Merry Christmas from the Pertijs'!!!
29 December 2009
21 December 2009
Winter Wonderland
Growing up in the cold state of Iowa I was very used to cold mornings—warming up the car and scraping snow and ice off the windshield—but I never thought there would be the day where I was experiencing a cold snowy morning scraping snow off my bike seat getting ready to trek through the snow. The good thing about biking for transportation is there is much less snow to wipe off than from a car, the downside is there is no warmth and no heated seats!! It's all a new experience for me and I'm not sure how much I like it yet.
If you don't have a yard, just build a snowman in the woods and carry him home on a sled!
impressive
Winter palm tree?
We made a snow hamster!!
19 December 2009
UPdatinggggg
My parental units came...almost 2 months ago...but it doesn't matter. As Christmas time is coming fast and John and I will be spending it in Holland it's nice to look back at these photos.
french fry dinner at John's parents
We were sabotaged in this photo by John, who made us wait a very long time on the edge of this dock until large waves crashed against us. And he didn't even manage to get a photo of it. Der....
Media Museum in Hilversum—lunchtime
same face?
canal tour in Den Bosch
And good ol' Hema Hotdogs!!
typical
no worries, it's just a bed being moved into a house via ladder and window.
french fry dinner at John's parents
We were sabotaged in this photo by John, who made us wait a very long time on the edge of this dock until large waves crashed against us. And he didn't even manage to get a photo of it. Der....
Media Museum in Hilversum—lunchtime
same face?
canal tour in Den Bosch
And good ol' Hema Hotdogs!!
typical
no worries, it's just a bed being moved into a house via ladder and window.
04 November 2009
Learning
It's officially been a year since I packed up my apartment in Minneapolis, Minnesota and packed two suitcases to start a life in the Netherlands. Here's a list of things I've learned while living in a new country and starting a new life.
Things I've learned while living abroad, (in no particular order):
1. You can be completely happy with the person you love (this being my husband) but you still need to work on yourself to feel inner peace and satisfaction.
2. Laundry can be done without a dryer, and warm summer days are a quick way to get it done. Beware: winters take patience since it will be a few days before everything is dry and you may be using all your chairs, furniture and radiators to hang wet laundry on (get used to crispy towels and socks).
3. Don't waste the day on the computer with nothing to show from it.
4. Walk/bike to new places in your city and take photos.
5. Cook using new ingredients (last night I used kohlrabi for the first time)
6. Write down ideas. Being creative and making things is important to me. Walking through Amsterdam, or looking through design blogs makes my wheels turn and I'm filling a little black book with all my ideas I want to create.
7. Pets are great, even little hamsters.
8. Learning the Dutch language is difficult but possible.
9. Get used to new food; I still miss cottage cheese and wheat thins every once in a while, but I do love the cheese here. Jong Belegen please!
10. Just because you can drink beer on the train, doesn't mean you should.
11. Those women who seemingly walk in high heels all day carry a pair of flats with them.
12. Actually do something with your creative ideas.
13. Get rid of your ego: do a job that you are overqualified for, don't worry about mistakes you make.
14. It is possible to get on the train so that when you exit you are lined up exactly with the stairs at the station, thus avoiding the crowds.
15. Stay in touch with those you love—you may find by changing your lifestyle some people will no longer be in touch.
16. Ask questions.
17. Do something small for yourself that makes you smile. For me it's arranging our books by color, drinking out of my favorite mug, or finding a kitschy trinket at the second-hand store.
18. Exercise. I've found I love doing yoga in the morning, with podcasts from yogamazing.
19. Being home a lot and not having a television is great. And thanks to the interweb you can always catch up on a show or two in the evenings.
20. Writing down things you covet can be just as satisfactory as buying them. Really it can!
21. I can ride a bike in the rain holding an umbrella. I can ride a bike home from the grocery store/market holding bags and strapping food onto my bike, I can ride a bike in a dress and heels—I cannot ride a bike with no hands...yet.
Things I've learned while living abroad, (in no particular order):
1. You can be completely happy with the person you love (this being my husband) but you still need to work on yourself to feel inner peace and satisfaction.
2. Laundry can be done without a dryer, and warm summer days are a quick way to get it done. Beware: winters take patience since it will be a few days before everything is dry and you may be using all your chairs, furniture and radiators to hang wet laundry on (get used to crispy towels and socks).
3. Don't waste the day on the computer with nothing to show from it.
4. Walk/bike to new places in your city and take photos.
5. Cook using new ingredients (last night I used kohlrabi for the first time)
6. Write down ideas. Being creative and making things is important to me. Walking through Amsterdam, or looking through design blogs makes my wheels turn and I'm filling a little black book with all my ideas I want to create.
7. Pets are great, even little hamsters.
8. Learning the Dutch language is difficult but possible.
9. Get used to new food; I still miss cottage cheese and wheat thins every once in a while, but I do love the cheese here. Jong Belegen please!
10. Just because you can drink beer on the train, doesn't mean you should.
11. Those women who seemingly walk in high heels all day carry a pair of flats with them.
12. Actually do something with your creative ideas.
13. Get rid of your ego: do a job that you are overqualified for, don't worry about mistakes you make.
14. It is possible to get on the train so that when you exit you are lined up exactly with the stairs at the station, thus avoiding the crowds.
15. Stay in touch with those you love—you may find by changing your lifestyle some people will no longer be in touch.
16. Ask questions.
17. Do something small for yourself that makes you smile. For me it's arranging our books by color, drinking out of my favorite mug, or finding a kitschy trinket at the second-hand store.
18. Exercise. I've found I love doing yoga in the morning, with podcasts from yogamazing.
19. Being home a lot and not having a television is great. And thanks to the interweb you can always catch up on a show or two in the evenings.
20. Writing down things you covet can be just as satisfactory as buying them. Really it can!
21. I can ride a bike in the rain holding an umbrella. I can ride a bike home from the grocery store/market holding bags and strapping food onto my bike, I can ride a bike in a dress and heels—I cannot ride a bike with no hands...yet.
27 October 2009
Happy birthday to me!
Birthdays are great especially when your parents visit you from abroad and you get to spend it in Amsterdam filled with lovely design shops and eating at a restaurant where they light cheese on fire for your meal.
Leather purse and design mag from John, ikea kettle found at the market, ceramic high tea glasses by Gargantua Paris, and Hasbeens pink clogs.
And not to forget the bunny dish rack!
Leather purse and design mag from John, ikea kettle found at the market, ceramic high tea glasses by Gargantua Paris, and Hasbeens pink clogs.
And not to forget the bunny dish rack!Thanks for a great birthday everyone! See you next year for number 26...
06 October 2009
05 October 2009
18 September 2009
The Honeymooners
We officially took our honeymoon, albeit 3 months after the wedding, to Nice, France and surrounding Mediterranean places. We stayed in a studio apartment in Cagnes sur Mer and ventured around from there. It twas lovely… (mind you there are a lot of photos here)
CAGNES SUR MER
The outside patio of our hotel
A very windy day with a lot of waves
pretty pattern at the grocery storeHAUTE CAGNES
This hill is Haute Cagnes (very close to our hotel), we walked up the first night and had dinner at the top.
The chateau at the top
Restaurants
Créme brulée dinnerNICE
Old Town
Pig found in Oldtown
The beach (obvio)
Cours Saleya Market
Johnny pulling out a magic sandwich for snack time
View from top of Colline du Chateau
Waterfall at the top
View of the harbor
Cours SaleyaMONACO
Walking up toward the Palace
The Palace
Old buildings nearby palace (church on the right where Grace Kelly was Married)
Grace Kelly Grave
Views from the top
More viewsANTIBES
We rode bikes from Cagnes sur Mer to Antibes—this part of France was definitely not made for bikes since bike paths would suddenly come to an end on the middle of the highway. Quite an adventure.
Old Fortress, walked up yet another hill
Swimming to cool offVILLEFRANCHE
ST. PAUL
Our final days before rain washed us out was in another small village on top of a hill. This one we had to take a bus to and afterward we walked back down and visited another village celebrating Medieval days.
St. Paul is the old city on the top of the hill
Lovely views
Within the city
This lady is making crepes above all the Nutella
Eating a crepe!
At a nearby village in the petting zoo. I had to fight my way through the screaming five year olds
People in the streets
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