Where We're Going and Why

Here are some maps from our itinerary on our trip. It's kind of exciting when you actually see where these places are.

We start in Bangalore and will be staying in this house, which is pretty and quirky all at the same time.

After Bangalore, we will visit The Man's parents in their new hometown of Coimbatore. (Here follow a slew of shamelessly borrowed pictures from Flickr or Google.)

Coimbatore--not a very exciting photo. (Courtesy of Flickr.)

Next we will head to Trivandrum, I think. It goes by another name, not sure about the name but here is one picture. This is one place I'm really excited to see. It's in the state of Kerala, where The Man's parents are from originally.


We'll head back to Bangalore then go to Agra by train. Agra is where the Taj Mahal is. I see pictures like the one below and I just want to pinch myself in amazement. I cannot believe I'll finally see something so majestic and so out of reach in my own mind. It's just bewildering.


After Agra, we will head back to Bangalore and then over the Arabian Sea to Muscat, Oman and then Dubai, UAE. (United Arab Emirates)


Dubai is in UAE and that borders Saudi Arabia and Oman. Oman borders UAE, Yemen, along with Saudi Arabia with the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman on other borders.

Here is a random picture of Muscat, Oman, where we will be staying:

One view of Dubai.


After leaving Dubai and Oman, we head back to Bangalore then back to the US.
What an exciting few weeks we'll have!
I plan on using this blog to keep my family and friends up-to-date on everything.

Please keep us in your prayers for a safe journey, wonderful times with family whom I've never met, and continue to pray none of us get ill and that the trip runs smoothly.

India News and Just Stuff

Well, the time is nearing. We're going to India soon and I want to make sure I will use this blog space for our travel log, a way to connect with family and friends.

In preparation for our trip, I'm ordering The Man's parents some photo books. I'm also getting my parents one, too. I need to get the kids malaria medication as well as any immunizations ASAP. (Mental note: Do this sometime this week!!)

The Princess needs special stuff because of the heart condition. Not that she needs special medications, but our local travel clinic won't see her and dispense the meds. Her pediatrician needs to do that, so it's kind of a hassle. The Rock Star is getting excited about the trip, I think. He won't say anything, but he is.

As far as homeschooling, I love the AP US History program I had The Rock Star doing, but it's just not for his learning style. He's not doing well with an online learning medium, so I plan on purchasing a homeschool curriculum for history. I do have him reading the book Lies My Teachers Told Me by James W. Loewen. He seems to understand it, but we have to go over things a bit closely for comprehension.

He's also reading Lord of the Flies (remember reading that in school??). He seems to like it somewhat. I have to give credit to Literature teachers everywhere. Learning and actually teaching allegorical concepts and things like that is tough stuff!!

The Princess continues to battle homeschooling with me. I may put her in school next year because she really doesn't enjoy it at all. She seems to at times, then she pouts and wants to quit. I gave her math paper to do last week and in huge letters she wrote the word "NO" on the bottom. That was all she did! So, I've got my hands full with that child. I know she's still fairly young, so I'm not too depressed about it yet, but if it continues, we may have to send her to school next year, which is fine.

We've had my aunt staying with us for the past 3 weeks, and have had company from Georgia come into town. We've kept busy and love having them all. I will miss having my aunt around to bug and the kids will miss her a lot, too. I know they will.

Still here...will update shortly!

Homeschooling Kicks My Boot-ay

I never, in my wildest dreams, thought homeschooling was going to be so difficult! I think it was my own naivete, but I am completely overwhelmed! I have so much to do, so little time to do it in.

The Rock Star has officially started 9th grade and I have him in an AP US History Course I'm teaching him. It's basically college level, and I'm doing all I can to keep up with his readings and term project already started. He's got tons of work to do that keeps him busy for a very long time, not to mention he's doing Biology, Algebra, and Spanish. I am combining my English/Grammar with his History and doing Geography and Map Skills with him in addition to all of that. It's a miracle I can keep my head afloat.

The Princess is doing reading, phonics, and some whole language stuff. Having been a teacher, I find no one program is great for all kids, so it's been my luck that my one kid isn't great for all programs! I'm mixing and mashing up a few programs but the good news is not only is she reading really well, she's comprehending, which is a whole other world in and of itself. She is also doing 1st grade math and we'll be changing curriculums soon, for one we feel is a better fit for her. (She's not very abstract and the one we use now is very hands-on, and she's bored.)

I find I am forgetting appointments, times to get together with friends, and some other things so I need to learn to better manage my time and talents accordingly. I am going to work on time management skills and hope I can find a nice middle ground where I can teach them at home, have time to make dinner, and do everything else in between. I can't lose sight of the fact that their education is the priority but when you're home all day, you kind of feel like you should be doing something else, ya know?

I may post some pictures of art projects The Princess has done recently. I have my aunt here with us, and she is mentally handicapped, but she LOVES doing these art projects and homeschooling with The Princess. So, I have an extra student in the class who helps out with the really creative stuff! FUN!

Call to Disney

I called Disney. Lord, help.me.now. I called Disney.

I wanted to ask about some vacation plans we have because we are going to Disneyworld/Universal Studios/Orlando in October. My kids are excited, so I get on the phone to inquire about a Halloween Fireworks thingamajiggy.

Operator: Hello, Disney Vacation somethingorother. How can I help you?
Me: Yes, I want to see when I should buy tickets to the Halloween Fireworks thingamajiggy.
Operator: We have wonderful packages! Would you also be interested in the Breakfast in Cinderella's Castle with the characters?
Me: Um, not really. Just the Halloween Fireworks thingamajiggy.
Operator: We also offer packages for the entire family.Let me ask how old your children are.
Me: They're 14 and 5, so there's a huge age difference and we're aware of that challenge. So, I just want to know about your Halloween Fireworks thingamajiggy.
((DEAFENING SILENCE))
Operator: Let me transfer you.
Me: Why?
Operator: Someone else can better assist you in this.

The conversation went on and on, and ultimately, I had a basic question...

Why the HECK is it so hard to schedule a simple ticket purchase for Halloween activities at Disneyworld?

When did this freaking thing called Disneyworld become this huge monster where parents must call on a certain day, press a certain button and be tranferred to a certain line to order Breakfast in Cinderella's Castle tickets?

My daughter loves Cinderella, but I am fairly certain she won't die a horrible and painful death if she doesn't eat breakfast with Cinderella. Besides, everyone knows Cinderella is NOT REAL! (Parents, take note. She's NOT REAL!)

So, we're going to Disney and we've already got our room thanks to The Man's employer. (Yea for huge auditing companies!) I will make arrangements for the Halloween Fireworks Thingamajiggy but that's it. I'm playing it by ear. I cannot, just cannot fathom wasting my mornings 180 days prior to my visit trying to dial Disney first thing Monday morning, 8amEST, with every human I know trying to get on the line for Cinderella Breakfast tickets. IHOP will suffice, I'm sure.

I have, like, a million recipes to post. And, like a million and one reasons as to why I'm too busy to do it!

Days of Summer

Since the weather here in Texas, at this moment, is unbearably hot, I spend most of my time indoors. However, every morning at 5am, I've been outside swimming! We have three beautiful pools, and one of the pools I go to has what I think is called an negative infinity edge or something like that.Here's an example of one:

The pool does have an edge, but you can't see it. It just blends with the hill countryside and it looks freaking amazing. At 5am, I get so many chances to just connect with life, with God, with myself. At 5am, the stars are still out, the birds aren't even out yet.

Today at the pool I saw and heard frogs, crickets, and even heard a rattlesnake. But, it didn't even phase me. The fact that I'm exercising for at least an hour a day alone, and I am doing something I love makes it all worth it. I want to try to take my camera one morning and I can post the pink sky at sunrise, and the beautiful hill views. I'm blessed to have three pools like that here in my subdivision!

I love swimming!