The struggle with not working

 I cannot get up everyday thinking that my life doesn't account for anything just because I don't have a job. I have to remember that I am doing an amazing thing in God's eyes. I am submitting to my husband and sacrificing so much for his desires. I am leaving everything to God and allowing him to show me the way. I have to get up everyday and put a smile on my face and know that I am very important. If it weren't for my acceptance in this change Andy and I would be in Indiana miserable because I was trying to be selfish.

Now this is a tough struggle weekly for me. Sometimes I get up and battle with myself, which I think is due to the evil devil. He wants me to suffer everyday and think I am worthless. I know then that I have to say a prayer and get on with my day. Sometimes I just want to stay in bed and not move. I get angry and just want to see my family. I don't even want to get out of bed for coffee because I am mad. Although I know I have too. I have to get out of bed, brush my teeth and get outside. Someone might look at this and think I am very dramatic. I know this is way FAR worse situations then this. That is also what gets me through my lonely days. My husband could be in Iraq. I could have 3 kids. I could have cancer. I could live far away forever. As this does help me everyday I still live in MY reality. No one can judge until they are put in that situation. And boy have I learned that now more then ever....

I know God is working on Andy because almost everyday he comes home and is so wonderful to me. He always makes me feel so very special and that without my sacrifices we wouldn't be here. He always asks about my day. This is huge because I thought the minute I quit my job I wouldn't have anything to talk about with Andy. I knew he would talk but I would have nothing to contribute. That is so far from the truth. I get to see the wonderful things that happen day to day. I am not confined to a cubicle day in and out. Would God even want that anyway? I feel that God wants us to not work as hard. To enjoy every day as its out last, and to work to live not to live to work.

Accents in England

Before I got here I thought it would be so great because I would get to speak English to everyone as well as hear English wherever I went. In Switzerland I rarely ever hear English.....

Little did I know the Derby accent was going to be a foreign language. We have learned that Derby is a very blue collar town and therefore an uneducated accent. Their words, not mine. They say that soon enough I will be able to pick up on the Derby accent compared to educated people's. Even when I am talking to Andy's co workers I have to focus on exactly what they are saying to understand them.

I went to an Italian Coffee Shop today. I sat next to 3 people that I know spoke English. I never understood ONE word they were saying. NOT ONE. Crazy....

They have so much slang in England that it makes for a very perplexed look on my face. 
Here are some sayings:
half 3- means 3:30
Take away- means to go
lorrie- means truck
cheers- thank you
Mum-mom
boot-trunk of car
holiday-vacation

Pubs in England

Andy and I fell in love with pubs from the minute we stepped foot into them. They are all so very quaint with history lurking behind every wall. The Dolphin Inn in Derby is the oldest pub in England. It dates back to the 15th century. Sitting there thinking how many generations have been doing the very same thing is mind boggling.

You have to order at the bar. This is different from the U.S. where they serve you. They also do not work on tips. I absolutely love the hand pulls. It makes your mouth water and long for a beer and I don't even like beer. I just love seeing them pour it. :) Pubs are so great because it is relaxing and quiet. It is where most men go to get away from their wives, jk, it is where they go after a hard days work to unwind. It is something we need in the U.S. I don't always like going out to a bar scene where everyone is loud and just trying to get wasted. Now on weekend nights the pubs are much louder.  There is usually a fire going which makes it very cozy. These places are so old so usually they are cold inside. The fire helps with the drafts. I love to see old pictures as well hung up on various walls. I saw a yearbook picture from 1930 of an all boys school in Derby. Not one person was smiling and there were about 300 people.

Most favorite pubs so far are Flower Pot, Old Silk Mill and Dolphin Inn :)

England, hotel and culture

Andy's company has an office in Derby, England and that is where I am now. (December 14, 2011) This is a big trip because we might be living here for the next 2 years. It all depends on a work visa and weather or not Switzerland is where our hearts desire.

We are staying at the Jurys Inn which by the talk in the town is the nicest hotel in Derby... This is what scares me a bit because it is definitely not one of my favorites. The morning breakfast is free, which I now understand why. Trying to get a part the scrambled egg just to put in your mouth is rough. I ate their once and learned my lesson. I really try hard not to be shallow because I do understand there are homeless people. The hardship for me comes when it is literally "my home" for 2 weeks. Andy leaves everyday for work and gets out of here. I venture out for a few hours a day but usually I am within the walls of the Jury. Pretending to clean up randomly and try to have a routine. The bathroom is a handicapped one, thus the shower is equipped with everything one would need. I think it is amazing that this hotel has this for handicapped people except for I am not handicapped so a normal shower will do. We have called for about 6 wake up calls. They have made 2 of them. There is no refrigerator, which I guess I have been spoiled in hotels past. To flush the toilet you have to pump the handle like you are pumping a well for water. One can only hope that it flushes. Most times it doesn't. This is all I will say about the hotel...

All I have heard from people is England is a great place. Most have just been to London and can't hardly comment on ALL of England. There are a lot of towns people. Derby happens to be one of those. The biggest attraction in Derby is the huge mall in the center of town. I happen to visit it daily for the Starbucks and people watching. It is 16 and Pregnant everywhere you look. It is quite fascinating how many young girls have babies. At first I thought they were just helping push the babies and wondered where the real moms were. Or as they would say it Mums. They never appeared....

People are extremely friendly here, and I LOVE that. I always feel very welcomed wherever I go. They always have a small on their face and are willing to help. You cannot ask for anything better. A lot of times I just feel like I am in the U.S. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? I haven't quite figured that out yet....

Paris

Paris:

Andy and I were very excited to go to Paris. I mean who isn’t excited to go to the most romantic city in the world? We stayed in a quaint hotel in Madeline. Everything I saw was out of a picture book from the bars to the champagne cellars. To my delight they had champagne everywhere. The first night Andy and I had to go try to see the Eiffel Tower. After walking aimlessly for an hour there it appeared. Better then we both even thought it would be. It was dark so it was lite up from every angle. Andy and I both were speechless for a good minute. I couldn’t believe we were finally here, standing in sight of THE Eiffel Tower. It was an incredible feeling knowing that I got to see such a famous sight at 24. I felt very blessed J We weren’t able to walk to it that night because I was in some pain and we were both hungry.

We proceeded to a tiny little restaurant that was very French. All the tables were very close together which is something I had to get close to.  Andy knows I love my space. The food wasn’t that great and I was definitely thinking, is this it? Is this what I will experience the whole trip? Since there are so many Americans/English speaking people that visit Paris most everyone speaks English. It is a good thing since Andy and I don’t speak a lick of French. It really is the most beautiful language there is. I loved just listening to people talk, I might have no clue what they are talking about but it can be so fascinating.

The next day we knew we wanted to go see the Eiffel Tower up close. We ventured that way only to see that the line to go up it was about 3 hours long. We really didn’t want to waste all of our time standing in line so we decided no to do it. We did get some beautiful pictures in front of it though. We went to breakfast and were on our way. Breakfast in Europe is nothing like breakfast in the U.S. They have croissants, crepes and more croissants. They definitely eat a lot of bread. They stay so skinny because they walk everywhere J

Then we decided to just explore Paris. We went to about 5,000 cafes while we were there. What? We had to see how different they all were. Of course we had a drink at all of them. One of my favorite places was a champagne cellar. I have a picture from this! It was so classy and the colors were pink and black which I love. The bartender was extremely funny and nice. This reminds me. I was told my whole life that Parisians were mean and hated Americans. We did not experience this in the slightest. We came to the conclusion that it is a generation thing. All of the younger people have nothing against us nor the other way, so it’s all love and no war J

We went to the Louvre on the last day of our journey. We had to go to the Louvre. That is something we also hear about all the time. All I have to say about the Louvre is it is HUGE. Andy and I only saw 1/3 of everything because it was so tiring. I couldn’t walk that far with all my pain so we had to leave. All of the Christian paintings made me emotional. They were painted with such detail you could almost feel the pain that was felt. My most favorite was the mummy exhibit. I couldn’t believe that it was an actual MUMMY. Oh it just perplexes me so much. Andy had to pull me away because I kept looking at it.

One of the nights we went to the Eiffel Tower because it lights up at night. I’d have to say it was definitely the most romantic experience Andy and I have shared to this date. We bought a bottle of champagne off of these men that were illegally selling them. Supposedly there is no drinking there. We are sitting there enjoying the sight and police rush our area and run after these men. The men dropped their stuff and ran.  We left awhile after that and ran into some men from Peru. They were studying in Paris and some other countries. Very nice men, so we chatted with them for a bit. That is one of my favorite things about traveling. All of the random people you run into and learn about. I have learned about so many cultures and I am only 24. God has blessed me so much!

One night we ate at an amazing seafood restaurant. Of course Andy found this online so we had to go to it. Andy is amazing when it comes to traveling. He always does so much research to insure that we have a great time. He has never steered us wrong. This place was interesting because it wasn’t in the nicest of neighborhoods. I was a little reluctant thinking, really this is where it is? Foolish of me I know. The menu was on a whiteboard in French of course so the waiter had to read it to us. It is always interesting to me when a native speaker of another language is speaking fluent in another. In this case our waiter was Korean and was speaking fluent French.  Yes, I felt dumb. I had an oyster episode here. Andy always makes me try things. I usually am all up for it but I know that oysters don’t sound good to me. I don’t want to have put something in my mouth and immediately swallow it. EWW. Well I tried it because Andy was forcing me to do it and it didn’t end well. I immediately wanted to spit it out but couldn’t in this nice restaurant. The waiter was standing next to us and could see something wasn’t right. He asked if everything was okay. My face was pale and I just got out of my seat to try and find the restroom. Of course I couldn’t and this woman had to help me. SO embarrassing. Anyway our meal was excellent that night but that was not the last of events that happened. One of the woman waiters tripped right into the bucket that cools the alcohol. The bucket goes all over the table of Japanese men in their suits. She was beyond upset and didn’t show her face for about 20 minutes. I felt terrible. Another incident that happened was 2 separate women at different tables proceeded to wave their hands when they needed something. I couldn’t help but stare because this behavior is NOT okay in the states. I could not believe that they thought this was acceptable behavior. Andy and I liked it when one of the waiters saw them and looked the other way. No one should ever be treated like that. Lastly we were on our way out when Andy saw this recipe book that he had seen before. It was on a frail little stand so when he went to put it back it felt and bumped into 2 bottles of wine and they went crashing to the floor. I have never seen Andy’s face like that in 4.5 years of knowing him. I felt so bad because I didn’t want him to feel that way and then I felt bad for the restaurant for having to pick it up.

God through all of this.

Throughout all this traveling and following my husband, Andy, to all these countries has made my faith so much deeper. None of this could be happening without God. Everyday I have to give everything up to him and pray that he leads me on a great path. If I didn't have a higher power to turn to I don't really know where Andy and I would be today. We have had a lot of obstacles in the first 6 months of our marriage. We don't have a home base really in the U.S. or Europe. We have an apartment in Indiana but it is basically a storage unit. It is filled with all of our wedding gifts. We have been told for about a year that we are moving to Switzerland and our visa has been denied a lot. Now we are seeing if we would be content with moving to Derby, England. It is God's strength that allows for Andy and I to have such a great relationship. We always turn to him in our time of need. I love how Andy always thanks me for never complaining during this rough time. That is also thanks to God. We could be fighting all the time during this tough time but no we only look at the positive of it all. We are able to travel to all these countries and do things that people will never get to do during their lifetime. We cannot turn against each other because we are all we have. I believe these next 2 years will make us so strong because we depend on each other more then ever.

I have to remember everyday to get up and thank God for all he has provided for me. I was taught that Andy is head of the family so that is exactly what I am letting happen. I am following Andy and because of this I will be rewarded. :)

Wine biking in Italy

We stayed at a fabulous hotel called Hotel Caseus. During the summer it is the place to be. We went during the fall so the pools were too cold to go in. Although they had an amazing wellness spa. They had indoor pools, stem rooms, saunas etc. I love how Europe has so many of these places around.

I was nervous about going wine biking because of my back, leg and tailbone pain. I have had pain for about a year now and am currently in Physical Therapy to get it better. My legs were not strong at this point to be driving up hills in Italy. And boy where there a lot of those! It was so much fun to be biking because we were not on any time frame and got to pick what wineries we wanted to go to. We first started off at a pretty big winery. The guy wasn't as nice as we hoped and only gave us 2 glasses to try wine when really we needed 4. It wasn't until Heidi started speaking a little Italian did he start opening up. I understand a little why he was reluctant.  There obviously are Americans that bike and get drunk for free. That was not our intention. Heidi and Bo bought about 75 bottles of wine and Andy and I bought about 12. It is much harder for us to get wine home to the U.S. then Heidi and Bo. The next winery we went to is something I will never forget. It was a winery out of this guys house. He was so happy. I couldn't help but notice how happy he was. His winery was passed down by his father and everyday this is what he did in the hills of Italy. All he wanted to do was serve us as much wine as we could drink. He even served us wine that he didn't sell :) It is people like that, that make me smile from ear to ear. Such a happy man with not a lot going on.

For lunch we ended up going to a little grocery and getting some chicken, cheese and wine. We biked to this remote area where you could see so much of the hills. I just sat in amazement at God's wonderful creations. At that point I didn't know if I would ever see such a sight again. From this point we cycled a bit more until I was getting so tired. We went back and Heidi and I went to the wellness spa. AHH was this so amazing after a long bike ride. Then we went to dinner and I was frustrated because I was super sore and we had to walk a pretty long way to get there. We had so much food there it was crazy. The only way Europeans stay so skinny is because they walk everywhere not because of the lack of food they eat :)

Our travels to and from Italy

Andy and I went wine biking with Heidi and Bo. Heidi and Bo live in Austria so we first went there to get Heidi. Bo, Andy and I rented a car to drive to Italy. I could NOT believe all of the beautiful sights I saw along the way. The mountains in Austria were AMAZING. I honestly could not stop looking at them. I took many pictures so I could remember what they looked like :)

Heidi and Bo live in St. Anton, Austria which is a small ski town. To get there we had to drive through some mountains and I had to close my eyes. I do not like heights so it was very hard to be up there. St. Anton is absolutely gorgeous. It is crazy to think that people live there all year round. It is pretty small :) Heidi and Bo rent a room above a ski shop. Once we picked Heidi up it was time to venture to Italy.

Of course we had to stop and get some pizza first. We went to this random rest stop and it was NOTHING like the rest stops in the U.S. This rest stop was filled with amazing food. We got a pizza made fresh right in front of us in a brick oven. That was one of the best pizzas I have ever eaten. Once we ate we were off to Italy. People drive extremely fast in Europe. If anyone knows me they know I don't like this one bit. You are never supposed to drive in the fast lane except when you are passing people. So there is a lot of weaving in and out.

Along the way we saw a TON of castles. It is so amazing to drive in Europe because history is all around you. There are pill boxes where guns were held during WW11. To just be driving through the hills and seeing this is insane.

On the way home Heidi and Bo went by the waterway with a church right in the middle of it. When Mussalini was in power in Italy a long time ago he wanted power. There was a village but he wanted to destroy the village and make it a dam for power and electricity. I bet no one knew that the church would still be standing in the middle of the dam to this day. Andy and I got some sweet photos of it. Although Heidi's and Bo's are better. They went when the water was frozen over and got to TOUCH the church! For sure one of the coolest things I have seen.

It is so crazy to be driving by and see all these random towns everywhere. For me I cannot believe that people live where they live. I mean what do they do for fun, where do they go shopping, how do they get food?