Why My 1-Year-Old Barks Like a Dog

In the Middle East dogs are haram/unclean to the locals and potential supper to the myriad of laborers from many different countries. Because of this dogs are very rare. I think I saw two the whole time we were there. One was a very furry dog walking on a leash with his owner along the corniche and looking very hot. The other one our friends saw running alongside the road and  stopped to pick it up. If they ever tried to walk it in public they often got comments such as "haram!" Or "in my country we would eat him." 

Coming back to the States, Ezra has loved all of the dogs everywhere! He will stand at the window or fence and bark with his whole body trying to communicate with the dog. Now, he says "dog" very well, but to anything with fur: stuffed animals, cats, squirrels. The other day he was patting his younger cousin on the head and saying "dog!" so we may have some work to do...

Toddlers on Tile Floors

In Abu Dhabi all of the floors I ever saw were made of tile, perhaps to withstand inevitable sand and to be cooler. I appreciated them until Elias and then Ezra had to try to learn to walk on them- then the frequent falls in the beginning of their endeavors had me worried about their skulls and such! Since the floors were so cool and easily slick, putting sock on made it slicker and shoes made a baby learning to walk not have the grip of his toes for stability. Then, I met a friend with a solution: Coega sun wear pool shoes. http://www.coegawear.com/products.php?section=5/

They have a thin rubber-like grip bottom and a stretchy fabric top with elastic around the opening. They stay on, keep the feet warm and give traction with a bare-foot feel for a baby learning to walk on tile... And since they're technically pool shoes, even if the tile gets wet they are less likely to slip. Can you tell I was impressed? (This is not paid advertising.) Ezra is wearing them in the grass in the picture above. They do well on beach sand also.

Now the problem is that they only seem to be available in the Middle East.

Seen in Texas

You know you're in Texas when a jalapeño chocolate shake is on the menu.

Beautiful Things in Texas

This sunset was so beautiful in person. Pictures never do them justice.

The kids have been enjoying the animals on our friends' farms so much, but this week we also got the chance to go to the zoo. 

They really enjoyed seeing all of those animals! In the river land area this duck flapped his way up to the rail so Talia could pet him. He sat there a while and let her before hopping down.

It's so nice to be here again!