first day of school in a new country SUCCESS!

So... school started very early for us today--M and I got up at 5:00 a.m. and made coffee, got dressed and then roused the very sleepy boys for 5:15 (it took our eldest 15 minutes to get downstairs--what will it be like when he's a teenager???) to be out of the house for our commute by 6:10. It took us a little less time than we thought it would, but the traffic from Glons to Bruxelles slowed right down about 40 minutes out of town, when the commuters from Leuven joined the superhighway and as a result, it took us 10 minutes to go 2 kms. We realize if we leave 20 minutes later tomorrow, we'll be an hour late!

The kids were very excited, and nervous, and we were more than a little uncertain ourselves. We got to the playground, and wouldn't you know it -- it was raining quite heavily. The children and many parents were huddled under the pergola and we joined them near a line forming under the name of M's teacher. We met one other english speaking child in his line and one very nice parent who lives in the neighbourhood. I hope we get to know Francoise better as the months progress. Her daughter is one of the 14 girls and 3 boys in M's class. At 8:30 a lovely blonde woman seemed to be waiting for our attention at the front of the line (probably she said something in french, but I was just like the distracted children--not listening) and a few minutes later, the line of children straightened, the parents stepped aside, and the kids carried their heavy backpacks, supply bags and their soggy selves into the school...Daddy was more than a little choked up. I didn't lose it emotionally until I had to say goodbye to the youngest, a few minutes later. He was fine, it was mommy that cried and got all scared of making friends! D. went right away to his teacher and offered a cheek for the now routine european greeting of a kiss then promptly investigated all the toys. I assume their lunch was to their liking and their days went well, but we got little or no reports during the trip home--usual.

When we dropped off the boys and were walking through the commune business district, M. said to me, "what's that? Oh yeah, I remember...it's called silence". We realize that we've been with one or both boys the entire summer, and the constant chatter was like the background noise of Niagara Falls for two months. When their commentary stopped, it's absence was equally deafening.

We got lots done today: bought a cellphone, registered at the commune house, went and got information from the bank and will return tomorrow to open an account, and of course, went for lunch. You can see from this picture, that the Grand Place is still as awe-inspiring as ever (the business centre of the city that was rebuilt after being razed to the ground in the late 1600's) and still serves a mean patio lunch. What surprises me most about Belgian weather is how CHANGEABLE it is...warm and sunny can turn in 5 minutes to rain and then back to a cloud-free sky before the waiter brings us our second beer. Incredible. I think what I'll do is just plan for rain (by bringing a jacket, dressing in layers) and then be pleasantly surprised when the day is a fine one.

So we have to do this commute thing 4 more times before we're able to move into our Brussels home...I'm really going to miss the Loft here in Glons, and the lovely people we've met. I know we'll continue to stay in contact this year, as they've adopted us as much as we've welcomed them into our lives. The boys also enjoy the life and the C. family here, so I am certain we'll be back when ever we get the chance or invitation.