Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

We're headed home tomorrow for three weeks...so as we're soaking up time with family and friends (and our favorite shops and restaurants!) I'm hoping to have little to no time to blog...so if you don't hear from me for the next few weeks...don't fret :0) I'll be back. And in the meantime I wish you all a Very Merry Christmas and a Blessed 2012!! I know we'll have many more amazing adventures in Europe to share soon!

Take Care!

Maureen

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

Minus all the rain and nasty weather we've been having here in Brussels that is...ick :o) I just love, love, love this time of year...and it probably helps a little bit that in less than a week we are headed home to spend Christmas with our families! Everyone will be there too (except Jacob's sister Shannon and her husband Kyle and their two little ones Kade and Quinn...boo...we will miss them terribly...but hopefully they'll be coming to Europe soon for a visit...hint-hint :o)). Even my brother Kevin and his family are making the trip in from Seattle! I'm so excited I can hardly wait!! But as I count down the hours I figured I'd fill you in on what we've been up to lately.

Last Saturday was the Christmas party at the American Women's club. I volunteered to help...which entailed cutting out some foam crafts for the kids and helping with a little set up...oh and making a dessert for the event. Nothing too big, but it was a fun way to spend time with some of the lovely ladies at the club. The party went over really well...especially because Santa was there and handed out presents to all the kids! Autumn got a Russian Nesting doll...which has been taken away for awhile because she likes to slam it on the ground and has almost chipped it on more than one occasion :o) So for now it will just be a decoration in her room.

All she really wanted to do during the party though was climb all the staircases in the house (and there are a lot!). Lots of Daddy - Daughter bonding time as he chased her all over the place!

Rice Krispie treat in hand...nice!

She didn't really like to eat them...just carry them around.

Then Sunday we stopped by the Brussels Christmas Market...although somehow we missed half of it as we never saw the ice rink or ferris wheel...maybe we'll head back down there this weekend while Bruce, Jacob friend, is in town. He was working in London this week and was able to make a quick pop over to Brussels for a visit. So we might just have to force him to do some Christmas Marketing with us :o) I wonder if he can be bribed with a nice warm, melt in your mouth, waffle...hehe :o)

And the rest of this week has just flown by...as so many of them do! Monday we did some Christmas shopping, Tuesday we went to our first MOPS (Mother's of Preschoolers) meeting at our church...where we had a cookie exchange and learned about some wonderful Christmas tradition ideas that help really put the meaning of CHRISTmas back in to the season. Then we stopped over at Ali and Reagan's house to say one final good-bye...sigh! We are really going to miss them...they've been so very helpful in making us feel welcome here and really helping us find our place in this whole crazy adventure...but I guess such is the life of an expat...unfortunately most of us are only here a short time...and although good-byes are hard we are just happy to have this opportunity to spend time with so many new people...even if only for a short time.

Then on Wednesday we went to Galipette for the first time...it's a children's play place of sorts. We are considering taking Autumn there at some point for some fun play time away from me...to give me a few hour break once a week...and to give her the opportunity to spend some time on her own interacting with other kids and adults. And let me tell you...she LOVED it!! She cried when it was time to leave! I haven't decided though if it is going to become part of our weekly routine as it takes at least a half hour to get there by train (when it's gross outside) and is a forty minute walk from here. So by the time I drop off and pick her up I've lost pretty much all the free time. We may just have to try it for awhile though...especially during the winter when we won't be at the parks as often...and because I think she would really enjoy it.

And today we had Liz and her two daughters over for a playdate. It was fun chatting away while the girls played...and even better that we didn't have to leave the house :o) Tomorrow is our last music class of the semester. Despite all our friends taking their kids to Ding Dong music (the English speaking music class) Autumn and I have decided to stay in the French one for now. We really like it...and it's walking distance for us which is great! And even if we don't understand what they are saying most of the time...we can still interact and dance along and be silly as if we do :o) Plus all the Mom's in the class are super nice and speak great English. Hopefully our next class will be equally as welcoming...as we're moving up to Autumn's age group next time....which means all new kids and parents.

I think that's about it for now...I need to finish my online Christmas shopping. And finish preparing my list of ALL the many, many things I need to pick up while we're back home...I think I already have over 20 items on the list...oh my! Mostly things that are just impossible to find here...or way more expensive here...like kids sneakers...they don't seem to exist here! Poor Autumn has totally outgrown all her shoes! We're cramming her feet in to the last few pairs, but I'm sure she will appreciate some that actually fit! Have I mentioned I can't wait to go home...haha...only a few more days!!

German Christmas Markets!!

German Christmas Markets are seriously delightful!! The sights, the smells, the lovely handmade items. It's all overwhelming and all wonderful! As I mentioned before, last weekend we spent two days in Cologne, Germany visiting their various Christmas Markets. I think they have like 5 or 6 in the city!! Cologne is the 4th largest city in Germany so I guess that makes sense. We visited four of these markets last weekend and had a great time. We stayed at the NH hotel along the river...and you could even see one of the markets out our window.


Ok, so the big Total station does take away some of it's charm...ha! But the location was great...we could easily walk to all four markets from the hotel so that was a major plus! As you can see in the pictures it was a nasty cold grey day, but the rain did stay away for the most part (just a few sprinkles now and then)...so it wasn't too bad!

We got to Cologne about 2 PM on Saturday and headed straight for the biggest market under the Cathedral. We did quickly peruse the other two markets we passed through along the way, but when we made it to the big one it was spectacular!! A huge Christmas tree came up out of the center...and there were lights strung all above your head as you meandered amongst the booths. It felt so Christmas-y and just truly magical. Here are some pictures...once again...low light pictures are tough with motion and no tripod...but I did my best to capture it.

Sorry it's so blurry...

here it is again using a flash just so

you can see the men blowing on the long horns...

And check out these wood carvings...amazing...

It was a wonderful weekend and I'm already looking forward to going to more next year! I just wish we had the time to go to more places this year (although I'm guessing many of them have similar items). And we of course at to buy a few small trinkets to commemorate our time at the markets.

It definitely wasn't about the "stuff" though...it was about the memories and the Christmas spirit that I think filled all of us that weekend! It truly was a wonderful weekend!

No nap = Christmas Photo Shoot!!

Every once in a while Autumn decides she doesn't want to take a nap...usually because she slept in the stroller briefly that morning so in her mind she must think that is the same thing as her usual 2 and 1/2 hour nap. Well, when this happens...as it did last week...I decided that it means we get to do something I want to do like a PHOTO SHOOT!! Yeah!! So we did a short impromptu Christmas photo shoot last week...and here are my favorites...

Thanks to Pinterest for the cute

Christmas light photo prop idea...

This one cracks me up...

"hmmm, I bet these lights would fit perfectly up my..."

We were fighting with losing our light, but overall I think they turned out pretty cute :o)

PS...as I was writing this post, there was quite a commotion out front...with fire, police, and an ambulance...my best guess is they thought someone was going to jump off the building next door! A fire man went up and after a bit they lowered the ladder back down with out him...so I'm assuming the fireman and whoever was up there went back in through the building...but it was quite a scene.

Up next...the Fabulous Colonge Christmas Market...

Move over Thanksgiving, it's Christmas time!

Well our Thanksgiving did not go as planned! We were so excited to be invited to a Thanksgiving Dinner Party over at Maren and Julia's house (from our play group) and I had FINALLY decided what we were going to be brining to the party and was looking forward to Jacob finally meeting some of these lovely ladies that have welcomed Autumn and I in to their wonderful playgroup...but alas...everything changed when Autumn turned up sick again. Autumn had been fighting a bug all last week...started with a fever Monday morning. I wrote it off as being the same cold I had recently come down with. But over the next few days the fever never went away and the poor thing just seemed miserable! I called the doctor Thursday morning (I guess that's one plus of them not celebrating Thanksgiving here...everything is open!) and made an appointment for that afternoon. We thought maybe she had strep since she would cry a lot whenever she would eat or drink. The doctor did a strep culture that turned up negative, but we started antibiotics on Saturday when we couldn't stand to see her in pain anymore...and couldn't stomach another day of a super crabby baby. She is doing much better now (aside from a raging diaper rash...thank you antibiotics) and we're just happy to have our sweet little girl back! We are so bummed we didn't get to celebrate Thanksgiving with our new friends, but thankfully all was not lost. I was able to find a small turkey breast at carrefour and spent the afternoon preparing the rest of the fixings. Thanks to the American food store we also had pumpkin pie, stuffing, and cranberry sauce. I also made some rolls, massed potatoes, and an apple crisp (I'm not a pumpkin pie fan). It was enough food to feed an army! Haha!


It made great Turkey sandwiches though for the weekend :o)

I'm so over Thanksgiving now though and moving full steam ahead for Christmas...I'm even listening to the new Glee Christmas album right now...hehe!! We broke down and bought a tree this past weekend at Brico...on sale even! For some reason I didn't have either of our trees shipped here (I really don't know what I was thinking...I guess just that we would be home for Christmas, but still we can't go most of December without a tree). I did ship some of the trimmings thankfully though so the tree is up and decorated now. It's not perfect by any means, but I am glad we have something!

We also headed to our first German Christmas market in Aachen on Sunday...and it was magical! Ok, maybe not magical...because it was raining and freezing and Autumn was screaming the entire time...ha!! But it was a quick glimpse at just how truly festive these markets can be...and I am very much looking forward to our next one this weekend in Cologne! Cologne is said to be the biggest of all the German markets so we decided we would make a weekend out of it and spend the night...woohoo! I'm looking forward to seeing the city all lit up with Christmas lights at night...since it's dark about 5 PM now that will be pretty easy. Seriously, the Germans do Christmas right...check out this website that list all the markets and gives details on each of them! I think there is pretty much one in every little town! I'm praying for nicer weather and a chance to really experience the market and really get in the Christmas spirit! Only 25 days left till the big day!!!

Here are a few pics from the Aachen market...




Also this week we watched the second episode of The Amazing Race where they were in Belgium!! It was so exciting to think we live in a place interesting enough to be featured on a TV show...two full episodes! Jacob and I had fun watching and trying to figure out where they were. One of the pitstops was even Atomium...which you may remember from my previous post. Crazy stuff. Oh and speaking of crazy...I also signed up to run the Paris half marathon next March. I must be nuts considering I have to train while pushing a stroller (at least for the short runs during the week anyway)...so I may not run it very fast, but what the heck...I'm gonna do it! (It's really just so I can get the t-shirt...there better be an eiffel tower on it or I'm going to be quite disappointed! Haha!)

More on Christmas markets next week! Oh, and the official countdown has begun...22 days till we go home!

Santa Clause is Coming to Town

Today St. Nicholas road in to Brussels on a BOAT! And Autumn and I went downtown to watch! It was a pretty easy tram and metro ride...here is Autumn all decked out in her Christmas red waiting for the train.


She looks quite excited doesn't she :o)

I wasn't sure what to expect after reading about this in the Out & About newsletter published by the American Club of Brussels...it is a great resource for events happening in and around Brussels that we just discovered. And it was a cloudy day and Autumn and I are both fighting off being sick...AGAIN...but we headed down anyway. There wasn't much to do...a booth to color...a booth to have your face painted...some of St. Nicholas' helpers putting on a show on the main stage...





I'm glad we didn't get there any earlier because I think we would have been quite bored. Luckily we got there only 15 minutes before St. Nick arrived on the boat. We peaked through the crowds and saw the boat approaching...it was quite an event...with drums playing...St. Nick waving...his helpers 'Zwarte Pieten' ("Black Petes") dancing away!! Which...as you see in the pictures are actually quite disturbing...faces painted black...and the legend says, any kids that have been naughty throughout the year will be snatched up by Black Pete and put in a sack and taken to Spain! Seems like a pretty good reason to be good all year!






After St. Nick arrived we stuck around a bit, but then headed home as Autumn was at the end of her rope. Doesn't St. Nick know we take our naps in the afternoon :o) We had fun...and will probably watch him come back again next year...I mean how often do you get to watch St. Nick come in to town on a boat!

And just to fill you in on last weekend...I didn't do a separate post because I didn't have one single picture from it, but we had a lot of fun with some new friends! On Saturday we headed to the American Women's club Annual Holiday Bazaar...basically like a Christmas craft show. We bought a cute little Santa Clause nesting doll...like the Russian nesting dolls you have probably seen. After the Bazaar we went with some new friends Liz & Matt and their two little girls Grace and Audrey to ChiChi's...that's right...Mexican...yum!! I met Liz at the hints class and we just reconnected over e-mail and even spent last Thursday hanging out at their house. It was a nice meal out and we had a great time with new friends! And then on Sunday Lauren invited the girls over for a Baby Shower for Maren. It was a lovely afternoon hanging out with just the ladies...it seemed so quite and calm when we all aren't chasing our little ones around! It was a great time and I really enjoyed the chance to spend time with many of the Mom's from our playgroup...without the kids in tow (thanks Jacob!)

Stay tuned for our Thanksgiving celebration...

Finally Made a trip to Brugge!

Brugge Belgium is one of the all time favorite spots for those visiting Belgium...or so we were told, but until last Friday we hadn't been to see for ourselves. Jacob had the day off so we decided it was about time we made the trip! Brugge is just over an hour away from here...so quite an easy drive. We had hoped to spend the night and spend two days in the lovely town, but booking too late on a holiday weekend left us with few choices and all of them above our price range. We figured for an hour drive though it was still worth it for a day trip...so we headed out on the cold foggy morning.


Weather reports for Brugge promised sunshine and mid to upper 50s...too bad the only sun we saw that day was when we were returning home to Brussels...and the 50s would have felt great compared to our 40 something temperature...on the good side though it was a great excuse to get a nice cup of hot chocolate! I was told if you are ever in Brugge you have to have a hot chocolate at Sukerbuyc!


And sure enough when we found it, the sign outside promised "Best hot chocolate in the world" (ha...as a quick aside...I couldn't help think of the movie Elf when I saw this...where Will Ferrell reads the sign saying Best Coffee in the World and runs in and says "You did it! Congratulations! World's best cup of coffee! Great job, everybody! It's great to be here. "...ha! Good stuff!) Anyway...I went in to buy us two cups to go and the lady informed me "no take-aways" boo :o( Oh well...we went a few shops down and found someone that would sell a cup to go...and it was quite tasty!

We walked around the town for a few hours...marveled at the old world architecture and charm...and chocolatiers! Oh-my-goodness...there were a lot of chocolate shops! I thought Brussels had a lot, but it's nothing compared to Brugge...and check out all the window displays...




Crazy...right!! If you love chocolate, definitely take the time to go to Brugge Belgium sometime! It really is a lovely town and I know we'll go back SEVERAL more times. Hopefully on a nice warm day where we can take a canal cruise...that is supposed to be the best way to experience the town. For now, here are a few pictures from our trip...