Husband Pieter Doing it ALL

Yes, over the years that we built our nests, husband Pieter had done the lion share himself.

We planned on adding a patio for privacy and for having lunch, coffee/tea outside.

So, on Tuesday, May 14 of 1985, Pieter started his VACATION...

Tiles had been shipped over from The Netherlands.

Pieter had taken the day off on May 6, for bringing the Dutch tiles from Nedimex, Venray home. With the help of the fork lift, at the Campbell mushroom farm, using the Toyota truck from AEM.

Both of us have unloaded the 1,600 pounds with our bare hands...

In Europe we are using a lot more tile floors, here it is finally getting more popular the last decennia.

Pieter started with our new patio...

Just for seeing him in action... 27 seconds on silent movie

Dutch: Tegelzetter Pieter maakt terras

English: Tiler Pieter makes terrace

All hand work

Cutting the tiles by hand; using a chisel...

Making progress!

Yep, that is my Red Ford Escort with the Rebel Tag in the front...

Guess I've been a Rebel With a Cause.

Pieter's boss, the Campbell Soup CEO shook his head when Pieter picked him up one day, when he'd landed at our local airport. 'No Pieter, you cannot do that', he said.

But it was MY car, the Buick was at the garage for a tune up...

Not having it done for $ 1.00 per tile; but for sweat!

Sunday lunch on our new patio, with guests/mushroom friends from Switzerland...

Kuhn mushrooms' manager Enzler and Hans Jörg Kuhn with Pieter.

Mauzie our Dachshund is seen bottom right.

On May 27, beginning with the wall...

Yep, Pieter became a carpenter and now working on the roof.

On May 30, with the roof on, it starts looking good! Now the painting...

Voilà, our new patio with privacy and a nice place for lunch, coffee/tea.

On the wall is the antique brass and copper ship's pump, mounted on an oak plank.

Stepping a bit more back, so you can see the Zinnias blooming on the side of the patio.

It sure was a great extension to our previous home.

Do you see that duct in the center of the roof?

One evening, while Pieter was traveling for Campbell Soup to one of their mushroom plants, we had quite a storm.

Turned out that the duct was flapping and making an awful noise.

So I got on a ladder and went up the roof and stamped it shut.

Pieter later on fastened it more secure so it won't flap ever again.

Treasures from archiving our photo albums...

Our Rock Garden

Yes, we did create a Rock Garden with all the BIG rocks we collected on our property and in the area.

We have toted them home, tied to a spade, dragging behind us.

Happy me with the first blossoms on the cactus and succulents that Pieter did bring home from California.

Mauzie with me on April 24, 1985 near cactus bloom.

Our 1st home was build on a slope, just like our 2nd home.
This very spot I've often had to shovel up the topsoil with sentipede grass seed, after it got washed out once again by a heavy tropical rain.
Pieter often was gone, so I had to take care of home and garden.

Tying Your Tie

Would YOU know how to tie your tie?

Here I am on February 9, 1985 with my soft leather tie!

Always loved tying a tie.

Do you manage?

If not, on my Pinterest, I do have an entire board about SCARVES & TYING YOUR TIE just click for going there.

Yes, we do have very sunny days in February here in Georgia! 

Mauzie girl always near me...

Husband Pieter holding me and my Thai born friend.

These are the hand crocheted curtains, done by me, that hung in The Netherlands, then here at our 1st home in Dublin, Georgia, in Italy and again in our 2nd home in Dublin, Georgia

Everywhere we lived we had windowsills custom made, for having the Dutch feeling with planters in Delft white pots on the window sill.

Do you keep pot plants?

Related link:

{Our Veranda} | previous post by me with same curtains
{After 40 years Something's Gotta GIVE...} | previous post by me about the END of curtains...

More about Mauzie our Dachshund that Immigrated to the USA

Mauzie with me at Pieter's office after I'd hung my hand crocheted mushroom window decoration.

On my very first Birthday, February 6, happy in Georgia!

Yes, I was having braces...

We enjoyed our mild winter in Georgia!
Wearing my woolen Burberry skirt.

May 18, 1984 Mauzie girl on the new 8 PK John Deere...

Pieter had gotten home by noon with this new 8 PK John Deere

Pieter is mowing together with Mauzie on May 23, using a somewhat more powerful John Deere here!

We had traded the other one in.

Taking his sunglasses down...

Mauzie in her sports back, ready to fly with us to Amsterdam, the Netherlands on KLM Royal Dutch Airlines
Mauzie peed 7 x outside on the pavement and after drinking some water, she did an 8th time and she made me use the plastic bag for something else!
She fully understood we were flying for a long time and there are no doggy bathrooms...

Mauzie was a smart and cute girl!
She stayed with best friend Ellie and the kids, as both of us drove to Hungary for the Conference.
Sure I was knitting while waiting, needed to have always something on hand!

Related link:
August 29, 1983 We Immigrated to the USA | previous post by me

Our First Christmas and DEEP Frost in Georgia

On December 24, 1983 Pieter just liked to hose down his car, after lunch.

He could NOT as the water was freezing below his hands... 

It went very suddenly to -3ºC and in rapid tempo to -18ºC or 26.6ºF to -0.4ºF.

At the construction site for the Campbell mushroom plant, a couple was living in the trailer.

They had no water, nothing, and they didn't bring warm winter clothes from Belgium... 

The pipes at the site got all frozen too, cutting them open proved too late already.

Disaster!

On 2nd Christmas day we invited the couple, including their cute doggy Monpetit, to our home.

After a warm meal, I insisted they soak in the bathtub to get their chilled bones nice and warm.

So they went to the guest bathroom and master bathroom and did just that.

I'd provided Addy with some nice warm sweaters to wear.

Also I ran their laundry and put it in the dryer, they had NO water.

With a lidded Tupperware bucket full of fresh water for coffee and such, they went happily home.

You can see the Christmas cards still hanging on the door...

That's me to the left, feeling happy for being able to feed them a warm meal and making them warm again.

We had our fire place burning and it felt cozy!

With a warm Toast Hawaii from the oven, they left for home...

We sure felt very privileged with a warm and comfy home and running water...

Mauzie girl too!

It NEVER has been that cold again here in Dublin, Georgia

We did visit Wil & Addy Buster in 1985 in Achel, Belgium but we lost since track... don't know where they are.

WISH somebody would find them!

August 29, 1983 We Immigrated to the USA

Already 37 years ago since we moved from The Netherlands to the USA...

Easy to remember as it was on my youngest brother Jan's birthday.

Little Mauzie the Dachshund flew with us.

She was a feisty little girl, and lived exactly to the day 2 years as an immigrant doggie...

Miss her, she was oh so smart and easy.

Husband Pieter and I, with Mauzie stand at the site for the Campbell Soup mushroom plant, on November 26 of 1983.

Wearing my hand knitted sweater.

From Santa Cruz to San Francisco for the Weekend

This was our PLAN to begin with, a weekend together in San Francisco...

With my Mauzie girl at the San Francisco Fisherman's wharf...

We did make a Golden Gate Bridge cruise and San Francisco Bay and saw Alcatraz Island.

We had checked in at the Hilton San Francisco Union Square at 333 O'Farrell St.
Staying at the 25th floor.
And, my Mauzie girl who was super smart, sat in her sports bag with zipper over her back. I held it with my Burberry trenchcoat concealing her - she never said a word!
It was just for a brief moment a bit tense, when the bell boy tried to relieve me from my bag... he was tugging it but I firmly said; no Sir, I can handle that myself!
Mauzie had a pep talk in the room where I told her that we have now neighbors above, below and on both sides - don't 'speak'.
No wonder Mauzie's Daddy was then Champion in The Netherlands!
We woke up in the morning to the Carillon playing 'Dancing Mathilde'... oh the atmosphere of Union Square!

The view from our 25th floor was absolutely stunning!
It was a pricy hotel for both of us at the time, $ 123.00 per night as Pieter was not yet on the payroll, due to both of us waiting for the green card...
To the right you can see San Francisco - Oakland Bay Bridge

Here an even better view of San Francisco - Oakland Bay Bridge
Macy's was right in front as of course were all major stores around Union Square!

That's where I found two wool skirt suits, one I wore on my Civil Wedding day in November...
We did waste so much of our precious time that Friday at a travel service for changing our flight back to Atlanta, into a flight to Philadelphia as Pieter was requested by the CEO of Campbell Soup, to give a presentation...

But we managed to go by taxi to the Fishermans wharf and view an old submarine and a sail ship.
That is me standing in front of said sail ship, with my Mauzie girl.
Top photo also got taken at the Fistherman's wharf.

We did walk back to the hotel and it was rather steep.

Cable cars were OUT - due to repair!
Not today... but Mauzie got carried for some segments.

This is from a postcard... We had to do this on foot; both ways.

Yes, San Francisco fog is famous and it can be rather chilly there in the evenings!
On Saturday, October 22, we had to stay in our room merely because Pieter was writing his presentation for the CEO but we managed to walk in 45 minutes to the Fisherman's wharf again and made a 2 hour trip by boat; via the Bay Bridge to Alcatraz Island.

Google.com/maps

Red dot is where Hilton Hilton San Francisco Union Square is. To the left you can see Alcatraz Island.
We walked back to our hotel, via China Town, the oldest in North America and largest Chinese enclave outside of Asia.
No photos from that trip... later I would take my Dad by boat to Alcatraz Island and got some photos.
Will show that in a future post...

On Monday, October 23, we all flew in seven hours from San Francisco via St. Louis, Missouri to Philadelphia and with a taxi went to the Hyatt Regency hotel in Cherry Hills, New Jersey.
On Tuesday morning Pieter got picked up by a colleague and had his meeting and presentation with the CEO at the Campbell Soup Headquarters, 1 Campbell Place in Camden, New Jersey.
I read while the men met and by 16:00 we went by taxi to the airport for take off to Atlanta and home by 23:00

Yes, our Mauzie girl has been to several States and Countries!

Related link:

My First Trip to California, Santa Cruz | Previous post by me

My First Trip to California, Santa Cruz

Pieter did surprise me with a companion ticket to San Francisco, so I could tag along to Santa Cruz, California.
 For a couple of days, Pieter had to do training at the Pescadero farm for Campbell Soup.

And... my Mauzie girl, the little black & tan Dachshund went with us!

My very first PUMPKIN encounter too, this is near Santa Cruz on October 18, 1983
And of course viewing the famous Pigeon Point Lighthouse in Pescadero between Half Moon Bay and Santa Cruz along the rugged San Mateo coast line...

It is the tallest lighthouse on the West Coast!

PUMPKINS everywhere around...

BRUSSELS SPROUTS...

As the daughter of a market gardener, this was HEAVEN!

It is quite a windy road along the Pacific coast from San Francisco to Santa Cruz...

Santa Cruz, California's natural surroundings looked so different to me!

Our hotel room had the Pacific Ocean View...

Sunrise at 7:00 AM

On October 19, we had breakfast at the Santa Cruz Fisherman's Wharf

From the hotel I also could walk right onto the wharf...

In the distance, under the big seagull, you can see Hotel Dream Inn where we stayed.

Did enjoy my lunch with yummy scallops at the GREENHOUSE restaurant at the FARM together with the manager's wife, Donna Richards.

Bought some small cactus and seed bread... Would have loved to buy some gorgeous large cactus but how to take them back on the plane?

Did walk around at the wharf and viewed the seals...

Seals and brown pelican on the wharf...

Yes, those seals all sleep on those wooden beams!

After work we all gathered at the home of Don & Donna Richards, the farm manager and went out for dinner at Shadowbrook Restaurant in Capitola, CA with its very steep cable car! Click for short video of it.

It is one of the most unique restaurants in the West.
Later I would have dinner here with my Dad... that will be featured in another post!

Stay tuned for our next stay in San Francisco...
Thanks for visiting!