Independence Day, in Britain

Today felt very much like my Thanksgiving last year.

Though my eyes were particularly peeled for red, white and blue, I mainly saw them on a flag of a very different sort. There weren't any fireworks or piles of watermelon rhine, and a fish-out-of-water feeling accompanied me.

But, like Thanksgiving, Kurt and I had one huge blessing: friends from home. I love how it's happened twice now. American friends on American holidays, it's a sweet thing, as trivial as it may seem.

Matt and Julia are special to us for many reasons but what makes our friendship especially fun and unique is that we've been able to share in similar life seasons. We attended the same small church in Whittier, CA for a year and were also engaged at the same time and married within a couple months of each other. It's been fun catching up and sharing first-year-of-marriage stories, jokes and encouragement.

We got Nando's tonight for the 4th (the American BBQ restaurants were booked up) and then Kurt and I saw the new Spiderman movie, which felt like a very American thing to do. All in all, it's been a good (yet void of watermelon) Independence Day.

I hope you're enjoying it too, wherever you are!

I linked this post up to Try New Adventures Thursday. You can link yours up too. :-)

Michaela Rae

Friday Confessions

via Pinterest

This morning, while Kurt washed the dishes (the pans and utensils, the ones I hate; I wash the bowls and cups, the ones he hates) and I made my coffee, we reminisced about home. Every now and then we let ourselves get carried away. We whimper and moan about there being no Cracker Barrel here (even though we didn't even eat there that often) and like proper narrow-minded Americans say how everyone here is stupid because they drive on the wrong side of the road and call pants trousers and underwear pants (resulting in too many awkward moments to count).

But in all seriousness, I really do miss Cracker Barrel.

I miss driving. I loved the freedom of being able to say "I'm going to x" and "I'll be back at x o'clock."

I miss drying machines. Oh for the day I won't have to hang our clothes out all over our living room on strange contraptions. Old timey cuteness? Yeah, I enjoyed that idea the first week. Now I'm over it.

I miss dish washers. Although I mainly grew up without one, I never thought I'd have to return to such dire conditions. I'd gladly return to the who's going to load and who's going to unload argument over who's going to wash and who's going to hand dry.

I miss Jiffy, Betty Crocker, and other box mixes. Yes, I'm learning to bake and post about it often, but what about those days I don't want to bake? What about when I'd rather throw it together 10 minutes before the guests arrive?

And writing these things out has accomplished exactly what I figured it might. I feel foolish and spoiled. I have a sheepish grin on my face. Did I really just admit that I complain about these things when I still have clean running water, a heated flat and an abundance of food within walking distance? And when I'm back in the US, what will I complain about then? Probably the cost of gas, the wait at Cracker Barrel and the electric bill that's been run up by the dryer and washing machines.

Hi, my name is Michaela and I'm spoiled.

Please feel free to follow my footsteps by posting a sheepish comment about the things you're spoiled over and have complained about this week. You'll feel more blessed in the end - I sure do. Besides, I'd appreciate seeing I'm not alone. ;)

Michaela Rae