Top 10 things about moving

Since we are about a week out from our move {finally!!}, I need to work on getting myself psyched up for another move.

11th move.  10 years.  I should be an expert, right?

So, here, for your reading pleasure, are the top 10 things about moving:

1.  It's change.  
If you like that sort of thing.  And I think I do.  Although, eventually I wouldn't mind living somewhere longer than a couple of years.

2.  It's a great opportunity to purge. 
Broken toys?  Gone.  Random screws for who knows what?  Gone.  That movie we got from J#1's work for Christmas that is in Dutch?  Gone. {FYI, for those who head to the mums & tots group here, it will be in the free basket tomorrow.  Would be a great birthday present for someone.  That speaks Dutch.}

it might actually be in English.  but still, won't work with our DVD player.
plus, i don't remember being a big fan of this movie when i watched it as youngster.

3.  Right along those same lines...It's a great opportunity to organize.  
We are very, VERY lucky that we have movers that will pack everything for us.  So what am I doing to prepare?  Grouping everything together, so I am finally organized {well, at least for a day} when we get to Scotland.

all of our decorations in one place

4.  It's an opportunity to make new friends.  

Well, I guess that could be a negative part too. Since you HAVE to make new friends.  And leave the ones that you just made.  Huh.  Well, moving on...

5.  It's a great way to get more items checked off the bucket list {or added, and then checked off}.

Please feel free to leave suggestions for me to add to the bucket list.  Things in Scotland, England, and the like.

6.  Specifically in this case?  It's an opportunity to move someplace where English is the first language.  

Totally thought this was talking about me about a year ago.  Until I got to the part about the 1/3 height.  {Although in the Netherlands, it is almost true.  wink}  Oh, and the fact that the email came from babycenter.com.

7.  The boxes sitting around {yes, I have packed SOME stuff} are great toys for the little ones.

8.  It's an opportunity to buy some new stuff.  {hip, hip, hooray!}.  Cause we need it.

Source: ikea.com via Jenny on Pinterest

Hello toy organization.  It's so nice to meet you.

9.  Have I mentioned we will have a yard {a.k.a. garden}?

10. And will live about 20 minutes from a Costco?  


Alright...so I was obviously a little hard up for ideas once I hit #9, but I did get 10 things!

Linking up again this week with these two lovely ladies:

Nicole @ Miss Mommy

Amanda @ Oh Amanda! 

Five Minute Friday: Ordinary

Its Friday, and so that also means its time for Five Minute Friday.  The prompt this week?  Ordinary.

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Ordinary.  


The definitions for ordinary are: 


1.  adjective:  With no special or distinctive features; normal. 
2.  noun: What is commonplace or standard. 
3.  synonyms: common - usual - regular - normal - habitual - customary

And, really, truly the ordinary moments to me?  Are the best moments of life.  Those are the moments i am talk about when I talk about living in the moment.  When I say I need to be grateful for what I have right now.  Here.  In this place. 

This weekend marks our last in the Netherlands.  And the last of our ordinary traditions here.  Weekends are a special time around here.  Sometimes we head out to mark things off on the bucket list. 

But do you want to know my little secret?  I LOVE the weekends we don't.  

Those weekends, on Saturday mornings, we head to our favorite bakery in the Centrum.  Last weekend, they almost knew our total order (by memory).  Too bad we are about to move, huh?  

Each Sunday J#1 makes breakfast.  Ah, dreamy, I tell you.  Its the same.  Scrambled eggs with cheese and breakfast potatoes. 

J#3 trying to be just like Daddy.  Typical scene around this house

Want to know another little secret?  I am scared about how long it will take us to create these ordinary, but treasured, traditions in our new home.  Settling in, to-do lists, trips...all will delay getting to our new normal.  

But I guess that is what life is all about.  The ordinary, the extraordinary, and all of the days in-between.  And beginning each day as if it were on purpose.  To intend to live.  To be present.  

Working on it.  Every day, I am working on it. 

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If you have a few minutes, head on over to The Gypsy Mama and check out some of the other posts.  I am sure they will be anything BUT ordinary.  




 

It's the little things #5 :: friends & food

It's amazing how these weeks fly by so quickly.  Sunday {while pondering the next day is Monday and J#1 goes back to work} I am wishing for it to be Friday. 

Then it is.  And I get to reflect on the little things that made it the week that it was {mostly good, sometimes...eh}. But I choose to remember the good.  So here it is...

We are quickly winding down our time in Eindhoven, the Netherlands.  A week from today the movers will be packing up our furniture and we will be driving to Amsterdam for an overnight stay before we fly to Scotland.  Wow.  We will have lived here for a year.  To the day. 

So we spent some time last weekend taking a walk around the Centrum. And I spent time capturing our life while we were here.  {Is it just me who likes slightly overexposed photos outside?}

Slippers?  Yup, slippers.  I have been ADDICTED to Tuc Crackers {made by Kraft, they are my stand-in for Cheez-its}.  Right now they have a promotion running; buy three packs, get a free pair of slippers.  Perfect.  Now I can always remember those Tuc crackers.   {They have them in Scotland too, but I haven't seen the exact ones I have been married to here.  Oh well, perhaps it is time for us to go our separate ways.  For my waistline?  Probably a good idea.}

One of my {new} all time favorite photos.  Waiting for her homemade applesauce to be finished.

Speaking of the kitchen.  I finally caved.  J#1 has wanted a deep fryer.  Forever.  And people, wowza...deep fried french fries?  In the comfort of my own home?  Num. 

Capturing a moment in time.  J#3 has been in the habit of sleeping by the window/door in his room.  He was majorly anti-nap over the weekend, so I took advantage of it so I could get this photo and "remember the time he wouldn't sleep in his bed".  

Dinner out with friends {and a photo bomber}.  Seriously.  So rejuvenating to spend a night out without kiddos.

Can't wait to check out what other lovely bloggers have to say where the little things that they are grateful for this week.  Check them out over at Lindsay's blog: 

Xpat Blog Hop: Missing MN Fall

This week on the Xpat Blog Hop, Windmill Tales is asking us to do the following: 
List 5 things your country doesn't have and you wish they did and 5 things they do have and you wish they didn't.


I have written pretty extensively on the things that the Netherlands doesn't have that I wish they did.  You can read my original list from April (six months after moving) here and how I made sure that I got to experience all of the items during our July visit to Minnesota here. 


A quick top 5 things the Netherlands doesn't have at THIS moment?
5.  Fall scented candles. You know, apple spice, pumpkin pie, and the like. 
4. Convenient, low calorie foods.  Hard to be working on losing weight when there doesn't even seem to be low-fat yogurt!  
3. Anything pumpkin flavored (i.e. pumpkin spice latte via Starbucks).  Although I did use some of the pumpkin pie filling that my mom brought over with her in February for some nummy Harvest Pumpkin Bars yesterday.   And with that, folks, I'm not a one-trick pony anymore!

2. Target.  Duh.  Always on the list.
1. Family & Friends.  Always on the list.  Although I am VERY thankful to have made some good friends here.  And will be sad to leave them when we move to Scotland.  Which makes me thankful, as always, for Facebook & the world wide web.

& things that the Netherlands has & I wish they didn't? 


TUC Formage (cheese) Crackers

That's it.

Oh, and rude neighbors.  But that is a story for another day.   And could happen in any country...


This week I am again linking up with Tales from Windmill Fields.  Click on over to see what other Xpats have to say about this same topic.

What's Cookin' Wednesday: Easy Chicken & Cheese Enchiladas

Num Num Num.  That is all I have to say to introduce this recipe.  This is probably one of my favorite meals to cook.  It is easy, can be altered if needed {just wait and see what I mean} and delish.

We had leftovers, and I have had this for lunch for the past two days.  I don't usually "do" leftovers, so that must tell you something, right?

So I pulled the original recipe from a magazine, back in the day.  It is a Campbell's recipe, so yes "cream of something" soup is part of the recipe.  But Netherlands friends, don't fret, I have adapted it for life here in the land of no convenience.  I kid, I kid.  Well, just a little.

And for those of you in the U.S. now thinking to yourselves, "they don't have cream of anything?", all I have been able to find readily available is cream of mushroom soup.   And it has huge mushroom chunks in it.  Just sayin'.    On our trip to Scotland in May I did scope out the soup situation, and we are in luck.  I don't think it was Campbell's, but they do have some more "cream of ___" soups.  Whew.

Alright, I am done babbling now.  Since I have a few versions of this recipe this is going to be a long recipe post. :-)

Click here for a clean version of the original Campbell's recipe, because I am going to show you how we changed it up below in the U.S. AND in the Netherlands.

Campbell's professionally food styled photo of the recipe.  Num, right? 

What do you need? 

IN THE U.S.:

1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup (Regular or 98% Fat Free)

1/2 cup sour cream

1 cup Pace® Picante Sauce Enchilada Sauce

2 teaspoons  1/2 teaspoon chili powder

2 cups chopped cooked chicken

1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

6 flour tortillas (6-inch), warmed

1 small tomato, chopped (about 1/2 cup) (OPTIONAL)

1 green onion, sliced (about 2 tablespoons) (OPTIONAL)

So, the notes on this recipe... We don't do whole tomatoes (or even sliced) in our home.  We have peeps with issues with tomatos, so that is why we use the enchilada sauce and make the tomato (for garnish) optional.  And we are NOT major spicy fans. So, that would by why I have cut the chili powder down to a fourth of the original amount.  Feel free to include more if you like the spicy stuff. 

IN THE NETHERLANDS: 

1 can Unox Kerrie cremesoup

1/2 cup sour cream

1/8 tsp. chili powder

2 cups chopped cooked chicken

1/2 cup shredded cheese (of your choice, we use the Goudse Belegen, 48+)

6 flour tortillas (6"), warmed

1 small tomato, chopped (about 1/2 cup) (OPTIONAL)

1 green onion, sliced (about 2 tablespoons) (OPTIONAL)

Do you see the tiny sour cream containers that we get here?  

And sometime when you see me in person, ask me about the time I could barely reach the sour cream.  Yeah, not a pretty moment. 


Notes for everyone:  Feel free to add more cheese.  Always. To every recipe.  Especially this one.  And no, I am not saying that because I used to work in the marketing department for a company that sells cheese.  I just love cheese. 


Alright, so what do you do?  
I am not going to change this for each country.  You all are smart cookies, you will know what applies to you.  And if you don't feel free to contact me with questions.  I won't laugh.  Trust me.  I almost posted a question on how to tell if an avocado is ripe on Facebook today.  


You can stop laughing now. 

• Heat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Stir the soup, sour cream, picante sauce and chili powder in a medium bowl.
• Stir 1 cup soup mixture, chicken and cheese in a large bowl.
• Divide the chicken mixture among the tortillas. Roll up the tortillas and place seam-side down in an 11 x 7 x 2-inch baking dish. Pour the remaining soup mixture over the filled tortillas. Cover the baking dish.
• Bake for 40 minutes or until the enchiladas are hot and bubbling. Top with the tomato and onion (if desired).

Please refer to photo at beginning of post.  Trust me, this is fabulous.  But I am still working on my food photography. 


So, can anyone tell me how to tell when an avocado is ripe? 


Make sure to check out the other nummy recipes at Life as We Know it with Two Twinkies & a Tator Tot. 

Xpat Blog Hop: Engels alsjeblieft

This Thursday I am linking up with Windmill Farms for her Xpat Blog Hop.  Here is this week's prompt:
Write about what you have found to be the hardest about adjusting to your new country and culture.  What tips would you give fellow expats who may be struggling or those who are thinking of moving to your country?


This is an easy one.

No, not the pizza.  Although, I have yet to find pizza as good as I can find in Minnesota here in the Netherlands.


It is the language.


Signs.  Receipts.


Instruction Manuals.

Packaging.

(Including the instructions.)

Materials from the consultatie-bureau.


All in a language I barely understand.


And it is all my fault.


J#1's company provides support for language training, and Rosetta Stone DVDs are NOT hard to come by.  But once we found out there was a good possibility we were moving to Scotland, I figured "why learn now?"


Big mistake. Big. Huge.  {What movie?  Anyone?}


Six months later, we are still here.   Even though we are moving within the next few months, I am wishing I would have done something to learn more of the language.


So that would be my advice.  Do whatever you can, as soon as you can, to learn the language.


Even if you can find a way to communicate with people via your native language, on top of the homesickness, learning your way around and meeting new people, knowing the first language of the country you are moving to would be a HUGE benefit.


The positive part about living in the Netherlands is that about 90% of the population knows some (if not A LOT) of English.  I have also heard that even if you DO learn the language and try to speak Dutch with the locals here, as soon as they realize your accent, etc. they will switch to English.


I have gotten by.


Thanks to Google Translate and Google Chrome (which automatically translates web pages in Dutch).


And thanks to the very nice Eindhoven native that shared my room in the hospital after giving birth to J#4.  Without her I would have likely gotten tea instead of coffee or milk instead of water.


The other bonus to living in the Netherlands?  From what I have heard it is the only (non-English speaking) European country that uses Dutch subtitles on television shows and movies.  All other countries (such as Germany, France and Italy) dub over English speaking television shows and movies, so we would be outta luck in that department.


But for reals, people.  I got an Ikea catalog today.

Imagine my excitement... until I remembered it was all in Dutch.

But luckily pictures and numbers are easy to understand.


To check out what other expats think is the hardest thing about moving to their new country please visit:








P.S. If anyone in the U.S. happens to still have their Ikea catalog sitting around, I would LOVE to have you send it to me.  {We have a FL mailing address, so it would be cheap!}.  I think it would be fun to compare prices and items featured.  See how different (if at all) they are.  Actually, anyone from other countries as well...I am curious to see how much the catalogs are changed depending on the country they are mailed to.  Dank je wel.

Wordless Wednesday (well, almost)

Let me tell you a bit about this egg: 

1. Well, it almost made me gag. 
2. Made me realize I REALLY need to check the eggs before leaving the store. 
3. But then I decided I might have gagged in the store, and well, that wouldn't have been pretty. 
4. Has me thinking organic is definitely the way to go. 
5. I might be a bit naive, but did, in fact, wonder if there could be a little chick in there. 
6. Yes, we cracked it.  There was just a yolk and the egg white inside. 
7. Whew. 
8. Yes, I made J#1 do the cracking. 
9. And I made sure to wash my hands VERY well before continuing to cook. 
10. Without that egg. 

What's Cookin' Wednesday? Chicken Fried Rice!

Eventually maybe I will share a difficult or involved recipe here.  


Maybe not.  That's just not the way I roll. 


At least not yet.  


Today's recipe came through an email to our Mums & Toddlers group from one of the members.  So GLAD it came through. It is easy, FAST and has just a few ingredients.  


What else can you ask for?  Oh, probably taste too. 


Well, no worries then.  It is delicious. 


The recipe?  Chicken Fried Rice.  Perhaps that would be easy enough for most people to make without a recipe.  But I need a recipe for just about everything. 

First, the ingredients.  This is all folks.  

• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cups cooked white rice, cold
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 cup cooked, chopped chicken meat

What to do with it all? 

1. In a small bowl, beat egg with water. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium low heat. Add egg and leave flat for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from skillet and cut into shreds.
2. Heat oil in same skillet; add onion and saute until soft. Then add rice, soy sauce, pepper and chicken. Stir fry together for about 5 minutes, then stir in egg. Serve hot.

So this recipe is fast (as long as you cooked the rice earlier in the day).  So fast I barely had time to get photos of the process. I got a few egg photos.  One of it cooking in the pan and  one of it cooked and in a bowl.  But I think ya'll know what that looks like.  


I also got a photo of one of the other eggs in the carton I bought (watch for a Wordless Wednesday post shortly with that).


Here though, is the essential photo in an recipe post.  The finished product. 

I know it looks bland, but it doesn't taste bland. 


Want proof? 

Numnumnum. 

Today's recipe has become probably the favorite recipe in this house in literally the last five days.  I made it for the first time on Sunday, and then since I had enough leftover ingredients we had it again on Monday night!  Which means, folks, the husband likes it.  


Oh, and the best thing I have found at the grocery store in the past week? 

kipreepjes gerookt = smoked chicken strips 

We have been here for ten months now, and I am STILL making discoveries.  This most definitely made my day.  One of my favorite convenience foods that I thought I was going to have to live without for as long as we are here. Oh, woe is me, right? Ha. 

Oh well.  It DID make my day.  

Even if J#3 was about five feet away throwing random bakery goods(that I didn't recognize) into the cart.  

So, what is your favorite convenience food?  The one you would have a hard time living without? 

Of course, as I do every Wednesday, I am linking up with Heather over at Life as we know it with Two Twinkies and a Tator Tot.  Oh, and seriously check out her recipe. It looks delish.  Please try it and let me know how it turns out.  Won't be made in this house...a certain person doesn't do pineapples.  And that person isn't me. 

Merry-go-rounds and jellyfish. So much to "sea".

Our Sunday in Den Haag (or The Hague) continued from all things small (Madurodam's miniature Holland attractions) to all things BIG.  


Big, like the North Sea. 

I made a big deal about how this was J#4's first trip to an ocean or sea.  Insisted on a photo for her to remember it by. 

Hello, wind.  

Then I realized it was J#3's first trip to an ocean or sea too.  Luckily we had plenty of photos of him enjoying the warm breeze (and Daddy's shoulders) too. 

Both kids have me beat.  My first trip to the ocean was when I was nine.  On a trip to Florida and the infamous Disneyworld. 

We saw a couple of jellyfish that had ended up on shore.  I don't think I have ever seen a jellyfish in person (except behind glass at aquariums). 

Whenever I see or hear about jellyfish, I think of that one episode of Friends. You know which one I mean, don't you? 

This is our beautiful Den Haag host, Ruth.  We went to the same grade school and high school.  Both from the same suburb in Minnesota.  And we both ended up across the world in the Netherlands.  Talk about a small world, huh? 

And this is some random Dutch gentleman who evidently felt like he wanted to be featured in my blog.  Ha. Well, here you go sir. 

The boardwalk had a merry-go-round, which any fully equipped boardwalk should have.  J#3 has a love/hate relationship with merry-go-rounds.  For some reason, he HATES being on the horses that go up and down at the same time as he is going around in a circle.  But, luckily this one had a few seats that were stationary.  

He started out really excited about the elephant, but had last minute doubts, evidently.  So he had to wait for the next go around.  That gave him and Daddy some more time to figure out the perfect seat. 

An old fashioned car, it is.  I don't know how he could see where he was going with that foggy windshield.  

And then the ride ended.  You know what is coming, don't you? 

Poor boy.  But at 3 Euros (yes, THREE Euros) a ride, this would be a once in a lifetime experience for him. 

But, he got over it pretty soon.  Cause he got to ride a tram back to our car.  

This was about our fourth or fifth tram ride of the day.  So J#4 was an expert.  And after no nap, finally sat down to take a rest.  

Before heading out we checked out the sites of Den Haag from Ruth and her husband Adam's apartment.  12th floor, lucky girl. 

 That big building?  The Peace Palace.  Beautiful building.  

On a clear day, with this view, you could see the sea.  How awesome is that?? 

Pretty cool, although I think J#3 would probably be more excited about hanging out with their puppy. 

2 out of 7 items completed on the Holland Bucket List.   Guess it is time to make some more plans... 

So, what do you remember about your first trip to the ocean (or sea)?