Leaving today for a little vacation...We have a destination but lots of options for side trips...Check back after New Years to see where we went!

Merry Christmas!!!

Guess what we will be doing today...

Opening presents. See the Guitar Hero? Bob carried it back on the airplane from the US! He even made a handle out of packing tape for easy transport. Thank you Santa Bob!

Can you tell the girls got new PJs? Leah even has hers on with her new Uggs.

And of course we had Grandma's CoffeeCake shaped like a tree!

Have a great day!

Surgical Success!

10 months ago, Maria was in a very bad car accident traveling to ski in Germany. She severed her spine at the 2nd Lumbar vertebrae. Maria was the luckiest 17 year old in the world that day because she did no damage to her spinal chord. She was taken to Munich where she had surgery to repair the broken spine with pins and screws. Her recovery was slow but she was very strong. She wore an ugly brace nonstop right up until the day before Prom. Her wonderful doctor, Robert Gunzburg, took over her case here in Brussels and cared for her throughout her recovery. On Wed, Dec. 16, Dr. Gunzburg was confident that Maria was ready to put her injury behind her and have the hardware removed. She checked into Edith Cavell Hospital and prepared for surgery.

She had a beautiful room with a great view of the city. The staff were so kind. The nurses seemed to sense Maria's needs before we could even call them. Although they only spoke French, we had a cheat sheet (from Maria's boyfriend) with all the important sentences written out for us. They even had a coffee cart that traveled up and down the halls.

Maria was scared before the surgery. We had so much anticipation and time to worry.

Maria asked Dr. Gunzburg if she could keep the hardware after he removed it! What a souvenir! Bob put it all back together just the way it was in her back. It is unbelievable to think that those huge screws, bolts and pins were actually in Maria's back. Now she has holes in her bones where the screws had been, but those will fill in quickly.

We are so glad to put all this behind us. But more importantly, we are thankful Maria is well and ready to move forward!

Maria is fine!

Maria came through surgery quite well. She is mending and trying to be a good patient. I will post pictures, etc as soon as I can figure out what is wrong with the set up of the blog. Patience is a virtue.

I just saw a picture on a friend's blog that reminded me of how lucky we are to live in Europe. She had just taken her daughter to the Museum D'Orsay in Paris.

Bob and I first came to Paris in 2003. As tourists we marveled at the 20 ft high paintings and the tiny Mona Lisa in the Louvre. We saw a special display of chalk drawings by Degas in a secret little dark room and his original ballerina girl statue in the Museum D'Orsay. In both locations, school children were on field trips studying the original works of art by the most famous artists in the world. Bob commented on how lucky those kids were to see the actual masterpieces instead of just pictures in books.

And now we live amongst those masterpieces. Belgium is close to everything! Maria, Leah and Jennifer have seen the art, the castles and the history. It's hard to believe that we have experienced so many important places in just 16 months. Paris, London and Rome are some of our well known destinations, but add in Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands and it offers a life we can't believe we are living.

We are thankful for what we have seen and excited about what we still get to experience. Check out old posts to see some of our travels or take a look at the pictures on the side of this page.

And don't forget...we welcome visiters. I will accept any excuse to take another tour of Paris or a quick drive to Amsterdam!

Maria

We have to feel sorry for Maria this weekend. She is right in the middle of finals. 2 are finished and she has four more to go...all on Monday and Tuesday. Today she is taking the ACT because her last test was null and void, by no fault of hers, and they requested she sit the test again in Dec. And finally, she will have surgery on Wednesday to remove the pins and screws from her spine that were installed last year after her car accident in Germany. She will be in the hospital for a week. She has approached this very hard time with a smile on her face and really possitive attitude. I am not sure how she does it!

You've always wondered...

What's it like to live in Europe? What are the people like? Do they dress like us? Talk like us? The answers to those questions are... Educational. Different. No. No.

Yesterday we heard a car horn honking outside of our house. We looked out the upstairs windows and saw Sinterklaas and Zwarte Piet walking down our street! I couldn't resist the urge to video tape their ramdom visit. For weeks we have watched silly shows on TV about their antics and escapades. Zwarta Piet, Sinterklaas's helper, is always played by an actor in black face paint. (Very politically incorrect in my opinion.) Sinterklaas wears a red bishop like costume and carries a staff. Anyway, I followed them down the street and got a great video of the locals singing the traditional Sinterklaas song and receiving candy from Zwarte Piet.

I wrote about this celebration last year too but if you want to learn even more go to:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinterklaas

Road trip to Starbucks at the airport! No we don't have one on every corner. We have to pay to park and walk into the airport. After we get our coffee the barista usually says, "Have a nice flight!"

A tribute to Grandma

This post is for my Mom, brother, Aunts, cousins and anyone else who ever had the pleasure of knowing my grandmother, Cecilia Holtkamp. Grandma was an unbelievable cook. She could whip up the tastiest meal at a moments notice or plan the most grandiose celebration for weeks and weeks. Her specialties were recipes gathered from cookbooks, newspapers, magazines or friends. She took those recipes and made them her own, subtracting a little of this or adding a little of that, making the end result better than it ever was when others cooked it.
We all have copies of Grandma's recipes. We lovingly pull them out at holidays or any days and make food that we know will taste great because the roots of the recipe were started by Grandma. Today I made the dough for Grandma's Cookie Cutter Cookies. When I got out the recipe, I noticed I had written myself a note in '96, "only make 1/2 batch!" I can remember making the cookies so many years ago and being so overwhelmed by how much dough that one recipe made. Maria was only 5 at the time and we rolled and cut out cookies for hours. I remember throwing away the last bit of dough because I just couldn't cut out another Christmas tree, holly leaf or reindeer shaped cookie. Grandma was still alive then and I remember calling her after we had made the cookies. I wanted to tell her the recipe made more cookies than any human actually needed. But instead I told her the recipe was a success, the cookies were plentiful and tasted just like hers. And I am sure you all know what she said in return for the compliment, "Thanks a million!"
Merry Christmas to all of you and I hope you have a touch of Grandma's talent making Cookie Cutter Cookies, Grandpa's Caramels and Christmas coffee cake. In case you were wondering, I made the entire recipe for Cookie Cutter Cookies - 8 eggs!

Photos from Thanksgiving

Click on this picture to see the place cards Leah and Jennifer made when they were 8 years old. Precious!


You say I never put pictures of myself on the blog. And the horrible picture below just proves why I don't put any on here!!!

After dinner, everyone had a contest throwing mini marshmallows into each others' mouths. We are very civilized and our table manners are great except when no one is watching!!

Maria took the picture below. Great shot of the marshmallow headed right for Leah's mouth. She actually caught that one!

I smuggled those mini marshmallows all the way back from the US and it was worth it!

Even though our friends and family in the US are still celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday, the kids still have school and Bob still has to go to work here in Belgium. Today the twins are going on a field trip to Fondation Folon to view works of art by the famous Belgian artist Jean-Michel Folon. They have been studying him in French class for the past month. You can read more about the artist at http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.fondationfolon.be/index_fr.htm&ei=UXwPS8-3DsuD4Qb-j_GTBA&sa=X&oi=translate&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CBAQ7gEwAQ&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dfondation%2Bfolon%26hl%3Den%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft:*:IE-SearchBox%26rlz%3D1I7ADBF_en
I think I should compile a list of all the extra special things our family has been able to experience in just 16 months. We have a lot to be thankful for!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today is Thanksgiving but here in Belgium it's just another day. The kids have school and Bob has to go to work. We will have our big Thanksgiving meal on Saturday when everyone is home and can enjoy the smell of turkey roasting. Right now I am trying to make cranberry sauce from scratch. I found 3 very sorry looking bags of Ocean Spray Cranberries at the store yesterday. They were screaming to be taken out of the grocery store where they were being ignored by all the Belgians. Later today I am going on a hunt to find real sweat potatoes, another hard to find item. I will probably have the most luck at the outdoor market. I ordered a turkey from the Irish Butcher and a friend gave me a giant can of pumpkin for pies. It looks like our feast is almost ready to go.

Happy Thanksgiving!

American Woman's Club

http://www.awcb.org/awcb/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=187&catid=94&Itemid=2978

Click on the link above to read about the American Woman's Club Holiday Bazaar. This is a huge event with lots of vendors selling specialized gifts, European crafts and other holiday items. Also taking place at the same time is an enormous Brocante. (That is a fancy word for Garage Sale.) I am charge of the huge undertaking. Our donations for sale filled 2 moving vans! We accepted the donations over the last year and spent the past 2 weeks boxing everything up. Setting all of the junk up again at the covered outdoor location was another big job. Some of my very wonderful friends put in more time than I ever expected! The sale starts tomorrow and continues through Sunday.

The car still isn't done. I have been told that one of the 3 parts needed has arrived from Russia but they don't know when the other parts will arrive.

We still don't have Cable TV. I was told the wait would now be 10 more days. I was also told to have more patience. Really?

And now our phone service is not working either.

Waiting

My car still isn't finished and we still don't have cable TV.

Cable TV

Shhhhhh...Bob is on the phone with the TV cable company, Telenet. When our neighbors moved out on Oct. 24 and disconnected their cable, our cable was disconnected by mistake. We can see the shows but there is a huge red box over the picture. We have been told it would take 5 days to fix the problem but that was 10 days ago. I just heard Bob say to the company, "The one thing this country doesn't have is customer service." He is absolutely right. Here are more examples of the same problem.



Bob and I went to buy golf pull carts. We asked the man at the sports store if there were anymore in the back so we wouldn't have to buy the floor model. This was our conversation.

Bob - Do you have anymore of these carts in the back of the store?
Worker - No
Bob - Could you look?
Worker - We have none.
Bob - Are you sure?
Worker - Yes
Bob - Would you at least go and look?
Worker - OK but we have none.
...10 minutes later
Worker - Here are more from the back. Take your pick of styles.

And another example...I had a small accident with the Infiniti and went to pick up the car from the repair shop after waiting 3 weeks. Here is the conversation.

Julie - Hi. I am here to pick up my Infiniti. It was to be finished today.
Worker - What is your car?
Julie - The Infiniti.
Worker - Oh, that one is bad.
Julie - What do you mean?
Worker - It is bad, no good.
Julie - Is it finished?
Worker - Of course, no.
Julie - Will it be done soon?
Worker - I do not know.
Julie - Could you find out?
Worker - It is not my job.
Julie - Could you get someone else who can answer my questions?
Worker - I am on my break.
Julie - Please?
Worker goes and gets the owners daughter.
Owners Daughter - We will call you today to let you know when the car will be done.
They close at 4:00 (or 16:00) so I showed up at 3:45.
Julie to Owners Daughter - I thought you were going to call me today.
Owners Daughter - I did not call you?
Julie - No you did not. When will my car be done?
Owners Daughter - I do not know. I will call you.
Julie - You have had my car for over 3 weeks. Where is my car? Can you at least give me a loaner car to drive while you figure things out?
Owners Daughter - Your car is in there. (pointing to the huge garage filled with men smoking cigarettes and standing around) You can have this loaner car. (pointing to a very small red car) I will call you. (pointing to the phone)

I am still waiting for the call and we still don't have cable.

Colleges

Vote for a college! Help Maria pick a college! Leave a comment if you feel strongly about one school or another. There are actually 2 more colleges that aren't on the list of choices; one is a long shot and one is a fallback. Yesterday, Maria came home with 2 more universities that caught her eye. I think she will be happy anywhere. Bob would like her to be happy in Indiana where it is cheaper. I would like her to be happy at a school near relatives since we will still be in Europe.

How to pick a college

Maria has narrowed her college choices down considerably. Today she told Nana and Papa that her favorite school has a bus that goes to Target once a week. I have raised her well!

TV fame in Miami

We have been to Chicago, St. Louis, Indianapolis and finally Miami!
I had no idea the weather would be so beautiful, the people so nice and the shopping so diverse. Our hotel was superb and our rooms had more square footage than our first home! We went to the pool and the beach where we actually saw swimwear and clothing choices more like those we would see in Europe. (Use your imagination.)
I hadn't planned anything in regards to daily activities. Bob and the girls had something else in mind......

In Belgium, there are very few television shows in English but every evening, on a cable channel, the girls and Bob can watch some reality shows that are normally on TLC in the US (I think). One of the shows is Miami Ink. Please don't think we are tattoo enthusiasts but the four of them really enjoy watching other people permanently paint their bodies. Think what you want, but entertainment in English is coveted in our house and now they are somewhat hooked on the characters and their stories. The show is actually filmed in a tattoo parlor in Miami and before I knew what was ahead of me, the entire family was on their way to Miami Ink. Yes, Bob and I took our kids to a tattoo parlor. We bought t-shirts and convinced one of the highlighted artists, Darren Brass, on the show to pose for a picture with us. He even signed Jennifer's cast!

I am taking all four of them to the symphony for a concert as soon as possible. They need some culture!

12 reasons why Miami was so great

1. We swam every day.

2. We saw 200 year old trees.

3. We saw exotic animals.

4. The speedboat ride was fast!

5. The sunrise was beautiful.

6. The sunset was just as wonderful as the sunrise.

7. We shopped every day!

8. Jennifer got her cast signed by a TV celebrity. (More on that in another post.)

9. We walked on the beach and swam in the ocean.

10. The weather was 90 degrees with no rain.

11. We saw artwork made from point shoes. (It is a dancer.)

12. Everyone had a great time!

Greetings from Miami, FL!

We are off on a very busy trip

Fall Break begins today. We are grounded until after the dreaded ACT test Maria has to take but then we are off. Maria will travel with Bob to northern Illinois and Wisconsin to check out colleges. I think I know where she will end up but I am keeping my mouth shut until Maria actually makes her choice.

The twins and I will make a quick stop in Chicago then we are off to St. Louis and Indiana. We will all meet up at the end of the week for a long weekend in Miami.

Jerseyville Friends

Mom and Dad and their friends from Jerseyville, Illinois, took a cruise to the Greek Isles. They were cruising for 2 weeks and then made a stop in Brussels. They brought along lots of souvenirs and 3 of their good friends too! I hadn't seen Jerry, Georgia or Shirley in over 20 years but it didn't take long to catch up and get reacquainted. They were great house guests and were game for just about anything we planned. We saw the Overijse market, ISB, the forest and Grande Place. We also saw Mannekin Pis but we all know that statue is a little overrated.
The picture above is of our entire group at our favorite restaurant in Jezus Eik. The guy with the handlebar mustache is our gregarious waiter. Maria is missing. She was with her friends at a Halloween party.
Below is the picture of Dad, Mom, Jerry, Shirley and Georgia in front of the Eiffel Tower. On Friday we took the Thalys train to Paris. They saw everything; Notre Dame, Eiffel Tower, Champs E'lyse, Arc de Triomphe, Mona Lisa in the Louvre, and Sacre Coeur. They ate Croque Monsieur and Croque Madame in Trocadero Square and crepes on the street in Montmartre. If you click on the picture and enlarge it, you will see how cold everyone looks! They braved the nasty weather, rode the Metro, hopped on and off the tour bus and never complained once. We had a great time! Our entire family enjoyed their visit. Jerseyville friends can come back anytime!

Happy Birthday to Jennifer and Leah

On Thursday, October 15, Jennifer and Leah will turn 12. First of all, I can't believe they are that old. It seems like they were just born! They were the best babies; slept when you needed them to sleep, ate whatever you put in front of them and entertained us nonstop. I guess things haven't changed too much. They still go to bed without a whimper or whine and get up in the morning at the very first nudge. They still eat anything and have tried beef tongue, four cheese polenta and grilled "mystery" meat just in the past year. And finally, they still entertain us nonstop. Fueled with the energy and the competitiveness only twins can possess, they excel at volleyball, joke telling and their string instruments.

The girls hosted a birthday sleepover on Saturday night. It happened to be Bob's birthday too so the seven 6th graders sang to Bob too. Maria volunteered to be the party planner and really took the job seriously. She researched games and crafts that only preteens would enjoy. Personally, I think the party was a huge success. As you can see from the picture below, everyone had fun!

Halloween at Disneyland Paris

Volleyball with Leah and Jennifer

Leah! Jennifer!

Jennifer!

Leah!

Leah? Jennifer?