Idol Nights.....

I have always been an American Idol fan! I jumped on the bandwagon in Season 2.  I absolutely love it and can't understand how anybody can't!  Evan is as obsessed as I am and Whitney and Brad just endure it as best they can.  We have continued our Idol tradition here in Saudi Arabia.  We get it two night a week just like in the States only one day later.  So we get it every Thursday and Friday nights.  We get together with three other families EVERY week~ the Masons, the Mosleys and the Stratfords.  We rotate houses and cook lots of food and it's just a good old time. 

This past week it was at our house.  We laughed how we all ended up Saudi-style with the guys in one room and the girls in the other. 

Here are the girls. The cute lady below is "Nana", Brent Mason's mother.  This is her second visit to Arabia and we all just love her. 

Gwen, Debbie, Donna and Abigail.  Below, Leanne and Tori.

Now on to the boys room, here is Evan,

and Brent, Rusty, Brad, Wade and Christian.

Sorry to Whitney who was the photographer and didn't get in any of the pictures.

We all have our favorites but we all agree that at this point it's sad to see any of them leave!

That's right!

Apparently in Arabic, there is no "guh" sound.  I learned this a long time ago when I was ordering myself a silver necklace that was to say Gwen.  I had the choice of them spelling it like J-wen or like Quin.  I chose the latter. 

Last week we called in take-out from Tandoori, the restaurant very near our house.  I placed the order, they asked my name and I told them Gwen.  They spelled it the best way knew how.

I hung this one on the fridge!

Oodles of Oods

This instrument, my friends, is called an Oud or Aoud.....pronounced "ood".  Don't you just love that name??
–noun

a musical instrument of the Middle East and northern Africa belonging to the lute family.

 

All of you who know Evan, know that he is obsessed with all things musical and plays many different instruments.  Today, Brad signed him up for Oud lessons.  He'll go for an hour and a half once a week until summer.  He is beyond excited!  Now we begin shopping for a reasonably priced one.

If you want to know what one sounds like, go here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJYe4g_kUj4

Hopefully I can post a video of him playing in a few weeks!