Grandma Sugar, Papa and Aunt Mimi visit Denmark

 Simply cannot believe that it has been almost a year since their visit. Although they were here for a few weeks the time seemed to go so quickly.  For good cause though in the time they were here we celebrated two birthdays, Easter, and two Confirmations.  We travelled to many places in Denmark that we had never before visited, and a few that we have and love. 

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Kan næsten ikke tro på det har været et års tid siden min forældre og stor søster var i Danmark.  Selvom de var her for flere uge tiden gik så hurtig. Og selvfølelig skulle det fordi vi skulle nå så meget mens de var på besøge.  Vi fejret to fødselsdage, Påske og to Konfirmationer. Vi rejste til mange steder i Danmark vi har aldrig set og ændre steder vi både kender og elsker.

With their visit came the realisation of all that we have learned in the time that we have lived here. I watched as my children translated for my parents, just as I remember translating for my grandmother. They shared their knowledge of Danmark, the culture the people, the food and the beliefs.  It really will never cease to amaze me how far we have come.  How much broader our world view is than when we left Michigan.   

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Med deres besøge kom erkendelse at alle vi havde lærte i denkorte tid at vi har boede her. Jeg så min børnene oversæt for min forældre ligesom jeg kan huske at jeg har oversæt for min mormor. Børnene delt der kendskab af Danmark, dens kultur, mennesker, maden og tro.  Og simpel sagt jeg vil aldrig kunne tror på hvor meget vi/de har lærte.  Hvor meget mere bred er hvors kendskab til hele verden ende det var da vi flyttede. 

 

 Mom and Philip tried out their gangsta pose, and entertained us all. It was really a good opportunity for my parents/sis to get to know him as well as Simone and Daniel better. Without modern technology I don't know how we would have made it. And without modern technology in this case Facebook my family wouldn't be able to follow all of the lives that they hold dear on the other side of the ocean. 

 Min mor og Philip lade som om de var rigtig gangster mens vi var i Jelling. Deres besøge var en super gode mulighed for min forældre og søster til lære ham at kende endnu bedre, også Simone og Daniel. Uden teknologi jeg tror ikke på at vi kunne have klart vores flytte til Danmark. Og uden teknologi som Facebook min familie vil ikke have mulighed for at folge alle af dem som det holder af som bor på den anden side af det stor hav.

 Simone invited us to brunch one dag and mom received the American breakfast.  Very yummy and the presentation was lovely too.

Simone har inviteret os til at spise brunch sammen og min mor bestilt den Amerikansk morgenmad.  Det så godt ud og smagt også super lækkert.

 We celebrated Sophie's 9th birthday while they were here. No words needed for how special that was.  It was priceless.

Vi fejret Sophie's 9 fødselsdage mens de var her. Der er ikke orde for hvor meget det betyde.  Det var guldvære.

We cannot wait until the next time we get to see them, share coffee and our experiences.  Most of all the part where we get to wrap our arms around them and give them a very big hug.  Just can't wait!

Vi kan næsten ikke vent indtil det næste mulighed hvor vi kan møde med dem, dele en kup kaffe og også hvors oplevelser.  Mest den dele hvor vi kan giv dem et stort knus.  Kan ikke vent!

Summer 2012 Tiger Game / Sommer 2012 Baseball i Detroit

 

Nothing says summer like BASEBALL!  We took Philip, Martin and Simone to their very first professional baseball game.  It was sweltering hot, the stands were packed, and the game - was well, it was Baseball! The Tigers played like the amazing team that they are!  I love the Tigers!!

Der er ikke noget det minde en Amerikaner om Sommerferie som baseball!   Finn og jeg tog Philip, Martin og Simone til deres første profesional Baseball kamp.  Det var brændende varmt udenfor, der var en helt masse menneske i publikum, og kampen ja, det var ligesom Baseball er... Spændende!   Vores hold spillede som de plejer at gøre! 

Road trip / På vej til Michigan

 After a few days in NYC it was time to head for the Great Lake State.  We loaded our two rental cars with luggage, divided and conquered.  I drove the American group, and Finn headed the group of Danes. We spent the next 12 hours on the road, and at various American fast food locations - it was fantastic! We bought Fritos, Cheetos, stopped at fine establishments like McDonalds and Subway, and purchased cinammon chewing gum.  Yummy! 

Efter vores weekend i  New York City var forbi vi var klar til at køre til Michigan.  Vi set alle af vores baggage i to biler, med vores Amerikansk halv dele i mine bil og de Danskere i Finn's bil.  Vi brugte de næste timer ved at køre og spise hos forskellige Amerikansk steder, spiste chips vi kan ikke få i Danmark og købt kanel tjeggegummi.  Muuums!!

Summer 2012

 Summer Vacation Destinations 2012: New York City, MI, Canada

8 travelers, 4 airports, 4 countries, 16 suitcases, 8 carry-ons, 2 rental cars, and 8 different opinions of the "ideal" vacation.  That said,  we had an amazing trip!  After a little bit of a rocky start in England, with a delay at the airport and a minor espisode where the validity of Philip and Simone's tickets were questioned we were on our way! Without telling the group Finn and I had decided to book a limo to pick us up at JFK.  :) What a treat!  The expressions on their faces when the Limo arrived were really priceless.  I think that it actually made up for the delay at Heathrow.

8 menneske at rejse, 4 lufthavner, 4 lande, 16 kufferter, 8 carry-on kufferter, 2 biler, og 8 forskellige meninger om den "ideal" ferie.  Selv at det kunne har været vanskeligt vi har haft en super delige rejse.  Efter nogen problemmer med forskinkelse i England og en mindre detajler mht Philip og Simone's billeter vi var på vej til USA.  Uden at fortælle børnene Finn og jeg har booket en Limosine til at hente os ved lufthavn.   Hvor var det luksus!  De så allesammen så glad ud at de var snart over stresset mht forsinkelse i England. 

 

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Just like every summer vacation when we head to the US, there is a tight schedule to maintain, but we really tried to squeek the most out of every hour.  We rode the subway, took a day tour with a guide to many of NYC's hot spots. Empire State, Statue of Liberty, Wall Street and saw construction underway on the new Freedom tower. It was really fantastic.  Our fearless, tireless "leader" and my partner, actually managed to get quite sick for almost two full days while we were there. Poor guy!  Fortunately, the staff at our hotel was fantastic and they pointed out the places we need to go to get him on the mend again.  One of the most ironic things was meeting people at breakfast who were from Denmark.  Proof again that it is a small world we live in.  We all enjoyed the trip and would love to go back - a long weekend simply isn't long enough for New York City!  

Ligesom hver sommerferie i USA vi har pres på, men vi har virkelig prøvet at udnytte hver eneste øjeblik i NYC.  Vi tog på subway, var på gå tur, og var ud at se mange af de kendte steder fks Empire State, Frihedens Gudine, Wall Street og så det ny bygning de er ved at byg som heder Freedom Tower. Det helt var meget imponerende.  Midt i mellem af vores tur vores "leder" og min makker bliv faktisk ret syge. Stakkels mand.  Heldigehvis de ansætte på vores hotellet var super god og har andbefaldt nogen steder vore vi kunne få medicine til at gøre ham rask igen.   Der var lidt ironi da vi kom ned til at spise morgenmad, en gruppe menneske fra Danmark.  Igen beviser at verden er lille!  Tror faktisk at vi har allesammen nydet tur og kunne godt tænk at rejse der igen.  En lang weekende er simpelthen ikke nok til til New York City!

Construction Zone

 What naively started out as a necessary replacement of our wooden floor in the living room due to water damage grew into a monster of a project that took up the better part of our autumn.  Sometimes I really believe that it is better that we didn't know in advance how much work it would really take for us to do all that we set out to.  We might have had second thoughts, maybe even third!

Hvad har begyndt som mål at repairer vores træ gulv i stuen hurtig vokset indtil et stort monstre af et bygge projekt. Med dette "lille" projektet har vi brugt mest af vores tid sidste efteråret! Nogen gange syntes jeg det var fint nok at vi vidste ikke hvor meget arbejde det ville kraves før vi gik i gang. Eller har vi måske tænkt godt nok over en anden eller tredje gange inden!

Fortunately we walked directly into the fire and came out with a home that is much more suited to our lifestyle, and fits our personalities.  We still have a few finishing touches in the way of paintings, and textiles but for the most part...we are happy!

Heldigvis some vi plejer at gøre vi gik direkt inde i ilten og har et delige hjemme det passer meget bedre til vores travlt livstyle og passer vores smag! Vi stadig har nogen få detajler some malerier og tekstiler, men for det mest er vi meget tilfreds!