She scratched her head with a puzzled expression on her face… research? Hmmm… this could be tricky. “How do I find other expats who have created a home that is perfectly paired with their personal belongings and that of the host country,” she asked herself out loud. Looking around, hoping that no one had noticed her sudden outburst, she sat tapping her fingers. Tip tap. Tip tap.
After several more minutes staring out the window with a glazed look across her face, her thoughts began to form into concrete ideas. First, she must find those who had gone before her. But who? Though this appeared to be uncharted waters, she knew instinctively that there had been many before her and many that would come after. This expat creating a new home overseas was not a new thing, but it was to her.
And so she was rallied to begin her search for those who had created the perfect home… a place perfect for their own family… and perhaps she might learn a few tips and tricks before setting out once again on her own path…
PS If you have any links to friends or blogs that you follow that might help with our experiment, please leave them in the comments or e-mail me @ travelingmama@pobox.com Thanks!
The assignment sounds simple enough…find five different types of light sources within your house….and shoot using them. I’m currently in a workshop with photographer Marta Locklear and that was this week’s assignment… it was a little more difficult than it sounded.
The more I shot, the more I realized the importance of light. One of the reasons I NEVER use flash is it flattens light…basically filling in all of the shadows (which is what helps give the photo some drama). Parker helped me out with the shoot…providing I played wii with him at the end of it all. We had a fun time, learned more about lighting and got some good shots all at the same time.
She’s an absolute joy to be with…so full of life. We spent the afternoon today shooting for two things….1. My assignment for my photo workshop required me to shoot various lighting outside…and so we did. 2. This week is school photos…and I can’t bear to let her only school photo be done from school…so we shot for a few hours and had a great time.
The theme at “I heart Faces” is jump for joy. Check out the site for other photos.
In order for us to have a proper experiment, is is only fitting for us to apply the five steps of the Scientific Method. Wouldn’t you agree? And so, our first task must be to Ask A Question. Let us give this ample thought because running head long into a science experiment without a satisfying question will only lead to disappointment and frustration when we discover that the question we began with was not really worth answering in the first place.
I have let these thoughts simmer for a while, waiting and hoping that I could come up with just the right way of ordering my thoughts. But, even now I find myself struggling to focus on just one thing I want to understand through this experiment. I must give up the idea that only one thing can be ascertained by such an experiment and realize that this sort of thing is likely to lead to more questions than answers!
Therefore, I will suggest this question: Is it possible for an expat family to create a home that is both, warm and inviting, in a new country, while combining their own belongings with that of their host country?
What do you all think? Will this be an adequate starting place for us? What questions do you think might be sub-questions we might explore?
Photo: Vintage school chair- thrifted. Traveling Man’s quilt from his childhood and my very favorite book from my own childhood- precious, precious belongings! Vase-West Elm. Converse- a new obsession among the Traveling Tribe!
With only a few weeks left until our departure, we find countless questions swirling around our heads: Are we really moving to Denmark? Will we be able to learn yet another language? Will the kids adjust well to the change? Are we all going to freeze to death??
But do you know what question is burning in our hearts the most? Will Denmark feel like home? Maybe you find that question a little funny since most parents would be asking about the drinking water and where to find the ER, but I guess after living in two other countries you realize that you figure those things out whether you want to or not.
And so we ponder what our new home will be like. We realize that building a home is so much more than simply moving furniture into an empty space and adding curtains. It’s about making empty walls feel safe- a place to come back to that offers rest and relaxation. A home must be a place where the occupants feel the freedom to express themselves, all the while knowing that no matter what happens, what is said, what is achieved or not achieved, there will always be love.
As we begin our experiment here at Traveling Tribe, we would like to answer this burning question: Can we build a home in Denmark?
We will be documenting our experiences, thoughts, tips, and best of all- photos of the process. We hope you will join us!
Now, before you start checking your current location, let me assure you that you have indeed come to Traveling Tribe. No, this Traveling Mama is not hijacking this little Tribe and we will not be seeing much of my papercrafting projects here. But we do have a new series coming that promises to be different and something we hope you will enjoy. I gave a little hint over at Traveling Mama to what might be coming and the sentiment here in the card has yet another clue. Do you all have any guesses to what might be coming? Anything in particular that you would love to see more of on Traveling Tribe?
So there we are with thousands of others pouring into Main Street USA, gasping at Cinderella’s castle, and of course we have to stop for a snapshot. Why I ask? Why do we torture ourselves with terrible lighting (see us all squinting) and crowds of others shoving through our picture (most of them got cropped)? We do it because it is a tradition. And we are all too impatient to wait for the sun to set… either that or wise enough to know that none of us will feel like having our picture taken after standing in long lines all day and having our hair tossed about by the likes of spinning tea cups and flying Dumbos.
So we squeeze in, pat the kids’ hair down, and smile away. And I do not care that our smiles our half hearted and our eyes are almost shut or that we were freezing half to death… because at the end of the day we love this photo. We love that we were there together and we were excited and we were at the Magic Kindgom!
It’s like stepping into a fairy-tale….with everything dressed for winter. From the highest roof top to the cobblestone streets they find themselves covered in a pure white blanket of snow.
Although the landscape has changed, life goes on. Buses still run, school still goes on…and many of the half a million bike riders do their best to navigate the newly formed winter wonderland.
It’s a place unlike any where we have lived. It’s an enchanting land of canals, history, bicycles, cafes, design, creativity, hygge, and the happiest people on the planet….it’s Copenhagen, Denmark and in a few months it will be our home.
–Jack Fussell
In our quest to make a new home in a new country we believe that it is only fitting to eat their food and like it too. Therefore, we, the Traveling Tribe, do solemnly swear to eat one of these fluffy Chocolate kisses every day we live in Denmark… well, at least every other!
xoxo, Traveling Mama
My first thoughts, after wondering why I was up so early on a Saturday, were about telling a story. Who am I as a photographer? What is the story I’m trying to tell?
I feel so inadequate for the journey that I’m on….so ill-equipped to proceed forward, but I must.
So now…I drink coffee…keep browsing, and being inspired by, Flickr and I think about the space ahead.
