Back to Traveling- Trip to Bordeaux

I have gotten behind in my blogging because we have just been on our first vacation since Maeve was born! With my friend Rachel visiting, we decided to go on a semi-ambitious trip, knowing that the extra set of hands would go a long way in managing our first dual-kiddo adventure. We skipped a road trip, dreading the long hours of a crying newborn and a bored toddler and opted to fly into Bordeaux, France and out of Bilbao, Spain, splitting our time in Bordeaux and San Sebastian. We trained it in between. Overall the trip was a success. Some lessons learned: maybe don't book an AirBnB without reviews, maybe hose your children in bug spray in said AirBnB to prevent mosquito attacks at night, and maybe leave yourself more time than usual to get out the door to make it to trains and buses on time (thankfully we didn't miss any connections, but Pete may have gotten a few grays over the "Amazing Race"- style travel).

Before getting into the highlights of our trip, I have to acknowledge the terrible week it was in the World. It seemed that every morning we were waking up to the latest tragedy. The worst of which hit very close to home, as Rachel and I were out watching Bastille day fireworks at the same time that the attack on Nice was happening. Both of us had moments during the festivities where we were worried about our safety. There was a suspicious man lurking around and there were big crowds and I envisioned something bad happening. I imagined Maeve waking up hungry in the middle of the night and me not being there. It broke my heart just thinking about it, but what is the solution- not to go out anywhere at any time? Where is it completely safe? I try not to stay awake thinking about these things, but its hard not to when cities we have been to in the past two year have all since been attacked (Paris, Brussels, Istanbul and now Nice). We will not stop traveling. Maybe it is counterintuitive, but traveling is my antidote to the sadness in the world.

Enough lamenting and now moving on to our happy memories...

Bordeaux was named the #2 travel destination in 2016 by the NYTimes (though also told by Rick Steves to skip it) and airfare was laughably cheap on EasyJet (some $130 for all 5 of us to travel there one way).

Getting ready to board the flight

Maeve's first flight- There was an empty row so we spread out! 

Jude looks forward to travel days so he can watch Peppa Pig to his heart's content :)

Day 1 checking out the sights in Bordeaux on our way to the Public Gardens for some playground time.

Lovely playground over the bridge

Ferris wheel time

 Enjoying a 3 course lunch at Comptoir Cuisine. Cheers-ing our first glass of wine in Bordeaux!

On and off showers lead us to an indoor activity- a visit to the newly opened Cite du Vins (Wine museum)- a very cool interactive museum all about wine. Jude was mildly entertained by the exhibits, but was very excited to try grape juice while the adults got their complimentary glass of wine. 

The skies cleared and we made it to Bordeaux's number 1 attraction for children- the reflecting pool in front of Place de la Bourse. The first day was a bit chilly and very windy so Jude didn't venture far in. It was a different story when we returned two days later during the start of a heat wave!

Place de la Bourse

Day two was Bastille Day and we did a great side trip to Saint-Emilion to immerse ourselves in wine country. I'll do another post on this later. In the evening, after the kiddos were asleep, Rachel and I went to watch the fireworks set off over the river in front of the Place de la Bourse.

Post-fireworks treats

On Friday we walked all over Bordeaux, stopping to see the churches, towers and town gates.

Lunch staples from Jude's favorite place- the Boulangerie

Maeve also turned 2 months old!

In the afternoon, it was back to the reflective pool for lots of splashing fun with the crowds.

Maeve takes in the sights :)

The baby whisperer

Off for a final delicious French meal. Jude was not too keen to try escargot. I think he had a hard time figuring out why we would eat what was inside the pretty shells we search for. Rachel stayed in with the sleeping babes while Pete and I went to a craft brew bar to end our time in Bordeaux. 

"All Grows Up"

Today was Jude's last day at Jacaranda Tree Montessori Class and we are feeling a bit nostalgic around here. Pete and I both accompanied him today, while Rachel took Maeve for a walk around Vondelpark. There were a couple moments when I thought for sure Pete was going to cry. I did my best to suppress my emotions. Life is going to be filled with our kids moving on from classes, teachers, friends and I need to keep my sentimentality in check or it's going to be a long 18 years!

Jude started when he was just 7 months old. Back when he just sat and scooched around. He took his first large walking trip across the room there just after his 1st birthday. Jude looks forward to "Mone's" class every week, in recent months donning his yellow Thursday days of the week socks, which we remember because Simone is so sunny.

We are very excited for Jude to start school in August, but are definitely sad to see this great chapter of his life come to an end.

Jude at the end of his first session around 10 months

Around 13 months

Around 18 months

Around 2 years

With Simone

We are Home Owners!

We realize this news may come as a shock to our family and friends, but Pete and I just bought a house here in Amstelveen!! Serious House Hunting International!

How did this come about??

We moved here on Pete's two year contract, which became a permanent contract at the end of this school year. Early on, we realized two years would not be enough time to get the most out of this experience. For one, Pete has worked his patootie off to establish himself at his job. Now that he has two years of planning under his belt, he *claims* that the next year will not be as demanding of his free time. We'll see about that... And then there's the free school that starts for Jude this year (he will enroll in the nursery program this August). Our European travel list remains long and we need more time to see it all. Other expat friends agree that a two year assignment is hard. You spend the first year settling in and the second year preparing to move back so you never are just "here," enjoying the experience. I thought that if I couldn't get a job here, that I would be eager to return to the US so that I wouldn't be out of my field for too long. But now, I am able to work here in my profession. So all of this had left Pete and I pondering just how long we'd like to stay. The answer is that we don't know, but we imagine it will be at least a few more years.

We have loved our apartment, but really wanted a garden for the kids, a ground floor entrance and more space for our growing family. Rental prices for what we had in mind were through the roof. We toyed with the idea of buying, but were turned off by stories of bidding wars and the financial risk so we put it out of our mind.

Then, about a month ago, one of Pete's coworkers told Pete about a house for sale down the street from him. We checked it out on the Dutch home sale site, Funda, and made a viewing appointment, figuring it wouldn't hurt to look. Before our viewing, we got a call that the house had sold. It is a sellers market!

But now Pete and I were hooked at looking at Funda daily to see what other houses were available. We still weren't serious about buying a place, but made some more appointments to see other properties in the area for fun. We walked into a great open house and swooned over the property and the possibilities of home ownership. The property went into a bidding war and we realized we were in a bit over our heads, so we decided a real estate agent (makelaar) would be a big help to navigate the market and buying process. We found one based on a recommendation and started to look at some properties with him. We also made an appointment with Expat Mortgages to find out what our options were. We saw a few places that were fixer-uppers with potential, but decided that we didn't have the budget or the patience for major renovations.  We liked the 5th house we saw and when everything seemed to be in good shape we decided with our agent to make an offer right away given how quickly homes around here were selling. After some back and forth negotiation, we had a verbal agreement with the sellers! It all happened so fast. Within a week an inspection took place, the house was appraised and our advisor applied for our mortgage! There were ups and downs during the process, uncertainty and cold feet. Ultimately, our desire to own a house won out and we signed the purchase contract Friday morning! Apart from my badly bitten nails, the process was surprisingly painless!

Of course we hope this was a good financial decision. There is a lot of added uncertainty with the Brexit, which was happening just as our offer was accepted. The best case scenario is that Amsterdam becomes the next EU business center and the housing market blows up even more. The New York times predicts this? Worst case, the euro tanks and our transferred US dollar savings lose significant value. Only time will tell and now that the decision has been made, I will try not to worry about it.

It all feels a bit surreal, especially since we aren't scheduled to get the keys until October 5th (but this could change if the owners find a new place sooner). I will share details about the house soon!