On this season of Real Housewives of Saudi Arabia...

The compound is coming to life again as a new season of Real Housewives of Saudi Arabia begins. Everyone has made their way back to our beloved compound as summer has ended (notwithstanding the 110 degree weather that's still present) and schools have opened. But of course, as Schlumberger life dictates, many families have been transferred out of Saudi, and replaced with new families. One of these families are my next door neighbor and best friend here, May and her husband Walid. I've always known that they were due for a transfer soon, but like all transfer notices, it came unexpectedly quick. It was heartbreaking to see their house all packed up and empty, and saying goodbye didn't seem real. We've only known them for a year, but Walid was really close with Al since they worked in the same group, and May and I formed a great friendship and the four of us had a blast together. They got transferred to Calgary in Canada (anyone else get cold at just the mention of that city??) and I'm still in denial that they're not right next door to me.

Another one of Al's friends thats about to get married is now holding May and Walid's house hostage so he and his wife can live next door to us. He's worried about how his wife will adjust to life here so he wanted to make sure she was next door to me so I could help her. So I get to take a young newbie under my wing :)

A few of my other friends have also gotten transferred to Paris and Qatar, and I miss them too. But as old friends have left, new ones have come in. Thanks to my Mexican friend Esmeralda, I've been hanging out with some of the Latino ladies here (secretly wishing I was Latino) so that's been great! One of the new Latino women had a bunch of us over at her house for breakfast yesterday, so we could get to meet some new people. I met women from all over...the US, Australia, Saudi, Colombia, Venezuela...I didn't realize that there were so many new families here so that was exciting. Everyone was super nice, so I'm looking forward to fun times with new friends here now, even though I miss my old ones.

A non-Schlumberger family that has moved to Khobar are a couple that were Al's friends back in college. His friend just got a new job here and moved his wife and 2 kids here a few weeks ago. I've gotten to hang out with his wife Yara a few times and she's great...so its nice to have some new non-Schlumberger friends as well :)

Some events on the SSA agenda this year include a couple of coffee mornings and a Bollywood-themed ladies night, so I'm currently in the market for a Sari...haha. I hope Al will be in town then so I can actually go (still think its too early to leave Omar with a babysitter).


So this is shaping up to be a pretty interesting season of RHSA (even though this blog post about it is rather boring)...stay tuned!

No Really...Donde Esta Me??

I'm here I'm here!! Wow, after a 6-month hiatus, Donde Esta Noura is back! Apparently having a baby puts a dent in my blogging time. I apologize but without further adieu, here are some highlights of the past few months, with some thoughts along the way...

Being back in Nashville was great. I felt home again, and it was so good to see everyone there. Being pregnant was great up until the last month. I blew up like the Hindenburg, and was about as much fun as a hernia. Pretty sure my family wanted to beat the baby out of me at some point. Anyways, I was worried that Al wouldn't make it in time to be there when I went into labor (he came to Nashville 5 days before my due date), but turns out I wouldn't go into labor at all...well, not on my own anyway. I had to be induced 4 days past my due date because I hadn't had anything even remotely close to a real contraction (and I had tried everything to get it going!). In the back of my mind, I always knew I'd end up having a C-Section, but I really really wanted to have the baby naturally (well, as natural as it can be with an epidural). Even so, I was disappointed to hear that after being in labor for 13 hours, my baby's head was not seeing the light and that I needed to have a C-Section. The whole operation was painful...even with the drugs I could still feel a lot of pressure and pulling. But apparently I turn into a comedian whenever I'm under some form of anesthesia, because I was cracking jokes the whole time. I remember the nurses and doctors (and Al) laughing at me, but don't remember what I was talking about. Although I do distinctly remember mentioning something about a philly cheesesteak...

Holding Omar in my arms for the first time was emotional, and something I unfortunately vaguely remember because I was still a bit drugged up. But looking at the video Al took of that moment, I couldn't help but laugh at myself. I was crying and sniffling and kept asking over and over again how much he weighed...I was like a broken record. Overall, while I was disappointed that I had to have a C-Section (and will need one for any other children I may have), I was just glad that Al and my family were there with me. I was overjoyed and so thankful with how beautiful and perfect Omar was...until I looked down. Hold up. I thought that once you had the baby and weren't pregnant anymore, you would actually LOOK like you weren't pregnant anymore. I still had a 7-month prego belly. No no no no...I did NOT sign up for this! I wanted back in my skinny jeans, not my stupid maternity pants. I actually went to the mall with Al and Omar one day about 2 weeks after I had the baby, and this lady at a store practically ran up to me and said "AAWWW when are you due?!?!?". I looked her dead in the eye and said "I've already had my baby. He's over there." She shrank to about the size of a gopher and apologized before she ran off faster than the road runner.
Although breastfeeding helped a TON and my belly looked like it was decreasing in size with every feeding, I still today have a little bit of a pooch that I'm trying to get rid of. I guess its just going to take more time and lots of crunches, so that's what I've been trying to fit into my day lately.

The next couple of weeks were spent in Nashville with my parents, with Al and I getting accustomed to the idea of being parents. He took to it better than I did I think...recovering from a C-section really hindered my comfort with the baby. Not that I didn't love him more than anything, but being in pain and all the hormones and crap going on while I was stressed about going to Syria soon and packing (read previous blog post about my thoughts on packing) really made me a hot mess. Breastfeeding has been the biggest challenge of my life, and there were times where I just wanted to quit (amazing what sleep deprivation will do to your sanity). But I'm still going strong and it has gotten much easier now that Omar is almost 3 months old. 

We then spent 10 days in Syria with Al's parents (scratch that, I spent 10 days, Al spent only 2 because he got called back to Saudi for work). Omar did wonderfully on the overseas trip...better than Al and I actually. He slept most of the time on all the flights while we struggled with all our carry on stuff (which was mostly Omar's) and battled cramped seats and sleep deprivation and the overall incoherence of airport personnel. 

I then came back to our home in Saudi, and it felt good to be back here until Al had to go on a job 2 days later. Suddenly I found myself very much alone. Most of my friends here had gone back to their respective homelands for the summer, so I didn't have much help to turn to. In Nashville and Syria, I was surrounded by family who were helping me out with Omar...such as taking him to play while I slept in a little after that ass-crack of dawn feeding. I didn't have anyone here, and I was terrified. With all the different adjustments Omar had to make between the US, Syria and Saudi as a one-month old, it took him about a week to finally get adjusted to everything here. And during that week, I about gave up on life. He was barely sleeping (which meant I was barely sleeping), and he wanted to feed all the time while I barely had time to feed myself. While this greatly helped in me losing my pregnancy weight so quickly, it left me mentally and physically exhausted. I prayed for strength and patience, and somehow managed to pick myself up and power through this tough time I was having. And dammit, I did it. I didn't have a choice but to do it. I knew I had to get used to being alone because of the nature of my husband's job. And while my friends would all be coming back in September which offered some relief to me, I knew I couldn't rely on everyone else all the time. I was spoiled that first month, and it wouldn't be that way again so I had to learn how to get by on my own. I'm still learning day by day and had a few breakdowns along the way, but I'm making it and doing better now. It sucks when Al is gone so much and its just me and the baby...I know how much he misses Omar and how much Omar misses him. But this is the way its going to be for a while, and we have no choice but to make it work. I cherish every minute I spend with my baby, and even when I've had the worst day and am so tired I can barely function, it all goes away with one smile from him. Looks like the Tin Woman really does have a heart ;)


Whew. Ok. That's the digested reader's digest version of the past 6 months of my life. It's looking like my blog will more closely resemble 'the adventures of mommyhood' from now on since that's basically my life now, so Noura most likely esta at the casa. However, we do have a few trips planning in the next couple of months (Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Syria again hopefully) so we're still going to jet-set! Omar's a seasoned traveler now and we plan on passing along our love for traveling and seeing different parts of the world to him by getting him started early. So who knows where we'll end up! And I promise not to take a 6-month hiatus again, so hopefully yall will still be along for the ride :)

P.M.S.

Over the past year and half or so, I've found myself in several stressful, long-term packing situations. Namely:

• June 2009: packed up my life from the US and moved it to Syria (in 2 suitcases)
• August 2009: packed up my newly-moved life and moved it from my aunt's house to Al and I's house after our wedding
• September 2009: packed up half of my life and moved it from Damascus to Derezor, Syria (about 5 hours away, where Al was working at the time)
• two weeks later...packed it up again and moved back to Damascus after realizing I couldn't live on Mars (aka Derezor...to me it was like a barren, different planet)

•  August 2010: packed up my whole life AGAIN and moved to Saudi Arabia

Now this also doesn't include the countless times I moved back and forth between my in-laws' house and my house in Damascus whenever Al would come in town from Derezor. Bascially, my stuff is currently spread out across 4 different houses in 3 countries. After all that, I have developed the non-curable psychological disorder of P.M.S.-- Packing Melancholy Syndrome. Symptoms include:

• feeling anxious, nervous, even depressed at the very thought of packing
• bursting into tears whenever you see a suitcase
• hiding your suitcases in places you're unlikely to find in the future
• the word "Customs" automatically gives you an ulcer
• the words "weight limit" cause you to hyperventilate
• dreading packing so much that you put it off until the last minute (where it becomes an impossible feat and can cause your PMS symptoms to resemble more of the other kind of PMS symptoms)
• crying and hugging, and saying a personal goodbye to every piece of clothing, accessory, or shoe that you must leave behind
• considering canceling your trip altogether just so you don't have to pack for it

So this brings me to my current packing dilemma that's causing my PMS symptoms to surface...my upcoming trip to the US (9 days, people!!) Here's the problem with this one: I have to pack for a 6-month long trip involving visiting 2 countries, spanning across 3 seasons, 2 different body sizes, and an infant on the return trip. Oh yeah, and that's all gotta fit in 2 suitcases weighing 50 pounds each. Better get that Xanax now (dammit...I'm preggo. I have to handle this drug-free).  You'd think after my recent packing-sprees, I'd be a seasoned veteran by now. But alas! This is so not the case. In fact, I think I'm actually regressing to being a worse packer now than I was before all my moves. It just gets more and more stressful each time around, and whenever you've finally gotten over all your PMS symptoms, another trip comes up and the vicious cycle starts all over again.


I have NO idea how I'm going to accomplish this latest feat in packing. My plan so far: pack as least as possible so I have a spare suitcase to bring back all the stuff I'll have with me on the return trip. Easier said than done. I've never been a minimalist packer. I love my clothes and if I could, I'd take every piece with me. But stupid weight and piece restrictions on airlines prevent me from doing so (argh!). So in the next 9 days, I have to figure out how to fit winter, spring, and summer clothes in both maternity and regular sizes (whatever my size ends up being post-baby) AND leave enough extra space to bring back whatever I buy in the States PLUS all the baby's stuff. !@##!^$%#$@!&*&#@!!!


I know I should probably start going through my closet as early as um, yesterday to try to accomplish this, but my PMS symptoms are preventing me from doing so. Instead, I'm sitting here blogging about how stressful its going to be and getting more stressed in the process. Maybe adjusting my habits will help me relieve the stress and prevent future PMS attacks from happening....but if my travel history is any indication, that's not likely to happen.

Bulletpoints

My goings-on over the past few weeks in bulletpoints:

• finished winter mini-term classes, then got a whole 2 day break before starting two more classes for Spring semester...this MBA is starting to get on my nerves.
• speaking of Spring semester, my finals end on May 3 (once again, on my birthday). I know that's still a few weeks away from my due date, but I still have to pray that baby Omar holds off his grand entrance until after finals...
• Al and I bought all our baby nursery stuff from IKEA (of course) and my project now is getting everything in its place and organized before I leave for Nashville. We've also gotten new coffee tables and are in the process of getting our couches re-upholstered in the living room, as well as trying to fully decorate and  'fill up' the house. I feel like we're going through a scaled down version of 'Extreme Home Makeover' sans Ty Pennington...
• got a couple of "Real Housewives"-style events coming up with the Schlumberger Spouses Association:
• Jan. 26: Ladies Night (Open buffet? Yep, I'll be there)
• Feb. 3:  International Day (representing the homeland, Syria...pictures should be interesting!)
• Feb. 13: Valentine's Day party (which I probably won't attend if Al goes out of town)

• Al's got a job coming up possibly on the 12th of February, which means he's not likely to be in town to take me to the airport on the 18th :( its at times like these I wish he had a normal 9-5 job...
• went to the doctor last week and got my labwork back...thankfully, everything is normal :) We also got to see Omar in 3D again which was even more amazing this time. He has grown so much and you can see his facial features pretty clearly now...he looks just like his daddy! Doc said I shouldn't have any trouble with the overseas flight next month so that was a relief.
• 27 days until I'm back in the US!! I can almost smell the Mexican food...

 

Baby Omar at 21 weeks!

New Year's: A Look Back While Moving Forward

While getting ready for a get-together at our neighbor's for New Year's Eve, I took some time to reflect on the crazy year that was 2010. My whole life changed, AGAIN, and while I prepare for yet another life changing experience in 2011, here is my 2010 in one blog post:

• Back in December 2009, I started working at Ernst & Young in Damascus, which was a great experience for me. Through August 2010, I made amazing new friends, and I learned a lot about businesses in Syria and got to work on some interesting projects which helped me learn that I like being in the service business. Hopefully I'll be back doing some of the same kind of work in the near future.
• Living away from my husband during the first half of the year was difficult. He was living in Derezor while I was in Damascus, and we tried to find him a new job so that we could actually live in the same city but to no avail. Luckily, his same company ended up notifying him of his transfer to Saudi in June, and he moved there in July while I moved there at the end of August. The transition seemed much more difficult than it actually was, and now we are very happy here in Saudi and living a somewhat normal married life together (even though he goes away a lot for work).
• Travel-wise, 2010 was an exciting year considering I got to visit 4 new countries. In March, Al and I spent a week in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates which is now officially one of my favorite places in the entire world.

Al and I in front of Burj al Arab- Dubai, March 2010

 At the end of May, I got to go to Kuwait for a training course for work. Kuwait was pretty, but I felt like it didn't have any character. The shopping was great though! 

View from the top of the Kuwait Towers- Kuwait City, May 2010

In August, I moved to Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia to start a new life there with Al after he got transferred there. It was interesting getting used to all the rules and customs of Saudi, but Al Khobar is a surprisingly open and beautiful place.

With our wonderful friends at our Saudi compound pool- Saudi Arabia, Sept. 2010

Living in Al Khobar has the advantage of being only a 30 minute drive away from the small island country of Bahrain, which gave me the easy opportunity to visit another new country in October. 

Downtown Manama, Bahrain- October, 2010

• Weddings and engagements: my best friend Katie got married in July in Hawaii (an event that I was devastated I had to miss) and my friend Sally from work also got married in July in Homs, Syria. I was glad I at least got to attend that wedding! My good friend Matt from high school also got married in October, another wedding I sadly had to miss. My best friend Lindsey and sister-in-law Afraa both got engaged in December, so hopefully I'll be able to attend both their weddings in 2011! Congrats to all of them!
  

  

  Sally and I at her wedding- Homs, Syria July, 2010

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

• Speaking of weddings, Al and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary on August 7, 2010 :)
• Even though I didn't get the chance to make a trip to the US of A in 2010, my sister Hanya and best friend Jill brought a little bit of "Amreeka" to me when they came to visit me in Damascus in May. It was great seeing my sister and so fun showing Jill around our crazy city and introducing her to our even crazier family.
• On September 16, 2010 our life changed when we found out that I was pregnant. It was definitely a surprise, but our joy and blessings cannot be described. A few weeks later, we found out that we're having a baby boy, Omar Alaa Kabalan on May 26, 2011. Now about halfway through the pregnancy, I am thankful, feeling great, and preparing for my homecoming back to Nashville in February so I can give birth there in May :)

Overall, 2010 was a great and exciting year full of surprises and new experiences. Although being away from my husband during the first half of the year was a very difficult and trying time for me, I focused on adding more work experience by getting a job at EY until we had to move to Saudi Arabia. I learned a lot about myself this year...I learned that the first year of marriage is indeed the most difficult, but if you can make it through those hard times together, you can make it through everything together.  I learned that I am pretty good at adapting to new lifestyles, and it helps to surround yourself with wonderful friends, old and new. I learned that I can give up coffee and hookah cold turkey just for the sake of the little being growing in my belly. And I also learned that ready or not, I'm going to become a mother.  

I'm so excited about 2011, and am praying for a healthy and safe delivery of our precious baby boy. I constantly wonder what he will look like, what his personality will be, how Al and I will deal with the pressures of parenting, what he will want to be when he grows up...If any of my past experiences in life have taught me anything, it is to expect the unexpected, and that you can never thoroughly plan and be prepared for everything. It is with this open mind and excitement for the new and unknown that I am welcoming in 2011. And I am lucky enough to have rung in the new year with some of my best friends here in Saudi.

Our little New Year's Eve party!

My lovely neighbor, May

Al, me, and baby Omar in my belly: Our first family picture of 2011 :)

 Here's to a happy and healthy 2011 for everyone!!!

 

Trip to Damascus

I'm back!! After 3 weeks in Damascus, we made it back to Saudi in time to ring in the new year here with our friends. But first, here are some highlights from our trip...

The Highs 
My sister-in-law's engagement party was gorgeous! She did an amazing job of picking out all the decorations and centerpieces, and it ended up being one huge dance party that went on till 2am. For me, it was so fun but exhausting. I spent maybe a total of one hour in my heels (which is blasphemy to pre-preggers Noura). Luckily, I was prepared enough to face the horrible truth that my new body simply can't be held up on 4 inch stilettos anymore and I brought some flats that I spent the rest of the night dancing more comfortably in. Everyone was also worried about me dancing so much so I kept trying to take frequent breaks, which involved sitting down and eating whatever was on the table. In the end, it was a great party and I'm so happy for my sister-in-law and her fiance, Tarek. 

With my handsome hubby at the engagement party!

Al and I with my sister-in-law, Afraa and her new fiance, Tarek.

We also got the chance to meet Tarek's family. His sister, Dana and her husband and kids came in from Chicago, and his brother Ahmad and his wife and son came in from Egypt so it was a nice blend of cultures and experiences. We got to spend some time with them (over dinners, of course) which added to our already hectic schedule but was well worth it. I love meeting awesome new people and we had a lot of fun with them.


Oh! Did I mention that it snowed there?? Yeah, it was INSANE! It snowed for about 12 hours nonstop, and apparently that hasn't happened there in decades. So of course, the entire city went into total chaos. Streets closed, trees and power lines went down, and kids ran amok. This picture was taken of one of the main highways in the city. 

Definition of clusterf*ck

Needless to say, after everyone enjoyed the snow for a few hours, the general consensus after the storm was 'snow is definitely not our thing'.


Now some highlights of the rest of the highs:

• My uncle came in from Cyprus so it was good to see him
• I also got to see my friends from EY, it was great seeing them and getting all the updates of what's going on from work (and nice to know that I've been missed, hehe). From all the changes I've heard about, I'm kind of glad I'm not working there anymore, even though I really miss our shenanigans back at the office...
• On Christmas Eve, we went to my in-laws' villa out in the country and had a great turkey cooked by Afraa. I was so happy since I didn't get to eat turkey on Thanksgiving so that was a nice way to spend the day. Afterwards we had to make it to 2 other family gatherings, one with Al's family and one with mine. That was a fun but exhausting day.
• My mother-in-law is an OB/GYN so we went to her clinic with Al's dad and sisters so we could all see baby Omar on the ultrasound. He has gotten so BIG! My mother-in-law was trying to take some measurements of him but he wouldn't sit still! He kept rolling over and kicking and at one point we saw him sucking his thumb. It was soooo cute, and I was glad that we all got to share that together.

The Lows 
Unfortunately, there were a couple of lows on the trip. I really didn't mind all the running around and trying to make enough time to see everyone that we needed to see...I'm pretty used to that. But with being pregnant, it took its toll on me after the first week.  I mentioned in my previous post before I left that everything we do in Syria involves eating. Well, despite my looking forward to that particular detail, it ended up being my Kryptonite. I know there is such thing as self control, but when the food you love and have been deprived of for many months is so deliciously spread in front of you, dammit you gotta eat it! In the past, my body was totally ok with that. But I guess even though I'm supposed to eat a lot and gain weight while preggers, turns out there are some limits, and I definitely crossed those limits with the quickness. End result: angry angry stomach.  I felt like those first three months of pregnancy when I didn't get sick at all, I made up for in one night. It was awful, and I was so worried about the baby since I couldn't keep anything down. But turns out I was suffering more because he was soaking up all the nutrients he needed. He was fine, chillin, fat and happy. I felt like dying. It took me an entire week to start eating normally again, and I had to turn down so many plates of awesome food which made it worse. It kind of took away from the whole 'back to the homeland' experience, but I learned my lesson: My God, have some self-control, woman! But wait, there's more...once my stomach started feeling better, the rest of my body attacked. I got the flu, and when you're pregnant, you just have to suck it up and take it because OD-ing on Nyquil is NOT an option. When my fever picked up my mother-in-law had to give me some (baby safe) medicine to keep it down cause running a high fever also isn't so bueno for el nino. Being sick is sucky enough as it is. Being sick while pregnant is 10 times worse. Hopefully all that crud is out of my system now and it doesn't happen again!

Another low was the cold. I guess spending 4 months in the Saudi heat makes you cold-averse. I've never had a big problem with the cold, and I don't know if it was because my body is all weird now or because I just got used to the heat, but I was absolutely miserable whenever we had to go outside. I just couldn't handle it, and considering I'm going to be back in Nashville in February, its taking away some of my excitement about that. Coming back to Saudi and to beautiful 75-degree weather made me sooo happy, and the fact that I'll never have to wear yucky winter clothes here makes living here that much better.


Overall, despite my stomach and flu problems, I had a great time in Damascus.  It was a nice way to change some scenery and see all the family. But by the end of the trip, Al and I were ready to get back to our house and the warmth in Saudi. After all, it is our home sweet home now :)

Back to the Homeland...

I've been living in Saudi for almost 4 months now and I'd say I've done a damn good job of adjusting. All my friends here have been surprised at how quickly I've adjusted and how much I actually like it here. But it is about time I paid a visit back to the homeland...I miss the crowds, the traffic, the chaos, the car horns, the food, and most of all my crazy relatives.  Everything here is sooo...organized. It's almost like being back in the States (well, with a few exceptions). So it will be nice to be back in Damascus and get a change of pace, cause over there, you just dont stop. Let me fill you in on what happens when you come in to Damascus for a visit:

•  With Al and I, we've got my mom's family, my dad's family, and his mom and dad's families that all want to see us. Numerically speaking, thats like 400 people that we have to make time to visit. Now we usually only get a short amount of time being in town (in this case 3 weeks) so seeing hundreds of people in 21 days....like I said, non stop.
• Not only does everyone want to see us, they want to EAT with us. In Damascus, a visit doesn't count if you haven't shared 4 appetizers, two types of salad, 3 entrees, dessert, fruit, coffee, and tea together. So even if we went to my aunt's house for a short visit and some coffee, we've automatically obligated ourselves to another visit for lunch or dinner since we did not partake in a massive feast on our first visit.
• And even if we did come and gain 4 pounds in one sitting with them, there's the question "so when are you guys coming over again?". Yep, even when you have a limited amount of time, they still don't accept only one visit.

I know that this is all done by our families out of love. Syrians in particular show their love and hospitality by always wanting to take care of you and feeding you until you cry uncle. It really is nice to be catered to like that, but sometimes it is tiring to get pulled in all sorts of directions so time management is key on vacations like this.

This time around, Al and I are going to Damascus particularly for his sister's engagement party. So add another family (his sister's new in-laws) into the picture described above, and you get 100% pure, Arabic chaos. I'm stressed but excited at the same time. I thrive in chaos and being busy all the time. It's going to wear me out, but I'm willing to accept this since I'm going to be eating massive quantities of the best food in the world and zipping around to see people that I've dearly missed these past few months.


I'm leaving this Thursday and will be back on Dec. 30, so I thought I'd post this update before I leave since my internet time will be severely limited while I'm there. Also, mark your calendars cause I've officially booked my flight to Nashville and will be there from Feb. 18- June 26....woohoo!!! So much time, so much food to eat! Seriously, why does everything I talk about always end up being about food in some way?? 


Anyways, until my return to Saudi, I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and New Year's!!