So… The past week has essentially been a never-ending flow of new experiences. For the most part, it has been an easy adjustment. There have been moments of cravings… The food here is VERY different… The portions are larger, the food tastes either sweeter or saltier, the menus are very different and the prices are too. Daily expenses are probably the part that I will struggle with the most for the next few months. It will take time to learn.
Monday, 30/10 – After almost 21 hours on planes, and a TWO HOUR interrogation by the Atlanta Border security, which made me miss my flight, I managed to land in Minnesota. Seeing her sit there at the luggage collection was… Pretty indescribable. It felt like every stress up to that point had just vanished. I knew that all the struggles were worth being able to see her smile. Both of us had bad a bad day to that point, but the moment our eyes met, it slowly faded away. After taking some time just to be, we took the light rail to mall of America… First of all, they have an amusement park INISDE the mall… AND a Disney store… AND Lego world… AND an indoor aquarium… The list just goes on… It was extremely overwhelming to see… We had lunch at Twin Cities Grille… Apparently if you order a coke at the restaurants, you get FREE refills. FREE water is also usually offered at the table… The US seems to be all about the free things… I ordered cheese curds, and a burger, and Amanda ordered wild rice soup, which was real yummy.. We ordered a cheesecake to take home, which ended up being one of the best I have tasted so far!! After all the anxiety and stress, I finally got to meet the kids… It was perfect. Alex recognized me from video calls.. Ryker was slightly sceptical, which I had figured would happen… I got to have my first home meal – Spaghetti bolognaise. We ended up in Hudson, Wisconsin, where I got to meet good people – Amanda’s dad, Kerry and Sarah. I immediately felt at home. All the stress of meeting them, for naught. They made me feel very welcome in their home. It did not feel as if I met them for the first time, but as if we were just visiting them again. We slept there for the night.
Tuesday, 31/10 – Amanda and her dad headed out very early on, so I got to look after Ry for the morning. Since he was hesitant the night before, it was rather scary at first, but after less than 20 minutes after they left, he was on top of my chest, cuddled up and asleep. And so the bond was made… We woke up just before 11AM, and Amanda and her dad returned not long after. Since it was Halloween, we went down to Apple Valley, where I finally got to meet her mom, stepdad, Hailey, Mitchell and her grandma!! More good people!! Her mom prepared an amazing dinner… Tater tot Hot dish, which is very similar to cottage pie, just with little potato balls. Very tasty!! I would eat that every week. Not long after I got to experience the first actual trick or treat… It was awesome!! Alex dressed up as a cowgirl, and Ryker was a baby turtle… Too much cuteness to handle… We ended the evening with some good conversation, a few interesting topics being brought up, before heading home for the night.
Wednesday, 01/11 – We woke up rather early for the morning, as the kids needed to go to school. We dropped them off at day care, and then I got to keep Amanda company at work for the day. It was really fun to get to witness her “work persona” in person, instead if the usual talking at her over video calls… We went out for lunch at Arby’s… Roast Beef sandwiches, curly fries and jalapeno poppers. ROAST BEEF SANDWICHES ARE AWESOME!! Also – you get to fill and refill your own cup as often as you want!! I mixed cherry and vanilla Pepsi – Mothgasm explosion!! Afterwards we headed back to NCE for the remainder of the work day, before my first trip to TARGET… Yeah, it is exactly as cool as you think it is… Probably better!! We walked around in Target for a while, before we had to go and pick up the kids from school. Not long after, Alex was picked up for swimming practice. Later that night I FINALLY got to meet Ashley and Sade!! And to the thrift store we went… I pictured people on Mopeds and big bouncers and everything else that Macklemore mentions.. But I was rather disappointed at how awesome they actually are… Everything you could think of was in there… Books, clothing, random Disney things… Yeah… We walked around in the thrift store for over an hour, before finally heading home for the night.
Thursday, 02/11 – Another early-ish morning – School. We headed to NCE early, and stopped by Walmart on the way. Again, I imagined being greeted by the “people of Walmart”, but was rather disappointed at the awesome things they had… The US has OREO breakfast cereal!! -dies- AND I bought a box of scooby snacks!! For humans… Yeah I get why Scooby was so easily bribed by them, they’re delicious!! We also stopped by a Starbucks rival, called Caribou. I will need to do some more testing, but as of now I think they might actually be better!! I went back to NCE with Amanda for the day, but was sent to the cafeteria, because apparently I am very distracting to her ability to work. Because you know, work was super busy… While I was there, I witnessed my first “Minnesota-not-so-nice”, as one of the employees passive-aggressively hinted at a co-worker pissing her off. Left NCE and headed home, where we made stroganoff for dinner, and ended the night with great conversation.
Friday, 03/11 – First morning without the kids, for me, was rather difficult to not immediately wake up to laughs or cuddles, but it also meant that we could sleep in a little, which we kinda did. After heading out of the house, we went to Perkins for breakfast. Okay, I am not even exaggerating – It was the best breakfast that I have ever had. Two fried chicken sliders, two eggs, crispy bacon, and potato hash brown. Most satisfying food I have had in a restaurant so far, since entering the US. Afterwards I decided to head to the library for the day. (I know it sounds Nerdy, but hear me out). They have free WIFI, an endless supply of books, power outlets, private booths, and accents… I kept myself busy for most of the morning, until I got distracted at the bickering of two soccer moms. Imagine an argument between an actual mother and a soon-to-be mother over whether an unborn baby gets stimulation from “story time” for the kids. At first it was very entertaining, to hear how two people could argue for long periods of time, rest, and then continue with the same topic. But after a while the entertainment turned to irritation, as I decided to move to a bench on the opposite side of the building. Amanda picked me up around 12:30, as we headed to Subway for lunch… We shared two subs – a Meatball marinara and a chicken-bacon-ranch. I will eat the second one everyday… Super tasty!! We went home afterwards for a restful afternoon and a peaceful evening. I got to witness my first full-fledge snowfall just before sunset. It was absolutely beautiful!! Everything that you imagine it would be. I felt like a child when I saw it. Quite literally could not contain myself!! #WorthTheWait!! Amanda made us Spaghetti for dinner… It is so nice to know that I am living with someone who loves pasta as much as I do!!
Saturday, 04/11 – After a quiet morning, we headed to Hudson again for the day. On the way, we grabbed breakfast at Taco Bell! Any person not American should try Taco Bell… Yep. We arrived in Hudson, and had a #LazyDay afternoon, watching movies and talking. Amanda’s dad needed help with a bed that needed to be transported to his house, but we had lunch first – Chilli. Yeah, the kinda chilli that you see in the movies, with the cook-offs and stuff. Really good, really tasty. Afterwards we went to the house where the bed was… WOW! What a house! – Underground tunnel, mini cinema, wine tasting room, etc. I would get lost if left alone in that house… With relative ease we managed to move the bed through the house, and on the back of the pick-up. We dropped off the bed and headed home for the night. When we got home, Amanda brought out her Music collection, and showed me just how diverse her knowledge is. It was really fun to just sit and listen to music with her. It felt “right”.
Sunday, 05/11 – Sunday was meant to be restful from the moment we woke up. The kids came back around 11AM, and Alex headed to her grandad’s not long after that. We just relaxed for most of the day, writing, watching Netflix, etc etc… Amanda made stuffed chicken with bacon, kale and peppers for dinner. My best meal overall so far!! On Sunday night we went to meet some of Amanda’s co-workers’ at Doolittle’s woodfire grill for a few drinks and some pleasant conversation. I even got to meet someone who was ALMOST as big of a Disney fan as I am. It was fun to just sit and talk with people, to see what people are like here when they aren’t trying to be reserved somehow.
In the first week there have been endless moments of wow’s and OH’s and WTF’s. Life in the US is very much different than life in SA. And although I have settled in really well, it will take time to get used to it. Everything is new. You have to fill your own car with gas, you have to check yourself out with your groceries. Very different than what anyone in South Africa would be used to. Trying not to die every time we drive on the roads is a mission in itself. It is also very strange to not know where exactly you are at any point in time. Right now I can move between our home, Target and the fire station. It will take time to get used to the roads, the food, the people and the culture. But for right now, I am just embracing the feeling of being home, in every sense of the word.
