The gang on our trip to Germany
Bailey working on her class project
Amazed that Grandma and Papa are really here!
Dinner at Svend og Lydia's
Rhiannon our wonderful "barnepige" aka babysitter
Bailey and Sofie
Fuglesang lake. Max and Philip hammin' it up and Soph looking happy
Boats at Hvide Sande
On April 26th, Finnie, the kids and I made the short trip to Billund Airport....to collect Grandma Sugar and Papa!!! We were all so excited! We could not believe that they were actually on their way to visit us! You see, a few weeks earlier I had randomly mentioned on this little internet network known as Facebook, that I wished my parents would visit. Not for one second did I believe that they would!! We had talked of them visiting Denmark during the Christmas season, or even Thanksgiving, but not
once had we discussed the Spring of 2009! Yet there we were on our way to pick them up and introduce them to our new stomping grounds. (The short version is, after word got back to my parents about my little post, my mom got busy finding the best way to get to us!)
So after two flights and sans one lost piece of luggage, two weary but absolutely wonderful parents/grandparents arrived in Denmark! We planned very little for the first few days to give them a break and time to get acclimated, and then we were off! Prior to Grandma and Papa's arrival the kids had created a visit list of places that they wanted to take them too. The list in no order of importance: Their skole/school, the gå gade/the walking streets, The pølse vogen/the hot dog stand, Herning Mall, and Fuglesang Lake. In between naps we spent much of those first days checking off the places that the kids deemed most important. The kids took them to skole, where they met their teachers and friends. We went to Max's fødball game...where I might add we might actually have video of a goal that Max scored...that is if the camera woman (Grandma Sugar), managed to get it taped
before swinging the camera in her haste to cheer him on! :)
We visited Hvide Sande, which literally translated means White Sands, the Prince's castle in Momhøj, and a German border town that I can't remember the name of right now. Mother's Day took us to Legoland, and later that day Grandma and Papa babysat while Finnie and I went to the Beyonce' concert. Yes, we were living large during their visit. There was no jewelry store left
unexplored, no lottery left
unplayed, and no shortage of love from everyone involved. We had dinner and coffee twice with Finnie's parents, once at Karin and Leo's, and many cozy or "hyggeligt" dinners at home. Grandma had brought the GOOD kind of corn tortillas and we feasted on true Mexicansk tacos...mmmm! The kids and I did our best to translate for everyone concerned, and at times it proved to be really hilarious! I spoke to my mom in Danish, Finnie in Spanish while Finnie spoke to his mom in English. All in all, I believe that we did and ok job, and that no one felt left out. At times Grandma said that her head hurt from all of the translating we were doing...she couldn't believe how much we understood and were speaking. Funny, because it is just something that we have become accustomed to doing. Especially when we are with Finnie's parents. The goal is always to make certain everyone is included. So what if they don't speak the language we are speaking to them in...right?? :) Papa, was amazed at the roads and driving. The cars that sped by in little or no space, and the multitudes of bikers. (not the Hell's Angels variety) We talked about the fact that many American vehicles would just be too big for the roads here. We talked about culture differences as well as things that they hadn't expected to be the same. The traditions and genuinely kind people. Put simply...we talked and talked and talked.
So really this
unexpected visit turned out to prove 3 things, sometimes grandparents can be
unpredictable,
underestimated and quite honestly show
unparalled love and affection for this "little" family on the other side of the not so big ocean!
Understandably...we await their next visit with eager anticipation!
We woke up to lovely GOOSE BEETLES covering our lawn. So being the crafty adults that we are, we came up with a brilliant idea...we would pay one danish crown for every bug that the kids collected. The idea itself was without flaw...pay the kids reduce the prospect of Goose Beetle eggs killing the lawn...the only problem then was that we underestimated the sheer number of BEETLES that our kids were capable of catching! Philip, Max, Sophie and Bailey each collected...are you ready??? OVER 200 hundred of the nasty creatures! To translate that into the American dollar think approximately 40 dollars a kid! We actually had to cap off a limit or the capitalistic nature of kids on a money mission would have broken the bank! 
We hung out for a mere 4 or 5 hours at the beach, the kids rejoicing about their new cash, and Finn and I still amazed that they had collected so many! But the weather was perfect and the beach was not crowded, so it was a really cozy day!
