Surprise, Surprise

Sunday to Thursday

Sunday 29th –

After church that morning, lunch from McDonald’s and an afternoon or relaxing/sleeping, writing etc. Mike handed me a card he had written.
As I read the card talking about our marriage thus far and other life tid bits, he told me what Christmas gift I could be expecting by weeks end.
A four-day trip to Gran Canaria.
( he said it was the closest name to Canada he could find 😉)

He knows I don’t particularly enjoy surprises so he chose to tell me a few days in advance so I could get used to the idea.
Which was a smart idea on his part.😏

I got a plate of meats, cheeses and crackers to snack on and Mike and Fiji watched soccer.
Fiji won’t sit and watch anything else, but for soccer he will sit awake and watch, or go to the screen for a closer look… He’s taking after his father 😜 

 
Monday 30th –

Monday was an average day… Unpacking from Amsterdam, laundry, cleaning up the house.
Painted a little bit more.

Put Fiji outside cause he was aggravating me with his hyperness.. Brought Fiji back in almost immediately because he was so sadly crying.

Really low on groceries since there wasn’t much point buying a bunch because Mike went on his work trip to Paris Tuesday and I went to Inge’s Wednesday.

Steak, fried onions and fried rice for supper… Mike texted saying ” Ik heb heel erg honger”, which means he was veeery hungry.
Then he said the better the supper the better the foot rub I would receive 😝
So I quickly tried to think of what I could add to the dining experience.
Biscuits joined the rest and Mike said he knew I’d take him up on his offer so he almost hadn’t said it.
But a deals a deal.😏

So, I settled in for a foot rub and he got to give the coconut body butter bought on the weekend a test.
It works beautifully and I suggest he uses it on me often.☺️
Tuesday 1st –

Woke up around 8:00 or so with Mike.
He got ready for work and packed for his business trip to Paris while I made us breakfast.
Scrambled eggs, bacon and leftover biscuits accompanied by orange juice.

He left and would be gone till Thursday.

I finished painting a card for a friend of Mikes.
As well as doing some other random sketching… Playing around with using paint and markers.
Gives it more of a cartoon look but I don’t have the patience for realism so it works out 😁

Went for a walk with Fiji to get the mail.

More painting and tv show watching… Mike doesn’t like my shows so it’s best to save them and enjoy them for days he’s gone 😜

As Mike sends me pictures of his fine dining in Paris… I’m surviving off the sparse items we have left in the house.
Instant oatmeal. Yogurt and granola. Crackers and butter.
Pizza and Fanta for supper.
Very healthy and such huge nutritional factors I know 😍

I packed for our upcoming weekend away as Mike would meet up with me at his parents house after he got back from Paris.

 
Wednesday 2nd-

Inge came to the cottage around noon and we went for a walk to the mooirivier hotel.
She’d never been to the restaurant there so we sat and enjoyed coffees and split a piece of cheesecake and a piece of apple tart so we could both get a taste.

Grabbed my bags and Fiji from the cottage and headed towards Doesburg.
Fiji doesn’t enjoy car rides…

We stopped at the house of a brother and sister from church for a small visit.
Inge said they had wanted to see wedding pictures so I brought out the laptop and showed them some.
Stayed there for about an hour and then drive back to Inge’s.
Let Fiji sit on my lap rather than in his cage to see if it would make him a bit happier.
It did.. But not much.
Got him a phone app where he has to catch goldfish to occupy him 😜

Had supper with John and Inge, I had brought tomatoes, mozzarella and pesto from the house to use up, so made some open sandwiches topped with balsamic glaze.
Inge added crackers, cheeses, meat and spreads to the table to complete it.

I brought the painting she had started at the cottage so she could finish it if she had time while we were away.
She started that evening and doesn’t need a teacher whatsoever.👌🏻

 
Thursday 3rd –

Inge worked but had left a note with instructions how to cook a certain type of chicken for supper.
Though some ingredients were missing so I’d have to walk to the store to get them.
Hah, fat chance of that happening.

I lack in the bravery department.
No way would I go out in the big wide world, alone, with bikers and traffic and roads to get lost on, to hopefully find a grocery store.

I worked on writing for a big amount of the day.
It takes more time then one may think.

I also finally had a chance to go through wedding pictures and find some favourites etc.

As well as phone pictures, have to get those printed sometime soon now too.
No more time for procrastinating or waiting for mom to do those things now…😬

Mike had left his car at the house and asked if I’d vacuum it out.
It needed it as it the floor was covered with tree needles and leaves since our driveway is full of them.

John wouldn’t be back for supper so I only had to supply food for Inge and I, thankfully so since I didn’t know what I was going to be able to make.

Fried rice and chicken chunked and breaded with egg, flour and crushed cereal.
Made a sauce of balsamic vinegar, honey, sugar, ketchup and a bit of salad dressing.
Wasn’t my best concoction but Inge assured me she enjoyed it.
Hopefully she wasn’t being polite and being what the Dutch are known for.. Honesty 😋

Mike got back around 7:00 p.m 😊
He knows his wife so well, instead of bringing back flowers or new souvenir jewelry etc. He brings back food 😏
Colourful pasta, sour candies he spotted at his work convention, a mini jam ( since he knows the smaller the item them cuter in my eyes.. Like me in his 😜 ) and some other goodies we will enjoy.

We quickly went to the store to get some snacks for on the plane and then went back to the house to re-pack our bags and backpacks for an early morning departure.

Mike must be specifically built for traveling because he’s kinda crazy.
( which I knew before but even more so now.. Marriage eh ? 😉 )
He left Paris at noon, drove till 7 p.m. to get back to his parents, pretty much just switched around clothes before trying to sleep around 6 hrs.
Woke up to drive another hour to the airport and then flew almost five hours to get to Gran Canaria.
That’s around 5 countries in less than 24 hours.
And that’s not really a rare life pattern for him.
For my health’s sake I think it’s a very good thing I didn’t meet him sooner 😝