Spring Break Oman

Before I venture too far into this, I just need to say that I love the tops of Tyson's chubby little feet.  I love gently pinching them whenever I can - it makes me feel as happy as he looks in the pic below:)

Our spring break touched on a little of everyone's favorite things - a road trip for Nate, lots of pool time for the kids, camel spotting for me - and the kids too, and lots of time with each other - which we all enjoyed on the whole.  Will and Finley felt so grown up pushing Tyson around the pool in his float.

Beach time - it doesn't get more fun than repeatedly filling a bucket with water and sand.

My heart swells up a bit when my kids run together down the beach through the waves, laughing.  So worth the wait.

Our beach sculpture this year was a bottlenose dolphin, in honor of our boat trip to see the dolphins in the Indian Ocean.  I have to make sure to get all the details in; if I just say dolphin, or don't clarify which body of water, Will is quick to correct me!  Tyson was a trooper, just chilling on the sand, chewing on a shovel, watching the action.

Finley was pretty busy filling her bucket with water and sand, and couldn't be bothered to be in the picture.

We actually started our trip in Nizwa, a mountain town in the desert, and came across this cool old city.  We drove down the road below it and stopped for a car seat break, and were surprised to see a little girl, about 5 sprinting barefoot down the rocky road towards us.  Of course she had something to sell us, and was followed by an older sister(?).  We bought a couple of their little woven baubles and tried to give them some food they asked for, but they really only wanted chocolate, not the orange Nate offered. 

Our new car did a great job up the steep, windy, bumpy road here, but unfortunately, the video we tried to take on the way back down, with the kids yelling in delight - "it's a bumpy road!" and variations thereof, didn't work!  

At our pit stop at the top of the mountain, Nate made a friend when he shared his orange peels.  Will didn't want to get out of the car with the goat so close.  Then another goat came along, and the first one got pretty territorial and head butted his buddy out of the way when Nate tossed some food his way!

We didn't get to do quite the hiking we had hoped for, but it was probably enough with small children, and Tyson was napping in the car, so we just walked a ways up, keeping him in sight, then turned around to see our goat friends again!

The souk and fort in Nizwa - our timing was off, and we just saw the outside of the fort, with kids who had fallen asleep in the car, so it was for the best.  Everyone was cranky from a long day.  Then we couldn't find the restaurant we wanted for dinner, so we drove around listening to Tyson scream for awhile until we accidentally ran across it - far from where Google maps directed us...

Nice happy faces huh?

The view from our first hotel in Muscat - pretty sweet.

Will had a roll away bed, and the chair was the perfect size for Fin, so everyone got to sleep well.

Once they finally got to sleep - it took Will awhile - Nate and I finally went out on the balcony so we weren't distracting him.  But he drew lots of awesome pictures for us while he was trying to fall asleep!

Early(ish) morning walk on the beach.  Found lots of cool crab holes, but then they freaked out Will, who didn't want them to pinch him.  He has a great love for the figurative animals, but when they get too up close and real, he prefers some distance.

Along with the sand/water bucket entertainment, Finley loves scooping up handfuls of sand and throwing it in the water.  She had mud all over her face too.

This kid is so cute, always, but especially in his hats on this trip.

Mangroves just beyond the beach.

Our boat trip - Finley pretty much hated it - it was a pretty windy day, the boat was loud and fast, and she would barely let go of me or Nate to try and see the dolphins.  I really wanted Tyse to be safe, so I tried with the life jacket, but it was just so big, I finally gave up and just held him tight - which was probably more safe anyway - he would have just slipped right out of that thing.  Note to self:  Must purchase the funny looking suit with built in one for next time.  

My family was in Mexico the same time we were in Oman, and I was really missing being there with them, but the rocks we drove through and around kind of made me feel like I was there with them.  It's crazy how so many places we have been here have scenery that is so similar to home.

They found a fun cubby hole hideout to play in - it's so great when they have fun playing together.

Despite our worries about long hours in the car, and trying to all sleep in the same room, we only had a couple of times when Tyson lost it in the car, and never even had to break out a movie for the kids on the road, and we did well sharing the sleeping space too - it was a great trip.  After some heartbreaks for friends in our ward this week, it's good to think back on this little trip and remember how blessed I am, and how grateful I am for my family, and for the gospel.