Pilgrims in the Middle East

Vacation and Other Pics

2009-05-09T14:57:00.000+03:00

Easter, Birthday, Wedding Photos

2009-04-19T10:52:00.000+02:00

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Recent Pics

2009-04-09T21:24:00.000+02:00

Valentine's Day, Day Out of Doha, Isaiah's B-day, and Much Much More!

2009-03-23T12:16:00.000+02:00

Lebanon

2009-03-02T20:32:00.000+02:00

Memaw's Visit

2009-02-15T15:00:00.000+02:00

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Christmas Morning Take 2

2008-12-25T15:30:00.003+02:00

We cleaned up the mess and started again with stockings.

This time Lily joined us.

Ain't she cute?

Why is it always the head?

The boys enjoyed the candy their Memaw sent. They both got a sour piece of candy at one point and made the funniest faces!

This is the 4th year in row that Jay and Julie have joined us. Our own crew has grown since our first year here!

Lily enjoying her biggie present.

Isaac enjoying Lily's present, too. We won't talk about the 3 other toys that are for his age sitting beside him on the floor!

Christmas Morning

2008-12-25T15:30:00.002+02:00

Oooohhhhh, a pirate ship!

Isaiah immediately knew from the shape of the box that this was his treasure box!

Isaiah really ripped into the paper to find his new grocery cart where he'll pile like objects and push them around the house.

We love our calendar. Thanks Kendall and Claudia!

Look, Daddy's a reindeer! Isaiah did this all by himself! What an imagination!

Examining and enjoying our presents...

Ben modeling his new shoes and jacket.

Where's Lily? She slept in but check Christmas Morning Take 2 and you'll find her!

The Christmas Star and Christmas Eve

2008-12-25T15:01:00.002+02:00

Isaiah watched an old school Precious Moments Christmas movie that talked about following the star. He also watched The Grinch where in the first scene the put a huge star on top of the tree. One day he looked at our tree and said, "Mommy, where is our star?" So, the next time I was out I bought one. Here is Isaiah trying to help and then Ben finishing the job.

The boys chillin' and watching The Grinch.

Our family tradition is to open one present on Christmas Eve. We let the boys open a present they could share.

Foam blocks, yeah!

All the presents under the tree waiting for little feet to discover in the morning!

The clothes that Amy purchased for the kids with some Christmas money. No one was excited as she was, though!

The stockings were hung on the stairs with care...

(Take notice Ben has 2 extra stockings filled with shoes. I was trying to surprise him!)

Oh, and where is Lily? She was sleeping through it all.

Gingerbread Houses

2008-12-21T21:25:00.002+02:00

Yummy!

Katie and I did this house. Oh, and Anita stopped in and helped with the windows. Aren't they great?

Isaac even got in on the action. His action was mostly eating!

We ran out of peanut butter before Mark's vision for his house could be fully realized so the ladies added their own feminine touch.

Voila!

Katie and me posing in front of our house. We are so proud.

A cute moment between Mark and Katie...and Isaiah.

Ben and his boys and their uh, house?

Lily slept on our friend's shoulder most of the time then she just hung out in her swing.

We topped the night off with making gingerbread cookies. Okay, Katie and Lobna mixed it while I read the directions. Katie rolled and the kids cut a few cookies. It was late so Katie finished the cookies. Thanks, Katie!

The morning after.....

Here are the houses all cleaned up and on display. I wonder how long it will take the boys to tear them apart piece by piece?

Christmas Party

2008-12-21T19:59:00.000+02:00

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Life in Doha

2008-12-21T19:25:00.002+02:00

Ben was trying to catch Lily's beautiful smile.

Isaac is so pensive about his peanut butter sandwich and his time on top of the dunes.

This is how we picnic in the dunes b/c it is so windy!

Check out how far behind Isaiah is!

We are almost to the top! Isaiah was leading the way until he got distracted and decided to go back down the dune. Ahhhh, 3 year olds!

The boys were checking out the sand.

"Hmmmm, I don't know about this guys."

This is Isaiah's attempt at using the camera. He did pretty well.

Me and the boys were cold so we snuggled up close.

Julie was trying to help me catch a smile....

Christmas Kids

2008-12-17T09:56:00.001+02:00

Thanks, Mimi, for the pajamas!

Lily smiles!

2008-12-17T09:50:00.001+02:00

I have taken so many pictures trying to catch her smile. These are the best so far.

Singing Sand Dunes

2008-12-17T09:42:00.001+02:00

All of us just arriving at the Singing Sand Dunes. They are named that b/c when you slide down them they make a deep whining sound and it feels like the whole dune is vibrating. It's cool!

Lily getting strapped on for her first trip up the dunes!

Adults at the top and kids who've been up and are already back down and waiting for someone to help them up again.

Lily (and Ben, of course) made it up. Yeah!

Isaiah crawling on all four's to go back up and crying for my help. Who's helping me??

We made it up!

Isaac wasn't keen to go down by himself like the other kids. He played it safe on top with the adults.

Ben and Lily sliding down the dunes together. It was quite cool so we had to keep her bundled up. Isaac was shivering by the time we got down the dune.

Christmas!!!!!

2008-12-17T09:24:00.001+02:00

We took the easy way out and brought the pre-made chocolate chip
cookie dough and cut Christmas cookies out of that!

What's he doing down there?

Just hanging out watching the action....

Daddy, hold me, too!

Stockings have soooo many uses!

Hmm, how can I get those balls from Isaac?

Oh, that's what Isaiah was doing under the tree!

Lily was all tuckered out from the decorating!

Out and About in Doha

2008-12-17T09:14:00.001+02:00

A friend posted a picture of a submarine found on land in a random
spot. I think this Dhow boat is pretty random since it just showed
up one day in the middle of this neighborhood.

The boys and me after being out to the Christmas play at our church here. It was actually a little cool, therefore long sleeve shirts and pants.

Mom, can I please get down now? Too cute!

Lily is just hanging out while the boys are playing around.

We had a "ball" this day in a local play area!!!!!!

Okay, really, who did we come to the play area for? Just kidding, Ben is an amazing and proactive Dad. I love it and so do the kids!

There were all these huge mats and mazes to play in and on and Isaac chose the beads, of course. This is his favorite toy. We have 5 at home!

Bright eyes, pretty in her pink!

What are my brothers doing now???

Man, how do those guys have so much energy!? I am ready for a nap!

Notice the letter G beside Lily. Isaiah made this at school and wanted to share with his sister. How cute!!!!!

Ben and Amy

2008-12-06T16:26:00.000+02:00

I know this picture is in the previous post but I felt the need to
post a larger version of it. I titled this post "Ben and Amy"
because I am finding that sometimes we forget ourselves as
individuals and not just parents of 3 beautiful children. This is to
honor my husband, Ben, and the Amy in me that sometimes gets pushed
to the background. We are still here and are loving our roles as
parents but we are also finding ways to be just Ben and Amy again,
too. I want to encourage all parents, new and old, to find something
you enjoy doing just for you or with your spouse and go do it. The
best thing we can do for our kids is to keep ourselves healthy, too.
We all know that if we neglected caring for our kids as often as we
neglect caring for ourselves somebody would call CPS. So, let's make
some time today or this week and take care of ourselves and know that
this will also make us better parents.

Recent Pics Out and About Featuring Lily!

2008-12-01T19:05:00.000+02:00

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Isaac's 2nd Birthday!

2008-11-02T07:38:00.000+02:00

We celebrated Isaac's 2nd birthday with our Kentucky friends by going
to the park, having lunch, a big birthday cookie, swimming, jumping,
movies and more! We hung out with our friends literally all day. We
both skipped naps for our kids and continued the party festivities on
through the afternoon and evening. We topped the day off with
delivery from Papa John's for dinner! We missed our family and our
friends who've moved this year but we sure did enjoy our day! Thanks
Beaty's! You helped us make Isaac's day really special!

More Pics and Isaac's 2nd Birthday

2008-11-01T20:13:00.000+02:00

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More Pictures!!

2008-10-19T21:02:00.000+02:00

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Update for Lily

2008-10-15T20:58:00.000+02:00

Hey everyone,

Lily's scheduled to come home tomorrow morning! So, tonight is the
last night we have to drive across town to be with our new baby.
Praise God!

We still need your prayers on a few things:
1) We had thought that the PKU test results were in, but apparently
they haven't come through yet. We won't know until the end of this
month. It's genetic and I, Ben, have a relative with it. Pray that
the test (and all the other tests in process) will come back negative.
2) We will need to be sensitive to the needs of our other children as
we make room for Lily in our schedule and at our house.
3) Amy's mom is leaving next Monday and we're going to miss the extra
help. Pray we will be able to fall into a good routine easily and
quickly.

Peace,
Ben

Pics

2008-10-14T21:10:00.000+02:00

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More Pics

2008-10-14T20:53:00.000+02:00

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Update for 10.14.08

2008-10-14T09:55:00.000+02:00

Hey everyone,

Thanks again for all the prayers the past few days and for the emails as well. Lily continues to improve. She is gaining weight and her jaundice is disappearing. The doctor has actually decided to discontinue the infection indicator tests, so we won't really know how much it will drop in the next few days.

We also posted some more pics of her on our blog if you want to see the treasure you've all been praying for.

See her at: http://www.qatarcrace.blogspot.com

Peace,

Ben

Update for 10.14.08

2008-10-14T09:53:00.002+02:00

Hey everyone,

We also posted some more pics of her on our blog if you want to see the treasure you've all been praying for.

See her at: http://www.qatarcrace.blogspot.com

Peace,

Ben

Lily Hosanna

2008-10-14T09:53:00.001+02:00

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Pictures of the Past Few Days

2008-10-14T09:53:00.000+02:00

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Update on Lily 10.13.08

2008-10-13T21:23:00.000+02:00

Hey everyone,

Thanks again for all of the prayers over the past few days. Lily
continues to improve. She is eating a lot now and keeping Amy busy.
God's been faithful; Amy's been able to "keep up production" to match
and even make extra for Lily's overnights in the NICU.

One bit of discouraging news was that the infection indicator number
went up 2 points instead of going down below normal. The doctor,
however, wasn't alarmed and will continue treatment until the end of
this week. Hopefully, she will be able to come home this Friday.

Pray that:
1) The infection indicator number would go back to normal
2) We'd be able to peacefully continue working out our schedules to
accommodate Lily's feedings, my work, Amy's mom's and the boys'
schedules.
3) everyone in our family would feel honored
4) everyone who has been helping us with meals, etc. would get doubly
blessed in the next upcoming weeks.

Peace,
Ben

Update 10.12.08 for Lily

2008-10-12T20:02:00.000+02:00

Praise God from Whom all blessings flow! Lily's infection indicator
number dropped almost by HALF! She is now breastfeeding like a
trooper and is loving life. She will remain in the hospital for most
of this week to complete her round of antibiotics. Also, both
cultures (blood and lumbar) were NEGATIVE just as we prayed.

Please pray NOW that:
1) her infection indicator number will drop to normal
2) she's slightly jaundiced, so pray that she will come back to normal
3) we'll be able to schedule this week where everyone in the family
feels honored and loved

Also, we're part of a prayer chain for another lady named Cheryl who
is dying from terminal cancer and only has a few weeks to live.
Contend with us that she will get the healing Jesus paid for and soon.

Peace,
Ben

Quick update before going home

2008-10-11T22:00:00.000+02:00

Lily's off the IV! Amy was able to get plenty of milk so we can
leave it with the nurses and go home and sleep all night! Hoorah for
Jesus!

Ben

Latest news on Lily 10.11.08

2008-10-11T19:53:00.000+02:00

We just got news that the 48 hour reading of the blood culture was
negative-- just as we prayed. They're still going to check it again
later next week as well as the culture from the lumbar puncture. She
just got finished taking a full feeding from Amy as well. Perhaps as
soon as tomorrow she will be completely off the IV and only on breast
milk. Praise God for all He has done and all of His goodness!
Thanks for all the intercession!

Keep praying that:
1) the infection indicator will drop to normal
2) she will keep progressing
3) my (Ben's) work will be understanding during this time
4) we adjust to at least a week of coming and going from the hospital.
5) Amy will produce plenty of milk.

Peace,
Ben

Presenting Lily Hosanna Crace!

2008-10-09T15:21:00.000+02:00

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What's in Mommy's Tummy

2008-09-14T19:27:00.000+02:00

Tonight at bedtime Ben and I were asking Isaiah what was in my
tummy. Isaiah first said that I drank too much pool water and now my
tummy is big. Then, he said that I ate too many cheeseburgers! I am
not sure which one made us laugh the most! We are getting as ready
as we can for the baby girl to come. I have plan A, plan B,
schedules, and bags packed. We'll be sure to let everyone know when
she arrives!

Captions

2008-09-01T21:21:00.000+02:00

I am including a few captions here that didn't show up on the 2nd
post. Either I am way jet lagged or I just don't know how to do all
of this stuff! I would say it's both!!!!

"Gandaddy leaned over to kiss Isaac and roughhouse with him a
little. When he finished and turned to walk away Isaiah said, "What
about me?" (Notice the progression of the pictures here. Gandaddy
had already kissed Isaiah but he didn't roughhouse him!)

Isaiah loves his uncle Cody. He asked for him every day! He also
loved holding baby "Bla" or baby "Billa" as he called her all summer."

oops, i forgot these!

2008-09-01T21:14:00.000+02:00

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1/2 OF SUMMER 2008

2008-09-01T21:07:00.000+02:00

We downloaded pictures from Judy's camera but forgot to get them off
of my mom's camera so here are some fun pics from part of our summer
vacation.

We visited Grandaddy in Ocala, FL for a few days. We visited friends
there and Ben had a lot of fun acting like a horse for all the kiddos!
We hung out with baby Bella, Memaw and Aunt Beeka mostly every day.
That was a special treat and blessing! Isaiah especially loved her
headbands!
Judy, Rebekah, and Shawna ( a close friend) gave me a baby shower in
Glasgow where I got some of the cutest pink, girly things and money
to buy more!

I will post more pics as I get them from my mom, too! We had a great
summer and found it difficult to leave all of our loved ones to come
back to Qatar. Unfortunately, we were welcomed back to Doha with a
rise in heat and humidity and the beginning of Ramadan. Needless to
say, we are struggling a bit with jet lag since everything is closed
during the day now for Ramadan. We did make it to Bennigan's tonight
already and let the boys play in the inside, air conditioned play
area while we visited with some friends.

Sorry, I didn't post much over the summer. I hardly took any pics
and have recently become a little addicted to Facebook!

Love to all, Amy for all

Play, Travel, and Family

2008-07-17T05:48:00.000+03:00

I have finally made the time to sit down and post some pictures of
our life in the last few weeks. I am including playtime in Doha
before we traveled, some travel photos, and lots of family photos.
Enjoy! I don't think captions are necessary. The faces and smiles
say it all!

Home again, home again...

2008-07-12T05:50:00.000+03:00

We are home and have been here a week and 2 days. The air is clear,
the grass is green and the mosquitoes are out in full force! We are
having a great time visiting with friends and family. I will post
some pictures when I get the chance. Unfortunately, chasing our 2
little guys has prevented me from taking too many pics but I will get
some from other people and post those later, too. Thanks for keeping
up with us!

Anyone Out There?

2008-06-24T19:41:00.000+03:00

If you're out there, make contact! =-) Is anyone reading the blog
anymore?

Father's Day and Life

2008-06-23T09:18:00.000+03:00

We are wrapping things up around here for the summer. Praise God we
made it through the sandstorms! We had constant winds and sand for
over 2 weeks and off and on for 2 months before that. It made
playing outside difficult and swimming wasn't fun because the pools
were too dirty! There was a break in the weather and we can see the
clear blue sky now with no brown haze on the horizon. It's soooo
nice!!!
Thankfully, we are on the final countdown now with only 7 sleeps to
go and Isaiah keeps telling us how he wants to get on a plane and fly
to America and go to 'tucky (and Tennessee, Mimi. It's just too hard
for him to say still). Ben and I are wholeheartedly agreeing with
him all 999 times a day that he says it.
We are managing to finish much more strongly than I thought we would
this summer because we've had a "guest under the stairs" keeping us
entertained for the last week, the boys have had a summer program at
school, and the haze kept the temperatures down a little. As for our
guest, we sent Natalie and the kids back to California but Dave had
to stay and finish up some stuff so he has been sleeping under our
stairs! We are calling him the "guest under the stairs" or "Dave in
the Cave." Having him here has sure helped this last week go
quickly! It's too bad he is heading out tomorrow but I am glad we
still will have another family in country with us for the final
week. I am sure we'll be seeing a lot of them! In the previous
summers we've been 'left behind' in the great exodus in the summer
months. However, this summer has been different and we are soooo
thankful!
The pictures are:
1-Isaac 'belted' into a chair at a restaurant that had no high
chairs. He wasn't too pleased, as you can see.
2-Isaiah reading a book at the same restaurant. We rarely go to
restaurants without play areas or ones that don't give paper and
crayons upon entering. However, on Father's Day we tried a Malaysian
restaurant in the Souq and they apparently don't expect kids there at
all. However, the service was fast and the food was different so we
had an enjoyable time. It helped that we got fresh juice and ice
cream just across the sidewalk afterwards!
3-The last 3 pics are at Bennigan's outside playground. You can see
the sand floating in the air from all the haze and storms we had but
that didn't stop the kids (including Ben) that night. The
temperature was actually not bad b/c the haze kept it down a bit and
we were able to enjoy the playground before and after dinner. Aren't
Isaiah and Ana cute?
4-Dave in his cave!

School's Out, Teachers Let the Monkeys Out!

2008-06-20T09:59:00.000+03:00

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY, BEN!

2008-06-15T22:25:00.000+03:00

We sent off some of our dearest friends to move to Kuwait this
morning and I was so distracted that I almost let Father's Day go
unnoticed in our house. I feel terrible about it. Ben is so amazing
at doing so many things with our boys! I am posting a few pictures
here to honor him for his amazing ability at being a dad (not to
mention a great husband and best friend)! I cannot wait to see how
he is with our Baby Girl due in October!

Hey! Did you hear?

2008-06-14T19:49:00.000+03:00

We're having a baby sister!

Makin' it...

2008-06-01T12:41:00.000+03:00

Sorry for the major delay in a new post. I have become one of those
who didn't update for over a month. I can't believe it. Oh well,
here we are again. This last month has been a bit of a challenge
since we've all been sick at least once and some of us more than
twice! We are asking God for the same divine health the Israelites
had wandering in the desert for so many years! I mean, we are God's
people and aren't we wandering in the desert as well? Anyway, you
can pray with us for SLEEP IN THE CRACE HOUSE! I am going to find
some pictures to post but right now I don't even know where our
camera is so I'll have to do that another time.

We are on the countdown to leaving Qatar for the summer and, as
usual, traveling to the U.S. can't come soon enough! Okay, not the
actual travel part but the being back with family part! We cannot
wait to meet our newest niece, Bella. It's hard to believe Rebekah
and Cody are now parents! I say that not because they aren't the kid
type b/c anyone who knows them knows they are the kid type! I say
that b/c I've known Rebekah since she was 10 and last summer she got
married and this summer she is a mommy! Yikes

Well, thanks for listening to me ramble here. Check back for
pictures later!

Photo Highlights of our Cyprus Vacation

2008-04-19T14:40:00.000+02:00

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Easter

2008-04-04T15:37:00.000+02:00

We are finally posting our Easter pictures for your enjoyment. On
Friday afternoon, our church day, we went to a new church here and
enjoyed waving banners and singing songs of praise to God for the
Resurrection that provides the world with hope. It was different but
fun. We decided not to dress the kids up b/c we knew they'd end up
on the ground at some point rolling around or whatever. And, of
course, they did both at some point end up with dust and dirt all
over them! It's hard to avoid in a desert!

Isaac could not stay away from the tikki lamps. Praise God it didn't
get dark enough for them to be lit during the service! i found
myself rearranging the decor of the event to keep him away from
them! He did, however, enjoy the banner waving for Jesus. You'll
note from the pictures that he had a little mishap when a banner
ended up covering his whole head and face. He loved it, actually!
Isaiah, of course, was jumping an dancing and waving the banner as
well. It was really great to watch them be so free.

The Easter egg coloring pictures are an artistic approach to what
coloring eggs with two 3 year olds, a 5 year old, an 8, 10, and a12
year old and a 17 month old running around all trying to do the same
thing. They had a great time coloring them, finding them and
destroying some of them! It's always fun to watch the excitement!

The last picture is a "pizzert" that came with our pizzas we ordered
on Easter. I know it's sad we had to resort to pizza for Easter
Dinner. Ben was a bit disappointed but what can you do? The pizzert
that arrived and the one on the advertisement look nothing alike, as
you can see. We opened the box up with great anticipation and then
all busted out laughing when we saw what was inside! I don't think
any of us could bring ourselves to eat it, either. Oh well, it's a
good thing Easter doesn't depend on great food but on a great God!
(ok, the last line was a bit cheesy. i am tired. can you tell?)

Daily Life

2008-04-04T14:31:00.000+02:00

Here are some pictures of what we do daily. We go to the beach where
it is too cold to swim or we stay at home and play in whatever
containers we can find to put water in! I put the swimming pool on
the trampoline and try to fill it up early enough in the a.m. so it
can be warm by 9 or so and we can play in it. I've also been known
to pour warm water in the pool or the toy box that Isaac is playing
in so they don't freeze! it's nothing big but it is something to do
when it's too warm to play outside without water but not warm enough
to swim in our pool or at the beach.

Don't be too confused about the legs sticking out from underneath the
curtains. Isaiah apparently decided he wanted to play some before he
took his nap. I guess he was playing in the curtains when he decided
that was as good a place as any to sleep!

Snow in the Desert? Ben at Ski Dubai

2008-03-23T13:35:00.000+02:00

Isaiah's Birthday Night

2008-03-21T13:10:00.002+02:00

Playing Around Town and Isaiah's Birthday

2008-03-20T19:53:00.000+02:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ISAIAH!

2008-03-20T15:24:00.000+02:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ISAIAH!!! YOU ARE A BIG 3 YEAR OLD TODAY! WE LOVE
YOU AND ARE SO PROUD OF WHO YOU ARE. WE KNOW GOD HAS BIG PLANS FOR
YOU AND CANNOT WAIT TO SEE THEM UNFOLD.

Today we went to the park at Education City with some friends.
Isaiah loves this park so much that when we got in the car he said,
"Thank You, Momma, for the park!" It is soooo cute and it makes my
heart melt every time, of course.

We are going to do a friend birthday party at the pool in a couple of
weeks when the weather warms up. Right now it is warm outside but
the pool water is like ice! So, instead of giving a group of kids
hypothermia we decided to wait!

B-Day at School Pics

2008-03-19T11:19:00.000+02:00

More Memaw Pictures and Cute Faces

2008-03-18T18:49:00.000+02:00

I just downloaded the pictures from our camera and realized we still
had several from Memaw's visit. The last night Judy was here we went
to Friday's and celebrated the boy's birthdays. You can see the loot
and the fun had by all!

Also, we found a new park here that is covered and has lots of sand
and play equipment. We love it!!!!! I have to tell myself we cannot
go there every day. It would be odd. However, it's nice and both
boys really like it.

I also included some pictures of some cute faces the boys make on a
daily basis. Aren't they the best?

Love to all!!!!

Some video

2008-03-16T15:15:00.002+02:00

Day in, Day Out

2008-03-04T20:59:00.000+02:00

Here are some pics of the boys at a local park and at the house.
Although it isn't clear, I've added a picture of a sandstorm where
the visibility was about 200m.

Memaw's Visit

2008-02-26T20:27:00.000+02:00

Well, we took Memaw (Judy) to the airport this morning so she could
fly back to the other side of the world. We were all sad but we know
it will only be a few months before we see all of our family again
(including Aunt Beeka's new little one coming in May). I am going to
include some pictures from Memaw's visit. We didn't take a whole lot
because I (Amy) was sick all but the last 2 days she was here and
Judy was fighting what I had the last couple of days, too. I am so
glad we had the extra help and appreciate the early breakfasts she
shared with Isaac. Enjoy the pics!

Play Date, Snuggles and Shooba

2008-02-24T15:29:00.000+02:00

PLAY DATE
I picked Isaiah up at school last week and found a note from a parent
of a fellow classmate. She asked if she could take Isaiah home with
her and her daughter next week for a play date. That was a little
weird for me. Isaiah is growing up and making his own friends, apart
from his parents. He's not even 3 yet!!!! It is such a compliment
that her daughter talks about Isaiah enough that she wants to have
him over to her house to play. How nice! Isaiah's teacher told me
that they are always playing together in class and have a lot of
fun. Anyway, it was another sign to me that he is growing up.

SNUGGLES
Isaiah is loving his star bed. He is sleeping well in it at night
and during nap time. We are sooooo excited. He even tells us when
he is tired and wants to get in his star bed. His new thing is to
ask us to snuggle him. When we put him in the bed he says, "Mommy,
you wanna snuggle me?" Melt, melt goes my heart... Of course, I
snuggle him. He is too cute.

SHOOBA
We took Judy to the Souq the other day and someone stopped to talk to
Isaiah. As the man was walking off he told Isaiah goodbye in Arabic
(transliterated, Ma salama). Isaiah, with a big grin on his face,
yelled back, "Shooba!" We turned quickly and laughed our heads off.
Todd Bentley says that word a lot when he is teaching and we use it
all the time at home for everything. I guess Isaiah felt it
appropriate for that occasion, too.

Ben's Trip to Yemen

2008-02-20T13:15:00.000+02:00

These pics are from my recent trip to Yemen. I think most of the
pics are self-explanatory except the one with the camel and the
Arabic sticker. First of all, the camel is being used to press
sesame seeds to make oil. The Arabic sticker reads: Say your prayers
before your death. I thought it was funny because it was in the back
of a taxi with no side door. Enjoy.

Isaiah's New Bed!

2008-02-11T15:33:00.000+02:00

Update

2008-02-10T15:48:00.000+02:00

Hey all! I check everyone else's blog to look for updates but forget
that I haven't updated my own in a while. Sorry!

The pictures are just random life events recently.
I love how cute the boys look bundled up. We do it rarely but they
are just so cute I had to get pics!
Also, Isaiah finished off an ice cream sundae by drinking straight of
the cup.
Isaiah always likes to see the fish when we go to the grocery store.
I don't remember seeing fish frozen like this in my small town
grocery stores.
I also posted some pics of Isaac with Baby Reed, our neighbor's son.
Both of my boys are fascinated with babies. Isaac even went up to a
sleeping child in a play area and kept rubbing on him. It was precious!
I love the picture of Isaiah and his 3 friends watching a movie while
cuddling a stuffed animal. It was peer pressure, I guess b/c Isaiah
doesn't generally snuggle a stuffed animal and rarely sits to watch a
movie. He is usually jumping around or standing in front of the TV.
He always asks to watch a movie and sit in the bean bag but generally
stands beside it.
Yes, one picture is of our newly opened Krispy Kreme store!!! It is
next door to Macaroni Grill and just down from Friday's. We are so
spoiled.
Who needs to live in the U.S.? (just kidding) The driving is way
better in the States! This is not to mention how much we miss our
family and friends.

The New Year

2008-01-23T17:52:00.000+02:00

I am so sorry that we haven't updated in such a long time. We got
busy with life. I love to see that other friends are continuing to
post 2 or 3 times a week. Keep on! I am encouraging myself to do the
same. Honestly, I forgot how easy this is.
I want to share some of the new things happening this new year.
1-Isaac is a full fledged "walker" and has been now for a couple of
weeks.
2-Isaiah's new favorite movie is an oldie--The Rescuers. He will
actually sit and watch the whole thing in entirety. It's crazy.
3-Isaac started nursery school 2 days a week like his brother. It's
been a bit of an adjustment b/c he would still like to take 2 naps a
day and seems to get quite tired about 10 or 11 in the morning. The
teachers have been holding him and he has fallen asleep in their arms
a couple of times. This is not ideal, as you can imagine, as it
leads to wanting the same thing at home!
4-Isaac is using his sign language instead of grunting (most of the
time) these days and still likes to EAT A LOT.
5-Isaiah is talking so much now. It is so cute to hear him describe
a room or a situation or tell me something about his day. I love
it. Just last night he was singing in the car and then he just
stopped and said, "It's me--I'm singing." We weren't ignoring him
but simply listening as he made up his song and smiling from ear to
ear at this new behavior. Of course, we chuckled at the commentary
that he was singing as it was hard to miss being that we were all
sitting in the car together in traffic.

I am so thankful that our boys are so fun to be with (most of the
time) and are a joy to (most) people around them. Both Isaiah and
Isaac's teacher's seem to really enjoy them in their class. That's
real blessing. May it always be so, Lord.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!
...there will be more to come sooner rather than later....

Enjoy the MANY pictures of my Mom's visit and just random events in
our lives.
Note:
1-The flash light, the Blue's Clue's chair and the duck, tiger and
pumpkin suits were all Christmas gifts from family.
2-Isaac driving his first car went pretty well.
3-Isaiah is showing off his new soccer ball in many pictures.
4-Mimi (Amy's mom) had a great time playing at the different
playgrounds around the city. ( I mean she had fun playing with the
boys. All the equipment was too small for her, actually.)
5-Sand Dunes trip--This was an interesting day. After nearly scaring
my mom to death, we made it to our destination at the Inland Sea.
However, along the way we slid up and down dunes in the car and out.
Note the pictures of Isaiah sliding down the dune. He is just a
little speck in one of them. Also, note his progression into the
water. It was freezing, too. It's a good thing mom figured this
might happen and packed extra clothes! Also, that is a flat tire the
guys are changing as we were leaving the dunes. Sadly, in the Arab
world of hospitality only one person stopped to ask if we needed help
just as we were finishing. (I say we but I mean Ben and Kendall. I
was the resident photographer.)
6-Isaac's first day of school.
7-Isaiah made Christmas cookies with Mimi and enjoyed both the
process and the final product and even shared with his brother!
8-Yes, that is my mom wrapped up in a gabi blanket from Ethiopia. It
got so chilly here that mom had to wrap up in order to eat dinner
outside with us.
9-Lastly, take note of the attempt at a family picture on one of the
coldest nights that Mom was here. The Pearl is actually right on the
water and the wind was really high as you can see with my hair going
everywhere! Anyway, it was a fun and unique place for the picture.

Isaac Gets a Bath with Grandma

2008-01-01T20:33:00.000+02:00

Here's Isaac's sink bath.

A Christmas Greeting

2007-12-24T20:55:00.000+02:00

Christmastime

2007-12-23T20:42:00.000+02:00

Oops, Picture Captions

2007-12-12T21:52:00.000+02:00

Okay, I am still struggling at putting the captions with the
pictures. This post explains the pictures in the post titled
"Trampoline, Tree, and Personality."

Here are the long awaited pictures of our fabulous trampoline. Ben
loves it. Ahem, I mean the boys are really enjoying it.
Isaiah has become quite the camera ham. Ahem, that is turkey ham, of
course. Isaiah is holding and playing with "Baby Reed" as he calls
our neighbor's son. His name is actually Farid but I am sure he
doesn't mind the term of endearment Isaiah has given him.
Ben and Isaiah were posing so beautifully in front of our tree as
they hung up our family ornament. (Isaac and I hung one up to but I
decided not to post that picture of me as my hair is particularly
stringy.)
The final picture is one of Isaac's newest and cutest faces. His
personality is coming out much more these days.
It's official. I have the best family in the world, or at least the
cutest! Where do you think Isaac and Isaiah get their cuteness
from? Hello, they are Xerox copies of their Dad!

Trampoline, Tree and Personality

2007-12-12T21:45:00.000+02:00

DSCN3852.JPG

Cooperation

2007-12-12T20:44:00.000+02:00

Please, no pictures.

Isaiah isn't always the camera op guy.

Cuteness Defined

2007-12-12T20:42:00.000+02:00

Walking

2007-12-11T09:29:00.000+02:00

DSCN3850.JPG

Isaac was dragging this toy around this morning and using it as a
walker. I told him he could probably walk better without it! He has
taken a couple of free steps with both Ben and me so it seems like he
should be walking on his own anytime!

p.s. As you can see, I haven't figured out how to do this blog thing
exactly right yet as I have had to do 3 separate picture posts in one
day. Oh well, more for the grandparents to enjoy. Be patient with
me, I am learning.

Isaiah, the Big Helper!

2007-12-11T09:24:00.000+02:00

The Boys and Friends

2007-12-11T09:12:00.000+02:00

Whose hair is the longest?

Healing

2007-12-11T09:09:00.000+02:00

This morning I woke up with a bad sinus headache. Isaiah must have
noticed that I was rubbing my head because he asked me if I was
okay. I told him that I had a headache and asked him to pray for
me. He pointed to my head and said, "Buke it!" He then proceeded to
ask me if it was better. I told him it wasn't and so he pointed to
my head again and said, "Head be gone!" Well, my head isn't feeling
any better at this point but I am fully expecting the headache to go
in Jesus' name. (I did clarify with the Lord that I would like to
keep my head but He can take the pain out of it!)

This is such a lesson to me on many different levels. One is that
Isaiah is listening to our conversations ALL the time. Whenever
anyone in our family or group here has pain we pray for them. We
rebuke the pain, ask the Father to bring His Kingdom and His
healing. Then, we ask the person if they are feeling better. If so,
we praise God together. If not, we pray again. I am so glad he
caught some of the good things we discuss!!! We generally do try to
be very sensitive about what we say as we know that words can create
and destroy life (Prov. 15:4, 18:21). So, this was encouraging to me
that he is hearing and learning some good stuff! Praise God! It
also encourages me to continue to model the kind of words and
behavior I would like to see in my children. This may sound weird
but I am noticing that I want Isaiah to clean up his toys all the
time but I don't always clean up after myself. I want him to take
care of his things but he needs to see me doing the same. Little
eyes are watching what I do and don't do! This is amazing to me and
provokes me to more careful words and deeds!

Syria

2007-12-04T13:48:00.000+02:00

Last week, I took a short trip to Syria with one of my friends. It was really great because it's cold in Syria, unlike Doha. It's nice to get out of the Gulf.

This is the view out of my hotel window (above) and

this is Souq Hamadia, a famous marketplace (below).

This is Ouda, our Bedouin friend and guide who invited us to Damascus. We had met in Doha last year. (below)

This is a typical street corner in Damascus (below).

This is the Street called Straight mentioned in the book of Acts, though the actual street is several feet underground (below).

This is the traditional site of Ananias' house (below).

The altar in Ananias' house.

This is Myrna, a mystic and stigmata recipient (the one on the right). See her full

story at: http://www.soufanieh.com/ (below) The locals refer to her as the not-yet-saint Myrna.

This is an icon that regularly exudes supernatural olive oil in Myrna's house. It's been doing so for 25 years.

This is where the head of St. John of Damascus (676-749) is entombed. The Muslims think it is John the Baptist.

Damascus at night.

It's hard to see, but this is an ancient picture of Christ on the backside
of a church-turned-mosque. Given the Islamic prohibition against images,
it's not surprising that the face has been erased.

This is the minaret, which, according to Islamic tradition, Jesus will land on when He returns. Strangely enough, in Arabic, it's called "The Bride."

Life

2007-12-04T13:29:00.000+02:00

Life seems to fly by most of the time. Don't get me wrong, there is
the occasional realization that we have absolutely nothing to do and
it's 2 hours before nap time. However, as of yesterday we should be
encountering that realization a lot less frequently since.....we
bought a trampoline! I am not sure who we bought it for, actually.
We paid the extra money to get the bigger one so Ben and I could
jump--with the boys, of course. I keep telling myself it's a good way
for me to get some exercise and for Isaiah to burn some energy. So
far he loves to run in circles, jump and throw the ball over the
safety surround net. Isaac is a little more aloof to the newly
purchased monstrosity. He likes to crawl under it and play (which I
can't let him do because of the colonizing stinging ants)! Anyway,
the trampoline is the big news around here these days. Both boys are
taking naps now so I'll have to post pictures of them on it later.

Ben and I are keeping busy with the family and trying to find
evenings for date nights. We have just decided to start
exchanging baby-sitting services with our friends across the street.
They have a 3 month old named Farid. I think we are getting the
easier deal!
Okay, I am totally rambling here but I had an anonymous comment
(BAYLEY) that considered it a "crock" when I didn't post anything. I
agree and apologize for not posting earlier. As you can see there
isn't that much going on these days. However, I am going to find
some pictures to add to this post because that is what most people
want anyway. I truly love reading other people's blogs (friends) and
hearing about daily life. So, having said that, let's start a new
string of posts because I noticed that a lot of people aren't posting
for 2 weeks at a time! Bummer! Let's be more regular so we can keep
up with each other.

Isaac's 1st Birthday

2007-11-14T20:48:00.000+02:00

Here are the promised birthday photos of Isaac and the party gang.
Please note how Emily is smiling for the picture while Isaac is
eating the cake out of her hand. Don't mess with Isaac and his
birthday cake, or any kind of food for that matter. The boy has
apparently hit a growth spurt (though he doesn't seem to be gaining a
lot of weight) or has a hollow leg because he is eating soooo much
these days. Sometimes I just stop feeding him after 2 hours of
constantly tearing, shredding and chopping his food into Isaac size
bites! He is a busy boy, crawling, studying how things work, banging
anything that will make noise, standing up, kerplunking down,
cruising around, and (pretend) chasing Isaiah which makes both boys
squeal in delight. These are fun days!-- most of the time ;-)

Enjoy the pics!

"Isaiah, do you want to share your chocolate?"

2007-11-14T20:34:00.000+02:00

Okay, kids say the funniest things.

Tonight Isaiah was eating a piece of chocolate after dinner. Ben
asked him if he wanted to share it. Isaiah turned around and said,
"I want to share with...Isaiah" and put the piece of chocolate in his
mouth.

How to Post a Comment

2007-11-14T12:56:00.000+02:00

Hey bloggers!

I thought I might give some advice on how to post a comment on our site.

First, click the word "Comments" just under the post.
Write your comment in the "Leave your comment" box. (Don't forget to
sign your name!)
Click on "Anonymous" under "Choose an Identity."
Next, you can click "Publish Your Comment" or click "Preview" to see
it before it is posted.

Thanks in advance for posting. We bloggers love comments!!!!

Blessings,
Amy for all Qatar Crace's

Isaiah's Music Video

2007-11-11T19:20:00.000+02:00

The Zoo

2007-11-10T15:28:00.000+02:00

We took a day at the Doha Zoo and had a great time. I am also
calling this post "The Zoo" because I put some of Isaac's 1st
Birthday pictures here. It was also a zoo!! We had a great time and
wish you all could have been there!

Crace Night at the Movies

2007-11-10T15:23:00.000+02:00

DSCN3702.JPG

Some Pics of the Boys (INCLUDING THE FIRST TIME THEY EVER WENT SWINGING TOGETHER)

2007-11-10T15:17:00.000+02:00

More Pics from Sri Lanka

2007-11-10T15:09:00.000+02:00

DSCF0180

Our Trip to Sri Lanka

2007-11-02T14:11:00.000+02:00

Hope you enjoyed some of our pics from our vacation in Sri Lanka!

An Intro

2007-11-02T14:08:00.000+02:00

This is our new and improved blog. Keep checking here for pics, etc.