Malmö Sweden

The afternoon started out good as the Frankfurt airport security agents allowed us girls to use the first class/business line instead of the waiting in the long econonmy line to be screened.  We passed with a breeze, but Emmie's Goo-goo Baby received another check-up. The agent was very kind and informed Emmie her baby doll was in good health after running the test in the little room off to the side.

A little later, we first boarded the packed bus which then took us to the airplane. We found our seats quickly amongst the businessmen. Since the flight was a short, we enjoyed a drink and snacked on a little piece of cake before landing. Upon arriving in Copenhagen, we walked through a long corridor of stores before arriving to the baggage claim area. We passed more stores in this airport than in our local mall. Eric quickly spotted us and we were on the train to Sweden.  The train traveled on the Öresund bridge and it had a great view. As soon as the train is back on land in Sweden, a large blue Ikea could be seen within the distance. 

When we dropped off our luggage at the hotel, the girls discovered the treats the hotel had put together for them waiting in their room. Emmie went for the traditional Swedish candy, while Adeline immediately opened up the coloring book.  Eric and I enjoyed some sweets from the fruit and candy platter they had prepared for us. The view from our room out over the city was gorgeous. We could see the Turning Torso, water, and unique architecture.

While it was still light out, we followed Eric through the pedestrian area and nearby city streets. He showed us the various venues he has enjoyed eating at or the interesting Swedish architecture he discovered along his runs. At the main train station, there was an entire barge in the small canal dedicated for just bikes to be parked at. I could estimate that over 500 bikes could be parked here on a given work day and Eric commented that during the work day it is packed, along with the numerous other bike racks lining the station and nearby areas. It is very interesting to see the nice bike paths along the streets and sidewalks for one to get around by and how many people do utilize them. 

We stopped for dinner at Anytime, where Eric frequents weekly. They reserved a table for us in the window. The girls watched the pizzas being made and put in the brick oven as the kitchen could be seen from the bar area. We enjoyed our meal and the cozy atmosphere and then strolled back to the hotel. We topped the evening off with some delicious pear cider and a few more sweets.

Circus Fischer

The weather brought much needed rain early in the week. I think we have been battling with allergies these past few days due to the high pollen count. A heavy wind came through on Monday evening and Tuesday morning, our white car was completely covered in yellow petals and the sidewalk to school was showered with small pink flowers. With the cooler temperatures and rain on Tuesday, we were feeling better and could breath without the medicine by the evening.

Our neighbor, Karolin, and Adeline surprised us with lunch on Wednesday. Adeline was with Karoline after her school let out since I was still in school. Karolin and Adeline finished Adeline's homework and then they cooked spaghetti and set the table while they waited for me and the two little ones. When I arrived at their house to drop off Henrick as I had picked him up along with Emmie from school, Adeline was so excited to surprise me with what her and Karolin had been up to. It was a very nice lunch for all of us to have together and converse about what happened in school that morning.

Wednesday afternoon, I took the girls to a circus performance here in Hofheim. The small tent was sent up in a little field just on the outskirts of town. When we sat down in the cheap seats, we were only tour rows away from the ring, but Adeline was quite nervous about not being able to see the show. It was not a problem as there were only about 75 people in the entire audience and no one sat in front of us. After every few acts, the girls moved up a row, to get a better view. At intermission, I initially paid for what I thought was the miniature pony ride, but was the circus animal viewing area. I could not see the pony rides anywhere, but I spotted the wrestling tigers in a cage. We quickly went back into the tent and here the girls rode the ponies around the ring numerous times since there was no waiting line. 

At the start of the 2nd half, the girls were sitting ring side. I was a little hesitant with them sitting ring side since they also had the "gentle" Bengal tigers and there was no cage to be seen around the ring area, plus we had not seen them perform yet and then they brought out the lit torches for the acrobat to swing around with her feet. I will just say I said a few quick prayers as there was no room for error in this tent.  Emmie loved watching the performing horses. Adeline's favorite parts were the acrobatic girls with their hula hoops and the little comedy acts. With only the horses performing in between the comedy acts and acrobatic stunts, it was still a fun small circus. Overall, it was a good afternoon outing with the live entertainment which brought much excitement and many smiles.

Friday morning, Adeline had two and half hours of school before her two week Easter vacation begins. This works out great as we are leaving in the afternoon to fly to Copenhagen and then take a train to Malmo, Sweden and see exactly where Eric has been hanging out on his current project this past year.

2 Weekends in a Row

This weekend was another unusually warm and sunny weekend. We again made the most of it. Since Eric would not be joining us till later Friday evening, we met up with Sarah in downtown Wiesbaden. We had a fun girls afternoon strolling through the Easter market and enjoying our torte selections from the historical cafe. 

 On Saturday, we drove to Kriftel Park. We were probably the only ones driving with bikes in the trunk as we passed many families riding their bikes. This gave the girls an opportunity to ride their bikes and get more comfortable with operating them compared to trying to learn on our hilly streets. It was interesting watching Adeline explain to Emmie how to ride her old bike. Emmie is still getting used to balancing with the bigger bike, but by the end, she was slowly coasting down small inclines.

Sunday after church, we picnicked with the Paix family at Viktoriapark in Kronberg. We met Kendall, Rachel, Lucia, and Charlotte through church. Charlotte and Adeline are the same age, so they are  in the same Sunday school class. The picnic was great with food and conversation. It made us laugh to hear the girls discuss what animals they have seen in their backyards since they are from Australia. This was a first for us hearing someone speak of kangaroos, wallabies, and kookaburras outside their house windows. Emmie thought it was neat when Lucia and I sang the kookaburra song together. We tried to explain to Adeline what bush was, but I am not so confident she completely understood. Charlotte also encouraged Adeline to climb a few of the magnolia trees we were sitting near. She was a little hesitant, but then had fun doing this. On our way home, we drove through the grounds of the Schlosshotel Kronberg to catch a glimpse of the beautiful castle. 

Always something to do

With the weather changing to warmer temperatures, I spent Monday evening swapping out the girls winter clothes for their spring and summer clothes. The girls had fun trying on their summer dresses and twirling around the room during this hour. Fortunately, majority of them can be worn above the knees this summer, so I just need to go shopping for some shorts to go with them.  

Adeline's school is participating in a sugar free morning snack program till Easter. They started it about five weeks ago. At the beginning, it was fairly easy to give her sugar free or natural sugar snacks like in fruit, cheese, etc. When the children eat a healthy snack they get rewarded with a sticker to add to the huge campaign board. However, since then, I have given her a German fruit filled granola like  bar and a waffle with jam on it for her longer mornings at school. Her teacher has informed her that these contain sugars which are not good for her, so if she eats it, she does not get rewarded. I questioned then what else do the kids bring in besides fruit, vegetables, and cheese. Her response is pretzels, the American white bread, and pizza with cheese for birthday celebrations! I just shook my head. This is one battle I am not going to win and I will have to cut fruit or vegetables every morning till it is over with.

 Wednesday morning, Adeline was geeked as she only had two hours of school. The children that will be attending school next year visited the school, so the current students had a short day. Unfortunately for her, she had to come to class with me. My teacher was happy to have her participate in class. It worked out too, as my teacher was able to help Adeline with some of her pronunciation homework since I cannot do this.

Thursday morning, Emmie's class took a trip to visit a house designed by Friedensreich Hundertwasser, a famous Austrian architect, in Bad Soden. The class is learning about architecture and this is a popular house for one to visit. Click for Hundertwasserhaus picture I was waiting for them to return to the school, when the city bus came around the corner and all of the children were smiling and waving to us moms as it drove pass. It was a priceless moment. Emmie informed me she had breakfast at the park and they had to take three different buses to get there. I am not sure she understood exactly what they were supposed to see, but it was still an adventurous morning for her.

In the afternoon, Adeline attended Lily's Easter party. Lily's mother also invited Emmie since one of Emmie's classmates would be attending. The girls had fun decorating the real eggs her mom had dried out and making easter cookies amongst the other activities she had planned. In between my afternoon agenda, I was able to enjoy a few moments of the warm sunshine with a magazine while the girls were away.

Highs in the low 70s

We are not complaining about the spring weather and we are very happy the weather has been so  nice.  It is amazing the amount of wild apple and cherry trees in the area as we can note where they are  since they are blooming. It is simply beautiful with so many trees blossoming and the girls find it delightful when it "snows" pink petals. We are enjoying the weather with barbecued meals and outdoor activities.

After basketball on Saturday morning, we packed a picnic lunch and visited the Opel Zoo. It was a great visit as the warm weather had the animals out frolicking around or sunbathing in it. Emmie was excited to visit the hippo and Adeline liked the ponies. My favorite was the giraffe exhibit and the bonus part was they had three giraffes which were born earlier this year. The girls also had fun feeding a few of the animals. We completed our afternoon with a stop at the ice cream parlor.

After church on Sunday, we picnicked in Bad Homburg. The city has a large Kurpark, a landscaped park with garden designs, paths for walking along, and a spa and other fitness within it to allow one to get a refreshing experience while being in a natural setting. After lunch, the girls had fun dancing in the fresh spring air and picking the wild flowers. Unfortunately, the miniature golf was still closed, but we did find a playground for them to monkey around on.

In the evening, we caught up with our March Madness brackets. Eric tried to get the games so we could watch them both and not know the game outcome, but when it came on, they were interviewing Butler, so that spoiled the first Final Four game. However, we did have fun cheering on Kentucky verses UConn. Both girls picked Kentucky and I had UConn, so it was a fun and loud time to the buzzer cheering for our teams. Eric said I should have entered a real bracket contest since I picked UConn winning it all during the Sweet Sixteen round. I guess he was right this year. The girls are looking forward to my selection of a restaurant  for my prize as I am picking one that serves a nice Sunday brunch, plus American style pancakes from what we have been told.

Just Testing

On Monday afternoon, Adeline really tested out her new bike and the workmanship of her dad. She coasted to downtown Hofheim and put the brakes to their ultimate test on a few hills. After a few trips around the block while Emmie was in dance class, she was comfortably riding her bike home and is looking forward to our next bike adventure.

On Tuesday, Adeline was given a math worksheet to be done at home within a time constraint. She was a little nervous with an entire page full of equations, but was ready for the challenge. I set the kitchen timer for ten minutes as we were instructed to do and she worked away. After six minutes and 58 seconds, she exclaimed she was done. Adeline had answered all 80 addition and subtraction equations correctly. She told me what to write at the top of her paper to let her teacher know how she did. 

Another trip out with the Nature class in the sunny warm Wednesday afternoon was good, but also brought on another injury for Adeline. This time the children where walking on a big stone path and Adeline tripped and fell. Her right hand on the interior side had two gashes on it. Her teacher used a bay leaf  to clean it a little bit while they were out walking. Adeline's describes her injuries as a big eye and little eye. I managed to clean them up when she got home and then my neighbor, Karoline, who is also a nurse, let me use some cleansing solution for a hand bath since we did not know if any little dirt pieces were still present in the wounds.  Fortunately, she only had a little bit of coloring homework left, so Emmie finished this part for her in the early evening.

Thursday morning, I bandaged up both of Adeline's hands before she left for school. When she came home from school, she said her hand was okay to write with and this was good, as they had just been given a cursive tablet to keep at school for their writings.

Since we are now officially in Spring season, Eric took the car in to get the winter tires removed. on Friday morning. This is a good sign to accompany the warm temperatures we have been having all week and I can switch out the cold weather clothes with the warm weather clothes very soon. The downside is our farmer neighbor is back to starting his old tractor at 7am to go to the fields.

Bike Weekend

Midday Saturday, we took our first bike trip of the year.  It took some time tuning the bikes, but we were eventually on our way. Adeline and I were connected, while Eric pulled Emmie with the cooler in the trailer. We returned to the Mainz for a picnic lunch. The weather was a little cooler than the previous days, but it was still a good day for our first bike journey of the year.

Saturday evening, we set our clocks ahead one hour. I am looking forward to this time change as the early rise time due to the natural sunlight by the girls was getting too early for me towards the end of last week.

After church on Sunday, we visited Sarah and Jorge in their new apartment in Wiesbaden. Their apartment is perfect for the two of them and has an awesome view over the city. We then enjoyed an afternoon lunch downtown out on the covered porch as it was warm and sunny.

Jorge picked up our big package this weekend as we have been anxiously waiting for it to show up. Adeline's new bike  arrived thanks to our cousin, Trevor, who helped us out.  We first looked around here when we discovered this in late winter,  but  the  bike frames here are not what we are looking for in a bike for her. When we took Adeline's new bike out of the box, it just seemed to dwarf her. Eric and Adeline spent Sunday evening constructing the bike. Just a couple of phone calls about adjusting the brakes were made and then Adeline was in the garage with her pajamas on testing her new bike out.

After the March Madness Sweet 16 round, Emmie was behind me by only a few points in our brackets as it seems her and I are battling for first place this year. After watching a few of the Elite 8 games on Saturday and Sunday evening, us girls each have one of the final four teams to cheer for this upcoming weekend.