Crazy Days and Sleepless Nights...

Be Careful What you Wish For...

2009-10-17T22:38:00.000+02:00

So... the move On-Post hasn't exactly been what I hoped for.
Some of the neighbors are downright unfriendly. I have never seen that on an installation before. It feels rank related, but who knows?
A few are friendly-ish. Not sure if they will become actual "friends" or not. We'll see!

K has made a good friend - Also a new kid on the street,but she's older so they don't get to see each other at school, and next year she will be at a different school.
BC has made a friend as well - another new kid on the street, but he's kind of fickle and is sometimes mean to him. BC doesn't care and is very defensive of him because he's the first, and only friend, he's had in awhile.

The other kids on the street? Yeah - that's been the downside. They have a "clique" they formed because they all arrived here about the same time, or their parents work together,etc, etc... They were nice at first, but have decided Twinz don't fit in and now they just pretty much torture them.
Every day is drama, drama.
Yes, the parents are aware and in actual conversations about it - have basically said 'Oh well. Some kids just don't fit in'.
Seriously.

We are enjoying the closeness and convenience to everything. Twinz love getting to sleep late every morning and get home earlier in the afternoon. We see Steve more, and that's nice. Sort of...

The size of the house is sorta driving me nuts and I don't think THIS house will ever get unpacked either!
LOL...

Aaaahhhh....

2009-08-15T18:07:00.000+02:00

It's amazing to me just how much more money we have now that we only put gas in the cars, like, once a month. :D
And while I thought I would miss shopping in Pegnitz and Nuremburg - I have quickly learned to LOVE Sulzbach and Amberg. Plus, they're close and I save gas... which leaves more money to shop - it's a win/win! LOL.
I've become lazy, though...

Before - I used to just jump in the car and drive all those hours everyday, all over the Garrison without a second thought. Because I had to. Now that I live here? I barely leave the house. It takes some serious motivation to get me Off-Post or anywhere besides Amberg and Sulzbach.

All this time at home - and i'm still not close to being unpacked. I have no idea where anything is?

But life is good. Twinz are happy. Steve didn't get sent for vacation to the Ukraine - but he did get tasked out for 30 days an hour away. That part sucks.
He hasn't spent more than 10 days in actual Command of his soldiers.
I'm adjusting OK, though. I have a bit of a mess to clean up in our Family Group, but everyone I have met has been fantastic and I think we will all be back on track soon!

Can't wait for school to start! I'm so ready for "me" time!!!!

We Did It!

2009-07-15T08:58:00.000+02:00

We moved to Post.

Steve made the promotion list, assumed Command, went to the Ukraine, and we moved ourselves to Post - all within a 3 week period. Holy. WOW!

Never again.

Move ourselves, that is. What a nightmare! Steve's job gave us 5 days to move out of Auerbach, into the new house and then clear the old house. My plan was - to paint the new house first, then move things in room by room. All nice and organized! Yeah - right.
Got SOME painting done - thanks to my friend and painting fairy, Jennifer, who came over during the nights and did the downstairs for us. I still need to finish the kitchen and the kids rooms...someday.
A few things got moved over and in their place, but for the most part, Steve went with the trash bag method - Laundry(clean and dirty mixed!)was stuck in white trash bags, real trash went into black trash bags, everything else went into blue ones.
Plus a lot of plastic storage totes he bought.

A few boxes were used, but that really upset me. Steve insisted we keep our moving boxes from when we came over so we could use them if he ever talked me into moving - yet he claims it was too much trouble to put them together again...One more thing that must be taken care of!

Honestly? If this house ever gets unpacked and put together, before we move again, it will be a miracle!!!

The new house is OK - Smaller than the current house and no storage. BUT - there's no 4 hrs on the road every day. Steve can pop in from work. There are yards and playgrounds and kids for Twinz to play with! Neighbors who speak to me and check on us. The school is,literally, out the back door....

I think this is going to be a good thing!

Bad Blogger

2009-06-25T17:25:00.002+02:00

Yes. I totally know how out of date this blog is....
No good reason - LOTS of excuses, though.
The biggest being a severe lack of time and too much to tell...

However. We are moving soon! Yeah, yeah - we DID just move 15 mos ago and NO - I haven't totally unpacked yet, but this time it is On-Post. So, sometime next week , we will be saying Tschuss! to Auerbach and GruB Gott to Vilseck...And I will be getting about 4 hrs in my day back.

And, hopefully, time to get everyone caught up here with our Craziness!

Chelle

Rest in Peace, Precious Angel...

2009-05-03T02:13:00.002+02:00

God Bless Elizabeth Ann Stafford - Born May 1, 2009.
3 LBS, 11 OZ.
Died May 1, 2009

Please grant peace and comfort to her loving parents - Johnna and Jeremy. And to the rest of their family and friends in this time of sorrow.

www.ourjourneywithbabystafford.blogspot.com

God Bless Them All and Give Them Peace...

2009-03-05T00:09:00.008+01:00

I've had babies on my mind a lot lately...
As with most deployments - in the months after there is a bit of a "baby" boom. One of my neighbors recently had a precious new little one and the neighbors on each side of me are expecting. I'm excited for both of them, but just a bit more for the one who is expecting twins...
I SO remember those days! Hearing her news has found me reminiscing quite a lot about that time. One day I even found myself feeling a bit envious - at which point I thought I needed a psych referral because really? No way! could I ever go through THAT again...Especially not at my age.

Anyway. The past few weeks I have been talking to another friend about infertility. She already has a daughter but very much wants another child and it's not going so well for them. Having been through it not only myself, but having been through it here in Germany ,specifically, - she has a lot of questions for me and I hope I am able to help her as she goes through this process. It's a very difficult and emotionally draining journey that I wouldn't wish on anybody - but that I hope works out for her and her family.

You know - you read the news and the hear the stories. If you didn't know any better, you might think that becoming pregnant and having a baby is a simple thing. It's SO not. And just because you DO get pregnant - doesn't mean you always get to bring home a baby. And THAT is the hardest of all. I was blessed to bring home 2 of 4 - and I love them more than life itself - but it is the two we didn't get to bring home that I frequently find my heart aching for...
If you get a chance - check out the following blog: www.ourjourneywithbabystafford.blogspot.com

This couple and their enduring faith is just incredible! It is the blog of Johnna and Jeremy from my hometown. Johnna is pregnant with their first child. This is a much longed for pregnancy that has become heartbreaking. During an ultrasound it was discovered that Johnna's baby is missing some vital organs that will not allow it to survive outside her womb. The baby is thriving inside her, but the most they can hope for is a few precious hours together after delivery. Or a miracle.
Johnna and Jeremy believe in miracles. They have made many hard decisions over the past few months. The biggest, though, is their decision to leave it all up to God's will and to "parent" their baby as much as possible during the pregnancy.

During pregnancy - we long for the day of birth so that we can finally meet and hold the life we nourished within. Remember all the hopes and dreams we had for our unborn babies? The plans we made? I don't know her personally - but my heart breaks for Johnna. Can you imagine dreading your baby ever being born? Knowing that so long as that precious angel is inside your body - it is alive and well, but the day it is born is the day it will die?

This blog post today came about after reading Johnna's latest update. I started crying not too far into it - when she is telling about how she and Jeremy didn't like the caskets they had to choose from when they were planning the baby's funeral, so Jeremy has decided to make one himself for their baby.

It's so hard to comprehend - While my expectant friends and neighbors are all planning nurseries and putting together cribs - Johnna and Jeremy are making funeral arrangements and Jeremy is putting together a casket...

This family is amazing. And brave beyond belief. Their faith is SO strong....Please pray for them and think of them. Follow their story and offer any support you may feel called to give. And while you're at it? Keep all the other expectant parents in your prayers also - pray for safe, uncomplicated deliveries and healthy babies and Thank God for those blessings as well!

Let it snow, Let it snow, Let it snow.....

2009-02-27T03:18:00.001+01:00

I didn't get my "White Christmas". The one I have dreamed of since I was old enough to even understand what that phrase meant... Last year, I got a White Easter and a White Thanksgiving - but Christmas was denied me.

I was a good girl - but apparently Santa didn't think I was good ENOUGH...That's OK, though. GOD loves me and answers my prayers -

And I Got SNOW!!!!!

Off and on throughout January , but then it would melt...NOW - lots of it for most of February! What more could a Southern girl ask for her birthday?! :D

My friends and neighbors do not appreciate all of this frosty beauty. They are tired of it and crave heat and sunshine. I think they would appreciate it more if they lived in Alabama for, say, 10 years or more....

My world is beautiful right now. Clean, white and pristine....Each flake exquisite in it's uniqueness and HOW amazing that God can create such infinite designs?

Also - All of this icy bounty also means it is not HOT in this house and that is the BEST present of all! :D

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Sorry!

2009-01-14T14:13:00.002+01:00

Yes, this blog is seriously out of date. I have no good excuses...
I DO have about 12 updates in the "drafts" folder going back to October that need to be finished and posted and I WILL get to that. Someday.....

Hopefully, soon!

The Times-They are a Changin'!

2009-01-10T08:52:00.003+01:00

And I believe this is going to be a good thing!

It's time for reset, both at Steven's work and in the community. Change can be difficult and,sometimes, un-welcome. I have much hope that this won't be one of those times...
As a matter of fact, It's been a long time since I have felt THIS hopeful . This excited about a new year!
So - come ON ,change, already!!! Let's get a move on and get this show on the road! OR
from our former life...

Stand in the door, Airborne!
:D

Garmisch Holiday, December 2008

2008-12-15T09:58:00.002+01:00

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Winter Holiday

2008-12-13T02:06:00.007+01:00

Steven went on leave and we needed downtime - so off to Garmisch to the Edelweiss Resort we went...
Probably wouldn't have been my first choice for our last vacation as a whole family this year, but it was one of those places the kids and I have been that Steven hasn't and so it's where HE wanted to go...

We originally had a second trip to London arranged, but with my knee injury - slushing around on foot in rain, snow, sleet, and ice going from place to place and using the underground - didn't seem like the healthiest thing to do.

Edelweiss was beautiful! Lots of snow and it continued on through the week. The Resort was decked out for Christmas - so perfect! We couldn't have asked for anything more...
Finally! We got to rest - sleep in late, go swimming, hang out in the jacuzzi, and play in the snow. We ate too much, shopped too much, and enjoyed the scenery. We took a horse drawn carriage ride thru Garmisch one night and got a chance to see some of the older neighborhoods and all the Christmas lights downtown. Steven even got to go to the Spa and get a much needed massage...

The day before we left, we took the train up to Zugspitze. Steven hadn't ever been there either, and Twinz and Mom had only seen it during the summer...
The train up during Winter is a different journey - no scenic stops. It was also VERY crowded with skiers - I thought it was neat that they use racks to hang their skis on the OUTSIDE of the train. We arrived at Sonnen Alpine with several dozen skiers and snowboarders. Where during the Summer - it was all walking trails and you could explore - NOW it was one big slope and we had to watch out to keep from getting skied over...

It was SO, breathtakingly beautiful! A world of snowy peaks as far as the eyes could see... We walked around , but kept sinking into the snow. Needed to take some pics because I wanted one as our Christmas card. I approached the first skier that looked friendly and asked "Sprechen sie English?" and got a "Nyet! Russky..."and a big smile.
Um ok...New one for me. Time to try sign language...she got it and even managed to take 2 pictures for us. Luckily, Steven has worked with enough Slavic troops that he was able to thank her in Russian and say Goodbye...

I didn't like the pictures she took all that much, though, so later I approached a lady who had ridden the train up with us ("Sprechen sie Deutsch"? THIS time...) - she DIDN'T speak German, but she was from Cyprus and spoke perfect English. She also took good pictures and I was able to return the favor.

We stayed for quite a while climbing,playing, sliding,and freezing...Then we took the cable car up to the peak. It was a great view of all the ski action going on down below! Once we got up top - we grabbed some postcards to send from the peak and then went up the stairs to go outside...

HOLY. WOW!
You could barely get the door open because of the wind - Bryan Colby actually got trapped when the door slammed back on him. It was SO cold and SO windy - you couldn't take a breath. Kailey weighs next to nothing and we were kind of afraid we'd lose her...

BUT- the VIEW! INCREDIBLE....We had only been up there when it was cloudy and this day? Not a cloud ANYWHERE....There's just no words to accurately describe it - thank goodness for photos. Literally? It felt like we were on top of the world. We spent time on both the German and Austrian side...
Finally, half-frozen, we went downstairs to the cafe for Cake and Cocoa...yum! Then it was time to catch the cable car (from the peak this time) for the descent back down to the car . As usual, a breathtaking view, only this time with the lake frozen and sunset as well...

Tired and half frozen, we went back to the hotel for dinner and more time in the pool,watched TV, and just enjoyed a peaceful last night. The next morning, we enjoyed our last buffet breakfast, checked out, and headed off downtown to shop and enjoy the Christmas Markt...

Which was tiny and disappointing. But we had a GREAT time shopping elsewhere in town! I found Kailey's Christmas dress at this neat store that had a slide the kids could use to get from the main floor to the children's section - it ended in a ball pit. Unfortunately, it started to rain and we got soaked a long way from where we parked the car. So we were all kind of miserable. We were hungry by then to and the only place open for dinner was Pizza Hut. The pizza was 'ick' but the place was warm and dry and that's what mattered...

We left and drove down thru Innsbruck, Austria. It was dark - but beautiful. One of the most scenic drives we've ever done.
We took that route to Stuttgart for a wedding we had been invited to.

The plan was to blog the details of THAT nightmare - but - I have already told this story SO many times - I just can't anymore.
The ending to the story is that we spent almost a thousand dollars to go stay in Stuttgart overnight in the worst hotel ever, plus expenses for special wedding clothes and what not....and
DID. NOT. GO. TO. THE. WEDDING....

Just spent a miserable night and drove home the next day.

And that's how we ended our Winter vacation!

Time flies...

2008-11-29T01:56:00.002+01:00

When you're on the "Crazy Train...aka "Our life"!

Poor Steve! Guy comes home and literally drops right into the schedule that the Twinz and I keep...and he's tired! Turns out it's a bit much for him...

He got home at 2AM that morning and hasn't hardly slept since. The Boy Scout Regatta ( Colby won at least 1 race!), Kailey's dance rehearsals, then the dance recital, karate, school, then basketball, re-integration, back to work, Thanksgiving,etc, etc....

BUT - in a few days we're off to Garmisch for a winter holiday, so he can sleep then!

From my side of the house - I got a WHITE Thanksgiving! Wahoo!!! I have been waiting forever for the snow, it seems. It's so beautiful!!! We had our fabulous dinner at Cindy's and that weekend - we were invited over to our next-door neighbor's for some social time. It was SO great! They are very nice and it was great to finally meet them.

Kailey's recital went really well, snow and all. I only took a few pics, because the lighting on stage was out, so you couldn't really see...
There were professional pics done - and they are breathtaking! But no disc available so I can't put them up, just yet.

Maybe soon!

Thanksgiving

2008-11-28T21:23:00.002+01:00

NORMALLY? My LEAST favorite holiday....
However, Steven just got home and Twinz wanted to have a 'family' dinner like on TV and the movies.
OK. FINE. I bought all the ingredients for their favorite foods.

Then my friend Cindy invited us to come over and have dinner at her house. WAHOO! That was a first...I didn't think Steven would go for it, but he was excited, so that was the plan. I told Cindy I would get the turkey if she would cook it - I would cook the rest.

Only... I got sick. REALLY, really sick...well Kailey got it first, then Bryan Colby. I was hoping it would pass me by - I can handle almost anything except vomiting and nausea. No luck. I not only got it - it stayed for a few days.
Thanksgiving morning - I told Steven how to cook some of the easier dishes, and he prepared to take the Twinz and go to Cindy's alone...
Later on, I had an energy spurt and some domestic demon took over - so I got up, went downstairs, and ended up cooking the rest of the food.

We made it to Cindy's, although JUST in time for dinner and had a WONDERFUL time! I didn't eat anything, but noone minded. Twinz ate enough for about 4 people! I DID swipe one of Cindy's addictive chocolate brownies...Couldn't help myself - they're to die for!

After dinner, we took Twinz and went to see Madagascar 2 - if anything it was even funnier than the first. The perfect end to a pretty good day...
Steven home safe, wonderful time with new friends - we are very blessed indeed.

Now, if only I just felt better.
:(

Welcome Home!

2008-11-19T14:39:00.005+01:00

Photos from the night Steven (finally!) made it home. YES - they are on the blurry side...In my defense, even the image stabilizer couldn't handle how badly I was shaking!
LOL...

There's no place like home...

2008-11-15T03:14:00.000+01:00
...and Steven is HOME!

it took FOREVER...

We left when we were originally supposed to. Got there a bit early. The buses were late. Made the kids sit in the dark in a parking lot to wait for them, not because we necessarily thought we could see him or he could see us - but because at THAT point - we would know he was actually HERE and how long a wait we would have before we could see him.

Vs. - just going to the meeting place and waiting and not knowing. Bryan was FURIOUS! He did NOT want to be wait in the car. About the time I decided to kill him and dump his body in the pond - we saw flashing lights and tall headlights coming at us through the fog.

THEY had ARRIVED! Relief, and tears, and adrenaline kicked in all at once. The only way to describe Bryan and Kailey was awed. They just had no idea it would be like that. And Bryan was glad we had waited...

We arrived at the meeting place after midnight and hung out until one of our neighbors made the announcement we had been waiting for - "Here they are!". The doors opened and in they came.

As usual - I had no idea which one was Steven - he looks the same as 85% of his co-workers. Usually, I just sit back and wait for him to find me...Not this time.
They came straight in, and when they turned to face us - he was right THERE! Directly in front of me , in the front row, not 5 ft. away....He looked up, directly into my eyes, and smiled! He NEVER smiles in formation...

And the Twinz went wild!!! Daddy was HOME!
Then. He was ours.

We got home just around 2 AM. I'm here at the computer while Father and Son are trying to build a wooden boat, without the necessary tools, for a Boy Scout race very early in the morning. Kailey has gone to bed, reluctantly, but tired. She also has dance rehearsal very early, but she knows she will get her "Daddy time" before the next time she has to go to bed...

We are all exhausted, but I think, for tonight, if we ever get to bed? It might not be a sleepless night at all.....

Can't. Take. Much. Mooore.......

2008-11-14T12:52:00.001+01:00
AGH!!!!!

This whole "hurry up and wait" thing is just ridiculous...Even the 82nd wasn't THIS bad.

FIRST - the call came "Wheels Up - home in a few hours" - wahoo!
Stay up all night, panicking, getting ready...

THEN - the next call "bad weather, flight diverted to another country. Be here early in the morning..." Geezz...., but OK. More time to get stuff done and get some sleep.
(Could have slept later, except Bryan Colby woke up at O-dark-30 , came running into my room angry and screaming "You didn't go get Daddy!!! Why'd you leave Daddy!?!?!" Yes. I DID explain it to him at midnight when I woke him up, had him walk 2 floors up to go to the bathroom, change his clothes, and go to bed...)

NEXT morning - another call "Wheels up - they are IN the air! Home by lunchtime - be here". Um...sure. Good news, finally, and I have a bit more time to get a few things done...

Got myself squared away and dressed, got the kids dressed - which was NOT easy with Bryan Colby hollering " My Daddy's coming home" and bouncing off the walls. Was moving right along and about to walk out the door...

When the phone rang. Again - "Yeah, they never made it off the ground. Still in that country. Stand by indefinately, we may ,or may not let you know when to be here..."

Huh? Seriously? Now what was I supposed to do? I actually had a handful of errands that I needed to get done - but didn't want to get stuck too far away, just in case....Couldn't finish cleaning because I didn't want to get dirty. Didn't even feed the kids lunch until very late because I didn't want to have to get them undressed...

VERY....FRUSTRATING...

Then HE called...My heart smiled. He was in Germany ( finally!), but very far away to the North and they had to wait for transportation back down here. This was going to take several hours, but he hoped to be home by tonight. Yeeessss.....

Finally. THE phone call. They were leaving, be ready to meet up with them by 11:30 PM...

Thank You, Lord!!! It's almost over...

Not getting it done...

2008-11-13T20:09:00.000+01:00
So tonight was the LAST night of craziness in my schedule with no Daddy help.

It was going to be tricky, time wise, but I had the schedule squared away down to the minute. The best laid plans....

Kids did not go to school, had to leave early for dance class because I had forgotten that I needed to bring food for Book Club. Thought I'd just grab it all during dance class...
ONLY - our Commissary isn't open on Wednsdays! UGH!!!

Had to book it Graf. to their comissary, which kind of worked out because I needed balloons for "homecoming" and Steven needed some new jeans that fit. Cool.

It would have been. If the Jeep had not decided to blow UP on me just as I got thru the checkpoint!!! Here I was - Kailey was in Vilseck and her class was only an hour, I was 30 minutes away in Graf. (with Bryan), the car is steaming/smoking and dead, I had NO cell. phone, no purse, and NO contact numbers...

*sniff*

I was rescued by a cute, young SGT who is a mechanic. He loaned me his phone, and kept me sane while I tried to figure out the game plan...He looked at my car, he followed me to the Car Care Center to drop it off, he took me to the rental place to try and get another car ( they were closed) and then helped me deal with the Car Care Center...

MY HERO!

I am a blessed girl. I just happened to have the numbers of a woman whose daughters are in Kailey's dance class. I also happened to have PTSA sign-in papers with this one number of a person who could help me out in Vilseck by calling another friend in the Book Club to give her a "heads up"....Did I mention that we only meet once a month and not only should I provide food as one of the facilitators, but I also had the keys to the bldg. where we meet?

AND! One of the spouses from Steven's work just happened to be coming thru THAT gate a bit behind me and stayed to help out. She THEN drove me to Vilseck just in time for my Book Club meeting....where my Angel friend, Nancy, agreed to get me and the kids home ....Also, My Book Club girls were just what I needed to soothe my stressed out soul. I knew they would....

The next morning my Angel neighbor, Natalie, took me back in to Post so I could get a rental - very nice, loaded Mercedes that I am quickly getting addicted to...Unfortunately, it took most of the day to get it all taken care of and so - another day lost.

I don't even CARE about the Jeep at this point!

Soon!

2008-11-10T20:02:00.001+01:00
The Daddy will be home soon!!!

We are ready, house is NOT...Weeks of being unable to walk have left this house looking like a condemned building with vagrants living in it...
Not quite what I wanted my Boyo to come home to.

Not quite what ANYONE should come home to, really, but especially not after one of these vacations.

I have so much I have GOT to get done - so why I am I blogging?

Tschuss!

German Dr.'s are funny...

2008-11-07T08:40:00.004+01:00
Who knew?

SO. After a summer of ignoring the injuries pretty successfully, I finally gave in to the ever increasing pain in my knee and went to the clinic. The clinic gave me something to help deal with the pain and referred me to a German Ortho/Trauma surgeon at a local hospital.

Very nice guy - for an Orthopod/Trauma God. Personable, friendly - doesn't spend much time with his American counterparts, apparently. Anyway... He sent me for tests to see what was causing me all this trouble, before we schedule me for surgery.

Yeah, right! Like I have time for that. I told him right away surgery wasn't happening until at least January because my schedule between now and then was just too busy. I think he thought I was being funny! No...

So the tests came in - bony debris and necrosis behind the patella and small tears along the ACL and inner meniscus. The ACL , if given a chance, can heal on it's own. The meniscus can't be fixed and won't heal, and the debris and necrosis could only be "washed out" with saline. The surgery would probably put me in more pain for awhile.

No thanks! So this Dr. has agreed to let me try and heal on my own. I now have referrals for pain management, physical therapy, and a brace. Which the U.S. Dr.'s will get around to getting for me...sometime.
The funny part? Herr Doktor says." And so - you must REST to heal. This you can do. You must do no running, no walking, no stairs. Just stay down for a few weeks - maybe by Christmas".

HA! Ha,ha,ha,ha,......Yeah. Let's see....between the 2 steep, narrow stair cases in my HOUSE, and the fact that, on-post, even HANDICAP parking is nowhere near the entrance to ANYWHERE - that's just NOT gonna happen! Even if my well-meaning husband DID say he would take care of everything, so I could stay in bed....Someday....IF and WHEN he ever gets home.....
BUT - it was a good idea, anyway.

Trick or Treat!!!

2008-11-04T21:57:00.007+01:00

In our German neighborhood it's not just the classic greeting - they mean it!

The kids had the day off school for a teacher workday, so we got to hang out, decorate the 'yard', and carve pumpkins. This was the first year that Bryan and Kailey ACTUALLY carved their pumpkins themselves and I have to say - they did a REALLY good job! Very impressed. Now , if only they would learn to scoop the 'ick' out themselves as well - Mom would be even happier....

It took them weeks of on-line browsing to pick out costumes. Kailey - Miss "I don't do scary costumes or go in stores where scary costumes might be present" picked out a mummy costume, of all things. And Bryan picked a really neat "Man-eating Shark". Both were great. Bryan had a hard time keeping the shark mouth covering on because he was hot. Kailey's seemed too 'generic' so I spent the night before soaking real bandages in black tea to wrap her up a but more. They ended up trying to come unwrapped and trailing her - but somehow it made her seem even more authentic..

We put our candy out in a painted Halloween tub and as soon as it got dark, we caught up with our neighbors and off we went. Here in Auerbach - we have 30 townhouses that are American housing in a really nice, affluent, German neighborhood. Mom decided Twinz didn't need to explore this time and so we only went to our military neighbors houses.

The Germans LOVE Halloween, especially when there are American houses to go to because they like our candy better, according to a friend. We got swamped with kids! Little ones, Big ones....The little ones are precious - they get dressed up and try their English out. They are very polite and say 'danke'. The big ones? not so much....

The older kids don't wear costumes except for a rare few, one of who just put a party bag on his head. They carry around large tote bags for candy and watch carefully to see what and how much you put in. One boy didn't like the candy I had in my hand so he waited until I dropped it in his bag, to reach over and take more out of my candy tub....
They rarely said "danke" - just "tschuss" ( goodbye) if they felt like it.
One thing that was a first for me and it took me a bit to figure it out was the odd smell that began after a while...It was incense. Many of the kids carried it with them as they went around. I'm guessing it is a custom along the lines of warding off evil spirits, maybe?

Then the night became kind of scary...

My neighbors had warned me that the local kids "trick" the houses if you are not home or just don't answer the door - toothpaste, soap, eggs on doors and windows. This night they added throwing canned goods at houses and lighting firecrackers and "Black Betty's" and throwing them.

One kid threw a lit one at a door just before Bryan and Kailey got to it - they didn't even notice it lit on the grund, but Kailey walked right over it just about the time I remembered that the cloth bandages attached to her body , trailing on the ground - were flammable...

Her guardian Angels were on duty,though, so it was all good.

The noise was frightening for the little ones and very often you would hear crying and screaming as some would go off...
...and I can only imagine what the reactions were to the firecrackers going off in the neighborhood of 28 men who, in the past 2 weeks ,returned from 15 months in a combat zone...
I didn't turn out the lights or quit answering the door until almost 10 PM and made sure it had been quiet for awhile, first....Still, the next day my neighbor Jason said he ran off some boys who were trying to set fire to some decorative pumpkins I had put out next to the driveway.
Geeezzzzz......

Bryan Colby

2008-10-26T08:17:00.007+01:00

I haven't posted too much about the kids lately. About how they are doing individually, at any rate...
Bryan is struggling here, a bit. He's very angry...I don't know. He says he likes it here, but he acts out constantly. Oh! My boy is still very sweet and loving.Good in heart and kind. He just gets easily frustrated.. Sometimes, I think he's just too msart for his own good and a childs''life" bores him...

He hasn't made any real friends, but then, he never does. He's content to just be in Kailey's world and that is enough for him. Unfortunately, the kids in his class don't get that and so he is "different" to them. Not good for a 3rd Grade boy who just wants to be left alone.

Bryan played soccer again this season, but Kailey didn't - so his heart wasn't in it. He likes karate pretty well, but it's competition with Kailey and so he gets easily frustrated. He's very good, he just doesn't realize it...

He is a Bear Scout this year - his 1st year in Boy Scouts ( finally!). His own thing that he gets to do that doesn't involve his sister. He loves, loves, LOVES his Den-master, Bryan, and I think that has a lot to do with it. That and Den-master Karin lets them play with food and do crafts!

He is doing OK in school. His grades are pretty good - he's finally started learning cursive and as I suspected - he's much better at that than regular writing. He loves science and computers. He is a genius on the computer...He's SO smart - he doesn't even know it. Very math, science, and engineering orientated.

My biggest concern for him, right now, is how tired Bryan always is. He falls asleep everytime he stops moving - in the car, at Kailey's dance classes, and as soon as he settles down at night. I have done everything I can to make sure his nighttime rest is "good sleep", but it doesn't seem to matter.

Soccer season is over and basketball season doesn't start until December. So he's got a little break in there. Daddy will be home sooner, rather than later now, and he will also be the coach for Bryan and Kailey.
Scouts will just be a "Daddy/Bryan" thing, so we're looking forward to that for them.
I hope that is all Bry needs - his Daddy home for awhile.
It's just been too long...

Kailey

2008-10-25T03:01:00.003+02:00

As always - the "blooms where she's planted" twin.
She is doing really well. This Fall - she is in her 5th year of Girl Scouts, 2nd season of cheerleading, 7th year of dance ( lyrical and jazz), and starting her yellow belt level of Shotokan karate. When Daddy gets home - she will begin her 2nd season of basketball.
We've been told for a long time what a talented and graceful dancer she is - her current instructor says she seems to have a feel for choreography as well. This must also carry over into her karate - her Sensei says she is so natural in her skill and abilities, that she is almost "Asian" in her movements...

Kailey never complains about being in Germany. I know she misses her friends, especially Mia, and her life back Stateside - but she rarely mentions it. She is pretty much content to just grab whatever privacy and quiet she can get - and read a book. Or five...

She has made many new friends...Her "Best" friend however, is Hannah. They are joined at the hip - or at least they would be if Kailey was just a bit taller! They have the same class at school and are in karate together. I say I have triplets now, because they are always together.
She is still very sweet, funny, and smart. The Type A personality continues, but Mom is learning to adapt - at least one of us has it together! The thing I am most proud of, though, is her natural empathy for others and the way she with younger children. More than one parent has come up to me and said how much their children love and admire Kailey for being so good to them. She's like everybody's big sister...and quite the leader!

School is going really well for Kailey this year. She is in a regular classroom and loving it. The class is behind still, and she can't "work up" like she could in Multi-age last year, HOWEVER she has been selected for the Gifted Program at school this year and is just thrilled with her teacher and the classes...Hopefully, she will keep up with the stateside schools thru that venue.
Puberty is rearing it's ugly head for her - VERY early. She seems to be adjusting OK - just more emotional than usual for now. Lots of physical changes going on for her also, but she is choosing to ignore it all - and that's just fine by me. Daddy and I are NOT ready!

Otherwise - all is well in Kailey's world!

The Karate Kids

2008-10-06T18:38:00.000+02:00

FINALLY got their yellow belts. They are SO proud!!!

They had tested a while back, but Sensei had ordered the wrong ones, so they had kind of a long wait, for a kid.

I am thrilled for them. They worked hard and gave it their all - they deserved it. It has also done a lot for their personalities as well. I can tell they are WAY more confident than they had been...

Way to go Bryan and Kailey!

Welcome Home ?

2008-10-04T18:12:00.011+02:00

It's about that time...

The ones on vacation will be coming back soon. Some are due any day now. We are all getting ready - finishing up "To Do" lists, making everything look nice, preparing the areas for arrival, and hitting the gyms and diets like fiends so WE look good as well...

The Boy and Girl Scouts are doing their part - they made posters, then they tied yellow ribbons one afternoon and spent a Saturday morning putting them up on light posts...

The next day - we decorated the work spaces.

I still have a TON of stuff here at home to get done and it's gonna be crazy!

Not too much longer now....

Bye-bye corn...

2008-10-01T16:44:00.000+02:00

...hello kits, sheep, and snakes?!

Fall arrived with a vengence, very early and more Winter-ish than Fall, but hey! I love the cold, dreary days, so I'm a happy girl!

After a few nights of freeze and frost, our farmer decided to harvest the corn - probably a wise move on his part since many of the other corn fields look as if they were totally destroyed by the frost...

I watched them all day - it was kind of sad, but thrilling as well... As previously blogged, the kids and I had enjoyed watching it grow all summer. To go from bare field to towering stalks was sort of the story of our summer and a bizarre analogy of our lives and Steven's current vacation - he left at the start of the summer, we grew and explored in separate locations, and now THIS separation is coming, finally, to an end...

I think we are ready.

And there have been more new experiences in our rural lives out here -

A lady had told me the story one night of how her cat had been molested that afternoon by a baby fox in her yard on Post. The VERY next afternoon - I saw several of them myself, 1 darted across the road in front of me and the others have been out here near the fields and forests - they are so CUTE! They have small-ish bodies, but these HUGE bushy tails bigger than their bodies. They have small heads with pointy ears and very large eyes...

Then I started hearing the snake stories - I guess the weather has confused them and so they are looking to hibernate and these cozy little houses of ours must seem like a good idea...not poisonous, but 1 totally freaked a neighbor out - in her house where her baby was on the floor and my Natalie, next door, came out to one on her doormat...Uh? Natalie? Just where DID that ONE slither off to, anyways?

Last week, I kept hearing geese honking all day and night - I wonder where they were coming from? I hadn't seen any livestock other than horses out HERE? Until a few days later, when I was in the bathroom and heard a dog barking and very loud BAAH's.... SERIOUSLY! There was a herd of sheep AND a shepherd AND an actual sheep dog crossing the furthest field to the forest...

It was SO cool!!! I took pics , but they were pretty far away - the kids couldn't even see them.

I'm SUCH a city girl!.....LOL :D

Hate and Discontent

2008-09-30T18:18:00.004+02:00
Everybody is angry around here...

It's that time in a long situation where they have given all of themselves that they can - and now they are tired and anxious and have reached their "putting up with crap" point. But still have a bit to go until total relief.

One girl I talked to called it "bitch" month...and that seems pretty accurate.

It's hard for me. I have some complaints from when we first got here, but pretty much - all is going well and I'm over it. I have 2.5 yrs left here and will be with the angry people for just a short time, but I will also be here with the people in charge for the rest of our time. I was fairly content, loneliness aside, being anonymous I realize.

'Cause now? People know me and since I'm new? They want to vent and warn and can't do it to the people they know. Great! Just great....only I don't really want to hear any of this. Really. I LIKE making my own judgements and DON'T want to hear about everybody...I can listen and be careful, but pretty much I just like to find out for myself....never have been one to learn from other's mistakes...

Now - I just stay sick at my stomach and wonder just what the heck we have gotten ourselves into...Hopefully, homecoming will heal most wounds and then mostly everyone is moving Stateside. Hopefully. I am now trying to avoid most of the people - I just don't want to listen to it. I can't FIX anything and I just want to stay in my content little world and wait until it's our turn to be involved.

OK. Now I have had my little snit and all is good!

Crazier Days....

2008-09-19T19:19:00.002+02:00
And so it begins -

Karate, dance classes, cheerleading/football games, soccer season, Bear Scouts/Brownie Scouts, FRG, PTSA, VCSC, Stamp Club, Book Club....

Finally! After 6 mos of not much to do - I have my crazy life back. Yes, this means I have over-volunteered myself, yet again, and the kids have more activities than they know what to do with.

Yea!!!

I am tired, but loving it. I think people assume I am complaining when I mention our schedule - but really, I'm not. It's my life and it's how I like it. My sense of purpose - my "job" if you will...

It DOES mean that I am never home anymore and the majority of my time is spent in Vilseck, but you know what? There are PEOPLE in Vilseck - who TALK to me. Kids for my children to interact with...vs. the horrible, aching, loneliness that is Auerbach.
I'm talking "beat your head against the wall and just want to SCREAM out loud" loneliness... and boredom.

And I don't really even like to socialize all that much, so it's kind of odd... but it was still very depressing all summer.

All is MUCH better now!

:D

Cub Scout Camp Out

2008-09-14T01:43:00.004+02:00

Ha! Yeah, yeah - I did it!
I actually had a great time...

So, you know camping is just not my thing. My parents were creatures of comfort and that's just the way it was - nice hotels at either the beach or the mountains. We DID spend a lot of time outdoors at the Lake - but again, we owned a nice house on the water...and because it was a house made of wood - I thought THAT was roughing it!

I enjoy being outdoors - just can't sleep there. ( OK - I can't sleep anywhere, really, but at least indoors I can stay awake in comfort!). Steven and the kids LOVE to go camping. I have even been known to go along a time or two... I just prefer nice hotels with maid service and a spa...

Luckily for me - the Girl Scouts have "Mommy and Me" weekends in nice cabins. They save the tent stuff for Daddy/Daughter weekends.

When I got the email saying the Cub Scouts were going for an overnight - BEFORE the Daddy got back - I just thought my head was going to pop off. MAN! No way was I going to let Bry miss out, but I SO didn't think I was up to it.

Well, apparently - I WAS. I didn't get lost getting us there. I got the tent up really quickly ( seriously? the only part I couldn't figure out and that the manufacturer did not include a diagram of was called a "guyline". Go figure...turns out it wasn't necessary either....HA!), I had everything we needed to be squared away, and I wasn't miserable...mostly ...

The boys had a ton of fun - they hiked and defended a "leprechaun" village. They learned flag etiquette, and helped cook our meals. We had a large campfire where they made yummy desserts, and the adults chatted while the boys played with Lumo Sticks....also,Bryan earned his "whittling chip" so that he can have a pocket knife at Camp-outs....( um yeah...we'll just see about that..).

The camping spot was just perfect and the day was gorgeous out....the only downside was the cold. And I mean, COLD, as in "Stupid Cold"....The day WAS really GORGEOUS - comfortable cool, not windy, tons of sun,Fall smells....but as soon as that sun went down? The clouds came in and the temperature dropped - quickly! I thought it was going to be perfect sleeping temperature - you know how I LOVE the cold!

Wrong. wrong, wrong, wrong......THIS cold was not good - the sleeping bag was broken, so it wasn't much help -I ended up in thermals, sweats, 2 prs of socks, 3 shirts ( 1 thermal), my jacket, AND wrapped in a fleece blanket -and I COULD NOT get warm enough to fall asleep. Also, the tent was not cool weather rated - so while it was getting wet outside? We were getting wet inside 'cause our body heat was turning to moisture and making everything damp...

I think it was the MOST miserable, sleepless night of my life. I was so grateful when morning came so we could get up. Bryan got woke up by the big boys outside and some of the other campers, but apparently the people near us didn't appreciate US being up, I guess...

Whatever. Turns out "Perfect" Scout Mom's aren't morning people, it would seem. Maybe they just needed coffee - who knows? I was just smug in my knowledge that I was in a pretty good mood, while THEY were not...Guess they are not better at this than me after all...:D

The Scout leaders made pancakes for breakfast, we all packed up , then it was time for devotional and home.
We had a great time, but we were ready to go!

Bryan's Scout leader, who is just precious, wants to do one for our Den in the Spring, with Dad's and "comfort" items - Oh YEAH! With comfort items and my own personal cuddle-buddy - I can't wait!!

9/11 "Lest We Forget"...

2008-09-12T00:49:00.004+02:00
I feel so rotten. I forgot. Today, of all days, I forgot...

I didn't mean to - I had planned to discuss it with Twinz. I wanted to remind them before they left for school this morning, but I was back home and on the Internet before I remembered

The reason I wanted to talk with them about it was because the last 2 anniversaries, we were at Oak Mtn. and they never mentioned it to the kids at that school. That was just one of the many frustrations about being our kind of family "out of our element", you could say. The repercussions of that day continue to impact our particular way of life and will, in a huge way, for many more years to come.

I can't believe I forgot.

So, after school we went to eat before our busy evening and the Anniversary Memorials were being broadcast on the TV's overhead. Kailey said she knew what that was about and proceeded to talk about how the Japanese were our friends now ( don't ask - I'm not REAL sure?). Bryan , of course, felt the need to argue with her, even though his teacher hadn't discussed it at all. He did know more facts than she did - they just weren't the right ones...

I have been waiting for this for 7 years, I guess. Oh, we talk about it off and on when we have to explain certain things once again.They know 9/11 has to do with Afghanistan, Iraq and why 'Uncle Buddy' died. They have been to museums that had huge ,full displays showing everything - but it has been awhile. Now, I believe they are old enough to understand and know most of the details...

And I Just. Couldn't. DO. It.....I choked. Or got choked up rather. I'd start to correct or explain and then something on that big TV would catch my attention and my eyes would burn and my throat would catch. I just couldn't say anything...except, "Later - we'll talk later".

Only later never came. Home late - straight to bed.

I'm sorry. I'm SO, so sorry. I have now done the thing that I always blame the rest of the world for doing - Forgetting. And in my life - how that's even possible is beyond me. But I did.

Baby, Marisa, Buddy, all the rest...I'll do better - I promise.

Faaaaarm living is the Liiiife for me......

2008-09-03T02:31:00.002+02:00

NOT!

There are some things I have learned to appreciate - the open space, the beautiful flowers,the deep ,emerald green carpets of grass on the hills... the smell of that freshly cut grass, and the wheat even. I am also surprised how much the growing of corn fascinates us. All summer we have gotten excited as those stalks have just gotten taller and bigger!

(Bryan thinks we have the smartest farmer in the world because our wheat and barley got harvested before the other farmers, and "our" corn is taller and growing faster than the ones out near Vilseck...)

BUT mostly? I can appreciate that we get to experience this, just for now, with the knowledge that it is temporary and we never have to do it again....

I hope. 'Cause then there's the downside to bountiful grains and emerald fields of grass - the fertilizer. Heavy, copious amounts of liquid chicken excrement that saturates the very air we breathe and everything around us...Not just once or twice a year like the rutabega farmers in Schweinfurt - oh no!

EVERYTIME they cut that grass, or plow that field, or it rains heavy, or the moon is pretty...whatever. All the time. Due to no air conditioning here - all windows must stay open all the time. Therefore, there is no escape. It makes everything reek! and causes our lungs to hurt, our noses to swell up and our eyes to water.

It also ruins perfectly good mornings...Nothing makes me happier and more refreshed than to end another sleepless night with the smell of cool, damp, fresh air coming in the window....Until it is shortly followed by the smell of wet manure and you start to gag...

Oh well! 2.5 yrs to go right?

Kids Spur Ride

2008-08-30T01:20:00.002+02:00

Steven's work had an event for the kids called a "Spur Ride". It's a chance for them to have fun, and play at Daddy's job while"Earning their Spurs".
It was a hot afternoon, but they had a great time! They got put in the wrong squadron but the teams were competing with each other, so in the end that was a good thing.
They got to do Land Nav, Camo application,First Aid ( Kailey got a prize for knowing the answers!). Small PT skills test ( Bryan jumped the furthest!), a Maneuver course ( the rifle was too heavy for Kailey and Bryan got his hung up on the line they had to crawl under), a "grenade" course, and the Litter carry.

They were hot, tired, and hungry - but had a blast! Being on the wrong Squad team also paid off - their smaller team had the fastest time on Land Nav, so they got an extra certificate.

Daddy is SO proud!!!

First Day of School!

2008-08-29T01:52:00.003+02:00

Yea! 3rd Grade at last!!!

Things are going really well. Both kids got the perfect teacher for them.
Kailey is happy that she gets a desk , and structure, and set times for subjects...She has even made a new friend - Hannah. I doubt Hannah will ever replace Mia, but she's a nice friend to have for now. I got to meet Hannah's Mother at Open House and she is trying to get a playdate together, which Kailey hasn't had since we moved here...

Colby has a desk and structure, too. But more importantly - he has a teacher with rules and expectations for him and he seems to be thriving on the challenge. He's also not "Colby" this year - he has decided he wants to be just "Bryan" and since neither his teacher nor his new classmates have ever heard differently - it's working out pretty well for him. I noticed last year - whenever he needed to write a story with a main character - the character was always 'Bryan'. It was like an alter-ego for him...'Bryan's' love interest/best friend was always 'Kayla' as well...Poor kid! He misses her so much!
So far,though, BRYAN'S getting along OK with the kids in his class.

Even though they are in regular classes this year - the work is still behind the level they were at. For example, Bryan's teacher is starting "fast math" - timed simple addition and subtraction skills. Bryan, on the other hand, had been doing "Rocket Math" at Oak Mtn ( an AMSTI school) since 1st grade. The spelling words are too easy, and the books are boring, but after reading assessment in a few weeks - they should have harder book choices.

I'm not stressing so much about the school curriculum this year - if Steven ends up getting what he wants to do - we won't be going back to the States anytime soon. THEN, hopefully,education -wise they'll get back to where they need to be.

Portable Happiness...

2008-08-23T00:28:00.001+02:00

I have two addictions - reading and shopping/gadgets. Shopping/gadgets get combined as one addiction because mostly what I shop for is electronic gadgets.
Reading has been my primary addiction since the summer after my 2nd grade year when I read my first novel, Leon Uris' "Exodus". It also requires shopping, so all is well in my world...

The problem with this addiction is I have WAY too many books. And I move...a lot. Now, Steven is a book addict as well, but he trades or gets rid of his books. I. Can't. Do. That...
When you have as many books as I do - you go a few months or years without reading them, get bored, and go back and read them again - it's like you have new book. I don't remember all of their plots...

Anyway. Books + Moving = bad. Bad, as in, we have a weight allowance and books are heavy and put us over that allowance. Also, space is ALWAYS a problem - never enough room for the bookshelves we need.

Last year, the brilliant people at Amazon. com developed a new type of media along the lines of an eBook. Only better. Slim, portable, wireless...By itself it holds over 200 titles. With the additional memory card - it can hold almost 2,000! Anything Amazon has in it's stock - you can get downloaded to the Kindle - books, magazines, newspapers.... and nothing over $10. Not one single, new -release best seller....

I HAD to have it! So, this summer, it went on sale and I bought it. Before it ever even arrived, I had bought 32 books and had them waiting in my account. The downside was that Amazon won't ship here and so I had to have it shipped to Mom...who held it hostage for almost a month...but that ended up being a good thing. I was able to have her open it , charge it, and just in the time it took her to flick the wireless switch - all of my books had downloaded!

The design is so comfortable. I like to lie in bed when I read at home, and since I hurt my shoulder - I can't ever get comfortable. The Kindle took care of that. And I can take it with me EVERYWHERE! It fits in my purse, but usually, I just hand carry it.

Now, obviously the wireless- instant- download function doesn't work over here in Europe. It's no problem, though. I just connect the USB port to my laptop, go to Amazon, and within seconds of logging on to my account - it downloads directly to the Kindle.

Right now, I have about 75 novels on it. I have read about 12 of them in the past 3 weeks and I have 3 of them that I have partially read...

This makes me happy. Very, very happy. I had been frustrated here in Germany because my local AAFES Bookmark doesn't get much stock and I had already bought or previously read everything they had. I HAD also placed an order from Books A Million, but it got lost in shipping for a month and then took over 6 WEEKS to get here.

Nope. The Amazon Kindle is just what I needed - affordable, instant book shopping - and a gadget 'toy'.

Life is good.

Mallorca!

2008-08-20T18:04:00.007+02:00
Subtitle:
"Planes, Trains,and Automobiles...and buses and tractors?!"

The 18 months we lived in Alabama, Twinz and Mom got very used to going down to the beach every chance we got. Our first summer break here in Germany was kind of lonely and boring, therefore, it wasn't long before Kay and Cole were asking " SO, when are we going to the beach?" Good question...

The possibilities were endless, and a bit daunting for me, so I put it off WAY too long until pretty soon - it was time for school to start. My children were NOT happy with me and I was disappointed in myself - SO, called the travel agency to see what was available. We had many exotic choices, but in the end - I decided on Mallorca. One of the Balearic Islands, in the Mediterranean, off the coast of Spain.

We had an AMAZING time, full of many firsts, and to date is the biggest adventure the 3 of us have ever had together.

Our trip started with a very early morning train trip from Pegnitz to Nurnberg ( 1st train trip!). Then it was on to the subway (Ubahn) in Nurnberg to get to the airport (Flughafen). ( 1st subway trip!) And then a short Air Berlin flight to Palma , the Capital city of Mallorca.

Steven has always said ' If we can ever move the Rocky Mountains to the Gulf of Mexico - THAT is where we will retire'... Well, Baby - I found it! That IS Mallorca...

I was very surprised at the landscape. For the most part, the interior of the Island looks just like New Mexico. I found myself thinking about the Spanish explorers who set out to find the new and exotic world and to prove the world was round. I wonder, really, if any of them thought they had just gotten lost and gone in a circle? I was blown away by how much this Island of Spain looked just like the Southern United States and Mexico...

So, outside Palma, you have flat farmland, full of livestock, scrub, and barrio towns, surrounded by mountains, and then edged in tropical paradise...

The other surpise for me was the German influence. There are 3 languages spoken in Mallorca - Mallorqui ( like a Catalan Spanish), English, and German. Mostly? I just heard German - in the airport, in the buses, the shops, signs on the road, and even my favorite German store was there - Mueller's. Steven insists I share my "language experience" here and I might as well- at the end.

Anyway, Our bus ride was twice as long as our flight over , but SO worth the wait! Our hotel was situated on the sand in a cove called a "Cala". It was called Cala Romantica and it was breathtaking! Now, the main body of the hotel was right on the beach, but the rest of the small guest villas were situated from the beach up to the hill. Naturally - ours was at the top! It was kind of neat, though - there was, literally, a large farm tractor that transported us up the hill when we needed it ( Another first!). Our view of the Mediterranean was well worth it!

We spent the whole week just swimming in one of the 3 different pools, lying in the sun, eating too much (all inclusive) of the local foods, resting, enjoying the scenery, playing - the hotel had 3 playgrounds, shuffleboard, mini-golf, archery, a Kids club! - and hanging out at the beach...

For the first time, the kids got to go snorkeling and body boarding. They got to have fresh pineapple and coconuts from a guy with a wheelbarrow on the beach.(Colby and Kailey both have ALWAYS wanted to drink coconut milk from a coconut - Colby liked it, Kailey, not so much...). They also got to see a lot more nudity than they are used to. I had warned Colby about the topless women and mostly - he didn't even notice. However, neither Kailey nor I, were prepared for the rather large German men to take their Speedos off right there in the open and put on pants...

The Cala was unlike anything I have ever seen - from the beach out to the open Sea - it never got deeper than my chin, except for when a wave came in, which was rare. The water? Oh, my! SO clear you could see my nail polish from 4ft. + up - NO fish, NO seaweed,NO shells, No debris...Sometimes the sand would kick up when you walked, but would quickly settle down. I normally don't like to swim in the ocean, but we never wanted to get out.
It was very easy to see why the pirates loved these Cala's - one of the best parts for Pirate-loving us was the fact that the REAL Pirate CPT Barbossa called Mallorca "home" back in his day!

Unfortunately, the days passed all too quickly in paradise and it was time to go home. Of course, in order to GET home we had to go thru check-out ( at 0400) and then repeat the bus, plane, subway,train, and automobile routine...

Some of our more memorable highlights from the trip:

The gecko. And I don't mean that tiny little green one with the precious Aussie accent that works for Geico either. I'm talking, palm-sized, brown -striped, UGLY , climbs all over, local species that was our roommate all week. He would not leave - we would not sleep for fear of waking up with him on top of us. I don't *think* he came home with us, but just so we'd never forget - we bought a local handmade pottery one...

The food. Colby ate about 20 beef empanadas one night - he just couldn't help himself. Kailey and I were addicted to the local olives, cheese and fruit. I tried a local tuna one night, but then left the seafood alone after that - all of the dishes had a card on them in the 3 languages - on one fish dish it said "NOT a poison fish". That led me to believe that if there needed to be an identifier on THAT fish - better leave the others alone...

Marine biology. Not the ocean life kind, but rather the kind that takes place between a human male and female standing up having full-out relations in the 5 ft of water, RIGHT where myself and the 8 yr olds happen to be snorkeling...

Gerardo - the flirtatious bartender who called me "Senorita" every evening,kept the kids high on sugary concoctions with fruit, and made me his 'Colada Especials' ( I don't ever want to know what those shots were really made of...). Thanks for boosting my ego from the geographically- single Mom!

My new favorite language - Steven insists that I share my experience in conversing with the locals. So, here it is verbatim from the email I sent him:

"Baby? FYI - "Spanglishman" = language, not noun. Span (ish) + (En)glish + (Ger)man It's complicated... For example:

Juan Carlos - Buenos Dias, Frau Griffin!

Myself - Buenos Dias! Como esta?

JC - Ser Gut, Danke. Going swimming today?

Myself - Ja! Unless die wasser is muy frio

JC -( laughing at me, again....) Si, si! Do you need anything ?

Me - No, ser gut. Gracias..

JC - OK, Adios!

Me - Tschuss!

I actually much prefer it - communication was much easier with the staff ( who all speak it) than the Germans..."

German-American Volksfest

2008-08-10T16:34:00.003+02:00

These Germans like to party! They call them "Fests" and they happen all the time. No matter how small a town it is - if there is a square foot of empty space to be found - at some point they will throw up a tent, offer food,beer, and music and have a great time.

In Schweinfurt, we had MANY of these fests, several times a year, on a bigger scale - they included rides and games. Coincidentally, the day we took Kailey and Colby to Schweinfurt to see where they came from - there was a Fest going on. They LOVED it! and it helped to convince them that maybe Germany might not be so bad after all...

Down here in Grafenwoehr - they have a very large, yearly, German-American Volksfest ( in addition to the many, smaller,local ones). It is the very best food, great music, tons of beer, and all of our most favorite rides, games, and snacks. Throw local craft vendors in there - and a great time is had by all! The only thing missing was Daddy.....
But he's looking forward to next year!!

Lazy days...

2008-08-07T15:51:00.004+02:00
This is where we spend our warm days ( and not so warm ones when I give in to the whining!) We are so lucky to have such a great place to swim out here. Weekends are mildly crowded until about 4:30 pM and then we usually have the whole place to ourselves until closing at 8PM.
During school hours for the Germans ( 9AM - 1PM)- it's also pretty deserted. We have an indoor Winter pool as well...
Our favorite parts are the slide and the main pool. The main pool has several water features that they rotate turning on throughout the day...there's a spout that shoots continuous water for a bit, then a strong current that flows around the outer edge. The box in the back has a waterfall that comes down. Off to the side near the building is a curve of seats that has jets, so it's like a whirlpool.
The baby pool area has water spouts as well...
All of this is surrounded by a very large meadow where we ,usually, claim the nearest tree and put down a blanket to relax and picnic. There's also a lake with swans, a playground with sandy area, and an outdoor cafe.
Inside is also a section of the main pool, bathrooms and changing area...

Garmisch Retreat

2008-08-05T22:44:00.008+02:00
In a word - wonderful !!!

The Edelweiss Resort is cozy and has amazing views near the base of the Bavarian Alps. Not as impressive as the Rocky Mtn's ( THESE Alps are smaller), but beautiful, nevertheless. My favorite thing was all the people in the bright colored parachutes paragliding from the top all the way down to the trees. Paragliding is basically where you just strap on a 'chute turn into the wind and let it carry you off the mountain. You have to go to a school first, but I SO want to do that before we leave here!!!

Anyway...back to the story....

I followed April down on Friday morning and we arrived early enough to hit the town area before we had to be checked in. There was a great little Markt going on , but I decided to save the shopping for Saturday. 5 kids + road trip = bad timing...

Once we arrived and got checked in - The kids went off to swim a bit while the Moms unpacked and got settled. Friday night we got a bit of a break from the kids and a brief get -together with the Group . Unfortunately, April's baby became ill and ended up in the local German ER. Twinz and Mom were tired, so we stayed in our room and watched movies.

Morning came all too soon, and it was off to breakfast to get everyone fed before sending the big kids off to Kids Club, and Owen to childcare. Then it was off to an interesting 2 hr Group session. Didn't learn anything new - of all the women there, Steven has apparently been gone the most....Wish that meant that he could just stay home now, but unfortunately talk has already turned to the next *potential* vacation... Just ONCE - I'd like to have him home from one vacation before getting notice of another. Just... once....

Anyway, Our plan for a Mom's only afternoon hit the bricks when April decided to go back home - Baby Jack was sick and she was stressing ,instead of relaxing. Soooo....I had all that time to myself and conditions were PERFECT for an afternoon nap (cool, drizzly,quiet) - but I HAD to sleep that night if I was going to make the drive back on Sunday, so started my favorite iTunes list on my laptop, grabbed my magazines and sat on the patio enjoying the incredible view...And if you know me at all, you know that cool and rainy + cloud covered mountains is just about heaven for me. I started missing Kailey and Colby, though...

The kids had a good time at the theme park ( Grimm's Fairytaleland) - 1st time to go somewhere like that without Mommy and Daddy, and - Oh yeah - the Club chaperons put them in groups and let them be by themselves....Did NOT know that ahead of time, but all's well that ends well, I guess. April and her crew hit the road, which was sad for us, but I think she was glad to be going. Something was definitely wrong with Jack...

That evening the three of us had an early, quiet dinner and then went back to our room to rest a bit. Then we went downstairs so the kids could swim. EVERYONE was down there, so the Twinz had a great time! I even had a good time - some of the other wives introduced themselves and talked me into the hot pool outside and we had a blast - even when it started pouring down rain! Nearing 11PM, Colby actually dozed off as I was gliding around the pool with him so we stopped off at the snack bar for a late snack and then it was off to bed.

AND.....I.....SLEPT!!!! aaahhhhh...wow.... I can't ,honestly, remember the last time I slept thru the night.

Sunday morning was warm, if overcast, so the kids and I checked out and decided to go for it - A trip to the Zugspitze. The highest Alpine point in Germany... It was just a short trip from our hotel to the bahnhof that would take us up to the Zugspitzeplatte ( the base camp, of sorts)...

But that story is for the next blog. :D

*Blog Update* Since I mentioned he was sick... April's baby, Jack? Poor angel - he ended up being that 1% of kids that actually GOT the measles from his MMR shot. Also , it turns out April's nephew had died in an accident on Thursday night ,as well....It was just meant to be that April went home early.

Pics from Garmisch

2008-08-05T13:57:00.000+02:00

Here's some photos taken from the front of the hotel. The sunset ones are my favorite!!!

Zugspitze

2008-08-01T17:37:00.007+02:00
So the Twinz and Mom decided to end our weekend retreat with a little adventure. The gift shop at Edelweiss had the tickets we needed for the journey up and down at discount - so off we went.

I decided we were better off taking the Zugspitzbahn up to the base camp versus the aerial tram. Kailey has a thing about heights due to an earlier, somewhat traumatic, experience at Airborne school when she was 5 yrs old. ( My fault - YES, Honey.) Just couldn't talk her into it...

We had to wait a really loooong time for the train and Colby was impatient and thirsty. I had packed water in my backpack, but not enough for him to start THEN. So, he got himself into trouble and spent most of the day pouting as you will see in the photos...We're going to need to start him a map - "Places in the world where I have gotten in trouble".

The train ride up was really cool - they show you a movie about how the line was built going thru the surrounding mountains to get to the Base. Halfway up , we stopped and got out for 5 minutes to enjoy the view of the surrounding area and The Eibsee ( an Alpine lake) below us. Twinz had a great time.

Got to the Base and went outside to see it all. I was surprised at how desolate it was. I have been up in the Rockies many times, to include the top of Pike's Peak, and since this area was at a much lower elevation - I didn't expect it. Just brown and rocky with patches of snow. Some restaurants, a chapel, ski /snowboard slopes, and trails....The trails looked like fun, but we were NOT outfitted for that, so we just hung around.

( OK, it was summer,and I have lived here, and in mountainous areas enough to know how to prep for high altitude weather. HOWEVER - in my defense - this wasn't on the agenda. Kids wore tennis shoes and I had packed their rain jackets. I also had a jacket - just not any sensible shoes...)

Anyway, It was very overcast and we were up above a layer of clouds. We had clear visibility around us - just not up or down. Every so often we'd get a break in the clouds, and could see - but it only happened a few times. Colby LOVED it !!! He has always wanted to be "in the clouds". He also LOVED climbing the surrounding rocks - drove me nuts! He was like a mountain goat, scrambling up and down... Kailey wanted to climb ,too, and she did a bit - but the combination of her leg muscle problem and the dress she was wearing didn't make it easy for her.

After getting some sodas, falling in the snow pile, and buying the Twinz new, grossly overpriced, fleece pullovers ( Colby the mountain goat managed to rip his jacket somehow) - It was time to force Kailey onto the aerial tram for the ascent to the actual top of Zugspitze. Kailey handled it really well - better than most of the people on it with us ,in fact. Probably the 15 minutes that we were delayed while they worked on a cable issue in front of us - didn't help.

The top of Zugspitze is probably spectacular - on a clear day. Colby got his wish and was actually IN the clouds.

Colby - "Look Mom! I'm eating cloud!!!" ( as he ran around the platform with his mouth open). His other favorite activity was fighting with Kailey over the binoculars we brought, and waiting until my back was turned so he could spit over the side...boys! :D

Kailey pretended to enjoy it,venturing to the railing WAY more than I thought she would. I think it helped that because of the lack of visibility - she couldn't see down. Or anywhere else, for that matter...

The building at the top is 3 stories tall and is gift shops and restaurants. Meeting facilities and a museum of sorts. The ACTUAL highest point is marked by a golden cross which has a trail you can take to it. We WILL take that short trail before we leave here - I promise!

There is also a former Alpine checkpoint on the peak where Germany meets Austria. It used to be passport control, but now it is open and is a terrace restaurant and mini visitor center. I HAD to take a picture of the kids standing in the middle of 2 countries, much to their frustration...

Kailey - "Uh,Mom? is this ANOTHER one of those things I'm going to wish I remembered when I'm old?"

"Yes, Honey!"

Kailey ( under her breath and gritting her teeth) "She ALWAYS says that!!!"

Twinz got hungry and there was a cafe right there in the open ,so we sat down and had the BEST sauerkraut and wurst with mashed potatoes I have ever had here in Germany. It started to get darker ...and quieter... and I realized that the only people up there with us seemed to be the handful of climbers who had made the trek up on foot.....uh oh.

I had forgotten to look at the board to see what time the last tram down was, and I also had YET to pick up a watch since we moved here. I grabbed the Twinz and we quickly made our way 3 flights down to the tram platform....where it was crowded ! Praise the Lord! Not gonna be left behind TODAY...

Now, I had decided on the tram up from the base camp - that we would skip the doing the tram back down and then the train. There was another aerial tram that went STRAIGHT up and down from the peak to the bahnhof, where we were parked . And by straight - I mean zzzzzzippp down. HERE is where Kailey REALLY panicked ! I gotta say - My butterflies in the tummy were airborne themselves...

What gooses we were! Between the smoothness of the tram and the cloud cover - we were, literally, halfway down before we even realized we had left the platform. We had to break through the clouds to even see that we were moving. The views were INCREDIBLE! I had a wonderful non-conversation with this little old German guy on the way down. He was so sweet! I don't know if he realized I understood nothing of what he was saying, 'cause he just kept talking - but when we "landed" and got out - he went and got me a brochure, in English, of the Zugspitze.

So, that was the end of our weekend in Garmisch. Hungry, again, and tired - it was time to go home!

But, we'll be back in December...With Daddy!!! :D

Zugspitze Slideshow

2008-08-01T13:07:00.003+02:00

Cow Tales

2008-07-30T13:56:00.004+02:00
OK, before I tell this story, let's get one thing straight - I am not ignorant. I openly admit (and am proud to say) that I know NOTHING of agriculture. I grew up in the Suburbs - not a whole lotta livestock in the 'Burbs ( Ok, we had a goat and a duck, but they were out of their element and another story altogether...). AND, while my private school had many clubs - 4H was not then, and I can assure you - WILL never be- one of them.

Anyway, that being said - I just had to share what, to me, was a rather hilarious incident on the way home from our weekend retreat in Garmisch....

So, after a long day of exploring the Alps it was time to head back home. I should have known something was a little odd when "Mandi" (the GPS) immediately informed me that the new route she had JUST recalculated for us, due to traffic, had a NEW traffic delay of unknown origin and duration and she DIDN'T recalculate a new route. She'd never done that before. Maybe a new accident since it had just started to rain ?

We're heading down the very busy main road thru town ( think old, 2 lane ,280 during rush hour) and within just a few blocks - all cars come to a stop. And the cars on BOTH sides start trying to move over...
"What the...?" Coming straight down the middle of the road, splitting traffic like it was nothing - was the largest animal, with horns, I had seen up close, not at a zoo.

Immediately, I thought "What is a bull doing strolling thru traffic in downtown Garmisch"? But wait - right behind it were several more. Thoughts THEN went something along the lines of " A running of the bulls? Nope. They're not running and this is Germany ,not Spain. Not their thing - the only time German's get that worked up about something is if it involves some sort of football (soccer) cup...." "Hummm.... maybe it's just a lost cow of some sort?" This last part was spoken out loud, it seems...

Kailey pipes up from the back " NO, Mommy!!! it's the ones that work at the Texas Roadhouse!" Huh? "What, baby?" Kailey - "You KNOW! They have their heads on the wall?"....

LOL. Ah, yes! My brilliant little girl - you are correct. This large cow with horns is a STEER. WOW! and walking in a herd thru the middle of town no less... Colby then says " Is it a stampede?" "No, honey. I think they are just being herded, maybe?" Colby - "well then, where's the cowboys and dogs?" Good question......

So, now there are MANY large steers on this tiny, 2 lane, packed traffic way. German's drive micro cars (have you seen the Smart Car or Mini Cooper? German....) and their roads have always been built accordingly. I, on the other hand, drive the large Jeep Grand Cherokee that is always too big for the roads here and this moment was going to be tricky.

Colby pops up from the back again, "Hey Mommy ? What happens if we hit one of those things?" ( Just what I was thinking, actually...) "Well, I guess USAA buys me a new car, the farmer gets half our next paycheck, and Daddy finally gets that steak he's been wanting... ha, ha, ha...." ( yeah - so if Germans DON'T eat or serve beef ANYWHERE - why ARE there steers in the middle of this road?)

At this point Colby panics -" Are they MAD?!?!" ( This is a common fear of Colby's ever since we got to Germany and mistakenly explained to him that the reason we don't eat meat here is because of the MAD cow disease that was a problem when we lived here before. It's just habit).

Kailey - missing what Colby is getting at - goes " Well,Bro, they're walking thru town in the middle of cars that might make them dead, no farmer, and it's poring down rain...but they don't LOOK mad...confused,maybe...."

LOL! I LOVE taking these two out - they provide such hilarious commentary on life....

Kailey then turns around to look at the steers that have already passed and says "Hey, Mom? I think they escaped. That middle one just turned left at the 'Ray's table dancing' sign. I don't think he wants go where the other ones are going. Maybe he wants to see tables dance, too....Uh, Mom? How DO they make the tables dance ?".... Yeahhhhh, um, Garmisch has a US Army post as well.....

So, we continue on thru the herd, trying not buy any steaks ( but funnily enough - all 3 of us munching on Beef Jerky, our favorite road trip snack) and FINALLY! we get down to one....sad, slow, steer....accompanied by what looked like a tiny 100 yr old man......on a BICYCLE..... with a road hazard triangle attached to the front.....

It was a fabulously entertaining end to a relaxing weekend.

While an unusual experience for us - it must be common in Garmisch. When I got home and pulled out the stack of postcards I had purchased ? One of them had a "scenes of Garmisch" collage which prominently featured, yes, a farmer holding a steer, on the street....

We got cows....

2008-07-30T00:43:00.000+02:00

Everytime my sitter, Lydia, goes with me anywhere - she always has to move my camera out of the front seat. One time she asked me "Do you always have it with you where you go?".

Yes, I do. And this is why...You never know when life is going to need to be captured on digital media.

Of course, I don't usually recommend it while driving...in the rain...in a cattle-something. Germans have VERY strict laws about using cell. phones while driving. Not sure they'd be too happy with photography while driving either....

Weekend Getaway

2008-07-24T03:52:00.004+02:00
Yea!

A group from Steven's work is providing a weekend getaway down South in the Alps. I didn't know anything about it, so it was news to me when my friend April asked if I was going.

All expenses paid weekend (minus lunch) in the most beautiful part of this country AND a Kids Club to keep Kai and Cole occupied ?!?! Hello! I SO wanted to go!!!!!
Unfortunately, it was booked...

You would THINK you couldn't miss something you didn't know about in the first place - but that REALLY ticked me off. It's the sort of thing I missed out on Steven's LAST extended vacation and it just seemed wrong that I had agreed to another vacation right after the first BECAUSE I would HAVE these opportunities....and got left out again due to crappy chain of information.

However. I'm a lucky girl and friend April loves me very much. She also happens to work with the girl organizing this getaway and late this afternoon, when someone called to cancel - she got me IN!!!
Oh YEAH!!!! Now, I owe her big time.....

THEN, I got even luckier and found a place to board Toby for the weekend at such late notice ( I totally forgot about him in the excitement - not used to having a high maintenance pet).

Hopefully, will have tons of breathtaking pics to post when I get back, but for now - I have 26 hrs until time to go...

YIKES!

Wo ist Papa?

2008-07-23T21:06:00.003+02:00
When Steven is home, we eat out a LOT. Almost every night ,in fact. Here in Germany our dining choices are pretty much limited to Greek, Italian, and German Pub food. There is also a Chinese restaurant in Graf. that we visit, and a kinda lousy, but better than nothing TexMex place on Post at Rose Barracks.

Our two MOST favorite places to eat are: our local, Pizzaria Christina at the Auerbach SportsClub, on the edge or our neighborhood, and one of the 2 best Greek places in Germany - Taverna Atlantia in Pegnitz. We eat at these places at least once, sometimes twice a week. Not once have we ever run into any other Americans at either place.

When Steven is NOT home - the kids and I just go with the flow. Eat when we feel like it and usually pretty low rent - cereal, micro meals, soup and sandwiches, lots of salads... usually too busy to eat out.

Last week we decided we needed to eat out a few times since the 3 of us were having serious Greek cravings. So off to Pegnitz we went. The lady who served us seemed happy to see us again and while I'm pretty sure she speaks less English than I do German, the first thing she said said after "Hallo" was "Wo is Papa?". I then got to explain it to her in German-ish. Then she hugged me.

Wow! Can't tell you how heartwarming it was for one of the local nationals to ask about my husband.To acknowledge that we were regulars instead of tourists. And then she proceeded to bring the kids more candy than usual and to sit down and "chat" with me after we were finished. ( Steven would have been laughing his rear off - he thinks my 'German' is a joke....).

A few days after that Twinz and Mom decided we needed schnitzel at Christina. Again, I was asked "Wo ist mein Mann?". LOL And again there was more attempt at conversation throughout dinner. I make do the best I can. I asked for the 'zahlen' ( check) and the waitress comes and sits down and has a prefectly pleasant conversation with me ....in English. Turns out that she and her husband visit her sister and HER soldier husband in the States frequently.
Germans do this to me a lot, for some reason. Force me to humiliate myself with my lousy German skills repeatedly, before deciding to have a real conversation in their almost perfect schoolhouse English.

That's Ok, though. I LOVE that out here in the middle of nowhere Germany? A few locals acknowledge our existence and have, somewhat, made us feel welcomed. Like we belong. I really LOVE that one of the checkout ladies at my grocery store of choice, Kauflands, looks for me when I come in and calls me 'her American'. She speaks just enough English, too.... :D

Yes. Auerbach is finally becoming "home". The little cracker box house is less stifling and ugly. The drive is even less tedious... One night, not too long ago, I was putting Colby to bed and the night range at Graf. was exceptionally loud. Loud enough for us to hear the explosions and gunfire and see the flares from the windows. I tucked my little bear in and he made a funny face. I asked him "What's a matter, Cubs? Too loud outside?" He just grabbed the edge of his blankie, snuggled in, closed his eyes..."No. ( smiling sleepily) Sounds like home...."

Yes, it does, my Angel. Yes. It does.

Pics

2008-07-22T16:16:00.007+02:00

Just wanted to share a few pics from the places we have visited.

From top to bottom are: Rathaus(City Hall) in Schweinfurt,Rothenburg guest haus, Pottenstein hillside and lake.

Also the pics in the post below are:

1.Rosenhof from the town pond. First it's the Auerbach Sports Club, and then the beginning of our neighborhood ( Rosenhof) in the very back. Our house would be way on the other side in the back...
2. Back field tree line. We don't have a yard - we have acres and acres of farmland bordered by forest.
3."Digging" for Easter Eggs
4. Griffin's sledding in the back field
5. Nurnberg Zoo

Welcome to Germany! (The Condensed Version)

2008-07-19T02:58:00.002+02:00

Our departure from Atlanta and the subsequent arrival in Germany was really more drama than I care to remember anytime soon, but hopefully, some day - we'll laugh about it.

However, arrive in Germany we did on Friday, February 29th in the wee hours of the morning. It was dark, cold , and raining - exactly as we remembered and it felt like coming home.

We all arrived safe and sound, minus any luggage at all except the backpacks we carried and the kids carry-ons. It took us all day and a couple of bus trips , but we arrived in Vilseck at Rose Barracks by Friday evening. And so the adventure began. No car, no clothes,hungry, and nothing open on the small post, so misery was the description of that 1st weekend.

By the next week, though, we had a home in a beautiful town called Auerbach, in the OberPfalz ( UpperLand) and because it is VERY far away from Vilseck - a rental car as well. Life was much improved. We spent the next 30 days trying to get settled in and getting a routine for the kids. They started school ( horrible schools! very far behind where the kids were at) and got signed up for soccer, dance, and karate.

By the next month our furniture had arrived and so had my car. Was much happier to see car than all those boxes... We should have unpacked the house straight away, but one excuse or another kicked in and we only got the bare minimum done. First there was a bit of traveling to do - our former home in Schweinfurt, our favorite medieval town of Rothenburg,The zoo at Nurnburg, the nearby beautiful towns of Pottenstein, Pegnitz, Amberg, and Neuhaus. Not to mention the towns of Vilseck and Grafenwohr, where the Army posts are...

THEN, there was the weather - it was either raining or snowing. Easter weekend was a huge snow storm which made for beautiful pictures, but lousy egg hunting. Our last "snow day" was April 22nd. Kailey and Colby would have been happy if it had snowed forever....I LOVED the fact that they could come home from school everyday and go sledding in the back field until dark...

Finally, summer arrived. With a vengeance! It went from mild to hot in just a week. Now, mind you, it's not Southern US hot by NO means - but we have glorious, expensive air conditioning in the South and in Germany there is NONE! No air, nada, zip. There WAS however, still hot water running under the floors to provide heat for our radiators, that had yet to be turned off. So, it was like living in a sauna.

We bought a few fans, opened the windows, and Colby moved down from the 3rd floor to Kailey's room on the 2nd - where we spent ALL of our time. Nothing ever got done at home, of course. We never even ate at home during that time...

Before long, Steven got his departure date for his latest 'vacation' and we had 3 weeks to get the house unpacked and get him ready to go. It was chaos and craziness and we made it - but it was a miserable way to spend that time together. The kids had their last day of school - and Steven left that night to go play in the sand. Again.

Peace and quiet returned to the Griffin household and so began OUR summer vacation. All activites for the summer stopped , except for K & C's Shotokan Karate class 2x a week. Most of our friends and neighbors went stateside for the summer... We shop a lot. We discovered our local schwimmbad (pool), a few blocks away,which is like a small water park and had started going everyday. Then summer took a vacation, I guess. It's been too rainy, and/or chilly to go for the past 3 weeks.

Loving the new cooler weather, but now I'm stuck with whiny, bored 8 yr olds...

School starts back in a month. Thank Goodness!

So that's our story so far. Sounds boring, but it really HAS been adventurous - just not always in a good way. Now that I'm caught up on our tale - Posts will be shorter, but more detailed. I also should be able to include pics and video.

Hope everyone is doing well - we miss you all! Take care and keep in touch,

Chelle

Another New Blog

2008-07-16T23:21:00.004+02:00
Ok, SO....

I had to find a new blog. The old blog and my German IP just weren't getting along and I couldn't take it anymore.
We have been here 4 months now and not being able to update anyone as promised was causing some issues. I still have my private journal , and I thought about sharing THAT one, but after a lot of contemplation - I just couldn't do it. Some things just need to be for me alone.
Many of the Waiting Spouses use blogspot and so I finally decided to join them. ( Thanks Girls! Hope all is well...).

Now, family and friends - bear with me as I play around here until I get it the way I want it ( oh boy! new toy!) and then I will get you all filled in on the 'Germany Adventure'.

See you soon!