A Little Something: Summer Lovin'

Well, Summer is almost over...just 10 days before school (and all the chaos that it entails) begins! I wanted to check in here after quite the hiatus and let you all know what we've been up to at the Khashab household! Summer was busy, but not unbearably so. In fact, we stayed close to home most of the time and the kids spent a lot of time catching up on TV (yes, I KNOW....), with friends (occasionally) and most of all, with each other. Ramadan ended just 9 days ago, so for the past month, we've kept it pretty low key. Now that the end of Summer is imminent, I hope to be able to enjoy a few more lazy days of summer before it's all over for the year. We visited the local Rotary Fair, but getting out has been hard since the end of Ramadan because of another little thing going on...CONSTRUCTION. We have finally started the bathroom remodel, and boy, do contractors, plumbers, electricians, and inspectors cramp our free time! We did escape last week for a trip to Dorney Park, but when I'm not working, they seem to want me here! Today, the drywall is finally going up and the final few days of work are coming to a close. Hopefully, they will be done by next week!!

In other news, the girls completed several weeks worth of day camp. Leena attended a photography class, plus 2 weeks of Summer Dance Intensive. Yasmeen had 2 weeks of band camp, plus private weekly lessons to learn the trumpet and a week's worth of cooking. Adam laid low, although I know I've got to get him into preschool soon!

I've been working the usual 2 days per week schedule I've been lucky to maintain (with the occasion fill in day here and there), but starting September 10th (right after the girls are back in school), I'll start working Mondays as well. Luckily, it's a condensed day, so I can get out early. Hoping it doesn't make me want to quit-LOL!

Mohammed is busy at work, too. Unfortunately, he DOES have to work all week, but can sometimes sleep in a bit during the weekend. Between home maintenance, the occasional firehouse event and our latest hobby, he's pretty busy too.

What latest hobby you ask? Well, for the past 10 days, we have been running a saltwater aquarium. We inherited a 55 gallon tank and put it to good use. Mohammed really felt that if we were going to make any effort in maintaining a tank, it might as well be a saltwater tank. I've been reading on the internet and buying "live rock" and testing the water daily, and yesterday, after finally getting the water, salt content, ammonia levels and ph just right, we finally added FISH. We bought 2 black clownfish and they are just adorable. Let's hope our calculations and advice from the aquarium store were good enough to help them survive and thrive. These babies can last up to 10 years (although most die after 2-3 from "stress")...yikes. Feeling like I'll be a little obsessive about keeping the water right. Wish us luck!

LAST DAY OF SCHOOL 2012