Kitten's Homeschool is hosting Fun Monday and thinks it would be neat to hear about the story behind our homes and the road we live on. It doesn't have to be historical, maybe just something that stands out.
Anyway there is nothing historical about my house except the town where I live which had been the battle field of Napoleon, Waterloo.
My house story is rather short. After 4 years of marriage and the baby's arrival, we decided to buy a piece of land outside Brussels where we lived in a flat. It had to be not too far from our working places and we started to look around on each weekend. From all suburbs we visited around Brussels, we liked Waterloo the best. It was a cute little town with a lot of farmland around and not far at all, only 15 km (9 miles) from our offices.
The first one we saw we immediately felt in love with but then we thought we have to look at other available places too because there could be something nicer. But nothing really pleased us and we returned to the first one we had seen. It was not big, rather small and we could have had a bigger one for the same price, but we wanted this one and nothing else.
It was in a very quite street with a big corn field behind a little wood and a field with cows ! Without hesitating we bought it. I don't tell you the troubles we had then with the house building, not so the house itself but with the basement and with all the necessary installations. Instead of 6 months delay to move in, we finally moved in after one year and that was in 1975.
Our street still is very calm and our house still looks the same. The only things which have changed are the surroundings. No field behind our garden anymore, but houses, the little wood was reduced to make space for other house buildings. The cows had disappeared and on the field other houses had been built too.
I am quite sad about this but then I tell myself that for 30 years I enjoyed the corn field behind our house which was an ideal playground for the children and also the cow field which had a hill where during winter the children could go sliding with the farmer's agreement. We had had a country life while being very close to Brussels. Today Waterloo had become an international little town and has all shopping malls, shops or boutiques you want. I don't have to go to Brussels anymore for shopping.
Our house hasn't changed only the bushes, trees and the hedge grew a lot !
The backyard. This wheeping willow had been a tiny little stick not even 1 m high ! See the result in 32 years ! There behind had been the cornfield.
Our street towards Waterloo center where the cows had been.
and on the other side
MANIC MONDAY
I never learned Carols in english. I know them in German and french. Not even "silent night" besides that it is followed by "holy night". But my favourite carol is this :
Silent Night ....
and it is understandable for everybody !
Silent Night is one of my favorites, too. Honestly, there are not many Christmas carols that I don't love!
ReplyDeletethat house could be in any neighborhood around here.
ReplyDeleteAnd the trees and the winter naked shrubs.
I discovered several years ago the lyrics for Silent Night fit almost perfectly over Metallica's Enter Sandman. Who'da thunk it?
ReplyDeleteIan
I love most of the carols too. Those kittys look especially snazzy singing them! :)
ReplyDeleteLooks like a beautiful and gorgeous area to live Gattina.
ReplyDeleteAn interesting post Gattina.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletethat's me deleting above. The link I left didn't work.
ReplyDeleteWill try again.
There is a photo of our home, you must have missed it.
Here's the 2nd try for leaving a photo link
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Your home sounds lovely and it's so cool that you built it yourselves.
ReplyDeleteDouce nuit, sainte nuit !
ReplyDeleteDans les cieux ! L'astre luit.
Le mystère annoncé s'accomplit
Cet enfant sur la paille endormi,
C'est l'amour infini !
I swear that's what the cats are singing!
Happy MM!
Oh my....i can't see a video but the meowing is crazy! Cool!
ReplyDeleteThat's a long time in one place! The longest I've spent in one house is about 15 years. :)
ReplyDeleteYou have a nice house and great memories! I use to hate a wheeping willow when I was growing up! My mom loved them as a switch. OUCH!
ReplyDeleteGattina, how did you get your cats to sing all together?
ReplyDeleteIt's really quite amazing to look back and see how the neighborhood has grown - right? We have been in our house for 22 years - and not a thing has changed! Things have changed drastically 13 miles in each direction -- but right here on the lane - not a THING has changed!
ReplyDeleteMy cats gathered around looking for the NEW kitties.
ReplyDeleteGattina, what has developed into a neighborhood around you looks lovely. Looks like you made a good choice for a suburb to live in. Enjoy...
ReplyDeleteThat's a nice story, love with the house at first sight. And still there, 32 years on. It must have been a really great place for your kids to grow up.
ReplyDeleteYour kitties sing so nicely Gattina. I enjoyed it very much. Have a great day and MM. :)
ReplyDeleteKitty music...the universal language!
ReplyDeleteHappy MM!
HO!HO!HO!
o<]:-D)}
bonsoir Gattina!
ReplyDeleteVive le froid! Il commence Ă faire froid depuis hier mais c'est un froid sec comme Ă la montagne et pas humide! Donc sympa si on est bien couvert. On devait avoir de la neige mais on attend toujours...
Sarkokenstein a une aventure amoureuse avec Carla Bruni ex mannequin et chanteuse à présent! Il s'est fait prendre en photo à Dysneyland avec elle! Pfff ce mec se prend pour un people! C'est un Mickey oui!
Great story!! It is sad to see the land around where you live slowly disappear to make room for more development. :(
ReplyDeleteWaterloo - I bet there is TONS of history in that town.
ReplyDeleteSo sad to see the cornfields turn to homes.
Dreaming What Ifs...
Now THAT is a terrific rendition of Silent Night. My dogs are looking at the computer and licking their lips! Happy Meow-nic Monday
ReplyDeleteYour house isn't all that different from what you will find on the coast here, it's very nice and neat.
ReplyDeleteLooks like it's still a very nice place to live :-)
ReplyDeleteThat xmas carol is really funny.
Lifecruiser.com
Your neighborhood looks much more like the neighborhoods here in the States look than I would have thought. I love the weeping willow!
ReplyDeleteWhat a neat place - I wish I could say I'd lived somewhere long enough to watch the trees grow!
ReplyDeleteI would miss the cows, too.
It sounds such a lovely place to live. They seem to build houses on any open land but at least you had your view for all those years.
ReplyDeleteWe had a Willow tree in our last house but the people who bought the house off us had to cut it down because the roots were causing a problem. I'm so glad we didn't have to make that decision as the whole family loved that tree.