Posted in Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Holidays, Life Balance, Light Bulb Moments, Third Culture Kids (TCKs), Expat Teens, tagged birthday, book, critique, ego, one-woman show, performance on April 22, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Two days ago I wrote on the Honesty of Ego, based on Niamh Ni Bhroin’s recent post in which she interviews Ego. Yesterday I took a well-earned rest from blogging and all manner of work. I enjoyed an absolutely wonderful day with my brother and his family who are visiting from the US. Het was mijn [...]
Posted in Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Family & Friends, Holidays, Light Bulb Moments, United States, tagged April Fool's Day, baby, joke, prank on April 2, 2011 | 2 Comments »
I realize that I am a day late, since yesterday was April Fool’s Day. But being of the ‘better late than never’ tribe, I wanted to share my most vivid April Fool’s Day memory. Why? Because it’s seared in my brain. No, it’s not the time Husband and I hosted a party. A fun, [...]
Posted in Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Holidays, Light Bulb Moments, tagged celebration, expats, holidays, meaning on March 25, 2011 | 4 Comments »
Every once and awhile, you hear something that seems to stick in your mind. It might have been something said in earnest, or merely in passing. Perhaps you overheard it. But it lodges in the back of your mind and stays. Tumbles around and around like a load of clothes in the washer. You know it [...]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Dutch Life, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Holidays, Netherlands, tagged Christmas, Christmas lights, Christmas tree, decorations, wreath hangers on January 8, 2011 | 4 Comments »
You’re probably blinking and rubbing your eyes, wondering if you’ve read the post title correctly. Surely Yours Truly isn’t so daft as to write a Christmas-related post. What with the new year begun and all. Well, the title is correct and you’re wrong. I am that daft. And absent-minded as well, it seems. Back in [...]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Change, Holidays, Travel, tagged 12 grapes, 2011, Food and Drink, Happy New Year, holiday, travel on December 31, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Taking a bit of a break (on adventure). Here´s a clue – we will eat 12 grapes at midnight. Here´s wishing you a happy new year! Out with the old and in with the new in 2011! Back soon…
Posted in Holidays, Life Balance, tagged joy, kindness, Merry Christmas, peace, purpose on December 25, 2010 | 2 Comments »
May there be joy in your heart, calm in your soul, soft words upon your lips, purpose in your actions, kindness towards others and peace on earth. Enjoy the day, the season, the spirit. Merry Christmas!
Posted in Albert Heijn, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Food and Drink, Holidays, Life Balance, tagged Christmas, Christmas cookies, gifts, holiday, list on December 23, 2010 | 1 Comment »
Oh it’s getting to be that time… You know, the time when the list of things still to do is greater than the amount of time in which to do them. Despite my best efforts to ‘embrace simplicity’ and pare down the list, it remains steadfastly robust. And it needs to stop. Now. I just don’t [...]
Posted in Albert Heijn, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Dutch Life, Expat Life, Food and Drink, Holidays, Netherlands, tagged Christmas, Christmas cookie, hot chocolate, Kerstboom, little things, shopping, speak Dutch, traditions on December 18, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
How often are we reminded that, at the heart of virtually every endeavor, it is the little things that matter? It’s all in the details. Grandiose ideas are intriguing, but if they can’t deliver it leaves you wanting. I wrote last month in a post here about one such Dutch amenity that I love. Last [...]
Posted in Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Dutch Life, Expat Life, Holidays, Light Bulb Moments, Netherlands, New to Nederland, tagged Christmas lights, Christmas tree, decorations, economies of scale, supply and demand, wreath on December 16, 2010 | 9 Comments »
Last year was our first Christmas in Nederland. As such, it was important to me to try to instill some normalcy in what had essentially been an unremitting onslaught of change in the six months since we’d arrived. And the six months prior to our arrival as well. We’d almost become ‘changed-0ut’. Now we can [...]
Posted in Change, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Holidays, Life Balance, Light Bulb Moments, tagged acceptance, celebrate, change, family, party, wisdom on December 12, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
I’ve been a bit busy and fell behind on the Reverb10 challenge. Rather than beat myself up over this, I’m going to hit two in one post. They don’t have much in common, so this might be interesting. Prompt 9* was from a personal favorite of mine, Shauna Reid (love both of herblogs What’s New Pussycat [...]
Posted in Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Dutch Life, Food and Drink, Holidays, Netherlands, tagged Christmas, doughnut, Dutch, Oliebollen on December 5, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
The Oliebollen are here! The Oliebollen are here! Those incredibly delicious, Dutch fried doughnuts dipped in powdered sugar. Eaten fresh and hot, they are amazing. Little Oliebollen stands pop up on street corners this time of year, beckoning with Christmas cheer. Wonderful plain or with apples or raisins or other fruits and fillings. A-maz-ing. I’m [...]
Posted in Albert Heijn, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Dutch Life, Food and Drink, Holidays, Netherlands, tagged Dutch holidays, pepernoten, Santa Claus, Sint Nikolaas, Sinterklaas, speculaas, Zwarte Piet on December 3, 2010 | 1 Comment »
Europe is experiencing a cold front. I’m from the snow belt of northeastern US, so trust me, I know cold. Here in the Netherlands our highs (ha!) are in the 20s, much colder at night. And our heat is on the blink. Not good. Not good at all… While I sit here saying Heat Repairman [...]
Posted in Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Food and Drink, Holidays, tagged Food and Drink, giving thanks, Thanksgiving on November 25, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Today is Thanksgiving in the US (and Canada), and we are celebrating here. It is a holiday of family and friends coming together to enjoy each other’s company and to give thanks for our blessings. Traditional foods include roast turkey, stuffing (aka dressing if baked outside the bird), mashed potatoes and gravy, and pumpkin pie. [...]
Posted in Albert Heijn, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Dutch Life, Expat Life, Food and Drink, Holidays, United States, tagged expat, Food and Drink, Thanksgiving, turkey on November 19, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
If you didn’t happen to see it, my last post talked about how we expats can be some serious pumpkin junkies. And while I have solved the pumpkin/pumpkin pie spice dilemma, finding the requisite turkey is an entirely different matter. What I have learned is that I cannot just waltz down to my local Albert Heijn grocery store and pick [...]
Posted in Albert Heijn, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Dutch Life, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Food and Drink, Holidays, Light Bulb Moments, tagged expat, Food and Drink, Netherlands, pumpkin, Thanksgiving on November 17, 2010 | 3 Comments »
‘You know you’re an expat when you win two cans of pumpkin and you are excited!’, a friend posted yesterday on Facebook. And you know what? She is exactly right. Her post triggered an avalanche of responses from kindred spirits. Comments flew back and forth about the paucity of pumpkin, what we’d make with it, where [...]
Posted in Change, Expat Life, Holidays, Netherlands, The Animals, United States, Writing, tagged change, expat, family, Halloween, living abroad, Netherlands, pets on November 17, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Since I’m going to be sharing tidbits and stories that occasionally involve our family, it only seems right that I introduce everyone upfront. You already know we’re Americans living in Den Haag. Here’s a little more to whet the appetite. Yours Truly (that would be me) is a writer, wife, mother and jack of all trades. The [...]
my read shelf:
Visit Insego- international community
Globe Dweller - integrating expats
Add blog to our directory.
