The Belgian Rebel

On the main street of a nearby town, a man decided to build a house. Nothing unusual about that, because construction is a booming business in Belgium. He started with a rather large hole, piling up the dirt in what will become his back yard. Once the basement was completed, he accepted a shipment of golden logs. Now he had my attention. Log houses are all the rage in Alaska, but I haven't seen a single one in Belgium. (In case you are wondering at this point if I'm stalking this poor man, I am not. I just happen to travel through his town pretty often and I need little things like this to entertain me.) He formed the foundation, and slowly the walls began to grow. Taller and taller the orange toned beams climbed... until he had a two story log cabin, complete with a covered back porch and lots of windows. At this point, you would picture him relaxing on said porch, sipping on a cold beer and surveying fields of corn out behind the house. Unfortunately, there is still a huge mountain of dirt there. Due to the long construction process, it is now covered with weeds and grass. I'm wondering if the neighbors complained about the unsightly mess, because he recently installed another addition to his unusual abode. Right on the tip top of the messy mountain, there now flies a rather large rebel flag. Take that, nosy neighbors.

Field Trip to Aachen

The underclassmen are still testing, so what are the poor Seniors to do? Why spend the day in Aachen, Germany, of course. They couldn't have picked a more perfect day. The sun was shining and Spring was in the air. After soaking up a little culture, it was off to shopping and lunch at Pizza Hut. (It was their choice. They get European food all the time, so Pizza Hut is a real treat.) We arrived back at our pick up spot a little early, so the teens stretched out on the steps in this little park and soaked up the sun. I must admit, I'm kind of enjoying their week of half school almost as much as they are.

Pottery Class

In case you were wondering, pottery class is still in full swing, but there are very few classes left. And that makes me sad. Of all the things that I'll miss about Belgium, this ranks very close to the top. It's been tons of fun learning how to throw clay, chatting with the ladies and harassing Danny (our teacher). Come to think of it, he might be looking forward to the end of our classes. Nah. He's a great sport, and he's really taught us a lot. And fixed our mistakes when we mess up big time. My latest creation is my butter bell. If you want to see what they are supposed to look like, then check out this site. Mine is more... original. I made two, actually, but this one is my favorite. While cleaning it up, and making sure it all fit together before I added the handle on top, I realized it looked like a mushroom. Someone suggested that instead of the handle, I just add spots, so I went for it. I'm very pleased with the results. All the other butter bells in the world will be jealous. (And yes, I know that the second picture is sideways, but Blogger wouldn't behave.)

Lazer Tag in the Valkenburg Caves

Seniors do not like to take tests. Lets face it, by the time you're a Senior, you've taken more than your share anyway, so you feel like you need a little break. Luckily, they are not required to take certain tests that the other grades are. This week is one of those weeks. So what do Seniors do when they have to keep quiet and stay out of the way of cranky underclassmen? They go play lazer tag, of course. And since they are Seniors in Europe, they go play lazer tag in a cave. Yes, it's a tough life, but someone has to do it. This lucky group of teens got to go to the Valkenburg Caves and get their game on. Needless to say, fun was had by all. The place is pretty cool, so if you ever find yourself in the Netherlands with some rambunctious teenagers, be sure to check it out. In a large central room in the caves, you'll find a wooden cabin housing the office, as well as a nice little cafe for those who choose not to attacks others with strobes of light. The players divide into teams, enter the dark chambers of the caves, and... game on! There are lots of other fun activities at the caves as well, so be sure to check out their site. And I thought it was just an awesome place to have a Christmas Market. Who knew?

Anniversary

22 years and counting! And while it's been crazy and exciting, I'm looking forward to the days when we will be sitting in our rockers on the front porch, sipping Southern sweet tea and talking about those "young whipper snappers" speeding down our street like hooligans. So what are your plans for the weekend? ;0)

Birthdays

Today we celebrate not just one Birthday, but two! Jess turns 18 today, and Russ turns... just a little bit older than 18! Unfortunately, sometimes the job interferes with our fun, so we spent their Birthday driving to Spangdahlem, Germany, for an awards dinner. Not the best place to spend your special day, but it could always be worse. At least Russ got a fancy dinner out of it. Before you start feeling too bad for Jess (yes, I know that 18 is a very BIG Birthday), she not only got to go to a huge party the weekend before, but we have a special surprise in store for her. She has always wanted to go somewhere in particular, but we just haven't gotten around to going. So... before we leave our lovely Belgie... we are taking the princess to Rome, Italy. Not so mean now, are we? And if that weren't enough, we also got her this rocking Birthday cake. (and Russ shared it like the sweet Daddy he is.) Happy Birthday to my handsome hubby and gorgeous princess!

Our Lives Have Come Full Circle

To say that my life is blessed is an understatement. Don't get me wrong, there have been some pretty rough times over the years, but for the most part, I wouldn't change a thing. Now the time has come to move on once again. That's right... our new assignment. I've been more than a little stressed about this one, because it means so many huge changes in our lives. Jess will be going back to the states with us, but from there she will be heading off to college on her own. It will just be three of us at our new assignment. And that makes me very sad. (I'm excited for her, but sad for me just the same.) And then I had a dream. In my dream, I looked at where we were going and told Russ "Well, I guess our lives have come full circle now." I woke up in a sweat. What does that mean? Are we going back to Barksdale, our first base? That's where Mom is, but I really don't want to go back to Barksdale. (Nothing personal, it's a lovely area, but the job...) No big. It's just a dream, right? It doesn't mean anything. So we waited. And then the news. Our lives really are going full circle after all. We are moving back to Florida. We were stationed at there for 9 1/2 years, and absolutely loved it. Who wouldn't? Gorgeous white sand beaches, teal blue water, perfect temperatures. Our son was born there. Our daughter grew up there. We made lifelong friends there. But at that point in our lives, we wanted something more. We needed something more. We needed to see the world. Russ and I grew up in the South, and even though we had wonderful childhoods, we both always wanted to see what else was out there. So we put in for orders, and ended up with the wonderful assigment of Anchorage, Alaska. People thought we were insane to leave Florida for Alaska, but we were in heaven. And a little bit sad, too. We thought we were saying goodbye to our lovely Florida forever. When our time in Alaska was up, we put in for the South. Russ didn't have that much time left before he retires and we'd given up on getting orders overseas. He'd been trying for that since the day he signed up, and it just never worked out. The Air Force had other plans for us. We got orders to Belgium. The first thing I did was go onto Google and see where the heck Belgium was. And then I jumped up and down and screamed. We were going to the heart of Europe! And it's been amazing. We've been places that we've read about in books, and never dreamed we would get to see in person. We've met wonderful people, taken fantastic trips, and learned about different cultures. But now it's time to go home again. And we really are going home. We're going back to the Florida Panhandle, and I couldn't be happier. I can't wait to see my old friends who still live there, and then head down the beach to eat at the Back Porch Restaurant. We'll get a table by the open windows, watch the waves rolling in and seagulls diving down to the water to snag a little fish for dinner, and relax. I can't wait!

Playing With Patterns

Sometimes you find beauty in unexpected places. Have a wonderful day.

Out And About in Belgium

Today was another wonderful day of Belgium exploration. I must admit, it started off a little rough. We literally drove in circles all over a nearby town, looking for a windmill that I am starting to think is one of those urban legends. We did run across this interesting sight, though. Parked in front of someone's house, it's all that remains of one serious Carnival parade. (I think I might have had a bad dream about this once.) This, my friends, is why you shouldn't mix alcohol and float design. The results are more than a little intimidating. To end on a more positive note, I made a return trip to one of my favorite windmills, the Keijersmolen. Not only is it a beautiful example of craftsmanship, it's open to the public for exploration. That's right, you can wander around the entire thing at your leisure. The Keijersmolen was built in 1869 by Joannes Keijer, and it's been in the Keijer's family ever since. Don't you just love tradition? It's currently owned and operated by Theo Keijers. He's been running the place since he took over in 1962. He doesn't speak any English, but he's very sweet. He welcomed us to his lighthouse and let us roam around, taking pictures of just about every inch of the place. He lives in a house beside the windmill, and was content to leave us to our tourist ways. If you've never been in a mill, you need to check one out. It really is fascinating how everything fits together. It was time for lunch, so we had to leave our lovely windmill. Imagine our surprise when we saw this just off the road. At first glance, we actually thought that they were moose, because they were so big. As soon as we stopped to check them out, they got very skittish and bounded off into the woods. So we loaded back up and took off once again in search of food. We found the perfect cafe, too. It's called De Toerist. See what I mean about perfect? It had interesting decorations, delicious food, and a relaxed atmosphere... everything that we needed after our earlier adventures. It was a perfect day. Hope yours was just as fabulous.