Sneakerz

Some friends of ours were visiting from Australia so this called for a night on the town.  And being that there is always something to do in Eindhoven, to our benefit there was a huge stage and dj's set up not far from where we live.  We enjoyed a few drinks at the bar many internationals seem to migrate to, the Irish pub.  Then we hit up our favorite steakhouse.  And after that we were off to find out just what the music echoing through the city center was all about.  Turned out it's called Sneakerz in de Stad.  It's a platform for international dj's to present their house music and even better, the event was free!  In my daily life you're not going to catch me playing techno around the house, but when you just want to jump around and have some fun on a night out, techno is perfect to get the crowd excited (at least here in The Netherlands).  At some point when I looked around the event I definitely thought... I'm getting old, all of these kids are in their early 20's...  why am I the only one wearing a fluorescent shirt standing in front by the stage...  don't loose your slip-on shoes because the ground is disgustingly sticky.  But overall, it was fun and worth popping by to join in the mayhem.

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Wordless Wednesday #59

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Bus Card (#1)

Since our big stroller bit the dust and we have not yet bought me a car (it's in the works) my tot & I have started riding the bus.  Very exciting for her, a little stressful for me.  After our first trip I was appalled at the costs and very thankful we had walked for free for the past 3yrs.  While on the bus I noticed everyone using passes instead of paying cash, it seemed convenient and possibly they were even receiving a discount.  So needless to say, since I'm frugal and hate wasting money, I went in search of this pass.  Happily I registered for an "ov chipkaart", paid the €7.50, & eagerly waited for us to use it.  I wouldn't say the 1st time I used the card went smoothly though.  I couldn't get it to work before the bus sped off, so I quickly put my tot in a seat and waited until the next stop to ask the bus driver for help.  Turns out in my haste I didn't bother to read the machine, it clearly tells you where to swipe your card (large pink circle/symbol).  Now that I knew how to use the card I was prepared for the trip home and not so anxious.  But of course things didn't go smoothly on the way home either.  When I scanned the card an alarm sounded and the machine began flashing that I didn't have enough  money on the card.  Impossible, I paid for the card & had already used it.  I assumed in my swiping frenzy somehow I wiped my account clean.  The bus driver was not friendly and seemed annoyed that I needed to pay cash.  Once I was home I went to work finding out where it went wrong.  Turns out the money I spent was purely to order the card.  Now I actually owed money for the trip I had taken in the morning.  The card was turning out to be a costly hassle.  Also found out the same trip the bus driver charged me €3.50 for costs just short of €2 with the card.  So you actually get punished for paying cash!  At this point I had spent a little more than €16 and we had only ridden to swimming class twice!  I'll save the rest of the story and costs for another post!

Live Graffiti

There's always something interesting going on in Eindhoven, today we happened upon a live graffiti session!  I happened to be a big fan of graffiti, as long as it's not destroying something.  I've posted in the past about sticker graffiti around town, and my Instagram account even features a couple pieces near my house.  From the 14th - 23rd, Eindhoven is hosting E-Moves, it's an urban festival spread throughout town, featuring everything from break dancing to BMX bikes.  We witnessed just a bit of the street art event... would have liked to stick around but it was lunch time and we were hungry.  There were multiple empty canvases set up, and even a few already in use.  It still amazes me that a large white canvas can come to life so quickly.  As usual I snapped a couple pics for you, and if you're in the Eindhoven area you should pop over to Dynamo and check out the street art below on the square.

Wordless Wednesday #58

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Happy Rainy Days

Living in a place where it often rains means you need a good rain coat.  And yet some how after all my years here I am yet to buy one.  About a month ago when it rained for around 3 weeks straight I went in search of a cute yet adult rain coat.  I'm an online shopper so immediately a world of options opened.  And I mean it literally... I found 3 coats I adore, 1 in the US, 1 in the UK, & 1 here in NL.  The bright yellow Steve Madden jacket from Macy's in The States was sold out so that was the end of that. The black & white daisy print jacket from ASOS in England was cute but returning it if it didn't fit would prove to be a challenge.  So I'm pretty sure I've settled on a brand here, Happy Rainy Days. They have a huge variety of styles & colors and now I just have to decide which one suites me best.  And since I have a b-day coming up it will be a perfect gift to ask people to pitch in on... they're not cheap, you definitely pay for the quality.

 

What do you all think of the jackets?

Do you have a rain coat and where did you find it?

Modern McDonald's

When I first moved to The Netherlands I was definitely given the impression the Dutch avoid McDonald's like the plague.  It's considered way too unhealthy for their lifestyles.  But I must say in the past few years I've noticed the McDonald's here getting busier and busier.  I'm not embarrassed to say I pop into McD's occasionally.  Me & my tot love the milkshakes and it's a nice treat a few times a month.  And sometimes we also order food; big deal, we eat healthy otherwise.  (And to be honest McD's here taste different than in The States, I don't eat it when I'm there.)  The last couple of times I have been to McDonald's in Eindhoven or Best they have been packed.  Long lines and high prices, where is the convenience exactly?  At least one McDonald's in the area has done something to help bypass the usual line, they've installed "Easy Order" machines.  No explaining again and again what you want to eat or fiddling with cash, because you place the order yourself via the machine and use your ATM card (pin pass) to pay.  Then you even stand in a separate line to pick up your food.  Considering the majority of the crowd still went to the standard line there were actually fewer orders before ours and we received our food quite quickly.  It still costs an arm and a leg for a greasy pile of food but at least the speedy service has returned.  Now if they would just do something about the ridiculous inflation of the menu prices!

Wordless Wednesday #57

 

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Coupon Club

Since my computer is on a hiatus I've had to resort back to the tv at night.  Generally there is nothing on (or nothing we can both agree on) but last night I some how convinced my husband to tolerate a good portion of show about extreme couponing.  For those of you unfamiliar, it's when you buy in quantity, rack up a bill in the hundreds, hand over a ton of coupons, and pay barely anything.  It's a dream come true!  I think my husband only watched just to prove to himself how crazy it is, but I watched in admiration.  Here in The Netherlands coupons aren't as popular as in The States.  Sure they exist but it's not like you get the thick Sunday newspaper packed full of coupon clipping mania, I kind of miss that.  Funnily enough when I was young I looked forward to my first coupon holder, you know the ones with dividers that you can store  your loose coupons in until needed.  My mom had one, she probably still has one.  Watching the tv show last night showed me just how far people take it, I threatened my husband that if I lived in the US I would be a couponer!  I would join a coupon club like those ladies, I would spend my Sunday clipping away, I would have a coupon holder (I'd probably create a database on my computer)!!!  He threatened divorce, ha-ha!  To him there is nothing worse than busting out a coupon, especially during meals.  Me, I love saving money and see no shame in it.  It's my job as a SAHM to find the sales and watch the cents.  I guess lucky for us we live here, so you will not be seeing me on any future episodes of Extreme Couponing, oh well.

Another post from my phone, hope it's not too sloppy!

Computer Crash

Well this time it's not my external hard drive full of memories and info that crashed...  This time it's my computer, the one I haven't backed up in months!  You would think I learned my lesson last time!!!  Not sure how long it will be until it's up and running again, so in the mean time you're going to have to deal with sloppy posts via my phone.

Picnic in the Park

A definite perk of being a stay-at-home mom, spontaneous picnics!  The weather has warmed up, it's in the 70's (20's) and everyone is out in their t-shirts & shorts.  My tot has been asking for a while to go on a picnic and since Friday's are our free day, I thought - why not.  When it's nice weather we tend to eat out on our terrace anyway, so packing up lunch and taking it around the corner to the park was no effort at all.  

Lunch boxes full of sandwiches & pizza - check!

Clear blue skies & warm weather - check!

Shoes kicked off and tot running free - check!

Left over bread for the ducks - check!

We were only missing two things (well beings), my husband & the dog.  I guess I'll just have to plan a picnic in the weekend, too!

Wordless Wednesday #56

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A. Tom Collins Band

You never know who you'll meet in Eindhoven.  While walking my dog yesterday morning through the center of town I couldn't help but hear the sound of American voices just ahead in the distance.  (There's something about the American voice that makes it audible for long distances, I've learned this since living in The Netherlands).  Outside of a small hotel/bar stood a band loading up their equipment into a van.  I couldn't help but stop and ask what they were doing here, I can't say I often (or ever) see American bands in Eindhoven.  Apparently they were wrapping up their European tour (6 countries / 16 stops) and had played at the Wilhelmina Cafe the night before.  Obviously my next question was, who are you... they're the A. Tom Collins band.  After the fact I wished I had asked for a cd, I did see a box full.  It never hurts to pick up an autographed cd, who knows, maybe they'll become huge one day.  But I didn't.  I did look them up when I returned home, one site says they're alternative, one says jazz, they say rock, needless to say it sounds like an interesting mix of music, something my husband would thoroughly enjoy.  So, A. Tom Collins, if you happen to read this, I'm still interested in a cd!

Here's a link to their official site if you're curious : http://www.atomcollins.com/

7th Anniversary

A couple of days ago my husband and I celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary.  My husband had been away on a business trip and was returning just in time to celebrate the big day.  As I stood in the hall looking out the small window in the door waiting for him to be dropped off I couldn't help but notice the weather.  It was June 1st and everyone was dressed like it was October 1st!  But I wasn't going to let the weather hold us back.  I didn't exactly factor in he might be tired after returning from Copenhagen, oops.  Needless to say there was no wild night on the town planned, but we did get a babysitter and head out for a yummy steak dinner.  And my husband also made it official through a well-made gift certificate of intention, he's going to buy me a car!  How in the world am I suppose to beat that gift???  It sure made the gift certificate I bought him from the golf shop look piddly.  

And the lovely words I wrote in his card were overshadowed by our tot jumping up and down in excitement that he was home (but hey, that's family life).  Last year I wrote a long post explaining a little about our wedding, so if you're interested you can see it here.  Otherwise, just rest assure it was a wonderful day (with much better weather than this year)!  I dug out some old pics (o.k. opened a folder on our computer) to show you a couple of my favorite photos from our wedding day.  And I also think it's funny to be writing the post today, June 3rd, because one of our wedding gifts was accidentally engraved with this date and is still displayed in our living room (it throws my husband off every year, ha-ha!)