MERRY CHRISTMAS

Merry Christmas to all!!!

M.I.A

So sorry to have been MIA in the past week or so. I owe you all more information on the move, a post about our trip to Munich and our weekend in Dallas. One of my best friends is getting married this weekend, so I will owe you pictures of that, too!

Hopefully everyone is getting ready for Christmas!! If you are travelling, safe travels!!

I'll be back soon!

WE'RE MOVING

So, the cat's out of the bag!!!

James and I are moving to Atlanta, GA in January. James and his friend R are going into business together. Not sure what I will be doing yet as I am trying to work through some details with my current employer. I will post more details as they come along.

But, as we have finally let work know, I wanted to share with all of my readers the great news!!

So, look in the coming weeks for updates on house, job, move and life in general!!! (Oh, and I will change the blog name, but I haven't come up with a new name yet. If you have any ideas, please comment!)

YEA!! BACK TO THE US AND THE EASTERN TIME ZONE FOR US!

Background Color Change

As we're in the holiday spirit and I have been typing posts in RED, I decided the pink background did not work. Not to worry, the pink will be back after the holidays!

German Christmas Markets

From Sinterklaas to Weihnachstmarkt, we're getting in the holiday spirit. We arrived in Munich this morning for dinner with the German team tonight. We will spend the rest of the weekend exploring Munich and of course, visiting the Weihnachstmarkt. Pictures and report after the weekend!

(oh, btw, Starbuck's exists in Germany, so I did have a very tasty vanilla latte after lunch! AHHH, so good!)

Sinterklaas

Today is Sinterklaas. Its a very interesting European tradition. Below is information from http://www.wikipedia.com/

Sinterklaas (also called Sint-Nicolaas in Dutch (pronunciation (help·info)) and Saint Nicolas in French) is a holiday tradition in the Netherlands and Belgium, celebrated every year on Saint Nicholas' eve (December 5) or, in Belgium, on the morning of December 6. The feast celebrates the name day of Saint Nicholas, patron saint of, among other things, children.

In the Netherlands, Saint Nicholas' Eve, (December 5) is the chief occasion for gift-giving. The evening is called pakjesavond ("presents' evening"). Traditionally, presents are ingeniously wrapped, and are therefore called surprises. Also, presents are traditionally accompanied by a poem from Saint Nicholas.

I think the most interesting part of Sinterklaas is Zwarte Piet:

Sinterklaas is assisted by many mischievous helpers with black faces and colourful outfits, modelled after 16th century Spanish clothing. These helpers are called Zwarte Pieten (Black Petes) in Dutch

The arrival of Sinterklaas and Zwarte Piet in towns all over the Netherlands generally involves some sort of parade and "official" arrival. Kids line the streets to get treats from the Zwarte Piets. In fact, they dress up like them. That's right, clothed in jester outfits and faces painted black. Now tell me, would this ever fly in the US? No, I don't think so. And in fact, as I read further on Wikipedia, I see that its even getting some attention here.

From about 1850, Pete was said to be an imported African servant of Saint Nicholas. Today however, a more politically correct explanation is given: Pete's face is said to be "black from soot" (as Pete has to climb down chimneys to deliver his gifts).

That's all for your history lesson, ladies and gentlemen. I just wanted to share a local tradition with you all!

May Sinterklaas bring you wonderful treats tonight!

Sundays

Sundays are usually relaxing days for us at our Home Away From Home. Many shops are not open on Sundays, so the days are pretty quiet. This morning we were relaxing with our coffee and realized that we will be waking up in different places for the next 5 Sundays before returning to the Netherlands.

Today - Netherlands
12/9 - Munich
12/16 - Dallas, TX
12/23 - Columbus, OH
12/30 - Venasque France
1/6 - Netherlands

Guess we are going to have a busy December!! So, in light of that, we are going to relax today, watch some movies and I am going to bake Christmas sugar cookies (but not until this load of laundry is done, because as you may recall, I can only use 1 major appliance at a time).

Happy Sunday!

Decorating

Below are some pictures of our Home Away From Home decorated for Christmas:

This is our dining room table set with decorative plates. The second picture is a close up. I can't wait to use our china on with the set up, I think it will look fantastic!

















This is our mantle. We have snowflake stocking holders, red and white stockings, a snowman, and the poinsettia plate.











Yes there is a theme....I really like red, silver and white for decorating at Christmastime. We're getting in the spirit and counting down the days to visit friends and family for the holidays!

Candy Canes and Christmas Carols

We've had a lot going on lately, so we haven't gotten entirely in the holiday spirit. We did decorate our apartment the weekend before Thanksgiving (I know its early, but we are leaving for the US on Dec 14 and we wanted to enjoy), but other than that we've been busy. But this morning, we listened to Christmas carols on the way into work and had candy canes for a snack. I think I might be able to get in the holiday spirit a little more each day!!

Hope all your holiday planning is going well. I have only bought 2 Christmas presents and have several more to get....I better get busy!!

(pictures of the decorated apartment to come before the end of the weekend!)

Thankful

Things for which I am thankful:

1 - my husband and being able to call him that!
2 - my friends and family even though most are a thousand miles away (or more like 5000)
3 - having an expat community in which to share traditional American holidays
4 - being able to see and go most places we want
5 - this blog for being able to share our expat life with above mentioned friends and family.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING ALL! WE MISS YOU!

(see I promised I was thankful!)

GRRR - Blogging Frustrations

Shortly, you will see the blog on our trip to Champagne. Let me tell you, this blog has been a nightmare. Between adding the pictures and getting the formatting down, and then figuring out no one could see the pictures, I gave up. So I promise it will be up soon, I just have to load all the pictures. It may be awhile before I do another blog with pictures. Though I did discover how to add more pictures and that its easier to upload the pictures to Kodak and then copy the link. The pictures load way faster that way. (but then no one can see them) I am still relatively new to this blogging world and I guess I still have a lot to learn.

But, it'll be there soon for you to read. Enjoy!!

Weekend in Champagne (France, not IL)

James and I joined our Belgian friends on a weekend trip to the Champagne region of France. It was a great trip. We visited 3 Champagne houses, ranging from small to one of the largest. We stayed at a bed and breakfast, which was fantastic for the rate. Below are pictures and commentary This is the group before leaving from Lieven and Inge's house. All smiles. We thought before and after pictures would be fun!!

Tasting at the first house: Henriet-Bazen
We tasted about 4 different champagnes here. I didn't know there were so many different types. Generally, champagnes are not given vintages, but are blend from various harvests. You won't see dates on these bottles. However, if its a good year, they will create a vintage and you will see dates on the bottle. These bottles typically go for more. This is were we consumed the most and bought the most!

Driving from Henriet-Bazen (which was in a very small town) to Ruinart for our tour. Ruinart is located in Reims, which is the largest city in the region. The countryside was beautiful with the colors of fall. (the pictures are a bit blurry as they were taken from the backseat of a moving vehicle)

Yes, we even found windmills in France. (pardon the spot a bird left behind. i was a backseat photographer at this point.)

At Ruinart, we had a private tour scheduled (thanks Martin). This picture is us venturing down into the caves.



A wall of champagne bottles aging at Ruinart (the picture is kind of dark, so you don't see me very well). I believe there are 3000+ bottles there.

Displays of Aging Champagne. The lighting looks cool on this picture.







This picture is in the tasting area. The bar is similar to the aging displays we saw in the caves. The Photographer (James) got a good shot through the glasses to the bar.


This is James with Lieven and Martin. They met while working Brussels.













Tasting at the small champagne house. This was very informal and cozy.













The group after dinner. Dinner was good, but LONG. It took 4 hours for dinner. I think by the time we left, we were all ready to go to sleep! It was a fun day, but long and exhausting!

Not feeling so Thankful

So, its Thanksgiving week and I should be feeling thankful for all the great things/people in my life. But, I'm having a hard time with it given that we do not get the day off. I know, I'll get over it and need to look at the bright side, but at the moment, I am having trouble.......

Maybe tomorrow or Thursday I will post what I am thankful for because I am, really, I promise, thankful.

BLACK

So, I happened upon this test on another blog while I was lurking....interesting. (you can take it for yourself using the link at the bottom)

Jessi, your true color is Black!
Your color is black. The color of night. Serene and mysterious, black conjures up images of elegant evening gowns, dashing tuxedos, and gleaming limousines. Traditionally a symbol of success, black also represents power and an uncompromising demand for perfection. Not surprisingly, you tend to set challenging goals for yourself and do whatever it takes to achieve them — your strength of character is second to none. This unfaltering determination, along with your natural elegance, impresses people. But keep in mind that your personality might be intimidating to some. Try to temper your demanding side with a little softness — trust us, it won't kill you. Overall, though, black is the color of professionalism and achievement, which means it's clearly the color for you.

http://web.tickle.com/color/index.jsp?testname=colorogt&resultid=F

3 Years

Corny, I know, but today is 3 years of knowing each other. From a simple lunch at Atlanta Bread Company to being 3 days away from our 6 month wedding anniversary, oh the fun we've had! (Its fun to celebrate twice a year....knowing each other and the official wedding anniversary!)
Here's to many more to come!
Love you!
(and because I was reminiscing and found old pictures, I have thrown one in of Barley right after we got him. He's about 8 weeks old.)

GO BLUE, GO RED

No, not that blue (Michigan Blue), this BLUE (Kentucky Blue)





An no, not that red (Georgia Red), this RED (OSU Scarlet)








Two Big Games this weekend!!! We will be able to watch the OSU v. UM game because it is on the NASN (North American Sports Network) that is part of our cable package here!! Finally, we can "tailgate" and watch a game!

Whatever your favorite team, enjoy a great weekend of college football!

Go CATS!

GO BUCKEYES!!

SUNNY

WOW, what a difference a week makes. Although it is COLD this week, the sun is actually shining! It is a nice fall/winter day here in Holland and I am extremely surprised. And needless to say, it does wonders to improve my mood. We are finally feeling better and even made it to the gym today at lunch. Now, it wasn't the best workout ever, but at least it was one!

Just wanted to share in the sunshine!

A bit late

The update from this weekend will be a bit late. James and I both had the flu (no, its not fun, even in a foreign country), so pictures have not been uploaded for sharing......stay tuned.

Bubbly

Just wanted to wish everyone a great weekend. We are off to the Champagne region of France with our Belgian friends. Hopefully I will have pictures and stories to post after the weekend!

Demand a Dream Life

I was needing a little inspiration after my husband told me I was selling myself short and in no uncertain terms that was unacceptable to him. So, I was cleaning out my drawers and found this quote and found it appropriate:

"Women who live the life of their dreams don't get there by being dainty and darling. They demand what they want and do what it takes to make it happen. [That] could mean breaking a few rules, a few hearts and a few habits along the way." Laurie Sue Brockway (A Goddess is a Girl's Best Friend)

With this I will be inspired and stop selling myself short!

Dark, Rain, Traffic

So, I was driving to work today and realized that fall/winter is settling in here in the Netherlands. This time of the year can be characterized by the above: Darkness, Rain and Traffic. As we approach full winter, the days will get shorter. And eventually I will drive to work in the dark, work in the dark until about 8:30 and beginning again at 4:30 (the dark that is), and drive home in the dark. And inevitably it will be raining at some point during that time. And as always, I'm greeted each morning (that I don't wake up early enough) by at least a 1KM file (that's traffic jam). And again at night, the file is usually more like 5KM....yes I am not sure how 30 miles can take any where from 40 minutes to (that's right) 2 hours.

So, fortunately this year, I will have a gym to go to and weather will not be an excuse for not working out. And maybe because I know what to expect with the winter, I won't experience any symptoms of S.A.D (see previous posts). But, I am not holding my breath as the first symptoms have already arrived...sleeping long periods of time. I do NOT want to get up in the mornings when it is still dark and my bed is so comfy.....

So, my goal for the rest of the week is to find some inspiration, or at least something to prevent full onset of S.A.D.....Any Ideas??

October

Well October came and went and now I'll tell you about it.

The first week was still pretty busy at work given the Go Live, but was more manageable than the week before. Friday evening we picked up Bambi, Marianne, Sallie and Rachel from the train station. Rachel is student teaching in Germany and the Aunts came over to visit. Once we all got back to the apartment, we chatted for a bit and went to bed (it had been an extremely long day for the ladies!!) On Saturday, I took them to Delft as it is the epitomy of a Dutch town. That evening we went to our favorite little Italian restaurant here in Wassenaar. (Its our favorite not only because of the good food, but it is also walking distance, so you can enjoy your wine with dinner - and we did!!). We had dessert once we got home after dinner. I finally went into the bakery downstairs with them and we bought some little pastries....yummmmm...good thing I didn't discover the backery earlier!! On Sunday we took them back to the train station and made our way to the airport. Back to the US for us. We spent Sunday night - Thursday morning in Lexington. We took care of the house, got hair cuts and massages and vistied with family. Then boarded a plane for Atlanta. We enjoyed a great weekend with Ricky and Lisa. We celebrated my birthday on Friday at a great steak restaurant. (Although I probably won't be returning as I had one too many drinks - it was the Jager I swear). On Saturday we went to a Halloween party. Yes, I dressed up, evidence is below!!! Sunday and Monday were spent relaxing! We did do a little shopping in the meantime.
We arrived back to NL on Tuesday morning and went to work. On Saturday morning (EARLY) we flew to Spain for the Sales & Distributor meeting. I think every child in NL was on that plane with us....the kids were everywhere and definitely misbehaving. I am not sure the parents cared at all what the kids were doing. It was AWFUL... But Spain was nice. We had Sat and Sun to relax before everyone got there. The weather was fantastic. Though it was a long week of meetings, it ended with a 2 hour break laying in the sun on Friday!! Not a bad way to end the trip......And we finished the month off in NL.

Yes, October came and went.....but we sure had some fun!!

Jessi and Lisa at Dinner

James and Ricky at Dinner (Don't they look Handsome?!?)

James and Jessi in the Lederhosen (aren't they cute ?!?!)

All four of us in our costumes at the Party!!

September - Month 12

The month started with the end of Prague weekend, which was included in the August post. Then, 3 weeks later we went to Milan and Como for a relaxing weekend (as much as it could be 2 weeks before implementation at work). James was going to Milan for training, so I tagged along and we left on Friday morning. We stayed in an old castle about half way between Milan and Como. It was very nice; however, the only rooms they had left were twins...so, honeymooners we are, we slept in 2 twin beds on the opposite sides of the room! ;)
We had a great dinner at Il Gatto Nero (the Black Cat) which is a favorite of G Clooney (or at least that is what we were told), but there were no celebrity sightings that night. Dinner of truffles and steak was fantastic. Saturday we spent the day (and a bit of money) in Milan. After wandering aimlessly for about 2 hours, we finally found the street we were trying to find, but only after James walked into the Park Hyatt like we were staying there and talked to the Concierge. Sunday, we spent wandering around Como. The weather was fantastic, as you can tell in the photos. And that evening, I returned home to NL while James stayed behind for training.
Milan and Como Pictures use link below....
http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=8gkpuuo.1kw5v09k&x=1&y=-rzlfq3
The month ended with a crazy weekend at work. We implemented SAP in Europe and went live on Oct 1. After 6 months of hard work, the results were great!!

And that's the first year.....WOW....what a great year! Hope you've enjoyed the journey. I will keep posting updates. But am glad to be caught up!!

Flying by

I am not sure where the month of October went (well actually it went to cutover and immediate aftermath, Lexington and Atlanta, and finally to Spain)....I am officially a month late on getting up to date on postings....But I have posted through August. September and October are coming I promise!

Hope everyone enjoyed their Halloween. Not tricks or treats here as it is not celebrated heavily in Holland (except expat neighborhoods, but we weren't visited). But, look for the October update as james and i did celebrate Halloween in Atlanta!

August - Month 11

We started the month with a visit from Lieven and family. We had a great visit. We took the boys to the beach. It was actually warm enough this weekend for the boys to splash around in the water! Later that evening we enjoyed dinner on the terrace and after the boys went to sleep, the adults enjoyed much red wine! We tried to go back to the beach on Sunday, and with only one road in and out, you couldn't get within 2 KM of the beach in your car. As we were short several bikes and the patience to keep waiting for the bus, we turned around and went home.

(Not sure I have ever mentioned, but our Home Away From Home is a short 4 KM from the beach! Though the North Sea is not one you just go swimming in, its a bit cold!)

The rest of the month was fairly uneventful. Work was busy as we were gearing up for go live. Most of the data objects had been loaded or were being loaded during the month. We did have a visit from a US friend. (Hi Bobbi) And found a restaurant in Den Haag that actually served decent Mexican food (that is generally stop numero uno upon arrival in the US for us).

We ended the month and began September with a trip to Prague...It is one of the most beautiful European Cities. The architecture is amazing, food was great and the city is rich in history. We walked all over the town, so my legs were tired by the end of the trip, but it was a fantastic trip. We stayed at the Hilton using points and were upgraded to the executive level, so enjoyed free breakfast and afternoon cocktails. I could go on and on about the city, but I will let the pictures do the talking....WHAT A BEAUTIFUL PLACE (and my amateur photog husband took some fantastic pictures)

http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=8gkpuuo.bk7e3wvk&x=0&y=-58ncfx

July - Month10

(back to my calendar review to determine what the heck we did in the month of July)

We started the month by celebrating 4th of July in style at Jack and Kathy's, hamburgers, broccoli casserole, the works. I even whipped up some rice krispie squares (I forgot how much I love them). The food and friends were present, however the fireworks and summer temperatures were not. In fact, it rained off and on all day. AND we actually had to go to work for most of the day. (Guess Holland isn't interested in celebrating USA's independence ;))

Later in the month we took a weekend trip to Ireland. We spent 4 days with Hugo and Daphne at Daphne's parents. While the weather was cool, we didn't have much rain. We took amazing drives (although a bit nausea enducing) along the coast of Northern Ireland. It really was beautiful. We also hit an Irish Pub in Dublin and enjoyed some Guinness....And what would a trip to Ireland be without some Irish Whiskey...we enjoyed a great tour and tasting!! (Hot toddy's are about all the irish whiskey I want, but James sure does enjoy his tastings!!!) See link below for pictures from this great trip!
http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=8gkpuuo.afhm78jk&x=1&y=-628x4k

June - Month 9

I have had to look back at my calendar to remember what it was exactly we did in the month of June. Unfortunately nothing exciting to post. Once we got back from the honeymoon it was right back into it at work. We did have visitors (Alex and Angie) the second weekend in June, so it was nice to finally share our Home Away From Home with friends from our Real Home. We took them to the Heineken museum (a must) and around downtown Amsterdam (yes, the RLD was on the tour). Other than a quick trip to Brussels to see Hu and Daphne, it was a rather uneventful month....more photos and updates coming.

May - Month 8 - Honeymoon

(So, I will leave this out of order so you can find it.)

After what might have been the best wedding in history (yes, I am biased, but it WAS everything I could have imagined), James and I set off for the best honeymoon in history. We went to Mauritius. Where is Mauritius you ask? It is off the coast of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. Why Mauritius you ask? When else would we actually make it to that part of the world? We flew back to our home away from home and spent 24 hours unpacking and repacking. The flight from Paris to Mauritius was 13 hours...yes it was a long one. But thanks to Skymiles we were sitting in First Class! (that was nice). We split our 10 day trip into 5 nights at 2 resorts. We stayed at the Oberoi Mauritius (http://www.oberoi-mauritius.com/index.asp?leftinfo=1&leftitem=1). It was fantastic. We were greeted at the welcome center and escorted directly to our room, which was fantastic. We had great dinners and enjoyed the pools and beaches. After the Oberoi, we went to the One and Only Le Toussrok. (in the middle of our stay it changed hands and is now just Le Toussrok - http://www.letouessrokresort.com/) It was absolutely fantastic as well. We enjoyed great food, some snorkeling and time on their private island. The resorts were so different, its hard to say one was better than the other. All in all it was a fantastic trip!! See favorite photos below:

http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=8gkpuuo.3rrn172s&x=1&y=-4ltam5

ONE YEAR

Ok, so I haven't met my goal of being up to date on the updates by the one year anniversary. But, in my defense, work has been absolutely hectic lately. And, James and I did enjoy some of the perks of European living - weekend trips to great European Cities.

As I have been updating this blog and remembering the last year, it is amazing how much we have packed into the year....getting married being the best and most exciting thing that happened!! Its been one heck of a year (read posts below) and actually feels like it has flown by. We have gotten used to Holland life, but still not used to being away from our family and friends. I feel like I am missing out on so much, bridal and baby showers, baby births, and the trials and tribulations of my friends' pregnancies (yes I can count on 2 hands the number of friends pregnant or who just recently had babies). But, we have seen so much and have many memories of our first year in Europe.

I hope you are enjoying my update posts and regular musings on life....stay tuned more to come!

See Posts Below

We're up to May now!!!

Sorry for the delay. Work is crazy and we had cutover weekend this past weekend. Stayed in the hotel close to the office so looking forward to going to our house tonight....am trying my best to get caught up!!

Perks

Ok, so I guess I do enjoy the perks of living in Europe....James and I are leaving today for a weekend in Milan. Yep, that's right, just 2 days in and around Milan. We have been very fortunate to be able to take several of these types of trips....Paris, Ireland, Prague and now Milan. (Those trips took place in the months I have yet to post, so pictures and details coming soon.) Looking forward to speaking and hearing Italian all around...and the temp. should be warmer than here...the high is 80 on Sunday! Will definitely post a trip report!

Enjoy your weekend!

(photo from Yahoo Travel - Milan - Pictures)

FALL

So, the weather outside is turning to fall. And for some reason we are getting homesick. Saturday morning was slightly crisp with a bit of sun - perfect for tailgating. We were longing for a UK tailgate, drinking beers and bringing Barley along (our dog currently in foster care while we are in Europe). We haven't been watching much football using the Location Free Player because the games we have wanted to watch are evening games in the US, meaning middle of the night for us. And to top off our longing of all things tailgating....UK BEAT UL....man, what a thing to miss!!

In the spirit of the weather changing, we switched our wardrobes. I am not sure how much use our summer wardrobes got this year as we probably had only a hand full of days that were actually above 80 degrees. No need for cute sundresses this year! (just for the honeymoon of course)

And in the spirit of changing wardrobes.....am I so ready to shop for fall clothes. I did my best to create a good will pile (we'll be bringing it back whenever that is), but I think I could clean out some more if I knew I could do some shopping....hmm, I do have a birthday coming up (hint, hint) and the wares at Banana Republic and JCrew are looking pretty good!

Miss you all and hope you are enjoying your September....tailgates and such (even if the weather isn't changing yet)

apologies

Sorry for the delay in posting the rest of my catch up blogs. I have been under the weather. As it is already fall here (wait, I don't think we really had a summer), colds are everywhere. James caught it first and passed it on to me. Still with a runny nose, but going to try to add some blogs today. I realize I only have 2 weeks left on my goal to be up to date by the 1 year anniversary......

Miss you all!

October - Month 1

So, I arrived in Amsterdam on Saturday morning. We left for the UK on Sunday for Lubrizol training...chemical training on lubricants, yes it was loads of fun! We came back from training and moved into our extended stay hotel. I have no pictures and no good memories from that place. Let's just say, we didn't stay there long!

The weekend we got back from training, we had dinner at the Jack and Kathy's. A bunch of the US Valvoline Expats got together....it was a fun evening. We owe a lot of our adjustment to Jack and Kathy - thanks to them we had a place to store things and use internet so James could attend class.

In our second and third weeks here we went house hunting with our expat integration consultant. Some of the photos are below ....

Notice the purple carpet and paint....definitely not a taker......

This one was in Rotterdam...floors were not finished.... This one was in an area of Rotterdam, notice the shower is in the middle of the bathroom and did not have an enclosure...needless to say we didn't choose that one.

We liked this one. It is also located in Wassenaar, had a nice backyard area and several bathrooms. We didn't get it because the landlord had promised it to his friends in Belgium earlier that morning. It's actually a good thing because the biggest bedroom would have held our bed, and THATS IT. The dining,living and kitchen area were all open. The ground floor and backyard are what made us like it.
And after viewing about 18 different places, we came back to the first place we saw.......(see next post)

In October I met my new friend Courtney. James was travelling the day before my birthday, so Courtney and her mom (who was in town visiting and helping Courtney get organized, she moved here in August) took me to dinner for my birthday. It was a comforting momemt at the beginning of this crazy adventure. THANK YOU Courtney!!

Our Home Away From Home

So this is our Home Away From Home (well not really a home yet as it doesn't have any of our things...look for postings for January)

This is the outside view....our landlords have an office for the business on the ground floor (US first floor, though here its ground, first, second)

This is the kitchen area. Pretty small, but we are lucky with the cabinet space

The living/dining room area. This is the living room side.....
And this is the dining room side.....
This is the master bedroom area

November - Month 2

We spent the first week of November back in Lexington packing with the movers. It took 2 days to pack and I think the rest of the week for us to organize what we left behind in the house.

Back in Holland, we got the keys to our apartment on November 15...I was away for a training so James spent the first night there alone....and from what I hear it was a little cold! We brought our blow up mattress and a set of sheets and towels from the US in our luggage. That first weekend we got as organized as we could without our shipment....we borrowed a card table and chairs, tailgate chairs and dishes from Jack and Kathy. We went to the Media Mart (like a Best Buy) and bought a TV, DVD player (enabled for region free as different DVDs are not universal....and to watch DVDs from different areas of the world, you need your player to be region free), and microwave. I bought us a skillet and spatula. At least we could cook in one skillet and eat on borrowed plates!! We called it camping....but it got a little old.

Thanksgiving was our first real holiday away from home. Our friends hosted Thanksgiving dinner and each family brought a dish. It was as close to a family gathering as you can get when you are 6000 miles from home. I went to a church service in the morning in Leiden (there were pilgrims in Leiden, too) and then we had dinner. James was still in school so he did school work while I went to the service. Friday, it was back to work for us as it is not a National Shopping Day like in the US.

Those are the highlights for November.....

December - Month 3

December....the days are getting shorter and shorter....its dark when I get to work and dark by the time I leave...and by the way, it rains a lot in Holland!! More on this later...

I did get to take a trip to Germany this month. James is the German sales manager and had a Christmas dinner for his team in Hamburg. Really nice city. We did a dinner cruise with a folk theme on Friday night and went to the Christmas market and toured the city on Saturday with James' boss George and his wife, Jill. Some pictures are posted below.......

Us in Folk Costumes...given to everyone before dinner

And in our normal clothes....
A view of the Christmas Market

We also went to St Truiden to visit Lieven and Inga for a Champagne party. They served Champagne and foie gras ....needless to say too much Champagne without food (no foie gras for me) gets Jessi drunk quickly....we ended up having dinner a bit later at a local restuarant that James loves....we go there everytime we are in St Truiden....the food is really pretty good.

And then we flew home to share the holidays with friends and family, see coming posts.

December - USA

So, back in the good ole US of A for the holidays.

My wonderful fiance (at the time) was about to celebrate his 30th birthday and I couldn't let that pass without some fune including friends and family. So I organized, with the help of Bobbi and Leigh, a surprise party. Thanks to Adam dragging James to the movies we were able to pull it off without a hitch! Thank you to everyone who helped organize and pull it off (Mom, Dad and Emily even came to Lex for the party). Pictures below.

I think he was surprised.......

Christmas was fun this year. We had dinner with Jim, Ali, Adam, Brooke and Jon at Guiseppe's. It was very good. For Christmas Eve, we spent the day in Lawrenceburg and Harrodsburg visiting James' dad's side of the family and then the evening at Anne's house. Waking early on Christmas morning, James and I exchanged our gifts and headed to Xenia (not without a stop at Starbuck's first. This is a great tradition...starbucks christmas morning!!) We hung out in Ohio for several days and then headed back to Lex for New Years!

Adam, Brooke, Jim and James

Emily, James and I

New Year's Eve was a great time. We went to IHCC with Leigh, Bob, Anne and Warren. I think we all had fun, I might have had too much fun. The picture tells a great story!! Thanks everyone for a great night.

James and I flew back to Amsterdam on the 2nd...

January - Month 4

What an exciting month! We returned from the US on the third and received our shipment - yes our furniture finally - on the 4th, which also happened to be James' 30th birthday. After a day of unpacking (and not getting done), I took James to dinner in Amsterdam. We went to Jamie Oliver's Fifteen...Jamie brings underpriveledged teenagers to work at the restaurant to learn the trade. For more information...
http://www.fifteen.net/Pages/default.aspx
Anyway, James and I enjoyed a wonderful birthday dinner. That weekend our friends Hugo and Daphne came to visit, well, actually they came to work. They helped us get organized....shew it was a lot of work for the weekend and I know we didn't get it all done. To celebrate James' birthday yet again (yes, 3 celebrations for the big 3-0) we went to an Italian restaurant - Impera Romano - in The Hague. It was a fantastic dinner (best steaks we've had) shared with great friends.
We made several trips to IKEA....let me tell you that is an experience. The place is always crawling with people and its pretty much help yourself...as is assembly. Picture instructions.
I can't remember what else we did in January other than to get our house set up properly. Photos to come as I have yet to take them (sorry).

February - Month 5

So, there are no pictures to remind me of what we did in February. So I guess I will talk about SAD - Seasonal Affective Disorder.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seasonal_affective_disorder
I am not sure I ever believed that such a thing exists. Well, let me tell you I am a true believer now. The winter months in Holland are not fun. Sun is up from about 8:30 to 4:30 and as a working woman, that means I didn't get to see much of it. In addition to the dark, it was rainy and windy most days. With James travelling most days, I would come home from work (usually after a drive of about 1-1.5 hours because of traffic), maybe run 30-40 depending on weather, eat dinner and be in bed by 8. That was my first symptom........

Speaking of traffic, let me just tell you I will never complain about drivers/traffic in Lexington again. This place is crazy. First, Holland is densely populated in certain areas. Second, there are 4 cities where work is concentrated. Third, these cities are all within about 60 miles of each other....Let's just say the roads are busy. In order to beat traffic, we would have to leave home by 7. To beat traffic in the evening, you either left right at 5 or wait until after 6 to head home. For some reason, the time in the car doesn't bother me as much as I thought. It's annoying, but I use it as wake up time or decompression time.....

Sorry for no pictures this month...

March - Month 6

So the highlights of March....

James and I headed to the US for 10 days to celebrate our upcoming marriage by having our bachelor and bachelorette parties. Mine was in Cincinnati on St Patrick's Day. It was a great night. We started with dinner at Palomino's (yum). Then went on to an Irish bar, of course! Nothing too wild (except the guy dancing for us....I think those around us were WAY more drunk than we were). I don't have any pictures to post, I was having too much fun to take pictures and I haven't gotten any from anyone else. I spent the rest of the week working....I had just been assigned to my new role as Data Coordinator for our SAP implementation (Oct 1).

James had his party in Las Vegas. From what I hear they had a great time. Not sure how we swung a 4 day trip out of it, but don't worry girls...I'll get a girl trip sometime soon!

I also had a shower while I was home....it was hosted by Cher, Tara and Jayme and it was perfect. Thank you all so much!!! Mom and Emily came down for the shower. We also had my dress fitted and went shopping. It was a nice girls weekend while James was away.

Sorry for no pictures this month!! Stay posted the fun is coming!

April - Month 7 (post 1)

SORRY - FIRST POST BUSY MONTH Happy Easter....to celebrate Easter (and enjoy our 4 day weekend) James and I headed to the south of France. We drove to Provence for 5 days. It was a wonderfully relaxing trip! We stayed at Caroline's place, which is a bed and breakfast type place in a perfect location. Very centralized for all the wineries and sightseeing opportunities. We went to wineries, cellars, local markets, great landmarks, it was wonderful.
The drive home was quite fun and interesting....It was an 11 hour drive and i agreed to drive for part of the time....well, James pulled over to a typical French reststop for us to switch drivers. Well let me just tell you about the toilets....its a porcelain hole in the ground with two foot rests and no rubber to keep from slipping...that's right, its glorified squatting....NEVER AGAIN FOR ME!!

View from Caroline's to Venasque

Avignon
Fontaine de Vaucluse (The fountain, or spring, of Vaucluse, situated at the feet of a steep cliff 230 metres high, is the biggest spring in France. It is also the fifth largest in the world with an annual flow of 630 million cubic metres.)
Yes, we pulled over on the side of the road and took these pictures. All the cherry blossoms were in bloom. It was absolutely beautiful!
Wine tasting room (yes, we came home with a few bottles, I mean cases)