Off on the Road to Het Meerdal
A cold and quiet afternoon in our house. The wind is whistling around the building...making the stove vent rattle. There must be cracks in the weatherproofing around the door too, because it sounds like we have a ghost here...whooooooooooo. Josiah and Annika noticed that noise the other day and said it sounded like singing.
We're having a real winter this year, that's for certain. It has been snowing and snowing. We have between 6-9" on the ground, which is a lot for this area. I think it snowed once or twice last winter and otherwise was cold and brown. I have to say that I prefer cold and white over cold and brown. At least the snow is pretty.
Josiah had a late start for school today, the first one they've called this year. We don't really think about late starts since we live on post and he walks to school every day. I bundled him up this morning and sent him off with Hans only to hear his voice in the stairwell 20 minutes later...yep, school was two hours late. Ugh. So that changed my entire morning routine...but we got a nice walk out in the snow. I had to put Will in the Baby Bjorn and wear one of Hans' big fleece coats. It works pretty well. I'm sure that I look pretty strange with this big lump under my coat (his head sticks out at the collar, but the flaps shield him from the wind), but it's the best way I can think of to convey him when pushing the stroller through the drifts isn't an option.
Speaking of which: I need some help. Could anyone find us a 6-12 month bunting or snowsuit? Peder and Sarah sent a great one from Old Navy that we love...it keeps Will so nice and warm and I love that it has flap mittens to keep his fingers warm. But he is fast outgrowing it and I'm having trouble finding one online. Mom? Donna? Anyone going to Target and willing to look? It's not a super-emergency, but if winter keeps on like this, I'm going to need a bigger one. I am very willing to pay for the snowsuit and postage.
The kids have been playing Play-Doh with one of the neighbor girls for almost two hours and they are being so quiet! There's a lot of play involving meatballs. We bought "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs" a couple of weeks ago and it has fast become the favorite here...I recommend it as one of those children's movies that adults can also stand to view. Like anything Pixar and "Kung Fu Panda".
What else to report? Hmmmm. Hey--I had a ladies' night out on Saturday evening and (drum roll) it was all my idea and arranged by me. I'm not usually the type to ask people "out", but I have made a new friend at Josiah's school and I asked my old neighbor/friend Tracy. Each of those ladies asked someone else, so we were a party of five at a local Chinese restaurant. An interesting group from all over the States, one of us older and former Army, three of us young(er) mothers with small children and one female Navy fighter pilot (way cool!). A fantastic time was had by all with many mentions of "doing it again very soon" and the sweet and sour chicken was excellent.
OK, last. We are taking off Thursday and headed north towards The Netherlands. We're planning on staying overnight in Koln (Cologne) on Thursday night. It's not terribly far, only about 3-1/2 hours, but we've been hearing fantastic things about the cathedral there. It's another 1 to 1-1/2 hours further to Het Meerdal, where we will be enjoying the Center Parc life for the long weekend. I'm hoping that the park is truly as fantastic as the website makes it look!
That's about it for now...I have supper to make and sixteen pounds of Play-Doh to clean up!
We're having a real winter this year, that's for certain. It has been snowing and snowing. We have between 6-9" on the ground, which is a lot for this area. I think it snowed once or twice last winter and otherwise was cold and brown. I have to say that I prefer cold and white over cold and brown. At least the snow is pretty.
Josiah had a late start for school today, the first one they've called this year. We don't really think about late starts since we live on post and he walks to school every day. I bundled him up this morning and sent him off with Hans only to hear his voice in the stairwell 20 minutes later...yep, school was two hours late. Ugh. So that changed my entire morning routine...but we got a nice walk out in the snow. I had to put Will in the Baby Bjorn and wear one of Hans' big fleece coats. It works pretty well. I'm sure that I look pretty strange with this big lump under my coat (his head sticks out at the collar, but the flaps shield him from the wind), but it's the best way I can think of to convey him when pushing the stroller through the drifts isn't an option.
Speaking of which: I need some help. Could anyone find us a 6-12 month bunting or snowsuit? Peder and Sarah sent a great one from Old Navy that we love...it keeps Will so nice and warm and I love that it has flap mittens to keep his fingers warm. But he is fast outgrowing it and I'm having trouble finding one online. Mom? Donna? Anyone going to Target and willing to look? It's not a super-emergency, but if winter keeps on like this, I'm going to need a bigger one. I am very willing to pay for the snowsuit and postage.
The kids have been playing Play-Doh with one of the neighbor girls for almost two hours and they are being so quiet! There's a lot of play involving meatballs. We bought "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs" a couple of weeks ago and it has fast become the favorite here...I recommend it as one of those children's movies that adults can also stand to view. Like anything Pixar and "Kung Fu Panda".
What else to report? Hmmmm. Hey--I had a ladies' night out on Saturday evening and (drum roll) it was all my idea and arranged by me. I'm not usually the type to ask people "out", but I have made a new friend at Josiah's school and I asked my old neighbor/friend Tracy. Each of those ladies asked someone else, so we were a party of five at a local Chinese restaurant. An interesting group from all over the States, one of us older and former Army, three of us young(er) mothers with small children and one female Navy fighter pilot (way cool!). A fantastic time was had by all with many mentions of "doing it again very soon" and the sweet and sour chicken was excellent.
OK, last. We are taking off Thursday and headed north towards The Netherlands. We're planning on staying overnight in Koln (Cologne) on Thursday night. It's not terribly far, only about 3-1/2 hours, but we've been hearing fantastic things about the cathedral there. It's another 1 to 1-1/2 hours further to Het Meerdal, where we will be enjoying the Center Parc life for the long weekend. I'm hoping that the park is truly as fantastic as the website makes it look!
That's about it for now...I have supper to make and sixteen pounds of Play-Doh to clean up!
Comments
I'll try to see what I can find to keep Will warm.
Have fun this weekend, sounds amazing as do all of your adventures.