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The children don't have school this week which means I get three whole days of quality time with Roeland and Rosa before I leave. It has been awhile since I watched both of them together for a full day. Today was crazy. Instead of au pairing two Dutch children I felt like I was responsible for Thing 1 and Thing 2. They were all over the place and most of the time on the upper levels of the volume scale.
When my mom sent some gift packages for the children she included little toys, t-shirts from the Coca Cola factory in Atlanta, and these socks from Universal Studios.
Christmas spirit has infected the three of us. Roeland kept singing the same line over and over: "Simply having a wonderful Christmas time." Except the first few words come out as "sinty ebby..." He wore his Santa hat all day. There is a little bell on it so his first request this morning was that Rosa and I put our hats on as well and we can all sing "Jingle Bells." In the afternoon we went outside to play in the snow. Did you hear about how much snow hit Europe?
Snipped from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and scanned by my dad.
It seems one last coffee in Amsterdam is unlikely before Thursday but Europe rarely gets snow of like this. I like that I am here to witness it, even if it cancelled all the plans I had for my last weekend in Holland. I'm praying that current or future conditions won't hinder any of the three flights I am booked to take before the end of the week. Hoping, wishing, and praying.
P.S. My friend Caitlyn has a blog. She's an au pair in Brescia, Italy. She's fantastic so you should check it out! Right this way, if you please.
When I woke up this morning I did not feel like P. Diddy. I had Bruno Mars' "Just the Way You Are" stuck in my head, which is a wonderful way to start one's day. On the way to pick the children up for lunch the flawless Dutch radio played Cyndi Lauper blended into "I Just Died in Your Arms Tonight." Its been a great day so far and, with eight days left until I leave, I'm trying to savor all these moments. I'm already starting to sense how much I'm going to miss the children. I spent Saturday in Amsterdam (adventure post pending) and felt the first wave of what it will be like to say good-bye. But, if you read on, you'll see that my adventures will not end when I leave Holland.
Less than 24 hours after I land in Atlanta my dad and I are flying up to Minnesota to join my mom and brothers, who fly up on the 21st, for Christmas. My time will be split between our hotel suite and both grandma's houses. Guess who else is coming up?
Brandy is taking a Greyhound bus up from Kansas City to join me for New Year's in the "Land of 10,000 Lakes." (Thanks, Mom!) As you can see, we're incredibly excited. To celebrate the fact that we'll see each other for the first time in person since New Year's 2008, we danced around to "Total Eclipse of the Heart" and quoted a good portion of Ferris Bueller's Day Off.
But that isn't all. I'm roadtripping back to Atlanta with Erica when she drives down to Florida to start her internship in January. The big open road, excellent company, and more great music? Yes, please.
I'll have a lot on my plate when I get back to the States. School loan payments and unemployment. I'll have a lot to figure out. And there are some other special people I want to see and spend some quality time with. So much to do and think about. But Holland has definitely helped me transition from being a "thinker" to a "doer." I'm sniffing out opportunities, savoring my last week here, and looking forward to the next chapter in my life. Now, instead of Bruno Mars, I have Ferris stuck in my head.
Today I was going to post about Christmas (again) because Sinterklass came this weekend and left gifts for the children. I still plan on putting that entry up on the blog but for today I have something completely different to share with you.
Music. It would be an understatement to say that it is one of my most favorite things. I could go on and on about how music is a powerful force in my life and my travels. I could tell you about all the songs that have made it onto my "Life in Holland" playlist and which will forever remind me of my time here. I could, I probably will, but let's go in a slightly different direction...
During my senior year of high school I had to read Wuthering Heights for AP Literature. I think it was the only book that I didn't read. (Sorry, Mr. Roper!) After maybe 50 pages or so I just couldn't go any further. The way I remember it, I made it pretty clear to everyone in my class that I was not a fan. At all. Still, it was a required part of the curriculum so I tried to find a way to like it. That is when I found the following:
Wuthering Heights is a classic. Kate Bush is a classic. Both points can be argued but this video is epic and hilarious at the same time. I convinced our teacher to pull it up on his computer one day so we could all watch it on the projector. It became a running joke among me and my classmates/friends. It still is. If that is how people from high school remember me I think I am okay with that.
How many times have I watched this video? Too many. Does it ever get old? Nope. How is this relevant? Today it came on the radio while I was picking the children up from school. It made my day. I love the variety of music Dutch radio stations provide. Katy Perry, Elvis, Seal, Queen, Bob Dylan, Lil' Wayne, Prince, Nina Simone, and those are just the ones I remember. They play everything you can imagine. But to hear this song was the deal maker. Dutch radio is the best. And this song never gets old. I know every word and if you ask me (read: bribe me) I'll break out some of the dance moves too.
Last night I had a strange dream. A mysterious guy gave me a ride to the train station in a big black SUV with tinted windows. I think he was my bodyguard. My brother, Seth, was waiting there for me. When we got into Amsterdam we got on the wrong tram and had to get off and walk in the opposite direction. Justin Bieber joined us and we made our way towards Rembrandtplein to check in to Hotel Atlanta, which I discovered last weekend. Then I woke up. The clock said 8:10. Why was I up that early on a Saturday? I checked the weather online to make sure it wouldn't snow but I couldn't get back to sleep. Justin Bieber was in my dream. Weird. But not so weird because my other brother, Owen, has hair that looks exactly like that of the teeny bopper icon, except it is not as well conditioned.
I believe this dream has to do with a recent event - I know when I'll be going home. I'll be leaving Holland on December 23rd and arriving in Atlanta late that night. It won't be fun getting crammed in so close to Christmas, especially when my family's plans for the holiday include traveling. The night I booked the flight, Seth and I had a real heart-to-heart on Skype. We ganged up on Owen, telling him to cut his hair or forever face the embarrassment of looking back at his middle school portraits with regret.
Now it is 9:37am. The canal behind the house is frozen. I need to buy some boots. I need to start buying Christmas presents. I have only 3 1/2 weeks left here. Maybe I should get out of bed.
I don't post ever, if at all, about the children I watch. I've changed their names and won't post pictures of them with their faces showing for privacy reasons and what not. But I really should tell you a few things about them. Because despite the bad times such as messy diaper changes, whiney moods, absurd demands, and messes there are so many cute and hilarious moments every day that are just too precious not to share with someone.
Since I like making lists I've made a list of such instances where my heart melts or my belly aches from laughing so hard:
• They tend to copy many things I do or say that I never realized were habits of mine. Examples: Roeland says "Oh my goodness!" whenever appropriate and sometimes he even beats me to it. Rosa covers her mouth and giggles when I cover my mouth and giggle about something.
• Back in the summer (reality check: I've been here long enough to distinguish one season from another) I showed Roeland the movie Wall-E and he became obsessed. Then I introduced him to Toy Story and he's seen it enough now that he can sit there with me and go back-and-forth quoting it. One of our favorites is "What are you looking at you hockey puck!?"
• During the FIFA World Cup I'd turn on some of the matches during the day and we'd watch it for as long as their attention spans would hold. That is where they learned to say "miss!" whenever someone shot and missed. Well, now Rosa says it when she is putting on her shoes by herself and I tell her they're on the wrong feet. "Oh, miss!" she says and rearranges them.
• They're still young enough for kisses to be the ultimate fix to anything. A bump on the head. A tumble. A scratch from the cat. And so whenever I get hurt or say ouch they race to give me a kiss. Usually, it happens when we're playing together and one of them accidentally clunks their head against mine or something.
• Rosa has a very independent personality which I appreciate because I was/am like that, but it took her longer to warm up to me. Whenever Robin and Anna are home she still prefers them to help her with things if she wants help at all. However, these past few weeks she's shown signs that she actually likes me. Whenever I wear tights she rubs my leg and whispers "mooi!," which means 'pretty.' Yesterday she held my hand for something like 20 minutes while we were watching a movie. When I go to pick her up from pre-school her face lights up when she sees me and she runs to hug me. Today was the icing on the cake though when she turned to me and said "my Emma" while I was taking her upstairs for a new diaper.
• Roeland has become more attached as well even though he liked me from the beginning. Two weekends ago they gave me a ride to the train station and when I got out of the car he kept repeating the word "no." Last Saturday morning as I was heading out for a run he did the same thing because he didn't want me to leave. Evidentially, the week I was gone in Sweden he asked where I was a few times and when I would be back.
• During lunchtime I like to play music from my iTunes. Yesterday I put on Etta James and Rosa started dancing in her chair and humming along to "It's a Cryin' Shame." I asked her if she liked the song and Roeland, who doesn't usually like it when I play music, shouted that he liked it more than her.
In support of the Netherlands' participation in the World Cup there is orange everywhere. It is like the Fourth of July in the States, when everything and every place is decorated with stars and stripes. Only here it is slightly more intense.
Mostly I only notice how 75% of the houses and business are strung with little orange flags but I was a bit startled about mid-week when I found this in the bathroom.
Orange toilet paper.
So, it is not just about wearing orange or putting it up outside for everyone to see. Even the most private room in the house needs to encourage the football team to victory.
Do not worry if you were wondering why all the orange when the Dutch flag is red, white, and blue. I had no idea either but a quick Google search led me to this: "Orange is the color of the Dutch Royal Family. The lineage of the current dynasty -- the House of Oranje-Nassau -- dates back to Willem van Oranje (William of Orange). But while the color orange has royal roots in the Netherlands, today it symbolizes a broader pride in the country and in being Dutch." (source)
P.S. I find it interesting (and somewhat ironic if I think about it long enough) that the Medici family (practically the royal family) of Florence had oranges on their family crest. I was told that oranges were appropriate for the Medicis because medici means "doctors/medics" and oranges were considered medical apples.
