All in a weekend...

So, I was just so excited I had to post a picture of my garage sale find! Yes, a garage sale…a true rarity in these parts, but every now again you can find one posted on expatica.com (expat=American living in Europe) where people like us are coming and going and leaving lots of stuff. This one was actually thrown by an English couple who raised their kids here and are ready to go back home. I got this entire tea set (service for 12 minus one teacup) with two plates per cup, a sugar bowl, creamer and cake plate for 30 euros! (about $35) Not something you see around America too often!

So now it is time for hidden pictures! Look closely at the picture…can you find evidence of Belgium versus the toddler round 2? (Round one went to Nancy, she bested the tiny, twisty stairs that might fit better in a doll house…or one of those funny houses with the mirrors that make you look skinny…and didn’t fall once despite many different apartment searches) Unfortunately, she lost this round when we learned her sandals (and energy level) and cobblestones DON’T mix. She has matching battle wounds on her knees. OUCH! Don’t worry though, when I was done with them the cobblestones got the worst of it…

Next, can you find the potato chips? I let Nancy hold them so I could offer a bar of Belgian chocolate to whoever can guess the flavor. I’ll post the answer at the end of the blog…and if you guessed it (we’ll do on your honor) I’ll bring you home a bar.



So, another funny thing about the photo. The location of the garage sale was in Waterloo. Daniel and I were half way there when we were like, “huh, could this be THE waterloo?” On entering we saw a sign with a picture of Napoleon and a cannon, so this was it! We checked out a location commemorating the epic battle that ended Napoleon’s legacy. There is a hill with a lion on it. Information (compliments of Wikipedia):

The hill is surmounted by a statue of a lion mounted upon a stone-block pedestal. The model lion was sculpted by Jean-François Van Geel (1756-1830). The lion is the heraldic beast on the personal coat of arms of the monarch of The Netherlands, and symbolizes courage; its right front paw is upon a sphere, signifying global victory. It is a symbol of the allied victory, rather than as pertaining to a single individual.

I think Daniel said it was where one of the relatives of the Netherland royalty was shot in the shoulder where they decided to build the mound, but I can’t find where he got that, so don’t quote me. Six euros a piece to get to climb to the top, so you get a faraway picture cause I thought they should pay me that to be willing to hike it with two little kids.


More fun Waterloo pictures...The eagle statue was just another one there...Nancy is being an eagle and Tori and I are hiding :)



The mushrooms were actually pictures taken at the church...we haven't seen a lot of bugs (thank goodness!) but I've never seen so many kinds of mushrooms!

Sorry, I can't figure how to format pictures well, so these are just thrown in there. Below is a fun pictures of Tori. One more picture: the box I made for my primary lesson on tithing. I was subbing and it was only my second time at church, so I didn’t have any of my stuff yet because it doesn’t get here until later this week. So I was rather proud of myself for pulling this together…the tape was a last minute addition to luggage by Daniel to help organize cords in the apartment and the scissors on the box are what I used to make the whole thing. FYI, most of the class spoke English, so the class was considerably easier than I thought it would be.

So, that’s it! We’re loving it here, we really feel like we are at the cross-roads of the world. I’ve met people from England, Germany, Czecholslovokia (nice grandpa in the park, shared sand toys with Nancy), Italy, Albania, Nigeria (and several other countries in Africa I can’t pronounce), Albania (that one scared me, she was cleaning our apartment and talking on the phone and I was like, “I don’t understand a word!!!! I’m never going to speak French!!” but it was Albanian, go figure ), El Salvador, Venezuela, and all over the United States. And I’ve only been here two weeks! What an adventure!
Ps. So the chips are Lays chips, flavor Thai Sweet Chilli. The other bag were Mexican peppers and cream. They were gifts. I’m sure they them in the states, but I’ve never seen them!
Pps. I have been corrected…Kiss & Ride signs are all over the east coast! And I had to come here to learn that!

Once Upon a Time...

And so it begins! Daniel, Nancy, Victoria and I are here in Brussels staying in a temporary business flat (fancy word for tiny hotel room with a little kitchen with a dishwasher otherwise known as Afton and housekeeping only when officially requested---playdough + no vacuum + European carpets = bad idea).

I will try to just hit the highlights as I don't want to bore anybody. Daniel is enjoying his new job....though it is more in Dutch then in French. But as expected everyone speaks English so he is ok, just not able to practice as much French as he thought, but that seems to be dependent on the day so we will see. I on the other hand get lots of practice! After five years of studying French the only thing left post Spanish-speaking mission and two pregnancies is a somewhat fabulous accent...thus everyone THINKS I speak French and do things like keep speaking even though it all sounds like gibberish to me and assign me a Primary lesson next week in church after speaking to me for two minutes. But at least they don't switch to English, so I am very slowly learning little by little.

We found an apartment, more on that when we have pictures of it to post. So I’ll just end with some fun cultural differences I’ve noticed. Basic assessment: you can do just about anything you can do in the states and find just about anything you can find in the states, but it will either take you about twice as long or cost you twice as much. There are two exceptions. I cannot find minced onions, though there are ten varieties (no exaggeration) of ground garlic with varying degrees of how ground it is. I did find fried minced onions…ironically in the “American” section of the store, though I’ve never seen anything like it in the states. The second, I have found nothing remotely close to a Jo-Anne’s, not even an itty bitty mini version. A friend said there is somewhere for some scrapbooking and a couple of places with a small selection of fabric, but that is it. However, there are also a few things that are easier and cheaper here or not found in the states, usually involving travel or some form of hazelnut heavy chocolate.

Other interesting notes: Stores are only open until 6, maybe 7:30 for a couple and often closed 2-3 days a week (including restaurants). At least that is what I am assuming, because right now ¼-1/2 of all stores are closed for vacation, from July 27th-August 28th or so…according to the signs, “Aubien-tot!” Some people ignore me completely, and others (especially older ladies) will come into the laundry mat just to admire my girls. The one there found out I was from America and said, “wow, how different. It is so much bigger there,” and she motioned making a tall building with her hand. If she was referring to how spread out it or size of items, she would be right. But coming from Idaho the fact that I’ve only seen a few buildings under seven stories tall since I got here I feel Brussels may be a tad bit bigger. And the only way to tell where one of those buildings ends and the next beginnings is because the brick changes color…no alleys or yards or anything. But I’m also more in the city, we’ll have to explore suburbia.

Families here are small, average two kids and I’ve seen maybe three native families with more. There are many parks, but more for adults. But when there are play places for kids they are fenced in and very safe, though I don’t see why they need to be because the apartments themselves are like toddler death traps with the wide opening windows with no screens or bars and the psychotically suicidal stairs that are ridiculously steep, windy and narrow…the railings if there are any are straight up and down! So no sleep for me for a couple of years…or some very creative window locks!

So I’ll end with a Nancy-ism. I shaved my legs and told Daniel, “Well, I guess I’m not very European,” and Daniel says, “no, not European.” And Nancy, mid diaper change, says, “I’m not “pe-an! You’re changing my diaper. Mommy, are “you-a-pean?” When potty training and world travel collide!

Check out my other post for a few pictures!
Until next time! (which should be shorter!)

Afton

Pictures #1!

I'm not so good at formatting, but enjoy some pictures anyway!

Nancy didn't seem to mind the plane delay...playing London Bridges outside the airport after we found out we had one more day in America.

Not the greatest picture of Victoria, but had to show that she is starting to smile and laugh, though much more without the camera around! She will also "talk," to you...doing one monotone sound until you respond and then throwing in inflection. Super cute!

Nancy running in the park, unless the next photo made you think she is starting to hold still more.

Beautiful girl!

Our first bakery run! Very good, not as sweet as "pastry" in the states.

Our double stroller accidently ended up on the boat with our stuff, so this is how I get around now with no car and two kids. Cobble stone is MURDER on the tiny wheels...a hefty double stroller may be a necessary purchase here with no car and walking as the main form of transporation.

Belgian chocolate! And Belgian pickles in the jar on the left, a creamy type thing...I prefer the chocolate :)

I went for a little walk one day...trying to find a park and this is what I found. WOW! The whole family a little later.

The "Kiss and Ride" is the equivalent of a drop-off zone. Maybe it comes from England, but they may think it comes from America...which is ironic since I've never seen it. All the signs here are in French and Dutch with very few exceptions, this being one of them.