The Little (and Big!) Changes Expat Life Brings

When I boarded a ferry more than fifteeen years ago and left the UK to start a new life in the Netherlands, I never really stopped to consider how different my life would actually be.

I knew there was a new language to learn, one that I'd mistaken for a strange German dialect during a summer holiday in Turkey. 

I was, of course, aware of the typical Dutch associations with clogs, windmills, cheese and tulips but I shrugged that off as stereotypes. I learnt that the old adage 'no smoke without fire' is alive and well and there are actually a fair few windmills in the Netherlands, some farmers do wear clogs (as well as father-in-laws working in gardens) and the Dutch do happen to grow a tremendous number of tulips.... and they like cheese. But these turned out to be the least of the differences thrown at me when I embraced an expat life in the Netherlands. 

A Harry Potter Birthday Party

Last Friday the day my eldest had been looking forward to since his birthday finally arrived - his birthday party. This year the theme was Harry Potter.

(Click picture for Amazon.co.uk link)

We've been reading the Harry Potter series books in English together for about a year now, having just started the fourth one, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. My son loves them. I surprised myself and found that I love them too. Prior to last year I had never read a Harry Potter book.

When we decided on the Harry Potter theme it didn't click straight away that my son's friends would know the Dutch versions of everything but probably not the English ones. And that means that some of the characters have different names: Dumbledore is Perkamentus; Hermione is Hermelien;  Ron Weasley is Ron Wemel and Vernon Dursley is Herman Duffeling. The snitch is a snaai and even Hogwarts changes and becomes Zweinstein. Another twist of expat life when you're least expecting it! It went ahead in English - but the films were watched dubbed in Dutch.

The week leading up to the party I landed in bed with flu and my husband was still battling the mother of all ear infections that had had him consulting an ENT specialist in our local hospital. We mumbled about postponing. There were tears. We backed off. And it went ahead......

Traktatie Time Again: Fruit Peacock

Last week was traktatie time again in our house. My little one turned four and this treat was popular with both children and teachers in his school. And it's healthy!

You can find lots more traktatie and birthday treat ideas on my Pinterest board.

Times, They're a Changing: More Writer, Less Mother?

This week my youngest son turned four. Four. That means he gets to go out into the big, wide world on his own. Well, it means he starts primary school. It's a bittersweet moment. It means my role will change. It will be the first time in nearly nine years that I will have been at home during the week without any children around me. My sons will continue to come home at lunchtime from school and for a little while at least my youngest will be home in the afternoons whilst he builds up his school hours to full-time.

But it's a big change for me. As a mother. As a writer. Hours suddenly open up to me to work more. The projects I have been planning and scheming for the past few years may actually come to fruition. More time to get out and about. More time to work in locations other than my home. 

And as if by magic I received an email from Scaramanga* asking if I would like to take a peek at one of their bags. After squealing a little with delight (shoes I can take or leave, but bags....whole different story!) I realised that the request was perfect timing. I was on the look out for a 'work' bag, one to carry my laptop, countless pages of incoherent notes that come to me as ideas for blog posts, articles and book chapter ideas and all the other things I lug around simply because I have three children.

The large messenger bag I picked out turned to be the perfect choice. Last weekend all five of us headed to the beach to blow the cobwebs away. Through September one son after another has fallen ill with one virus or another, and then head colds hit me and my husband. We needed to get out and get some good sea air in our lungs so we headed to Wassesnaarseslag. 

I loaded up my beautiful bag with my folders and notes, a notepad, my copy of The Whole-Brain Child book I'm currently reading (which I thoroughly recommend!), pens and the bits and pieces that always sit in my bag. There's plenty of space for everything I could possibly want to take out with me. I planned a bit of writing and reading whilst the boys dug up the beach, as they are prone to do when they get anywhere near the sand.

We had a great few hours. We left home wearing coats, jumpers and even a scarf or two as the weather was cloudy and a bit chilly. By the time we headed home the boys were stripped down to their t-shirts. And their jumpers and scarves? Yep, tucked away safely in my bag........... 

The hours I have to write may be on the rise, but there's no changing the fact that I'm first a mother, second a writer. And I wouldn't have it any other way. 

*I received a free bag of my choice from Scaramanga in exchange for a review on this blog. All views are my own.

8 Essential Items Every Expat Needs in Their Dutch Home

In order to integrate in the Netherlands there are (at least) eight essentials you need to have tucked away somewhere in your home. Without them your integration will never be complete and you may even fail the inburgeringscursus*.

1. Potato Masher
Without this vital piece of kitchen equipment you can never hope to truly master Dutch cuisine. Using a masher effectively is hard work but never fear because practice makes perfect. As a guide, you need to keep mashing until the food object in question looks squished beyond any hope of resuscitation.

This kitchen tool allows you to make a perfect stamppot or hutspot- perfect for warming the tummy in winter. Also very handy for preparing meals for after major dentistry work or whilst waiting for the healing of a broken jaw.

2. Birthday Calendar
This is an essential for the smallest room in the house, namely the downstairs loo. If you don't have a downstairs loo, then I fear total integration may be just out of your grasp. Make sure you include the birthday of anyone likely to visit your house - everyone checks for their name whilst they are making use of your facilities. They really do. If they come out of your downstairs loo looking mad it is in no way a reflection of the quality of your chosen toilet paper, rather it's because you forgot to put their birthday in your calendar..

3. Bicycle
It almost goes without saying, but without a bike in the Netherlands you are no one. You simply must have a bike - it really doesn't matter how much you use it but you should have one. Where it is stored differs from household to household. The shed is a popular place. Public hallways in shared accommodations are also popular, preferably blocking emergency exits and any means of entrance. Creating an obstacle course for fellow residents is seen as good sport here. 

You can also leave your bike(s) chained to a lamppost outside your house - it externalises the obstacle course and gives dogs new and varied targets to pee on.

4. Window Foil
Many Dutch homes do not have curtains. They may have blinds or no window fittings at all. This is traditionally so you can peek in and view the showcase living rooms. However, over the years many Dutch homeowners have become torn between tradition and dignity. Do they really want you seeing them in their dressing gowns with bed hair every morning grabbing their first koffie of the day? The solution is window foil. Placed strategically over the windows you can't see out so obviously nobody can see in (except very small and very tall people).

5. Sauces

Your fridge door must be full of different sauces to be served with every meal. Every meal, regardless of what it is. Of course, the food you serve will determine exactly which of the sauces you are to serve but there are some staples: knoflooksaus (garlic flavoured sauce), currysaus (spicy ketchup in essence) and chillisaus (chilli sauce). There are other sauces which are variable and optional but for kids you must serve appelmoes (apple sauce). I have heard that the wide choice of accompanying sauces is related to the lack of flavour in Dutch cuisine.......but I couldn't possibly confirm or deny that rumour.

6. Vases
Flowers are everywhere in the Netherlands. They are also commonly brought by visitors. So if you are a bit of a socialite, then you will need a lot of vases and many free surfaces to put your flowers in and on. Wide vases, narrow vases, tall vases and short stumpy vases - you'll probably need them all.

7. Cheese Slicer

I had never owned a cheese slicer (kaasschaaf) in my pre-Netherlands life. Cheese in the UK is soft and comes in square chunks so can easily be cut with a knife or crumbled or grated for sandwiches. I now own two cheese slicers. (I actually had three but whilst some might find that luxurious, I found it to be a little excessive and as it came free with some cheese I chucked it away). Anyways.... Dutch cheese is hard and triangular shaped. Trying to cut it with a knife is just asking to lose at least one finger dangerous so cheese slicers are essential.

8. Chairs

Foreigners in the Netherlands all have to step into the circle of death at some point. If you have a Dutchie in your house, you may even have to create that birthday circle for yourself. For this you need as many chairs as you can muster from friends, family and neighbours. But you must also have a good supply in house. The good news is (so I am told) that the birthday circle is dying out and a thing for the older generations. There's hope for us expats yet......

*This may not be actually true at all.

The 9 Steps to a Perfect Dutch Birthday Circle Party

The dreaded Dutch birthday circle was the topic of a recent exchange on Twitter. It's often the topic of conversation in the expat corridors of the Netherlands. And there's a good reason for it.

For the buitenlanders among us the Dutch birthday party can be excruciatingly painful, tedious or downright baffling. Often all three. Once experienced it's hard to get over. But let's start at the beginning. Here's what happens.

1. Plan the Party

As with any party preparation anywhere in the world, planning for a Dutch begins in advance with a shopping list that looks like this:

The host may (or may not) order a cake at the local bakers. However, the day itself is when the work really begins.

2. Organise the Chairs

First things first. All chairs within the confines of the host’s house, and any that can be pilfered from friends, neighbours and nearby relatives, need to be meticulously arranged in a circle in the woonkamer. Space is limited in 99% of birthday party cases so the chairs need to be squeezed close together so that everyone has a chair but so that guests are not physically sitting on each other. The result is that the party-goers have to scramble over each other to get in and out of the circle. I have no idea if there is a special birthday party ruler that exists for this purpose or if Dutch people just feel by instinct when the seating is the right level of gezelligheid.

3. Clean Only Necessary Areas

Secondly, the living room needs to be cleaned from top to toe; this is after all the showcase for the rest of the house. Believe me, upstairs is not as clean, tidy and orderly as the room the birthday gathering is hosted in.

4. Brew Coffee

The next task on the to-do list is to brew gallons of coffee ready for the entrance of the guests. A lot of coffee is needed for a Dutch birthday party so it's best to start brewing a few hours before the first guests arrive. 

5. Pucker Up

Tardiness on such an occasion will not go unnoticed because as you arrive you give the birthday boy or girl three kisses on the cheek and utter ‘Gefeliciteerd met je verjaardag’. It is impossible to sneak in quietly. You must then parade around the room kissing other guests in the circle that you know. A polite nod of the head and a handshake is sufficient for unfamiliar faces. If you are not related to the jarige Job you may then take your place in the circle - which in itself is no mean feat (see step 2). 

However, if you are related to the birthday boy/girl then your work is not yet done. Each guest will now also kiss you and congratulate you on the birthday of your mother-in-law/father-in-law/husband/son etc. Then you may sit down.  However choose your place in the circle wisely. Your place in the circle is of the utmost strategic importance if you do not want to be clambering over your neighbour every time someone arrives - and the kissing ritual begins once more.

6. Open Birthday Gifts

Birthday gifts are ceremoniously given a public opening. Again, there is more circle scrambling with the exchange of more kisses, this time given as a thank you. All this happens just as you have managed to crawl over various distant relatives back to your seat on the far side of the circle.

7. Distribute the Crackers

It is now that the 'once small dry crackers but now small soggy crackers because filet americain was spread on them an hour ago' make their appearance. You are obliged to take one. And eat it. Smile and wave your hand about your ear to indicate that the cracker is lekker.

8. Distribute the Cake

If you are lucky the cake is now brought in to the room to choruses of “Lang zal ze leven” which is the Dutch equivalent of the Happy Birthday song. Lots of circle clambering and awkward passing of plates ensues.

Only once the cake is devoured may the alcohol flow (and I have heard about Dutch birthday parties that have failed to move to this latter stage of celebration, and to the expat’s horror, coffee and Spa are the only beverages making a post cake appearance - now if the time to leave if you find yourself at such a party as you know it will NOT get better). 

9. Chat Amongst Yourselves

You are required to talk to people in and around the circle, but without leaving your chair. It's an introvert's nightmare. It's living hell for expats still learning the local language. 

The more alcohol served obviously the rowdier the birthday circle becomes. It pinnacles with guests (still attached to their chairs in the circle) shouting across the circle to try to communicate with each other. Terrifying to say the least if you actually speak Dutch - too horrifying for words if you don't. 

If you are a Dutch birthday party virgin subject to tipsy Dutch strangers screaming from their chair on the other side of the room it can be traumatic. 

You have been warned.

A Super Hero Minion Happy Birthday!

I spent Saturday making a birthday cake for my soon to be five year old. It only took me all day.... literally, the whole day *sigh*. That's my creativity used up for the week!

What professional cake makers charge suddenly seems like a bargain! However, I'm pretty sure all three of my sons will like how it turned out!

And whilst we are on a birthday theme - have you entered the giveaway for a Gadanke birthday journal?

A Birthday (and a Giveaway) Fit for a Dutch King

Next week it's the king's birthday, the 27th April to be precise, and he's throwing a huge street party to which you are all invited.

The Dutch king's birthday celebrations certainly beat borrowing chairs from the neighbours to make a huge birthday circle in which to eat soggy crackers and drink coffee. His involve everyone dressing up in orange and hitting the Dutch streets - armed with as much crap from your house as you can physically carry in order to sell it from blankets on the pavements. Huh what? I hear you novices to King's Day cry. Yes really, all truth.

Of course the king himself doesn't take part in the vrijmarkten (although that would be rather amusing - him and the family sitting on a blanket selling the unwanted things from their royal residence and princess Amalia playing the flute and Maxima selling homemade cakes to earn a few cents) but he does throw toilets around. Again, yes, it's true, although in all fairness that was to celebrate his mother's birthday and not his own.

Let's face it King Willem-Alexander has the kind of birthday celebrations that are worth recording for prosperity and I have just the giveaway for him - an "It's My Birthday Journal" lovingly handmade by the award winning Gadanke.

It has room for the king to keep a birthday card from his mother (as in the woman formerly known as Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands) and those precious photos of the common folk taking to the nation's waterways in boats adorned in orange from head to toe.

There are embellishments fit for a king and an annual letter that Queen Maxima or one of his three daughters could write to him. There are writing prompts to help him review the year gone by, and a place to record the plans for the coming year - important whether you're king of the Netherlands or a regular person like you and me.

The journal is colorful, comes with a PDF document so that the number of birthdays you can record is endless, as well as 30 minutes of video tutorials full of inspiration and tips. In short, it's fabulous. And I have one to give away - to entrants worldwide. That's right, no matter where you live on the globe, whether in a palace or a humble abode, you can enter.

And so how do you get your hands on one of these wonderful Gadanke birthday journals? I figured I shouldn't enter my own giveaway - morally and ethically not done and all that - so there are three journals winging their way to me as I type and as it's my middle son's birthday next week we'll be getting to work as soon as it arrives! So you can either go order one or three like me, or you can enter to win one here on this blog!

If you, even if you are King Willem Alexander himself, want to win an It's My Birthday Gadanke journal use Rafflecopter below - there's no special treatment king or no king and you can enter until the very end of the Dutch king's birthday.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Leave a King's Day or birthday related comment below for extra entries in the giveaway - I want to hear what you love about King's Day, your experience with the dreaded Dutch birthday circle or what you last took in as a traktatie. If it's birthday related, share it!

Good luck!

Traktaties - How to Do Birthdays Dutch Style

Wednesday is my birthday which, if I was to celebrate in true Dutch style, would mean having you all over to my house to sit in a circle on borrowed chairs to drink coffee and eat soggy crackers with filet americain spread lightly upon them. Lucky for you I don't roll like that. 

However, there is another tradition which the Dutch employ to celebrate een verjaardag which is far less painful than the dreaded birthday circle and that is the traktatie. In essence, that means that I bring in something lekker for my work colleagues to scoff, or my school classmates.

And the good thing about living among the Dutch is that you can take a pretty laid back attitude to what you bring in, and when you bring it in. I'm sure that there are competitive parents out there in the Netherlands, and I am sure there are Judgy van Judgesons out there too - but I am lucky enough to never have crossed paths with any of them.

My children have come home with anything and everything as traktaties from classmate's birthdays over the years, from simple to intricate to imaginative. We've had the 'bag of crisps' treat (more than once), we've had a pencil, eraser and balloon and we've had dolphins made with a banana and hot air balloons filled with popcorn.

And over the years I've also had to put my fair share of traktaties together - three sons make for some serious work over the course of a year. It's not just birthdays that require a traktatie - it's the birth of a baby or leaving a school too. So here's a few I made earlier......

So, tip number 4 for #LiveLikeaDutchie is if there's a birthday in your house don't forget the traktatie!

Are your children's birthdays celebrated in their class? Do you mark your birthday in your work place? How? I would love to hear how birthdays are marked where you live!

My Sunday Photo: Feeling Foreign at a Party

My eldest son turned eight a week ago and this week we had, amongst other celebrations, his kids' party. Standing in a room with ten Dutch children, nine of which speak better Dutch than I do, left me feeling very non-Dutch. A bit more foreign than normal. I was trying to explain one of the games they were about to play and I just couldn't find the right words to do it properly. It was weird. And feeling suddenly so foreign was a foreign feeling. Not uncomfortable. Just strange. Expat life in a nutshell I guess.

In case you are wondering, the part theme was secret agents and one of the games was a relay race where the children had to dress one of their team members in a 'disguise'. They then decided my husband needed a disguise. So, I introduce to you my Dutchie.

Happy 4th Birthday - A Letter to Mr C

Dear Mr C,

Today you turn four but it's a mere formality - it feels like you've been four for a few weeks. You are so ready for the next stage, to leave the peuterspeelzaal behind and start at primary school. You are trying to write your name, chalking numbers on the blackboard in your playhouse in the garden and you are drawing beautiful little creations for us all. You're ready for school. You're ready to move on, far more ready than I am to see you leave every day for school.

We're going to start with just mornings but I have the feeling it won't be long before you are begging to do full days. So far you've been three afternoons and a morning to your new school and you've loved it. You've enjoyed a Koningspelen breakfast and sang and danced "Doe de Kanga" on the school playground with the rest of the school, including your big brother.

Your name is already being called across the school playground when we go to pick up big brother, Mr S. You'll be running off to playmate's houses for lunch before I can catch my breath I'm sure - in fact you and your friend from peuterspeelzaal, who is going to the same primary school, have already set up a lunch date for after the May break. Nothing like being organised!

You're quiet and serious in school. You once played the little clown at home, entertaining us all with madness and fun but you have passed that particular baton to your little brother Mr O and now you are tackling the serious business of becoming a 'grote jongen'.

In your new school the teachers have already indicated that you are quiet, don't say much yet but that you are an easy child - you are joining in, know what you are doing and you just get on with it. But you need time to warm up. And warm up I know you will - you'll be in your element with new activities to try and so much to learn. Get used to your new environment in your own time, and in your own way. When your older brother started school we were newbies and we let the teachers corner us as he got used to going to school - we won't fall into the same trap - we'll do things your way, at your pace.

You have now had your last day in the peuterspeelzaal, the last day in the same class as your little brother, who you've cherished and looked after in school. You've put your arms round him on more than one occasion to protect him when he's unsure in school. You've also both made the teacher mad hitting each other, striking out for attention.

As the middle child your role has always been a little confusing - should you aspire to do the things your big brother does or follow your little brother's lead? Your older brother has had so much attention recently, and you've just gone with the flow. For a few months you and Mr O have been in each other's shadow in the classroom, your little brother being the one needing the help and guidance and you being the class pro. Now you'll be back on your own in a classroom. No brother in tow. Now it's your time to shine, to step into the sunlight and let people see just what you can do - independently. And we know that that is a lot.

You're quick to pick things up. You love to be challenged, to do what seems unlikely. Your imagination is a beautiful, precious thing. Your conversation is entertaining and enchanting and sometimes just downright baffling. You make us laugh with your observations.  You're as happy clambering around a playground as you are watching Misty Island for the 457th time. You're loving your swimming classes and enjoying gym on a Saturday. And I know primary school will join that list.

I will miss having you home every day. So during this May break I will cherish every day off we have, knowing that when school begins again you'll be joining the ranks of school goers. Yesterday we had your party. Grandad and Nana have come over from England to spend the weekend with you, to mark your birthday with you. Today all seven of us will celebrate your actual birth day by taking you out for the day, putting you in the spotlight, where you belong. Making it your day.

Mr C, I hope you have a wonderful 4th birthday and a great break before you start school in a couple of weeks.

We love you kanjer,
 lots of hugs,

Mama & Papa
xx

Happy Birthday - A Letter to Mr S

Dear Mr S,

Happy Birthday little man!! Today you turn seven. How those seven years have flown! It's a cliche, but some days it feels like you're growing up in the blink of an eye. Despite you flying through the stages of childhood, each stage gets better and better and the stage you're in now is a wonderful one, full of discovery, exploration and learning.

And, as a bonus, you're big enough to help around the house more. Once you've trained up your brothers your mama is planning on retiring from household duties - nearly time for you take the household jobs reins right?

Anyway, seven years. And how you've grown. You are racing through clothes sizes. It feels like we buy you new shirts and trousers one minute, and the next minute we put them away in a plastic rollbox under our bed, waiting in storage for your brothers to grow.

It doesn't matter that you no longer fit in the crook of my arm. Truth be told you haven't for years. In fact, sometimes it's a a struggle to lift you at all now. You've gotten big. And heavy. But thankfully I don't have to carry you often, only when you're ill, when a virus floors you. And you become small and helpless again.

But it's not just physically you are growing, it's in so many ways. You've started asking lots of questions, you want to know why and how things happen. You've started to look deeper into the world around you, questions ranging from how a plane stays in the sky to where exactly babies come out of a mama.

You're reading in two languages, and amaze us with how much you can read in your second language when we've not pushed you to read English, letting you concentrate on Dutch and what you are doing in school. We wanted to let you go at your own pace, but still you pick up English early readers and read us stories at bedtime. You're writing - deftig writing. A new word learnt in school every week: starting with ik, maan, roos, vis and currently uil. You're stuck between being proud of being able to write and being bored with it because you need to concentrate so hard - after all you've not lost your perfectionist trait and having to use that eraser irks you.

Which reminds me - it's been a tough year for you little man. You changed schools, swapped the teachers, classmates and corridors you knew so well for unfamiliar faces and strange classrooms. But you blossomed, took it all on board as a positive change and haven't looked back. You've been welcomed in your new school with understanding and acceptance; all your highly sensitive traits acknowledged, acceptance that you need quiet time in the classroom, understanding about thinking deep and emotionally about the world around you. Instead of being dismissed, you are now listened to. Your juf gets you, doesn't deny how tired you feel (doesn't sarcastically suggest you go to bed), doesn't dismiss how full your bucket is, instead she encourages you to take time out, teaches you to acknowledge your own needs and encourages you to create a quiet space for yourself. She's helping you bloom instead of leaving you to shrivel. She's helping you grow. She's helping you build solid foundations.

And because you've found a classroom you feel comfortable in, you are shining at home too. We see more of the real Mr S coming through, instead of the tired, angry boy that dominated you a year ago. What a difference! Watching you play with your two younger brothers, watching you help them gain their independence with little gestures, watching you protect them, all leaves us smiling. It gives us the confirmation we need that fighting for you in school last year, for standing our ground, was worth every cross word, every meeting, every inch we had to fight for, and eventually the tough to decision to make a change.

So, not only are you learning lots yourself Mr S, you're teaching us lots too. I've learnt so much about myself watching you grow, I accept my highly sensitive traits now too - because you've shown me just how positive seeing the world through your eyes is. You've taught us that change is sometimes necessary to move forward, even though it seems so difficult. You've taught us to trust our instinct, go with our feelings because when we announced you were moving schools your response was, "Leuk!" It was a positive reaction, because you knew you were in the wrong place, though you couldn't put those feelings into words. It didn't feel right. Now it does. What a strength of character you have - to embrace change, and make it work for you in a way we could never have imagined.

And yet, you remain a little boy. For me, you will always be my baby, no matter how many candles sit upon your birthday cake. I hope you will keep wanting to take my hand on the walk to school for a little while longer, that you never get tired of hugs from us and that you keep cherishing the role you have as a big brother. Keep making your own path, deciding your own way of doing things and never lose sight of the fact that you know your own mind - your instincts are spot on so trust them. May you stay strong but sensitive.

We hope you love your Spiderman party today, make the most of your special day and enjoy those gathering together today in honour of you turning seven.

Happy 7th birthday Mr S!

Lots and lots of love and cuddles,
Mama & Papa
xxx

Silent Sunday

Happy 2nd Birthday

Dear O,

Two. In the blink of an eye, you've suddenly turned two little O. I could sit and ponder how two years have flown by so fast, how quickly the little bundle of baby you were has turned into this running, babbling little toddler. But I won't. Because it won't change a thing, and every year I've had with you and your brothers leaves me wondering how you could all grow so quickly.

New Born Little O

You've been in our lives for two years; you brought us tears of joy, tears of frustration, many sleepless nights, moments fraught with worry but most of all you've brought us joy. You bring a smile to our faces in so many ways; the way you wrap your little arms around our necks for a cuddle, the way you stroke the top of your brother's head when he hits it against the climbing frame, the way you give us wet kisses and try to say 'dank je wel' when we hand over your beaker, the way you sing the theme song to Nijntje whilst swaying your head side to side, the way you boogie whenever the mood takes you, the way you point to the sky and shout 'gaaaaaaa' when you hear an aeroplane, the way you adopted the word papegaai to 'papagaai' and 'mamagaai'.

Little O, you made sure we knew you were around from the moment you were born. You wouldn't lie in your Moses basket, you cried and screamed incessantly. You wanted only to be held by one of us, all day, all night. Sleepless nights took their toll and we landed in the hospital with you. Silent reflux the paediatrician said. A few nights in hospital would help you get into a rhythm of sleeping at night the paediatrician said. Without mama or papa the paediatrician said. Less than two weeks old and my mothering instinct screamed no way. We took you home again. We gave you medicine and slowly but surely there were longer periods of night sleeping. We all got some sleep again. The crying stopped. The screaming stopped. After a few months you could lie in your bed on your back again without the pain. And then you began to shine.

You smiled, and laughed and gurgled at us. You sat up. You began to discover the world around you. You started crawling, getting into every corner you could, getting into mischief wherever you could. You began to take little steps. The steps got bigger and faster. You said mama and papa. And then Nijntje and bol. Suddenly there were cats and cars in your world, and waving and shouting bye bye became second nature. You started blowing kisses. You began calling your eldest brother Sassa. You started careering around the garden in the Little Tikes car and free falling from the slide, with no fear or apprehension or idea of the potential dangers. Fun became your main interest. And good for you little O, that's what being a child is all about. Playing, having fun. Making sure you squeeze out every smile and laugh that you have inside you. And lucky for us your laughter is infectious. And how contagious it is. Every day.

And so today, you turn two. Soon, you'll go to pre-school a few hours a week with your brother, the same familiar place I have to drag you out of now when we drop your brother off. It's the first little step to discovering the world outside the safety of your home, of meeting other boys and girls to play with, to listening to someone else other than mama or papa. It's a step that has come all too quickly.

When 'Sassa' was born, each new phase he entered was a hip hip hooray moment, it couldn't come quick enough. The first smile, the first clap, the first step and word, the first day at pre-school then junior school. Basking in the glory of every new step he made dimmed the realisation that our baby was slipping away into a school boy.

Over the past two years we have felt no rush to see you take your first step, babble your first conversation, start school, because we know all too well that every stage comes soon enough in it's own sweet time. And with every new stage you reach, something is left behind. With you, little O, every new phase comes too quickly and this time with the full realisation that the baby has gone. In his place stands a toddler. There will be no more crawling, gurgling babies behind you, no more first steps or first words. You are our last firsts, and that makes every moment even more poignant. Whilst you will always be the baby of the family, reality is that you are a baby no more. You're an energetic, fun loving, busy, adventurous little toddler with the ability to spread smiles and laughter around you like wild fire.

Discovery

Happy 2nd birthday little O, I hope you enjoy your day celebrating the amazing little boy you are becoming. And never stop smiling.

Love mama, papa, Sassa & C,
xx

MKB Virtual Birthday Party

It's a party, y'all! Multicultural Kid Blogs is officially one year old as of today. To celebrate we are hosting a virtual birthday party and YOU are invited! The Party Be sure to visit the participating blogs (see list at the end of this post) to see what they are bringing to the party, plus link up your own posts on the MKB site! The Giveaway Like any good host, we don't want you to go home empty handed, so we are offering some great prizes to three lucky winners. See the end of the post for details on the prizes.

 To enter, visit the MKB site to: 1) Link up a birthday-related post or 2) Comment on the MKB site to tell us your wish for the coming year!

Party Hosts

Dad's the Way I Like It
MommyMaestra
SpanglishBaby
For the Love of Spanish
Spanish Playground
the piri-piri lexicon
Expat Life with a Double Buggy
Kids Yoga Stories
MarocMama
All Done Monkey

Party Favors

Prize #1

Digital download of Más Canciones en Español from Music with Sara

Prize #2

Set of 2 books from National Geographic Kids - US Shipping Only

Treasury of Egyptian Mythology

How to Speak Dog

Prize #3

Lively Spanish immersion program DVD recommended for children ages 2-7 from Whistlefritz

Now it's your turn! Visit the MKB site for a chance to win one of these prizes by linking up your birthday posts or commenting to tell us your wish for the coming year!

MKB First Birthday Celebrations

The Multicultural Kid Blogs group is one year old and we're celebrating with a week chock full of giveaways, a virtual party and lots of great posts about firsts and birthdays across the globe. For more details head over to the MKB first anniversary page.

It all kicks off tonight so join us at our first ever Twitter party!  Come discuss what raising a world citizen means to you!  Follow the hashtag #mkbparty, or simply follow along in our Twubs room.  We’ll be giving away some great prizes, so don’t miss it!  You can find all the latest on our Facebook page.

Happy first birthday MKB!

Monday Morning Coffee Time - Vitamins and Watching Leaves

Molly over at The Move to America has had a wonderful idea for a weekly social link up with a 'Monday Coffee Morning' where she shares what her week has in store for her. Nice idea huh? If you want to join in, grab your coffee cup and head over to Molly's.

I plan for this week to be a quieter one that last week, when birthday celebrations dominated the week. As promised I did actually make eccles cakes, after a long Monday I spent my evening in the kitchen - which actually I really enjoyed. The kids were already in bed so I could put my own music on and get lost in my own little baking world. The result was well appreciated at home and at my husband's work.

Eccles cakes - a British kind of treat
Photo: (c) Amanda van Mulligen

However, the business of the week left us all feeling a little drained, and as school has only been back two weeks we are now faced with the inevitable and obligatory round of back to school bugs that start rearing their ugly heads. So we're all fighting colds. Lacklustre is one word to sum how I feel up at the moment. So this week will be focussed on vitamin boosts, fresh air and positive thinking. We will not be brought down by colds....

We're waiting for the leaves to colour
Photo: (c) Amanda van Mulligen

This week we'll also be watching the leaves closely on the trees. We are looking at for signs of colour change for a family photo shoot with Vinita Salome. If the leaves cooperate we could be doing an autumn session at the weekend. If they stubbornly stay green (which I suspect they will for now) we'll be moving the session. And of course it needs to stay dry, which judging by the last week is a big ask in the Netherlands at the moment...

What do you have planned this week? Whatever it is, I hope it's a good one.

Monday Coffee Morning - Party Time

Molly over at The Move to America has had a wonderful idea for a weekly social link up with a 'Monday Coffee Morning' where she shares what her week has in store for her. Nice idea huh? If you want to join in, grab your coffee cup and head over to Molly's.

This week has a bit of a party theme going on. There's my husband's birthday tomorrow and my two eldest are off to a friend's birthday party on Wednesday. So I, for some reason, said I would bake something for the husband to take into work tomorrow to celebrate his birthday (in true Dutch style). Initially he told me last week on the phone he would bake an apple tart to take in and by the time I had finished laughing I think he'd forgotten he'd said it. I met my husband in 1999. I have not ever seen him bake an apple tart in the time that has passed. In fact, I've never really seen him bake anything. Ever. So ever the loving, helpful wife, I'm making eccles cakes, in true British style.

Aside from that it's the second week back at school and I could see last Friday that the first week was starting to take it's toll on all five of us as getting out of bed got harder and harder each morning. So this week is about getting back into our stride, getting used to school routines. And keeping our fingers crossed that my eldest has as good a week this week in his new school as last week. It's always a gamble to make a big change, especially when there's a sensitive kid involved but so far so good - he loves it.

The other thing we've got going on this week is a Skype session with the lovely Vinita Salomé about out upcoming family photo session. We had the idea of an autumn session - lots of coloured leaves to kick around - and today has certainly reinforced that autumn is here. From nowhere it is rainy, grey and a wee bit chillier than it has been. The leaves will be dropping in no time I'm sure!

What are your plans for the week? Whatever they are, I hope it's a good one.