Moving Mayhem

Aye Aye Aye! I'm sorry for the lack of posts, but I swear, I've been a very busy little bee. Between being in Scotland for two weeks (got stuck there longer due to bad weather) and the movers packing up our house, I've been trying to catch my breath.

So, here we go! 

Last week, the movers arrived bright and early to get the whole show rolling. Truth be told, I barely prepped at all. Call it laziness, call it procrastination...frankly, I just didn't care. Yes, really. With all the things that are going on, I just don't care. I realize it sounds bad, but, I think all of us hit that "wall" at some point where you throw your hands up in the air and just deal with whatever happens. I *was* responsible and put our important documents to the side so those didn't get packed, hid suitcases with prepacked clothes in addition to hiding the dogs carriers.

Bright eyed and busy tailed, the moving company descended upon our house with their prepping van and moving truck. Oh my gosh..my street is kind of narrow, so it was interesting to see other large lorries roll down the street and squeeze past our temporary road blocks. The guys were having a little team meeting when it came to figuring out how to attack our stuff..then started the mayhem.

The four man team rolled through our house like it was nothing! All the boxes throughout the house started giving me flashbacks to when we were moving from Vandenberg to here...it's crazy how fast time flies! 

The living room

Kitchen

My office

Macie & Izzy inspecting the movers packing job..

Of course, harassing the poor movers all day long really tuckered out the ankle biters:

Over the course of three days, they got everything packed up, shifted around, and then loaded up into the massive moving lorrie. There were some items I was extremely curious about them getting out of the house since we had a heavy chair in addition to a large table on the 2nd floor...and they intended on removing them through the window. Yeah..that boggled my brain a little bit. Turns out, they have this hydrolic lift that they set up in order to bring down multiple boxes in addition to furniture. This...this I've never seen before, so of course I recorded the guys in action: 

The crew was very nice and made sure to take extra care when it came to wrapping and packing up my pottery, antiques and travel trinkets. I think it's because Eric and I did some schmoozing by stocking our mini fridge with all sorts of drinks, making coffee & tea for them in the morning in addition to buying them lunch every day. Hey, some people think it's silly to do that because it's their job to move our stuff, but it doesn't hurt to be nice to the guys who are handling YOUR valuables. 

While they were packing and making more boxes, Eric and I became a little obsessed with their tape dispensers  Yes, really. If you pack and ship stuff as frequently as we do, then you know how much those dispensers with the handles are a major pain in the ass. These guys had something that was SO incredibly simple, I'm shocked that I haven't seen 'em in the States before. 

By the time they were all finished up and ready to roll out, they actually gave us two of the contraptions  because they really appreciated how much we took care of them in terms of food / drinks. Normally, I'd tell them not to worry about it..but we wanted those dispensers, LOL. So, yay! We'll be keeping one while the other goes to my Dad since I know he'll use the hell out of it.

The only casualty out of the whole packing event was our kitchen light. Truth be told, I hate that thing... it hangs down low enough to where you smack your head on it despite being vigilant of your surroundings. Apparently I wasn't the only one having issues with it since the movers cracked their domes on it several times each...

So, our stuff is on it's merry way to the States and we should hopefully be reunited with all of it sometime next month, or possibly April. Is it sad that I'm already dreaming of when I get my beloved bed back? Well, and my kitchen.....mmmmmm...large kitchen space......

A few days later, it was time to ship off my beloved Big Blue. The last time we did that, I was a little scarred by the whole experience since the shipping port in California was run by some massive assholes. This time around, the guy we worked with was extremely nice, had an awesome sense of humor got us all taken care of. He even let me go give her a hug, and tell her my good-byes. Go ahead and laugh at me, but she's my baby.

The plus size to shipping off my Xterra is that the interior has been completely detailed...I don't think shes looked that nice since I bought her! The downside is that I gotta buy gas the second we roll out of the pickup place because you can only turn your vehicle in when it's almost empty :( Nice fat gas bill in California...yayyyy. 

There you have it! A little run down of all whats been going on. Lots of stress, lots of cleaning, and lots of sleeping on uncomfortable surfaces. Only 11 more days till we're stateside bound! 

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Grimmy Snow Time!

Actually meant to post this last week, but I've been a little side tracked with other things...

Alrighty, so a week ago, we started getting some snow! YAY! I remember when Piper experienced her first time with it, she was in heaven! Sadly, I wasn't able to get it on video then, but this time around, I managed to get Grimms first experience on my handy dandy iPad!

I wish I could get this excited over the little things, lol. Unfortunately,the snow melted off the same day...and ever since, it's been raining on and off. The weather forecast is calling for some more snow this week, but we'll see how that goes. I just want some more Belgian winter weather before we roll out to the desert! 

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"Back-ectomy"

This is a little journal I kept over the last several days for when my husband, Eric, ended up going into the hospital to have a procedure done on his back. Who knows, maybe there's other people out there who will go through something like this and it'll give them some insight as to what they should expect. 

Over the years, Erics back has always been a little achy. Some days he's pain free, others he feels as if he's been smacked by a Mac truck. Given, he's on his feet a lot and doing his thing at work, but still, he's only thirty four years old and feels like he's got a lame back. In January, he woke up one morning and he was in a SEVERE amount of pain..so much so that he was on the verge of tears. After a lovely visit to the ER, it turns out that his L4 and L5 were herniated, which totally explained his pain. 

This is an image I found online to show how his discs look. His definitely stick out further than they should!

The doctor at the time recommended that he did physiotherapy for a bit to see how that'd help him out...it worked for a little bit, but after a while, his back would seize up again and caused a lot of discomfort. SO, he opted to try another option which involved getting a cortisone shot in the discs to relieve some of the pain. It was a pretty simple procedure..they gave him an epidural then injected the discs with the cortisone, had him chill in his hospital room for about two hours and sent him on his merry way. I gotta say, it seemed to work almost instantly for him since he was able to walk better (rather than favoring one leg) and within a week, he was allowed to start running again. The thing is, the doctor said there was a good chance that it will wear off within a year or so, but it really depended on how active Eric was in terms of physical activity. Being that he's in the Air Force, he's always gotta work out, run, do push-ups, etc etc. About a month after his procedure, he was sent off to NCO Academy (Non Commissioned Officers) for six weeks, which involves not only learning more Air Force stuff, but he also had to do a lot of physical training. Wellllll.... that seemed to speed up the cortisone breaking down because by the time he got back, he was already starting to have a lot of aches again despite going back into physiotherapy. Once the pain started to become pretty intense, we went back to the doctor and he recommended that Eric have a microdisectomy since doing a cortisone shot over and over again is really bad for you. So, that was scheduled about a month & a half ago and to Eric's relief, the day finally came for his surgery! 

August 8th -Day 1

Eric and I made it to Mariaziekenhuis nice and early over in Overpelt since that's where he was scheduled to have his surgery done. 

Once we got him all checked in, we managed to score him a private room since he was really wanting his privacy during his stay. Belgian hospitals are..err...different when it comes to patients...they tend to shoehorn as many as they can in one room. I'm really glad he had one to himself cause when we were being taken to his room, I happened to see the larger rooms on our way and they had more than one patient in them (some were 3+!) and looked overly crammed. Luckily, his room was a decent size and had everything in there a guy could ask for: tv, radio, mini fridge, wi-fi so he can play on his laptop, private bathroom and shower. He was definitely a happy camper! 

I think he was most excited about the fact that his bed had the ability to expand in length, LOL. When he first hopped on it, his feet were right up against the foot railing and his head came up past the top so he looked a little uncomfortable. When the nurse came back in from getting some of his paperwork, she was able to push a button and it popped out another six inches, added an extension pad in and BAM! You would've never known that it was an expanded bed. How cool, right? Eric was definitely a happy camper:

The nurse that was getting him all set up spoke English and was able to give me a run down as to when his surgery was going to take place and when I should roll back over to the hospital. Poor poor Eric! He couldn't eat or drink after 7pm last night, had to get checked into the hospital by 7am this morning and his surgery wasn't till 11:30a! By the time I left him, he was getting a hunger headache and getting a little cranky (can't say I blame the guy).

When it was time to go back over to see him, I brought a variety of goodies for him that he could munch on since the hospital basically gives the patients toast to eat. We jokingly call them "butter sandwiches". Overall, he was feelin' pretty good and just a little sore like you get after you've had a massive workout..oh, he was feeling just a lil bit nauseated from the anesthesia. But, he was in great spirits and was happy to have some company aside from harassing the poor nurses, lol. 

August 9th -Day 2

Once visiting hours were available, John and I popped over to harass Eric to see how he was fairing. Never mind the fact that I'm missing him like crazy! I ended up making a butternut squash & feta pasta mixture for his dinner since the hospital food ..ehhhh...sucks. AND, I made it look extra legit by packing it in a "to go" container, lol. I brought some for John and myself since we were wanting to have our family dinner together, which cheered Eric up because I know how he likes to have that time with all of us together.

To my surprise, he was back in his house clothes and no longer in a hospital gown since the doctor and the physiotherapist said it'd be a good idea for him to start putzing around the room a little bit in order for them to see how his back is fairing. So, after they checked him out, they gave him the go ahead to change out his clothes (he was MORE than happy to do that) and suggested that he get up throughout the day to stretch his muscles, plus it won't allow his back to get too stiff from laying all day.

While we had our dinner and caught up on everything, he was telling me about how his evening went the night before because, apparently, things got a little interesting for him.After a little while, Eric wanted to get up and walk around a bit (without help) so of course I needed to make a gif of his effort getting out of the bed. When he injured his back earlier this year, he had a pretty rough time trying to find a seat in the house that'd be a little helpful for him to get some sort of leverage in order for him to get vertical without straining anything else. Sorry the gif is so choppy, but he did manage to get out of bed really well (sort of how he had to get out of our bed with his first injury) and was rather proud of himself, lol

make animated gifs like this at MakeAGif

Oh, he lovingly refers to his IV as his "disgruntled girlfriend" since he has to always tote it around with him. He's very happy to break up with her pretty soon because she's becoming a rather annoying pain in his side...errr...arm.

Since he was up, I was able to see how the incision was on his back..and it really wasn't that bad! It's a little over an inch long and he has about eleven staples that he'll have removed in another week or so. He says his back basically feels like he has a massive sunburn rather than feeling like a train wreck, so that's a plus...right?

The funny part is that his antiseptic stains looked like he was assaulted by the fake tan monster.  When he had his cortisone shot done, the antiseptic color was hot pink..like SUPER pink, so I think he's trying to go for a variety of different colors to see what looks best with his skin tone ;)

After visiting him for a good three hours, we parted ways since he was getting a little sleepy and I still needed to clean up the kitchen from making dinner. The "to go" dinner worked fabulously and he asked to have it again tomorrow..so yay for good planning!

August 10th -Day 3

Here's a wonderful example at the type of food Eric was getting in the hospital. Bread wrapped in plastic and two individual pieces of bologna, lol. He was sort of at a loss when it showed up, especially since there wasn't any mayo or anything to kinda add some flavor to the food. Luckily, I brought him his dinner so he didn't have to suffer with the sandwich.

BUT, he was a big fan of the tea :)

At this point, they took him off his IV line and he was allowed to walk around every hour to loosen up his back. Understandably, he was a little stiff the first couple of walks, but once he got moving, he was shufflin' with the best of 'em.

August 11th - Day 4

Eric's officially home now! YAY!!! In the midst of getting all his paperwork together, the nurse handed us a STACK of prescriptions we needed to get filled the following Monday since they were already closed (Eric was discharged on a Saturday). In addition to that, we were told to get him set up for a home nurse to visit the next two weeks since he needed to have his bandages changed daily, have the incision looked at and also have a shot in his belly for Thrombosis. He definitely wasn't a fan of the shots since he'd already experienced them while in the hospital. 

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Over the course of this last week, he's gotten more and more mobile by walking around the house, even going on short walks with me up and down the street while walking Cole. He even ventured up to the Commissary with me since he was wanting to pick up some new movies. I think there was only one day where he was really exhausted and took it's toll on him, but other than that, he's got tons of energy and doesn't really have any pain in his back (thank gawd!). The first night he was home..well..wait....the first morning he got up, it was kinda rough on his back since he was so stiff from sleeping flat verses being at an angle like he was in the hospital. Getting out of the bed was an issue, but now he's practically pole vaulting out of it without any problems. The nurses come every day and check on his healing to make sure there aren't any sort of infections. In fact, he actually went back to work today for a little bit since his convalescent leave is up. Then in the afternoon, his staples were removed since the skin had healed up pretty well. 

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November 11th - 3 months post op

Since Eric's surgery back in August, his back pain has improved MASSIVELY. His back really doesn't like cold weather (it'll tighten up and get rather stiff), and if he sleeps wrong, he definitely knows he made a mistake. Other than that, having the procedure done was one of the best decisions he's made in a while regarding his health!

Here's a picture of his back scar. I refer to it as his "piggy bank slot" 

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Tapis de fleurs 2012

'Tis that time of year again! The flower tapestry in Brussels has returned!

 Here's my post from when Eric and I checked it out in 2010. Since Eric's still recovering from his surgery, I ended up venturing to Brussels on my own in order to do a "smash & grab" type of adventure in order to get some pictures of the tapestry. As much as he wanted to go, it's for the best that he didn't attempt it due to pushy tourists in addition to uneven cobblestones everywhere.

I left bright and early this morning...and if you know me, early and I don't mix well. At least I was able to catch up on some of my reading while cruisin on the train :)

 

Once I made it to Brussels, I waddled my way down to Grand Place since that's where the flower tapestry was waiting for massive hordes of people to "ooooh" and "awwwweee" over it. Keep in mind, the official opening time for it was 9am...I got there at 8:55a and there was already a massive line of people waiting to get into the Grand Place hotel in order to access the balcony for a view. 

This isn't the line...

......this is.

Here's a map to get a better idea of where I was. The red star is the train station, the green is where I walked, the yellow star is the end of the line to get into the Grand Place hotel, and the orange line is...well..the line to get into Grand Place hotel. 

Luckily, the line moved along fairly quick...I think it took about twenty five minutes to get into the hotel itself, so in the mean time, I managed to take some pictures of the buildings and whatever else I fancied.

The fabulous balcony everyone migrated towards in order to get a better view of the tapestry itself:

 

While I was going through and editing all the pictures, Eric really liked this one :) 

Once I managed to actually make it onto the balcony (after seeing a few people get kicked out of the line for not respecting the "no pictures" rule for inside the hotel), I kinda had to fight my way to the front so I could get some pictures of the flowers. 

Oh, and right before I  made my way into the building, I noticed they were selling t-shirts of the whole event...the image was one of the patterns from the tapestry, but in the shape of Africa. Kinda confused me, but I just guess that was the theme for this years' carpet. SO, I hopped online to find some handy dandy information for ya about it and here ya go:

The begonias are traveling!

This summer, you will have the chance to escape to faraway lands, while staying at the heart of our capital city. No need for any philtre or strange potion to get there... The magic will work on its own and when you visit the Grand-Place, you will be transported to the centre of a mysterious continent: Africa! An extraordinary tapestry of shimmering patterns recalling designs from the tribes of Ethiopia, Congo, Nigeria, Botswana, and Cameroun, a harmonious fusion which will carry you away for a magnificent trip.Such a breath-taking result takes months of preparation. Landscape architects, technicians and hundreds of voluntary participants, colour specialists for the occasion, took part in this most unusual adventure. This extraordinary weaving of begonias will be exhibited during 5 long days. A mad challenge for an unforgettable event, which you will be able to admire from the Grand-Place or the balconies of the town Hall. All roads lead to this multicoloured rendezvous...

Why Africa?

This part of the world stands out for the extraordinary diversity of its populations, its landscapes, its cultures and its colours. It has the power to make us dream to the rhythm of its dances, its drums and its performing arts, reflecting age old traditions. And so past and present echo one another, as do the here and the elsewhere, old Europe and young Africa, permanent contrasts. The continent has lessons of life to offer and proposes other perspectives and alternatives to the systems that we have used for so long.It is this diversity, so rich and inspiring, that we want to honour and represent this year: a carpet of flowers, of course, but enriched with an even more enchanting palette. Our artists have combined the begonias with barks, precious materials, sands, soils and pigments...
Come and walk along its borders, wander around the equator of our city. Enjoy recognizing the origins of the beautiful patterns which make up this strange fabric that unfolds before your eyes.
 

A worthy challenge

It's a double bet this year. The first aspect is symbolizing an entire continent, so rich and mulch-faceted, on 1.800 m2. The second is the duration of the display: the flowers and materials will stay fresh and bright throughout the five days. They will enchant you thanks to the attention and care which they will receive over the course of this beautiful event.

Annnnnnd here's a video I managed to get while getting poked and prodded by various tourists smushing in to get pictures:

Alright...why the random door latch? OK, you're not allowed to take pictures within the hotel, but when I was making my way outta there once I was done with the balcony, there was a room on the right hand side that caught my eye. It's a large hall that looks like it's used for ceremonies of some sort. Of course, I couldn't get a picture of it due to the rules (and a guard standing there to ensure people didn't take pictures)...but I was totally enamored  with the door handle because of it's design. Isn't it cool looking? After a little bit, the guard asked me "Do you want a picture of that?"...of course I jumped at the opportunity cause I don't know how I'd go about describing this thing. So, once the coast was clear, I snapped this pic and went on my merry way and the guard gave me a thumbs up for not looking like an obvious tourist :)

Here's another pic once I made it back to the ground level and made my way through the sea of tourists that ended up doubling in numbers while I was in the hotel. 

This kinda gives you an idea as to how packed all those flowers are throughout the entire tapestry. The crazy thing is that they don't get blown all over the place when the wind picks up! Then again, they've been making these sort of tapestries since the seventies, so you'd think they'd have it down to a science by now, ya know?

Oh yeah, and there's an official Hard Rock Cafe now in Grand Place! So, of course I had to make my way over there to get myself a hand dandy and oh so spiffy  bottle opener to go with the rest of my Hard Rock collection :) 

AND, there's this guy who does beautiful beautiful water color paintings from around Brussels.

He was actually working on another painting, so I got to watch him for about fifteen minutes while he was painting the actual flower carpet and then moved onto the sky. I gotta hand it to the guy, he's got some serious patience while he's working! Tourists were asking him everything under the sun, he was selling stuff and painting...handy dandy!

Last time Eric and I were there, we picked up two different panoramic paintings of Grand Place, so this time I opted to get two different styles since we have a thing about getting paintings from various places we visit. Since we wasn't there, I just picked whatever I thought were the prettiest :)  

After all that, I was spent. Totally spent. There's a super hot heat wave here and it's absolutely miserable, especially in Brussels since it seemed like the cobblestone was making it 10x hotter than necessary, LOL. Keep in mind, by the time I was catching the train to come back home, it was 10:15a and it was already sitting at 80*. I wanted to die. Despite being a Californian and all that nonsense, Momma don't do hot. As I'm writing this out, it's 6:44p and it's still 84*. BLUH. I'm sure there's some people reading this and laughing because they probably deal with hot weather all the time. Well, live in Belgium for a bit and then have a heat wave sprung on ya. I betcha you'd be singing the same song as me! lol....SO, when I was waiting on my train to show up, I think I earned a fabulous raspberry / blackcurrant frappachino from the ever so wonderful Starbucks that opened not too long ago in Brussels Centraal station. 

Made it back home, plopped in front of a fan and made it a point to hammer out this post for ya. If you haven't seen the floral tapestry and you live in Belgium, by all means, you should check it out. It's absolutely gorgeous and it's amazing to realize how much time went into making something like that for people to see. I mean, there's folks who travel far and wide to check that thing out. So, if you have the chance to just hop on a train (which you can travel for only 15 euro round trip this month!!), take the time to go do it! Besides, help yourself to an awesome Belgian waffle while you're at it. 

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