Dutchnic

Hanna sings

2010-04-09T21:17:00.002+02:00

Hanna has a new hobby... she sings! Look:

Thank goodness the camera was close. She's 4 1/2 months old now, time is flying!

Pictures

2010-01-31T13:11:00.002+01:00

Because pictures say more than a thousand words....

I guess I haven't written on here since Hanna was born. She's 11 weeks old now and things are going amazingly. She's growing rapidly and very laid-back. She only cries if she's hungry, has a dirty diaper, loses her pacifier or is tired.
I've started writing her birth story but it's becoming longer than I thought, and it's not done yet. I get distracted all the time, I wonder why!

Hanna

2009-11-16T22:40:00.001+01:00

Our daughter Hanna was born Friday the 13th at 12:22 AM. We started at home but ended up going to the hospital. I'm not going to share the whole story today, but things are going well and we were discharged Friday at noon. We're home now and things are going fine.

Pictures here:

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=160336&id=654927353&l=7985eab129

Hospital

2009-11-12T14:06:00.000+01:00

Today I went to the hospital for a check-up. I had a CTG and ultrasound; both were fine. There's enough amniotic fluid left, which means the placenta still works well. The ob/gyn was pleased, she said baby was doing great. She gave me the choice: I could be induced tomorrow or Monday, but no later than Tuesday. We decided to wait until Tuesday, because that's when I'm 42 weeks along and a homebirth is no longer an option. Just to make sure things stay okay, I have to go in for another CTG/ultrasound on Saturday (if I haven't delivered by then). It was nice to hear everything was fine.

Midwife

2009-11-09T18:41:00.002+01:00

Today I went for another check-up. Everything was fine. But (standard procedure at 41 weeks) the midwife told me to set up appointment in the hospital for Thursday. They're going to do a CTG and ultrasound to make sure that everything is ok with baby, placenta and amniotic fluid. If things go well (the midwife expected them to) they will probably strip my membranes on Friday. That might jumpstart the contractions. If it doesn't work, they'll try that again on Sunday. If I haven't delivered by Monday night, I have to go to the hospital on Tuesday to be induced. But I really hope that won't be necessary, because I really want that homebirth!

Nope, still nothing

2009-11-06T13:24:00.001+01:00

Just for the people who keep checking and think "it's awfully quiet, I wonder if she's delivered yet?"... sorry. No baby, just a pregnant mama who's very ready!

No baby yet

2009-11-03T22:11:00.003+01:00

Well, today was my due date. I read somewhere that only five percent of babies are born on their due date, and that first babies are on average eight days late. Isn't that lovely... So to keep you all occupied I posted some pictures of my big 40 week pregnant self.

The bounties of the land

2009-10-27T10:40:00.004+01:00

Look, Nicolien! I caught a bird. Yay! I'm really proud of myself.

Wanna have it? 'Cause you can, you know. We can share it. Want me to bring it into the house for you? 'Cause I will. I'll even put it on the couch where you can reach it easier, if you want.

See, I dropped it here especially for you. That way it won't get my drool all over it while you decide.

Don't want it? Really?
*I'll never understand those weird humans...*
OK, then I'll just eat it myself.

Stairs

2009-10-23T19:10:00.001+02:00

Our house was almost finished, and we've been living here for six months now, but we still missed one thing. We didn't have stairs yet. The ladder worked fine for a while, but as my belly got bigger and bigger it became harder for me to go upstairs. The past month I was afraid to go up, so I just stayed downstairs. But as of last week, that's over. We finally have our stairs! I think they look beautiful (and it's so nice to be able to go see the second floor of my house again ). The nursery will be upstairs. We don't have it in order yet, because the baby will stay in our room for the first few weeks. That's why the bassinet and the changing table are in our room for now.

Sisters in-law

2009-10-21T16:00:00.001+02:00

M's sister is pregnant with her second. Today she dropped by, and we took some pictures of our big bellies. I'm 38 weeks 2 days, she's 27 weeks 6 days along.

Reassured

2009-10-15T13:07:00.003+02:00

Last night, after dinner, I sat down on the couch. Usually that's the time when my baby decides to start disco dancing, so I was well prepared for that, or at least a case of the hiccups. That didn't happen however. I didn't feel anything. I started to think when I had last felt the baby, and that's when I started to worry. I couldn't remember feeling the baby all afternoon. Not when I laid down for my nap, not while I sat on the couch. And I usually feel the baby as soon as I sit down.

One of the things my midwife had told me on Monday, was to call if I didn't feel the baby as much as I had before, considering the bloodpressure and traces of protein. So - rather stressed out - I called M, who was on his way back from a trade fair in Amsterdam and of course was stuck in traffic. He told me to call the midwife, who asked me to come in to the office right away.
So I walked over to the in-laws (who live down the street) and my mother-in-law took me to the midwife's. Thank goodness she found a very strong heartbeat, so that was nice. My blood pressure was through the roof (understandably, considering my stress) but the traces of protein in my urine were gone. M came in right when she told me she wanted me to go to the hospital for a CTG, just in case.

So we went to the hospital and I was hooked up to a machine. They took my blood pressure again, and took a 30 minute CTG. The hospital midwife told me it looked like a happy baby, and it showed lots of movements. The weird thing was that I still hadn't felt anything. She made an ultrasound which also showed a moving baby. I just didn't feel it. That's why she called in the ob/gyn. The ob/gyn also made an ultrasound and took a lot of time for us. We got a very good view, we even saw the baby's face. He/she was sucking his/her thumb! She told me that the baby had dropped nicely and that I probably didn't feel anything because the placenta was very close to the baby's arms and legs. So if it moves a little, it's cushioned by the placenta, and that's why I don't feel it. Apparently it had turned around recently, because its position was different than last week.

She measured a few body parts. The baby has a big head (which all people in my side of the family do, hats never fit me) and long legs (like my husband). The growth was equivalent of a 38 week baby (and I was 37 weeks and 1 day). She measured it at 3 kilos, or 6 lbs 10 oz. Both the ob/gyn and the midwife told me it will be a "healthy big baby".
All in all I'm glad I went in. I wouldn't have slept at all, and I was getting so stressed out. It cost us an hour and a half but definitely reassured us all was fine. I don't even have to in to the midwife's again today, because they tested me so thoroughly last night. Phew!

The last stretch

2009-10-13T10:45:00.002+02:00

Warning: this might not be a very positive post.

Yesterday I went to see the midwife, like I do every week. She measured my blood pressure, and then measured it again. I thought that was funny. It turned out to be 120/90 both times, as opposed to the steady 110/70 it had been throughout most of my pregnancy. Then she looked at my hands. "Your fingers are swollen, aren't they?" Yes, they are. "How has your weight gain been the past few weeks?" Two kilos in two weeks (that's 4.4 lbs). Then they tested my urine, and found traces of protein in it. All of this could - but does not necessarily does - point to signs of preeclampsia. I had not been nauseous or had blurred vision, and I still feel ok. Sure, I sleep well for two nights and then hardly sleep the third night, and the skin on my belly sometimes itches like there's a hundred ants creeping underneath, but that's supposed to be normal for the last stretch, right?

The midwife told me to go home and not worry, because that's not good for my blood pressure. She does want to see me in again on Thursday instead of next Monday.
I guess I shouldn't worry. If she really thought it was preeclampsia, she wouldn't have sent me home but told me to go to the hospital right away. And I'm exactly 37 weeks along. That's considered a milestone over here. Not only is the baby full-term now, but also you have to be at least 37 weeks along to be allowed to deliver at home. So if I get contractions now (and I continue to feel ok and things go normally, as far as that's possible in labor) I'll be allowed to stay at home to have my baby. And that's what I really want!

Family heirloom

2009-10-06T11:58:00.003+02:00

When I told my parents about my pregnancy, one of the first things my mom asked me was if I wanted to use her family's bassinet. I didn't even realise that there was a family bassinet, let alone had I considered using it. She got out the photo albums and showed me that I slept in it too, for the first few months of my life.

It was made in 1946 for my aunt. After that my mom, cousins, distant cousins, brother and I slept in it. Of course I love history like that, so we went to my aunt and uncle's to look at it.
It needed some work. The upholstery was gone and there was no mattress. But we brought it home with us and my mother-in-law offered to help. In the end, she didn't just help, but she and M's aunt did all the work. All I did was go the market with them to pick out the material. When we came back from our vacation, it was right there next to our bed. Isn't it beautiful?

Our baby will have a historical start. Hopefully it will be born in the house that was built by daddy's family in 1863, and then sleep in the bassinet that was made for mommy's family in 1946. We think that's pretty cool!

Green thumb

2009-10-04T13:25:00.000+02:00

Aside from all the baby stuff, I'm trying to decorate the house a little more now too. And that's pretty easy with an abundance of flowers in the garden. Today I pulled out my green thumbs and put them to work. I cut some sunflowers and zinnias. Every year I plant sunflowers and zinnias and every year I'm surprised at the enormous yield of only a limited amount of plants.

Then, I went around in my house and decided to try and start some new plants. I had two Kalanchoes that were really ugly looking. After some searching online I found that they're really easy to replant, so I cut a few stems of and planted them. I also did that with a Tolmiea (Dutch name: baby-on-mother's-lap, so much cuter). When I was browsing around the chicken shed, looking for pots, I found this pot with three hyacinth bulbs that I had had inside last spring. I noticed they had sprouted again, so I watered the bulbs and put the pot in a window sill. It's always exciting to see if it's going to work out!

Almost there

2009-10-02T22:26:00.002+02:00

The last time I posted I was 25 weeks along... and today I'm posting pictures taken yesterday (35 weeks and 3 days). I figured that I would have more time to post pictures over the summer, but that didn't turn out to be true. I don't know why, but I just don't seem to get to writing anymore. But people have been asking me how I have been, so I figured I'd write an update. So... here goes!

This is how I looked yesterday (a little grumpy, apparently ;-)).

As you can tell my belly has grown a lot! My maternity leave started a week ago. I decided to stop working 6 weeks before the due date, and I'm very glad about that. Now I can do what I want to do and I don't have to work anymore! I'm taking things very easily (while I still can). When M leaves for work I turn off the alarm, turn around and I wake up when I wake up. Usually that's somewhere between 9 and 10. And then I do, well, what do I do? I've been taking maternity classes, breastfeeding classes, I've been shopping and washing baby clothes. Every afternoon I take a nap. That's my life in a nutshell. Pretty boring, huh? I'm enjoying it though. Yesterday I went to the midwife and she told me that the baby hasn't dropped yet. It is in the right position, so it's starting to move down. Next Wednesday we'll have an ultrasound to check the position. I didn't know that was the new standard, so it surprised me a little. But it will be fun to look at the baby again before I really get to see it!

Another belly photo and some ramblings

2009-07-23T14:59:00.003+02:00

So here's that long overdue update... I can't believe how time is flying by! The past few weeks have been extremely busy. Finishing the school is year is never an easy task, but it's been extremely hard this year because we had to go so late into July. Usually we get out mid-June, now July 9th was the last student day, and July 17th was the last faculty day. I don't believe it's possible to go longer... For me it's ok though, because this means that we go back late too. September 7th is the first day of school, and October 6th is when my maternity leave starts. Those four weeks should be doable! I get 16 weeks of paid leave, so I won't have to go back until February 1st, which is when our second semester starts. Pretty good timing, all in all.

Health wise I've been very lucky. I've felt great for weeks now. Of course I'm tired sometimes, and when I do too much I feel the occasional Braxton-Hicks, but nothing out of the ordinary has happened. I feel the baby move several times each day now, and Maarten was able to feel it for the first time two days ago. We've already settled on the names (no, not sharing!) but we still need to come up with a middle name for if it's a boy.

The house is getting to be close to done as well. The upstairs bedrooms have been painted and we can pick up the vinyl for the floors tomorrow. We don't have stairs yet, that might take another 8 weeks. But when the baby is here everything should be done. So all is good! I'm such a lucky girl!

Belly photo

2009-06-15T20:46:00.003+02:00

Two days shy of 20 weeks.... people have asked me if I'm ready to pop already! No people, I'm only halfway... and as far as I know I'm not carrying twins!

Very funny

2009-06-05T12:01:00.000+02:00

Maybe it's because Mexican food isn't as widely available here as it is in the Sates.. but I saw this and just had to share it. It's so funny!!

T-Mobile Mom to Mom Quiz

2009-05-19T22:25:00.000+02:00

So, technically, I'm not a mom yet. But I guess it couldn't hurt to find out what kind of mom I will be, right?

T-Mobile Mom to Mom Quiz: "

Take the fun, Mom to Mom quiz and discover your parenting style.

Living room

2009-05-11T20:34:00.002+02:00

Some people have asked me for some new pictures of my house. So here is one of the most finished rooms of the house: the living room.
First: view from the kitchen. Never mind the coats hanging over the chair: we don't have a coat rack yet..

Lots of light! We have a lot of windows, which I totally love. Almost all of them are double glazed, so they're energy efficient too.

The piano that my grandfather gave me for my wedding (it used to be his).

Turned around (the piano behind me). Note the nosy kitty.

Nosy kitty is also a lazy kitty.

Thank You Cake

2009-05-05T14:25:00.003+02:00

A friend of my mother's gave me nine tomato plants for my garden. Every year, since I started gardening, he has given me plants. The first year there were two, last year five and this year nine! He never wants anything in return, and it's always hard to think of something to thank him. This year I decided to bake him a cake. Well, it's really a banana nut bread recipe, but I left out the nuts. And this recipe turns out more like a cake than a bread, so I renamed it Thank You Cake. I found the recipe on allrecipes.com but I changed it a little.

Nicolien's Thank You Cake
100 g white sugar
100 g brown sugar
100 g butter
1-1/2 eggs (I use one big egg and 1 one little egg)
170 g mashed bananas (about two little bananas)
100 g cake flour
100 g wheat flour
150 ml buttermilk
3 g baking soda
3 g baking powder
3 ml vanilla extract
30 g chopped walnuts (this time I used chocolate chips instead of nuts)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Cream together butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in bananas, buttermilk, and vanilla. Mix in flour, baking powder, and soda. Stir in chocolate chips or nuts if desired. Pour batter into a greased 9x5 inch pan.
3. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.

This makes a really moist, crumbly cake. I've baked it several times and everybody who has tried it, loved it. Of course, people over here don't know banana nut bread so they have nothing to compare it to..

Kitchen chicks

2009-05-02T11:24:00.001+02:00

New addition to our household: the first two chicks that hatched! One was born yesterday, the other one today. As far as I know the chickens are still brooding on four or five more eggs, but it's hard to see. For some reason my chickens always brood in pairs: they co-parent the eggs and later the babies. That's fine with me, but the only problem is that when you lift one chicken up to see how many eggs are underneath her, the other chicken hurries up and covers the eggs with her feathers (and warmth). I'll have to be patient and let them surprise me.

I brought the chicks in the house to have them pose for me. Isn't it funny how the brown chick is almost twice the size of the yellow one? They're different kinds of chickens, that's easy to see.

Belly pillow

2009-04-29T21:20:00.002+02:00

You might have noticed that the whole pregnancy thing is new for me. A whole new world is opening, to use a Dutch expresson. I'm learning new things every day...

Yesterday my best friend and I went shopping. My jeans are getting very snug, so it was time to buy some maternity pants. When we were at Prenatal (pregnant mom/baby store) I decided to try on a pair of jeans. When I walked into the dressing room, I saw a funny little pillow hanging on a hook. We figured out pretty quickly what it was: it was a belly pillow! You're supposed to stuff it underneath your clothes so you can have a little preview of what you're going to look like when you're farther along. It was so funny!

Here they are.. the before and after pictures!

Pizza

2009-04-27T21:15:00.004+02:00

Today I was in the mood for something fishy, but not another tuna or salmon pasta dish. I had been reading recipes online and found out that making pizza from scratch was supposed to be really easy. I tried my hand at it, and easy it was! Besides, all the ingredients were in my pantry so I didn't even need to run to the store.

After making a spinach and tuna pizza, I trimmed the crust a bit and ended up having enough dough for a second little one. I topped it with fresh tomato, pesto and mozzarella. But when it came out of the oven, we were already full from eating the first pizza, so I saved it.

A few minutes ago, I found myself eating the mini-pizza, cold. I don't think that's what the midwife meant when she told me to eat several mini-meals a day, but I guess there are a lot of unhealthier things I could have eaten three hours after dinner time...

Coldframe

2009-04-25T08:24:00.000+02:00

Inspired by Duct Tape and Baling Twine, who has a family of 10 kids to feed, I started my garden yesterday.

First, I cleared out my coldframe. I could hardly see where it was anymore, because I hadn't used it last year and it was covered in weeds. Then, I filled some pots and flats with potting soil. And then I dug out my seed box. All of a sudden I'm really looking forward to gardening again. I did miss it last year. Of course, I had some tomato plants and a zucchini, but I don't really call that a garden. I mean to do better this year.

That's why I started zinnias (two sizes), sunflowers, zucchini, melons, red onions, gourds and nasturtium. I already have some tomato plants and a pepper plant that a friend of my mom's gave me.
The next challenge will be to get the garden tilled. M has so much to do in the house that he doesn't have the time (and I really don't want to ask him). It's been very dry, so the ground is hard, which means that it's not really an option for me either. I'm going to try and see if we can have a tiller come over and do it for us.

Spring stroll

2009-04-24T07:32:00.001+02:00

The midwife recommended that I keep exercising, so tonight after dinner I went for a walk. It was a calm spring evening, and I was in one of those moods where all of a sudden you can see the beauty in little things.
Like for instance these lambs.

And this beautiful row of chestnut trees. I love chestnut trees in the spring, they look so bold and powerful!

Lunch pigeon

2009-04-23T12:41:00.002+02:00

Every day for four days now, this pigeon has showed up right next to my patio doors as I was eating my lunch. Every day he's been coming closer and closer to the doors, not scared at all. Today he allowed me to take a picture of him. He's not shy at all. He walk around, pecking here and there, and then leaves again. I wonder if he'll be here again tomorrow..

Not a chicken

2009-04-22T13:47:00.002+02:00

Sometimes I'm so glad I'm not a chicken. Imagine having to lay a 7 cm (2.75 inch) egg!

Ok, I hadn't meant to make this an anology. But all of a sudden I'm reminded that I'm pregnant and that the average baby is a lot bigger. Mm, I guess I'm not going to think of that yet...

Dizzy

2009-04-21T09:41:00.000+02:00

So far my pregnancy has been painless... no morning sickness, no weird cravings. The only strange thing was that all of a sudden I didn't like coffee anymore. But now I had to call in sick this morning (and yesterday) because I feel so dizzy. The world spins! Even if I eat something (this morning M brought me breakfast in bed when he got up at 6:30) it doesn't help. I didn't have to start until 10 today, so I got up around 8:30. Ate another little bite, took a shower, but still I felt really faint.

I called the midwife and she told me not to worry. She said to take it seriously (and not drive if I don't feel like that's smart) but this will pass. I'm supposed to eat several mini-meals a day to keep my blood sugar levels up. Weird but I guess things could be worse..

Ultrasound

2009-04-16T10:18:00.002+02:00

Last night we had the second ultrasound. Last time the baby looked like a little peanut with a flashing light in it, this time it really looked like a baby. I'm usually not too good with ultrasound pictures but apparently the baby was posing beautifully so we both understood which body part was which right away.

Here she/he is! (No, we don't know what the gender is, and we don't want to know either.) Ten weeks and six days along, 4.34 cm from crown to rump.

The baby's head is on the left, you can even see its nose. On the right the leg is clearly visible. It's a baby!

Very good news

2009-03-23T20:47:00.001+01:00

Not only did we finally move into the house last weekend, there's some other good news to share as well. A picture is worth a thousand words, they say, so here it is...

Yes, I'm pregnant. I'm due 3 November, so tomorrow I'll be eight weeks along. We are ecstatic (and I'm also very tired and I have to pee a lot). Yay!

Caved

2009-02-25T11:33:00.001+01:00

Yes, people. I caved. In two weeks this baby will be mine. Boy, do I look forward to that moment. Am I a geek?

Bliss

2009-02-14T20:38:00.004+01:00

The bathrooms are finished! Today I was able to enjoy my first bath..

This is the shower:
This is the half bathroom with the toilet and sink.

And here's the other side of the bathroom, with the urinal. They're getting more and more common in new houses here.

25 random things

2009-02-02T20:35:00.002+01:00

It's all over Facebook, so I decided to post it here too...

Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.
1. I don't like tags but I'll participate anyway.. this one has been fun to read from other people so I might as well play too.
2. I hate repeating sounds made by people. Don't click your ballpoint pen or chew gum loudly or tick your nails on the table.. please, unless you're trying to drive me crazy.
3. I have 4 pets that are named after friends and 3 pets that are named after foods.
4. I've been living in a trailer in my backyard for 11 months now. Yes, voluntarily. Why? Take a look at my pictures.
5. I have a freckle in my right eye. Both my eyes are blue but the right one has a little brown freckle in it.
6. I don't have a middle name. Many Dutch people don't. Some Dutch people have 5 names, some only one, some any other random amount.
7. I have studied Dutch, English, German, French, Greek, Italian, Spanish and Latin in my life. Yes, I like languages. I'm fluent in the first two and can manage myself fairly well in German and Italian.
8. I spent a year of my life telling people "Yes, I'm a foreign exchange student. No, we don't speak English in Holland. No, that's not Holland, MI, it's actually a country in Western Europe."
9. I don't like cheese, unless it's melted (like on pizza).
10. I love to cook and bake.
11. I lost 18 lbs over the past 8 months. Enought with the bragging already!
12. I love Anne of Green Gables and Little House on the Priarie.
13. I used to dream I was a pioneer girl. That's one of the reasons I went to the USA as a foreign exchaneg student. (No I did not expect life to still be like that.)
14. Even though I dated two American boys, the guy I ended up marrying only lived 11 km (7 miles) away from the house I was born.
15. I feel at home in two countries. Don't make me choose, I don't want to.
16. I love fried chicken and corn on the cob.
17. I also love kroketten, zuurkool and drop.
18. I love to snow ski even though it took me forever to learn.
19. Some people have asked me if I live in the fifties, because I raise poultry and grow my own vegetables and flowers.
20. I like to read about cleaning, but I don't like to clean.
21. I read everything. If there's a letter on something within my view, I read it. Milk cartons, traffic signs, everything.
22. I taught myself to read when I was five years old.
23. I wish I had a dog. I'm glad I don't have one though, because right now I couldn't give it enough attention.
24. I get childishly excited when it snows. Unfortunately we don't get a lot of snow in the Netherlands.
25. I love Grey's Anatomy.

Washing dishes

2009-01-18T20:14:00.003+01:00

My new kitchen arrived last week... it's so beautiful! Those of you on Facebook may have already read it, but I'm so happy and excited about it! The most important feature (right now) is the dishwasher...
If there's one chore I dislike, it's washing dishes. When we first moved into the trailer, I even looked at the possibility of installing our old dishwasher in it. But there was no extra water hookup and it would have taken a lot of time and energy to get things working, so we decided to sell it instead. After that, I was the dishwasher for ten months.. until yesterday! Even though the water can't run to the sewage system yet (because of frost in the ground) M's uncle dug a big hole in the ground where the dish water can leak into. I know, it's not a great solution but it works for us now. After all, it's mainly water, food and a little dish soap so we figure it can't hurt much.

Last Monday and Tuesday the kitchen guy was here to install everything. It's so pretty, and makes the kitchen look even bigger.I'll give you the tour...

This is what you see when you walk into the kitchen from the living room (it's a semi-open kitchen so no door). From left to right: refridgerator (huge for Dutch standards), dish washer, sink, drawers, cooktop (induction), drawers, window. The little half moon shaped window is an old Dutch stable window. It looks into our bedroom but the glass is opaque. It's one of the cute features that make our house so unique.To the left of the refridgerator is the pantry door, and the pantry. Let's turn 45 degrees so we face the window. That means your back is to the pantry. This what you see:

The window faces my former vegetable garden (and probably future driveway). The window is a sliding window. Next to it you see the microwave/oven and the apothecary cupboard. Don't know if you Americans are familiar with it.. but you can stash lots and lots of stuff in it and it draws out easily so you can reach everything. I can totally picture myself cooking and baking lots and lots here!!

Food

2008-12-23T09:41:00.000+01:00

A while ago I blogged about my running and my new approach to food (I really dislike the word diet). I don't understand why (for usually these attempts don't last very long) but things are still going really well with that.I wrote about my Start to Run course that I've been taking (a podcast that helps you build up to running 5 km in half an hour). Well, I've been done with that for about a month now, and since I really enjoyed the running I decided to move on to the next course (5-10 km). I have no clue whether I'll be able to finish it (because running ten km does sound awfully far) but so far, so good. I've been running two to three times a week and I still am.

The running obviously helped me burn lots of calories. My eating more healthful food didn't hurt, either. All in all, I'm proud to be able to say that I've lost 7.6 kgs so far (almost 17 lbs) and it's still going down. My goal was to lose 6.4 kgs (nice rounded number, don't you think?) so I'm way past that already. I'm happy the way my weight is now. If I lose more, that's ok, if I don't, that's cool as well. The Christmas season usually doesn't make me lose weight so we'll see how this year goes.The running has really gotten me in better shape. I've had less colds and feel better all around. Let's hope I can keep this up!

100

2008-12-12T18:16:00.002+01:00

Inspired by Hette... Have you ever?
1. Started your own blog: obviously!
2. Slept under the stars: Not without a tent
3. Played in a band: yes, in music college
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity: I give to charity but never more than I can afford.
7. Been to Disneyland: yes, in LA
8. Climbed a mountain: lots of times
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo:I´m a music teacher, I sing solos every day.
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris: yes, with my parents, host parents, and later with my now ex-boyfriend. He broke up with me as soon as we got back.
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch: does playing piano count?
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables: every summer.
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France: yes, I thought it would be larger.
20. Slept on an overnight train:
21. Had a pillow fight: lots of camps.
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill: my host mom once told me she allowed her kids 1 "mental health day" per semester. I've done that before.
24. Built a snow fort: on skiing trips and in Indiana.
25. Held a lamb: growing up, our neighbors had sheep. I used to bottle feed the abandoned lambs.
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon: no, 6.5 km is my record so far
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice: no but I have been to Venice.
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset: I watched the sun rise over the Grand Canyon. That was very impressive.
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person: yes, in the snow in the fall of 2002.
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors: Yes. I also live in the house of my husband's ancestors.
35. Seen an Amish community: yes in Ohio and Pennsylvania
36. Taught yourself a new language: yes, Italian (I've been taking classes for a while now but I started on my own).
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelos David
41. Sung karaoke: obviously. I'm a music teacher.
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt: in July 1999 on my Rotary youth exchange West tour.
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight: my grandpa lives 3 km from the sea so I've done this several times. Also in Crete on vacation
46. Been transported in an ambulance: no, thank goodness.
47. Had your portrait painted: I think a charicature counts.
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person: yes, last year.
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris: yes, twice.
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling: no, too claustrofobic to breathe through a tube.
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud: of course.
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class: some self defence classes.
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies: no, I've bought them before, though.
62. Gone whale watching: we wanted to when we were in Vancouver Island, but they were too far out at sea.
63. Got flowers for no reason: yes, from my husband.
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy: my teddybear went to the USA with me and now lives in a basket in my bedroom (even in the trailer)
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial: yes, in May 1999 with my parents.
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London: twice.
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person: yes in July 1999. I saw a lot of these things in 1999.
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican: a year ago.
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper: yes in local newspapers.
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House: I repeat, in 1999. It's not possible anymore, so it's pretty cool that we had the experience.
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life: no, my husband has, though.
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous: define famous.
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake: my toe did, in 1999.
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day: I do this every vacation.
Well, I did 41 out of a 100 in only twenty-seven years.. Pretty good!

Almost/already

2008-12-06T20:29:00.004+01:00

Every year around this time of December, I keep telling myself "It's almost Christmas". I count the days until Christmas vacation and time can't go fast enough for me. I'm typically fairly exhausted, and to use a Dutch expression, "walking on my gums". (That means you're ready for a break!)

This year, it seems to be different. I don't really know why, but time has flown by like crazy. I'm not trying to use that cliché to excuse my absence here, but it's really true! The remodeling isn't done yet, but the house is starting to look like a house again. Latest development: windows! We have underfloor heating (don't know if that is the correct translation); a system of hot water tubes connected to each other. This week, a layer of cement was poured over it so we can start laying tile. (I obviously use the term "we" very loosely.) Six weeks from last Wednesday the cement will be dry and we'll be able to turn on the heat. Hopefully we'll be able to move in not too long after that. The kitchen will be installed in the second week of January.

The heating system.

The cement floor in the living room.

One of the windows in the back wall!

So instead of the "It's almost Christmas" this year, I'm thinking "Is it Christmas already?".

Haiku - II

2008-11-02T22:42:00.000+01:00

Limited cleaning
Low housing expenses
Dream trailer

Haiku

2008-11-01T22:31:00.005+01:00

Slanting floor, bad couch
Limited storage, cold nights
Dream trailer

Nasty

2008-10-13T08:43:00.000+02:00

The other day I was getting ready to go to bed. As I turned the light in my bedroom on, I noticed this. A slug! On my bedroom wall! About ten cm away from my matrass! It was nasty and big. It must have crept up the trailer and in through the window that was cracked open about two cm.
My husband wasn't home. That's why I called my father-in-law, who lives down the street. This wonderful man rescued me from the evil slug-thing and released it outside. Yuck!

Motivational

2008-10-12T23:10:00.000+02:00

A while ago I wrote about my weighty changes. At that time I had lost 3 kg (6.6 lbs) by changing my diet, keeping track of my calories and exercising more. I wondered how long I would be able to keep it up, because in the past I've never been the dieting kind of person. That's turned out to go really well, because as I write this I'm happy to be able to say that I lost 5.2 kg (11.4 lbs) so far. Since I wanted to lose 6.2, I only have one more kg to go.

One of the ways I exercise is "Start to Run". One of my friends told me about this. It's a podcast from a Belgian sports show. The anchor lady tells you when to run and when to walk, and plays music. In the meantime she sometimes says motivational things in an adorable Flemish accent. "Aren't you proud of yourself? I'm very proud of you!" and "Are you enjoying the surroundings?" and "Keep it up, only two more minutes to go!" are some of the things she says. It's really weird how something that a lady in a studio recorded two years ago motivates me as I'm running, but it really works for me. I haven't written about it sooner, because I wasn't sure if I'd like it or if I'd keep it up. But yesterday I ran the 20th session (out of 27!). At the end of the sessions you're supposed to be able to run 5 km in half an hour. The first time I went, I had to run for a minute, walk for a minute, and so on. Yesterday I was able to run for eight minutes, walk for a minute, and I repeated that three times. That means I ran thirty-two minutes in total yesterday! I don't want to brag but it makes me pretty proud of myself.

And you know what helps a lot too? I've gone down two dress sizes and my stomach is a lot flatter. Instead of asking me if I'm pregnant (which happened weekly this past spring), people comment on my weight loss and congratulate me. Now that is motivational!

Header

2008-10-10T20:39:00.003+02:00

Once again it's been very quiet over here. Life is busy. Between school, the renovation and everything else that's going I just don't seem to be able to find the time to blog. But now my fall break has started so I'll write an update soon.

Sheila can't wait for that, though. She made a new header for my blog (isn't it cool? With a chicken!) and it's been up for two days now. She's home sick and probably checking my blog ten times a day, only to see that I still haven't thanked her. It's getting a little pushy so I'll thank her right now ;-). So head over to her blog soon and give her a compliment, that will give her something to read and hopefully she'll feel better soon.

Groceries - Dutch style

2008-08-30T14:42:00.003+02:00

From the money I received for my birthday I decided to buy a sensible product: bicycle bags! This is the way Dutch women get groceries. Not the weekly ones, where you buy liters and liters of milk, but the odds and ends that you forget and have to run to the store for. Some people don't have a car; they use them for everything.

As you can see the bags have zippers. That way, when I have a lot of things to carry with me, I can enlarge the bags. The elastic bands across the bags also hold a box or purse in place.

Are these even available outside of Europe?

27

2008-08-19T17:20:00.001+02:00

Ten years ago, I had spent the first two weeks of my exchange year in Indiana. Today I celebrate my birthday in a trailer in my backyard. My, how time flies!

Bathtub

2008-08-15T06:58:00.000+02:00

Have you ever taken a bath in a bathroom showroom? We have! We found a tub that is big enough to fit my M, but has armrests so I'll fit in it as well. It's 190x90 cm (6 ft 3" by 3 ft). We had fun today, trying out the different tubs and looking at sinks/toilets/urinals.It was our third day in bathroom stores so we were getting a little silly... But now we have three different prices on our bathroom and toilet, so we can start comparing. That way we'll know where the best deal is.

Family portrait

2008-08-14T12:02:00.000+02:00

Prairiecowboy had asked me how the baby chicks were doing. Time for an update!

Here's a before picture:

The little one that is face down didn't make it. But two other ones did, so four chicks survived. Three of these babies turned out to be roosters, one of them is a hen. She's lucky. Check out Prairiecowboy's site to see what will eventually happen to the roosters.
Let's start with a photo of Bjorn and Marloes. Bjorn is the white rooster, Marloes is one of his wives. Both these chickens were born here October last year.

If you wonder why Marloes's feathers are a little jagged on the side, well, let's just say Bjorn is to blame for that.

Here's a slightly scary picture of the four chicks in a row. The big ones are Marloes's boys (or her sister Piri Piri, it's hard to tell because they're identical).

Left to right: rooster, rooster, rooster, hen. They're all the same age, though different in size. The first rooster and the hen's mothers are a lot smaller than Marloes and Piri Piri. That's why their kids are smaller, too. Bjorn is the father to all of these kids.

This is Ellen and her son. You can tell they're alike. This little boy is the dark chick from the top photo.

The chickens were pretty freaked out by the camera's flash. That's why none of the pictures turned out to be World Press Photo candidates ;-). That's ok though, you get the idea!

Weighty changes

2008-08-13T15:27:00.003+02:00

When you cook for people who build a house, you have to make sure you feed them plenty of calories. All that carrying bricks around and jumping up and down scaffolding makes them burn a lot of energy, and they need to eat well in order to replace that. That's why I had been buying, baking and cooking lots of cookies, carby soups and elaborate sandwiches. (I don't know if a sandwich can technically be elaborate, but you get my point).

My M has been faring well on this diet (and the exercise combined). He's lost 8 kg (17.6 lbs) and toned up a lot since we started remodeling. I have also fared well... but in the bad sense of the word. I gained a little weight and definitely didn't tone up at all. When you live in a trailer you don't walk any stairs. I don't have a vegetable garden this year (there goes that form of exercise, gardening) and while rounding up the schoolyear I found myself sitting on a bench with the laptop on my lap all too often.

That's why I decided to make some changes. Starting the first day of summer vacation (6 July) I changed my diet. I banned unhealthy snacks, started to eat more fruit and vegetables, bought healthier versions of products (I like the words "light" or "diet" on a label), started weighing my dinner ingredients so I wouldn't get too many calories, and started keeping track of my calorie intake. I also started exercising more regularly (I try to get at least 30 minutes of moving my butt a day). The result so far? I've lost 3 kgs (6.6 lbs). That doesn't seem much in five weeks, but I'm ok with it. It's progress, and I can keep it up without feeling too sorry for myself. I've read that the faster you lose weight, the more likely you are to start yo-yoing. And that's not the poing of this plan. The point is that the numbers on the scale are slowly moving downward. And in another 3 kgs I'll be really satisfied (and then the challenge is to keep it that way). That means I'm halfway now. I'll keep you posted how I do!

Easy pasta sauce

2008-08-12T14:05:00.008+02:00

Every year I have a vegetable garden with all kinds of veggies and fruits. This year, however, my vegetable garden is non-existent, because that's where all the old bricks and roof tiles have been thrown. It's literally a junk yard!
People know that I like to grow vegetables, however, and sometimes they give me plants. I can't throw away a plant so when I received two tomato plants and a zucchini plant, I went ahead and planted them behind the trailer.
When we came back from our two-week vacation, three zucchinis and a bunch of tomatoes were ripe. It's hard to keep them well in the trailer, because it gets pretty hot in here. On a sunny day 32 C (90F) is not uncommon. That's why I decided to freeze them to have easy pasta sauce in the freezer.

Inspired by the Pioneer Woman, here's the cast of characters:

Olive oil, three bell peppers, three onions, three cloves of garlic, three zucchinis and a bunch of tomatoes. There's also wheat macaroni in the picture but I didn't need that until later, when I actually converted the veggies into pasta sauce.

First, I cut the onions and garlic in little pieces, and started sautéeing them in the olive oil. Because I'm not the Pioneer Woman, I don't have a picture of that.

When the onions were almost transparent, I added the cut up bell peppers. I like to use three different colors, because it makes my dish look happy.

After they were softened a little, I added the zucchini pieces.

The tomatoes were next. After I had added them, I turned the fire down and let everything simmer for a while, stirring it occasionally. After about ten minutes, everything was nice and softened and there was a little layer of juice in the pot. I then grabbed my handmixer and blended everything. Not so smoothly that it looked like baby food, but smooth enough so it was a sauce with still something to chew.

Depending on the zucchini:tomato ratio this sauce usually turns out anywhere between a green -orange - red color. Two kgs of vegetables made four 2-person servings. We ate one and froze three.
I added some ground beef and italian spices, and voila! Easy pasta!

House update

2008-07-16T12:40:00.004+02:00

My summer has started and I've been too busy and lazy to write anything. As you can imagine, the remodeling is taking a lot of our time. But it's really starting to look like a house!

The back wall without the scaffolding.

The new roof with the Velux-windows. The first four are in the living room, the last three are bedroom windows.
A view from the front. The side wall has been re-grouted and looks as new!

The stable windows in the living room side wall. This part of the wall has been rebuilt, using the old bricks.

The patio doors in the living room.

Summer Kings

2008-06-08T22:42:00.003+02:00

In Dutch, some people nickname strawberries "Summer Kings". This is my very first harvest of this year!

Wow!

2008-06-05T12:32:00.002+02:00

I'm trying to win a 17 cd box via Rocks In My Dryer, which is a pretty cool blog that I often read.
Wow Hits 1 is the cd box that is to be won. I hope there's a chance I can get it!

Illegal Visitors

2008-05-26T20:25:00.001+02:00

I had repeatedly found the cat food container topsy-turvy. The other day I found out why. We've been having illegal visitors! Apparently two hedgehogs live underneath my trailer. They're kind of cute but very prickly!

New Life

2008-05-25T22:13:00.002+02:00

Today four chicks hatched!

Lovely things

2008-04-28T11:35:00.004+02:00

- Today was the first day in 2008 that I did not wear socks. I did wear flipflops and sunscreen, however;
- sleeping in;
- having coffee outside in the sun, while reading the paper;
- watching my husband do the same (and not DIY-ing for a change!);
- jumping on the trampoline with the girls nextdoor;
- having dinner with my parents on their patio;
- dinner being a salad with smoked chicken and ciabatta mmmmmm;
- going to bed after having changed the sheets (which had dried outside and smell wonderful).
And the best part is: all these things happened in one day!

One of those questions that will never be answered...

2008-04-10T23:16:00.004+02:00

The sun shone today, so I decided to do a lot of laundry. Weekends are horrible for laundry since I can't hang it up (it'll be in the way of the workers) and I can't use my dryer because the power is off a lot of times.

While the first load was in the machine, we went to a bathroom showroom. Then we went out to lunch. Then we went to the second bathroom showroom. We got home just in time for dinner.

So much for my laundry plans. I threw in a load after we got home, and managed to get another load done right before I went to bed. The only problem was: the dryer was still full with the first load, and I couldn't use my indoor clothes line because it's in the shed where the construction workers have coffee and eat their lunch. They don't need to see my socks and undies while they eat their lunch. That is not necessary.

So, as I unfolded my laundry rack at 23:00 (11 pm) and hung up my laundry in the evening air, I pondered one of those questions that will never be answered...

How is it possible that when I take the sheets off our bed, one of the pillow cases is always inside out while the other one is inside in?

Cold frame

2008-04-07T18:56:00.003+02:00

The early beginnings of lettuce and lavatera in my cold frame. It's spring again and even though my vegetable garden is now a brick dump, my cold frame is still in function!

International

2008-04-04T21:39:00.003+02:00

It hit me like a ton of bricks...

2008-04-04T21:08:00.004+02:00

... that we're not only demolishing, but building too. That seems to be good news. On the other hand, the cabin fever hit me too. All of a sudden I was annoyed by the lack of privacy, and mad at myself for those emotions. We are very grateful to all the people who help us with the remodeling. Without them, it would cost us a lot more money. But at the same time, it would be nice to not have people around the house (and trailer) all the time. It would be nice to be able to say "OK, it's 19:00 and I'm going to get into my pajamas and veg out on the couch. That is not possible. My M gets home from work, eats dinner, changes into his work clothes and gets to work. Around ten o'clock he walks in the house, drinks something and goes to bed. Lovely.

But it's all worth it. And I should not be complaining. It's only temporary, and it's all worth it. I just need to get over myself sometimes...

Intelligent Cat

2008-03-30T12:34:00.001+02:00

While there were twelve people running around, working on the house, the cat decided to do the intelligent thing....

House renovation

2008-03-29T19:51:00.003+01:00

For everybody who speaks Dutch, and is interested in the renovation of our house, check my new blog.
Don't worry, I'll still write here too!

Fiery Chicken

2008-03-26T17:58:00.006+01:00

This week is Easter break and I'm a week off. So today I decided to cook a really nice dinner, because I love doing that. I still had a rooster in the freezer so I took that out and fixed it. But the minute my husband got home from work and I started to put everything on the table, he was paged by the fire department. That's why I ate by myself... But the dinner was good enough to share it with you. I thought it was about time for another recipe!

Nic's roast rooster with vegetables

You will need:

- 1 whole chicken
- 1 stem of leek, chopped
- stalk of celery, chopped
- 3 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 1 onion, diced
- about 10 cherry tomatoes, halved (a few big tomatoes in chunks are ok too)

- 1 big carrot, diced
- 3 potatoes, peeled and diced
- rosemary
- paprika
- salt and pepper
- about a glass of red wine
- the same amount of bouillon (chicken or herb)
- margarine and olive oil

Dry the chicken and season generously with rosemary, paprika, salt and pepper. Melt the margarine and olive oil and heat in a large skillet. Brown the chicken on all sides (this may take a while). When the chicken looks crispy and brown, take it out of the skillet. In the hot grease, brown the onion, garlic, carrot and potatoes. Stir for a little bit, then add the celery and tomatoes. Pour in the wine and bouillon and stir gently. Put the chicken on top of the vegetables and cover the skillet. Let simmer for a good long while (I think it may have taken me two hours), turning the chicken every once in a while. When the meat is so tender it starts to fall off the bones, you can be sure that it is done.

I served this with homemade biscuits. It tasted really good!

This is why I've been offline

2008-03-11T22:32:00.004+01:00

This is my home, right now. The internet connection took a while to work correctly. That's why I haven't posted anything in over a month. It works better now, though, so I expect to be online more.

My house looks like this. The big demolishing has begun!

Working hard

2008-02-16T16:55:00.002+01:00

This is a "before-picture"... We're really busy moving all of our stuff to the trailer. Today we spent the whole day with the help of my brother, sister-in-law, M's brother and girlfriend, and M's parents. They helped us pack things up and move things. Boy, do we have a lot of stuff!

The plan is to move to the trailer within a few days. After that, the big demolishing can start. Fun, but very emotional for me!

Away

2008-02-01T08:31:00.001+01:00

Tonight I'm leaving for Italy to ski for a week. Bye!

Teaching

2008-01-31T11:50:00.001+01:00

Working with teenagers is what I like to do, and what I'm good at. Sometimes it totally frustrates me, though. Like last night.

There's this extracurricular activity that another teacher and I lead. We've done it for a few years now, and some of the girls involved in it have become friends. Well, I don't know if that is the right word, because there's a twelve year age difference between us and obviously we don't confide in them. They do confide in us, though. Last night one of the girls told my colleague something that broke my heart. She told her that she had a problem involving auto-mutilation, and even showed her arm.

I thought I knew this girl. I thought she was a happy, bouncy teenager whose only problems could be what time to get home after a party or what clothes to wear. But I was wrong.

There's nothing I can do for this girl. I don't even teach at her building. Thank goodness she told my colleague that she had been talking to the school's counselor, so she is getting help. But I feel slightly powerless. Sure, I can pray for her and be nice to her. But somehow that doesn't feel like it's enough.

Getting attached to your students is a good thing, but it also has its downside...

Roosters Goodbye

2008-01-28T18:29:00.000+01:00

The four white chickens you see here are roosters. The two brown ones are hens. All of them were hatched October 29. The roosters eat a lot, poop a lot, fight and aren't very productive. That is why I gave three of them away to our uncle, who promised to return one (deep-frozen). One is allowed to stay and rule over the hen house (as long as he isn't too noisy, like Tandoori was). Some people say this is cruel, but I guess that's the way farm life can be...

Sew busy

2008-01-24T19:02:00.001+01:00

When we bought our trailer I realised that it would take some effort to turn this little world of 1981 brown and green in a housey environment that I would feel comfortable in. And since I received a sewing machine as a wedding present, I decided to sew new covers for the cushions.

So I counted, measured, went to Ikea to buy many metres of fabric, washed and ironed that fabric and started to sew.

Lots of hours in the past six months were spent working with my new best friend. Today I achieved my goal: I finished the last one. That means that I covered sixteen cushions. I did feel very housewify! And this, my friends, was the very last one. Now all I have to do is use the scraps to make a tablecloth and maybe two pillow covers. But none of that will take as much time as those huge cushions, or even worse, the corner cushions (look closely in the first picture and you will see one).
M laid new carpet and vinyl in the trailer (I'll show you a picture later) so it's starting to look more and more like home. Which is good, because we'll probably have to live in it for at least a year. So it might as well be as comfortable as possible!

Lucky again!

2008-01-17T21:53:00.000+01:00

Wow, I'm still so lucky! Lots of really good things are happening right now. I already bragged about my upcoming vacation, so I won't do that again. But now I'm lucky at work, too.
Our school has had a new concierge for a while now. This man is very attentive, and thinks along with everyone in the building. He saw me racing around with the tv/dvd-set a lot, and he also noticed that the distance between the room where the tv-set is located and my classroom is pretty far. Not only is it far, but I have to cross two thresholds with the cart, so it's slightly dangerous to move the set.
The other day he asked me to step into his office. He showed me a brand new tv/dvd-set with an awesomely big and flat tv, and asked me if I would like to have it for my classroom!
Well, of course I did...

So now I'll never have to worry if the tv is available anymore, and anytime I want to use the tv or dvd for highly educational purposes, I can!

To ski or not to ski

2008-01-12T15:23:00.000+01:00

When there's a big remodeling planned, you need a lot of money. That's why we decided to skip our annual skiing trip this year. After all, when we move into the trailer, we'll feel like we're on vacation anyway (hopefully) and while we work on the house we will get just as much physical exercise. Besides, spring nights can be chilly, so we can feel just like we're in the mountains, while we sleep under our plastic roof....

Something changed, however.

My uncle called and told us that his daughter won't be going on the trip. And because it's already paid for, would I like to go? My M can't take any days off, but I'll have carnaval vacation so I'll be off school already, anyway. We talked about it, and now I'm going to go on the skiing trip, after all!
I never expected to be going to Italy twice within six weeks, but I am. I'm so lucky!! (And I have a wonderful uncle, for taking me, and a wonderful husband, for letting me go!)

When in Rome...

2008-01-02T16:50:00.000+01:00

... there was no opportunity to blog. But it was beautiful!
We spent 4 days in Rome, between Christmas and New Year's. We saw all the sights (well, all the major sights, anyway) and had lots of fun with two of our best friends. It was really cool. This was our third city trip with them (Barcelona and Copenhagen were previous) but it just keeps getting more fun, it seems like.

I don't feel like writing much, but I did want to share one of the best pictures with you.
And of course, wish all of you a wonderful 2008!

Elf

2007-12-17T20:40:00.001+01:00

So what do you do when the stomach bug decides to kick in and stick around?
You Elf yourself!
Look at me as an elf:
http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1495629238

Parent-teacher?

2007-12-14T21:47:00.000+01:00

This week I had my very first parent-teacher conferences ever. For some reason, the parents of my students never cared to talk to their kid's music teacher. But this year it's different: I'm a mentor. And with that I have the responsibility to oversee the grades of my students. Parents want to talk about the behavior of their child, and sometimes they just want to meet the mentor.
But I never knew that parent-teacher conferences could also be about the teacher's parents.
I was talking to Betty's parents. (You may already know that I never use my students' real names). I was pretty proud of Betty's grades, and so were her parents. So after discussing her behavior at school we got to talk about how Betty's mom had been a student of my dad's. (Who still teaches music at a different branch of our school.) She talks about how consistent he was, and strict but good. At that point Betty's step-dad says "Music, oh my gosh. Our teacher was horrible, SO strict! Yeah, I'll never forget Mr. M. He was awful."
Betty's mom cringes and elbows her husband, who looks like he's about to start another anecdote on the horrors of playing the recorder. "That's the teacher's father!".
Step-dad shrugs and says: "No he's not, her name is Ms. S!"
"Yeah, just like her husband." mother says, and looks at me apologetically.
Step-dad turns pink.
Betty, her mother and I just laugh..

Biscuits

2007-11-29T22:35:00.000+01:00

Yes, it's a recipe again.
No, I didn't come up with it myself.

After finding my own perfect (well, close enough) chicken pot pie recipe, I found the best biscuit recipe to match it. I've tried sooo many biscuits and they never turn out the way I remember them from the United States. But these were pretty close....
For all you non-Americans: biscuits are little bread rolls that are very fluffy and flaky (if you bake them right). They make a great side dish to any oven casserole dish you can think of, and soups as well.

On Allrecipes you can find basically any recipe you want. And, the coolest thing of all: you can have it in Metric or US measurements. No more converting, yeah!!!
OK, big time copy/paste action following (of course in Metric measurements, I am still European):

INGREDIENTS
250 g all-purpose flour
15 g baking powder
6 g salt
10 g white sugar
70 g shortening
235 ml milk

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Cut in the shortening until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Gradually stir in milk until dough pulls away from the side of the bowl.

Turn out onto a floured surface, and knead 15 to 20 times. Pat or roll dough out to 1 inch thick. Cut biscuits with a large cutter or juice glass dipped in flour. Repeat until all dough is used. Brush off the excess flour, and place biscuits onto an ungreased baking sheet.
Bake for 13 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges begin to brown.

No clue

2007-11-24T11:19:00.000+01:00

Lately I've had no clue as to what to write next on my blog.
I've been thinking and came up with lots of ideas, all of which I dimissed.

- Should I write more about my chicks?
No, they're definitely past the cute stage (actually, they're pretty ugly right now. And noone wants to read three consecutive blogs about chickens. That would be boring.

- Should I share a recipe?
Which one? I haven't thought of any new dishes lately and I've already posted my favorite ones.

- Should I post a Youtube video?
Why? You definitely don't want to do too much of that either.

- Should I write about how my sister-in-law had a baby and I became an auntie for the first time?
No, I don't want to do that. I generally am not a great fan of Hurrah-I-am-an-auntie-and-my-nephew-is-the-cutest-baby-in-the-world-type blogs. Besides, none of my in-laws read my blog (I think) so why bother?

- Should I write about Sinterklaas?
No, I already did that last year.

- Should I write about the remodeling?
There's no real exciting news on the remodeling. We're talking to contractors now and waiting for their bids.

- Should I write about my sewing?
No, who cares about that? Besides, this is not a craft blog.

So that left only one option.

I think I'll write about how I don't know what to write about.

More chicks

2007-11-08T14:43:00.000+01:00

Look, now we're chicks with feathers! Out of the ten eggs, nine hatched. One chick died on the second day, so now we have eight little chicks. Four are dark yellow and four are light yellow colored. I wonder what color they'll have once they're grown up...

Here we are!

2007-10-29T17:15:00.000+01:00

Yesterday, there were two. Today there were four (one still wet) and one egg was moving. This is so cool!!

Night Air II

2007-10-13T12:12:00.000+02:00

After my walk the other night I really wanted to know if my memory of the Little House on the Prairie book was correct, and it was! I started to read the books all over again, and in the second one of the series (that's the one that's actually called Little House on the Prairie) I found what I was looking for, I couldn't find anything about my night air recollection, though. In chapter fifteen, called Fever 'n' Ague the whole family gets sick with malaria.
That's where I read this:

"Mrs. Scott said that all this sickness came from eating watermelons. She said: 'I've said a hundred times, if I have once, that watermelons - '
'What's that?' Pa exclaimed. 'Who's got watermelons?'

Mrs. Scott said that one of the settlers had planted watermelons in the creek bottom. And every soul who had eaten one of those melons was down sick that very minute. She said she had warned them. 'But, no,' she said. 'There was no arguing with them. They would eat those melons, and now they're paying for it.'

[...] No one knew, in those days, that fever 'n' ague was malaria, and that some mosquitoes give it to people when they bite them."

Kitty present

2007-10-08T22:32:00.000+02:00

Sorry about the length of this fragment, but if you fast forward to 2:00 you'll understand what Dennis the cat left me on the yellow carpeting in our study today! Thank goodness for Biotex.
Love this movie, by the way. It's so funny!

Making babies

2007-10-08T18:40:00.000+02:00

No, not me! I know that we are married now, and that I am 26 so in the making babies-demographic, but sorry: we're not ready yet. However, two of my chickens are working on making babies: Kuifje and Ellen. They had both been broody for a few days already, and I had tested how determined they were by letting them brood on one of their own eggs. But since we don't have a rooster anymore, that would never work out. M's uncle donated some eggs from a chicken who does have a husband, and now they're both hard-working brooding chicks. In about three weeks we'll hopefully have ten little ones in the hen house!

Concert

2007-10-07T14:01:00.000+02:00

Paradoxically, I hardly ever went to a concert while I studied at the conservatory. There just wasn't any time. Now I'm totally making up for that, though: this month I'll be going to to several concerts.

Last night was the first one: I went to Darlene Zschech and Michael W Smith in a big soccer stadium close to where I live. I had never seen or heard Darlene before, but I did know Michael's music. I have several of his cd's (thanks to Those Crazy Jarboes who introduced me to his music) and had been to one of his concerts before. I was able to sing along to almost everything! Thank goodness the lyrics were projected on the big screens so I had a reminder for the lyrics that I hadn't memorized. Of course I bought one of his new cds (Stand, even though the Christmas cd looked good too.)

It was so cool to hear 15000 people sing along to the songs. Especially "Let it Rain" and "Above All"(video) were really impressive and touching. If he ever comes back to the Netherlands, I'll be there again!

... Makes you stronger

2007-10-06T12:28:00.000+02:00

My teaching this week was so much fun! Apart from my little difference of opinion (which will be talked about on Monday) I had such a good time. My students this year are really cool. It seems to be so much easier than it used to be to work with them.

Of course, five years ago I walked into a VMBO-school ready to take on my first job as a middle school music teacher. I taught in a music/geography room with little or no musical instruments. I'd never taught a thirteen year old before, because I had just graduated from elementary education college. But I was armed and ready to take on whatever came on my way. And boy, did I find a lot!

Teaching music to these teenagers turned out to be a difficult thing. Especially the second years (eighth graders) gave me frequent stomach aches. But every discussion and every problem was a new bit of experience. And now, I find myself free of stomach aches. The kids don't surprise me anymore when they ask if I am pregnant. I now know that whenever I am a little tired and don't think to straighten my back and suck my tummy in, it makes the kids think I'm expecting. So I can reply with a joke and not be shocked. And this is true for so many other things that happen every day or week.

The fact that I am done with music college probably helps, too. The past four years I always had a mind full of to-do-lists concerning college. Now all I have is my four day job (and of course husband and house) to worry about and I'm so much more relaxed. The kids probably feel that, too. And especially my mentor group is a "warm bath", as we say in the Netherlands. They're a joy to teach!

After a few less positive entries, here's a happy one again. I love my job!

What doesn't kill you...

2007-10-04T15:19:00.001+02:00

... Makes you stronger. Isn't that a famous expression? I'm going through one of those times at work at the moment. One of the other teachers (who shares a room with me) called me last week and accused me of all kinds of horrible things. I block her progress, I say no to everything she wants to change, I can't think outside of the box. In short, I'm a horrible person at work and there's no fun working with me.

It totally made me think, and shocked me too. Am I really that narrow-minded? Do I really get scared when things go differently? After a lot of thinking and talking to different people, I realised that I do say "no" to a lot of things she wants to implement. But only because they're against school or music department rules or agreements. And maybe I sometimes try to stop her, because I know ahead of the time that the thing she wants to try won't work. I've shared lots of lesson plans and work sheets that I've made with her, thinking that she would appreciate not having to make them herself. But she accused me of trying to make her into a copy of myself, teaching wise! I was baffled. Here I was, trying to be nice, and she totally used it against me! That taught me a lesson. I won't share things with her any longer.

Last week I sent her an e-mail, inviting her to stay a little longer on Monday and talk to me about this situation. She did not reply, but Monday she had called in sick. Of course, there is a flu going around. But it did seem like an awful coincidence in my narrow-minded suspicious mind.

Big fat bummer

2007-09-28T15:46:00.000+02:00

It's a big fat bummer if you get a €69 ($97) bill from customs. Especially if this concerns "import taxes" over a $100 wedding gift. And it's even more frustrating when you find out that appeal is not possible. Grrr.

The joys of home ownership

2007-09-27T11:49:00.000+02:00

"Good morning ma'am"
"Good morning."

"Well, that's obvious, isn't it? It's broken."

"That might explain the cold in here."

"How much longer did you say you'd live here?"

"Probably not more than three months."

"It's not worth fixing ma'am."

"It's not?" (thinking: but I'm cold already and it's only september!)

"I'll call the office and ask them how much the part costs."

.....

"Yup, that's what I thought. Not worth fixing ma'am."

"Well, how much would the part cost?" (thinking: can I please make my own decisions?)

"At least €200, and that's without taxes and installation costs. Would you like my advice?"

"Sure."

"Put an electric heater in your living room and put an extra blanket on the bed"

"OK, thanks."

"Can you please sign here? Because of the road block down the road I had to charge an extra 15 minutes for the detour I had to make. My office will send you the bill later this week."

"Sigh. OK, thanks again."

"Have a good day ma'am."

"You too."

Kayama

2007-09-19T21:55:00.000+02:00

We're going to sing this in our choir soon. Isn't it beautiful?

Night air

2007-09-18T21:00:00.000+02:00

Do you remember reading that Little House on the Prairie story where they ate watermelons that had grown in the night air and they got sick? I don't remember in what exact book it was, but I had to think of it as I was taking a walk tonight.

It's so cool to have the time to take walks after dinner, without constantly thinking either "I have to do this and that assignment, why am I walking instead of working" or "I'm really too tired to walk but it's good for me and will help me get better soon". Tonight, all I had to think about was how beautiful the scenery around our town is, and how lovely the fresh air felt. I could feel that fall is not far away. It gets dark sooner and because it's been rainy, lots of leaves have fallen. But you know what? That's ok.

Soon we'll be closing the curtains before dinner. It'll be apple pie and tea time. I love the coziness of fall. And when we live in the trailer it's bound to be cozy anyway so I might as well enjoy it!

Getting to know each other

2007-09-15T12:17:00.000+02:00

First year camps are always exhausting. The point of the camps is to get to know the kids, and have them get to know each other. We definitely achieved those goals.
Not alone did I catch a total of only eight hours of sleep in two nights, I also had to be on the alert all the time. Because with a camp house full of twelve year olds, lots of things happen.

Usually, these things are limited to "Mrs. S, Andy stole my shoe and now he won't give it back", "Mrs. S, I can't find my shoe and I promise I looked everywhere!" or "Mrs. S, I need a band-aid because I fell". This time around however, I received some very different complaints: "Mrs. S, George went up the attic (not allowed) and found pancake mix which he dumped all over our sleeping bags". "Mrs S, George is smoking in the orchard" (Of course smoking was not allowed, and the orchard was off-limits to the kids.) Two minutes later: "Mrs. S, George says he wants to sleep with me" (he said what??? he's twelve!), as well as (different girl) "Mrs. S, George tried to choke me but he says he was only kidding".

Needless to say I went and found George, and the other three teachers and I had some serious talks with him. At first he didn't confess anything! But, after only two hours (!) of interrogation he finally fessed up to smoking, and "some other things that you probably don't allow". He had lied and did so many things against the rules that I took him home on Thursday morning.

After that, things quieted down in the camp house. Of course there was some (ok, a lot) of talk about George, but at least everyone agreed that what he did was not ok. And for some reason, the all seemed to want to be good examples after seeing this bad example. The kids were nice and polite, and some even voluntarily took their dirty dishes to the kitchen. There were no kids complaining about boring games (whiny tone: "I don't want to do that, that's stu-pid), and when we had to clean the camp house on Friday morning everyone pitched in. Boy, did we get to know each other!

Camp II

2007-09-04T22:52:00.001+02:00

It's time for the annual first year camp. I'll be back on Friday, probably very tired (because I don't expect to sleep much in a camp house with 32 12 year olds). I'm sure I'll have lots to talk about!

Creepy

2007-09-01T11:57:00.000+02:00

When I see a spider, I usually grab a cat, put it near the spider and then it eats it. This is one of the reasons I am happy to have cats. Unfortunately even the cat didn't like this one: it ran away from it!
Thank goodness my mother-in-law was close and was able to kill this horrible creature. Brrrrr!

Mentor

2007-08-23T13:57:00.001+02:00

Because I'm graduated and work four days a week now, my school asked me if I wanted to become a mentor. Dutch people know what this is, but for Americans it's something mid-way between a home-room teacher, a guidance counselor and an elementary teacher. Every class of 20-30 kids (I only have 18) has their own mentor. The mentor is the person who monitors their grades and who they can talk to if something is wrong, or if they just need some attention. The mentor is also the person the parents contact when they want to contact school for questions or remarks.I teach my class music, Dutch and study skills, so I see them 9 times a week.The school year is only three days old but already being a mentor gives a whole new dimension to my teacherhood. (Is that a word? It is now.)

My mentor group is a class of first year students (7th graders, for the Americans). Everything is new to them in our school, and most of them don't know any other kids in their class yet. So it's up to me to make them comfortable with each other. I'm really going to try and make them bond, because I want the atmosphere in the class to be as positive as possible, so that when they're settled in and the hormones start acting up there's already a good relationship between the kids.

Yesterday I taught "my" kids 7th period, which was their last period of their very first day of high school. They were so enthusiastic! They told me about how they walked to the gym and it started to rain, how the math teacher's glasses were crooked and how their German teacher told them they would start working when the class didn't have any more questions for him, so they chatted with him all 50 minutes.I think they're cute. And they're my kids!

I sincerely hope they stay this upbeat and happy...

Mobile Home

2007-08-14T11:20:00.000+02:00

Last night I bought a mobile home. Or should I say "manufactured home"? In Holland we call it a caravan. Whatever the name, it's going to be our temporary housing while we remodel our house. We need somewhere away from all the dust and dirt, that is water tight and will keep our feet warm. But it also needs to be put in our back yard because we can't (and don't want to) afford to rent a second house while we remodel this house.

I was having coffee with my mom in law when my dad in law walked in. I was telling the story how I had ridden my bike to some local camp sites to hang up ads asking for a mobile home. Dad in law said he knew someone in town who had one for sale. He called the guy and the two of us went over there (M was at the fire station). He showed us the trailer. It was everything we wanted! It has two bedroom (so we can make one into a closet), seperate shower and toilet areas, a kitchenette (with gas stove and lots of cupboard space), a dining corner and a big couch, and gas heating. It looks old but neat and well taken care of. Unlike so many trailers for sale this one doesn't smell like cigarette smoke and there was no visible fungus. And the best part of it was the price. We were willing to pay no more than €1000, but the guy asked for only 250! And an apple pie, but that was because he said the price was low and so I said ok, I'll bake you an apple pie and we'll seal the deal. So after sealing the deal at 250 I guess the apple pie was part of the deal.

Hurrah! We're going to live in a trailer! (People that know me well know that I am not a big fan of camping. But trailers are ok).

The trailer in the picture looks just like the one I bought. Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture of it, but I'll post one later.

Blessed and lucky

2007-08-08T16:57:00.000+02:00

Blessed and lucky, that's what I am. I come from what we in Holland call "a warm nest". We have a great relationship with my parents and my brother and his girl friend. We don't fight, we just get along and respect and help each other. My brother and I have had every opportunity to study and broaden our horizons.
I have a great husband and within a month I received my college diploma, my wedding ring and the offical ownership certificate of our house.

The past few days I've seen that I shouldn't take all this for granted. Blessed and lucky. And grateful. That's what I am.

Sad

2007-08-04T21:34:00.000+02:00

We're really sad. One of my dad's brothers, who had been an alcoholic for a while, decided on Tuesday that it had been enough. He left a note saying he no longer wanted to bother everyone, and he didn't know what else to do. He was sorry and he loved us. Then he commited suicide. It's horrible. The viewing is tomorrow, he'll be cremated on Monday.

A tale of two bunnies

2007-07-25T10:28:00.001+02:00

The people M works with gave us two rabbits for our wedding. They said the way he talks about the cats made them feel that more pets would be welcome at the M+N petting zoo... And apparently he had talked about his new lawn mower a lot so they wanted to give him two other "lawn mowers".

The girl next d oor was at our wedding too, with her sister and her mom. They immediately offered to watch the rabbits for us when we were on vacation, because they have a bunny too and a big rabbit hutch. We thought that was a good idea and so there they went. This week they are on vacation, so I'm watching them.

I went over to feed them last night and everything was ok. This morning I went over there to check on them, and the door of the hutch was open and I saw only two rabbits, not three! My little brown bunny (whose name is Worm, because that's his boss's last name) was gone.

I looked around and looked around, but I couldn't find her. I went home and called M, who of course could only advise me to go back and look. The neighbors have a walled garden, so she couldn't go anywhere.And when I went back, she sat underneath the garden table, looking at me! I'm so happy... I put her back with the other two and made sure everything was closed really tightly. Phew, what a relief. I don't know what I would have told the little girl if the bunny hadn't come back. Well, I do know: the truth. But I would've felt really bad about it...

I do

2007-07-21T17:17:00.000+02:00

Fish and confetti

2007-07-19T14:00:00.000+02:00

Confetti confetti confetti

2007-07-17T12:31:00.000+02:00

Because we had made a mess of our M's sister and our brother-in-law's house while they were on their honeymoon, we did expect our house to be slightly upside down. This is just a hint of what they did to our house...
- There's confetti everywhere. In the bed, in the oven, in every drawer. In every cup, on every saucer, plate. Between the socks, in the plant pots. Everywhere. Everywhere. Confetti Confetti Confetti...
- Our 1/2 bathroom which had white walls, now has a whole under water scene painted with fish and plants and even a fire truck on it. I'll post pictures when I'm done vacuuming all the confetti confetti confetti away. It's really pretty. Made us wonder why we hadn't thought of that sooner.
- All my books which were sorted in order are mixed up on the bookshelves. And of course on the bookshelves there's also confetti confetti confetti...
- All the picture frames in the whole house were mixed up in random order. All the clocks too, basically everything that was attached to a nail is now on a different nail.
- Our 1/2 bathroom was filled to the ceiling with boxes, which all had something (rock, pine cone) in them. There was also a tower of empty plastic plant containers which of course toppled over as soon as we opened the door.
- All our clothes were put on different shelves. The drawers in our chest of drawers had all been relocated. And of course: confetti confetti confetti.
- I'm sure we'll find other things. We got home from our honeymoon at 11 last night and cleaned up until 1:30. Now M is back to work and I'm cleaning and vacuuming.
Good thing about all this is that I was already planning to clean out all the cabinets and armoires. Now I can't put that off anymore and in a few days we'll have a very clean house....

We had received a 500 piece jigsaw puzzle (without example) with a secret message on the back as a "first step" to our wedding present of M's brother, sister and significant others. The secret message had to be texted to an unknown phone number. We then received a text saying the mail man would deliver the second step soon. This morning we received a 4 page schedule with how to find the clue to our where our present is:
find book so and so. Write down the 5th letter of the 4th word on the 19th line of page 235.....And so forth, 4 pages long! We won't be bored tonight.....Well, I'm going to fix some lunch and then get back to the confetti parade...

We're in Switzerland...

2007-07-07T21:58:00.000+02:00

But here's a picture of us on our wedding day...

Taking a break

2007-07-04T10:16:00.000+02:00

Tomorrow is the big day. We leave for Switzerland on Saturday. That's why I'm taking a break, I'll probably be back in about two weeks...