Thursday, August 30, 2007
Dutch-Postkantoor English-Post office
Wahoo!!! We received our very first care package today!!!! Thanks, Mema!!! It is a box about the size of a cube of pop and makes a bunch of noise when I shake it, much like the sound of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese! Could it be? I have decided not to open it until Olivia comes home from school, as she will be delighted to tear off all five hundred strips of packing tape!!!!!! Seriously Mother, did you think they would strap it to the top of the plane??? Just kidding!!! I love that about you. This is like Christmas in August, I am not sure if I can stand it. I'll have to put it in a closet so, that I am not tempted to "peek". Oh, that's right!!! We don't have closets!!! Will post more later!
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Foriegn Living...For Dummies!
So, I turbo grilled the brownies! You heard me right, I TURBO grilled them. My oven here is called a Kombi, meaning combination of Grill, Oven, Microwave and Carwash. (not really the carwash part but, might as well be!) Anyhow, it is above my dorm room sized refridgerator, where the freezer would be if there was one! The freezer is conveniently located in the garage that you must walk through the garden (backyard) to get to. Back to the Brownies....I burnt them after spending about an hour trying to translate the Dutch directions, which ended up saying "mix with water and bake" but, in a lot more words. To sum up my experience, thus far, take the Brownie incident multiply by three times a day for about 19 days and see what you come up with!!!!!
On the flip side, it has been very fun, very exciting and very educational. We have been to the sea, we have toured a castle, we've been exploring our area on bikes and this past weekend we drove to Antwerp, Belgium. It was about an hour drive for us to spend the day at one of the worlds oldest zoos. It is, by far, the best zoo I have ever been to.
Olivia is doing well in her new school. She has a very nice teacher, who is from the U.S. She has a Dutch lesson three times a week. So far, she has learned to count to ten, basic colors, family names and some basic terms. She will learn quickly, she is a smarty pants!! She has made a few friends. She is having her second "playdate" at our house today and attended a birthday party of a girl in her class last weekend. She does, however, get lonely for home, friends and family. Our neighbors have been very welcoming, we've been invited both Friday nights that we've been here, for drinks/koffie. They speak english very well so, it is comfortable relating to them.
Matt is doing well in his new position at work. They "formally" introduced him and his project last week and are in the process of creating a "place" for him. As of now, he is sitting at someone elses desk. He has been biking to and from work each day, which is about five or six miles each way. It is a beautiful ride as some of it is through the forest and farm fields. Matt has also made friends with the neighbor "guys". They have invited him to join their biking club on Sunday mornings. Matt said that they showed him a promo video that they made, apparently quite entertaining. Could be a very fun couple of guys to hang out with.
Many fun experiences ahead, will do my best at updating this blog....especially if I know someone is reading it!!!
Tot Ziens!
On the flip side, it has been very fun, very exciting and very educational. We have been to the sea, we have toured a castle, we've been exploring our area on bikes and this past weekend we drove to Antwerp, Belgium. It was about an hour drive for us to spend the day at one of the worlds oldest zoos. It is, by far, the best zoo I have ever been to.
Olivia is doing well in her new school. She has a very nice teacher, who is from the U.S. She has a Dutch lesson three times a week. So far, she has learned to count to ten, basic colors, family names and some basic terms. She will learn quickly, she is a smarty pants!! She has made a few friends. She is having her second "playdate" at our house today and attended a birthday party of a girl in her class last weekend. She does, however, get lonely for home, friends and family. Our neighbors have been very welcoming, we've been invited both Friday nights that we've been here, for drinks/koffie. They speak english very well so, it is comfortable relating to them.
Matt is doing well in his new position at work. They "formally" introduced him and his project last week and are in the process of creating a "place" for him. As of now, he is sitting at someone elses desk. He has been biking to and from work each day, which is about five or six miles each way. It is a beautiful ride as some of it is through the forest and farm fields. Matt has also made friends with the neighbor "guys". They have invited him to join their biking club on Sunday mornings. Matt said that they showed him a promo video that they made, apparently quite entertaining. Could be a very fun couple of guys to hang out with.
Many fun experiences ahead, will do my best at updating this blog....especially if I know someone is reading it!!!
Tot Ziens!
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