Home Again...Home Again...Jiggity Jig.

That's right...as most of you know the Watts Family (minus Daddy Watts or Jigga Watts as most know him) is back in the good ole USA. 

Dun...Dun...Duh....

As I've so rudely been asked by many of my friends, I'm sure you're also wondering:

"WHY ARE YOU HERE?!"

Geez...talk about making a girl feel welcome. 

Well, let me start from the beginning. Originally we had planned on coming home in October and November for C's visit with his bio-dad. We were going to come home for our dear friends' wedding on October 12, and I was going to fly to Washington with the boys after the wedding, returning to Bahrain mid to late November. WELL...one thing led to another, and sign after sign kept pointing to us coming home sooner rather than later. 

When did we decide to change the date? Well about 3 days before we flew out of Bahrain. No joke. 

This is how we ROLL people...

We don't mess around. Actually I only had about 9 hours from the time that I was officially authorized to leave until we went to the airport. 

Wait, what? Officially authorized to leave Bahrain? You've got to be kidding me right? (I'm sure that's what you are thinking right now)

One week ago we decided that the boys and I should try to catch a flight home on August 15th on "The Rotator" aka "The Patriot Express" aka the military flight that only cost $28 per person to catch. At the time there were 50 seats open, so I figured I could make it. Since it's a military operated flight we would be flying "Space A" or depending on Space Availability. Essentially, a waitlist. To be able to catch this flight we have to have a letter of command sponsorship from Andrew's command that he works for, as well as authorization and another letter from the Commanding Officer of the entire Bahrain base.

 I know, it's cray cray. 

So, while I was (not so)  patiently waiting for our letters I checked on the flight status again randomly and our flight only had 10 open spots left. 10. Yeah, there's no way we would make that. HOWEVER, the flight leaving the next day had 47 open spots. So, I called A in a craze, demanding that everyone on the entire base drop everything they were doing to get me my letter NOW. I mean, this is totally reasonable, right? Get the base CO out of whatever important meeting he's in with someone like the Prez, and get me my letter. NOW.

I probably called Andrew every 15 minutes. Do you have my letter yet? No. Do you have my letter yet? No. Kind of like the annoying Verizon Wireless commercials. 

Well, the stars aligned just right, and we got our letters to get on the August 9th 1AM flight home on August 8th at 1PM. 12 hours. 

I'm pretty sure that in my attempt to pack quickly, I packed our whole house. 

I didn't even have time to remember how horrible our flight TO Bahrain was as I wrote about HERE. AND how I swore I was never doing it again, even though I knew I HAD to some day. 

Well, ladies and gentlemen, I'm here to report that this trip was WAY easier than our first trip. 

While I was SO worried about traveling across the WORLD with two boys on my own, I'm happy to report that we had a wonderful easy experience. The Rotator stopped in Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Norfolk. At each stop we had to de-plane, with all of our stuff, and go wait in a terminal for 1-2 hours until re-boarding for the next leg of the journey. Add in the fact that it was between 1AM and 8AM for the first two legs, and I had two tired, cranky boys, and all of our stuff. This could have been a total DISASTER. 

BUT...it wasn't at all. Since I was traveling without any help people were practically tripping over themselves and others to help us whenever we needed it. It was so completely wonderful. While on a commercial flight last year I couldn't get a single person to switch seats with C and I so that my little guy didn't have to sit alone...on this flight they catered to us and genuinely cared about helping us. 

One passenger in particular, Dan from Pennsylvania, helped me at every stop. The first stop in Greece, C was PASSED out. So Dan put his shoes on him and carried him into the terminal for me. At every stop after that he either carried my bags or helped with one of the kids getting off of the plane, and then he found me before getting back on to the plane to make sure I had help. His kindness warmed my heart. He helped make sure that Caden got drinks and food, and helped pick up his mess. At one point, I even saw him on the ground picking up Caden's crayons and putting them in their box. 

Everyone all around us was helpful like this. SUCH a difference between commercial flights were nobody could care less about the other passengers, and a military flight were it was honestly like a big family. Good, honest, Americans helping one another. 

D continues to be an amazing traveler. Everyone on the plane loved him (he seems to have that effect on people wherever he is though). He was either happy or sleeping. So it worked out wonderfully. 

C was a little bit tired at Panera.

All in all, it was a great trip. 32 hours total, and we came off of the pane smiling and happy. TIRED. No doubt. But smiling.

Part of me has to wonder if this trip was so much easier because I am so much healthier now than I was during the first trip to Bahrain. I really think it made a difference. ALSO, since I was sans-husband, people were so eager to help me. I think that's the trick. Fly without your husband and you will get more help than he himself could ever give! Seriously. 

So here we are. In AMERICA!

Now a quick SHOUT OUT to my amazing friends and family that helped make this trip happen! Krystal back home who offered to help with the boys or whatever so we could pack. Blake and Christy for picking us up from the Norfolk military terminal and bringing us straight to Panera and our hotel. Kim and Dave for coming to visit us at the hotel at 8AM with breakfast! My cool sister-in-law for picking us up in Norfolk and bringing us to North Carolina! 

SIDE NOTE: Kim is one of Andrew's best friends, but I've stolen her. She rocks. And she's an awesome mom, AND a helicopter pilot. How cool is that? Plus D and her little guy, Owen were born a month apart. Exactly. So we have that mommy bonding going on. D and O are bound to be best buds and fly helicopters together someday too.

Buddies.

They've come A LONG WAY since their first meeting 3 months ago right before we LEFT for Bahrain

Little guys.

Okay, enough of memory lane...back to the story. 

We will be in North Caroline visiting A's family until Sunday - then we head west again to WASHINGTON!

3 months in the middle east and I am appreciating the US more than ever. HELLO Target, grocery stores, Chick Fil A, Panera, Nordstrom....the list goes on and one and on. I'll make a post on that soon!

So, now you know what I've been up to in the last week. Traveling and adjusting to the time change. I think we're officially settled and recuperated. So get ready for some awesome blogs!

As I was saying to my awesome BFF sister-in-law in reference to our flight. Can you imagine what a wonderful place the world would be if people helped each other like that all the time!?

I'll leave you on that note. As my idol Ellen says, "Be Kind To One Another". It's truly amazing the difference a little bit of kindness makes. 

And That's 'Watts' She Said....

I Dare You...

I DARE YOU NOT TO LAUGH. 

Go ahead...try. 

Watch this adorable video and don't you dare laugh or smile....

I'm pretty sure it's impossible. 

Andrew doesn't think I'm funny at all - BUT Davis thinks I'm HILARIOUS!

Davis thinks I'm funny all the time. Not just when I have the hiccups - actually, he laughs at pretty inappropriate times. Like....when I'm scolding Caden, or when I drop something, or when I'm trying to be serious....that cracks him up....that and hiccups. Hiccups seem to make him laugh harder than anything ever in the world.

Such a far cry from our serious baby. The first two months of his life, all he did was Mean Mug people.

Like this.

I kind of miss that grumpy face. It was so cute.

Anyways, now he is happy and laughy....and thinks everything is SO FUNNY. He especially thought I was funny today as I was dripping in sweat trying to mail stuff at the post office on base. He was being super cranky in his carseat, so of course I ended up holding him with my left arm while I tried to fill out 3 customs slips with my right....as he's trying with all of his might to grab them and stuff them in his mouth...while his OTHER hand is firmly embedded in my hair pulling on it like there's no tomorrow. 

I was SERIOUSLY struggling and frenzied. AND of course - while he is raining terror on my attempts at getting gifts in the mail he is smiling so sweetly and cooing at the people around us. So while I am schlepping around the post office with a baby hanging from my hair (that's what it felt like) they are all, "Oh...he's SOOO cute." and talking and laughing with him. Clearly they couldn't see past the cute baby to the mommy that was trying to do with one hand what even a normal person would need 5 for. I mean, he IS cute...but in that moment all I cared about was not losing my mind.

I'm sure you moms know what I'm talking about - and really it's not that bad to have to juggle a baby, boxes, and paper - but for some reason when you are also burning up from the heat and humidity - with hair that looks like you stuck your finger in the light socket - and clothes that are sticking to you, and sweat dripping off of your face and down your crack....IT. IS. SO. MUCH. WORSE. 

Oh...and did I mention that I was STILL wearing long sleeves as well since it's Ramadan> Insanity. It's like a million degrees out. 

BUT....we survived. We always do. AND we have the cutest video of D ever. So that makes everything okay. Cute pictures and videos ALWAYS make it better.

...and That's 'Watts' She Said

Shawarma Lover

After making him go 30ish days without his beloved Shawarma...I finally caved today and let him get one. 

I think he's happy...

Nothing like a boy that LOVES his food.

And That's 'Watts' She Said....

Growing....

This little one is growing up WAYYYY too fast. I feel like every day he is discovering something new and exciting.

New things in the land of Davis:

1. Shoes: he wears the cutest pair of Pedipeds, and this makes him look so much older. It also accentuates how freakishly big his feet are.

2. Talking/babbling. This kid may not look like his Mommy, but man oh man does he talk like his Mommy. (aka A LOT!) Andrew is currently pouting about this. The joke is that both of my boys look nothing like me BUT, they act like me. Talkative, smiley, sensitive, and a little tiny bit dramatic. Poor Andrew. 

3. Food!!!

He wants food SOOO badly. He can't even contain himself. However, when I tried to give him some mashed up food, he spit it right out. He goes wild reaching for it and pulling it into his mouth, but then he hates it. Silly boy. We have been giving him fruit in one of those awesome mesh baby teething contraptions and he LOVES it!!! Tonight there were frozen blueberries in it, and after dropping it, he shoved his bib in his mouth and tried to get berry juice out of that. Hilarious to watch. Poor kid, we laugh at him a lot.

4. Rolling. He rolls like a boss. 

5. Playing. Tonight we were entertained by a lively game of 'Where's Brother?' Caden would hide and D would look all over the room for him, then C would jump out. D laughed, we laughed, it was awesome. UNTIL this genius decided it would be funny if Mommy, Daddy, and Caden all hid and jumped out. Yeah....he didn't like that. At.All. There were a lot of tears. So... We won't be playing that version any time soon.

6. Sleeping almost through the night. Almost.

7. Feet. He is pretty much always grabbing his feet and trying to get them in his mouth.

8. Kisses. He loves to give big slobbery wet kisses. I'm his favorite to kiss, followed closely by his big brother. He kisses Andrew sometimes, then he makes a face once he gets a mouth full of hair. 

Kissing fool.

9. New ways to play with old toys.

This is his new foot rest 

10. Brother Love. He loves all things related to his brother. Melts my heart.

That's about it. These things may seem silly, but around here it is big stuff!!!

And yes...we are still going strong on the Whole30, today is day 23!!! I feel great and am pretty sure either I'm shrinking or my clothes are growing. I'll do a recipe roundup post soon. We are still eating super delicious food every day....wish I could share it with all of you. But I can't, it would cost me more than the arm and the leg it's already costing me.

Still working on the Internet problem. AND a minor electricity problem too. See we are super lucky to have a washer AND a dryer...BUT if we run them at the same time we blow a fuse. Totally defeats the purpose. To top that off, a few days ago we woke up to the lovely surprise of our water jug being completely empty. Where was the water? 

All over our floor! 

Apparently, when the power in your kitchen blows, the water cooler stops "stopping" the water from flowing out, and just lets it run all over the floor. Heh...kind of like how my bladder stopped working after I had Davis. Yep...I had an issue with jumping rope again yesterday. Thank goodness this was only water and our floors are marble. 

and That's 'Watts' She Said....

17 days done!!!

So, today was day 17 of our first Whole30. 

17 days!!!! 

That's more than halfway. I'm proud to report that we are doing really well still. Minus the fact that Andrew tried to undo it all tonight by putting rice vinegar in our stir fry....rice vinegar with SUGAR as one of the ingredients.

 I about lost it.

AFTER eating a whole plate of stir fry vegetables over cauliflower rice I complimented Andrew on how delicious it was and asked him what else he put in the veggies. When the last ingredient he listed was Rice Vinegar I freaked.

Don't worry - we are still good. We don't have to start over. I quickly pulled up the Whole30 Forum and asked if it was all over for us - and luckily the response was that it was ok, we just can't let it happen again. Thank God.

 I think starting over would warrant a total breakdown and a good hard cry. Not just any cry...the ugly cry. You know what I'm talking about! Face scrunched up, snot, tears, the whole shebang. I definitely would have ugly cried over this. 

Aside from the rice vinegar disaster we have been showing the Whole30 who's boss. I know I've been slacking on posting but I feel like my evenings (aka blogging time) are totally consumed with cooking, cleaning, or prepping for the next day. Not to mention our awesome Internet issues...yes, I am once again writing this blog on my phone, with my thumbs. Awesome.

So, what have we been eating the past few days? Just assume that breakfast is always eggs of some sort and veggies and bacon, maybe a piece of fruit. Lunch is either leftovers or salad with leftovers. Thrilling, I know.

 So here's the exciting part- our dinners!

We've made the following (and by 'we' I really mean 'I') 

The BEST Pot Roast EVER

This is Andrew's most favorite meal in the world. I stole the recipe from my amazing chef sister and I'm 99% sure that she was inspired by the Pioneer Woman. If you don't know her - go to her blog. She's amazing. Anyways, this Pot Roast is simple and delicious. PLUS, it makes a lot of leftovers!

Moroccan Cauliflower Rice

This dish was surprising delicious. Andrew found this recipe online at thefoodie.com. It was sweet and savory and really fun. The grilled pineapple was my favorite part.

Coconut Chicken Fingers with Sweet Potato Fries 

Aside from the fact that I TOTALLY overcooked the chicken this was a really yummy and fun meal. I can see us making the Coconut Chicken fingers all of the time. The fries had a definite kick - and though I still haven't mastered how to get crispy sweet potato fries WITHOUT frying them, these were knock your socks off good! Plus, these also made great leftovers. After some of my WODS this week I just grabbed a chicken finger and some veggies for a quick meal!

The Best Chicken You Will Ever Eat Ever

with 

Moracan Dipping Sauce

This is no joke - it really truly is the BEST CHICKEN YOU WILL EVER EAT EVER! It was delicious. And that dipping sauce, so simple, yet it added such a great kick to our chicken and the roasted veggies we made to go with it. This is for sure going in our permanent rotation. DELICIOUS. If you try ONE recipe from this post - try this one. 

And....the worst meatballs in the history of mankind with delicious stir fry vegetables (minus the evil rice vinegar!)

I'm not even going to post the link to this one. This was our first FAIL. I'm not sure what happened, Andrew and I both made these together tonight and it just WAS NOT GOOD. Yuck. I'm thinking the coconut flour in the meat mixture is what threw it off.  I threw mine away. It was a shame too, we both really wanted some fantastic leftovers. 

Wow... after the food rundown I am just now realizing that it has been a long time since my last post!

I guess time flies when you are having fun and sweating your butt off wearing long sleeves during Ramadan!

Oh, and I can't go further without a cute picture. So here you go. 

Honestly - the most exciting thing that's going on around here is that Andrew and I have been working out together every day this week. It's a WIN-WIN. We are getting more fit, spending quality time together, and I get to see him more often since we do it during the day. So I guess that's a WIN-WIN-WIN. He takes a break from work to come workout with me for about an hour. The boys have spots at the Childcare Center on base for a drop-off hourly basis and they both LOVE it. Everyone is happy. 

So what workouts have we been doing? Well, I CrossFit and Andrew swims - so we've compromised by creating CrossFit SWIM workouts. While I coach Andrew on squats and form he has been coaching me on becoming a better stronger swimmer. I love it. Andrew has been programming and he's been kicking our butts. It's so phenomenal!  PLUS, the training tank where we swim, is outdoors, so we are getting some sun at the same time. Luckily this pool is cooled down - it isn't the HOT TUB temperatures of our canal. 

What do our WODS look like?! I'm so glad you asked. Here is what we did on our first day

WARMUP: Swim 200 meters, 20 squats, 20 push ups, review Freestyle form

WOD:

Swim 200 meters

30 pool muscle ups. (at edge of pool in deep end, hold onto the edge of pool, push yourself down into water so your arms are straight, propel yourself up like you are climbing out of the pool) these were awesomely brutal!

Swim 200 meters

30 tricep dips using the diving blocks

Swim 200 meters

30 push ups

Swim 200 meters

30 squats

Swim 200 meters

3-30 second plank holds

Swim 200 meters

COOLDOWN: Swim 200 meters and stretch

These are so much fun! It's such a great way to beat the heat but still be outdoors enjoying your workout. Our goal is to do this 3-5 times a week...and to be able to hop in and swim a few miles like it's no big deal. BUT...that's going to take awhile. 

I know this isn't very thrilling or exciting, but this is what our life is lately. Eating good clean quality food, and working out, AND taking care of the boys obviously. We are exhausted by the end of the day. 

To make this post better - here are more pics of the adorable boys.!

So, what do you think? Do you have any recipe or swimming WOD ideas?!

I can use all the help I can get!

and That's 'Watts' She Said...

Home Away From Home...

I'm not talking about Bahrain. I'm talking about the MANY MANY grocery stores I've been frequenting lately. I swear, I spend more time there than ANYWHERE else. This Whole30 is a time-suck. I mean, I'm super grateful to be able to lead my family in this healthy journey...but it's consuming my life! 

I'm either searching for recipes, meal planning, making shopping lists, driving to the grocery store, fighting for a parking spot at said grocery store, actually grocery shopping, cooking, or cleaning up from the meals. Luckily I've been able to make time every day this week to work out - it's helped me keep my sanity and given me a break from the food. 

So....to keep my readers entertained and exposed to the crazy Bahraini world I want to talk about....

drum-roll please....

GROCERY STORES!

Exciting, I know. But, TRUST ME...these aren't your run-of-the-mill grocery stores!

So far the Bahraini grocery stores I frequent the most are: 

GEANT

Carefour

Al Jazira

Alosra

YES...I do go to all 4 of these at least once a week - more likely 2 or 3 times a week. So I'm becoming pretty familiar with them. And so talking about how different the grocery stores are is about as exciting as my life gets right now. Grocery stores, gym, cooking, cleaning...oh and wiping butts and feeding Davis, and constantly telling Caden to stop kissing Davis so much. Glamorous.

Here are a list of the things I find intriguing so far.... 

1. LIQUID CHEESE. They have aisles and aisles of this Kraft, liquid cheese. I'm not sure what else to call it. There are several varieties and sizes. These particular lot was in the "Ramadan Special" selection. I've never seen cheese like this back home. I can only imagine all of the health benefits. But hey...it's KRAFT...must be good? This is just one example of the STRANGE products I've found.

2. AMERICAN PRODUCTS. Most of the stores carry a few American products, which I am grateful for. I'm even more grateful when they slap a big American Flag on the shelf to make sure we notice them. I've still never seen any other country's flag posted. I wonder what makes us so special?

#3 GROCERY CARTS. Not only do you have to PAY to get a grocery cart, but these grocery carts are possessed. I HATE THEM. They don't just roll forward and backwards...no, of course not. They also go side to side or really whatever way you want them to go. Ever tried pushing an office chair down a hallway? Maybe that's a bad example....but because it can go anywhere - IT WILL go anywhere. I've run into a few people. They were not amused. Sorry, silly American coming through - nope, I can't even operate a grocery cart - but hey thanks for the American Flag signs.

 

So, to get a cart out your have to insert 100 Fil (about the size of a nickel and worth about 25 cents USD) into the cart to release it. When you return your cart, you get it back. A lot of people just leave their cart next to their car and don't return it. So, someone can get rich off of gathering them up and cashing in. Then again - it is SO hot outside, who wants to do that? I'll admit, I've ditched a cart or two and left my 100 fil before. Some things just aren't worth it. After loading groceries, Caden, a crying baby and myself in to the care in 110 degree heat, sweat dripping everywhere, the last thing I want to do it return a grocery cart to get about 25 cents back. 

#4 NOT FOR MUSLIMS. In case there is ANY confusion - there are signs all over the place making sure the Muslims are aware of what they are and are not allowed to purchase. 

#5 THE PORK ROOM. AKA - THE BEST ROOM! BACON - YAY! When we first moved here I wasn't even sure if I would be able to buy pork anywhere. Which, in my humble opinion, would have been a tragedy. 2 years without bacon. How un-American. Luck is on our side. The NEX sells pork products and so do most grocery stores. They just have the "Pork Room" set off from everything else. Often they are also labeled with, "NO MUSLIMS ALLOWED" signs as well. They usually have a pretty good selection. I just still laugh every time I enter the "Pork Room". I'm PRETTY sure the last time I bought pork the female cashier was afraid to even touch the package. She picked it up by the corner edge of the package and held it away from her like it was something rancid and disgusting. No my friend...in that package is the best thing in the world. BACON.

#6 PRODUCE. I've never appreciated the produce section of grocery stores back home like I do now. The produce here is difficult. It tends to go bad super quickly, and it's REALLY expensive. I spend an insane amount of money on produce each week. Not only that, but it's just odd sometimes. Like these GIANT green bell peppers we found a few days ago. Or the fact that red onions are teeny tiny. You need 3 or 4 to make up for 1 from back home.

Also - after you select your produce you have to bring it all to a special guy setup in the produce section. He or she, weighs it and tags it all right there. This is a simple, but easily forgotten step. When you are used to just grabbing it having the cashier enter it, it's easy to forget. Believe me, people in line DO NOT like it when they have to wait for someone to run your produce back to the Produce Man to get tagged because you forgot. I'm learning this lesson. 

One cool thing about the produce is that the fruit is usually delicious AND they have some fruit that I've never even heard of. Our goal is to try one new fruit each week. So far, so good. We haven't encountered anything too crazy yet. 

#7 SPICES. Okay, so not everything is bad or weird. Some things are pretty darn awesome. Like the bulk spices section found in the bigger stores. They have any spice you can think of and more. We've started buying all of our spices in bulk, which is a good thing with the Whole30, as we are going through it like water. The only problem is communicating how much I want to the Spice Guy. We pretty much have a system now. I point to the spice and use my hands to show how much or how little. 

They also have different kinds of nuts, different flavors of nuts ie: spicy cashews or honey cashews, all sorts of dried fruit, and things like almond flour, coconut flour...so much to explore here. This area makes me happy.

#8. The MEAT Section. I don't really want to talk about this. If you know me, you know why. I'm not a big fan of meat. I have to convince myself it wasn't once an animal to make myself eat it. My siblings tortured me when I was little. No, I'm not talking about how they convinced me that I was adopted, I'm talking about how they would make animal noises while I ate meat. SCARRED FOR LIFE. I still can't eat meat off of a bone - unless it's a hot wing - and even then, if I get ONE bite that reminds me it's an animal, I'm done. Meanwhile, Andrew picks up my half eaten hot wings and pretty much sucks them dry. That's teamwork.

So - there IS a meat section and they have all sorts of things that you wouldn't find in the meat section back home. I can't even bring myself to write about it. I think I'm going to throw up. 

HOWEVER, I do have to tell you the story of the bones. One day I noticed that they sold packs of "Beef Bones" and "Lamb Bones" at Carefour. I had NEVER seen this in a meat section before and I was pretty much immediately grossed out and had to leave without purchasing our meat. Fast Forward to the Whole30 and me trying to find beef broth without preservatives. Pretty much impossible. Remembering that they sell beef bones at the grocery store I looked up some broth recipes and decided that we had to make our own broth, or rather, that Andrew had to make our broth. I mentally accepted that I would have to go to the store and buy a pack of the beef bones...I had NO IDEA how horrible it would be. 

I bravely set out for Carefour last week. Beef broth was our only missing ingredient for the week, and it was time to make the leap and buy some bones. I COULD DO THIS. 

Well, I walked up to the meat section with confidence. I was going to grab the bones and get out of there. I was a big girl - I could do it. As my luck would have it - they were all out of beef bones that day. 

Damn. I was going to have to ask someone. I drove 25 minutes, parked in the crazy City Center parking garage, and got myself, Caden, and Davis in the store for these bones and we weren't leaving without them. 

So, I walked up to the butcher and said, "Umm, do you have any beef bones?" The butcher said he had to check in the back and came back out holding FLINSTONE STYLE HUGE WHOLE beef bones. These WERE NOT the small cut up bones from the packages out front. These were HUGE in tact leg bones from some poor cow. 

I literally started dry heaving right then and there. The butcher tried to hand them to me and I just kind of waved him off, and turned the other way. I tried to exlain that I needed them to be smaller and he cheerfully said, "OK!" and walked away. I watched him as he walked over to a saw and proceeded to saw them up into little pieces. I can't even tell you the horrible things running through my head at that point. I had to turn around and sing songs in my head. I was seriously about to throw up everywhere. UGH. I can't even write about it anymore. It was horrible. It scarred me even more than I already was. 

When it was all said and done he handed me my package of beef bones, and I carried them through the store like a waitress carrying a tray of food through a restaurant. Above my head where I couldn't see them. Did I look crazy? ABSOLUTELY. But the alternative was to actually puke. So I chose crazy. 

AND...YES - Andrew was the one that made the beef broth. I could not do it. I sat there and stared at the ingredients for about 15 minutes, then just turned and walked away. I may be able to eat the meat right now - but that is one job I still can't do.

That's about it on the Grocery Store front. Exciting?! Yes, I know. I guess I'm still amused by the little things here. 

OH....and a Whole30 update. Day 11 done. Still going strong. I haven't dreamt of food in 2 days! I just am craving peanut butter like nobody's business. Our food the past few days has been pretty boring. Veggies, grilled meat, salads, eggs. That's about it. However, dinner the past two nights has been pretty great. 

DAY 10 DINNER:  Chicken Rogan Josh

Rogan Josh is an Indian dish that Andrew loves. It's traditionally made with lamb, but as you can see from my rant above, I struggle with meat, and lamb is just something I can't do yet. So I made it with Chicken. It was delicious. Next time I am going to halve the amount of cloves she calls for and make it "mild" I did the "medium" version and it was just a touch too spicy. We also made cauliflower rice to put it over. Andrew made it tonight and it was perfect - you could hardly tell that it wasn't real rice! Definitely a keeper though. And I'm loving the blog this recipe came from. Tons of Paleo and Whole30 recipes. www.theclothesmakethegirl.com

DAY 11 DINNER:  Mexican Cottage Pie 

This was a fun one tonight. It definitely helped shake things up a bit. I have to say though, it really reminded me of our favorite Paleo Chili. I even topped mine with some avocado and chopped onion. It was DELICIOUS. Plus we have a ton of leftovers. The sweet potato cauliflower mashed topping was awesome. This is a great way to sneak a ton of vegetables in to your meal. Another keeper for us! 

That's all I've got for tonight. I hope you all enjoy going to the grocery store this week. What I would give to be able to drive up to a store, get out, walk a few feet to get inside, and then find everything I need in one place! You all are spoiled!

and That's 'Watts' She Said...

I Bet Your Mall Doesn't Have This...

1. Prayer Rooms in the Mall

2. GENDER SPECIFIC Prayer Rooms at that...

My newest Bahraini discovery. Yep, prayer rooms in the malls. I got a little lost looking for an elevator at the Seef Mall and found this. Pretty cool. 

The malls also have really great private nursing rooms equipped with changing tables and everything. The malls here are awesome and so interesting at the same time. I could seriously people watch for hours.

My first time going to the mall was both a wonderful and crazy experience. Being surrounded by women in their abayas - it's a sea of black. My first thought was, how can you tell which one is your friend/sister/mom/wife? 

My guess would be by the shoes or purse - what little these women do show is STYLISH. I love it. I especially love that a lot of them wear TOMS with their abayas! Can't miss the blue TOMS tag on the back of their shoes. Also - I have discovered that their abayas aren't just plain black cloth. There are MANY MANY different abayas. Some have embellishments, rhinestones, lace, fringe, ruffles, flowers, the list goes on and on. I love all of the different varieties. One of these days I'll do a post just on the fashion of the Bahraini women. I love it. 

Seriously though,all in all - it really is a sea of black in the mall. I know how easily Caden can wander away from me in crowded places. That's one of my biggest fears. At least he can see ME and the shape of me and my clothes. I saw what happens in the Bahrain City Center when a child loses his mommy. It just about broke my heart. 

Caden and I were sitting in the food court and a little boy started running around yelling "Mama!" and just turning in circles totally lost. Luckily, his mom was within a few feet, she was just turned away from him. But how scary. I can only imagine how often that happens. 

The malls are awesome right now - they are pretty much deserted due to Ramadan. On a busy non-Ramadan day at the mall you can look for parking for 30 minutes. Easily. Right now, I can just drive into the "Car Park" and find a prime spot. I love it. 

Another Whole30-during-Ramadan bonus. All of the restaurants, coffee shops, snack places are CLOSED. So what temptation I would have to grab a quick snack are totally eliminated. Thank goodness!

This is the food court at the City Center Mall. The Food Court isn't just closed - it's gated off. Most food places are. This is no joke people - they seriously don't want you even thinking about eating here. There was actually a Mall Cop guarding the area as well. 

AND...the subject of FOOD. It's seriously haunting me. Last night I could barely sleep. In my dreams I was LITERALLY fighting with food. Brownies, OREOS, chips, pop....but they were huge - all like 5 feet tall. I guess when the folks over at the Whole9 said that you would be dreaming of food and fighting serious cravings, they weren't kidding. 

You'll be glad to know that we are still going strong Day 8 is done. We haven't been cooking as wonderful of meals in the past two days because I am EXHAUSTED. Another awesome Day 7 and 8 side effect of the Whole30. So our meals have been eggs and veggies for breakfast, leftovers for lunch, and the past two nights we had pork chops and roasted veggies and then chicken and roasted veggies. I guess you can use this as poof that you CAN do the Whole30 when you don't have a ton of time.

I'm not so patiently waiting for this energy boost I'm supposed to get in the next few days. I need it. In a BAD way. On that note - I'm off to bed. 

and That's 'Watts' She Said...