I’m so glad you’re reading my blog and sharing this journey with me. Thank you all for your comments and likes and your private emails and Facebook messages. You inspire me to keep writing and sharing and I’m so glad you’re getting something out of reading along with me. I love hearing from you, and knowing that we’re all part of this great, big beautiful world. Thank you.  xo

So we ordered new bikes last week Thursday, and the customer service isn’t quite the same as we’ve come to expect. But anyway, they called this morning to say the bikes were ready for pick up. We were going to go walk to the bike store to get them just after we finished cleaning up. By the time we were ready, the weather wasn’t.  I’m still adjusting and adapting to the unpredictable nature of rain in Holland. It was gorgeous this morning.

But then the rain started pouring horizontally to the left, and then the wind switched directions and it started sliding to the right. I stared out the window in awe, and kept on cleaning and decluttering.  At least the rain is good for a clean house. Little C thought it was fun to dance in the rain, but given that he only has one pair of tennis shoes right now, wet shoes wouldn’t be so fun. We cleaned and cooked dinner together instead and waited for the rain to pass.  And we put together my little American Zen Beach Garden that Julie M. gave to me before we left! I love this little thing and it reminds me of home. Christina said she’s going to send me a paddle board to add to the scenery!!  Wouldn’t that be perfect?

By 4:00 pm – yes, our timing is so off, we walked to the bike shop in the drizzle of rain to pick up our new bikes. The kids were very excited. Little C rode his bike there and locked up his own bike with his own lock and key. He is very proud of his new wheels!  After we picked up our bikes, we enjoyed a nice ride through town in the sunshine, exploring the neighborhood streets. We discovered a fun BMX bike park just near our house, over the little bridge that crosses the canal. Little C was able to ride around, but big C didn’t buy a helmet so I said no to that.

It’s very strange to see the kids without helmets. I didn’t make them buy new ones today, but I wouldn’t say I was comfortable with that decision. They shipped theirs and they should be here in 3 weeks. We’ll see if we don’t make another trip to the bike shop to buy new ones before then. The good news is that the streets are flat and there are dedicated bike lanes that are separate from the traffic, which makes me feel a little safer. But again, I fell off my bike with no traffic at all and had a concussion that left me unable to go to school or work for 3 weeks!  I think the Americans know something about bike safety… I hope that we’ll be role models in this area, but I struggle with standing out and being different.

Speaking of standing out and being different, another challenge I’m facing is living in a row house with neighbors attached to my house and us being a VERY LOUD family!!  I don’t want to be the LOUD Americans, but we’re used  to being loud and voicing our opinions and disagreeing and arguing with love and kindess!  *smile*  And teaching the kids to be quiet, and not calling for one another from 3 floors up or from outside isn’t something that changes immediately!  But if I master this one, I’ll be so happy!  It’s exhausting with all the reminders and punishments and time outs, especially when we’re here a lot of the time! Wish me luck on this one. I’ll let you know how we do and if the neighbors still acknowledge us next month!

One last thing before I go, we signed up for Magic Jack which is a phone service we can use through the internet, where we could keep our old home number and call anywhere for like $.02 cents per minute. This is an awesome thing! We have a regular hand held phone that works, and it also rings to my cell phone.  So cool, right? We called to wish Val a happy birthday, had a long conversation with each of my sisters and left messages for my parents. I love being able to stay connected and this is one more way to satisfy that need.  Just remember if you call us though, that we’re 9 hours ahead of California!!  😉