February 8th, 2016

While Anna was visiting us, we wanted to share our everyday life around our village and also play tourist. Thankfully, she is both adventurous and easy going which turned out to be a great combination when you are new to a city yourself. E had school during the day, so S and I became her tour guides. We walked around our village and ventured further out as well. Anna even helped us learn a few new sites. Thanks to Anna, we now know where the butcher is!

On Wednesday, we drove to Landstuhl to tour the Nanstein Castle. According to Wikipedia, Nanstein Burg originally dates back to around the year 1162. Emperor Frederick I demanded its construction as additional defense for the Palatinate. A portion of the castle was eventually inherited by a German Knight, Franz Von Sickingen, in 1504. He acquired the entire castle in 1518. Its crazy to see places so rich in history!

When we arrived, a group was just leaving. As we walked up, the rain started but we came prepared with rain jackets and our sunshine umbrella. Other than one other tourist and the ticket man, I think we had the castle to ourselves. This gave us the freedom to roam wherever our four year old wanted to explore. Perfect!

When we left the castle that afternoon, it started to snow. We hit a Stau (traffic jam) on the Autobahn. Thankfully, it cleared quickly and we headed home. I dropped Anna and S off at our house and drove to E’s school to pick him up. Here’s a picture of the scenery on the way to his school…

On Thursday, we met up with Cassie, our mutual friend from back home. Cassie was part of the High School youth group at our church when hubby and I were volunteer leaders, back in the day. She has since graduated, gotten married to a pilot and has lived in Germany for a year now. It felt very surreal to hang out at our favorite coffee shop with Cassie and Anna…HERE…in Germany! Surreal yet sweet. I loved catching up as the hours slipped by.

On Friday, we headed to downtown Kaiserslautern. After we figured out the parking ticket machine, we strolled down the streets. The official city symbol of Kaiserslautern is the carp which makes appearances all throughout the city. S was motivated to keep his little legs moving by finding pictures of fish in the streets. He also found a map of the city that he used to show us where we were. Before we knew it, we needed to head home, pick up E from school and take Anna to the train station. Sad…

The more we learn about our surroundings, the better we are going to get at this tour guide gig! Would you like to sign up for one of our tours? You can get the Bed & Breakfast package deal that Anna took advantage of. Our rates can’t be beat and our schedule is pretty open right now. Just let us know! =)

February 7th, 2016

At the beginning of December, I received a message from our friend, Anna. She asked how far the Frankfurt Airport was from our home and if we would be up for a visit. She was teaching in Bangladesh at the end of January and had the idea of trying to swing into Germany on her way home to see her exchange student “son” and our family. She didn’t know if it would work at the time but wanted to put feelers out. We have known Anna for years through our church and our boys have a sweet affinity towards her, especially our youngest. Just the idea of a visit from Anna got me excited. A couple of weeks later, the pieces came together and her tickets were booked!

Fast forward almost two months…

We just had the deep pleasure of hosting Anna here in our home this past week. She spent a few days in Berlin before taking the train to see us. We planned for Hubby to meet her at her last train transfer in Mannheim on Tuesday afternoon so they could ride in on the train together. By the grace of God, they found each other in the crowds of people and just barely caught their next train as they boarded with the doors closing. They took the bus for the last leg into our village on Tuesday evening. It was so surreal to have her walk through our front door when they arrived. Anna was actually HERE in Germany! These two were reunited at last.

Anna stayed through Friday afternoon. We wish we could have had her even longer. Her presence was an incredible gift to our entire family! She brought the familiarity of home and community, spent hours playing with the boys, 
 

 

stayed up for late night conversations, helped out with reading homework and insisted on giving us a date night…our first since we arrived back in November! Hubby and I got to catch up over coffee at our favorite coffee shop and then walked to one of the local restaurants in our village.

 

The maître D’ of the restaurant was an older gentlemen. He impressed us with his kindness and offered to help us navigate the menu. His recommendations were wonderful. We enjoyed our dinner immensely! One of the portions was a sample of sausage and mashed potatoes, compliments of the chef. We were told that the name of the sausage would not be translated for us in English as we would probably not eat it then! It was quite tasty and led to a guessing game of what we were dining on…perhaps it was better that we didn’t know.  As we were leaving, the maître D’ introduced himself. His name was Arnold. We gave our compliments to the chef (and owner) and Arnold invited us back to the kitchen to talk to him in person. The evening was a real treat!

Anna stepped right into our everyday lives helping out with dishes and laundry too. She spoiled us BIG TIME! Though we made an effort to be good hosts and show her around a bit (more on that in the next post), we still feel like we got the sweeter end of the deal. When we took her back to the train station on Friday afternoon, I couldn’t help but feel my cup overflowing with gratitude and the many blessings Anna showered upon us.

Thank you, dear Anna, THANK YOU!!!!!

 

January 30th, 2016

It was E’s turn last weekend to bring home the Class Monster. Our kiddo was all smiles as he left school carrying an orange, stuffed monster with a blue journal tucked away inside it’s mouth. Monster gets to go home with each of the students twice during the year and they in turn write about his visit with them in the journal. Since E didn’t have school on Monday and the sun was out, we took advantage of the beautiful weather and went exploring with Monster on the trails around our village. He rode in my backpack as I walked behind the boys on their bikes. Many walkers were out on the trails keeping us company as we walked by farmland, under tree canopies, across the railroad track and near the grounds of the old Catholic Church. E recounted our adventures in the journal that evening, writing about the bike ride/walk we took with Monster and the game of Settlers we played as a family.

E returned back to school on Tuesday, leaving S and I to continue to find our new routine. We started off the morning with a little cooking lesson. Here’s S making his scrambled eggs.

The sun was out AGAIN that morning…a treat! After breakfast, S wanted to take another bike ride. I texted Amy, the woman I had met a fews weeks ago, and invited her to join us with her son. It turned out that they were already planning on a walk that morning and our timing was perfect. We met up within the hour. S and I walked over to their house and then the four of us took a new trail Amy showed us. We walked past horse stables, alongside open fields, under a beautiful old bridge and back through our village. As we walked, Amy and I chatted. She also has adoption weaved into her story and we quickly connected as we shared from our lives. I enjoyed our time immensely and the boys also had fun. S called them our new friends.

My old roommate, Kim, came over and helped me do some initial prep work and painting in our kitchen on Thursday. She moved to Germany over three years ago with her husband and two kids. Kim’s company was both an encouragement and a HUGE help! She lives on the other side of Kaiserslautern so hopefully we will connect again soon.

We are making progress with our home. We now have three rooms painted, some more deep cleaning tackled, new lights up in the kitchen and the bathroom, a few more boxes unpacked and another trip to IKEA under our belts! Setting up our rooms without the storage afforded by closets and built-in bathroom cabinets is a new challenge. We have five, small wardrobes to hang our clothing in which definitely helps. However, I never realized how much I had stored in our closets! I need to do more purging…

All in all, the peace that comes as we settle in slowly is gratifying. I see our little guys enjoying their surroundings and I’m grateful. One day this week, I looked over from the kitchen and watched S pull out different books from the bookshelf and look through them as he laid on the floor. His contentment was contagious.

Even the furriest member of our family seems to be finding her own cozy places. This one makes it challenging for the boys to brush their teeth but gives us a good laugh! She just turned one on Jan. 29th. Happy Birthday, Adi girl!

 

January 26th, 2016

We celebrated Hubby’s 43rd Birthday last Friday. Though we had a quieter celebration than in years past, our love and admiration of THIS gift of a husband and father was not muted. I know we are richly blessed getting to live life together.

While unpacking last week, I came across our Birthday Banner my Mother-in-Law made for us years ago. We picked out the fabric together and she sewed it! We use it throughout the year so I was very excited to have found it again! I hung it up the night before and put out a couple of Birthday cards and a present for hubby to open when he first got up in the wee hours of the morning…just so he knew I hadn’t forgotten. =)

At the market that morning, Saúl wanted to pick out a miniature race car for his Daddy as a gift. As he was looking at the different cars, he found a bus that reminded him of the one Daddy takes to and from work each day. When he saw it, he knew he found the perfect gift! He paid for it with his own money. We met Hubby at his work for a Birthday lunch. Saúl gave him his gift as soon as he got out of the car. Daddy loved it and even let Saúl play with it…a win, win.

I threw out the idea of taking a Birthday trip over the weekend but the Birthday Boy wanted to get further along in our settling in process with the house. Instead of relaxing that afternoon after work, he painted. Crazy kid! We repainted the Living Room a color that we both really like. Color success!

 

 

 

 

 

 

He finished the room that night which allowed us to arrange furniture the next day and finally unpack all of our books for the book shelves. Its starting to feel more like home. Though we didn’t travel that weekend, its still on the back burner! There is a train trip Hubby has been excited about taking. It will feel like a reward once all this cleaning/painting/unpacking is done.

We had our family pizza and movie night with some tasty cake from the Bakery to celebrate. Birthday wishes were made, candles blown out and more presents were opened. We also enjoyed some sweet phone calls from our families back home. 

 

How grateful I am for This Man…he is so good for me and our entire family!

 

 

January 24th, 2016

We live within walking distance of a beautiful church in our village. The steeple is visible from our windows and we hear the chiming of the bells throughout the day, marking the passing of time. On Sundays, the bells ring out for an extended period in the morning to call everyone to come and join those who are gathering together. The beautiful sound fills the air.

As we were rushing out the door to drive to another new church, the bells were ringing. Hubby saw people walking down the street and through the doors. I saw him pause for a moment before looking over at me and asking if we too should go. We had already talked about possibly visiting this church someday. My breakfast Muesli was in a sealed Pyrex bowl in my hand…evidence of the rush of our morning. I put it down in the car and we began to walk.

The pastor greeted us in German when we arrived. His face was kind and his demeanor was welcoming. A woman handed me a song book for our family. An elderly woman, sitting in one of the back pews, smiled at us. She also said something. Oh, the language barrier! We smiled and sat in the pew behind her.

The boys wanted to sit on our laps. Thankfully, they were rather quiet as we took in our new surroundings. My eyes immediately caught sight of the beautiful pipe organ in the front of the church as I thought of Popo. Beside the altar, a small baptismal font stood with a silver pitcher of water sitting on top. A group of people sat in a pew with a baby and I wondered if there would be a baptism. I also noticed how each window had a simple, stain-glass panel hanging in front of it with pictures of people on the bottom. “Mutter Theresa” was written on the one closest to us with a picture of her face. The pews were still rather empty when the service started.

The songs were listed by number on the wall allowing us to follow along in our book. I was able to sing a few verses here and there as I listened to those around me. The pastor spoke as if addressing a group of friends, eliciting laughter as he welcomed us. I yearned to know what he was saying.

A little ways into the service, the baby was baptized. I loved watching these strangers participate in this familiar sacrament. I wanted to stretch out my hand towards the little one as we prayed…a practice we do at our church back home. The pastor walked the baby girl around the sanctuary, showing her to each one of us. I remembered our Pastor Bill doing this with our boys after they were baptized. People smiled and laughed as the Pastor spoke and waved her little hand.

Singing and praying were followed by a passionate message. Our youngest was getting more squirrelly by the minute and I wondered how much longer we would make it. I had already entertained him with my German phrase book and the pictures in my wallet. I hadn’t come prepared to sit through a church service in German with a four year old. I gave hubby the warning that our time was running out. Thankfully, the service came to a close shortly after. Phew!

Everyone walked up to the front of the church so we filed in line. I told the boys to shake the pastor’s hand and was proud of them as they each did so. A woman approached us, speaking long phrases in German. Our blank stares and meek smiles caused her to ask if we spoke German. “Just a little,” we replied. She then spoke in English. She introduced herself and offered her help as we settle in. She said the boys were beautiful.

We exited out a second set of doors behind the altar into the crisp, cold morning. The boys were DONE with being quiet. We understood and were grateful to have made it through the service. I congratulated the family with the baby who was baptized and then we headed home.

The boys rode their bikes around our front drive when we got back to our house. As we stood in our yard, we saw some of the church goers returning home. Even with the language barrier and the unfamiliarity, we enjoyed connecting a little more with the people of this village we live in. We still are uncertain as to where we will settle in regards to finding a church home. If we spoke German, this church could be a nice option. It definitely gives us another motivation to learn the language!

 

 

 

 

 

January 21st, 2016

The other day, I walked to a little market a few blocks from our home. We have bigger grocery stores here in our village. However, I had been wanting to check this one out since I first laid eyes on it. Its relatively small but very quaint.

When I walked in, the owner greeted me in German. She was unpacking boxes of fruit and chatting with the other employee. Crates and baskets were filled with fruits and vegetables displayed on the floor and tables. On one wall sat several large jars of olive oil. Nearby, small glass bottles sat on a shelf to purchase and fill with the oil of your choice. A small deli area offered appetizing dishes, blocks of cheese and seasoned olives. Everything looked delicious!

As I walked around, a couple of other women walked in and immediately started up a conversation as if they had just left off a moment ago. Eventually, the owner walked over and began to speak to me. I figured she was asking if I needed any help. In English, I told her that I wanted to make a purchase but desired to look around first. I had no idea how to say that in German! Thankfully, she answered me in English and pointed out the shopping baskets that I could choose from. After getting a feel for the store, I began to fill my basket with apples, clementines with the vines still on them, grapes, a couple of carrots, and a pepper. The colors were beautiful. The entire store was! I then headed over to the deli counter and ordered some of the garlic seasoned olives before heading to the checkout counter.

The owner took my basket over to the scale. As she weighed everything, we began to chat. I told her that we had just moved into the village a few days ago. She has lived here her entire life. She has three children, one boy and two girls. I shared about our boys. She told me about a good pediatrician in the village though I would need to check and see if he has room to take new patients. Good to know.

I asked for her name. She said, “Jasmine.” She told me its like the name “Jasmine” in English but pronounced “Ya-su-min” in German. I introduced myself and she smiled. She told me that she and her husband also own the nearby Turkish restaurant where he works. I was already familiar with the place because we ate there a couple of times when we were first looking at homes in the village. The meat is so tasty!

She invited me to ask her anything so she can help me as we settle in. Her kindness was a sweet balm to my heart. I left smiling. As I walked back to our house, I thanked God for giving us this place to make a home and these people to live amongst. It was the village we were hoping to move to when we first started looking. He gave us the desire of our hearts and then some. Grateful…

January 20th, 2016

Here’s a little tour of our new place. I took these photos before the movers arrived and filled the place with all of our STUFF! Hopefully, in a few weeks or so, I can post the “after” pictures showing us all moved in. Until then, come and see our new place…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You are MORE than welcome to come see it in person! =)

 

 

 

 

January 19th, 2016

I’m sitting at OUR kitchen table here at the new house enjoying a peaceful moment after an incredibly full week of cleaning, moving, furniture assembling, painting, unpacking, and shopping for household needs and wants. Though we are currently living in rooms full of unpacked boxes, we are grateful to be here…pretty overwhelmed…but still grateful!

Hubby took the day off last Wednesday so we could team up and prepare for our move. We went shopping for a few household items, which always takes us longer when we are in German stores. It was a rainy, gloomy day so we bought this umbrella to remind us of the sun! 

Afterwards, we headed to the house to start a deep clean of the kitchen and the floors. As I mentioned in my last post, the house was in need of some serious cleaning and a little TLC. Black water flowed down the tile walls in the kitchen as we scrubbed. The floors were similar. It was gross to see how dirty it was yet rewarding to see the transformation and true color of the kitchen tiles. Ha! It took us hours to simply get the kitchen and floors done. We realized then that we had our work cut out for us!

The moving truck arrived on Thursday. The boys LOVED the idea that their toys from home were finally arriving!

On Friday, we received a second delivery containing the washer, dryer, wardrobes, microwave, and transformers that we are borrowing during our time here. We are so thankful to not have to purchase all of these items! We received five wardrobes to help make up for the lack of closet space. I never realized how creative and organized you need to get when you move from a place with closets and shelving to one that doesn’t have either.

We also moved out of our apartment on Friday in a mass whirlwind of last minute packing and tidying up. It was a good place to call home when we first arrived. We were incredibly blessed by the kind and thoughtful landlord we had. She asked us to come back and visit her. We are planning on it!

When I drove over to E’s school to pick him up on Friday afternoon, he showed me his Alien Bird he made in art class. He is quite proud of it! Our kitty, Adi, really likes the feathers and has already attacked it once.

Friday night was our first night sleeping in our new home. I think hubby and I actually passed out from exhaustion!  When I went to check in on the boys, this is how I found E and Adi…

On Saturday, we ventured to a German home improvement store. It was massive! Navigating the aisles with signs in German, a giant kid cart and a long list of items we needed was more than we bargained for. At one point, lil S needed to use the restroom. “Really? Now? Can you hold it?” The answers were yes, yes and NO! I quickly found a female, German employee and began to say every word I knew for bathroom…except, of course, the one in German. Then I moved on to charades and started washing my hands and pointing to my lil one. No luck. Not wanting to get more explicit in my charades game, I changed strategies and looked up the word for bathroom in German. I showed it to her on my phone and she said, “Oh! Pee-pee?” Yes! The correct German phrase is now seared in my memory after this moment. “Wo ist die Toilette, bitte?” We left the store stressed out but with several items checked off our list. Oh man! We also visited IKEA. Praise God for the person who thought of putting a children’s play area in that store so parents can shop. Its such a win, win!

We spent Sunday afternoon painting our living room the wrong color (bummer!) and unpacking. Making quick paint decisions is never a good idea. However, when you are in a German home improvement store and it feels like you are going to start to break out in hives over the stress of it all, you lose your reasoning. We ended up with a grayish purple when we were going for a light tan. Hubby calls it Freesia. We may try again depending on how adventurous we feel!

 

 

On a sweet note, it started snowing and the boys LOVED playing outside with the tractor that the landlords brought over for them. The yard has a large area that is paved in the front of the house directly in front of the living room window. There is a gate that we can lock and a fence that surrounds the perimeter of the yard which provides some good boundaries for them. We are continually thankful for the yard!

Playing outside and then coming in for hot cocoa and marshmallows in their mugs from Grammy Julie may become our new routine. We welcome it! The other side of the yard has a large grassy area where the boys can play soccer or simply run around. On the backside is a little fire pit that beckons us to roast marshmallows! Backyard camping may be in our future this summer. We will see…

 

 

 

January 12th, 2016

Between driving across Kaiserslautern for E’s school four times a day and preparing to move, the past week has been somewhat of a blur. We have been slowly packing up again and moving boxes to the new house in preparation for moving day THIS Friday. We are far from being ready. Its crazy how much we “moved into” our temporary quarters the past two months!

Last weekend, we took a couple of loads of boxes to our new home and started feeling a little uneasy about our plans. We thought the house was beautiful but the lack of a yard and proximity towards the street concerned us. When we decided to move forward with the house back in December, our housing options were pretty limited. Feeling the urgency with school for E, we decided to make the best decision we could with what we had. We were grateful for Heir Schmidt and his kindness and figured that if it just didn’t work, we could always look for something else.

THEN…

On Monday morning (yesterday), hubby called me and told me of a house that just became available. It was located in the same village but had a large yard, a fence and sat back a little ways from the street. Since I was leaving E’s school, I decided to drive over and take a look. I was amazed to see how extensive the yard was and imagined the boys kicking balls, playing and having friends over. The house itself was smaller but seemed to have potential. After talking it over and seeking guidance about the possibility of switching our housing this close to our move-in date, we decided to give it a shot. I contacted the landlord and asked to take a look. We set up an appointment at 11am and started to pray for wisdom and discernment. Even lil S joined us as we prayed, asking for clarity and the ability to make a fast decision…not our forte.

A couple met us at the house. They too impressed us with their kindness. They raised a son who now studies in Austria. The house was built in 1965 and was actually the childhood home of the wife. As in all homes, there were pros and cons. The layout made good use of the smaller space and the yard was even bigger than we imagined. It lacked the beauty and character of Heir Schmidt’s house and had incredibly small bathrooms. A bachelor had lived in the home and left it needing some TLC and a deep cleaning. But, the landlords were open to allowing us to paint and helping make improvements where needed.

There were SO many factors up in the air. Yet, we both felt that this “new” house was a better fit for our family. In a HIGHLY UNUSUAL manner, we made a quick decision by a simple nod to each other and signed a new contract. We are the couple that takes FOREVER to pick a campsite for a few nights so this was HUGE for us!

After leaving the house, we both felt shocked that we went for it but also relieved that we did. We spent the rest of the day driving all around Kaiserslautern and the surrounding villages taking care of the myriad of details involved in the housing process. Amazingly, pieces fell into place and we were able to move forward. We scheduled a face to face meeting with our previous landlord, Heir Schmidt, to give our thirty day notice and explain our decision. This was, by far, the hardest piece. We felt horrible canceling our contract, especially so close to our move-in date. Neither one of us wanted to lose having him as our landlord or by any means communicate displeasure. We also felt bad about him losing tenants and expected income. Though our decision was not personal, it still put a knot in our throats. We have only known Heir Schmidt for a few weeks. Yet, he has quickly become dear to us.

He was disappointed and sad, yet incredibly gracious and honest. He told us that he understood the benefit of having a yard for the boys and not being so close to the street. Hubby met with him again today and he continues to impress us with his kindness. Its our hope that a friendship may grow and deepen between us all. We plan to have dinner together once we are settled into our new home.

So now we have one day to do a deep clean before the movers come on Thursday and we move in on Friday. Where’s my cleaning crew??!! Ugh! The amount of work that needs to be done in the next two days is overwhelming to say the least. However, I’m hopeful and see the good in it all.

I better get to bed! Here are a few pictures of the yard that will hopefully motivate us tomorrow us as we scrub like we have never scrubbed before! Auf Wiedersehen!

January 8th, 2016

We experienced good moments in this first week of the New Year. Here is a recap!

E started at his new school on Monday. We had already been in the building a couple of times and met his teacher, principal and some of his classmates before the Christmas break. Still, his first day was a bit nerve racking for all of us. Our family accompanied him to his classroom where his teacher was playing relaxing music and had the classroom lit by small lamps giving off a soft glow. It was both inviting and soothing.

Thankfully, E is adjusting well and seems to like it. He has twelve other students in his class and enjoys an hour break mid-day for lunch and recess. Today he wore his new school sweatshirt for Friday Spirit Day. It has the name of his school with “Germany” printed underneath it. He wears it proudly.

We drive on the Autobahn several times a day as we commute this week and next from our temporary living quarters on the northeast side of Kaiserslautern. Once we move into our new home, we will take some backroads from our village and shave almost twenty minutes off of our commute one way. I think the boys will appreciate the time to sleep in.

On Wednesday morning, E’s school teacher passed along a travel book from a mother of a fellow classmate. This mother had heard about the “new student in class” and thought of our family as we move through this season of transition. The book is full of helpful information for families new to Germany alongside fantastic travel tips. I can’t believe she is parting with it! This simple act of kindness touched my heart deeply. I felt cared for by this woman I have never met. Its a powerful thing to let someone know that you notice them…that they do not exist purely in the shadows as it may feel at times when loneliness sets in.

Later that morning, our littlest and I picked up hubby and drove over to our new village to meet with our landlord. We took our mandatory walk-through of our house with Herr Schmidt, agreeing with cracks and broken pieces of tile present BEFORE we move in. Afterwards, Herr Schmidt helped us set up our utilities and internet. His kindness allowed the process to go very smoothly. Not all landlords do this for their tenants. We are very fortunate.

As we were leaving the offices, a woman overheard us speaking English and asked our nationality. She had her two year old son with her and also spoke English. She and her husband moved here last August and live in the village. We introduced ourselves and shared contact information. I appreciated her boldness to reach out and connect. We started texting later in the day, learning a little more about each other. We are planning on connecting again in person once we move to the village in another week or so. I suggested that we meet up at that cute coffee shop. I can’t wait!

Herr Schmidt also gave us a short tour of the village. We met his friend Thomas, who invited us into his home for a nice conversation. Thomas is a teacher and Assistant Dean at a local school. He is fluent in both English and German. It was lovely to be welcomed into his home.

Our spirits have been lifted this week with these simple, yet intentional acts of kindness. Being on the receiving end,  I was reminded of my friend, Audra, who works with refugees. She helps ease the hard of the everyday by walking alongside a family in both the practical and in friendship as they adjust to life in a new land. Its a powerful thing to reach out to someone. How grateful I am for how people reached out to us this week.

Smiles and hugs~