They really got me!

Well the 6th graders really got me today at my English conversation class! My lesson today was on different basic foods and "likes" v.s. "dislikes". I had 25 foods and out of the 25 foods I told the kids that there were 4 I didn't like and they had to go through the list asking me in English what I liked and the 1st person to guess all four that I disliked won the game. So we get to ham and this boy asks me, "Austin do you like Snikkel?" (if you speak Dutch you already get it!) I said naively, "what’s that?" Another boy says, "Well, it's like ham but long". I said "well maybe I would like it". Then they all busted out laughing. I was like "what? What is it?" So the boy pointed down and I knew, they got me! So I said oh! No! No! Thank goodness it happened at the end of class as the lesson was shot after that.

Sesame Chicken at last!

Well tonight I finally got some good sesame chicken here in Holland and from my own kitchen! As some of you know my favorite Chinese dish is sesame chicken. I have not been able to find it anywhere here and it has almost driven me crazy! So I finally decided to just go ahead and try to make some. So I got online and found a good recipe for the sauce and Coen and I decided to go ahead and make it. Coen (the father) fried the chicken and I prepared the sauce and I must say that it was pretty good! I will work on the sauce a little and maybe try a different batter for the chicken next time but it was pretty tasty for my first time making sesame chicken. So here is a picture and if you have never had sesame chicken go out and try some at your favorite Chinese establishment! (If you live near Lynchburg I recommend the Shanghai Express on Wards Road)

Funny Farm

Well yesterday was a beautiful day here in Rotterdam with temperatures in the 50's! It was sunny also which made it even nicer. So I decided that I would take Coen out to this animal farm nearby that Mase had told me about. Here you can buy feed to give to the animals by hand and there is also a playground to play on. So I was excited about it but at first Coen was not. After some influence by Mase though Coen was ready to go. After a very short walk we arrived and bought our corn. We walked around and looked at all of the animals but none were worthy enough to receive the feed except for the goats. Now we were having a good time. The goats went practically crazy over the corn feed and they were jumping up to the gate and knocking each other over to get to us.
On the way home we ran into Joris who was on his bike loaded with fireworks. Joris is the 12 year old mind you and if there is one thing that he is crazy about its fireworks! So we set off a few in the field and made our way home. So it was a fun afternoon but alas as I look out of the window today the weather has changed and the warmth and sunshine are gone for now. I am definitely ready for spring!

Once we got there and found the goats we both had a good time.
Feeeed Meeeee!
Coen very excited to be going to an animal farm, can't you tell?
My new surroundings.
A view of the neighborhood from the street.
Another view of the neighborhood.

Driving Miss Daisy

Well today I drove the kids to school with Mase (the mother) for the first time. First off let me say that’s driving in a foreign country is definitely an expereince every driver should have. I did drive when I lived in Ecuador and that is where I learned to drive with a stick shift and I am sure that I gave the missionaries there a few near heart attacks. Today was not so bad but there were a few mistakes and with my luck they all took place right outside of the school! First I tried to Parallel Park the van as most parking in the city is parallel. This was not a success as the spaces in my opinion are made for small cars. So we decided to drive around the block and park on street behind the school where there is regular parking. Well that’s when I had the bright inclination to go down a one way street the wrong way! I wish you could have seen the look on Mase's face and then on the onlookers faces as we proceeded try to make it to the end of the street of course pulling to the side a few times to let cars and bikers by. Of course when I get nervous like in situations like these I tend to stall out so I did that a few times as well. So we made it out of there and into a normal parking space, thank God! The rest of the driving went pretty well I thought.

So all in all things are going well with the new family. The kids seem to like me and we are having fun times playing games and just hanging out together. Today is Friday and that means McDonalds for dinner or so I have been told, yippee! I am also learning that there are preferred nationalities when it comes to having au pairs. Unfortunately Americans are not ranking as high as we are spoiled and do not want to work very hard at cleaning and such. Philippino girls don't rank high but we will not talk about why. Polish girls rank very high apparently as they work hard and are ok taking orders and such. So I am here to prove all of the negative thoughts towards Americans all wrong. Pray for me and wish me luck.

The new family

The Sutterland house (it's like a duplex)
The phat new ride I get to pimp around in.
The house
A view from the back of their garden (I am not allowed to show the rest till Spring)
Joris (12), Marjolijn (14), and Mase
Coen age 7

As many of you already know I am au pairing now with a new family here in Rotterdam, the Sutterlands. The new family has three kids who live in the house Coen (7), Joris (12), and Marjolijn (14). The parents are Coen and Mase (ages withheld so I will not be fired). Mase and Coen are both physicians and own their own practice in the city. I am now living in a residential neighborhood about 15 minutes by car (30 min by bike) into the city. Most of my duties will stay the same except I will mainly be taking care of the youngest boy Coen although I will be hanging out with all of them. Coen and Joris go to the same school as the other children I was watching (http://www.oldenbarneveltschool.nl/) so I will still be teaching (volunteer) twice a week with the English program for grades 6-8. I am also attending the English services at The Church on the Way Rotterdam which meets in the World Trade Center in the city. They have one service in Dutch and one in English. They just started the English service a few months ago and it is very small but growing as the Lord seems to bring new people every week. You can also check them out on the web at http://www.en.tcotwr.nl. As always make sure to check out my new pics (more inside pics of the house to come later).

Our Christmas Tree
Christmas Dinner!
Cocktail weeners, meatballs, and sausage balls
Bobbie Sue going nuts over her cat nip!
Our dog Shauna getting in on the Christmas excitement!

The Buckley family Christmas, drama on flights, and more!

I wish I would have posted some over Christmas but I was either too tired or too busy so there are my excuses to start with. Well anyway I had a great Christmas with my family in Virginia! There's nothing like being at home for Christmas. There was definitely drama though on my long flight over let me tell you! For a minute I thought I was going to be on the evening news! No not really but basically I ticked off a flight attendant for sitting in the "Crew Seating" which on this plane were just regular seats in which not all of them were labeled.

So I am sitting there with my legs stretched out watching my TV and this flight attendant yells from across the plane, "Hey who's that guy sitting in our seats?" I was then abruptly and very rudely told to get up and go back to my seat. I explained to them that that there was no sign on the seat I was sitting in to indicate that it was for the crew and that I had switched seats because the TV. was broken at the other seat. Then I told them that I really didn't appreciate being yelled at especially in front of half the flight. I told them that it was unprofessional and out of line. So in the end I was moved to a better seat with a little more leg room.

Christmas and New Year's were all very nice, just good times with family and friends. Christmas eve we went to church where my parents both sing in the choir and it was a very nice service. Then we went home for food and Christmas movies! Christmas morning we opened our presents and spent the day vegetating in front of the TV and eating more and more till there was no room left! The rest of vacation was spent shopping and catching up with old friends!

My flights back seemed to go by quickly but again more drama with me passing out! Now I have passed out before but really never like this! I was sitting there in my seat and started to feel dizzy and sick so I woke up the lady next to me and told her I felt sick and had to go to the bathroom. Before I could even open the lavoratory door I completely passed out and fell to the ground. I woke up with this shocked man standing over me asking if I was ok. Then the flight crew rushed over and sat me on the ground out of the way while they brought over an oxygen tank. So they hook me up to that and start asking me all of these questions like did I do drugs before the flight, you know just your normal questions. I don't really know why I passed out but I am pretty sure it was due to dehydration as I had only drunk a little water. So bottom line is, make sure you drink plenty of liquids on your next flight because you may end up on the ground hooked up to oxygen!

Well this blog entry is getting long so I will close but before I do, make sure to check out the Christmas pics and everybody have a Happy New Year!