easy deposits and they all had great reviews on TripAdvisor so I'm hoping for the best.

After we get back from the cruise, Blaine and I area heading to Paris - WITHOUT KIDS! Woohoo! He has a work conference and I'm going because...it's PARIS. I'm not planning a lot while we're there - hoping to grab dinner with friends one night, perhaps a food tour, and maybe a museum or two. We'll be heading back there in October with the kids and my parents - so all of the big stuff can wait.

Last, but not least...we planned a long weekend in Madrid for the end of May as a family. So I also booked all of that stuff - tapas and flamenco show tour, bullfight, CrossFit Regionals for one day...should be a good time in España!

And, of course, there is work. It's going well. I've been working a lot of hours in anticipation of the upcoming travel and my boss just asked me yesterday to let her know when I "officially" want to start working full-time and she will make it happen. I think I'll sit on this for a while....

All right...that's all I've got. I'm shutting down the blog until after spring break. I shall return with a full report on our cruise!!

Fab 5 Thursday...

Hey peeps! I'm back...at least for this week! I've got a few moments and thought I'd crank out a Fab 5 - on a Thursday! It won't be a particularly spectacular Fab 5, but a Fab 5, nonetheless.

So let's get after it!

1. Caleb & Basketball. We spent last Friday - Saturday in Katowice, Poland watching Caleb play basketball. As the weekend finished up, and the boys ended up winning two games and losing 4, and I could not have been more proud of him. This was a big weekend for him to step out of his comfort zone. You see, he had to try out for this team...and all the boys on this team speak Polish - which Caleb does not. He has one teammate who speaks English, too, but you could see that he spent most of the weekend speaking Polish with the other boys - naturally. And, the boys had to sleep at the school - with about 150 other boys from around Poland - and it was really loud - which Caleb doesn't do well with. (We received a couple of texts saying that the sleeping arrangements weren't much fun!) But, when we got in  the car Sunday after a tough loss and we asked the question: Would you do it again? We received a, "Most definitely! I played ball with some really talented kids." And that was all I needed to hear! That and "I'm really good with my Polish numbers" - because when you would sub in and out you had to say which number you were guarding!

2. Work. Work is going well. I enjoy it. I feel useful. A lot of my on the job training has been, "Hey! I need this! Here's an old version. Can you do something like it?" And, I figure it out. I've put together 6 campaigns this week from the template design to copy to pictures...and I'm pretty proud of them. It's been challenging working with IT (located in India), but my IT contact is a champ - and I know she's got a plate full of work, too! (And, she's new like me!) I repeatedly thank her for her patience, as I see that I've missed a link or that something isn't quite working properly...and via Skype we try and figure it out. And the experience I'm gaining is invaluable.

3. My happy place. We had some gorgeous weather earlier in the week...sunshine and 70's. Blaine has pulled out the patio furniture and it was so nice to sit outside in the sun with my laptop. This may soon be my new office.

4. The countdown. Yes, the countdown is on until we head home to the States for summer. I know that every year around this time I find myself with a strong desire to go home. And, hearing that friends from Malaysia are heading back to the States (permanently) and friends from here in Warsaw are heading back (permanently), my longing to be there is even greater. I have to admit that there is a twinge of jealousy each time I hear that someone is moving back. But, I will thoroughly enjoy my time there this summer and definitely not take it for granted.

5. Naps. I don't often get to take a nap, but today (as soon as this blog is finished) that is what I'm going to do. I'm still fighting a cold and I'm finished with work for the day and I'm going to curl up under a blanket and, hopefully, fall asleep.

Okay folks! We've got soccer, baseball, basketball, birthday parties, volunteer work and who knows what else on the agenda this weekend! Hope you have a fun weekend planned, too! Enjoy!

Athens...

Hey All! Sorry for the delay in getting a blog on Athens up! But, twenty hours of work has quickly turned into 30 hours of work,  plus they've asked me to make-up hours when I travel - so April and May are packed! It's good as it makes the time until we head back to the States go by really quickly! But, it doesn't leave a lot of time for my own blog...

So...I think I'll do Athens mainly by pictures! Let's just say that Athens was about friends, food, and sightseeing!

At the hotel where our friendly bartender, Bill, always took good care of us!

Then to see some sights! And some pigeons!

And then it rained - so drinks were in order!

The view from our hotel breakfast room was amazing!

Saturday started off with a food tour! First stop - Greek street snack of koulouri! Round sesame covered bread! 

Then loukamades! Deliciously light donuts covered in honey!

Off to view the market!

And try sesame candy with cocoa

Traditional Greek dish with potatoes, artichokes, carrots, dill, and lemon - and wine!

To the herb shop

And then to sample Greek pies - spanokopita and a sweet custard pie

To a small speciality grocery store where everything came from Lesvos

And a final stop for souvlaki

A little shopping on the way home allowed me to purchase this handmade leather bag.

And then to the hop-on-hop-off bus

Dinner at Greco's Project

Sunday was time for the Acropolis - which was amazing beyond words

Dinner Sunday night included some girls dancing on the tables to traditional Greek music

And Monday brought one last trip for loukamades and coffee.

So there you have it! Friends, food and sightseeing - the perfect long weekend getaway!

Fab 5 Friday...or not.

Dear Fab 5 Readers,

I'm sorry to inform you, but the Fab 5 is on vacation for the next 3 weeks.

This week, well, there just wasn't anything that fabulous to share. Sick kids, a dented car, a smashed iPad, are just a few of the things that I can think of off the top of my head.

Next Friday we are heading to Athens, Greece for a long Easter weekend. Oh, I am so ready for a mini-getaway! So ready!

And then the following Friday we are heading to Katowice, Poland for Caleb's basketball tournament!

I may try to sneak in a few tiny blog posts between now and then!

I promise...I will return!

Until then...

Take care! Lots of smiles!

Robin

Fab 5 Thursday...

Yes! It's Thursday! And yes, I'm breaking the rules and writing the Fab 5 today, but I've got a full schedule tomorrow so this seems like as good a time as any to write my blog!

I'm not going to waste any time this week...just the Fab 5! So here it is!

1. My birthday. Celebrated the big 46 last week! It was not traumatic! Not dramatic! It was just fab! It included lots of messages from family and friends, a quiet night at home with my husband and takeout from Mr. India and some fantastic prezzies from friends! What more does a girl need?

Pottery, alcohol and the sweary coloring book!! 

2. Pokeno. We hosted a Pokeno night on Saturday. Lots of food and drinks! (Busted out the margarita machine!) Tons of laughs! Some winners and some losers! Even a little karaoke at the end! (All you need to know is that the volume on the television was at 100 the next morning when we turned on the t.v. - so it's no wonder that my children didn't get to sleep until almost 2 a.m.!) I hope we get a chance to do it again before the end of the school year because we certainly enjoyed having those of you that could make it!

3. Tulips. Last weekend there were tulip stands everywhere in Warsaw - and I mean EVERYWHERE! Blaine stopped and grabbed several bunches for me and they are just gorgeous! And, at 50 cents a stem you just can't beat the price!

4. 97 Days. We are down to double digits! Woohoo! The time is passing really quickly and I was totally surprised when I opened my countdown app to see that we were under 100 days until we head to New York for the summer. I absolutely can not wait!

5. The New Job. So far, so good with the new job. I shared on Facebook that I had spent the early part of the week in training and writing email campaigns. It's all going well and I'm really enjoying it. It's nice to feel useful again - and get paid for it!

I don't think there's anything more to share! The kids are still maxed out with sports and baseball starts this weekend! The Polish government has written its decision on the business acquisition that Blaine's company was working on and should have the official answer within the week. **fingers crossed** Will keep you posted!

Enjoy the weekend!

Fab 5 Friday...

Hello Peeps! What's happening on this fine Friday? Not much here...I'm heading off to do some grocery shopping in a few minutes. Glamorous, huh?! Oh, and maybe a little laundry. Sexy! But, it's all good. Need to get the mundane things done so we can have a little fun this weekend!

All right...here's what you came for...The Fab 5!

1. Mr. Chong's Birthday. We celebrated the birthday of Caleb's teacher this week. We feel very fortunate that Caleb is in his class this year...it was a good match. And, we are sad that he is leaving next year as this means Grayson won't have the opportunity to have him for a teacher. 

2. Blaine's Birthday. Even though he had to be at a meeting on his birthday, we still were able to wish him a great birthday! And, we will celebrate some more this weekend!

3. YeYe's & Mexican Mules. We had the chance to try out a new Mexican restaurant - YeYe's - and it was yummy! Lots of good food and yummy drinks! My new favorite being the Mexican Mule! Anyways, if you are local to Warsaw it is located in Royal Wilanow and we're looking forward to going back again!

4. Travel Plans. We finalized our Christmas vacation to...Playa de las Americas, Tenerife. Caleb and I decided that we needed a little beach time for one of our upcoming vacations - so this is where we'll head! I will now move on to planning our October vacation in Paris. This should be fun as my mom and dad will be joining us!

5. Resumes and Work. Well, I received two replies to my resume. The first one I said no to as the pay was horrible and the way they were going to pay me was not exactly above board. The second one led to a casual interview yesterday. And I was hired!! In fact, I start Monday! It works well for me as it can be done anywhere in the world, it's part-time and it involves copywriting, proofreading, blogging, and some marketing! Very excited to be back in the land of the employed!

And, of course, today is my birthday! (Lots of March birthdays!) I will say that 46 is a good number! It's been a good year. I think I can safely say that about all of the birthdays I've celebrated for the past few years! Don't ever let anyone say that it's all down hill after 40. Nothing could be further from  the truth!

The Dreaded WhatsApp Group...

It's Monday. I really don't mind Mondays. My kids go to school. My husband goes off to work. I stay home and get a lot of stuff done at the house. It's a good day.

But, then my WhatsApp starts binging. Normally,  I love WhatsApp. I use it a ton to communicate with friends here and those far away. And, I'm a part of several WhatsApp groups for various things. Nine times out of 10, I find WhatsApp an enjoyable and useful part of my daily life.


But, not on Mondays.

Mondays starts the constant barrage of messages from people who are unable to keep their commitment to one of the groups I'm in. We committed to an activity for the entire year. It takes place on Tuesdays. And truly, it's not a chore. But, there are members of this group that I haven't seen in months. I'm not sure I'd recognize them even if I did see them.

Do you know why I don't know who they are?

Because every Monday starts the constant flow of "I can't make it" or "I hope to be there next week" messages.

And, I hate these messages.

We all have things that crop up in our lives and make us occasionally unable to make it to an activity. Your child is sick. You are sick. A trip comes up. Your refrigerator is on the fritz and you have to wait for a repairman. Family is visiting from far away. All legitimate reasons to not be able to come.

But, seriously? Do these things happen EVERY week on the day you committed to be a part of the group?

So on this Monday as my WhatsApp continues to bing, I will try and reschedule the refrigerator repairman who is coming tomorrow to fix the control panel that fried itself yesterday.  And, I will keep my Tuesday morning commitment because that's what it is...a commitment. And, I know the definition of commitment.