Girls, Girls, Girls

This weekend started out with us welcoming a new baby girl into our family. Hannah Marie Kammer was born to Katie (Eric's sister) and Carl Kammer on Friday morning. She weighed 8lbs and 11oz and was 20 3/4" inches long. Katie and Hannah skyped with us so we could see her tiny button nose and little toes and wish them all the best. I am happy to report they are home from the hospital and adjusting to having a precious baby in the family.

The rest of the weekend was spent relaxing and enjoying the warm sunny autumn air. Saturday afternoon, our neighbors invited us a to a new local park. We took the girls' bikes with us as they asked us to. As the girls started to ride their bikes, we quickly noticed how they have both hit a growth spurt as the bike seats were too low. With the rain and from us using the trailer and wee-ride on our daytrips, we did not realize how much they have grown since we adjusted the seats in June. The park was great for the kids, as the playground equipment was age appropriate for Adeline, Emmie, and Henrik.

Sunday afternoon, I took my first driving trip to the Frankfurt airport. The time it takes to get the airport is only about 20 minutes via autobahn, but it is getting around the construction at the airport which is the challenge. We successfully dropped Eric off in the departure area amongst the taxis and temporary parked car chaos. I made it out of the airport and back onto the correct highway as the navi guided us home. Eric will be in Chicago to start the week and then mid week he'll fly to Paris before heading back to Hofheim for the weekend. Unfortunately, he will be working the entire time, so this will not be a sight -seeing trip for him in either of the big cities.

As for us girls, this week brings us homework from our classes, playtime with friends, and hopefully some continued sunny weather.

I can't stop the rain

I can't stop the rain showers or the cool temperatures, so we must continue on with our daily tasks and events during the week. One day this week on our morning walk to school, Emmie even commented it was cold out and asked where her mittens where at. We have been experiencing mids 40s at night and high 50s during the day. These temperatures are 10 degrees below the normal temperatures.

On Tuesday, we strolled downtown for Emmie to get a haircut. All was going well until she fell asleep in the chair. With my help of holding her head, the stylist was able to finish cutting her hair. She slept in the stroller on our walk back home and was a cheerful kindergartener when we arrived home.

Henrik's birthday party we were invited to on Wednesday afternoon changed locations from the park to their apartment across the street due to the rain. Henrik and Emmie are in the same kindergarten group, so this also gave me an opportunity to meet some of the other parents in the class. His mom did a great job entertaining the ten 3 year old children she invited with an agenda consisting of sweets and games.

Adeline is doing a good job keeping up with her homework from school. It is tedious since she has 2 or 3 papers everyday. She and I are improving our German conversation skills we talk intermittently in the house.  Her classmate, Clara, is also learning English since she hears everything Adeline is told during class. It appears the 2 of them are forming a nice friendship along with a few other girls in class. This week Adeline translated a simple German sentence to English for me when we were reviewing her reading lesson. Hurray!

This week's mornings have started off rocky for Emmie, but once class is over with, she is happy she attended class. She is very happy to tell me about what her and her friends have done during class time or the snack they have eaten. Even though it is rainy and cold outside, she ate every bite of her chocolate popsicle.

The pasta lady at the market now knows me. It is always a surprise to see what flavorful filling she has created  and I am enjoying sampling all of the fresh ravioli she makes. My favorite to date has been the lemon and thyme flavor in the summer, but now with the fall here, I am looking forward to some pumpkin ones.

The weatherman is predicting sun and warm temperatures for the weekend. I hope he is right.

"P" Weekend

Friday afternoon we walked with Adeline's class and their parents to the Meisterturm in the forest. It was a class social outing before the Parent's meeting in a few days at the school. The parents will apparently vote to elect a few parents to be the communicator between the class parents and the teacher and with any school events that will occur.

Saturday morning, Adeline had her basketball practice. She is enjoying the different games and drills they do throughout the session. Each time she attends, she is getting better dribbling the ball and getting the ball closer to the rim when she shoots it. Even though they lowered the nets, most kids can get the ball to hit the bottom of the net, very few actually make a basket.
 In the afternoon, we visited with some new friends in downtown Hofheim. We had pleasant conversation and just enjoyed sitting downtown in the warm afternoon sun. Adeline and Emmie ended up getting soaked in the fountain, so this canceled our plans to go to the park afterwards, but they had fun wading in the water and playing around the fountain.

Sunday morning started with an American pancake breakfast. We use our Bisquick mix and syrup supply sparingly, so we can enjoy the taste of USA. Eric cooked up the girls some Mickey Mouse faces, so they were delighted when they sat down to eat.

After church, we went to Königstein for a parade. The city was hosting their annual Burgfest (castle festival). The parade theme was of the medieval era which is when the castle was occupied. The girls had a great time watching the parade floats of carriages, wagons, and carts pass by them. They were surprised when we saw two cows pulling one of the floats and found it funny that sheep and chickens were riding on other floats. Adeline and Emmie marveled at the costumes worn by the men, women, and children. Each one pointed out their favorite dress as the different groups passed. The parade appeared to be quick as they were given candy, chocolate, and flowers from the various parade participants as they strolled by us. When the final float with the current crowned princess passed by us, we followed it into town and to the castle. On the castle grounds, the girls played some simple games and listened to one of the past festival princess tell a story. Even though the castle is ruined and there is not much to see of it, it is built on a hill overlooking the Taunus Hills so the view is beautiful.

We wish all of our families with children starting their first day in kindergarten or returning to school good luck, a wonderful 1st day and year to come, plus safe travels to and from school. We hope everyone has a good beginning as they start the new school year and an easy transition from summertime to school days.

Changes in September

This month has already brought about many changes, so every day I just wait to see what new challenge will come about that needs to be addressed or adaption will need to occur for us to keep peace and happiness within our home.

One of the newspapers big articles on September 1st was how Frankfurt had record setting high temperatures in July, and then abnormal rain amounts in August. Normally, the area gets 180mm (7 inches) of rain, but this August brought 250mm (9.8inches) and cool temperatures. The first week of September we have had highs in the mid 60's during the day and in the mid 40s at night. Even Emmie said it was cold one morning walking to school. I hope we have an Indian Summer as most of us are still waiting for the warm sunny days. The news anchors and radio announcers are comically stating it will come in 2013.

This week started Adeline's first week on her daily school schedule. She also changed seats in her classroom as one of the girls asked if she could sit next to her in school. Tuesday, she had her first choir practice. Adeline and Emmie saw each other for the first time when they were both outside at their schools, so they gave each other hugs through the fence. By Thursday morning, the girls were dragging as school begins now at 8am Tuesday-Friday, so it is an adjustment from the 8:45am start time the past 2 weeks.

In the afternoon, Adeline has also tried out two different dance classes from friends' referrals. She was very excited to attend them both. I just need to decide which suits  her better and fits in her schedule. Unfortunately, Emmie is too young for dance classes, even though she wants to participate. She has been pouting and wishing to go to an activity. I inform her when she is four she can start an activity as this seems to be the age when all activities for children begin.

Eric and I  picked up our German driver's licenses. It was a weird feeling handing over the Michigan license to the lady to put in our file as we cannot carry them both. We are here longer than 6 months, so our Michigan license is not valid for our entire stay . The nice thing about this process was we did not have to take any tests to get it and it does not expire.

 My German class started this week. I attend two days a week while the girls are in school. The class is the second level as I was able to test out of the first level. The class started with 3 hausfraus (stay at home women), 3 Russian au-pairs, and myself. Throughout the class, I was able to answer simple questions, read some of the articles, and also get corrected numerous times on my speech. Of course, I cannot roll my r's  like the Germans, just as the Germans have a hard time with ths and ws as in world wide web (www). The teacher and I joke about this now. In the second class there were only four of us who showed up to class.  I had to stay focused with so few of us participating and by the end I was mentally exhausted from this session. Just like Adeline's class, the teacher has sent us home with homework after every meeting. Adeline thinks this is cool that I have homework like her.

At the end of week, Adeline and I have also gotten our hair cut. After having to change the appointment twice due to conflicts, we finally made it into the salon. This came at just the right time as lice has been discovered in Adeline's school this week. Between hand motions and simple directions, I managed to get Adeline's hair cut into a cute bob for her.

3 Month Anniversary

This past week marked our 3 month anniversary since we landed on this side of the big pond. It is more difficult to realize that summer is over with, especially since we have been experiencing cool temperatures (mid 50's) and sporadic rain showers daily for the past few weeks. We have adapted to apartment living and living in the city.  We have also gone through our 1st/2nd round of supplies we brought over with us as most containers/items are made for about 2 to 3 months use in the US. Plus, we are now establishing a routine with the  girls in school, so there are less impromptu outings as when we first arrived.

This week began with frowns on Monday as we started another week of school, but by Friday, the frowns were turned upside down. The girls have recognized that no one speaks English in the classroom with them and this was very frustrating to them. However, by Wednesday, Adeline was invited over  to play with one of her classmates in the afternoon and she informed me she was chatting with the girls while they were changing their shoes for gym class. When I asked her what they chatted about, she just commented, "Oh  Stuff." I still am not sure what they discussed, but I was happy to hear the comfort in her voice about being with her classmates. As the week progressed, Emmie was happily telling me when I picked her up how the big girls in her class were playing with her and helped her out. Emmie is learning German very quickly from Adeline through the songs she comes home and recites to me and by Adeline correcting my German pronunciation. In addition, Emmie is constantly asking what everything is German- to the point I have to get out the translation dictionary.

Our weekend was  planned out with the various types of festivals going on in the area. Saturday afternoon, we spent in downtown Frankfurt at the Museumsuferfest. Christina, a Michigan friend, was in town doing some work with her Chrysler supplier, so she met up with us as we walked the 8km festival along the Main River. Food, drink, and gift vendors lined the riverfront walk along with stages for bands and dance acts. The weather brought a light rain shower, but it did not discourage us from the enjoying the festival. When the crowd started to get thick, we ventured over to old town Frankfurt to show Christina. Here we found a Starbucks which brought a smile to Christina's face and the bier bike. This time, Eric managed to get a picture of it which shows the drinkers powering it as they peddle while sitting at the bar.

Sunday morning was an exceptionable service at church, as the new pastor, Carston Lotz, and his family had their induction ceremony to ICF. It is amazing how God works in his own ways for the church's timing of searching for a new pastor and the Lotz family's ideal church to ministering in to be the best fit for each other at just the right time.

Sunday afternoon, we spent the afternoon in Mainz. The Mainz Winemarkt is held in the city park. Instead of food treats, we allowed the girls to have their faces painted. There was a 30 minute wait, so Eric and I enjoyed a wine. It is here Sarah discovered Eric ordering a wine at the vendor. We all then enjoyed the atmosphere while the girls got their faces painted. Adeline requested a butterfly and Emmie asked for a flower. We then continued  strolling through park when their faces were finished. We ran into Uschi and her husband while we were strolling around. All of us gathered around a table and enjoyed the later afternoon in the park. Unfortunately, it started to rain and then pour. Luckily, we were under a large umbrealla to keep us dry and we had an excellent wine vendor close to keep us happy. The rain was not lightening up, but the time was getting late, so we just took a run for the car, 5 plus blocks away with our umbrellas and rainjackets.  Monday morning would come about quickly and ALL of us girls will be attending school in the morning.

Wiesbaden Winefest

This weekend was a weekend of making new friends and meeting up with old friends. 

Friday evening, I enjoyed a women's social gathering at the church. The evenings theme was, "Finding the Hat for You." They had a lovely display of hats when you entered the church foyer, a local lady who makes hats speak about the history of hats and demonstrate how to make a felt hat, a delicious spread of cold salads for dinner, and another speaker who talked about selecting the most appropriate hat as a Christian. Before the evening ended, I met a few ladies who live close to us and also have children in the German school system.

Saturday morning, Adeline participated in the Hofheim kids basketball program. It is a new program that just started and I recognized numerous children from Adeline's class attending it, too. They did not play with any basketballs this week, but the movement and exercise had Adeline sweating when the program was over. Adeline liked racing around the cones with the handball the best.

Not a cloud in the sky over Wiesbaden's Church

Saturday afternoon the temperature rose to 90 degrees as we met the Kuchera family in downtown Wiesbaden for the Winefest. Even though the sun and heat were intense, we found a cool spot under an umbrella for our families to sit and enjoy wine from the Rheingau. 

With over 100 local winestands to choose from, Josh and Eric picked out some tasty Reislings for us to enjoy. The children enjoyed the grape juice and festival food. The evening brought a large crowd, but the children were tired, so it was a good time to make our exit with the strollers.

Sunday after church, we joined everyone from church at the local park for an afternoon picnic. The sunny weather was ideal for the many families to be out and about. This gave Eric the opportunity to meet some of the spouses as I have been meeting the ladies through the various church events I have been participating in. It also allowed us to taste some good food, as some families also shared their salads with us. The children had fun playing soccer and with the toys everyone brought.

1st week complete and many more to go

Adeline and Emmie have completed their first week of German school with smiles and excitement. Each day has brought about a new learning experience and more comfort of being in the classroom. In addition, the girls are also reciting a new German word everyday they have picked up from the classroom environment.  Adeline's word is "fertig"(complete) and Emmie's word is "oopsala"(oops).

The girls were very happy when it was a sunny Wednesday morning, as Emmie could ride her bike and Adeline her scooter to school.

In kindergarten, Emmie has gone from playing puzzles independently to making friends with the older girls and playing dolls with them, and sharing shovels in the large sandbox.  She has brought home shoes full of sand everyday. Wednesday mornings they have a group breakfast where all the children sit together and eat the same thing. This week was pancakes with jelly. Emmie enjoyed it so much that on Thursday, she walked around the tables looking to see if there was anymore of it for snacktime. On Friday, the class took a fieldtrip to the garden center. Emmie explained to me it was to far to walk, so they all got on the city bus and went to buy flowers for the classroom.

Everyday there has been something new for Adeline in her classroom. She is still learning the children's names, but a few of the children who speak English come and say hello to her in the morning when I drop her off at school. She received her reading and math books on Wednesday and has had a coloring or drawing sheet of homework everyday. Adeline draws a house on the top of the worksheet if she needs to complete it a home, this way I know too what needs to be done. The school teachers have also paired her up with an 8 year old girl who speaks very good English to help ease the transition too. She now plays with her and her friends at recess.

Friday we received the upcoming week's schedule from the teacher. I now understand why Adeline was given so many hourly charts for her school week to be filled out when we were gathering school supplies. Adeline's class schedule varies from day to day. It just depends on the day and what classes are being taught. Some days she has a short day of only 4 classes, so she can sleep in and gets out earlier, whereas other days she will go in earlier and stay later if is a day with 5 or 6 classes.

Our family calendar is already filling up with class social gatherings, meetings, and school events. This school year will be a time of learning for me too as I get acquainted with the school times, learning objectives, and activities. I have been meeting a few of Adeline's classmates mother's every morning as they have been very kind in offering playtime for the children outside of school and assistance to me as we are starting the school year. We are looking forward to the new experiences and learning opportunities the school year will bring for all of us.