We're all together in Bahrain!

After 16+ hours of traveling, Russ, Nic, & Katie arrived safely in Bahrain. We flew 8 hours on United to Frankfurt, had a 2 hour layover with a fairly easy transfer (no customs or anything) and boarded a Gulf Air flight for 6 more hours. The kids and I love Gulf Air--they know how to take care of customers! We arrived to 104°F heat at 7pm in Bahrain. Karla picked us up at the airport, and shortly after we were swimming in her apartment pool. So far, Karla's been working regular hours and enjoying dinner with the family. 

Last night we went out to a restaurant and then went rug shopping at Oasis Carpet. Abdul (the owner) is very friendly and warm. The kids enjoyed juice and running all over the shop. We bought an 8-foot circular carpet, plus 2 other little rectangular ones Karla has been "test-driving" in her apartment for a few weeks.

We're loving being a family again! More adventures to follow...

American Visionary Art Museum

Sunday after church the kids and I, along with our friends Bert and Josiah, went up to Baltimore's amazing American Visionary Art Museum. There are three buildings of very cool art. The kids kept saying how awesome it was, and wanted to be sure we saw everything.

I couldn't take pictures inside the main building, so most of these are from the outside, but this will give you an idea of the fun art. The movies of the mechanical toys I took in another building--not sure if it was legal or not! My favorite exhibit was Dalton Ghetti's pencil tip sculptures.

All of them were carved out of regular pencil leads using a razor blade and without the help of a magnifying glass! This Weekly Reader article has some more pictures.

South Dakota Trip part 4

Uncle Ben and Aunt Cathy took most of the kids for rides on their ATVs. Here are Katie's and Nic's rides around the house.

South Dakota Trip part 3

Even though we got to see a lot, the highlight of the trip was seeing all the relatives. Mom & Dad are proud of all their grandkids. Uncle Ron taught some of the kids how to play poker. South Dakota has some beautiful sunsets.

South Dakota Trip part 2

We also went to a mammoth dig site and museum, which all the kids enjoyed--they even got to dig for fossils (but couldn't take them home.) That's Nora being cute listening to the guide on the tour.

South Dakota Trip part 1

The kids and I traveled to the Black Hills for a Nemec family reunion last week. Lots of fun seeing sites, playing, and hanging out at a huge vacation home with my parents, my 4 siblings and their families (22 of us in all--just missing Karla.) Here are some pictures of cousins and N&K at a waterpark and at Mt Rushmore (the day after Greenpeace used it for a statement.) Guthrie was sure he could take that rock home if he could just get it off the ground.

Artomatic

The kids and I took the Metro down to a building near the Nationals Stadium to visit Artomatic. It's 9 floors of artists' exhibits. We mainly went to see our friend Bert's photography, but there were many other interesting pieces. The kids got to have their faces painted and created some of their own artwork, too.

Orioles Game

Monday night we went with the Hagemasters and some of their friends, Jody, and the Quiggs to the O's vs Red Sox game. There were 3 sets of twins in our group! The Orioles lost, but fun was had by all.