April 3, 2016
Its April! Though we have still haven’t seen the sun as much as I would like, we are starting to see more signs of Spring here! Daylight Savings happened a week ago, on Easter Sunday, extending daylight into the early evening now. Thankfully, we have rolladens (rolling shades on the outside of our windows) to darken our home and assist in bedtime. Birds are singing in the mornings, flowers are blooming and water fountains have been turned on. Signs of new beginnings are refreshing after this damp and cold winter. Its still raining but I’m holding onto these little signs of Spring while I wear my rain jacket!
As I walk through our village now, I am reminded of my parents’ visit. They arrived the day after Andy left and lived here for ten days; walking the streets, brushing up on their German, visiting “our” coffee shop, and sitting in our living room. This was not my parents’s first time coming to Germany. My parents, sister and I lived here when I was young. I turned three years old shortly after we first arrived. We stayed for three years, splitting our time between the city of Mainz and a small village called Schwäbisch Gmünd. I liked hearing their perspectives and stories as they reflected on their own experiences from those days while making new memories with us.
Its been a tradition of ours to spend my Birthday together and I can only think of one or two years that we have been apart. This year marked 42 years of Birthday celebrations! This is by far the greatest distance they have traveled to be together and I see both their love and commitment to make it happen. Thanks Mom and Dad!
We showed my parents some of our favorite places and then explored a couple of new ones with them which I’ll write about in the next blog post. S definitely scored with the extra time he got with his Dear and Pop Pop. He quickly got into the habit of introducing his grandparents when they walked into familiar surroundings like the coffee shop or our library. E was still in school (to his utter displeasure) and hubby worked most days so we still had the reality of living within the structure of homework, bedtimes and work. However, when we have guests, “routines” are very relative. We did plan ahead for E to miss a day of school and he got Good Friday off which helped. Hubby coordinated his schedule as well, joining us on the days E had off. Here is a instant replay in pictures…
Dear and Pop Pop are HERE!!
S and I took Dear and Pop Pop on a walk through the Nature Path!
We took the train and bus downtown on Saturday. Dad struck up a conversation with a young man on the train and passed on some sage career advice. We walked through the Farmers Market, did a little Birthday shopping and enjoyed a good lunch! Mom and Dad bought me a travel backpack that I’m excited to put to good use on our upcoming Spring Break trip.
Sunday Brunch at our favorite coffee shop. We visited the Easter Market in our village that afternoon. It was very small but the boys still found a fun booth.
We visited the historical center and market square in Mainz, the city we lived in when we were here back in the 70’s. We walked through St. Martin’s Cathedral, taking in the sacred beauty of this 1,000 year Roman Catholic cathedral. A Farmers Market was being held in the square that Tuesday, complete with hens, Spring flowers and food vendors. I often take pictures of my parents holding hands as they walk together. Now I have one here in Germany.
Scattered about were simple yet loving moments that I hope settle deep in the hearts of our boys. Not so much because of something we did, but more so because of the love their grandparents have for them.
And then…just like that…ten days were done. We said our goodbyes and as always, my heart ached. I know I am blessed having these two as my Mom and Dad. I’m glad they came…we all are. =)
