Three Things I Like About Mons

(1) Chocolate in the streets
(2) Children in cages
(3) Steak on a rock

Three things I like about Mons

Jared was scheduled to work this past Saturday, so the kids and I planned a quiet day. But we were thrilled to find out that Jared was able to get off early in the afternoon, so we decided to make the best of the afternoon and evening right in our little town of Mons.

First, we strolled through the Chocolate Festival in Mons. Yes, they have a chocolate festival. Not as big I'm sure as other chocolate festivals in Belgium, but hey, there's chocolate in the streets, so Lydia is happy. They had a couple dozen chocolatiers displaying their yummy chocolates, and some providing live demonstrations. We did make one logistical error in bringing the dogs, so sometimes lingering by aromatic chocolate displays was tricky with the two salivating dogs. After browsing through the chocolate festival, we went to Imagipark, a local play/bowling/billiards place also in Mons. They have a huge play area that's all caged in, and the grownups can lounge around and eat and drink while the kids play safely. And um, yeah, that's good for Lydia. And finally, we wandered back downtown to the Grand Place and ate a restaurant that's casually called "Steak on a Rock" (I actually can't remember the actual name of the restaurant). But basically, they have hot rocks and they throw a nice piece of steak on there and it sizzles and cooks right on your table. Very caveman-like, which is right up our alley.

All in all, a great afternoon all within a mile of our house!




I have NO idea what those strange, large characters are but, yes, they're creepy

Luckily they wandered off to be creepy somewhere else

Chocolate, chocolate everywhere - and can you believe I didn't eat anything there? I still can't believe it.

Lots and lots and lots of kids at Imagipark.

Somehow a St. Patrick's Day photo slipped in here. Oh well, enjoy.

This is what Jared got - kebabs on a rock. I got steak on a rock. I just like saying on a rock, I think.

Spring Has Sprung

Oh, it's lovely. Spring has arrived in Belgium, my friends. The sun is here. Our heavy coats got left in the house today. And it was lovely. Not sure if it will last, but we're loving it now. And we're getting ready for St. Patrick's Day (leprechaun trap created!!) and Easter (Easter dress bought!!). Yay, spring!


The NATO installation held its annual Spring Bazaar today, so the kids and I stopped by. I never miss one of the SHAPE bazaars, since they always have someone selling homemade chocolates. Yes, I'm pretty singularly focused. Ellie and I also bought some homemade lip balm, and then we had a healthy lunch of hot dogs and funnel cake.

Have I mentioned how happy I am that Spring is arriving? After the bazaar, we put in some playground time.

This would make a great drinking game - have a drink every time you hear "Mom, look at me!" Or am I the only one whose thoughts turn to drinking after about the 50th "Mom, look at me!"? Just me? Oh, ok, never mind.

I have to think back many, many moons to remember the last time my upper-body-strength-to-big-ol'-butt ratio was sufficient to allow me to get across the monkey bars like this.

Or to do this

This one, I could do, but only because gravity is on my side.

We also got ready for St. Patrick's Day, which is just a few days away. Jack and Ellie built a pretty awesome leprechaun trap. But don't let the smiles fool you - the building of this trap would have received a PG-13 rating, due to strong language and violence. Ahh, sibling love.

Things That Oliver Ate Today

And today's tally of Things That Oliver Ate Today includes......

1. One of Ellie's socks
2. Two colored pencils
3. One Fruit by the Foot (including packaging)
4. Two cardboard boxes
5. One nail file
6. An unidentified object on the sidewalk

Join us next time for Things That Oliver Ate Today

A Bit of America in Germany

One thing that you should know about me is that I hate driving.
Even more so, I hate driving somewhere I haven't been before.
Even more than that, I hate driving somewhere I haven't been before in the dark.
And even more than that, I hate driving somewhere I haven't been before, in the dark, in a foreign country.
And on top of that, I hate driving somewhere I haven't been before, in the dark, in a foreign country, on a highway with no speed limit and crazy Germans speeding past me so fast I only hear "whoosh" sounds.
And really, truly, I hate driving somewhere I haven't been before, in the dark, in a foreign country, on a highway with no speed limit and crazy Germans speeding past me so fast I only hear "whoosh" sounds, with two kids and two dogs in the back.

But alas, I put on my big-girl pants and did just that, driving to Ramstein, Germany (specifically, Ramstein Air Force Base) the other night. Jared had been scheduled to fly out of there to Parts Unknown, but his flight had been delayed a few days, so he asked us to drive up for a bit and visit.

After a not-so-pleasant night drive up there where my GPS didn't quite recognize the location (and I MIGHT have created a few new cuss-word-combos to indicate my displeasure), we got there in time for a late dinner before bed. Although I was quite worn out from the drive, Jared had gotten me a chocolate-peanut butter milkshake with my dinner, so all was forgiven (yes, I'm that easy).

Since we only had a short time there (one full day), we spent the whole time on the base, getting in touch with all things "American." After just 5 months here, it was already jarring to see so many minivans and sweatpants, although thrilling to have all of the cashiers understand what we were saying. And we totally took advantage of all the American food - hamburgers, milkshakes, American-style ice cream, and sandwiches. And - yay - a movie in English. By the time the kids and I drove home this morning, we'd had an awesome little American experience, and were ready to go back to our Belgian home. And I was so refreshed that I even tackled the Autobahn with relish, going way faster than my mom would approve.



It had only been a few days since the kids had seen their dad, but don't tell them that, as they hung to him like barnacles

Now THAT'S a BX. Makes our tiny little PX look, well, tiny and little.

Not to mention a food court that would make any American mall proud

It was a beautiful day out, so the kids were able to get in a few rounds of American Ninja Warrior at one of the playgrounds. They were both quite fierce competitors.

I think Jack's superior upper body strength on the monkey bars gave him the edge to win

But don't worry, Ellie got her revenge

At least all that money we spent on taekwondo wasn't wasted

After relaxing with a fun movie, we had a nice American dinner (which, you know, means Mexican) - I had my second chocolate-peanut butter milkshake afterwards, but Jared tackled this big boy - and is there anything more American than over-indulgence? Ahhh...God bless America!