Wandering Browns

The Beehive cake and my boys Way back on August 10th, I celebrated my 29th birthday, which might be the most depressing birthday ever. I don't feel old enough or mature enough to be almost 30! Where is the time going? My birthday happened to fall on a weekday in the middle of a very busy period at Austin's work. They gave him impossible deadlines, and he was working his tail off to try his best to meet them. So, I was very surprised when he arrived home on my actual birthday with a beehive cake and an interesting plant. I had ordered my birthday present (new running shoes!) during the Amazon Prime Day, and my parent's present to me was shipping them here to Korea. So, I already had my presents and was not really expecting anything before the weekend. What a sweetie! Sansiviera "Velvet Touch" aka Snake plant or mother-in-law tongue I guess the plant deserves some explanation. Austin was trying to get me flowers. He found a florist and pointed to every p...

Hook of Holland strand, looking toward the ship channel and haven Right before leaving the Netherlands, we had an unseasonably warm week. I had wanted to check out the beach at the Hook of Holland before leaving, and we picked the nicest day we could find- with temperatures hovering around 70 degrees and sunny. This was such a contrast from the 40s and rainy that we had endured for many weeks at the beginning of our trip! Austin had plans to go with us, but ended up being called into work. Landon and I took the train to the end of the line, and then walked another mile or so to the beach proper. Wading in the FREEZING water It was the first nice day of the season, so some shops were not open yet, but there were a fair number of people around. Unfortunately for me, and all the parents there, shops lined the entrance to the beach. There were tons of those stupid ride-on toys that you put money in and they move and play music. I refuse to put money in them because Landon has...

Having been back in the comfort of the United States for one week now, it seems like our time in Cilacap was something that happened long ago! Here are the last batch of pictures from our time in Cilacap: Mrs. Titi asked us to come take pictures at a studio in the center of town. They had us take the picture against a plain gray background, and then photo-shopped in some pretty awesome backgrounds, including the Eiffel tower!? I loved how Mrs. Titi had us go to this professional studio, then made the funniest faces and poses. Also, Landon and Mrs. Titi are making the same face in the picture above. The other children are Mrs. Titi's niece and nephew who live next door to her. Mr. Teguh is holding Landon, and is Mrs. Titi's husband.  On our last full day in Cilacap, I took Landon down to Teluk Penyu beach to dig around in the sand, blow off some steam, and take some more pictures of boats. On our way there, we ran into two school PE classes playing in the field cl...

Getting brave... Once upon a time I told Austin we should walk to the beach instead of taking a taxi. I had walked there before and didn't think it would take too long. 2.5 miles later, we got to the beach, but Austin was not in the mood to get all sandy and wet after hiking all the way there in the heat. So he became the official photographer of our beach fun. Also, Landon got over his fear of waves and bodysurfed for the first time in the wave fluff! It was a momentous day and I think all beach trips are going to be much more fun from now on with our fearless toddler! Running away from the wave! Letting waves crash over his legs... Building a sand castle The last few times we have gone to the beach, Landon has been super afraid of the waves, and doesn't want to go near the water. In contrast, he loves the pool. This time, he came down to the water to fill up his watering can almost immediately, and did the run away from the wave game really well. Af...

Some of our spread At our hotel, they offered babysitting at the same rate as we normally pay babysitters, so we took advantage of the opportunity and had a date night! The babysitter also worked downstairs at the pool, so she was super excited when she saw Landon again the next day. I think Landon had fun and she did too. I know Austin and I certainly did. One specific type of Korean restaurant that Austin and I really enjoy is a restaurant where you order raw meat and you have a fire at your table and you cook the meats yourself. Along with the meat, they bring out several different types of kimchi, salads, seafood, lettuce leaves, sesame oil and salt for dipping and other interesting tidbits. I'm sure Koreans think it is hilarious when we have no clue what to do, but I have to say we are getting the hang of it the more we go to these types of places. Due to the open flame and low tables, this type of restaurant is a hard one to go to with Landon. Usually one of us has to ...