Keeping Up With The Culveys - 2016

Happy New Year 2016!! It feels a bit odd saying this as I am writing this in July 2017!! Yes, I am a bit behind, but will be catching up in front of your very eyes!

So January kicked off with our big new adventure, whilst I had been in Kuwait about 4 months, it was time for the rest of the family to join me, at last! We flew off on the 2nd Jan, I was hoping it wasn’t a sign of things to come but Lyra and the kids flew Business class while I was back in economy! Is this how my life was going to be from here??? They all enjoyed their flight and we landed in Bahrain and waited to catch our connection…. Standing at the gate we were surprised by Karim!! He had been in Oman for the new year and was also on his way back to Kuwait on the same flight! The kids were so excited to see him, especially Logan! It certainly helped to amuse them for a while as our flight was delayed. However, we did eventually make it over to Kuwait and to our new house in Surra. We even managed to get our luggage too (a success in Kuwait airport!). One surprise waiting for us was one of the chandeliers had fallen from the roof and smashed on the floor, not a great start, and slightly concerning as there were quite a few more of them (like above our bed!) The kids were very excited when we arrived at the new house, they ran around the place, making all sorts of noise, and jumping on the trampoline, one of the only items in the house at this point. We eventually got them to calm down and go to bed, Lyra and I collapsed into bed, relieved at finally being home.

Next day we had a trip down memory lane to re-acquaint everyone with Kuwait, top of the list had to be a trip to The Avenues mall, and the old favourite PF Changs! For Logan of course this was his first time, but he became a fan immediately! Dynamite shrimps were back in our lives!! Next it was over to Salwa to meet our friends Jackie, Karl, Georgia, and Sydnii. It was so great to see them after all this time, although agreeing to meet on the coast, was not the best idea as it was freezing! Yes, Kuwait in the winter can be chilly!  Then after that, it was off to see Marcelle, Mazen, Chad, and Chloe, for more reunion fun!

However, it couldn’t all be fun and catch ups, school beckoned for India and Kai. It was back to their old School TES (The English School). As usual they took it all in their stride, they both claimed to remember very little about it, especially Kai (he was only 5!), Kai was approached by Leonardo, who was one of his best friends, almost immediately, sadly though he could not remember him! Other than that though, they settled back in quickly, and were soon talking of new friends!

Living in a big house with virtually no furniture was an interesting experience, for the 5 of us, we had beds, a small 2 seater sofa, kindly lent to us by our friend, Jeff, 3 bean bags, and a tv! All we needed of course, but it was like living in a warehouse as the space was so big it echoed when we spoke!! This became particularly noticeable when Izzy arrived a few days after us. Her bark in this echoey hall was an incredible noise, certainly kept our neighbours upstairs aware of their new ‘friends’!!

The following weekend, the old friend hangouts continued as Karim joined us at Jackie’s for a lovely lunch of home made sushi… and a lot of laughs!! Karim also spent time with us at home, he had 2 years of catching up to work on, although the kids monopolised him, mostly on the trampoline!

Then it was Logan’s turn to start Nursery. He did great, and settled into Learning Steps in Sabah al Salam really quickly. Just as long as he had his shades at the ready… he seems to have Lyra’s super sensitive eyes!! We celebrated how well we were settling into life in the sandpit, with another trip to PF Changs, this time we headed down South to check out the new Alshaya complex Sidra, near where Karim lives. After dinner we played on the beach in the lovely winter sun. After all that fun there was only one thing to do, head to Pinkberry for frozen yogurt heaven!

There was one set of friends that we hadn’t yet caught up with, Brien & Suzanne had moved to Kuwait while we were living in the UK, but it was great to see them again, it must have been at least 7 years since we were last together in Turkey! We had a wonderful night getting up to speed with all that had happened and being amazed at how John Patrick & Siobhan have grown into wonderful young adults. Their pool got a good splash, Indi even got to be a mermaid! And for some bizarre reason Kai ended up wrapped from head to toe in toilet paper!! Really not sure why?

We had not yet been in the country for a month, however, Logan already had his first party to attend, at his nursery with all his classmates, the kids party frenzy was beginning!! One of the great things about TES as a school is it has a thriving community all around it. Our first experience of this was a car boot sale. We gave the kids a clear instruction… do not buy any old rubbish. So Logan found himself a super man suit, and a captain America mask, India found….. a cat! We didn’t even have any furniture, yet a cat had already made it’s way into our house! He was a cat that had been found on the Corniche, it had clearly been abused and kicked, it’s tail had been broken and was crooked. He was initially called Blaze after his striking markings, however, this name was soon updated to Blade when he showed us his skills at using his rather sharp claws on our hands, arms, legs or any bare flesh he got the chance to go for! The arrangement was that we foster him while we seek a permanent home…. That was a laugh, strangely, Blade became ours rather quickly under promises from the kids that they will feed him, they will clean out his litter tray…. Didn’t take long before Lyra and I seemed to be doing this as much as them!

One Friday morning, Lyra and I went shopping to look for some curtains, 3 hours later, we returned having bought two huge sofas from West Elm!! Thankfully, they were 50% off!! And now we had something comfy to chill out on at home while we wait for our furniture to arrive.

Camel racing is one of the fun activities that is a uniquely Middle Eastern experience! We headed out to the track to meet up with Jeff, Brien and Suzanne to take a look for ourselves at the racing. However, you don’t have to sit in the stands to watch the race, although there is nice air conditioned rooms where you can sit in comfort, but the best way to watch the race is to get in your SUV and race around with the camels on the inside of the track!! Great fun, but with about 20 SUV’s racing around together, you have to watch where you are going as it is one big cloud of sand all around you! The boys in particular loved it!!

As our first month drew to a close, the kids took another step towards filling their lives with fulfilling activities. They were reunited with their old Director of drama Alison Sharn Price and her Company One World Actors, it would prove to be a fabulous journey for them both….

February always starts off with a lot of Indi! And this year was no exception. Only it was not Indi’s birthday we were celebrating 1st…. It was Chloe’s! Which started off with High Tea, at the very posh Regency Hotel, Chloe and Indi were joined by Marcelle, and everyone’s favourite teacher Jenny Johnson! While Indi was living it up, the rest of us slummed it in The Cheesecake Factory, down the road in Arabella, Salwa. Once Indi was done, she joined us at The Factory, and continued eating!! These growing girls!! Chloe’s actual birthday party kicked off with a ride in a very stretched pink Hummer Limo! All girls rode around in style before enjoying some pampering and make up sessions. When it came to the make up session however, Indi was notably absent, our girl is not a fan!!

One of the great places for kids in Kuwait is the Scientific Centre, and we couldn’t wait to take Logan for his first visit. First of all we hit the Aquarium and desert animal section, Logan adored it, and squashed his face against the glass of the aquarium for ages. It brought back great memories for us all I think! No trip to the Scientific centre is complete with a trip to Pinkberry though, so we grabbed our tubs and sat out in the winter sun to enjoy! Yum!!

Then of course it was Indi’s Birthday!!!! 12 years old!!! The day started with us breaking into to Indi’s bedroom and presenting her with birthday cake and hot chocolate (with marshmallows). This was necessary as Indi has become a bed dweller extraordinaire!! And she requires intense encouragement to prize her out of her pit! Once up and out of bed it was off to magic Planet for a spot of 10 pin bowling, and bumper cars with Best pals Jasmine and Sydnii, along with the boys (including Karim!). Once we had built up an appetite, there was only one place to head…yep. PF Changs!!!

The ever so feisty Blade remained on probation, but despite the regular attacks, it seemed that everyone was still desperate for him to become a permanent member of the team…and so it was..

After 6 weeks of living in our huge, house of echoes with no furniture, our containers arrived! So part one of this process meant I had to go to the port and take ownership of them. This involves signing lots of documents, and watching as they pull our containers onto a bay, and start to unload cartons to check that there isn’t anything prohibited hidden within…. Normally this is a few boxes as long as you are nice and polite with them. Sadly though on this day, the inspector was delayed, so while we were waiting, the team just kept on unloading. I think they managed to pull out about 2/3’s of the cartons by the time the inspection happened. All no issue, nobody found our hidden wine kits so the containers were released. Only problem now was, the container had been packed so well, that they now couldn’t get it all back in!! I left one of my very helpful colleagues to oversee the re-stuffing while I escorted the driver of container No.1 to our house! Waiting for the container at the house was a team of about 6 guys all raring to go. As soon as the doors open they were on it like there lives depended on it, a crazy flow of cartons streamed into the house and we had to do our best to ensure that they paced them in the right rooms. By the end of day one, the whole two containers (680 boxes) had been offloaded and were sat in the house!! The next two days were a blur of cardboard and packing paper, but at this point we decided, they had built the furniture, so it was time to push them out and face the rest alone!! There was a mountain of work to do, we had no idea where the summit was, but just headed in and hoped for the best! After a couple of weeks the worst was done, but it feels like it almost never ends as there always seems to be a few boxes waiting to be dealt with! No more moving!!

The following week we had a very nice distraction, Kai’s sports day! Kai is always a great member of his house team, Windsor, and gives it his all, and cheers on his team mates with great enthusiasm!! Go Windsor!!

Still only month two, and Logan’s social circle seems to be going very well, as he had his second birthday party! This time at the Scientific centre Pizza Hut! Already we were really starting to feel at home in Kuwait!

Then came scary news from home… Dad had had a stroke. Thankfully, a relatively mild one, and although both movement and speech were impacted we were just thankful he was all there!, and still giving us all grief! In all our years of traveling and living overseas this was the first major health incident, and it really did make us feel like we were a long way away, and completely helpless. I was very grateful to both Andy, and Gav, for being there, and keeping me in the loop on progress. Life had changed for Dad forever (and Mum!) but we were all very grateful that he was showing good signs of making a full recovery.

At the weekend, we were off to a grown ups evening at Marcelle and Mazen’s, so the kids spent the night over at Karim place in Marbhoula, they had a brilliant time, with lots of unhealthy food, sweets, and movies!! 

Indi then had the chance to run off all that junk food as it was time for her sports day! As she was now Yr 7, they get to have their event in a local sports stadium, which made it an even greater day. Lovely sunny day (no real surprise), and like Kai, she was a great competitor and pushed her team forwards with all the enthusiasm you could imagine!! Windsor rocked!!

As we reach towards the end of Feb, Kuwait always has a few days of madness to celebrate National and Liberation day. It is a day to avoid the key public areas in Kuwait as it is custom to go around a spray everyone with foam, silly string, and water et, a very messy affair generally, but at school, they always have a dress up day in the Kuwaiti colours Green, Black, Red, and White. Always fun, and this year was no exception!! Kai and Logan were fully decked out in the colours…. Indi focused on the black aspect of the flag, but did manage a Kuwait hat!!

In the background the unpacking was continuing, boxes and boxes of packing paper were building up in the basement! The kids had found a fun way to make use of all this paper, and that was to pile it on to the trampoline and bounce around in it!! They loved it and it kept them amused for days!! until…. They discovered that Blade had been using the paper as a toilet!! Yuk!! They did not enjoy the cleaning up part much!!

We even squeezed in another quick trip to the Scientific Centre, this time with Karim!! Ice creams and Slush Puppies followed, Logan looked like he had rubbed it all over his face, while Kai’s tongue went bright blue thanks to the Slushie! Oh how we love these natural products! 

As returnee’s to Kuwait, we were lucky to not have to go through the hassle of re-obtaining our driving licenses as ours were still valid from the previous time, so we were up and around quickly, it didn’t take many weeks before Lyra got a taste of the terrible driving first hand  when somebody hit her from behind at a roundabout! No more than a scratch on our car, but his was a mess, a very nice Kuwaiti lady who’s car had also been hit ensured that the police understood what had occurred. Turned out he was driving his bosses car, had no license, and no insurance! The police told us it was down to us to decide if we want to press charges. Both us and the other party decided the poor guy was going to suffer enough explaining the car to his boss so let him off any further prosecution. Amazingly, as we didn’t want to press charges, the police did nothing either, so the fact that he was driving with no license, no insurance, cost him nothing!! Only in Kuwait!!

Two months in, and all the kids were settled into there schools and loving it! We were so pleased. Logan was having a blast at Learning Steps, he already had a great bunch of friends, and came home completely bushed every day! Indi and Kai had settled back into life at TES so well, picking up old friends and making great new ones! Kai had a fun day as his year had Victorian day where they dress up in the period clothing and have lessons, and food in keeping with the period!!  Great experience.

Early in March, and following swiftly on from Victorian day, was World book day, where the kids get to dress up as a character from a favourite book. Kai made good use of his Victorian outfit and used it as Oliver Twist! I’m not sure he has even read the book, but 10 out of 10 for ingenuity! Indi went as one of her Warrior cats, and Logan was a remix of a Power Ranger, Minion, and Superman! After school, the kids joined Syd, Georgia, and the 4 Acocks, for some fun on the Corniche. An afternoon, of going nuts ensued, much to the amusement of all around, although, I am not sure Lyra would have survived much more!!

March is of course my month, and we celebrated my 48 years young at The Cheesecake Factory, then on the actual day I woke to beautiful, individual, multi coloured birthday cakes for breakfast!! Logan was a big fan of this idea!! The next stage of my birthday celebrations was to help out at the TES Spring fair! An hour of herding kids set me up just right for my big boy party at Jackie and Carls! It was a great night, lots of good friends, and the biggest birthday cake I have had in many years!!

Now at 3 and a half, Logan had never had his hair cut! Just like Indi, he hasn’t really grown a major head of hair, but it had got a little whispy, so I decided it was time to give him a trim! To make this a more friendly experience, he agreed that he would have his haircut, as long as Daddy did it!! No problem, we have a set of clippers, all we needed to do was choose which comb to use. As his hair was quite fine, I decided that he needed a relatively short one, or it wouldn’t cut much…. Ooops, I practically scalped him! Lyra almost shed a tear, as her little baby boy become a skinhead in a matter of minutes!! Needless to say, I am no longer allowed to administer haircuts! Thought he looked cool myself!!

The weather in Kuwait in March is really lovely, so we met up with jackie and the girls down on Salmiya beach for an afternoon playing in the sand and the sea. Logan enjoyed building sandcastles and paddling in the sea, and was even happier when pizza arrived, followed by a big ice cream!! 

The one thing that had been missing from our return to Kuwait, had been Padema, after spending 2 years looking after us, last time we were in Kuwait, we were overjoyed to bring Padema back to Kuwait to work with us once again. This time we sponsored her ourselves, so I had been having fun getting all the visas etc sorted out but finally she was on her way! Her plane landed at about midnight, I waited patiently in Starbucks… the hours ticked by, and still no Padema… then at about 3am I got a call from her, and she was downstairs in a special area for maids entering the country. After another hour of showing paperwork and more waiting, Padema was finally through! Everyone was so excited to have her back, the kids made lovely welcome back pictures for her, and she was finally introduced to Logan!!

Work took me over to Moscow, where I met up with my old colleague and friend from TCC, Ivan. We had a great couple of evenings out, and went to watch CSKA Moscow in the ice hockey play offs! Brilliant game!

Lyra joined the British Ladies and checked out the newly referbished Kuwait Towers for Breakfast 200ft off the ground. I’m told it was very nice, but we still haven’t managed to go again! 

Choosing a beach club, was on our agenda, and as part of the research, Jackie and Carl invited us to join them at the The Palms. A fun afternoon was had by all, chillin’ in the sun, freezing in the pool, and getting very mucky down on the beach!

As we came to the end of March, it was time to celebrate Easter! Logan in particular had a lot of fun with his Learning Steps crew, and came home from his Easter egg hunt with a basket full of chocolate eggs. During the car ride home with Mummy, he described all the lovely eggs he had found in his basket, and proceeded to much his way through the lot!! You can imagine the messy face that greeted Lyra once they were home!! Not satisfied with chocolate eggs, the following day, he made jam tarts! Thankfully these managed to make through the journey home, so the rest of us got at least one to try!!!

After my hairdressing antics with Logan, Kai was very sure he would rather go to the hairdressers! Kai’s sharp haircut came with additional blue, silver, and green spray colouring!! He looked very cool!! Meanwhile, Indi has a day with Syd and friends for her birthday celebration at ice skating and a bbq at their place, lots of party games and water fights! Some of which were beyond Indi’s limits! 

As is always the case in Kuwait, there are people coming and people going, at this point Ly was at the The Breakfast Club Cafe in Mahboula to celebrate Jeanne’s departure.

We were into April now so it was our Kai’s birthday, and it was a big one… double digits, yep he was 10!!! His day started with cake and balloons to wake him up, then it was gifts time! Double digits brought Kai his 1st iPhone! A very happy boy was he! Next up it was off to Trampo to meet a few of Kai’s new friends, for the next hour, Kai, his friends, and Indi & Logan, bounced until they dropped! Once they had recovered we headed back to ours for Domino’s pizza and Minecraft cake!

Indi and Kai have been working really hard as part of the One World Actors Group. They were rehearsing for a play called The Blue Box which is a play about the horrors of war, seen through the eyes of children based on a book written about stories from kids fleeing Syria. As they get closer to the performance, as always the rehearsal intensity increases, they even switched to a new practice venue, one of the Alghanim’s villa’s on the beach in Messila, rather swish indeed! Before we knew it, the performance was upon us. It was being held at the DAI Yarmouk Cultural Centre, which is a really nice modern venue, perfect for such a powerful play. It was running for 3 nights, and was completely sold out. Watching the play was no easy ride, the stories told were real, and they did not glamorize it at all. It was hard hitting, extremely emotional, and brilliantly performed by the group, both adults and children. After a standing ovation at the end, Indi and Kai got to meet Emma Abdullah, the author of the book the play is based on. Emma, who is half Syrian, half French,  wrote the book when she was just 15 after collecting the stories she heard and keeping them in a blue box. The proceeds of her book are all going to UNICEF, she is a very inspiring young woman, and someone, we are happy to have met.

And then of course, it was Mum’s Birthday!! To celebrate our family CEO’s special day, we had cake and pressies at home, then at the weekend, it was time to put on our first proper party at our new home. Lots of friends, old and new joined us, and we were treated to one of Padema’s famous Sri Lankan curries, and lovely samosa’s! We even managed to rustle a a little contraband booze to make it a proper party, you’ve got to love that home made wine… As you would expect, we rolled out a very nice carrot cake, with a few candles to make sure everyone got to sing Lyra Happy Birthday!!

Once into May, Spring was in full flow and the weather was lovely in Kuwait, we were invited around to jackie & Carl’s for a BBQ, kids love it as there is plenty of space to run around, and for the brave, there is the pool, as it was still early in the year, it was still a bit chilly in the water, too cold for Logan, so he decided to sit and watch the others. He certainly perked up once the BBQ got into full swing however, that big plate of hot dogs had his name on it!!

Over the years we have written lots about Indi & Kai’s drama, in general it has been Indi, as the older one that has taken the lead on these things, but we were very excited in May as Kai was appearing without Indi for the first time in the Merry Wives of Windsor being played in the open air at the British Embassy. Kai was the only young actor in the play, and he put in a lot of work, and many late evenings to get himself ready. The play itself was wonderful, and Kai was amazing, he really rose to the challenge and shone on that stage. It was a lovely setting in the very picturesque gardens. The 1st night was a family evening, then the 2nd night was the gala performance, with a wonderful dinner served and then we enjoyed the performance with just a couple of drinks. 

During May we said hello to our first overseas visitor, good old Grandad Peck made the journey and spent a fun filled two weeks with us. We kicked things off with a lovely dinner at Marcelle and Mazen’s which gave Michael a great introduction to the wonderful hosting that makes life so good in Kuwait. At the weekend we took Grandad to the Cheesecake Factory at Arabella, overlooking the sea, to show him some of the great places that Alshaya run, and then we took a drive out into the desert in search of camels. We had to go a fair way but we found them! And Michael got to get a sense of what being right out in the desert is like… certainly makes you feel a little small, and isolated.

During the week, Michael become an honourable guest of the British Ladies, and joined them for lunch at the very swish Jumeriah Messila beach hotel… he seemed very at home with all the attention! Next it was up the Kuwait Towers, no trip to Kuwait is complete without a visit to the iconic towers, and the view is always stunning. His trip would not have been complete though if we hadn’t thrown a little soirée in his honour. There is no doubt that he left with a very nice interpretation of expat living! I expect he’ll be back!

While all this was going on, young Logan was also enjoying his social standing within his lovely nursery group, he was at parties every weekend it seemed, all these little girls all wanted him to celebrate with them (I’m guessing that will be the Peck blood in him!!) He also had a great trip to the Little Gym with his nursery class which he loved. As May came to a close, it was almost the end of term, and Logan received his 1st Learning Steps report, telling us he was a wonderful member of the class, socialising well, learning lots, and always wanting to be involved in all they do. We are happy parents!

We kicked of June at Jackie’s again, this time we are honoured to be invited to check out jackie’s newly acquired sushi making skills! Very nice it was too! Karim came along, as usual he had us all in fits of laughter, and as usual, he wasn’t even trying! What was it though?? We all left there with tears of laughter still rolling down our cheeks, and tummy aches, not from the lovely sushi, but from laughing so hard!! I will never be able to look at a turtle again without thinking of Karim and his turtle lifters!!!

As we were in June, the summer was building up nicely, with temperatures well into the 30’s. But we still hadn’t decided on a beach club! The search continued though, and we were given 4 day passes to check out the Corniche club. So we did! The kids loved the pool, the gardens, and the beach, Ly and I loved the gym and the great classes they were running, and Marcelle and Mazen had also recently joined… The Corniche was looking like a favourite… However, we would have to wait a while longer before making a decision, the school year was fast coming to an end, and that would mean, Ly and the kids would be off for the summer… not much point in joining until they returned!

With the school term coming to an end, TES holds it’s annual enrichment week, where the students abandon all lessons for a week and engage in fun, and inspiring challenges as a school, not by class. Part of Indi’s week involved working on a fast tracked performance of The Pirates of Penzance! They were going to go from scratch to a performance in two weeks!! The pressure was on! We had nothing to worry about however, because at the end of the two weeks, we watched a fabulous performance by students and teachers, just proving what can be done with a little belief, and hard work! Indi played a Policeman (yes, a man!) She did a great job, and very funny!!

As we have mentioned before, being back in Kuwait, allowed us to hook up with fellow globe trotters, and ex Tesco Expats Brien and Suzanne, and it was Brien’s 50th! We celebrated at Brien’s with a games night, kicking off with a little roulette, but culminating in a game of Poker. Just the boys, and Lyra, sat down for the game. It was 20KD per head to join (about £50) winner takes all! The game was tense, and the money was changing hands a lot, slowly but surely people started to drop out, some bought there way back in, some (Lyra) simply got to tired, and fell asleep, and therefore had to retire!! However, by 5am there were just 3 players left, Brien, Graham, and yours truly We were all completely exhausted, the sun was coming up, we agreed, we had to go all in and shoot for the highest card! Graham bagged a two, Brien got excited with a Queen, but it was me that took home the prize money, with an Ace!!!! Get in!! Another legendary poker night with Mr Eagles!

And then it was the last day of the school year! It had come around so quickly (and much earlier than in England!), on the last day it was the school prize giving, and Kai was selected to receive the Academic Achievement Award!! He was over the moon, we were thrilled, what a great achievement after only two terms at TES!! Well done Kai!! Then that was it, school was done until September!! Ly and the kids didn’t leave straight away, they spent a week having fun at home with friends coming round one last time before everyone headed off for the summer, we even squeezed in one last trip to the scientific centre, and a Pinkberry (of course!) before they headed off to cooler shores, and a summer back in England.

Summer in England was a mad dash all around the country saying hi to friends and family they hadn’t seen since the new year. It all started off down in Wiltshire with Nanny and Grampy. The kids enjoyed a day in the park, despite the rain! And still managed to get ice creams and Lollies! Lyra and Grampy recovered our old car, which had sat in a friends field since January. We hooked up the battery and it started first time! However, it was in dire need of a good clean!

While they were having fun in Trowbridge, I headed over to Istanbul, my favourite work destination!! With the lovely summer weather in full swing, we decided (after a hard days work) to head out on the ferry to one of the lovely islands in the Bosphorus for a traditional seafood dinner, sitting right on the quay side, it was a great evening with great people.

Ly and the kids took the newly rejuvenated RAV4 up to Northampton for a while to say hi to the Pecks, and I mean all of them, for once together at Chris’s, Tan, Les, Grandad, and Auntie & Uncle, can you imagine what a night that was!! After a few days in the arms of the Pecks, it was time to return to the Culveys once again, Indi, Kai, and Logan, were off to spend a few days with Nanny & Grampy in wonderful Weymouth! Days of fun on Chesil beach, birdwatching, climbing on the rocks, and of course, crabbing!! This was Logan’s first real taste of the joys of Weymouth and Portland, I was so happy he could get to enjoy a part of the world that had been so important to me growing up, I have so many memories of this little corner of the world, and I know Indi and Kai do to. It was lovely to know that Logan was seeing it too. He certainly enjoyed the time, and even did a spot of naked paddling!! Of course, as with all British beach holidays, there was plenty of ice cream too.

As the summer rolled into July, our adventurers headed to Binfield and caught up with Nat, and the new love in her life, Chewie, the dog!! Like a miniature Wookie from Star Wars, he was instantly a firm favourite amount the Culvey Clan. Kai and Logan had the chance to see old friends from Jennetts Park School, of course they were still at school, as the British schools were still open, even though our guys had been off nearly 3 weeks already. While in Binflied, Logan was lucky enough to be able to join his friend Jack at their old favourite play place, Raquets Sports Club, to celebrate Jacks 5th birthday!

After a whirlwind of a few days in Binfield, it was back in the RAV and on up to Northampton again, 1st on the list was Cara and the boys for an afternoon of laughs!! Soon after arriving in Northampton, Logan’s reoccurring chest problem returned, and this time it became so severe that Ly had to rush him to hospital as he was struggling for breath. Poor little man was hooked straight up onto a nebuliser and ended up spending two nights in hospital, with Mum sleeping by his side in a chair! Thankfully, the course of treatment they gave him was very effective, and within a few days he was back to his cheeky, lively self! We were so thankful for the support we were given by the NHS, you really appreciate it when you live in a place where you will only be helped if you have the money. It was a tough time for us all. For me being so far away, with my little man in hospital, I felt very lonely, and helpless, for Lyra, in the midst of it all, without me to support, was an overwhelming feeling. Thankfully, family and friends were there to do all that was needed to ensure all of the family were looked after. We are very grateful to them all.

In the coming days, the catch ups continued with afternoons with Auntie and Uncle, Grandad, and of course lots of Abi, Kiera, and Cam!!

And then, it was time for my 1st of two trips to England this summer. The first trip centred around Chris’s Stag Do, and Tori and Mikes Wedding! 1st stop was Nanny & Grampy’s as Ly and the kids would get ready for the wedding there. We had a lovely afternoon in the garden, and even made it over to the park for some fun on the swings!! It was short lived though, as the next morning I headed off to Northampton to meet Chris and 20 of his closest allies for a very grown up and civilised Stag Do at the 20/20 Cricket in Leicester! Before we could head off to the festivities though I needed to make a quick visit to the suit hire shop, to try on, and pick up my outfit for wedding number two this summer, Chris and Gemma’s, for which I was Best Man, well one of them! The minibus picked us up from Chris’s and we headed North, the Best man had managed to acquire a few suitable beverages for the journey up, and everyone was in fine voice by the time we arrived. First stop once we were in the ground, was of course…. No, not the bar, the gents!! Men of our age, were always in need of the gents after even relatively short journeys!! Then it was time to hit bar! As Best man, I held the kitty, and spent most of my time paying the bar man for the constant flow of ale to the lads. I even had a couple myself although one was careful, as I had an early morning dash  back down to the West Country, for wedding number one!!

The cricket was fun, the banter was better, but everyone had a great laugh, a few beers, some unhealthy take out, but it was time to jump back on the bus and head be to Northampton. We made it back in good time, and even managed a pint or two before closing time. Then came the moment of truth…. Who was going to get crazy and head off clubbing and who was old and sensible, and was heading home…? Surprisingly, the majority opted for the latter!! Even Chris, headed back with a few of the lads, including me! I hit the sack in prep for the morning, Chris unfortunately for him, hit the drinks cabinet and had a slightly later finish!!

06:00 on the Saturday, and yours truly was up, showered, shaved, and in the car heading South There was no time to spare, as the wedding was starting at Midday! Therefore we were due to be in Bristol by 11:00! The traffic was kind, and I was with Ly and the kids before 09:00, and we all were ready on time and hit the road for Bristol zoo!! We rendezvous’d with the rest of the Culvey Clan at my Sister Andy’s, and then formed a convoy to the Zoo. The service itself was in a wonderful airy room overlooking the zoos gardens, the light airy feeling was reflected in a lighthearted service that went off without a hitch, and before we knew it we were toasting the new couple with Champagne!! As the afternoon passed, catching up with friends and family that we hadn’t seen in such a long while. Once the gates closed to the public, we were given the freedom of the zoo, and were able to wander around in our own private viewing, it was wonderful, especially for the kids. We had a lovely wedding breakfast, enjoyed the speeches, and then partied into the night to the sounds of a great band, that seemed to have a mildly recognisable lead guitarist!! Rockin Simon Heard was on full throttle!! All the kids played so nicely together, it was lovely to see them spend time with their Cousins and have such fun. Logan was a superstar, and had everyone in stitches all night!

Sun shone again the next day, and we enjoyed a lovely lunch in the garden at Andy’s before heading back towards London. We stayed in Binfield, and the next day had a brilliant family day together in Windsor, just enjoying being together. The following day we sat in the gardens at South Hill with Hannah, but then it was time for me to go. I needed to head back to work in Kuwait, and leave my Brood to continue their summer adventure without me.

Ly and the kids stayed on in Binfield with Joyce and Jim, and spent another fun day in Windsor. Then Joyce threw a garden party with Hannah and Nat, Mike and the girls. The Prosseco flowed, the sun shone, it was English summers at their best! Meanwhile in Kuwait, I celebrated Karim’s birthday in PF Changs. Kai and Logan caught up with Sammy & Ewan, and then it was back on the road to Northampton and get ready for wedding number two! Brendan, Judit, and Patrick, had kindly offered their spare room to the wandering Culvey’s and they had a fab few days hearing all of each others stories of the trials and adventures of our lives!!

Then before you knew it, I was back again!

This time it was Chris and Gemma’s turn to tie the knot. The run up to the wedding had been a little concerning, as the reception was taking place in a paddock in a marquee, and well it had been raining hard for almost a week! Lots of worries about Glastonbury style mud baths etc!! However, everyone kept believing that it would be alright, and we woke on the morning of the wedding to beautiful sunshine! As Best man, I was due to meet Chris at lunch time in the pub with the rest of the groom’s men. When I arrived there was a lot of tying and re-tying of ties going on! We all had these fancy pink cravat type ties and nobody seemed to be able to get them to look right! Nobody, except me! So the next 30 mins was spent tying an endless line of pink cravats!! Soon enough it was time for us to walk on down to the venue, Chris was relaxed, the sun was shining, and once we got to the church and guests started arriving, it was all smiles!

The service went great, the bride of course looked wonderful, and Chris scrubbed up pretty well! We were in the front two rows and all through the service, Loggie and Isaac were mucking about! We kept feeding them snacks and sweets to keep them occupied, but they needed constant attention!! Luckily, Rob was handing over the rings! Lyra had the pleasure of reading a passage, chosen by Gemma, she did a wonderful job, projected herself to the audience, and read it with real emotion. Those who know Lyra best, understand that Lyra has an unnatural fear of public speaking, so to see her up there looking and sounding so good was a big moment!!

And then there was confetti, and photos, and Pimms, and mulling around in the amazingly dry field, considering the last few days!! In fact it was so warm, that we had to roll up the sides of the marquee as it was too warm in there! Dinner was served, I was of course sat on the head table as a best man, Ly and the kids thankfully were right in front of me, although Logan insisted on sitting on my knee throughout the whole thing! And then it was time for speeches….

Gemma’s Brother kicked things off, then Chris did his turn, and handed out gifts to the many people who had helped get the wedding together, then it was over to the best men, we had agreed that Rob would go first and talk about Chris’s early life, and then I would follow… all this seemed like a great plan, but then, Rob, was really funny, and the pressure on me just grew, and grew! I have to admit, I am generally pretty comfortable with speeches, but following Rob, was a tall order (ha ha!). Luckily however, my speech went down well, and everyone, even Chris (for most of it) seemed to enjoy it! And then the duties were done, I could relax and have fun with Ly & the kids, and have a beer!! As we headed into the evening and the music was turned up, and the lights were turned down, we got ready to party! Logan on the other hand had other ideas, he was completely bushed and collapsed asleep in my lap! Pinned down, I was trapped. Luckily though, I had a good supply of beer coming my way, and plenty of people to chat too so it was still a lovely evening.

The following day was a quiet one, a bit of tidying around from the reception, but then we chilled as the next day we were heading North, towards Edinburgh and The Fringe!

Part one of the trek took us up to Matlock where we stayed for the night. That evening we headed over to Bakewell and had a lovely dinner in a great pub/restaurant next to the river, and then took a walk around the town.

We woke to a lovely August morning and wandered over to a cable car ride that took us up to the Heights of Abraham. At the top was a kind of theme park, which the kids loved, they sifted for gold, found some lovely crystals, and found a huge slide that us boys must of spent at least an hour go up and down! Logan, being a little small for such a big slide needed to go with me, but he absolutely loved whizzing down as fast as we could!! Meanwhile, the ladies of the family took it easy and laid out on some benches and soaked up some rays…

We had to hit the road though for part 2 of the journey North, and it was on to Pocklington to see Claire, Libby, and Katie, better known as the Fitts! Our couple of days with these lovely ladies was fun, it always is!! On the first day, Claire suggested we go for a nice ‘little’ walk, grab something to eat (the kids were obsessed about getting a Subway!), so we walked, and walked, and walked!! Claire idea of a little walk was a lot when you have a 3 year old in tow! To be fair Logan did amazing and did walk most of the way, with the odd piggy back or shoulder ride from Dad!! One the way back we hung out in some very nice gardens, had ice cream in the rain, and then finally made it back to the house for a well earned nap!! We had a funny day at York Maze, that has a bizarre corn theme, but we got lost in the maze, had a bizarre experience in a topsy Turvey house, and a lot of giggles in the Maze with funny mirrors!! We followed that with a rainy BBQ, and then it was an evening of Gestures, always a giggle!!

It was road trip time once again, and this time, part 3, it was the last leg all the way to Edinburgh!! It was a great drive, lovely countryside, and we even took a little detour to drive over to Lindesfarne, we made it all the way to the Abbey but sadly we couldn’t hang around as the tide was coming in and we did not want to get cut off! Soon enough though, we were trundling into Edinburgh, and we were ready to hit The Fringe!

Our apartment was on a pretty busy street, but we parked outside just for a minute to get the suitcases out and up the 4 floors! I came straight back down, only to find we had been given a ticket!! Literally 5 mins only, bummer! Anyway, the owner had left us parking permits, so I read the instructions, and placed the permit in the car in a permit spot, guess what, next morning, another ticket!! Apparently I hadn’t read it right, so now we had two tickets, this was getting expensive!

Anyway, we headed down into Edinburgh to soak up the atmosphere, and find the theatre that Indi and Kai would be performing at, it was a lovely building, and right in the heart of the festival. We wandered around and got a real sense of the place, and watched a few previews on stage on the royal mile. Everyone was very excited! The next couple of days were dedicated to the kids rehearsals, and in between we enjoyed the city. We even travelled up to the Forth Bridge and threw some skimmers into the Firth of Forth on what was a very wild and windy day, we then headed further into the countryside, and stopped off at a few places to check out the local area, but the weather was pretty awful, so eventually we made our way back to the apartment.

Then before we knew it, it was time for the first show, we were all very excited, and nervous, would we get a good crowd?? You are up against a couple of thousand other shows!! Thankfully we did have a full house, the lights went down, and the Fringe experience began…. The show went brilliantly, the latest version was even better than what had been played in Kuwait, even harder hitting, even more frightening and emotional, it got a great reception, and the wasn’t a dry eye in the house! The whole One World Actors movement were delighted with how it went, and we celebrated, courtesy of our generous sponsors The Alghanim family to a lovely lunch at a beautiful hotel in the North of the city. They wanted to recognise, all of the hard work that had been done by the team, the crew, the actors, and the families to get The Blue Box to the Fringe stage, and deliver such a compelling performance. We were especially lucky as we got to sit with Emma (who wrote the Blue Box), and her Mum. The stories they told us of their relations experiences in Syria, were so sad, but so heart warming, it was great to spend time with these inspiring ladies.

And so this became our daily routine (except the slap up meal, that only happened the once), down into the city, drop the kids at the show, get out and drum up support for the show, watch it, get upset and emotional, then next day, do it all again!! Nanny and Grampy came up for a couple of days, they watched the show with us, they were a bit shocked by it, and a bit worried about the impact it was having on the kids, but after chatting to them about it, it was clear that it was a very positive experience for them, and they were learning a lot.

We said goodbye to Nanny and Grampy, and then it was hello to Uncle Chris, and Grandad!! Sadly though, a day or so later, it was time for Dad to head home, I couldn’t stay to watch the last few shows as I needed to get back to work. So Lyra escorted Chris and Michael to the show with the kids for more emotional afternoons, while I flew down to Heathrow and jet off to Kuwait, but only after meeting my good friend Zonia to catch up on the gossip and to get the low down on what music I should be listening too!!

As the last few days of The Blue Box were performed, we found out that all of their hard work and commitment had been recognised, and they had received two 5 star ratings from critics at the festival!! This is a big deal at the Fringe, as with so many shows vying for some limelight, to be recognised twice and given top ratings, it is an incredible achievement. One World Actors had achieved more than they could have ever hoped for! It had been an unforgettable experience.

With all the performances done, Chris and Grandad flew back home, and then Ly and the Kids headed South again, and back to the Fitts of Pocklington’s place for a few days of chilling after such a big week in Edinburgh. Claire and the girls were away on holiday, but Abi, Kiera and Cam came up to join them and they spent a lovely few days together, with the highlight being a lovely day at the seaside in Bridlington, for a typical Northern beach town experience!!

The road trip continued all the way back down to Northampton, and then on to Milton Keynes for a meet up with old pals Anita, and Alan! The afternoon was spent catching up, feeding the ducks. Then the next day they were back in MK again! This time to meet Jeanne and her girls, the ladies did the chatting, the kids got nice and sweaty on an enormous bouncy castle and slide!! 

Time was running out however, and it was nearly time to say goodbye to Northampton for another year… but before they could leave they squeezed in a few more days with Abi and Co. enjoying the summer weather, playing in their fab paddling pool, and hanging out at the Greyhound Inn (as always!). Auntie and Uncle got to show off their new apartment in Weston Favell as they had recently moved back down from Nottingham to be closer to family. Ly and the kids went over to see Crazy Nana at her grave and leave her some nice flowers. Then it was down South again, to Binfield for the last few days of the summer road trip, and what a huge adventure it had been!

Our friends from across Bracknell met up in the pub, Galina, Tarin, and Co, Joyce, Jim, and Hannah, Nat and the girls of course, Sammy & Ewan, all got to say goodbye, but it was time to pick up all those suitcases, and come home to Dad and get back to school!!

And home they came, landing in Kuwait at the end of the summer holidays is a crazy experience both for those flying in, and those trying to collect them! It took me nearly an hour to find a parking spot, but I made it before they came through! I spoke to Ly and they were through immigration quickly (a miracle!) and were just waiting for suitcases…. This of course always takes an age at Kuwait airport, but eventually Ly called to say they had them and they were coming though!! But they didn’t, not for another 45 mins!! I had no idea what was going on, she wasn’t answering her phone, what the hell was happening back there!! Well, as you enter Kuwait, you have to have your luggage scanned, this is to search for alcohol. Lyra wasn’t bringing any so there couldn’t be a problem there…could there?? Actually, one of the suitcases had been left at Joyces for most of the summer, and when Ly picked it up before coming home, she thought it was already heavy so just locked it up and brought it. What she had forgotten was that she had left not one, not two, but three (!) bottles of champagne in there, and the customs officers had found them!! Big trouble! Ly tried to explain, Indi joined in to say it was all a mistake, Kai got really worried that Mum might be going to jail, and Logan, well Logan enjoyed spinning around on the chair while it was kicking off!! Needless to say, Lyra got a very stern telling off, but luckily nothing further, so they rushed through and we were all back together again after 10 weeks!!! Time to go home to Izzy and Blade!

As we rolled into September, the kids had a few days to get acclimatized to the Kuwait heat before school started up again, which made for a few days of chilling after all the summer madness! We did however catch up with Karim and went for our favourite PF Changes / Pinkberry lunch combo!! The Boys had haircuts, this time for Logan it was his first time at a real hairdressers, but he did very well and liked his big boy haircut! Then the rest of the time was spent at home, enjoying our space. We even pulled out the big paddling pool we had acquired and lazed around in the warm water!!

Finally, it was back to school for Indi and Kai, after what has seemed like a lifetime! It was 12 weeks! Even more exciting was that it was Logan’s 1st day at TES in KG!! Everyone was very excited, and look very smart in their uniforms. Indi and Kai were just desperate to catch up with all their friends, and Loggie was taking the big change all in his stride, well up until we made it to his class. At this point he decided that actually, no, he didn’t want to go here. There was lots of tears, and hugging Mum, desperate for her not to leave, but we had to force ourselves to go, and leave him crying, it was horrible!

Needless to say however, when Lyra went back to pick him up, he came out full of smiles and was chatting about what a great time he had had!

Day 2 was another big step, as it was time for Logan to take the bus to school with Indi and Kai, all looked good right up until the moment he was due to step on the bus and then he turned around and said no, so Lyra had to drive him in. However, on day 3, he jumped on the bus as if he had been doing it forever! Mission complete!

Before everyone disappeared for the summer, we had been checking out beach clubs, and we had promised ourselves that we would join once we were all back together. We decided to join the Corniche club, and as soon as we were members we spent a day there every weekend to enjoy the lovely pool, beach, gym, and cafe!!

Not long after we had joined the Corniche Club, they announced a competition, and you could win a 12 week program working with a Personal Trainer for free! All you had to do, was to submit why you thought you deserved the prize. Both Lyra and I penned a letter outlining our reasons, and Lyra was selected!! This wasn’t just about in the gym, it was an entire lifestyle overhaul with a very strict diet as well as punishing sessions in the gym with her allocated PT, Alona. As you would expect Lyra jumped in and fully immersed herself in the punishing program! She even stopped the booze (well most of the time!).

And following on from the hugely successful summer at the Fringe, One World Actors reconvened and restructured with the group splitting between the Senior Actors (India), and the Juniors (Kai) and at their new home the DAI Yarmouk (which was great as it was very close to our place!). Initially they were just focusing on learning some new skills, although Kai did get involved in a celebration of Roald Dhal by playing Charlie, in a reading of Charlie & the Chocolate factory with the British Ambassador. 

October kicked off with a flying visit by Dave ‘Seko’ Emerson! He was over to meet me and a few others at Alshaya, but came at the weekend so he could taste some of the delights of Kuwait, so we treated him to an afternoon at the Corniche Club!! 

October also started with a bang, because it is our Logan’s birthday!! 4 years old already and turning into a charming big boy indeed!! As his birthday was on a school day, he got to celebrate with his class mates first! He was treated to lots of singalong and cakes! Then it was home for lots of presents and a royal visit from Karim!! At the weekend it was party time! But not for Logan’s birthday, it was another of his class mates, Zeyad’s party! Mum and Dad sneaked out for a charity Quiz night, all in aid of helping the poor stray animals in Kuwait, which there are sadly far too many of (and I don’t just mean the ones living in our house!). We did pretty well, mid table, so we maintained respectability! Lyra even had a go at apple bobbing! For the life of me, I cannot remember why!!

Anyway, the following weekend it was Logan’s party, and it was at his favourite place Trampo!!! All his best friends were there, Logan 1, Harry, Ben, Pol, Tarek, Theo, as well as his ever loving Brother & Sister! They all bounced like lunatics for an hour, and then we took the Sweaty Betties over to Pizza Express for his birthday lunch of making pizzas and scoffing his rather large, and rather fantastic Pokemon cake!! Logan had a brilliant day with all his friends, and he was treated to lots of presents, what a lucky boy he is!!

Since the beginning of term, India had been training hard as a member of the school swim squad, The Tridents, and her hard work showed as she did well in the school gala. In most of her races she was in the top 3, it was so good to see the determination and strength she had in the pool, well done Indi!!

Also keeping Indi busy was rehearsing for Sweeney Todd - The Demon Barber! An adult production by One World Actors, that she had been asked to join, another great experience for her, and an opportunity to work with a couple of professional actors too. Indi was in her element.

Meanwhile, Logan kept up the party season in his class with Pol’s party. Logan loved this one because not only was it at his old Nursery, Learning steps, but it was a PJ Masks party, a firm favourite!! October of course always ends with a bit of a party as its halloween! TES always goes the extra mile at Halloween with great parties for all the kids. An afternoon party was organised for the whole school with some brilliant outfits on display. Indi went as an assassin cat, Kai was a zombie with a severed arm (looked ace!), Logan was a killer Spiderman wolf (!?!). There were lots of stalls and spooky games, it was a great fun afternoon. In the evening it was the Year 7’s & 8’s party, and the school had set up the auditorium as a mock mental institute, it was amazing, and very creepy! Indi was dressed as some kind of assassin (not a cat this time) and they all had a blast in what I can only describe as disturbing surroundings!! Great effort by the TES teachers!

The 1st week of November was half term so we took a week over in Dubai! First of all we had one more Halloween party to hit, Claire and Phil had been hosting a bit of a legendary party every Halloween for a few years, so we didn’t want to miss out! It was on the evening we arrived, so it was straight to the hotel to get ready in our scary outfits, and then we jumped into a taxi  and headed out, leaving a lot of people wandering what on earth we were doing dressed up like a bunch of zombies! Now we had been talking to another friend Susie who was having her birthday party, but we had said we wouldn’t be able to make it. Somehow though we got addresses mixed up, and the taxi took us to Susie’s, not Claire’s, imagine our surprise when we knocked on the door and it wasn’t a fancy dress halloween party! I’m not sure who was more surprised!? Lyra was quick on her feet and explained that we just wanted to say a quick hi on our way to the fancy dress party! We made it to Claire & Phil’s eventually and it lived up to it’s legendary status! Met up with loads of old friends, Kerry & Fletcher (no Tyrone sadly),  Suzanne & Brien were there, Inga, all great fun!

Next day we had arranged to meet with Saada, Ben, Yasmin, and Leo for lunch. We all headed over to the Medinat, but sadly Logan’s chest issues had flared again, so I took him off to the Doc’s for a session on the nebuliser and to pick up some inhalers. The Doc’s were great, and straight away he started to feel better and his breath was much less laboured. Phew! Meanwhile everyone else enjoyed a lovely afternoon catch up!

The following day we spent the day at the Dubai Mall, especially the aquarium and zoo. An amazing experience, especially when you consider you are in a shopping mall (albeit the biggest one in the world!), The kids, and especially Logan simply loved seeing all the fish and aquatic animals. Particular faves were of course the sharks in the main tank, but also the incredible giant spider crabs! They were huge and can grow as big as cars!! As evening fell we made it over the the dancing water, and watched while enjoying dinner at Sammach. Not only was the dancing water brilliant but so was the incredible light show on the Burj Khalifa.

Next was a day at Ski Dubai. Aways a bizarre experience as it is around 40C outside, so we got kitted up in ski gear and headed into the cold. All three of the kids had a blast on the toboggan’s and inflatable rings, Indi and Ly went for the inflatable balls too (the boys were too smart to be thrown down a hill inside a huge ball, something Lyra wished she had considered before doing it!). We watched a talk on the King Penguin’s and our resident clever clogs Kaibo, answered questions correctly and won the chance to meet the penguins up close! Before we got too cold, we took the ski lifts up to the top of the ski run, I was with Indi and Logan, then Mum and Kai followed, it was a great view from the top!!

We rejoined Saada and Ben to go trick or treating around their neighbourhood. Most houses we went too were a little confused as they had no idea why a bunch of foreigners dressed as ghouls, skeletons, and zombies were knocking on their door and asking for treats!! All very amusing, but we did manage to convince the local shop owner to allow the kids to take some sweets each! We did also manage to find a couple of friendly houses that were partaking in the tradition, so all in all a successful evening.

A day at JBR is always on the agenda for a trip to Dubai, so we took the Metro up to the Marina and had a lovely day playing on the beach and soaking up some rays. As the sun went down, we retreated to The Cheesecake Factory for an oversize dinner! Logan made a real impression by walking through the restaurant and having his shorts fall down! Twice! And he was going commando!! I guess we won’t be going back there!

Or so we thought… in fact we ended up back there again the next evening!! As we had arranged to meet up with the Dean’s (friend from work), and they suggested TCF! Thankfully Logan kept his trousers on, but only the boys of the Dean’s could make it as illness had struck at home. Great to catch up with James, Josh, and Lucas though. Our last couple of nights were spent at Saada and Ben’s place. The kids had a ball together, playing in the pool, and a few hours at a very busy Kite beach. But the time had come to head back to Kuwait, we had a wonderful week in Dubai, but it was time to get back to school!

So back in Kuwait, we got straight back into the normal routine of school and work, the following weekend, Indi was off with Syd and Georgia ice skating for Georgia’s birthday, followed by a party back at theres that seems to involved a number of silly games that left Indi drawing the line regarding what she is prepared to do!!

Mid November, brought me out early on a Saturday morning to run the Kuwait Half marathon. As winter was upon us, it was a little chilly, but perfect for running, with bright blue sky’s and winter sun! We started at the Souk Sharq Mall, and headed through the old Souk in the city, and then it was the long run along the coast. I finished in my best time ever of 1 hour 53 mins, first time under two hours, well pleased!!

Before we could say goodbye to November though we had a surprise party to pull off for our lovely friend Anna. It was all planned, Will was taking her to the city for dinner, meanwhile we all gathered at their place, then Anna’s maid called to say she had severely cut her hand and needed to get to a hospital, so Anna and Will rushed back… and SURPRISE!! Wow, it really worked, she was genuinely taken aback as she walked in to se us all there waiting!!! Great night!!

Sweeney Todd took over the first week of December, firstly the nightly rehearsals for Indi until 9-10pm and then the shows, it was very tiring for her, but she loves it so much, she never complained, and just enjoyed the whole experience! We all (except Loggie) went to watch it on the Thursday night, Karim came along too. From the moment we walked in, Indi was in character, handing out programmes, calling out in her London accent. The show itself was incredible, a really professional performance by all, and there were some very serious actors involved, a great production, and excellent experience for Indi!

While all the was going on, our boys had a good week too! Logan was chosen to take Charlie the monkey home for the weekend, which he loved and took him everywhere with him right through the weekend, he barely stopped hugging him at all! Then Kai played a concert with the school orchestra who put on a great performance at the school. What a talented bunch we are rearing!!

It was also the end of Ly’s 12 week challenge, she did brilliantly well, losing a fair bit of weight, but overall was in a very healthy state, extremely strong, and feeling amazing. It was tough, there is no doubt, but anyone who knows Ly knows that just makes her more determined..

Nanny was also having a big week, as she was in hospital for her big knee op, we were all relieved to hear that it went well, it has been a tough recovery, but it was the right thing to do, and it will keep getting better.

As Christmas was rapidly approaching, Ly whizzed back to the UK for a few days to pick up our Christmas Cards, and a bunch of Christmas presents! Not much time for fun, but she did manage to catch up with Steph, Abi, and few others. Meanwhile Loggie, Padema, and I went to watch Kai in another school performance, Padema and I thought it was great, Loggie had a sleep!!! To get us all in the Christmas mood, TES put on an evening of Christmas movies! It was an outdoor event, so we got all snuggled up in our Christmas jumpers, and silly hats, laid out our blankets and enjoyed the movies, complete with popcorn!

From there on in, it was Christmas gatherings all the way… we had a lovely evening at Susan and Karl Davies, and then we became part of a Choir singing Christmas Carols to raise money for the animals again, thankfully there was enough of us to drown out the general poor quality, with plenty of volume and gusto!

In amongst all the prep and parties, Dad had another ‘incident’ where he was having all the signs of another stroke coming on, but thankfully it abated before it caused any long term harm, still Dad had to go into hospital to be checked over. Thankfully, all was ok, we could get back to Christmas!!

Then all of a sudden school was finished, and it really was time for Christmas! Kai had a sleepover with Shuay, as he was heading back to South Africa at Christmas.

As always, just before Christmas, it is our wedding anniversary, this year we decided to head to a lovely Lebanese restaurant that had been recommended to us. We had a really nice evening, it was a bit chilly in there, but we enjoyed the food, and the Manager certainly entertained us!

And then it was Christmas!!

Christmas Eve was spent at the lovely Marcelle and Mazen’s, chilling out together, and enjoying some time with just us, it was a just what we needed after all the madness building up to Christmas, we headed home for the evening, Karim came over and said Hi, and helped us make the final preparations for Christmas Day, which involved putting out our Christmas stockings, preparing a snack for Santa and the reindeer, then sprinkling the magic Santa dust and reindeer food outside to guide Santa to our house. Then it was off to bed nice and early to ensure we were asleep before he arrived!!

Christmas Day started early, I think we heard Logan and Kai at around 5:00AM on the monitor. It was lovely to listen to their excited voices as they searched in their stockings for all the lovely gifts Santa had left! They seemed very happy with their haul. By about 07:00 AM they were in our room excitedly showing us what they had received, even Indi was up pretty early (not like her!). We made breakfast together, and then it was time to sit around the tree, and pass out presents from each other. In no time at all, the floor was covered in wrapping paper and we had 3 happy kids playing with their gifts!! 

It was a slightly different Christmas this year, we had stayed in Kuwait, and we had planned to share the day with Jackie and Carl, but sadly they had to rush back to England as Carls Dad was really not well. That meant we were on our own for Christmas Day, possibly for the very first time! And actually it was really lovely, so relaxed, with no real agenda. We played a few games, the kids enjoyed beating us at Pictionary, and then we settled down for a lovely Christmas dinner, part catered by Dean & Deluca, and part by the wonderful skills of Mrs C! The evening was quiet, watching a movie, whilst half of us snoozed!

Boxing Day started late, and we had a day taking it easy. Then in the evening, we headed down to Jo & Jonathan’s in Fintas for the leftovers party! There was a great bunch round and we had a lovely evening.

Running up to New Year, I headed back to work for a few days, I even completed my ‘Shoulder to Shoulder’ which involves going to work in a store or DC for the day. I chose the DC and had a really good day picking, and carrying out pre-retailing work on our garments! It certainly gave me a new found respect for our teams that do this every day!! While I was busy working, the kids headed down to Wafra on the Saudi border to Yasmin Farms and had a great day with their friends meeting lots of animals, stroking rabbits and guinea pigs, feeding baby goats, and generally have a ball!

On New Years Eve, we decided to head down to the club, it was a nice sunny day, and the kids fancied a swim! We had arranged to meet Emma Abdullah and her Mum for lunch, but we got down their early, and the kids had the pool to themselves! It was actually lovely, warm enough outside, and the pool was heated to a lovely temperature, so they had a great time. Certainly a first for New Years Eve that’s for sure! We had a great lunch, and enjoyed catching up and hearing all about Emma’s first term at Stanford in California. She told us she was working on getting The Blue Box a slot to perform in the University, now that would be amazing!

Then for once we saw in the New Year at home, just us, as a family. It was a happy new year!! And then, we celebrated one year back in Kuwait!

Wow, now that was a big update....I am pretty sure there are not many people that have reached this far!!

However, well done if you are reading this! I promise going forward to do these more often so they don’t need to be so looooooong!!

Take care, with love

Dan & the Travelling Culvey’s!! xxxx