Questions - Answered, FINALLY!

I am currently sitting in an apartment in Madrid, Spain hurridly checking my emails for matters of "important business" and a random thought occurred to me that I never posted these answers like I promised in my last post. I'm sure none of you have been holding your breath, but here they are anyway. Any more Q's? Leave me a comment and I'll get to it...eventually :)

I want to know if you are still using the crock pot and if you have any new good recipes :)

Yes, I still am using my crockpot, and no, I don’t really have any new good recipes. I have purchased few small appliances here, but my crockpot was one of the first. Soup seems to be a big deal here and in the winter some of the vendors at the market will sell fresh soup in large glass bottles and occasionally I will buy that and warm it up in my crockpot with some chunky vegetables thrown in there. Sunday dinner is still it’s primary use though. Sorry! Wish I had something new for you!

I want to know if there is still a possibility of you coming back to Oregon. I also want to know your favorite memory of your time so far.

There is a chance that we may return to Portland. That being said though, there is an equal chance we could end up in any other of the 49 states upon our return. I think we have decided that we would like to return to the West coast, but that isn’t set in stone either. My thought on the matter can be summed up in 2 ways: I either want to live close to family, or I want to live somewhere cool. If we could accomplish both that would be great, but I'm just shooting for one. :) We should find out where we are coming back to after the new year. To say I can’t wait to find out is an understatement. As far as favorite memory….this is hard! I can’t pick one, but this one stands out as a defining moment on this whole experience: We had just arrived in Brussels. We were crazy-jet lagged and had absolutely no orientation to ANYTHING around us. We were put up in this old apartment building that I thought was a little creepy (which looking back was not that bad) and we were ALL ALONE. Ryan and I looked at each other and said, “Well, we did it!” (referring to making this journey as a family and leaving all of our possessions and everything and everyone we knew behind) and I just remember feeling a complete adrenaline rush and being so excited for what was to come. I guess you could say it was the beginning of many good memories.

I want to know what you are currently reading...you always had a stack of books here...

Recently read: Jane Eyre (had never read it before, loved it!), The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak (again, loved it! It made my cry and those of you that know me well know that it takes A LOT to do that) 3 cups of Tea by Greg Mortensen, In Defense of Food by Michael Pollen. Next up? Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. Wish me luck.

Have you bought many kids clothes out there...still finding great deals? What's the cutest article of clothing you have purchased?

I have not purchased too many kids clothes here. Compared to the US, kids clothes are way expensive here. It’s unfortunate really because the clothes are just to-die-for cute and given an unlimited budget, I’m pretty sure I could dress Charlotte like a supermodel. I mostly stick to H&M and Zara (both of which can be found places in the US) for the necessities. Cutest thing I have purchased was probably Charlotte’s flamenco dress from Spain.

How much vacation time does Ryan get with his job? It seems like you're gone for a week every other month or so. (OK, so I'm jealous...but I'm also curious.) Ryan gets 20 some-odd days (22, 23, 24?) plus standard holidays. It’s the same amount of time he had in the States, but for some reason we actually get to use it here. :)

Out of all the places you have seen which is your favorite? Where would your dream vacation be? This is the last question I have for you. How long are you planning on living there?

1. Favorite place? Switzerland. I have really enjoyed other places, but Switzerland was definitely my favorite. As far as cities go though, Paris or Barcelona.

2. Dream vacation? I think this is un-answerable for me. You name a place I haven’t been and it’s my dream. Tops of my list that I haven’t seen yet: All of Scandinavia (Sweden, Norway, Finland); Moscow, Russia; Turkey; Cairo, Egypt; Tokyo, Japan; New Zealand. I think Ryan and I have started a hobby that cannot be satisfied. :)

How long are we planning to be here? Current contract is up in July 2010. However, we were recently told that they would love to keep Ryan around if everything (meaning the economics of it all) worked out.

When are you bringing Ryan and the kids back to the states? Do you have a set timeframe, or can you extend indefinitely? ...or do you even want to come back? :)

I addressed the timeframe question above, but as far as wanting to come back I can say this: The longer we are here, the more I want to go home and the longer I want to stay here. I know it sounds strange phrased like that, but I really go back and forth as to what I really want. I feel better about the education my kids are receiving here (even though I have never had a US public school experience), I love the cultural experiences and traveling opportunities that we have here, but I miss America! Being away from America has really made me realize what a great country America is (despite its issues) and I am definitely proud to be an American. Who knows though, if the US becomes a socialized nation while I am gone, I may just stay here forever. :)

2. What do you "miss" about the states? I miss root beer, Café Rio, and the English language.

3. What does it mean in Europe about "holiday"/does that affect you? if so, positive or negative? Holiday is the British word for “vacation” that has been adopted by all of Europe. In fact, most anyone in Europe that speaks English speaks British English and so they talk about going on “holiday.” I would say that word is used very positively at my house.

4. Do you have family planning to see you while you are in europe? Well, my brother and my parents were just here, and Ryan’s parents are planning to come soon. We have a couple of other siblings who have expressed interest in coming, but I haven’t heard many updates….so you tell me siblings – are you coming??? Aside from siblings, are any of you planning to come make a tour guide out of me???

5. What is your favorite daily activity that has been influenced by your new culture? Hum…..either hanging laundry outside or buying fresh bread.

6. Do you think you've changed or widened your perspective to the world/culture/etc? This is a definite, loud, YES!! I don’t quite know how to explain this without going on and on for many paragraphs, but yes, my perspective has been both widened and changed. I am a much better person for many reasons for having lived here and I think my kids are too. We have met so many people from so many different countries and cultures and at the end of the day, one thing that I have realized (as simple as this is going to sound) is that we are all human having a human experience. No matter what language we speak, or what culture we are from, I think we all want the same things out of life and I think we have a lot we can teach each other. A humorous note to a perspective change: Brayden thinks he has brown skin. Don't get me wrong, that kid can get a mean tan, but he's still definitely a whitey. A lot of the kids in Brayden’s class are black or middle-eastern and have darker skin. Since Brayden tans so well, he has adapted himself into this circle and colors his skin with a brown crayon whenever he does a self-portrait. It’s hilarious.

The End. Happy Summer. See you soon!