Our Adventure in Europe

Ok, so this post is technically a month late, but hey I am working on my Masters and was a bit busy in the month of December!!! Cut a girl some slack! My Environmental and Energy Policy Tools course was wrapping up with an intensive group project on “Alternative Management Strategies for Mitigating the Human-Lion Conflict in Cameroon” which involved multi-criteria analysis and a lengthy report. Add on top of that studying for a comprehensive exam covering techniques from GIS to cost-benefit analysis and stakeholder participation, and needless to say December kept me busy.

But, Jeff and I did find a little time to get into the holiday spirit. One day while at the University canteen, I heard Christmas music (back home traditional music) and woah did that ever put me in the spirit. I started singing right there! My countdown to coming home, seeing family & friends, kitties, and hopefully snow (got that wish) began!

So, in order to get us in the spirit (and yes, perhaps as a diversion from studying-I have been known to procrastinate in my day), and because buying a Christmas tree made little sense as we would be out of the country, I decided we would need to do the next best thing……decorate the large, fake ficus tree in our living room.

Now there are a few things to consider in this equation: 1) we had limited resources and buying ornaments which we would later need to ship home seemed like an ill-advised decision, 2) our parents do not live on the same continent so we couldn’t just borrow some of their decorations, 3) stealing ornaments from the decorated tree in the mall would NOT be in the Christmas spirit, and 4) I have NEVER, nor will I now ever, claim to have inherited the Martha Stewart gene.

Alas, here I sat one night looking at that sad, dusty, unsuspecting tree in the corner of our living room, and like the childish spirit rising up inside of me, I chose to revert to early adolescence and MAKE paper snowflakes. The one thing we did have on hand was paper for our printer (just the perfect shade of snowflake white) and scissors. You might be thinking that the first thing a person would (should) do in such a situation is google “how to make paper snowflakes.” Well, I was not this smart and instead thought I could summon my early childhood snowflake crafting skill days! I was wrong. So very, very wrong!

I proceeded to make several small, odd shaped, down right ugly paper ornaments which I will not malign by calling snowflakes. When Jeff saw what I was doing, and took pity on me (I think that: 1) he knew I was homesick, 2) he knows how much I LOVE Christmas time, and 3) he realized my art 101 creations were quite pathetic and he could do better), he kindly pulled up a chair and started cutting himself. I have to admit I was quite shocked by this, and then incredibly touched. You know how you have moments where you are overwhelmed with love for a person, when it kind of takes your breath away? Well, that was one of those moments.

Now, granted the jerk, Picasso that he was he began making absolutely beautiful snowflakes. They became more and more elaborate as he rediscovered his prepubescent art years. They were good. No, they were great!! My husband has an artistic side (who knew?). If you check out the gallery, I am sure you can pick out his from mine! But I didn’t care. I had such fun decorating our over-sized ficus tree with paper snowflakes for our first Christmas in Amsterdam (or season, if not the actual day). It became a very fun evening. And gave us a little Christmas here.

The other picture in this post was from a great little pub we stumbled across on Nieuwmarkt one Saturday evening when just the two of us went out for dinner. In the back of the pub was this fantastic snow scene that reminded me instantly of the Santa’s North Pole at the downtown Lazarus where Mom and Dad would take Keri and I when we were little. I loved that place. It was a wonderland. And this little pub in Amsterdam took me back there if only in spirit.

Anywho, I hope you all had a fabulous holiday. Enjoy the picture gallery and try not to laugh to hard at my lame artwork! I will soon post an update from our time in the States and pics from our Christmas back home!