Tea for You, Tea for Me, Four for Tea

On the last night of my sister-in-law and nieces' visit, Rebekah reminded me I had promised her a tea party. We had already planned on a family game of Pictionary after dinner, but it was decided that we had a few minutes to squeeze in the previously pledged entertainment. What began as a quick interlude turned into a real silver tea service, our best china and silverware, my "going to church" hats, and an affected attitude with stuffy accents! It looked like so much fun that even the older sisters asked to join in, which delighted Rebekah to no end (it's surely hard to be so much younger and never have your games or ideas or jokes enjoyed by older siblings)!

Unbeknownst to us, Jeff recorded a fair bit of our impromptu antics, so I'm posting some segments to my embarrassment and their relishment. (The first clip is mostly just serving activity, but the second one has our rather humorous exchanges.)

Not camera shy!

I didn't know toddlers could be such hams! Jessica is not quite two, but she definitely knows what a camera is for. The moment I aimed one at her, she scrunched up her face and gave a big, cheesy grin! She also decided that one of DaVinci's "puppy towels" for wiping paws, the occasional dog drool, etc, was her new blankie named "Button".

Horsin' Around

We have had a blast with the nieces. In addition to playing games, going to the pool, sewing crafts, and cooking, the one activity the girls had their hearts set on was horseback riding. I ride hunter/jumper and dressage, and I had mentioned to the nieces that my riding instructor might be willing to give the older girls a lesson. She very graciously accommodated and I took Julia (almost 12), Sharon (almost 10), and Rebekah (almost 6) to the stables with me bright and early Wednesday morning. They got to experience grooming, picking the hooves, tacking up, and basic ground principles in addition to walk/trot gaits in the sand arena and the open cross-country course.

Sharon and Julia on Skittles and Skip


Rebecca loving on Circles after the ride

Fun with Science

With my sister-in-law and four nieces from Wisconsin here to visit for two weeks, we have been having fun days full of arts and crafts, books, and outings. Today Uncle Jeff planned a trip to the hands-on science museum in Huntsville. We haven't been before, as without the excuse of kids, we would have been a bit out of place. I'm glad we had opportunity today; young and older alike had a great time learning and exploring the many exhibits!

Playing surgeon


Rocking and rolling


Bubbles


A hair-raising experience

Concert in the Park

Jeff and I enjoyed a bit of Americana Monday evening at the concert in the park put on by our city Parks and Rec dept. It was thankfully not as hot and humid as earlier in the day, so we were quite comfortable in our chairs on the lawn, overlooking the Tennessee River.

The stage


DaVinci came too

Happy Anniversary

A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person. ~Mignon McLaughlin



I know Jeff checks this blog from time to time, so happy ninth anniversary darling!

It's hard to believe it's been almost a decade of marriage. As an unknown author stated, "An anniversary is a time to celebrate the joys of today, the memories of yesterday, and the hopes of tomorrow". We have certainly had our joyous and memorable present and past, and the future is bright with hope, so I can wholeheartedly agree.

No Place Like Home

Well, I don't think we'll be eager for more flying anytime soon. In general, Jeff and I have been fairly successful in both business and pleasure flights. But this trip was rather exhausting. We were up at 5:30 in the morning (Germany time) and at the airport with plenty of time. That was about the only thing that went right yesterday!

After sitting at the gate for 2 ½ hours due to a faulty fuel gauge, we finally took off for the 9 hour flight across the ocean to JFK. Since we obviously missed our connecting flights, we spent hours in the baggage claim, re-booking, baggage re-check, and security lines. Since it was a very large flight that was very late, most people had missed connections, so we were in good company in hot, crowded conditions. After we finally made it to our gate for our new flight, we found out that that plane was late. Not terrible in itself, but we still had one more connection to make with only a 50 minute layover between! So of course, there we were again, dashing through the next airport to make our flight, just as we did on the way over to Germany. I guess it all comes full circle!

Once we finally arrived in Alabama, we realized we had very little American money to pay for our taxi. We got home and had to search the house for spare change to make up the difference! We eventually got to bed, some 25 hours after we had gotten up that morning. Let me just say, Europe is wonderful, America is great, but somewhere in between is not much fun.

Goodbye Germany

We have seen Europe by plane, train, auto, tram, bus, bike...and of course, by foot! It's been a very enjoyable, educational, enriching, and, at times, exhausting experience. We are sad our time has come to an end but excited about the opportunities that lay in store for us back home. And I hope this won't be our last trip to Europe. So here's to all our new friends on the Continent, and may we meet again soon. Tschüss!

Note to self...

...Don't leave for the train station with only five or ten minutes to spare when Germany has just thoroughly trounced Argentina 4 to 0 in the World Cup!

It's normally only a quick 3 minute drive to the Salzgitter-Lebenstedt train station from our friends' apartment for our return trip to Berlin. But just as we were getting ready to leave, we heard the first joyful vuvuzela toots. A minute later the car horns started, and then mayhem broke loose on the streets as exultant Germans left huge public "watch parties" and private television sets to whoop and holler and fly flags. We got stuck in this traffic and had to jump out of the car, get the keys from the driver to open the trunk and obtain our bags, and jog the last five blocks or so in 96 degree weather to the railway to make the train! At least everyone was in a good mood; imagine how much worse it would have been if they had lost!

Life in the East

Jeff and I really enjoyed the DDR museum, an interactive exhibit all about life in East Germany (DDR for Deutsche Demokratische Republik, but of course we would say GDR in English). It covered the history of the Soviet influence, imposition of communism, the origins of the wall, and life behind the Iron Curtain from infancy to death. The museum displays artifacts and discourse on details such as collective potty breaks, socialized education, “equalized” salaries, anabolic steroid use in top athletics, the hunger for “status symbol” Levi jeans, the nudist craze, and, of course, the iconic Trabi.

Driving the 1971 Trabant

Cotton was extremely hard to find and clothes were available in only a few broad sizes, so most East German women sewed and/or tailored their own clothes

The engineer's salary was about the same as the bricklayer, the miner, the farmer...

Sculptures to commemorate the nude beaches, camp sites, and vacations of the DDR