Week 6

We are finishing week 6, and I think today is day 39. We are all doing well and things are pretty much the same. We were initially scheduled to depart Jordan this week, and spend a couple of months in the U.S.  before going to Turkey. We realized once the pandemic began that our plans would change, and we are rolling along with Plan B. We are now going directly to Turkey, whenever that may be, and will probably be in Jordan at least a few more months. We will miss not being able to see family this summer in the U.S., but we are thankful to be able to ride things out here. 

Friday was the first day of Ramadan in Jordan. During the month of Ramadan, Muslims fast during the day and break their fast in the evening with an iftar meal. They typically gather in the mosque for communal prayers, often with worshippers flooding into the streets, however this year the mosques are closed and gatherings are banned, so culturally things will be very different for Muslims. Streets are typically very quiet during Ramadan, so things will get even more quiet this next month. 

The weather was great this week and we spent a lot of time outside. It was only a 3 days school week because they celebrated the Orthodox Easter and had Sunday and Monday off. School continues to go well and they have three weeks left. The teachers and school staff are doing a great job balancing distance learning while taking care of their own families at home.

We decided to mix things up and bring some toys outside. The kids have had these magnet tiles for years and they are still a hit. The boys think of all kinds of creative things to build with them.

Fort building fun and hanging with daddy. Eliza is a daddy's girl!

We also play in the garage under our building a lot. Our building only has a few occupants, so there is plenty of space to play. They can ride bikes, play catch, tennis, or frisbee. We recently took out a remote control helicopter my parents gave us a while ago, and the kids have enjoyed flying it all over the place (if you can see the spec at the top of the picture).

This week the boys made a robot crab, that that received for Christmas. They did a good job filling the instructions to put it together and enjoyed placing it in different locations to watch it sense and avoid edges as it moved.

This girl...she is sweet and fun and loves to be around everyone.  She recently discovered juice and to no surprise, she likes it a lot :). 

She also loves shoes...just not her own! She has so many cute sandals and shoes that were gifted to her, but she loves being barefoot most.  If we can get her to put shoes on, it's her sneakers. She does however love to put other people's shoes on, especially her brothers'.

Lots of biking in the yard.

This week we decided to venture out for a couple walks. The streets are very quiet during the day, but the the evening time, more people seem to be getting out to walk, so we decided to do the same. As a bonus, the government announced extended curfew hours from 8am - 6pm during the month of Ramadan. And this is the first weekend in a month that we are only only complete lockdown on Friday, instead of both weekend days! On our first walk, Benjamin was concerned when we saw the police and said he didn't want us to get arrested and he wanted to go home. After being re-assured it was ok,  we a have been enjoying some walks in the evening and it has been really nice. Spring has sprung and there are a lot of beautiful flowers in bloom. 

A friend gave us some sidewalk chalk. You can't see it well, but Benjamin drew a mountain night scene with a moon and stars.

He drew the scene on paper too.

I went to the grocery store for the first time in 6 weeks. We had been doing delivery and it is working well, but there were a few things I kept ordering and not receiving so I decided to go one afternoon. The line was not long to get in. They make people wear a mask and gloves to get into the store, and if you didn't have one they give them to you. 

This was the first time I wore a mask. I understand why they are required, but I'm not a fan and was glad to take it off for the walk home!

I was also glad to have brought the jogging stroller with me, since we can only visit the store by foot. I initially planned to get the select items I needed, but decided since I was there to get more so we don't have to order groceries this week. The stroller worked great and allowed me to carry about $200 worth of groceries. As a bonus, the bakery inside was making pizzas so we got a salami pizza as a treat.

Yesterday was complete lockdown so we played around the house. As the day went on, the sky became more and more orange as a dust storm moved in. Latest yard improvement was Nathan and the boys trimming the trees. Eliza tried to help too...you turn around and she is halfway up the ladder.

I tried making banana chips yesterday since we had some very ripe bananas...and it was an epic failure, they were mushy even after additional baking time. Maybe I'll just stick to banana muffins.

Happy Saturday!