I haven't been posting because I didn't realize anyone was actually reading this thing. No one has commented or emailed or called to let me know, so I just... stopped. I keep a journal for myself, so I've just been writing there, but as one person has let me know that they like reading my blog, I figure I'll keep it up. Even if just one person is reading it, that makes me feel good :)
Not much has happened in my absence - my Christmas presents from Will finally arrived and they are GREAT! I got a new camera that I can just stick in my purse - I love my Rebel, but it's so big, and I'm afraid to take it to say, a concert or bar, because something could happen to it. This one fits nicely in my bag and takes amazing photos :) He also got me the Post Secret books, and I'm happy to say that one of my secrets made it in!
We also finished furnishing the guestroom/family room downstairs - there are now two couches down there, one of which contains a fold-out bed. The old coffee table and tv stand and tv are down there as well, with a nice carpet - it's shaping up to be a great place to hang out with the kiddos and watch a movie :)
And lastly, Joseph finally got a pet. Max is our new tortoise hare (I know, it cracks me up, too) and he's super friendly. He likes sitting in laps, being petted, eating celery and hopping spastically. He's litter trained and only chews on paper if you leave it on the floor, and Joseph is thrilled with him. He wanted to change Max's name, but...
J: I think the bunny needs a new name.
A: Oh? Like what?
J: *thinking* Well, how about Stairs?
A: Stairs the bunny? I don't know. Do you have any other ideas?
J: Yes, we could call him Plugs.
A: Plugs isn't really a bunny name, Joseph.
J: Ok, ok, ok... how about this, Mom. We can name him Spoons.
A: ......... You know what, Joseph? I think Max is actually a very nice bunny name.
And so the bunny's name remains Max.
On to current events!
Soon we'll be heading out for a Hail and Farewell for a buddy of ours who is leaving this unit. We knew him back at Ft. Belvoir in Virginia, and it's been nice to see him again, even for a short time. Will was put in charge of picking out his going away gift, and instead of the usual plaque, he got this soldier a HUGE stein, with an eagle carved on and an engraved silver plate with the name and dates. It's really nice, and I think it's a good departure from the plain old boring certificates and plaques people normally receive.
The venue for this H&F is pretty well known around here - it's called Big Emma's. I've never been before, but I hear the schnitzel is amazing. If you get a chance, check out that website - it really does offer a fair insight into the German dining experience :) Please note the use of phrases such as 'big how you like it,' 'taste it and check your quality' and 'woman-size menu.' This is pretty standard :)
There's no sharing of dishes in German restaurants unless you're ordering a regular meal for two small children, which is what we usually do. The children's menues here don't differ much from those in the States - they invariably offer chicken nuggets, french fries, grilled cheese or spatzle (sort of like German macaroni and cheese). Joe and Ella don't really eat too much of any of those things, so they usually split a schnitzel or wurst of some sort.
I've got a weakness for rumpsteak with krauterbutter - a filet-mignon style steak topped with a fresh butter mixed with garlic and herbs. There are no steak sauces or ketchups on the table - all cooking here is supposed to stand on it's own.
Also, they bring the dishes out of the kitchen as soon as they're ready - there's no waiting in the window for a whole order to come up. And as soon as your plate is on the table, you're expected to start tucking in. It's rude to leave your food untouched, as this signals to the waiter that something is wrong with it.
Learning to eat here really has been an experience, but it's been so much fun, too. We've found so many great places to eat and tried a lot of new foods - I can't wait to see what else we'll find.
I'll let you know how Big Emma's was next time :)
Friday, January 30, 2009
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Five Years Today
Today is our anniversary - five years ago, I married a man I hadn't known very long. He was older than me. From a completely different walk of life. Another race, another heritage. A whole different view of the world.
And it was the best decision I'd made yet.
Five years, two children, three duty stations and two countries later, I'm just as happy to see him everyday as I was when my dad walked me down the isle and handed me off. I'm proud of my family, my life and my kids, I'm proud of the new heritage and history I learn more about with each year, and I'm proud of what I'm teaching our children - not every choice you make as a teenager is a bad one, and that we love each other very, very much.
This is not nearly as eloquent as I'd meant it to be, but I am exhausted. Tonight we hired a babysitter and went out for Indian food - an anniversary tradition, though it wasn't intentional the first three times :) We also saw "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" - an amazing, beautiful movie that I give two thumbs up, though you'll need to bring a box of tissues with you.
I guess the long and short of it is this: I'm very, very happy tonight :)
And it was the best decision I'd made yet.
Five years, two children, three duty stations and two countries later, I'm just as happy to see him everyday as I was when my dad walked me down the isle and handed me off. I'm proud of my family, my life and my kids, I'm proud of the new heritage and history I learn more about with each year, and I'm proud of what I'm teaching our children - not every choice you make as a teenager is a bad one, and that we love each other very, very much.
This is not nearly as eloquent as I'd meant it to be, but I am exhausted. Tonight we hired a babysitter and went out for Indian food - an anniversary tradition, though it wasn't intentional the first three times :) We also saw "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" - an amazing, beautiful movie that I give two thumbs up, though you'll need to bring a box of tissues with you.
I guess the long and short of it is this: I'm very, very happy tonight :)
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Wow, these last few days have been busy!
Firstly, it SNOWED! Finally! I've been assured I'll be sick of white flurry bits soon enough, but it's so beautiful right now :) It has been a bit of a problem, as we live on the top of a steep hill, so going anywhere in the car involves going down and around our hill and approaching from the other, less steep side. Last night when we were leaving the store, the thermometer said 17'F - and boy, was it biting cold. It's the kind of cold, here, that really does suck the air out of your lungs and make your throat hurt just breathing. And please excuse the giant stack of wood in the foreground of the picture - our Naked Neighbors decided that against our back fence was definitely prime placement for their firewood supply this year :(
I've been cleaning out the downstairs storage and laundry rooms, where we dumped everything we didn't feel like unpacking in the first few weeks. And I'm almost done! I really wish I'd taken before and after pictures, but oh well. I'll at least get 'after' pictures up when I'm done :) Our laundry and storage rooms are really both big enough to be spare bedrooms, save for the lack of heating and windows in there. I've got four boxes of Stuff sitting in the hallway that I'm slowly photographing and posting for sale on Ramstein Yard Sales or giving away to the local shelter. Once that is done, I'll be able to start getting ready for our first scheduled visitors - Will's Family! They're coming to see us in April, and we can't wait. We're researching trips and making plans to get the most sightseeing we can out of their time here.
And, last but not least, I'm starting a new project. I'll not say what it is now, but fingers crossed that I get it finished. If I work on it (like I really should work on all of my projects), I should finish by the time Will's family gets here. Hopefully. I'm really excited about it, and I can't wait to show it to all of you! But that's all I can say about it now. We've been spending the last few days researching and getting all the bits and pieces I need, and as soon as they all get here (stupid military mail system) I'll be able to start!
So that's it, really.
Oh, and if you're willing to cut me some slack, you can read my old bartending blog, Kind of a Big Deal. Just don't judge me too harshly - it was mostly meant for comedy and fellow hospitality workers, and the language is less-than-safe for little ears.
Love you all!
Firstly, it SNOWED! Finally! I've been assured I'll be sick of white flurry bits soon enough, but it's so beautiful right now :) It has been a bit of a problem, as we live on the top of a steep hill, so going anywhere in the car involves going down and around our hill and approaching from the other, less steep side. Last night when we were leaving the store, the thermometer said 17'F - and boy, was it biting cold. It's the kind of cold, here, that really does suck the air out of your lungs and make your throat hurt just breathing. And please excuse the giant stack of wood in the foreground of the picture - our Naked Neighbors decided that against our back fence was definitely prime placement for their firewood supply this year :(
I've been cleaning out the downstairs storage and laundry rooms, where we dumped everything we didn't feel like unpacking in the first few weeks. And I'm almost done! I really wish I'd taken before and after pictures, but oh well. I'll at least get 'after' pictures up when I'm done :) Our laundry and storage rooms are really both big enough to be spare bedrooms, save for the lack of heating and windows in there. I've got four boxes of Stuff sitting in the hallway that I'm slowly photographing and posting for sale on Ramstein Yard Sales or giving away to the local shelter. Once that is done, I'll be able to start getting ready for our first scheduled visitors - Will's Family! They're coming to see us in April, and we can't wait. We're researching trips and making plans to get the most sightseeing we can out of their time here.
And, last but not least, I'm starting a new project. I'll not say what it is now, but fingers crossed that I get it finished. If I work on it (like I really should work on all of my projects), I should finish by the time Will's family gets here. Hopefully. I'm really excited about it, and I can't wait to show it to all of you! But that's all I can say about it now. We've been spending the last few days researching and getting all the bits and pieces I need, and as soon as they all get here (stupid military mail system) I'll be able to start!
So that's it, really.
Oh, and if you're willing to cut me some slack, you can read my old bartending blog, Kind of a Big Deal. Just don't judge me too harshly - it was mostly meant for comedy and fellow hospitality workers, and the language is less-than-safe for little ears.
Love you all!
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Now With Clicky Goodness
Pardon my grammar.
I've finally figured out how to add links to my blogs, so that if you click a linked word or phrase, it will take you to a website that will tell you all about whatever you clicked on! For example:
Tonight, I made a batch of delicious chocolate cupcakes. They were so tasty!
So you click on the word 'cupcakes' and it takes you to another site explaining cupcakes. Pretty cool right?
And I totally did make cupcakes tonight. Ella
loved them :)
I've finally figured out how to add links to my blogs, so that if you click a linked word or phrase, it will take you to a website that will tell you all about whatever you clicked on! For example:
Tonight, I made a batch of delicious chocolate cupcakes. They were so tasty!
So you click on the word 'cupcakes' and it takes you to another site explaining cupcakes. Pretty cool right?
And I totally did make cupcakes tonight. Ella
loved them :)
Fireworks and Fish
So.
The fireworks are still going.
Apparently, this is STILL the 12 days of Christmas, until the 6th of January.
The 6th of January will be Three Kings Day, and from the first of the year until then, little kids (mostly boys) are putting on homemade capes and crowns and going door to door singing, and you're supposed to give them candy or money. Some of the towns, like Speyer, which we visited yesterday, are having markets and festivals to celebrate this, the week of the Three Kings. Everywhere we look, there are children with gold crowns and crooks - it's a little surreal.
Anyway, we went to Speyer to visit Sea Life, a big aquarium 'chain' here in Europe. I say 'chain' because there are several Sea Lifes located in a few different countries. Anyway, it was terribly expensive and frustratingly crowded, but I think it actually would have been pretty neat if there had been about half as many people there that day. There were lots of tanks of diffrent fish, and we got to pet some sea anemones and starfish, and the stingrays were particularly interested in me, although that's not the first time we've noticed that they have a strange affinity for the taste of my ankles.
And I'm not sure if it's more to do with my lack of technical German language skills or their lack of signage, but apparently there was something wrong with their parking lot, so we parked in another part of the city and walked about a mile (part of it in a ridiculous unnecessary detour) in the 25'F weather to get to the aquarium.
I know the picture says 'legoland' but the shark was made out of legos, so I guess it's a cross-promotion. Anyway, the kids liked it :)
On the upside, the mile walk took us by one of the oldest cathedrals in this part of Germany, and it was amazing. It looked more like a castle than a church, and we could hear the choir singing from the outside. I have no idea why it didn't occur to either of us to take pictures (duh) because it was absolutely beautiful :)
So to summarize:
Fireworks
Kings
Cold
Bad Aquarium
Awesome Cathedral
The fireworks are still going.
Apparently, this is STILL the 12 days of Christmas, until the 6th of January.
The 6th of January will be Three Kings Day, and from the first of the year until then, little kids (mostly boys) are putting on homemade capes and crowns and going door to door singing, and you're supposed to give them candy or money. Some of the towns, like Speyer, which we visited yesterday, are having markets and festivals to celebrate this, the week of the Three Kings. Everywhere we look, there are children with gold crowns and crooks - it's a little surreal.
Anyway, we went to Speyer to visit Sea Life, a big aquarium 'chain' here in Europe. I say 'chain' because there are several Sea Lifes located in a few different countries. Anyway, it was terribly expensive and frustratingly crowded, but I think it actually would have been pretty neat if there had been about half as many people there that day. There were lots of tanks of diffrent fish, and we got to pet some sea anemones and starfish, and the stingrays were particularly interested in me, although that's not the first time we've noticed that they have a strange affinity for the taste of my ankles.
And I'm not sure if it's more to do with my lack of technical German language skills or their lack of signage, but apparently there was something wrong with their parking lot, so we parked in another part of the city and walked about a mile (part of it in a ridiculous unnecessary detour) in the 25'F weather to get to the aquarium.
I know the picture says 'legoland' but the shark was made out of legos, so I guess it's a cross-promotion. Anyway, the kids liked it :)
On the upside, the mile walk took us by one of the oldest cathedrals in this part of Germany, and it was amazing. It looked more like a castle than a church, and we could hear the choir singing from the outside. I have no idea why it didn't occur to either of us to take pictures (duh) because it was absolutely beautiful :)
So to summarize:
Fireworks
Kings
Cold
Bad Aquarium
Awesome Cathedral
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Tschuss, 2008!
I'll be the first to say that 2008 was not really one of my favourite years. Getting laid off, fighting Hilton Corp., Ella's kidney problems, drama, getting sick, a less-than-stellar moving experience and a disappointing holiday season have all combined to make 2008...tiring. That's not to say there weren't great things that happened this year - we were able to spend time with my family, Joseph and Ella were baptized and now have two fantastic Godmothers, Will has made great strides at work, we moved to Germany (!!!) and found a beautiful house.
But still, I am looking forward to 2009 and all of the untapped potential and innumerable possibilities that are in front of me - travel, education and personal fullfillment are all in the cards this year, and I can't wait to see what happens.
I didn't realize until now that New Year's is such a big deal in Germany. The fireworks started around 6pm yesterday, and finally tapered off near 2am. And I'm not talking about those little dinky fireworks we get in the States - no, these were big professional fireworks, the kind that make huge shimmering blooms in the sky. The guy next to our Naked Neighbors (that's another story for another time) had a full setup in his backyard, and was putting on a display that rivals our 4th of July celebrations back home. The sound of those fireworks was like cannonfire, and the smell when I opened the window was the acrid burn of gunpowder - but it sure was awesome to watch. The beauty of our New Years is that Will and I were able to sit on the couch in our living room, sipping sparkling cider (he had to leave for work at 4am, so no champagne here) and watching the show through our huge living room windows.
It occurs to me that I've never posted any pictures of my house - so here is the view from the couch, and the view out the windows. The fireworks were coming from the yard next to the frozen pool - I could throw a rock over their fence, that's how close they are. And the big house to the right with the pool is Naked Neighbors' house. Thank goodness they were inside when I took these!
So here is hoping that you all had a wonderful New Year's, and that 2009 is awesome for us all!
But still, I am looking forward to 2009 and all of the untapped potential and innumerable possibilities that are in front of me - travel, education and personal fullfillment are all in the cards this year, and I can't wait to see what happens.
I didn't realize until now that New Year's is such a big deal in Germany. The fireworks started around 6pm yesterday, and finally tapered off near 2am. And I'm not talking about those little dinky fireworks we get in the States - no, these were big professional fireworks, the kind that make huge shimmering blooms in the sky. The guy next to our Naked Neighbors (that's another story for another time) had a full setup in his backyard, and was putting on a display that rivals our 4th of July celebrations back home. The sound of those fireworks was like cannonfire, and the smell when I opened the window was the acrid burn of gunpowder - but it sure was awesome to watch. The beauty of our New Years is that Will and I were able to sit on the couch in our living room, sipping sparkling cider (he had to leave for work at 4am, so no champagne here) and watching the show through our huge living room windows.
It occurs to me that I've never posted any pictures of my house - so here is the view from the couch, and the view out the windows. The fireworks were coming from the yard next to the frozen pool - I could throw a rock over their fence, that's how close they are. And the big house to the right with the pool is Naked Neighbors' house. Thank goodness they were inside when I took these!
So here is hoping that you all had a wonderful New Year's, and that 2009 is awesome for us all!
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