From the rising of the sun to its going down
the Lord's name is to be praised!



Friday, April 17, 2009

Crème Moitié-Moitié!

My sweet husband has some strange ways of communicating. If you know him, you will agree whole heartedly. If you are married to a VanDyk, you are likely living the same reality that I am. I have learned to adapt to some of these ways well, and to others, Dan has been forced to adapt because I go into 'shut down' mode.

Maybe this is a male thing but I am assuming that it is a 'Dan' or a 'VanDyk' thing. I'm not even sure how to describe it...perhaps and example is best.

We could be eating supper and Dan might need the ketchup. Instead of saying “Mel, could you please pass the ketchup?” he will say “Can I have the pickle juice”. I automatically reach for the ketchup, pass it to him and wait for his “yep” to affirm that I got it right. Sounds confusing but I think I've mastered it. I basically reach for whatever is closest to me and if I get it right the first time, I feel quite content, and if I'm wrong it becomes a process of trial and error.

Another thing VanDyk men do, is scream strange things randomly. Out of the blue they will say a new phrase or word that they think is cool, look to each other for confirmation and burst into raucous laughter. They all think it's very funny; I usually have missed the joke. Although, I have been affected slightly by this as I manged to give them a word to get glee from. The word is 'surprise' spoken with a Dutch accent (putting the emphasis on the 'SU', leaving out the first 'r', small emphasis on the 'p', rolling the second 'r' and changing the 's' to a 'zzz' ). It's a satisfying thing to say, and I'll be that you have just tried it and now have a smile on your face. Go ahead, say it! SU-PRRRIZE!

One random thing that Dan used to say while making coffee was “Crème de Moitié-Moitié!”. It used to make me smile and I assumed it was just a made up phrase. However, one day as I was making coffee (and probably spewing the phrase with a grin on my face) I noticed the words on the cream carton! I thought I was seeing things. It turned out, my husband was actually speaking French! WOW! He added a 'de' but that just means he was making it more French, right?

The words no longer appear on the cream carton-they have changed it to 'Crème 10%'. Boring and subsequently, my husband does not shout “Crème 10%”. But I bet, if I pointed out to him that the French side also states 'Toujours Fraîche' he might find some delight in that phrase. Since the lovely 'Crème Moitié-Moitié' is no longer printed on the carton, I do not have the pleasure of hearing it spoken by my husband. Truth be told, I miss it.

Do you have any quirky communication stories to share? Please feel free to leave them in the comment box.

Here is a picture of the old carton:
(Dare I admit, that it took me over 5 years of marriage and 2 years of dating to finally see those words on the carton?!)

11 comments:

Taunya said...

pass the pickle juice....oh right Ketchup! glad you understand him :)you have a way of writing Mel, funny post

Mom Van Dyk said...

The screaming randomly for no apparent reason used to have me worried. Cor started that when he was less than a year old. Funny thing is he only did it in malls and stores, never at home. Now that my kids are grown and I don't have to be in their presence in malls I have no need to hide and pretend that they are not my kids. They seem pretty well adjusted notwithstanding their quirky idiocyncrasies! I can wholeheartedly laugh at them (however I'm still glad that I'm not in their presence when ty let go!)
Great writing Mel!

Anonymous said...

I had such fun reading your post. No quirky stories immediatly come to mind. I do know that my little nephew Aidan certinaly has his funny moments. At Myrtle beach, he called the twins "ladies", and burst out in the car "auntie Ruth, are you kidding me??!" hehe.
I'm am quite assured that living with Dan, never has you complaining of being bored. =)

StaceyN said...

I just totally tried to say...SU - PPRRRIZE!!

Anonymous said...

This world has too few VanDyks. They make work enjoyable, singing fun and never a dull moment with them. I hope our little Olivia has a lot of VanDyk character when she grows up. (Of course I want some of her mother's cvharacter too.) Come to think of it, Olivia has inherited some very good genes!
Marietta

Jen said...

Mel, the first time I read this post I chuckled. Then today, at Justin's parents house I picked up the cream from the fridge and glanced down to see "Creme Moitie Moitie" and burst out laughing! Thanks for sharing!

Laura said...

Great Post Mel! I cannot think of a quirky story at the moment. It is interesting though how things happen. There are times when my kids say things and I think "where in the world did you hear that?" It is people like Dan that makes us remember to make life fun and dwell on the low points.

Anonymous said...

oh mel, what a funny story..it is a vandyk thing all the way:)
Sabrina

Carole said...

haha Vandyks are great. quirky is the right word. Don't know dan but erik is always great for a laugh. when he was here on friday he & mike reminisced about the heads out of the trunk story and everyone was rolling on the floor, even though we've heard it many many times. wasn't dan one of the heads in that one?? ANYWAYS, i linked you to my blog. that ok??
let me know!!

anonymouse :) said...

How, great post Mel! That post just sounded like my husband and already my daughter. Mom VanDyk, I had to laugh that you used to pretend you did not know your own children. Ever since Erik and I started dating I've been forced to pretend I didn't know him.
Rachel

Mark, Linda, Alex, Carsten & Savannah said...

That was a great post Mel! Definitely good for a nice laugh...and yup I had to try out SU-PRIZE as I was reading along...then laughed when you said I'd be trying it ;o)