Strawberries and Shenanigans

This year Shawn and Hannah planted a little strawberry patch in our garden. 
(In case you think that we have a garden in the American definition of a garden, now is a good time to tell you that Europeans call their backyards gardens, and a backyard is a cement slab/patio at the back of the house.)
To clarify: Shawn and Hannah planted a little strawberry patch in an area of grass located at the back of our house.

Anyway, their plants recently bore their first fruits.

On the day we bought the plants at Hornbach, which is like the European version of Home Depot (they have an orange sign and everything), a woman approached Shawn and asked him a question (in French) about the strawberries.
He politely explained that he doesn’t speak French well enough to help her so would she mind if he spoke English? 
The woman rolled her eyes, gave and exasperated sigh and walked away.

The French have a phrase for expressing anger: J’en ai plein les bottes, which literally translates to I have full boots and basically means I’ve had enough.

Apparently this lady’s boots were really full because she tracked down a manager, brought him to the strawberry plant table, pointed her finger at Shawn, and complained loudly about his poor French.

Now, I don’t know if it was the shirt he was wearing or the way he was meticulously sorting through the plants with a certain horticulture expertise, but it became apparent that this woman thought THAT SHAWN WAS AN ACTUAL EMPLOYEE OF THE STORE.

The manager stared at Shawn, then back at the woman and explained that there was nothing he could do about this man’s ability to speak French because he does not, in fact, work here.

I don’t know how we get ourselves into these kind of situations.

*****

You may be wondering why Finley is not wearing pants in this picture.

Here’s what happened:
We were walking to school to pick up Hannah when a bird flew overhead and pooped directly on Finn’s jeans. It took a minute for me to register what had happened and later that day when I texted Shawn to tell him about it he replied with some nonsense about it being good luck.  Well, maybe for Finn it was, but it certainly wasn’t for me, as I was the one who had to clean it up.  And I was in a big hurry to pick up Hannah, get the kids back to the car and get to my doctor appointment. 

Then I realized that I didn’t have a change of clothes for Finn because OF COURSE I DIDN’T. 

So we headed to my doctor’s office and the receptionist showed us into the little room to wait.  Hannah plopped down onto one of the chairs and discovered that if she sat down with enough gusto, the leather chair made a tooting sound.  This reduced her to a heap of giggles because when you’re six, there’s not much funnier than toot noises.   Then Finn started laughing because when you’re a boy, toot noises are funny, no matter what age you are.  And I started laughing because the whole thing was just so ridiculous.

So, to recap our day:  a bird pooped on Finn, my doctor walked in to find all three of us laughing at toot noises and Finn was sitting in his stroller without pants. 

I bet I’m his favorite patient.

(And I think Shawn may be Hornbach’s favorite customer.)   

I’m Still Here, And I’ll be Back Later With More

Yes, I’m still here.  And I’m fine.
I hadn’t planned on taking such a long break from the blog, but you see, what happened is that my laptop died. Well, my laptop itself didn’t die, but the power cord did and my laptop is so old that her battery won’t hold a charge and has to be plugged in to power up.

Some might say it’s time for a new laptop, but I like to squeeze every single last ounce of use out of things before I replace them. Plus, the thought of researching and shopping for a new one makes me itch and break out in a sweat.  So for now, I’ll just be using Shawn’s when he doesn’t need it.

I’ve also been sorting through some rough stuff the last couple of months and every time I sat down to write, the words just wouldn’t flow.
Maybe I’ll write about that later.

Anyway, I’ve got lots to catch up on – our ski holiday, Finley’s first birthday, Easter, and other shenanigans like Shawn being mistaken for an employee at a home improvement store and why Finley wasn’t wearing pants when we picked Hannah up from school one day and then went to my doctor appointment.

Oh, and speaking of birthdays, today is Shawn’s. 
On his 17th birthday, he introduced me to his entire family for the first time.  It’s hard to believe that was 20 years ago.

We celebrated with dinner, presents, a (homemade) cake…

…and a game of Just Dance Disney on the wii.
She got to be Mary Poppins.
I had to be Burt.

Tomorrow is an official holiday in Luxembourg (Labour Day) and we plan on doing some chores around the house, grilling kabobs and maybe going to the park if it’s nice. 
Friday’s a day that lots of people faire le pont, but it’ll be business as usual around here for us and I’m planning on taking Finn to get his hair trimmed.

And I promise he’ll be wearing pants.

Another Exciting Week for Teeth

Growing teeth is serious business, people.
Look who has two more coming in.  Both of them have actually broken through the gum since I took this picture.  And he’s still smiling.  He’s a champ. 

On top of that, Hannah has lost her second tooth.  It happened at school on Thursday.  When I dropped her off in the morning, it was hanging by a thread.  A THREAD.  When I picked her up in the afternoon, she busted through the school gate, peeled her coat off and gave me the biggest cheesiest smile, pointing at the hole left by her missing front tooth.

She reached into her bag to show me the tooth that had been carefully wrapped in a tissue.

I’m not quite sure what happened exactly, because I never actually saw the tooth but there was a flurry of commotion and before I knew it moms and kids alike were all looking in the grass for the missing tooth.

And then it started to downpour.
So, to recap: Hannah lost a tooth.  Then she lost the lost tooth.  We searched for the lost, lost tooth.  We all got soaked.  The end.

We weren’t able to find the tooth and Hannah had become very worried about how it was going to go down with the tooth fairy and all.  So we went to her dance class and when we got home, she wrote a letter to the tooth fairy explaining the situation.

I don’t know what I love more – fell out as one word, the backwards letter g or that she dotted the i with a heart.

The tooth fairy didn’t disappoint and when Hannah woke the next morning, she found one shiny Euro, a letter saying that the tooth had been found and taken to the tooth fairy castle (good one, Shawn) and a picture of Hannah asleep with the tooth fairy fluttering about her pillow.  Hannah took the letter and the picture to school on Friday to show her class.

There was some confusion, because remember I mentioned that in French speaking countries, there’s a mouse that takes teeth when they fall out?  For some kids in her class, this was the first time they’d ever heard of the tooth fairy. 

“This is exactly what I thought the tooth fairy looked like,” Hannah told us.

I’m going to be really sad when she’s old enough to know the truth.  But until then, I love how excited she is.

Oh, and that letter she wrote?
I’m keeping it forever.

Sweet Tooth

It’s been a big time around here for teeth.  First, Finley cut his first two.
You can see them HERE.

Around that same time, I started noticing a bit of tooth sensitivity, mainly on the left side.  It wasn’t painful, but randomly sensitive when I ate something sweet and I couldn’t even tell you if it was coming from the top or bottom teeth.

I ignored it for a while and then we left on vacation and it wasn’t a huge concern until it started happening more frequently.  I figured it was a cavity and that I needed to call the dentist when we returned.  In the meantime, I started to get into a bit of a panic because I just don’t like going to the dentist.  The smell and sounds of a dental office makes me edgy.  I think it stems from an unfortunate orthodontia incident in the early 90’s.    
 
By the time I had made the appointment with Hans Henrick (that’s his first name – he’s Danish), I’d had in depth text message exchanges with my sister who relayed my symptoms and questions to her dental hygienist friend, emailed another friend to confirm that they use anesthesia in Europe and had convinced myself that I needed a root canal and a crown or possibly a tooth extraction.  It only takes a few clicks on Google Images for this crazy train to leave the station.

This morning I went to my appointment with Hans Henrick, who comes highly recommended in the Luxembourg expat community, by the way.

I have a friend who also went to him and on the way out said to the receptionist, “Well, he was just lovely.” 
Then she leaned in close and filled her in on a secret.
“All the moms at my daughter’s school talk about him.” 

“I’m glad everyone likes him,” the receptionist said. “He’s my husband.”

Anyway, Hans Henrick is lovely and did a thorough exam, x-rays and announced that I do not, in fact, have any cavities and my current fillings are in good shape.  He finished up with a cleaning and a polish, and you know that gritty toothpaste that they use to professionally clean teeth?  Well, it sort of tasted like…gravy…turkey gravy.  And when he said the word tarter, he pronounced it “tar-tar.”  It was precious and I just never have the heart to correct those types of things.
Hans Henrick’s conclusion: pregnancy and breast feeding have caused my teeth to become sensitive.   He gave me a sample of toothpaste for sensitive teeth, the name of a rinse to pick up at the pharmacy and sent me on my way.

And now, on to the REALLY exciting news.
Hannah lost her first tooth!
It happened while we were in Corsica, but the tooth fairy found us nonetheless.

”Does the tooth fairy only collect American teeth?” she asked us.

In French speaking countries, there’s not a tooth fairy, but la petit souris, a little mouse that comes to take a child’s tooth when it falls out.  We decided to ignore the mouse and stick with the fairy, since we had brought a tooth fairy pillow with us in anticipation.  Sometimes it’s just best to go with what you know.

The next morning, Hannah was pleased to find the tooth was gone and had been replaced with one shiny Euro.  

He got his first tooth.
She lost hers.
I love these smiles.

On The Mend…

As I mentioned here, we had a little bit of a scare from Hannah last week.  But she’s on the mend and we’re so happy with her doctor who has been thorough, helpful and will continue to see her every other day for the next few weeks.

Last Tuesday, when she came home with the rash, I immediately called the doctor because I knew it was something that needed to be looked at.  And I was glad that I did.  The doctor wanted a urine sample from Hannah right then and a blood test the following morning.  She handed me the little cup and sent us into the WC.  (That means Water Closet.  That’s what they call restrooms here.)

Hannah tried her best, bless her heart, but just couldn’t produce a sample.  So the doctor sent us home with the cup and told me it would be easier to get a sample at home and to take it to the hospital with us in the morning when we go for the blood test. 

The next morning, we arrived at the hospital at 8AM.  This is where I’ll tell you how brave and grown up Hannah was.  She got right up on the table, laid down and let the nurse draw her blood.  She was a little confused at the term “draw your blood,” though.  We got it straightened out and assured her that no one would be drawing anything with her blood.  (Also, if anyone’s keeping count, this is the second time since living in Luxembourg that I’ve driven around town with a urine sample in my purse.)

The doctor called me a few hours later and said the blood work was normal and wanted to see us again Thursday morning.  So Thursday morning we arrived back at the dr. office, water bottle in hand, because there would be another urine sample required.  And yet again, no luck. 

So we sat in the waiting room, Hannah guzzling water and me coaxing her along.
We went back to the WC, where there’s only one toilet and tried again.  I left the stall door open because Finley was in his stroller and it wouldn’t fit in there with us.

A pregnant lady came into the bathroom and struck up a conversation with me.
”Cest un garcon?” Is it a boy?
”Oui.”
“Combien de mois?” How many months?
“Quatorze.” Fourteen.
Wait that’s not right…
”Quatre.” Four.
Then she asked me something that I didn’t recognize so I asked her to say it again, slower.
When I told her that I don’t know that word, she grabbed her right breast, shook it in my general direction and pointed at Finn. 

”Oui,” I answered.  Apparently that’s the universally recognized sign for are you breast feeding?

And then I realized that she either didn’t speak English or she didn’t detect my American accent.  (That last part was a joke because even Americans can detect my American accent.)  It dawned on me that she was about six months pregnant and there was only one stall in the Water Closet.  I told Hannah that this lady needed the toilet more than we did.

So we waited in front of the sink where I turned the cold water on and ran Hannah’s hands under it, hoping that would help things along. 

When the French speaking pregnant woman was finished, we went back into the stall.
”I think I’m ready to give it a go,” Hannah told me. 
A minute later the French speaking pregnant woman returned to the Water Closet, only this time she had a little boy with her.

She told me he was her second son and she was due with her third in three months.  My head was whipping back and forth between Hannah, who I was desperately trying to get to go in the little cup and the French speaking pregnant woman, and my mind was getting cluttered because PLEASE JUST GO IN THE LITTLE CUP and I can’t translate all this French.
Then she and the little boy poked their heads into Finley’s stroller and she stated telling him to look at the baby, and isn’t the baby little and we’re having a baby like this soon and you have to be gentle with the baby.
This is the part where I nearly needed a nerve pill because it’s about 140 degrees and THERE’S NO AIR CONDITIONING IN LUXEMBOURG and the French speaking pregnant woman and her toddler have started touching Finley’s face.  Did I mention that I’m also squatting next to a toilet, holding a tiny cup under a five year old trying to get a sample? 

And why do people think it’s okay to touch babies’ faces?
Please, don’t touch other people’s baby’s faces.

I told Hannah that we’d go back to the waiting room and drink some more water.  Just about this time Finley started to get hungry because OF COURSE.  Now listen.  I’m not good at public breast feeding.  I’m just not.  Not even in Europe where it’s no big deal.
So I took him out of the stroller and got us situated so that I could discretely nurse him.  I sort of hid behind the stroller and put a blanket over my shoulder but I have no idea why because remember, 140 DEGREES and we were the only ones in the waiting room.  Hannah was next to me sipping away on her water and we were in business. 

Except.

Here comes French speaking pregnant lady. 
She sits down right next to me and starts tickling Finn’s feet. Tickling his feet.  While I’m feeding him!

And then. 

French speaking pregnant lady LIFTS THE BLANKET OFF OF HIS HEAD AND STARTS RUBBING HIS CHEEK.
WHILE I’M NURSING HIM. 
”Coucou! Coucou!” she keeps saying. (This is kind of like an informal greeting that you might say to a child.)

If I nearly needed a nerve pill a few minutes ago, I most certainly needed one now.

The dr. finally called her in and Finley finished eating, but no luck on the sample so we left.  The dr. said that since it was the last day of school, Hannah could go for a few hours but no running, no horseplay and she had to sit still and quiet.

Wouldn’t you know that on the way to school she had to go to the bathroom so bad we barely made it?  But I got the sample, put it in a plastic bag, washed my hands and put it in my purse.  (This makes the third time since I’ve lived in Luxembourg that I’ve carried a urine sample in my purse.)

We had an appointment Friday evening and another on Monday.  Things are still looking the same, slight improvements and no worry of kidney damage.  I will tell you, however, that at one point during the weekend Hannah had a bloody nose while simultaneously vomiting.  This was just after Finley spit up down the front of my shirt.  Motherhood is so glamorous.  

Anyway, Monday after our dr. appointment we rushed home because Hannah and I were on Royal Baby Watch.

We tuned in to a live stream outside of the hospital, waiting for news that the baby had been born.
Pretty much all day it was security guards standing around looking bored, but every once in a while, the camera would pan out and then zoom in dramatically and we’d get excited thinking that someone was about to burst through the doors with the royal announcement.

When they finally made the announcement later that evening, Hannah was long asleep so I watched the coverage by myself.   I got a little nostalgic because just four months ago, Shawn and I brought our baby boy home from the hospital, although I assure you I didn’t look as stunning as Kate and the only adoring fan I had waiting for me was a five year old little girl.  I can’t wait to hear what they name him.

Anyway, it’s now Wednesday afternoon and we’re just about to leave for another doctor appointment.
Oh, and guess what I have in my purse?

School’s Out for the Summer!

Back home, kids are almost to the end of their summer break.  But here in The Lux, we’re just getting started.  I’ve mentioned that our school calendar is a bit different – our summer holiday is the end of July through the end of September.  
Thursday was Hannah’s last day in Reception, which is similar to Pre-K in the US.  In the fall she’ll start Year 1, which is similar(ish) to Kindergarten.
Here she is on her last day:

It’s possible that this right here is the 1983 version of me.  I mean, I’m certain I had those same leggings and neon pink unicorn shirt tied on the side.  (Except I would’ve been singing Girls Just Wanna Have Fun instead of Call Me Maybe.)

And for comparison, here she is back in September on her first day of school. 
The shoes she wore no longer fit and we’ve repurposed that frock into a long shirt.

We’ve had some tough times as a family this year – losing our dog, the deaths of three family members and having a new baby.  Of course the new baby was a joyous time, but a change and shift in dynamics nonetheless.  Hannah’s handled all of these things and adapted better than some adults would.
We’re so proud of her.

Oh, and also this:

It makes my heart smile. 
(And apparently all has been forgiven and forgotten regarding the “faffing about the loo” incident earlier this year.)

Hannah gave us some cause for concern earlier this week when she came home with an odd rash on her legs.  I knew it was more than an allergic reaction or heat rash so I called the doctor.  She was 90% sure she knew what it was but needed to rule some other things out so she sent us to Children’s Hospital for some testing.  For four days in a row, we were either in the doctor’s office or at the hospital being tested or evaluating new or changing symptoms.

The doctor was right about her initial suspicion and Hannah’s been diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder that affects primarily children in the 2-11 age range.  It’s okay – it’s not curable, per se, but it’s manageable and the symptoms can be treated.

When she has a flare up, which is what’s happened this week, she’ll get a rash on the lower half of her body, and a day or two later, her joints will swell (last night her ankles and knees looked bruised and were the size of small apples) and become tender and she can have stomach pains.  The main concern is kidney damage and her pediatrician is keeping a close eye on that.  So close, in fact, that she’s given me test strips and taught me what all those colors mean and how to test her urine for the things that would alert us that there’s something wrong.   See?  I feel like a nurse.  Or a Chemist.  Somebody get me a lab coat.

She also wants to see Hannah every two days until all her symptoms have gone and will continue to monitor her for the next six months.  I just tested her this morning and it appears that she’s still in the middle of a flare up, but the values are lower than yesterday, so she may be over the hump.  Although it’s hard to say because with this particular disorder, symptoms come and go randomly during a flare up.  It’s possible that this is the only time she’ll ever have an issue with this disorder, but it’s also possible that it can return.  But at least we know what we’re dealing with and can begin treating the symptoms as soon as they appear and keep a close eye on her kidneys.  

The doctor put an urgent stamp on the tests at the hospital so we had results back within a few hours, but the wait was still unnerving.  When your kid’s sick and you don’t know what’s wrong, well, nothing else in the world matters.
We’re so, so thankful and relieved that it ended up being something we can easily manage. 

*****

And before I go, so that I don’t forget, a few quotes from this week.

We recently got new neighbors and they obviously don’t know that mowing your grass on a Sunday is a big NO-NO in Luxembourg because they were MOWING THEIR GRASS ON A SUNDAY.  (This is an even bigger offense than doing your trash wrong.)

“Dad, he’s mowing the grass on Sunday.  Do you think someone’s going to ring the police?”
It tickles me to no end when she says such British things.

“Mom, you don’t look much like a mom.  You look like a teenager.”
Bless her.

“Hey Mommy, someday when I’m a bride I’m going to shine.”
Yes you are, sweet girl.  Yes you are.

Eight Things

Hey-ho.
Just a bit of what’s been happening around here…

1.  Almost 13 years ago, a little girl named Christine was the flower girl in my wedding.  Two weeks ago, she got married.  And my sister Traci was the maid of honor. 
I think we’ve come full circle.  

We weren’t able to be there for the special day, but we did get to wish them a big congrats in real time and were able to see pictures throughout the ceremony and reception thanks to all the friends and family that posted on Instagram under their hash tag.

To make the day even sweeter, they drove away in my dad’s vintage Corvette.
He’d be so proud if he was here to see this. 
(I can practically hear him saying, “Don’t scratch my ‘Vette.”)

They also put this special bit in their programs.
(Since she was a toddler, Christine always called my dad ‘Trace Daddy.’)

2. Child labor.  Kidding.  Hannah loves for me to give her special jobs around the house and she loves it even more that she can earn a few Euros per week doing them.   

Laundry day with two very helpful assistants.

3.  When important pieces of mail arrive, Shawn almost always asks me to translate them from French to English for him, whether by Google Translate or from what I know myself.  (I actually understand quite a bit when reading or listening.  But speaking French?  I’m not so great at that.)
Anyway, it always makes me laugh when we get something in the mail that has already been translated to English.  This is a flyer for a local football (that’s soccer to Americans) camp in our town.  My favorite parts?
Defeat is digested.
Bring with yourself hunger and good mood.
Some things just don’t translate well, do they?

4.  After school one day last week, I did something I’ve never done before:  I took both kids by myself on the bus into the city.  It was a bit tricky to lift the stroller onto (and then off) of the bus, pay the fare and get us all through the little turnstyle thing without bumping into other people, but once we were situated we had a good time.
Hannah always loves riding the bus, but Finn wasn’t all that impressed by his first ride. 

5.  YAY! Look what arrived on Saturday morning from Amazon.  Our beach parasol, or le grand parapluie rouge, as we’ve been calling it. 
The countdown to our vacation has begun.  Never mind the bad luck we may have brought on ourselves for opening le grand parapluie rouge indoors.

6.  I told myself after writing about our day at the pool that I wasn’t going to talk about Speedos on the blog any more, but when it’s summertime in Europe and you’re from the land of Lengthy Full Coverage Board Shorts, it’s hard not to notice and discuss them a great deal with other people who are also from lands of Lengthy Full Coverage Board Shorts.  Just this morning, a blog reader (and new mom!) who lives here in Luxembourg sent me an email asking if I’d seen the article in the local newspaper about Speedos.  The title of the article?  Are you ready for this?  Der Wonderbra Des Mannes.  I just can’t.

7.  We’re in the final week of school here and so ready to begin our summer break.   At the end of school last year, I saw a great idea on Pinterest – each year, have your child’s teacher write a note and sign the inside of Oh, The Places You’ll Go and give it to them at their high school graduation.  I wasn’t able to find the book in Luxembourg, so I ordered it from Amazon.  I’ve got two signatures – last year’s teacher and this year’s.  What a gift this will be for Hannah when she graduates.  I plan to do the same for Finley when he starts school.

 

8.  And just because I love how happy he wakes up every morning…

Just Because…

Hannah’s never really been much into dolls, but she sure does love her animals.

”Hey Mom, let’s make a sling for me to carry my baby in, too.”

Her baby just happens to be a lamb.
And her sling happens to be made out of the hospital blanket the nurse wrapped her in when she was born.

This little guy brings so much joy to our family.
Nothing tops his gummy smile and giggles.
And his outfit is exactly something Shawn would wear.
(I never imagined I’d be ironing button downs for an infant.)

And also - I’m sure you’ve heard that Google Reader is saying adios, au revoir, arrivederci in just a few short days.  So if you follow me via Reader, you may want to pop over to Bloglovin’ and set up an account.  You can import all your fave blogs from Reader into Bloglovin’ really easily.  Or, if you fancy a cool app for your ipad or iphone, they have one of those, too.  If readers aren’t your thing and you want to get Twinkle Toes updates via email, just enter your address under “Follow Me Via Email” on the right hand column of the blog.

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Butterfingers

 

Me: I dropped my phone in a parking lot and broke the screen.
Shawn: Lemme see.

(Long pause)

Shawn: I know someone who has a wallpaper on their iphone that makes it look like the screen is shattered.  But you went ahead and actually shattered yours for real.

For realz.
Oops.

What The Experts Are Saying

 

“Sunglasses, a must have accessory will be oversized for 2012.” 
                                                                  -VOGUE Magazine

More Bits and Bobs

Here’s a little of what we’ve been up to.

1. The other day I was driving behind a van – maybe a repairman of some sort.  I can’t remember.  I was just minding my own business, really.
The van slowed down to a stop so I did, too.  Then a car pulled up on my right and a man in his 50’s started flailing his arms around, pointing at me and yelling in Luxembourgish or German.
(It’s hard to tell the difference.)
He just kept yelling at me and I couldn't get a word in to tell him that I didn’t understand, so I did what any American girl driving in a foreign country would do.
I grabbed an American flag napkin off of my passenger seat (left over from our little 4th of July celebration) and started waving it.
Oh, yes I did.
Dude was furious.
I wasn’t trying to be disrespectful, honestly.  But since he wasn’t going to let me tell him that I speak English, I needed a way to show him. 
(I still have no idea what I did wrong because he flipped me off and sped away.)
(I guess this means that road rage and the finger are universal.)

2. This week I accidentally used the French verb for to eat instead of to feed.  It’s an easy mistake, really, and might not have been a big deal except I was telling someone about taking care of my neighbor's rabbits while they were out of town.  To make a long story short, I told a native French speaker that I was going home to eat my neighbor’s rabbits.  Again, please let me know if you need me to do any French translating for you.

3. We’re finally in the last week of school and we got Hannah’s year end report from her teacher.  She has done so well and we couldn’t be more proud of her.

4.  Louie got his summer cut two weeks ago.  If you’ve ever wondered what a sheepdog looks like under all that hair, this is it.  Oh, and the umbrella opened indoors?  Well, one of these two insisted on it for the picture.

5.  I mentioned that on the 4th of July we took Hannah to the Luxembourg American Military Cemetery.  This picture just cracks me up.  Doesn’t she look like she’s having the best time?  I can’t wait for her to make fun of us when she’s older.  “Hey guys, remember when I was 4 and you took me to that cemetery and we looked at maps of battles and invasions of WWII? That sure was fun.”

6.  Today was “Sports Day” at Hannah’s school.  It was unseasonably cold and windy. 
But Girlfriend hustled the ball…

Finished strong on the hurdles…

And proudly collected her medal.

7.   It’s just been play date after play date around here. 

And what’s a play date without tying up your frock and splashing in the fountain?
And then riding home in the car in nothing but underpants because your mom didn’t have anything else for you to put on?

I’m just securing my spot as mother of the year.
(And trying to make up for the maps of battles and invasions of WWII.)

When A Package Arrives From Grandma

 

What We Are Reading

Have I ever told you that I love to read?

Although I don’t do as much of it as I’d like these days, I have been known to stay up late into the night unable to put a book down.

Hannah loves to read, too.  Well, technically, she loves to be read to since she can’t read yet.  She also likes to look at the pictures and tell her own story.

When I was not much older than Hannah, my mom started reading the Little House on the Prairie series to me. 
 

I recently started reading to her our first chapter book, or “the book without any pictures,” as Hannah calls it.

Hannah was immediately drawn in by the idea of a family keeping penguins at their house!
There have been a few words or references that I have had to paraphrase or stop to define for her, but for the most part, this book is completely understandable for a four and a half year old.  We spend a little time reading each day - sometimes thirty minutes, sometimes just ten.  It’s something we both really look forward to.

Here’s what else is on our summer reading list:

Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
(Thanks to my mom for sending this to us!)

My Father’s Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett

Pippy Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren

GeekDad has a great list of books to read to kids under the age of 10.  I’ll be checking this out when we finish up our summer reading.

Of course, Hannah still loves picture books and has quite a few favorites such as Pinkalicious, Fancy Nancy, Clifford the Big Red Dog and the Slinky Malinky/Harry Maclary series.

We recently did a book swap with a couple of girls in Hannah’s class at school and it was a lot of fun to read their favorite books and change up our routine.
(I think that the British moms got a big kick out of all of our cowgirl books.)
(Plus, I could listen to them say “Fancy Nancy” all day long.)

 
As for me?  I pretty much have this book in my hand or in my purse at all times.

What about you?  Reading anything good?

Odds and Ends and Bits and Bobs

1. Happy Memorial Day in the US!  And a big thank you to the men and women who have served and are serving our country.  I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I love America.  Living abroad has really given me a new appreciation for my country.

2.  We had guests at our house!  I hadn’t mentioned it on the blog, but now that they’ve made it stateside safe and sound, I’ll be posting about my aunt and uncle visiting us in Luxembourg.  I have so many pictures to sort through, so it’s taking me a while to get it all together.

5. On Sunday our little town hosted a Celtic/Scottish festival.
There were bagpipes:

And Celtic warrior demonstrations and reenactments, which was loud and barbaric, if you ask me.  But whatever.
Shawn: Do you think that the Celts really wore plaid flannel pajama pants to battle?

 
There was also a Scottish band that had an amazing repertoire of songs that included a lot of good old American classics, but I didn’t take a picture of them.
Let’s just say that from where we were sitting we had a bad angle on the lead singer’s kilt. Enough said.

They also had lots of crafts for the kids.

Hannah ran into a little girl from her class at school and we ended up spending the entire afternoon with her family. 

The girls were happy just playing in the dirt.
And do you see that stick they are playing with?
They thought it was the greatest toy ever.
What is it with kids and sticks?

3.  This weekend was also a holiday weekend in Europe.  Shawn was off work today and Hannah is off school for the remainder of the week for the half term break.  We spent the day in a little town called Remich, which is right on the Moselle River and borders Germany.  I received a request from a family member to start including maps in my posts when we visit other places.  So, here it is:

We live just outside Luxembourg City, so Remich is about a 15 minute drive.  We went with the same family we met up with at the Celtic fest.  Shawn and I brought Hannah’s wagon so we could pull the girls around.  
It became obvious that Europeans have never seen a wagon because we attracted so much attention.  Everywhere we went people stopped and pointed and asked where we found that kind of a buggy.  Because you can pull your children!  And your picnic!  At the same time! Someone even asked Shawn if he made it himself.

(Hey, Red Rider! Call me. I have a marketing idea for you.)

Oh, and guess what’s in the wagon with them?
Yep, the stick from the day before.
They guarded it with their lives.
You’ve never heard four adults repeat, “please be careful with that stick,” more times than on that day.

4.  Friday evening when Hannah was in the bathtub, I noticed that the water wasn’t getting as warm as it usually does.  Then no warm water was coming out of the faucet at all.  It was ice cold.  So Shawn called the landlord and he said he’d stop over.  He brought a repairman with him who looked at the water heater and said, “Dees ees bad.”
Turns out there’s a part that needs replaced, but because this is a holiday weekend, we have to wait until Wednesday to get it.  In the meantime, we’ve been heating water up on the stove to bathe.

Me: This is how the pioneers took baths back in ye olden days.  Although I guess there weren’t really pioneers in Europe, so this is how they took baths in medieval times.
Shawn: Except they didn’t have faucets and electric stoves.
Me: Smarty pants.

6. Today marks 7 months that we’ve been living in Luxembourg! 

7.  Like I mentioned, Hannah is off school this week for the half term break.  The weather is supposed to be warm, so we have a few fun things planned to do here in Luxembourg, but no big trips or anything.  She and I have been working on some crafts so I may post those later this week.  I intend to spend the entire week with Hannah doing the things that she enjoys.  She’s recently turned 4 1/2 and I just feel like time is a tickin’.  I mean, she’s practically a teenager.  And before I know it our time in Luxembourg will be up and I really want to make the most of it while we’re here.  Plus, we dragged her on a lot of tours when we went to Paris a few weeks ago, so I kind of owe her some fun activities of her choice. 

8.  Oh, and speaking of kids and sticks, THIS made me laugh out loud.