January 2015

The months seem to go by so quickly here.  It's hard to believe March is tomorrow.  So, here is a quick recap of the fun we had in January.

Well, this part wasn't so fun.  Our first weekend back in Brussels after Christmas break, we attended the going away party for the Egge family.  This is another case where dear friends have to leave too soon.

Same night…we were off to Dwight's 40th Birthday party.  Such a young thing!  His lovely wife, Ericka, hosted the most terrific party.  She is quite the party planner!

The following day, it was time for me to celebrate.  No need to discuss numbers here.  I was thrilled to share the day with my birthday buddy, Jeremy!  He was the big FIVE!  Thank you to our wonderful friends for making my (our) day so special.  It was really terrific!

I'm so blessed!

The Krings got me a selfie stick.  I've been wanting one for a while now!  But, this selfie stick was extra special.  It was actual wood with an old cell phone rubber banded to the end.  Hilarious!!  The best part was Chris and Torben walking around the Grand Place and actually acting like they were taking pictures with it.  It was one of those nights where your stomach hurt from giggling.  I wish you could have seen the way people were looking at us.  A few weeks later, my real selfie stick arrived. :)

A coffee stop to end a great birthday!

Thank you to my dear friends in The Gift Boutique for the delicious birthday lunch on Monday.  I walked by and complimented the nice table not even realizing it was for me.  I can be so dense. What a great surprise!  It was turning out to be more of a birthday week!  Love it!  Hahaha!

January 15th, we had some errands to run in the city.  It was just a normal Thursday night.  I did notice an increased number of police cars with their sirens blaring.  And, traffic was worse than usual.  But hey, it's Brussels.  That evening around 10 pm, it was reported that 10 raids were conducted around Belgium to halt the plans of those affiliated with ISIS.  Apparently, these individuals have been on radar for some time, but following the events in Paris, it was necessary to make a move.  It took me a few weeks to make my way back into the city, but then I realized I could not live in fear.  They would win if our lives were changed by these events. 

Just admiring our lovely city…oblivious to what was happening.

Friday, January 16th was a sad day for all of us.  It was the last day of school for the Egge family.  Thomas was particularly sad because he had to say goodbye to Sophia.  On his Instagram he wrote, "Today my girlfriend left ISB.  I had to say goodbye and cried a bit.  Hope you have a wonderful flight and time in D.C."  Bless. His. Heart!  It's not goodbye…it is just we'll see you again soon.

SNOW!  It was the first time we've seen snow in Belgium in two years.  It snowed over Christmas break, but we were in the US.

ISB in the snow.

That weekend, we housed girls from The Hague.  One of the girls was the daughter of the CEO of Staples.  They have a house in Cape Cod, and they are neighbors with the Kennedys.  Bobby's family…just to be clear.  Ha!

Getting her point across during the game.

Do you want to build a snowman?  Sorry, I couldn't resist.

His snowman had a dead plant for hair.

Enjoying some Greek food in Brussels.  I paused for a moment as I looked across the table.  When did she grow up so much???  My beautiful girl….

I want this floor for my kitchen.

ISB hosted the Solo and Ensemble contest this year.  Thomas performed a solo and earned two blue ribbons.  He was also part of a larger ensemble that earned blue ribbons and the highest score!

His fan club!  It's the bow tie. 

I appreciate the mild winters in Belgium.  Forty degree temps and a little bit of sun and the parks are packed.  I also appreciate how fit the Europeans are and how much they enjoy being outdoors.

Maybe I'll get to February before the end of March!  

Until next time,

Wendy

Christmas Break 2014 {Lake Villa, Milwaukee, Chicago, Bloomington, Morton (again) Edition}

The first six days of our trip were a whirlwind, and that continued with a trip to the Chicago suburbs to visit the Vastines.  Our first day together was spent with Chris's mom.  It was great spending time with her as we don't get to do that often enough.

4 of the 8 Vastine siblings

Pictures with Grammy V.

Next up was a trip to Milwaukee! 

Somehow, Aunt Wendy ended up on the elevator with all of the kids. Ha!

The Safe House is a spy themed restaurant, and the perfect setting for our family for lunch.  The food was great, and the group had a super time looking for clues and artifacts around the restaurant.

A real cell door from a prison in Germany.

Flat Sawyer and Flat Sophie even had fun.

Our group was then off to Sprecher's for a brewery tour.  The kids were ready for root beer, and the dads were ready for something a bit stronger.

Felt a little like Germany.

Cheers to delicious root beer!

And cheers to being able to drink more than root beer!

Dinner that evening was adults only!  Are you a meat eater?  If you haven't eaten at Fogo de Chão, you need to add it to your list.  It was amazing!  It was definitely our best meal of the trip…or any trip I think.

Day 3 was the kids' favorite!  The sky was blue and a perfect day to hit the slopes.  We drove about 30 minutes away to Wilmot Mountain.  Skiing there was a great refresher for the kids to get them ready for our ski trip in February.  They had an absolute blast spending the day on the slopes with their cousins and without their parents.  The moms hung out in the lodge while the dads got the "honey do" list checked off at the house.

Lulu and Allison
Thank you for not dropping my phone from the chair lift.

Allison and Brandon

Our attempt to get a group picture was hilarious.  Getting everyone in place proved to be a bit of a challenge.

Allison thought so too!

Cousin love!

Of course there has to be a crazy shot.

"Snowing" at night.  

It's tradition to decorate gingerbread men together.  Thanks to Aunt Amy for always making delicious cookies!

Brandon started to eat his before decorating…so it kind of became more like a Walking Dead gingerbread man.  Poor little guy.

We always have the best time together!
Please pardon the hat.  Once I put on a hat…I'm committed.  There's no going back that day.  Oh the trouble with having short hair.

The "Outlaws"

One last shot of the boys' kids…who are growing up so quickly.  We wanted to have them reenact some of the pictures we took of them when they were little, but they just weren't having that. ;) So the traditional shot in the matching clothes would have to do.  At least we don't make them wear matching pajamas anymore!

Next up was a trip into the city to see the Keown family.  We could NOT WAIT to see them. They moved back to the US in July, and we have missed them so much in Belgium.  They left Kentucky that morning and drove the six hours to Chicago to spend 24 hours with us before driving six more hours home to Cleveland.  Are those good friends, or what?!  I can't even explain how much that meant to all of us.  Next year, we will repay by heading to Ohio to see them!

Allison and Preslee
So happy together!

Portillos!  YUM!!!

We had to get a shot in front of the Hard Rock Cafe since the six of them often ate together at the one in Brussels.  No worries.  We didn't eat there. And, Emerson in that hat…OMG…cutest thing ever!

All smiles…Love being with Lu. :)

My favorite little American Girl

Beautiful Chicago!

Thanks to my friend Alex for recommending the Zoo Lights at the Lincoln Park Zoo.  We had a wonderful time!

It was beautiful….but FREEZING!

What a view from the zoo!!

That is quite a group selfie!

Waiting for dinner.  It was a very long wait!

Pizza…pizza…pizza! Okay, there was really no chatting or pounding on the table.  Just very hungry kids.  Poor Emerson slept through dinner since it was so late.

Lobby view of the hotel.  Wow!

The view from our room.  Good morning Chicago!

Breakfast!

Time for a little shopping!

Apparently, the Nordstrom shoe department is not fun for kids.  Hahahaha!

Garrett Popcorn and this little cutie!

A stop at "The Bean" before leaving town.

Channeling his inner Atlas.

The obligatory reflection shot in the bean!

This view stopped me in my tracks!

So sweet!

December 30th, we arrived back in Morton. We squeezed in a lot of doctor appointments before we could have fun on New Year's Eve.

We love our tradition of meeting up with the Wurths at the Pub II on New Years Eve.  I think we went through at least six orders of cheese balls.  They were fantastic as always…the cheese balls and the Wurths. ;)

I just had to include the first picture of Brad!

Our cute kiddos!

New Year's Eve (evening festivities) were spent with our friends from ISU.  We celebrated Danielle's 40th birthday as well!

Big wishes!

Mini photo shoot….as always.

Look at all that support poor Jenny gets when she falls off the ottoman.  LOL!

Love this group!  Friends for 20+ years now.  So blessed!

Forty and Fabulous!
Happy Birthday, D!  We love you!

I wonder what it is?  I'm the only one who is surprised by the decade gift.  There's one perk to being the oldest.

Dancing and karaoke!

These two ^^ were rockin' it! Ha!

I laughed so hard I cried!

Hmmm…maybe he looks like his Aunt Nicole???

Super glad I let her borrow my dress.  Thankfully, that mess came out.

Preschoolers have a thing for Thomas.

Twinning!  Oldest and youngest cousin.  So cute!

Photo fun!

Back in Morton!  Happy New Year!  It was a great day (and very relaxing) at the Phillips household!

Last year, my friend Molly drove us through Washington to see the devastation from the November 17th tornado.  We drove through again this year, and I was amazed at the progress.  If you didn't know about the tornado, you would just think it was several new subdivisions going up at once.  Molly's parents are in their new home and loving it.  So happy for them.  I know it was a very long year.

Then….

Now!
#Washingtonstrong

Thank you Phillips family for getting us hooked on Trivia Crack.

It was great to see Pete, Jen, and their precious new little Miss "C".  Oh is she adorable!

We are ready for them to come back to Europe for another visit!

Isn't she precious!!!

Dinner that night was at the Tanners and was so much fun for all of us.  It's always nice to spend time with our friends from Lincoln School.

Lunch in Peoria on Saturday with a visit to the CAT Visitors Center.

"The Last Supper" before heading back to Brussels.

Chris finally let the girls sign his cast.

Thank you to our friends for always taking time out of your busy holiday schedules to see us!  It means the world!

After a busy 2+ weeks, it was time for a long winters nap…or a short two hour nap on the plane home.

Back in Brussels with a selfie in front of the advertisement for school (they had a selfie contest for ISB…we don't just take pictures in front of random signs).
We are ready to tackle another year in Belgium and excited about 2015!

Thanks so much to everyone who helped make our home leave the very best it could be.  Looking forward to seeing you all next Christmas.  Or, you could come and see us before then…hint hint!  Better hurry.  Our time here in Belgium is going by quickly.  Don't miss out! ;)

Until next time,
Wendy