The moving trucks... Yes it is all coming in the window.
Our container!
The cleanest our apartment has been in 1.5 weeks...the unpacking hadn't started yet.
Our apartment is now filled with boxes that are half unpacked, empty boxes and our own stuff!
We celebrated Thanksgiving by having turkey at Hard Rock Cafe. We were invited to an Adidas expat thanksgiving (a mutual friend of Bill & Bob's). I wasn't up to being social, particularly after having to work all day so we opted to risk Hard Rock. I am always suprised by just how bad their food is. I know, I know, I should have known it wasn't going to be good and would be filled with American tourists, but I was hopeful.
Friday evening we decided to make another, rather major, trip to Ikea. This time for a closet/wardrobe set up for our bedroom and more baby room stuff. Kevin is building a changing table/drawer/closet setup and we can never get all of the pieces we need at the same time. We had 2 of the "flat pack" carts filled, thank goodness they deliver and carry all of the boxes up the stairs. I am not much help when it comes to carrying things.
Saturday was spent assembling Ikea furniture.
Friday evening we decided to make another, rather major, trip to Ikea. This time for a closet/wardrobe set up for our bedroom and more baby room stuff. Kevin is building a changing table/drawer/closet setup and we can never get all of the pieces we need at the same time. We had 2 of the "flat pack" carts filled, thank goodness they deliver and carry all of the boxes up the stairs. I am not much help when it comes to carrying things.
Saturday was spent assembling Ikea furniture.
On Sunday we broke down and bought our second Dyson. We had a Dyson in the US and loved it. We left it with Peggy & Joel as it wouldn't work here. Our friends Diane & Alexander have offered us their's, when they return to the US in June. We decided we couldn't wait that long for a vacuum and we didn't want to put up with anything less until then. We also rode our bikes to the a "Book Festival", which is basically a traveling book sale that is in a different town in either Belgium or the Netherlands each month. Wouldn't you know we came home with a box (it was small at least) of books. Just what we needed, more boxes.
Monday Dec 1 was our first Dutch lesson with Berlitz. Kevin and I are in a semi-private lesson with just the two of us. Now most people know we are both pretty competitive, especially with each other...so this should be entertaining. It didn't take long before Kevin was showing off his advanced vocaulary and grammer while I was struggling with the basic introductions.
On Tuesday, Dec 2, I had to get up at 5:30...making a pregnant woman get up that early is just plain evil! I had to go to Laakdal for an all day meeting and I needed to catch the tram at 6:30 so I could be at Central Station to meet Tony at 7. Needless to say I slept for the first hour of the drive and went to bed as soon as I got home.
Today I came home to a quiet apartment. Kevin and the dogs were no where to be found, however there was suprise on the end table...a T-Mobile iPhone bag! It could mean only one thing...Kevin had gotten me an iPhone, bless his heart. He came home about 20 minutes later, with the dogs, later from the grocery store. He was in a pretty crappy mood as he had spent more time dealing with our favorite bank, ABN AMRO, and his sim card on his iPhone is locked...and he can't find the PIN. Which means he has to go back to the T-mobile store. It is actually a good thing he can't work yet as if we were both working we wouldn't be able to get any of this done.
Yes, 2 months later we still don't have internet banking. The latest dilemna is that you need this little nifty maching (called an e.dentifer) to log in to internet banking. We finally have one, however to use it you have to download the software. Here is the catch, to download the software you need to log in to the internet banking... Kevin has found one branch that actually provides some semblance of service, even with that it has taken weeks to make any progress. With all of the other branches you have to wait in line for an hour before they tell you to call the telephone bankning number, which charges you .10 a minute...even while on hold. ERRGH.
Kevin also met an American woman who is going to watch the dogs when we go away on the weekends (if we can ever get settled enough to get away). He met Denessa at Vondelpark with the dogs. He didn't want to walk (it is only 15 minutes) so he hooked the bike trailer up to his bike and then tied the dogs' leashes to the handle. I can only imagine the sight this was. Maggie lagging behind, not wanting to get too close to the wheels with her ears back (in her "I am not happy" posture), while Duke was trying to heel. Duke was heeling next to Kevin, while tied to the back of the trailer, which meant he was very happy yet choking himself. We have to figure out a better leash management system if Kevin is going to try this again! Once at the park a little boy came up to him and said something in dutch. Kevin told him he didn't speak dutch and asked if he spoke english (all in dutch). The boy answered in English "I speak dutch". He then asked if he could touch the dogs. Duke was pretty reserved at first, meaning he was only licking the boys arm...however Kevin saw what was about to happen next...yup, full tongue lick...from chin to forehead.
Saturday we are headed to Cologne with Kristen. We have been told Cologne has the Christmas market of all Christmas markets, and a cathedral that Kevin HAS to see.
Monday Dec 1 was our first Dutch lesson with Berlitz. Kevin and I are in a semi-private lesson with just the two of us. Now most people know we are both pretty competitive, especially with each other...so this should be entertaining. It didn't take long before Kevin was showing off his advanced vocaulary and grammer while I was struggling with the basic introductions.
On Tuesday, Dec 2, I had to get up at 5:30...making a pregnant woman get up that early is just plain evil! I had to go to Laakdal for an all day meeting and I needed to catch the tram at 6:30 so I could be at Central Station to meet Tony at 7. Needless to say I slept for the first hour of the drive and went to bed as soon as I got home.
Today I came home to a quiet apartment. Kevin and the dogs were no where to be found, however there was suprise on the end table...a T-Mobile iPhone bag! It could mean only one thing...Kevin had gotten me an iPhone, bless his heart. He came home about 20 minutes later, with the dogs, later from the grocery store. He was in a pretty crappy mood as he had spent more time dealing with our favorite bank, ABN AMRO, and his sim card on his iPhone is locked...and he can't find the PIN. Which means he has to go back to the T-mobile store. It is actually a good thing he can't work yet as if we were both working we wouldn't be able to get any of this done.
Yes, 2 months later we still don't have internet banking. The latest dilemna is that you need this little nifty maching (called an e.dentifer) to log in to internet banking. We finally have one, however to use it you have to download the software. Here is the catch, to download the software you need to log in to the internet banking... Kevin has found one branch that actually provides some semblance of service, even with that it has taken weeks to make any progress. With all of the other branches you have to wait in line for an hour before they tell you to call the telephone bankning number, which charges you .10 a minute...even while on hold. ERRGH.
Kevin also met an American woman who is going to watch the dogs when we go away on the weekends (if we can ever get settled enough to get away). He met Denessa at Vondelpark with the dogs. He didn't want to walk (it is only 15 minutes) so he hooked the bike trailer up to his bike and then tied the dogs' leashes to the handle. I can only imagine the sight this was. Maggie lagging behind, not wanting to get too close to the wheels with her ears back (in her "I am not happy" posture), while Duke was trying to heel. Duke was heeling next to Kevin, while tied to the back of the trailer, which meant he was very happy yet choking himself. We have to figure out a better leash management system if Kevin is going to try this again! Once at the park a little boy came up to him and said something in dutch. Kevin told him he didn't speak dutch and asked if he spoke english (all in dutch). The boy answered in English "I speak dutch". He then asked if he could touch the dogs. Duke was pretty reserved at first, meaning he was only licking the boys arm...however Kevin saw what was about to happen next...yup, full tongue lick...from chin to forehead.
Saturday we are headed to Cologne with Kristen. We have been told Cologne has the Christmas market of all Christmas markets, and a cathedral that Kevin HAS to see.
1 comment:
Dana - I've seen the Colgone Cathedral lit up at night while coming into the train station (in 1978 on a post high-school trip). It was one of the most beautiful sights I've ever seen (or at least until that point in my 18 year life). Hope you got to see it and that it was as incredible as I remember!
Kathy
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