Party in Oman!

Savannah has been to lots of parties here in Muscat.  Especially going-away parties.  One of the facts of living an expat life is that many families are only here for a short time.  That means that there are a lot of kids moving every summer.  Although we are not moving, Savannah wanted to have her own party.  She also wanted her party to stand out.  I chose not hire a professional DJ and we don't have a family yacht (as did one of her classmates!).  But we do have close access to a beach.  I suggested a very all-American party (since so few of her friends are American.)  S'mores, pizza, and chips and queso.

 

We moved back all the furniture, making plenty of room for dancing.

 



 

I wasn't sure where I was going to find all the ingredients for s'mores.  Luckily, I have a very good friend who offered to donate her leftover s'more fixings.  Her husband works for the embassy, and they get things sent over here, only paying whatever shipping they would pay in the states.  So she gave me REAL Hershey bars.  I wasn't sure just how many kids were coming, so I bought a few extra 'local' Hershey bars.  The one on the top is an American one and the one on the bottom was made in the UAE.  It is smaller than the American one and tastes quite different.  Disappointing.  Is it really that hard to duplicate the taste of a chocolate bar??  If you know the answer to that, please let me know!

 



These are the largest marshmallows!!  Julie told me she ordered these because they were the only size that came with free prime shipping on Amazon!  :)  We cut them in half and they were perfect.

 



I think Julie got the graham crackers here.  I have seen only the Cinnamon ones, never plain.

 



The calm before the storm.

 

Here are Austin and his friend, Patrick, getting ready to set up the fire for the s'mores.  Firewood is another challenge in Oman.  No one has fireplaces, so there is no firewood for sale, and there are very few trees.  This scrap wood was given to Austin at a nearby construction site.

We have Pizza Hut here in Muscat and it is very good.  The only difference is that the pepperoni is made from beef, not pork.  I had a friend from Switzerland stay with me a few days.  She was telling me that there is no pizza in Bern, nor any American restaurants.  She told me this as we were eating lunch at Chili's. It made me appreciate how much American stuff we do have here in Oman.

 



 



I walked up to Savannah and danced a little.  I got 'the look'.  One of her friends told her, "You have a cool mom."  Savannah's response?  "She knows she is not allowed to dance."  Another girl said, "Yeah, I don't like my mom dancing either.  But I like to see other people's moms do it."  :)  Maybe one of these days Savannah will allow me to dance in public.

 



 

Fire at the beach.  It was a warm night, but not bad if you were far enough away from the fire.

 



 Austin finds his prey.

 He takes aim.

 He showers them with confetti!

Hey!!

 



 

Austin decided that it was too warm for everyone to toast their own marshmallows.  I concurred.

 

 

So, what to do?  I did the same thing I did when I was nine and it rained during our Girl Scout camp out.  We made them under the broiler!  The s'mores were a HUGE hit!  Thanks, Julie Turner!