Everytime I think I have things figured out here...
I was getting some ingredients out for a marinade yesterday, and one of the ingredients was cider vinegar. I had bought some after we moved here, and I got it out. But I noticed that there was this white sludge at the top -- like a slimy moldy piece of goo. Immediately cursing at how quickly everything seems to spoil around here, I called good old mom to vent. She told me that it was probably something called "mother of vinegar" and that her grandmother had used it to make her own vinegar. Skeptical, I did some research on the internet, and sure enough, it was true (www.solutions.uiuc.edu/content.cfm?series=3&item=295&Parents=0%7C28). Not that I didn't believe my mom -- but this goo just looked too nasty to be there on purpose. So I filtered the needed vinegar through a coffee filter. I'll be using it tomorrow, so I'll let you know (if I never blog again, you'll know that mother of vinegar isn't a good thing).
I was nearly in my first accident today. I was driving down the street, not thinking about whether I was on a priority road or not. I drove by a street, and a car coming out to my right laid on the horn. Ooops. I was supposed to stop to let this car on the right pull out. Luckily, he was more used to the "priority on the right" rule than me (or, should I say, he was more used to people not paying attention to priority on the right), and we escaped unscathed. This time. It's really hard to get used to the idea that sometimes, the car on the right has the right to pull out in front of me.
The kids and I were out and about , trying to find a windmill. There's an old one not too far from our house, and we'd seen it from far away but I wanted to see what it was like up close (answer: abandoned, shut down, and fenced off). Another disappointment for the kids.
So then we went out to Baby 2000 to try to find more pacifiers for Jack. (I've decided I'm just going to overload his crib with pacifiers in the hopes that he can find them himself in the middle of the night.) Of course, they didn't have his Nuks. But before we discovered that, we spent time trying to find a parking spot. It was completely packed (everyone goes shopping on Saturday, since everything closes early during the week and is closed on Sunday) -- much like it would be on the day after Thanksgiving. A lot of stores also had "Sale" signs in the windows. There are sales only 2 times a year, and I guess now is the time (hmmmmmm....wonder if there is some shopping in my future).
For those who are curious, the greek food that I picked up at the market today was delicious beyond words.
My French lessons continue to go well -- I just had my third one. While I don't yet know a ton, I'm starting to recognize a little more (though not enough for conversations to make sense), and at least I'm learning more about the language. Whoever decided that nouns need to be either masculine or feminine have my eternal scorn. Really, why is that necessary? Although the cashier at the pet store says that learning English is way more difficult. Could be, but I have my doubts.
The prices for flights to Brussels are dropping to $540 (round trip from St. Louis) once you hit September, so if you're thinking of visiting, the fall is the time for you!
I can't tell you all how much I would like Taco Bell right now. Isn't that a strange thing to miss? All this wonderful food, and I miss Tacos. My Starbucks withdrawal has abated a little bit, as I've discovered an instant cappuccino mix that is surprisingly awesome. I'm not one for rehydrating my coffee normally, but this is quite delicious.
Next weekend, we're going to a July 4th (belated) celebration at the Brussels American school, sponsored by the military. Real barbecue, kids' activities, and fireworks at dusk (which is 11 p.m.). We obviously won't make it to the fireworks, but it should be a nice time nonetheless.
Time to go study my French. Bon soiree!
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
A World of Laughter, A World of Tears....
Another delay in blogging! It's been a busy end of the school year. Amelia finished school last Friday (after also coming down with the mystery fever last week -- luckily, hers lasted only 12 hours). She brought in a Pony cake to share with her friends for her birthday.
We headed out to Euro Disney on Saturday to celebrate Amelia's birthday. It took us about 3 hours to get there (it would've been shorter, but TomTom kept sending us in circles after a detour to McDonalds for lunch). We actually had to drag the children out of the McDonalds playground, assuring them that Disney Town (as Amelia called it) would be much more fun. TomTom (our GPS system) didn't know quite where our hotel, the Davy Crockett Ranch, was, and tried to take us to an empty field. Luckily, we backtracked and found some signs to the hotel and arrived without further incident.
We dropped off our stuff at our "log cabin" (honey, I really had a wonderful time, but I do have to giggle about this a little), which was really a little trailer decked out as a log cabin, placed in a "neighborhood" of other trailers. We had a nice full kitchen, a separate bedroom for the kids, and a bedroom for us. To our dismay, there was a bunk bed in the kids' bedroom, which the kids just adored. Both of them just wanted to go up, down, up, down. We ended up blocking the door with Jack's Pack-n-Play so that we didn't have to worry about either one of them leaping off the top bunk.
We quickly unloaded, and headed out to the park. We got to the park around 2 -- it was PACKED. We walked around a little and headed to Fantasyland and through the castle. Everything had long lines, but Amelia really wanted to ride on Dumbo. The sign said it was just a 30-minute wait. I wish. It ended up being a 60-minute wait. Lots of tired, cranky, hungry toddlers in line. T.J. and Jack ended up walking around while we were waiting, and they saw a live Pooh Bear show. We finally got to ride, and while Amelia had a great time, it was over much too soon. We walked around more but were unable to find anything with short lines. Since the kids hadn't had afternoon naps, we had an early dinner at a steakhouse (again, not very good meat) and an early bedtime -- for all of us. At dinner, I was trying to entertain Jack, and he swiped at me, knocking my contact out. We frantically searched the floor for it (needle in a haystack), and luckily finally found it on the highchair seat.
The kids conked out with no trouble. Amelia, thankfully, fell asleep on the lower bunk, and Jack was relegated to the living room (no room for the Pack-n-Play in Mia's room), right under the only TV. T.J. and I commiserated that on yet another hotel stay, the only one who had a TV in their room was Jack. We were so looking forward to some English TV (even if it was going to be mostly Disney programming). But without anything else to do, I headed off to bed while T.J. went for a walk around the hotel grounds to find out what the Indian drumming was all about.
We woke up Sunday morning starving and in search of breakfast. We walked over to the hotel restaurant, only to find it closed. I mentioned that the hotel employee had pointed breakfast out on the map, and it was supposedly at the end of our street (although we hadn't seen anything that even remotely looked like a breakfast place). So off we walked, and sure enough, there was a little ... kiosk? ... where they were distributing bags of food. So we got our allotment of a giant baguette, bag of croissants, box of milk, 3 juice boxes of OJ, box of condiments, and are two packages of instant coffee. It was pretty funny. Our visions of bacon-filled buffets were shattered, but it was still a pretty tasty breakfast (especially because they included Nutella). It was hard not having coffee (we couldn't bear to make the instant stuff), but we ate at the picnic table outside of our cabin, and it was really pretty nice.
We headed off to the park early on Sunday, as it opened at 8 (2 hours early) for Disney hotel residents. The lines were MUCH better, and we got to ride the carousel and the Mad Hatters Teacups without waiting at all. We all headed over to It's A Small World to ride. But that ride didn't open till 10. Amelia and I waited in line (again) for a 1/2 hour, until they announced that the ride wasn't opening because of technical problems. We went off in search of T.J. and Jack but couldn't find them. We eventually went to see the Pooh Bear live show and had a really nice time. We eventually found the boys, who had gone in search for us and had been able to ride It's a Small World.
We had a quick lunch at the park, then headed back to the hotel to spend the afternoon there. We went swimming (luckily T.J. could wear regular swim trunks, but there was a sign saying no topless swimming). It was a little chilly, but the kids had fun. There was a big waterslide, and T.J. and I both went down it. Perhaps a little juvenile, but it really was a lot of fun! We also saw the animals, played on the playground and saw Mickey Mouse. There were even reindeer on the property, plus some TeePees for the kids to play in. I headed to the store on the grounds, which had Disney goodies as well as groceries, and I quickly snagged coffee and filters for the next morning. Amelia conned me into a baby Simba stuffed animal, while T.J. picked up a Pooh Bear for Jack. A good buffet dinner, and another early bedtime.
Monday morning brought another bag of breakfast and checkout from the hotel. We finally got to ride It's a Small World (twice) and the carousel again.
Jack had downed two huge sippy cups of juice before leaving for the park, which is nothing new. I was holding him in line for It's a Small World, and when we got to our turn and I put him in the boat, I noticed the whole side of my shirt was wet (always a great feeling first thing in the morning). His pants (and onesie), needless to say, were drenched. So while Amelia and Jack and I rode the ride for the second time, T.J. went to a shop to purchase an (overpriced) Disney t-shirt and sweatpants.
We had lunch at Mickey's Cafe, where several of the Disney characters came through (unfortunately, they weren't very recognizable by Amelia -- several from Robin Hood and Pinocchio, which she hasn't seen. They brought her a cake and pumped their Happy Birthday song over the loudspeakers. She really enjoyed it, and even Jack didn't mind all the characters coming by.
The kids are definitely learning how to push each other's buttons. The kids had one sippy cup to share in the car one afternoon, and Jack had it. Amelia started whining and crying and pleading for Jack to give her the cup. Jack didn't really want it, but he didn't want to hand it over easy, either. So he held the cup to his lips and emphatically went "Mmmmmmmm. Mmmmmmm." Which made Amelia only cry louder. It was pretty funny, although as a parent, I probably shouldn't say that.
Post-Vacation Fun
Jack continues to learn new words. His latest phrase is "Oh, man" courtesy of Swiper the Fox. It's pretty funny. His new name for Amelia is "nyah-nyah" and he just adores her (but still likes to torment her).
It's been a cool summer so far. We've even had to get the fleece pajamas back out and turn on the heat in the bedrooms at night. Highs in the days have been in the low 60s, with more cloudy/drizzly days than I'd like. I took the kids to the zoo yesterday. There are so many big playgrounds at the zoo, that they were more interested in playing than seeing the animals. We got a year pass for the zoo (at 16 euros for me, 11 for Amelia, and 4 for parking, it adds up quickly).
I've bought rain cover for nearly every stroller we have (double jogging, Sit-n-Stand, and single umbrella), and I've used them ALL! We were going to go to the market this morning, but hesitated when I saw it raining a little. I decided to go anyway and put the kids in the double jogger with the rain cover. It was actually quite pleasant -- the rain was next to nothing, and pushing them in the jogger is so much easier than pushing them in any of our other strollers. We got some tasty treats at the market (spanikopita, feta-stuffed marinated red peppers, baklava, petite strawberries). It was such a nice way to spend the morning.
We headed out to Euro Disney on Saturday to celebrate Amelia's birthday. It took us about 3 hours to get there (it would've been shorter, but TomTom kept sending us in circles after a detour to McDonalds for lunch). We actually had to drag the children out of the McDonalds playground, assuring them that Disney Town (as Amelia called it) would be much more fun. TomTom (our GPS system) didn't know quite where our hotel, the Davy Crockett Ranch, was, and tried to take us to an empty field. Luckily, we backtracked and found some signs to the hotel and arrived without further incident.
We dropped off our stuff at our "log cabin" (honey, I really had a wonderful time, but I do have to giggle about this a little), which was really a little trailer decked out as a log cabin, placed in a "neighborhood" of other trailers. We had a nice full kitchen, a separate bedroom for the kids, and a bedroom for us. To our dismay, there was a bunk bed in the kids' bedroom, which the kids just adored. Both of them just wanted to go up, down, up, down. We ended up blocking the door with Jack's Pack-n-Play so that we didn't have to worry about either one of them leaping off the top bunk.
We quickly unloaded, and headed out to the park. We got to the park around 2 -- it was PACKED. We walked around a little and headed to Fantasyland and through the castle. Everything had long lines, but Amelia really wanted to ride on Dumbo. The sign said it was just a 30-minute wait. I wish. It ended up being a 60-minute wait. Lots of tired, cranky, hungry toddlers in line. T.J. and Jack ended up walking around while we were waiting, and they saw a live Pooh Bear show. We finally got to ride, and while Amelia had a great time, it was over much too soon. We walked around more but were unable to find anything with short lines. Since the kids hadn't had afternoon naps, we had an early dinner at a steakhouse (again, not very good meat) and an early bedtime -- for all of us. At dinner, I was trying to entertain Jack, and he swiped at me, knocking my contact out. We frantically searched the floor for it (needle in a haystack), and luckily finally found it on the highchair seat.
The kids conked out with no trouble. Amelia, thankfully, fell asleep on the lower bunk, and Jack was relegated to the living room (no room for the Pack-n-Play in Mia's room), right under the only TV. T.J. and I commiserated that on yet another hotel stay, the only one who had a TV in their room was Jack. We were so looking forward to some English TV (even if it was going to be mostly Disney programming). But without anything else to do, I headed off to bed while T.J. went for a walk around the hotel grounds to find out what the Indian drumming was all about.
We woke up Sunday morning starving and in search of breakfast. We walked over to the hotel restaurant, only to find it closed. I mentioned that the hotel employee had pointed breakfast out on the map, and it was supposedly at the end of our street (although we hadn't seen anything that even remotely looked like a breakfast place). So off we walked, and sure enough, there was a little ... kiosk? ... where they were distributing bags of food. So we got our allotment of a giant baguette, bag of croissants, box of milk, 3 juice boxes of OJ, box of condiments, and are two packages of instant coffee. It was pretty funny. Our visions of bacon-filled buffets were shattered, but it was still a pretty tasty breakfast (especially because they included Nutella). It was hard not having coffee (we couldn't bear to make the instant stuff), but we ate at the picnic table outside of our cabin, and it was really pretty nice.
We headed off to the park early on Sunday, as it opened at 8 (2 hours early) for Disney hotel residents. The lines were MUCH better, and we got to ride the carousel and the Mad Hatters Teacups without waiting at all. We all headed over to It's A Small World to ride. But that ride didn't open till 10. Amelia and I waited in line (again) for a 1/2 hour, until they announced that the ride wasn't opening because of technical problems. We went off in search of T.J. and Jack but couldn't find them. We eventually went to see the Pooh Bear live show and had a really nice time. We eventually found the boys, who had gone in search for us and had been able to ride It's a Small World.
We had a quick lunch at the park, then headed back to the hotel to spend the afternoon there. We went swimming (luckily T.J. could wear regular swim trunks, but there was a sign saying no topless swimming). It was a little chilly, but the kids had fun. There was a big waterslide, and T.J. and I both went down it. Perhaps a little juvenile, but it really was a lot of fun! We also saw the animals, played on the playground and saw Mickey Mouse. There were even reindeer on the property, plus some TeePees for the kids to play in. I headed to the store on the grounds, which had Disney goodies as well as groceries, and I quickly snagged coffee and filters for the next morning. Amelia conned me into a baby Simba stuffed animal, while T.J. picked up a Pooh Bear for Jack. A good buffet dinner, and another early bedtime.
Monday morning brought another bag of breakfast and checkout from the hotel. We finally got to ride It's a Small World (twice) and the carousel again.
Jack had downed two huge sippy cups of juice before leaving for the park, which is nothing new. I was holding him in line for It's a Small World, and when we got to our turn and I put him in the boat, I noticed the whole side of my shirt was wet (always a great feeling first thing in the morning). His pants (and onesie), needless to say, were drenched. So while Amelia and Jack and I rode the ride for the second time, T.J. went to a shop to purchase an (overpriced) Disney t-shirt and sweatpants.
We had lunch at Mickey's Cafe, where several of the Disney characters came through (unfortunately, they weren't very recognizable by Amelia -- several from Robin Hood and Pinocchio, which she hasn't seen. They brought her a cake and pumped their Happy Birthday song over the loudspeakers. She really enjoyed it, and even Jack didn't mind all the characters coming by.
The kids are definitely learning how to push each other's buttons. The kids had one sippy cup to share in the car one afternoon, and Jack had it. Amelia started whining and crying and pleading for Jack to give her the cup. Jack didn't really want it, but he didn't want to hand it over easy, either. So he held the cup to his lips and emphatically went "Mmmmmmmm. Mmmmmmm." Which made Amelia only cry louder. It was pretty funny, although as a parent, I probably shouldn't say that.
Post-Vacation Fun
Jack continues to learn new words. His latest phrase is "Oh, man" courtesy of Swiper the Fox. It's pretty funny. His new name for Amelia is "nyah-nyah" and he just adores her (but still likes to torment her).
It's been a cool summer so far. We've even had to get the fleece pajamas back out and turn on the heat in the bedrooms at night. Highs in the days have been in the low 60s, with more cloudy/drizzly days than I'd like. I took the kids to the zoo yesterday. There are so many big playgrounds at the zoo, that they were more interested in playing than seeing the animals. We got a year pass for the zoo (at 16 euros for me, 11 for Amelia, and 4 for parking, it adds up quickly).
I've bought rain cover for nearly every stroller we have (double jogging, Sit-n-Stand, and single umbrella), and I've used them ALL! We were going to go to the market this morning, but hesitated when I saw it raining a little. I decided to go anyway and put the kids in the double jogger with the rain cover. It was actually quite pleasant -- the rain was next to nothing, and pushing them in the jogger is so much easier than pushing them in any of our other strollers. We got some tasty treats at the market (spanikopita, feta-stuffed marinated red peppers, baklava, petite strawberries). It was such a nice way to spend the morning.
Thursday, June 14, 2007
French Lessons, Scooters and Brocantes
It's been a while since I've posted, so I'll try to recall where we've left off....
Health Report
Everyone is healthy and happy. Jack's fever had no other ill effects, and Amelia didn't complain about her ear again after her first dose of medicine. And with school wrapping up (it ends June 22), I hope the illnesses will cease, too.
Junk is Junk the World Over
I was able to decipher the free weekly newspaper enough to determine that there was a festival of some sort going on in Ste. Alix last Saturday, with another happening in Kraainem (next commune over) on Sunday.
We woke up on Saturday to rain, but knowing that there was a flea market (known as "brocante" in French, I learned), I headed out at 7 am on my bicycle to go to the bakery and check out the sale. It was raining pretty hard, and people were trying to keep their things dry with blankets, but I still managed to score a My Little Pony Celebration Castle, as well as a Dumbo floor puzzle. It looked like it was mostly junk at the sale, but it was hard to tell.
So after we ate our chocolate bread, I headed back up to the sale, Amelia in tow. We walked around the square, but didn't really find anything. Until Amelia somehow spied a Dora three-wheeled scooter peeking from underneath a blanket. The owner of the scooter, and the other stuff, was nowhere to be found. But Amelia was smitten, and she insisted on waiting for the seller to return. So we sat, and sat, and sat. But I think the seller lived in the apartment building next to the pile of stuff and just didn't want to come out in the rain. Finally, she gave up on the scooter and dejectedly came back home (side note: She's now getting a Tigger scooter for her birthday).
Later that day, after the rain cleared, we went back up to the square. They now had all sorts of bouncy houses set up, as well as a carousel. So we rode lots of rides, and then got some "barba de papa" -- cotton candy. A big mistake to get cotton candy in wet weather. The stuff disintegrated pretty quickly while still on the stick and started blowing off in the wind.
The kids had a great time, and we returned once again later in the afternoon after naps. Now there were pony rides and a magician. Much fun was had by all.
On Sunday, we went to a church festival in Kraainem that was an English-speaking congregation. Hooray for the english speakers! Again, they had another flea market (I got some great puzzles and a ton of mindless novels for reading). They had purchased some REAL hamburgers and hotdogs (plus Wonder Bread rolls!) from the military base. They were the best burgers and dogs we've had here! They had face painting, and pony rides, and games for the kids. Another great time.
Other Stuff
I started my French lessons today. The kids didn't behave all that well -- I was hoping they would nap, but they were only quiet for the first half of my lesson -- but my teacher is very used to interruptions. She seemed pleased at what I already knew (thanks to Krista's and Troy's gift of French CDs), and I really enjoyed it.
I was pleased to find some blackout material at IKEA today. I bought a bunch, and it completely blocks the light in the bedroom windows. A big hooray -- as you can see from the picture below, taken at 10 pm -- as the light really comes in early and stays late.
I ordered a cake for Amelia to take to school next week -- they are doing a My Little Pony cake for her. I'm excited to see how it looks.
Things are still going well for us. We're learning more every day here (especially about which pastries we favor) and have found a wonderful pizzeria that we can ride our bikes to. We're getting ready for Jerry and Pete's visit in July (they, also, will be thrilled that I found blackout material).
Jack is starting to use words (of course, they're fairly unintelligible to others). Our favorite is when we open his door in the morning and he covers his eyes and says "biiii" (for "bright"). He has about 30 words, and is starting to drop his signs for words (he just started saying "dog" and is starting to try "amelia" although it sounds nothing like her name).
I just bought Amelia a jumprope today, which she is boggled by. And I also got them toy tennis rackets, which they have been trying to bonk each other with. They just love being outside, and with the mild weather, it's been a treat.
More later. There's another kids festival this weekend in Auderghem, which I don't think is too far away. Ponies, ponies, everywhere!
Health Report
Everyone is healthy and happy. Jack's fever had no other ill effects, and Amelia didn't complain about her ear again after her first dose of medicine. And with school wrapping up (it ends June 22), I hope the illnesses will cease, too.
Junk is Junk the World Over
I was able to decipher the free weekly newspaper enough to determine that there was a festival of some sort going on in Ste. Alix last Saturday, with another happening in Kraainem (next commune over) on Sunday.
We woke up on Saturday to rain, but knowing that there was a flea market (known as "brocante" in French, I learned), I headed out at 7 am on my bicycle to go to the bakery and check out the sale. It was raining pretty hard, and people were trying to keep their things dry with blankets, but I still managed to score a My Little Pony Celebration Castle, as well as a Dumbo floor puzzle. It looked like it was mostly junk at the sale, but it was hard to tell.
So after we ate our chocolate bread, I headed back up to the sale, Amelia in tow. We walked around the square, but didn't really find anything. Until Amelia somehow spied a Dora three-wheeled scooter peeking from underneath a blanket. The owner of the scooter, and the other stuff, was nowhere to be found. But Amelia was smitten, and she insisted on waiting for the seller to return. So we sat, and sat, and sat. But I think the seller lived in the apartment building next to the pile of stuff and just didn't want to come out in the rain. Finally, she gave up on the scooter and dejectedly came back home (side note: She's now getting a Tigger scooter for her birthday).
Later that day, after the rain cleared, we went back up to the square. They now had all sorts of bouncy houses set up, as well as a carousel. So we rode lots of rides, and then got some "barba de papa" -- cotton candy. A big mistake to get cotton candy in wet weather. The stuff disintegrated pretty quickly while still on the stick and started blowing off in the wind.
The kids had a great time, and we returned once again later in the afternoon after naps. Now there were pony rides and a magician. Much fun was had by all.
On Sunday, we went to a church festival in Kraainem that was an English-speaking congregation. Hooray for the english speakers! Again, they had another flea market (I got some great puzzles and a ton of mindless novels for reading). They had purchased some REAL hamburgers and hotdogs (plus Wonder Bread rolls!) from the military base. They were the best burgers and dogs we've had here! They had face painting, and pony rides, and games for the kids. Another great time.
Other Stuff
I started my French lessons today. The kids didn't behave all that well -- I was hoping they would nap, but they were only quiet for the first half of my lesson -- but my teacher is very used to interruptions. She seemed pleased at what I already knew (thanks to Krista's and Troy's gift of French CDs), and I really enjoyed it.
I was pleased to find some blackout material at IKEA today. I bought a bunch, and it completely blocks the light in the bedroom windows. A big hooray -- as you can see from the picture below, taken at 10 pm -- as the light really comes in early and stays late.
I ordered a cake for Amelia to take to school next week -- they are doing a My Little Pony cake for her. I'm excited to see how it looks.
Things are still going well for us. We're learning more every day here (especially about which pastries we favor) and have found a wonderful pizzeria that we can ride our bikes to. We're getting ready for Jerry and Pete's visit in July (they, also, will be thrilled that I found blackout material).
Jack is starting to use words (of course, they're fairly unintelligible to others). Our favorite is when we open his door in the morning and he covers his eyes and says "biiii" (for "bright"). He has about 30 words, and is starting to drop his signs for words (he just started saying "dog" and is starting to try "amelia" although it sounds nothing like her name).
I just bought Amelia a jumprope today, which she is boggled by. And I also got them toy tennis rackets, which they have been trying to bonk each other with. They just love being outside, and with the mild weather, it's been a treat.
More later. There's another kids festival this weekend in Auderghem, which I don't think is too far away. Ponies, ponies, everywhere!
Monday, June 4, 2007
Ghent and The Fever of Unknown Origin
Road Trip to Ghent
We decided to make a road trip on Saturday, so we headed off to Ghent, which was about 45 minutes away, just outside of Brugge (which is a great tourist destination).
We had a really nice time. There was a lot to see -- a castle from the 1100s and several other very old churches and buildings. It was a beautiful city -- we got to do another horse and carriage ride to see the sights of town. There are several canals through town, and we could've done a boat ride, too, but decided to save that for next time. The town was much less crowded than Brugge, and from an "old building" perspective, I liked Ghent a lot more. From a shopping and takeaway coffee perspective, Brugge wins.
They were selling these little candies called "The Nose of Ghent." And they were little candy cones (vaguely resembling noses, I suppose). They were purple and I guess supposed to be multifruit flavor (if you're using your imagination). They were kinda like really soft jelly beans -- a soft outer layer (but firm enough to keep the shape) and a soft, chewy inner center. Super sugary, which meant the kids loved them.
It was a great way to spend the day. (And the sugar buzz didn't keep them from crashing immediately in the car.)
The Mysterious Fever
You know us -- never a dull moment. Jack was a fitful sleeper Saturday night but usually consoled by the pacifier. Around 3 when I came in for the millionth time, he stood up to get out of bed, so I picked him up and he obviously had a fever (who knows for how long). We dosed him up with Motrin and finally got him back in bed after he started to cool off a little.
Sunday wasn't fun. His fever continued and just went up and up and wouldn't respond to anything -- even my Motrin/Tylenol rotation. Finally around 3, with his temp by ear at at least 104, T.J. and I decided to call in medical reinforcements. The doctor isn't available on the weekend, but I had remembered that in the weekly free newspaper, there was a listing of the pharmacies open on the weekend/after hours (remember, only one pharmacy per town is open after 7 and on Sundays. And since towns are big, you just can't drive around looking for it). It also has a list for emergency doctors. I called, and they said they would have a doctor at the house within 1-2 hours for only 60 euros (our regular doctor visits are 40, and the ER is 50, so it's well worth it to have someone come by!! Much better than spending the day in the ER.).
At this point, Amelia started complaining that her ear hurt, and was really starting to get worked up. I thought at first that she was just trying to get some attention, since Jack had been getting the lion's share. But when she started clutching her ear and crying, I figured it might be the real deal.
I left to quickly drop some dessert off at a friend's house down the street (we had been looking forward to attending a barbecue that afternoon at a new friend's house -- and a schoolmate's of Amelia's). As I was filling them in on our absence, they told me how their daughter, the week before, had the same mysterious fever -- 24 hours of a super-high fever with no other symptoms, and no medication would bring it down. But just as mysteriously and as suddenly as it appeared, it disappeared. And they said they knew of other children in the class who had the same thing.
Relieved to know that this was going around -- and knowing a little bit about what I was dealing with -- I headed home. The doctor had already arrived (wow, that was fast!) and prescribed alternating Paracetamol and ibuprofen for Jack. Amelia did indeed have the beginnings of an ear infection (good girl for telling us!), so she got some antibiotics. (Thank goodness we had the doctor come by, or else we would've had a terrible night with her!) She also gave me a prescription for antibiotic eye drops (more pinkeye!) and for antibiotics for Jack in case he came down with something like an ear infection.
Amelia and I headed out to the pharmacy to fill all the prescriptions, and on the drive there, she started screaming hysterically because her ear hurt. I felt so bad for her.
We got home, dosed everyone up with their respective medications, and Amelia took a 15-minute nap. Upon awakening, she was as good as new, and we haven't had any complaints about her ear since.
Jack and T.J. stayed at home, with Jack's fever remaining high until around midnight, and Amelia and I went to the party for a little bit. We had a nice time, but I'm not sure that T.J. had the same enjoyable evening.
It's now Tuesday, and Jack's fever did break Sunday night, but then returned around noon yesterday. It went back up to 103 (so at least not as bad as before), but he was as cheerful as ever. He hasn't slept well at all, but as of this morning, he's cool again. He made it through today without any fever, so I think we've beaten that. Hooray.
So now if we can just keep the pinkeye at bay, we're set. Certainly that can't go on forever....
We decided to make a road trip on Saturday, so we headed off to Ghent, which was about 45 minutes away, just outside of Brugge (which is a great tourist destination).
We had a really nice time. There was a lot to see -- a castle from the 1100s and several other very old churches and buildings. It was a beautiful city -- we got to do another horse and carriage ride to see the sights of town. There are several canals through town, and we could've done a boat ride, too, but decided to save that for next time. The town was much less crowded than Brugge, and from an "old building" perspective, I liked Ghent a lot more. From a shopping and takeaway coffee perspective, Brugge wins.
They were selling these little candies called "The Nose of Ghent." And they were little candy cones (vaguely resembling noses, I suppose). They were purple and I guess supposed to be multifruit flavor (if you're using your imagination). They were kinda like really soft jelly beans -- a soft outer layer (but firm enough to keep the shape) and a soft, chewy inner center. Super sugary, which meant the kids loved them.
It was a great way to spend the day. (And the sugar buzz didn't keep them from crashing immediately in the car.)
The Mysterious Fever
You know us -- never a dull moment. Jack was a fitful sleeper Saturday night but usually consoled by the pacifier. Around 3 when I came in for the millionth time, he stood up to get out of bed, so I picked him up and he obviously had a fever (who knows for how long). We dosed him up with Motrin and finally got him back in bed after he started to cool off a little.
Sunday wasn't fun. His fever continued and just went up and up and wouldn't respond to anything -- even my Motrin/Tylenol rotation. Finally around 3, with his temp by ear at at least 104, T.J. and I decided to call in medical reinforcements. The doctor isn't available on the weekend, but I had remembered that in the weekly free newspaper, there was a listing of the pharmacies open on the weekend/after hours (remember, only one pharmacy per town is open after 7 and on Sundays. And since towns are big, you just can't drive around looking for it). It also has a list for emergency doctors. I called, and they said they would have a doctor at the house within 1-2 hours for only 60 euros (our regular doctor visits are 40, and the ER is 50, so it's well worth it to have someone come by!! Much better than spending the day in the ER.).
At this point, Amelia started complaining that her ear hurt, and was really starting to get worked up. I thought at first that she was just trying to get some attention, since Jack had been getting the lion's share. But when she started clutching her ear and crying, I figured it might be the real deal.
I left to quickly drop some dessert off at a friend's house down the street (we had been looking forward to attending a barbecue that afternoon at a new friend's house -- and a schoolmate's of Amelia's). As I was filling them in on our absence, they told me how their daughter, the week before, had the same mysterious fever -- 24 hours of a super-high fever with no other symptoms, and no medication would bring it down. But just as mysteriously and as suddenly as it appeared, it disappeared. And they said they knew of other children in the class who had the same thing.
Relieved to know that this was going around -- and knowing a little bit about what I was dealing with -- I headed home. The doctor had already arrived (wow, that was fast!) and prescribed alternating Paracetamol and ibuprofen for Jack. Amelia did indeed have the beginnings of an ear infection (good girl for telling us!), so she got some antibiotics. (Thank goodness we had the doctor come by, or else we would've had a terrible night with her!) She also gave me a prescription for antibiotic eye drops (more pinkeye!) and for antibiotics for Jack in case he came down with something like an ear infection.
Amelia and I headed out to the pharmacy to fill all the prescriptions, and on the drive there, she started screaming hysterically because her ear hurt. I felt so bad for her.
We got home, dosed everyone up with their respective medications, and Amelia took a 15-minute nap. Upon awakening, she was as good as new, and we haven't had any complaints about her ear since.
Jack and T.J. stayed at home, with Jack's fever remaining high until around midnight, and Amelia and I went to the party for a little bit. We had a nice time, but I'm not sure that T.J. had the same enjoyable evening.
It's now Tuesday, and Jack's fever did break Sunday night, but then returned around noon yesterday. It went back up to 103 (so at least not as bad as before), but he was as cheerful as ever. He hasn't slept well at all, but as of this morning, he's cool again. He made it through today without any fever, so I think we've beaten that. Hooray.
So now if we can just keep the pinkeye at bay, we're set. Certainly that can't go on forever....
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