Conversations with a 10-Week-Old!

Planetarium with Amu Tayeb

We also went to Bochum to visit Tayeb

and see a show at the planetarium.

The sensation of flying through the solar system was almost too 

much for Rana, who asked repeatedly if we were actually flying!

Planets, stars, and galaxies!

With Yosef and Tayeb

And back to earth again!

A Weekend with Noor

We had a wonderful time with Kati, Waleed, and Noor,

who just turned 14 months old.

Noor is full of smiles,

and playing with her brought out some silliness in all of us!

We went to an animal park nearby

and got to pet and feed some of the animals

and play on the playground.

Wish the weekend were longer!

Our Wiggly Worm

Miss Mira demonstrated her eagerness to crawl early on 

as the doctors were examining her before we left the hospital.  

They put her on all fours and she just started crawling!

As the weeks have passed, she's impressed us 

with her ability to lift her head and wiggle her body.

Today, I laid her down (vertically) on her usual spot on couch.

She was sleeping at first, but she woke up and started wiggling.

Up until recently, her wiggles usually only moved her forward.

But today, Rana and I watched in amusement as she turned 

herself around within a couple of minutes!  She would have 

been able to turn in a complete circle at the rate she was going, 

but she wore out and yelled for help. 

Guess this means we need to find a new, 

safer resting spot our little wiggly worm!

Back to Kindergarten

The school year has started in Königstein!

Rana was excited to go back to Kindergarten this morning.

We are grateful that she has lots of friends and feels
quite comfortable there. She is in the Bear Group again
and has the same teachers as last year, 

though some of the big kids have "graduated" 

and there will be more younger kids joining the group.

She is one of the older kids now - and part of the "Preschool Group"

that will meet separately a couple of times a week for more 

structured lessons in preparation for starting school next fall. 

Mira is 2 Months Old!

At 2 months, Mira is making good progress in the colic department.  

She still likes to be carried and kept in fairly constant motion, 

but her bouts of inconsolable screaming are few and far between.

She is especially alert and "talkative" when she wakes up 

and feels well-rested, both in the early morning and after a good nap.

Thankfully, she is still a good little sleeper!

She sleeps 7 or 8 hours overnight, has a bottle, 

and usually sleeps for a few more hours.

Keep the smiles coming, Mira!

Art Class

Rana attended her first art class this week 

and made a variety of boats using mostly natural materials. 

The highlight was this morning when the whole group 

went on an excursion to a creek to test out their creations. 

Rana was quite proud that her boats floated right down the stream!

Rana is 5 Years & 2 Months Old!

Meow!

Eid Mubarak!

 Celebrating the end of Ramadan!

Our Family of Four

Conversations with Camels

The camels stole the show at the zoo yesterday

when they leaned over the fence to converse with us 

and eat carrots right out of our hands!

Two of the camels were born this spring, and there 

were lots of other young animals throughout the park.

 We also stopped by for story time,

which featured a few books about different animals.