Fifteen years ago today...

It is hard for me to believe that fifteen years ago today, at just about this time on the East Coast, I was about to walk down the aisle at Central United Methodist Church in Denton to marry Dan.  Time has flown and it has been a wonderful fifteen years.  I couldn't ask for a better way to spend our fifteenth anniversary than with Dan and the kids in Europe.  It is all very surreal.  We have had an amazing trip.

We began our day with more waffles in Brussels before boarding the train to Amsterdam.

We took the train directly to Schiphol airport because Dan had the brilliant idea for us to stay at a hotel connected to the airport on our last night.  I am so glad he made this plan.  We were able to dump our stuff in our hotel room and take a 15 minute train ride into the city.  Tomorrow morning we won't have to rush around at all, since we are already at the airport.

Anyway, we headed back into Amsterdam and began attempting to find Museum Ons' Lieve Heer op Solder.  My poor navigating took us one block over from where we were supposed to be and directly in the heart of the red light district.  Luckily, we ran across a Chipsy King for lunch (the best frites around in our opinion) so we redirected our attention to lunch.  Unfortunately, we had to walk past a completely inappropriate storefront to get there.  I hope the kids aren't scarred for life.  As a matter of fact, I hope I am not scarred for life.  We tried to shield the kids as best as we could.  I didn't help that it smelled like we were at a Phish or Grateful Dead concert, either, as we walked through the streets.

After lunch, we got back on the right track and found our museum, which translates as Our Lord in the Attic. This was a fascinating museum, in which a Catholic church is hidden in the top of a canal house.  The house itself was built in 1630 and the church was built in the attic in the 1660s during the oppression of Catholics in Amsterdam.  Around 150 people can fit in this beautiful church that unfolds before you after climbing up three flights of teeny, twisty, Amsterdam stairs.  They gave the kids their own scavenger hunt for ladybug clues throughout the building and they had a blast.

Following the museum church tour, we headed to a real educational experience -- The Heineken Experience.   I would describe it as the Coke Museum in Atlanta, but with adult beverages.  It was entertaining for all of us.  I am a dorky auditor who loves factory tours, so I got to see how beer is made. The kids got to see the horses that still pull the Heineken wagons throughout Amsterdam and they loved the 4D ride that made you feel like you were becoming a bottled beer.  Dan got to partake in one of his favorite beverages-- an ice cold beer.  Lots of fun!

Please note that the kids are drinking a Fanta orange, not a beer!

After the Heineken tour, we went back to Wagamama for our anniversary dinner.  Sid took a picture of Dan and me toasting each other.  The food was delicious. 

On our way back to Central Station to catch the train back to our hotel, we were playing the human frogger game that is attempting to cross a road in Amsterdam and we witnessed an honest-to-goodness bike wreck.  Dan and I could see it coming, but we couldn't do anything to stop it.  We were stopped at a crosswalk waiting on the bike traffic to clear, so we had a clear view.  One guy was having trouble controlling his bike to begin with. Then, he decided to turn across another lane of bike traffic without looking behind him.  He turned right into another guy and knocked him flat on the ground.  No one wears helmets around here.  We made sure they were both OK.  Sure enough, the flattened guy hopped up, jumped back on his bike and said, "Thank You" in Dutch to the guy who had just knocked him off his bike.  Crazy!  

 Upon entering our hotel room at the airport, we discovered that the hotel staff had surprised us with a dessert tray for our anniversary.  How sweet!

It has been a wonderful anniversary to top off a wonderful trip.  I can't believe all that we have seen and experienced.  I have learned a lot.  I will make a more conscious effort in the future to try to learn a basic knowledge of the language in the countries in which we will be traveling.  I don't like not knowing what people are saying to me.  I could fake it a little in France, thanks to my two years of French with Mrs. Brett at Central High School in Helena, Arkansas, but I should have tried to learn more.  I will greatly reduce the amount of things I bring to entertain my kids in the future, because they have found ways to entertain themselves.  I will invest in more Wiki Sticks, though, because those were a big hit.  I will remember windbreakers with hoodies in the future.  I will try to stick to the pattern of including at least one educational opportunity and one fun activity each day when we travel. I will remember to treasure the time I am spending with my husband and my kids and live in the moment.  Above all, I need to remember to be thankful for all of my blessings.  

Thanks for following my blog.  I hope you have learned a little and laughed a lot.  I hope it has made you realize that if we can do this with four young kids, you can go anywhere you have always wanted to travel.  Dream big!  I know I will keep on dreaming.  Who knows where our next trip might take us.  

Au revoir!