Feel like I can spit fire

Posted on August 10, 2011 by admin

I had a super mom kind of a day. After Dan left for work, I did some laundry, vacuumed the house, got the kids changed and dressed, got myself dressed, got out the door and down the elevator, got back IN the elevator and came back up (forgot a paci), got on the train, got on another train, went through security at the UN, was only about 5 minutes late to Benjamin’s haircut appointment, dropped the boys off with Dan, did my homework and made it on time to my German class. Whew. And that was before 11:30.

After class, I got two fussy and tired kids onto the train, then onto another train, picked up lunch, left the train station by way of an escalator (with a stroller) because the elevator that was working at 10:30 was now broken, got them home, got B down for a nap and then entertained Liam quietly for 2 hours while B napped. Oh, and Liam can now crawl at nearly warp speed.

I’m tired, but it was a good day. Tomorrow: no plans.

Autumn in August

Posted on August 9, 2011 by admin

I love the fall — it is, without question, my favorite season, and always has been. But, I wasn’t really prepared to greet it in August. Waking up this morning, there was a definite change in the weather. We’ve had cool, even chilly, days throughout the summer, but this feels less transient — this feels like fall. Our other cool days have been gray and rainy. Today was bright and sunny, but crisp and cool. At the warmest part of the day, it was a little warm in the sunshine and perfect in the shade, but by this evening, it was chilly even in the sun. Feels like October to me.

Maybe we’ll have a really long fall that fades gently into a snowy winter (because that would be GREAT). Or maybe it will feel like January here by the time we get to mid-October. The light is changing, the weather is changing, the wind is changing — I think summer in Vienna is winding down.

Gute Reise, Grandma

Posted on August 8, 2011 by admin

My mom left today to go back home. I miss her already. And, I’m a worrier, so I won’t really feel relaxed until she gets home tomorrow.

I really, really, really liked having her here and wish she was still here. I love watching her with my kids — playing with Benjamin and getting to know Liam. I love her company. It is so great to be able to talk to her all day, about big and small things. I feel like we did too many chores, too much cleaning, and not enough talking, playing and sightseeing — it’s a lesson learned for next time. She was a great help, and a great comfort to me. I wish she could have been here twice as long . . . or more.

In the past, we’ve sometimes had trouble getting along after a few days staying together (this has been true since I was a teenager, and although we’ve had greater degrees of success with it as the years have gone on, I thought it would always be at least a little true). We love each other, but get on each other’s nerves after a while. We didn’t have that problem this time. Maybe we’ve both just grown as people and gotten past some of our issues, but I don’t really think that’s it. I know, for myself, I was so happy to have her here, so grateful for each day, that I didn’t want to waste my energy on being irritable or particular or exasperated — I just wanted to be with my mom.

I am really grateful to have this perspective now — I feel like it’s another important lesson I’ve learned by being on this adventure. Those little things just aren’t important compared with the time we have to spend together. I’m so glad she was here. I can’t wait to see her again.

Perfect moments

Posted on August 7, 2011 by admin

Every so often, I’m fortunate enough to have a moment where the people, the place, the circumstances all come together in just the right way. I try to hold on to the way these feel — it’s my goal to live my life such that I experience them more and more. (I don’t know if it’s “reality” or my perspective, but I do feel like I’m having them more often.) Today was a great day — I had more than one of these.

This morning, I went to the “big park” with my mom and the boys. We watched B play on the trampoline, took the train ride around the park, played at the playground and watched B ride on a variety of large mechanical animals. We had a wonderful time. The boys enjoyed themselves so much, the weather was lovely and I could not have asked for better company. At one point, my mom and I, together, were pushing both boys together on the swings. Benjamin had waited while another girl had her turn because he really wanted to swing with Liam. Liam just laughed and laughed on the swings. And, I got to be there with my mom. The sun was shining, there was a nice breeze — I just wouldn’t have changed a thing.

Shortly after that, Benjamin was riding on a large mechanical polar bear with his Grandma walking alongside. I was holding a fussy Liam and I sought refuge from the mid-day sun under the umbrella of an unused mechanical dinosaur. (There’s a sentence I never could have guessed I’d write.) While watching B and Grandma enjoy steering the polar bear around the park, Liam curled up in my arms and dozed off. Pure happiness.

After a morning of fun at the park, we headed home and got on with our afternoon. Then, this evening, Dan & I went out to a movie, just the two of us. It was really nice to be out, as a couple, and we enjoyed our time. Coming home, it was raining and chilly. We walked cozily together under the umbrella and talked about the movie. Vienna is so beautiful, and the rain and the mist and the evening light, along with the company of my husband, combined to make another perfect moment.

Then, I got to come home, snuggle my kids, and visit with my mom for one last evening before she heads home. It was a good day.

Adventure at the Belvedere

Posted on August 6, 2011 by admin

We went out and had a lovely dinner this evening in honor of Dan’s birthday at his favorite Viennese restaurant. (Turns out it’s also now my mom’s favorite restaurant in Vienna so far.) Good food and good company.

Afterwards, we decided to go (literally) next door to walk around the grounds of the Belvedere Palace for a few minutes before it closed. It was a beautiful evening. There’s something about summer evenings at dusk — the warm, moist air, with just a hint of the coolness of the coming fall — it really gets to me. There’s something . . . exciting, expectant, about it. Tonight was one of those evenings. The moon was up, the sun had set, but it wasn’t quite dark yet. We walked around a bit, showed my mom the gardens and the fountains, let Benjamin run around a bit, and then started to head out.

On our way in, we had noticed that we only had about 15 minutes until the posted closing time of 9:00. We’d been in longer than 15 minutes, although not by a whole lot. As we finished our mildly long walk back to the gate, though, we noticed that the gate up ahead looked like it might be closed, and we watched the couple who had been walking ahead of us to see if they were able to exit. They weren’t. (Another example of Austrian thinking — I could just imagine the groundskeeper saying, “Well, what did you expect? The sign said 9:00!”)

Luckily, we’ve been to the Belvedere twice before and knew there was another gate . . . on the entirely opposite end of the grounds. We encountered a man (who may actually have been the groundskeeper — not sure, but he had a bike and more information than we did) who told us the other gate was the only way out. So, we set off.

It was a lovely walk on a lovely night in a lovely place. It was truly dark now, and I was glad we were in such a safe place (as Vienna is). But we enjoyed a pleasant evening walk together. It was a little longer than we’d intended to be out (we asked Benjamin if he was having fun, and he told us “no”, and Liam got fed up with the stroller and needed to be carried most of the way) and uphill, but really, very nice. We made it out of the far away gate, eventually found the right bus, then the right tram, and made it home.

It was a long evening, with an unexpected, but beautiful, adventure. Neither of the boys got a bath before bed. We are all tired. But, it was certainly an adventure, and not one we could have had anywhere else.

Buying bread

Posted on August 5, 2011 by admin

One of my favorite things to eat is grilled cheese with tomato and tomato soup. My mom offered to make it earlier in the week, but it has been a little too warm for that kind of meal. Yesterday, however, was a little cooler, and rainy, so she offered again, and I accepted. We had purchased everything we needed, except for bread — the bread here has so few preservatives that it won’t last more than a day or so.

So, after getting Benjamin down for a nap, and giving up on getting one for Liam, I left my mom to supervise the kids and I went down to the bakery to purchase some bread. This isn’t as easy as it was at home. I don’t know what kind of bread I want, there are a dozen or so options, and they’re all back behind the counter, so I can’t get a really good look or squeeze or smell them — and even if I could, I struggle with pronouncing the names. I contemplated the options for a moment, and then gave up and decided to try my luck with English. It actually worked out — the guy behind the counter spoke excellent English and was kind enough to use it, and to make a recommendation on “something dark and good for sandwiches”. He thoughtfully chose a loaf for me, and I nodded gratefully, and then asked, with accompanying pantomime, if he would be able to slice it for me. (I may not learn a lot of German while I’m here, but I will be great at charades by the time I go home.)

He turned around, sliced the bread and told me the amount, I paid, got the bread and went to leave. But my bag felt a little light . . . and on second thought, shouldn’t it have been more expensive? Upon examining the contents of my bag, I realized that he hadn’t sliced the bread — he had cut the loaf in half. Bummer. Now I didn’t have enough for grilled cheese sandwiches. What to do? Should I interrupt the customer after me (now placing their order) to correct my mistake? Wait in the line of about 12 people (I swear, I’ve never seen so many people in this bakery, ever before) to fix it?

Nope. I’m neither that brave or that humble. I walked down to the next bakery and bought another whole loaf of bread. Afraid to make the same mistake twice, I didn’t even ask them to slice it.

And that’s the story of how I ended up with a loaf and a half of bread for sandwiches yesterday.

Enjoying Sachertorte

Posted on August 4, 2011 by admin

After a relatively quiet day and a disastrous encounter between a glass Snapple bottle and our kitchen floor, we decided we had spent enough time in our kitchen and opted to eat dinner out. We went to one of our favorite restaurants, which is in the next building over from ours and has a nice outside patio area, and enjoyed a lovely meal.

At the end, I decided to splurge on a dessert I’ve been eyeing for about a month and my mom wanted to try Austrian apple strudel. Benjamin asked if they had chocolate cake — repeatedly. He asked me, he asked my mom, he asked the waitress twice (although she didn’t hear him either time, but he was so very cute trying to ask). When we looked at the menu, we saw that they did indeed have chocolate cake — Sachertorte, which is a famous Viennese treat. We tried to get him to order it himself, but when the moment was upon him, he smiled and batted his eyelashes at the waitress and we ordered for him. (Dan, who is on his strict, self-imposed diet, didn’t order anything.)

Our desserts arrived, all lovely and delicious looking. Benjamin’s was the most impressive — a slab of dark chocolate cake and a pile of whipped cream. He took one look at it, picked up the cake in both hands, and started eating. I tried to get him to use a fork, but gave up once he was about a third of the way through it. Once I got over being mortified, it was really fun to watch him eat. He was so enthusiastic about it — he paused only to take bites of the other desserts or to take the time to dunk his entire piece of cake into the whipped cream. Even though he was obviously loving his chocolate cake, he shared with all of us — even Liam had a little whipped cream.

Benjamin is fully enjoying the experience of being in Vienna. I am fully enjoying his experience.

Sleepover with Grandma

Posted on August 3, 2011 by admin

Benjamin is really getting in to the idea of camping. For several practical reasons, starting with the fact that we have a 10 month old and ending with the fact that our tent is in storage somewhere in Virginia, that isn’t going to happen anytime soon. However, he loves to play “tent”. He climbs under the covers of a bed, or under any available blanket, sheet or towel, puts all of his stuffed animals or other precious toys inside and pretends he’s in a tent. He always has to play tent with someone else — usually his Grandma. This has provided hundreds of hours of enjoyment for Benjamin and various members of his family.

Last night, he and Grandma did one better — Benjamin actually had a sleepover with Grandma on the futon in the living room. Benjamin hasn’t ever had such an intentional sleepover. (There were a few times, as a baby, that I took him to bed with me out of desperation, and then there were the infamous times when we first moved here when he was sleeping on the couch or on a mattress on the floor which probably felt a lot like camping — they did to me, at least.) He absolutely loved it. Apparently, he fell asleep nearly instantly and slept all night. He was so happy to wake up with his Grandma this morning, and he just asked me if he could have a sleepover with his Grandma again tonight (which I’ve vetoed, because I’m not sure how well he really did sleep, as he was a bit out of sorts all day). Later this week, Grandma is going to “camp out” on the air mattress on Benjamin’s floor in his room, too.

I think he’s really enjoying having his Grandma visit, and getting to go “camping”. Other than being outside, and roasting marshmallows, the best part of camping is getting to have a sleepover, anyway. I’m so happy that Grandma is here to visit — I love having her here, and I know how much this means to my boys.

Dance Party Osterreich

Posted on August 2, 2011 by admin

On a whim this afternoon, my mom and I packed the boys into the double stroller and set out for a walk with no particular destination in mind. We got a couple of eiskaffees and started walking down the Ringstrasse to look at some of Vienna’s sights: the Rathaus, Parliament, the Volksgarten, the Hofburg. We came upon a place I’d seen before but not visited: the Burggarten behind the Hofburg. Dan joined us there when he got off of work.

It was lovely, as most of the gardens in Vienna are, if a little less . . . orderly. I have not yet seen a place where so many people disregard the “keep off the grass” signs. But, it was beautiful, verdant and very popular. Benjamin made friends with a little girl his own age by a fountain — they played chase and flirted until she ran off for an older, badder boy. (He seems to have gotten over it.) We really enjoyed it, and it was fun to make another discovery of a nice place to walk and enjoy Vienna.

Then, on our way out, we joined into an impromptu swing dance party. Right behind the Hofburg, at the base of the stone steps, on the wide marble walkway, people were dancing enthusiastic, American style triple swing and Lindy Hop. Dan and I joined in, and Benjamin quickly added himself to the mix. We all took turns — Liam and my mom danced, too. It was great to dance again — it’s been a while. We danced ourselves to exhaustion — even Benjamin just wanted to watch by the end. And then, when we were done, Dan got up the courage to talk to the assembled dancers and ask whether they get together often (they apparently do, and we got their information).

We had a great day. I am worn out. Now I remember why I was in such great shape when I was dancing.

Survival in Vienna

Posted on August 1, 2011 by admin

I started my first formal training in German today — the class is called “Survival in Vienna”, so I think it’s right for me. It’s put on by the UN, so it’s geared towards people from a variety of backgrounds, all of whom are assumed to understand English but not German. However (perhaps to mimic the immersion we’re experiencing in Vienna) the class is taught completely in German. (Yikes.)

So far, it’s great. I’ve already learned something, and the teacher is really impressive — imagine the challenge of teaching 20+ non-German speakers for an hour entirely in German. She did a great job and managed to get a ton of information across given how little we all knew. I also got to talk to other adults about something that had nothing to do with children. I think that was a first since arriving here, too.

I also can’t help but be a little relieved that Dan & I were among the more advanced German speakers in the class — probably mostly a function of the fact that the class is intended to be taken almost immediately upon arrival and we waited almost 4 months to start. (Although there were others who have been here longer.) Intellectually, I know it would be ok to enter a beginner level class as a complete beginner, but my ego appreciates not being the biggest novice in the class.

I learned how to introduce myself and others, and how to say where I’m from. All of that information was new to me. I already feel less lame — I’m no longer the person living in a country where I don’t speak the language who hasn’t even ever had any instruction in the language. I’m just the person who doesn’t speak the language, but I’m learning.

A Mommy Abroad

Our big adventure, as a family of three.

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