One of Those Days....

I've had several days here in Belgium that make me scratch my head, roll my eyes, and giggle a little. If you leave off the giggle part, you'll go nuts!  These are the totally random days that have a way of just getting worse as the day goes on.  Last Monday, we didn't have much on the agenda for the day, and that turned out to be a good thing because we would have been very disappointed by our lack of accomplishment.  

The day started out with a typical commute to school.  We live close, and it should take less than 10 minutes, but generally it takes 20-25 minutes instead due to traffic.  On Monday, we got to the roundabout, just two long blocks from school, and the traffic completely stopped.  Several minutes later, we pulled up to this....a tree had fallen from the ISB hill and completely blocked three lanes of traffic.  Two lanes were westbound and one was eastbound.  This would create significant problems anywhere, but in a traffic stricken country like Belgium, this creates total chaos!!  So, I was able to make it to school, and the kids were only a couple minutes late, but getting home was a different story.  Luckily, I know the back roads now. :)  But, one hour and seventeen minutes later I arrived back home.  

Since it was mid-morning already, M and M and myself got some things done around the house and decided to head to IKEA for lunch.  Their meatballs and fries are so tasty!

Well of course, it was raining, so we thought it would be a good idea to just shop for something for my mom's brother (my Uncle Joey).  We checked the distance to the store she wanted to stop at, and "Claire" (our know-it-all GPS voice) said the easiest route was straight across Brussels.  It was 25 minutes...no problem!  I don't know why I thought that would be a good idea, but I went with it, and 1 hour and 20 minutes later we arrived at the shop......and it was CLOSED!  Because it was Monday, and if a store is open on Sunday, then it is closed on Monday.  I know better than that!  Agh!!!!!!

The day wasn't a total loss.  We had a wonderful dinner at The Limit in Overijse with the Cundiff family. We had some good old Belgian cuisine, and the kids had dessert, so everyone was happy!

Little tidbits from a few other days....

Surprise Uncle Joey!  We made it back to the shop a few days later. :)  Hope this doesn't ruin the surprise too much.  Mom was very excited to get this for you!

Mike helped me install some screens on our windows.  These are the kind where you put velcro around the window and stick the screen to it.  Works great so far, and our bug problem has significantly decreased.  Who said there are no bugs in Belgium?  That is crazy talk!

Look at this little cutie that was at ISB for pick up.  The day before it was wearing a rain coat.  What a doll!  Cuties like this are not helping with our kids desire for a dog.

Here's the tree now...my luck...the rest of it will fall just as I go walking by to pick up the kids.  I wonder how long they will leave it that way???

My little one eats like a true Belgian now.  His fork is in his left hand and he never puts his knife down.  He's pretty good at it!

And finally, a few shots from our send off at the airport.  I didn't post any crying pictures because they are just too sad.  The kids were pretty excited about the stop at Starbucks...that made the sadness go away just a little.

Thanks for allowing me to reflect on "One of those days".  Sometimes I feel like they happen a little too frequently.  I just keep giggling!

Until next time,

Wendy

M and M's Last Hurrah in Brugge!

It was hard to believe Mom and Mike's last day had arrived.  The two weeks really went by quickly.  We decided to save the city of Brugge for last.  I didn't want to show them all the good stuff at the beginning, and this way the whole family could go.  They both said this was their favorite city in Belgium, so it's good that we didn't do it first or all other cities would not have compared.  

The city actually has two different spellings.  You will see it written as either Brugge or Bruges.  Either way is correct!  Most cities here have two names or spellings...in French and Flemish (Dutch).  It's good to learn them both, so you know where you are headed.  For example, Bergen and Mons are the same city.  That is not confusing at all!  Ha!

A great way to see the city is with the horse and carriage, so that was the first thing we decided to do.  Allison got to ride shotgun first!

Brugge is called the Venice of the North.

We all adore horses! 

Thomas' turn to ride shotgun.

Never a shortage!

Next up was a boat ride on the canal.  I've always wanted to do this.  It was a lot of fun!

The clouds looked very threatening, but it never did rain.  This is generally what the skies in Belgium look like.  My friend Amy put it perfectly...living in Belgium is like living in a Tupperware bowl...and the lid is always on!

Our locale for lunch.  It was good but pricey because it was on the square.

Might be my favorite picture of the day.  It was painted very small on the outside of Zara Home.  I love finding little things like this!

It's a picture perfect European city!

Since we were so close, we drove to the coast for a glimpse of the North Sea.  Now, when I say it is windy, I mean it is really, really windy.  These aren't the beaches of Destin. :) 

We stopped at Chi Chi's for dinner.  It's pretty good!  They just can't seem to understand that I want salt on the rim of my margarita.  Why is that so hard??? :)  It was a great day, and we were sad to see it end.

Until next time,

Wendy

M and M and Some Last Minute Stops

At my mom's request, it was back to the Grand Place to stock up on some goodies for friends and family. Trust me when I say that all of you back home will be fat and happy with the amount of chocolate this dear woman is bringing home to you. :)

Thank you sweet sunshine for taking a brief moment to shine so beautifully on the buildings of the Grand Place. 

Manneken Pis was just "beachy keen" with his surfboard and swim shirt.  Clearly, board shorts would interfere with the pis part. 

And, of course, there were more waffles.  If you come across this place next to Manneken Pis, you won't be disappointed. 

Mike has been such a trooper this whole trip.  He has gone along with everything we have wanted to do, so it was necessary to make a stop at the Delirium Café just for him.  In 2004, this bar became a part of the Guinness Book of World Records with 2004 beers for sale.  

That is one happy camper!

There were 25 beers on tap, while the cave in the basement offers a massive selection of bottled beer.

Mike opted for the Delirium's beer.  He said it was pretty good, but Westvleteren is still better. 

I loved the serving trays on the ceiling.  The beer decor was very cool.  It was a little like a beer museum with the stench of a college bar.

Off to lunch at a restaurant on the Grand Place. 

I don't have pictures of the extraordinary amount of chocolate my mom purchased.  You'll just have to take my word for it.  I hope it all fits in her luggage...well maybe I should hope it doesn't. :)

Until next time,

Wendy