D in Dresden

Snow in Graz!

2012-02-02T08:41:00.001+01:00

A Christmas Surprise!

2011-12-04T14:51:00.001+01:00

One of the joys of living outside the United States is the fact that things people take for granted there become special treasures. It is amazing how special it makes you feel when people send you a big box of those sorts of things--especially the junk food. We got a special box of treasures from Poplar Grove Baptist again this year. If we work at it, we should have stuff to last us well into the new year! (And it will provide us overweight adults with practice in resisting temptation!)

Fall Photos

2011-12-03T21:19:00.003+01:00

We took some pictures of the kids beside this beautiful aspen tree. The fall colors here were just gorgeous.

Jonah is 13 now and about to outgrow his mother, which isn't much of a feat since I am only 5'3". We are hoping he will take his growth spurt soon.

Ashlyn is 11 almost 12 and has begun to exhibit teen tendencies. Oh boy!

Caedon is 9 and is my first child to actually not need slim fit jeans. The whole milk we bought to fatten up the kids is working on Caedon at least!

Logan is 6 and just begun school. He has learned just enough now to start trying to read everything. Now we are in trouble!

We are enjoying our time here in Graz and will be sad to have to leave, but we are also looking forward to going "home" to Dresden.

Our House/Zuhause- first floor/Erdgeschoss

2011-10-25T21:24:00.003+02:00

Here are pics from the first floor. You enter at the side of the house into a large entryway.

To the right is the kitchen and straight ahead is our bedroom:

From our bedroom you enter into a bathroom and the WC.

Then beside the stairs into the living room and dining room:

Here is the outside from the street.

Our House/Zuhause

2011-10-25T20:42:00.004+02:00

Because several of the big kids' friends have asked for pictures of our house, I have put them on here so they can see them. I am starting with the 2nd floor or the kids' floor.

the view from the top of the stairs:

Jonah's room is the first room on the left at the top of the stairs.

The boys' room is next. In between the boys' and Ashlyn's rooms and the Hobby room is a bathroom and a toilet or WC (water closet).

The hobby room is next:

Ashlyn's room is at the back. You have to walk through the hobby room to get to her room. She has a full length balcony outside her room looking toward the street.

A Quick trip to Italy

2011-10-23T10:05:00.007+02:00

We decided to help fill the days till school started by taking a couple short trips. Just 4 hours west is the Dolomite chain of the Italian Alps and to the east is Budapest, Hungary. So we drove to Italy, leaving early in the morning and spent the day enjoying the mountains. Here are a few pictures, be in awe of the beauty...

On the way...

In the heart of the Dolomites

Cortina d' Ampezzo

Toward the end of the trip

The end...

Caedon's Birthday

2011-10-12T14:10:00.004+02:00

Caedon had his birthday back in August, but with all we have had going on these past few weeks, I am just now getting the pics up here.

We celebrated with a Batman party a few weeks early when the Chumbley's (our friends from Prague) came down to visit. We also invited the Caldwell's, our new friends in Graz.

We grilled hot dogs and hamburgers and after used the hot coals to roast some marshmallows for S'mores!

Alpine Fall 2011

2011-10-10T14:33:00.001+02:00

We have enjoyed the interesting changes Austria has brought us this fall. Milder weather allowed us to do things together outside for a change.

Cheryl and Ashlyn made another apple pie,

and we got to try some new flavors of milk: Egg-nog, Baked Apple, and Coconut Cookie. Yum!

School Days!

2011-09-12T14:54:00.003+02:00

The kids started school today. Jonah and Ashlyn attend the Akademische Gymnasium Graz. Jonah is in 3a (classes go from 1-8, 1=5th 8=12th) and Ashlyn is in the Flexi class, 2c. They have time in the day where they will work alone on their assignments. This is new to us, so we will see how it works out. Thankfully, Ashlyn is our diligent student and can handle this type situation.

Caedon and Logan attend the Volksschule Sankt Veit ( folk school saint "fite") It is a very small, Catholic school, a part of the St. Veit parish. The boys will be expected to attend Chapel and religion classes. We may have to help them "unlearn" a few things! Logan's class is in the 3rd floor under the eaves of the roof.

Logan with his "Tüte". It is a 1st grade tradition. It was filled with candy, school supplies and toys. He didn't have time to open it up at school, so he opened it when we got back to the house.

St. Veit catholic church, seen from the school and inside during the first day of school orientation.

Caedon's class is in the "Kontainer". His is the classroom in the far part of the blue building. Caedon's 3rd grade is only one class, whereas all the other grades (1-4th) have 2 classes. The school has been outgrown and requires some renovation, so 3rd and 4th grades have been moved to the portable buildings. Next to the school is a large building site with a crane and a big mess!

A view from the school toward the city of Graz. The school and church are on a hill on the outskirts of the city.

Zuckertuten Party

2011-07-01T09:20:00.005+02:00

Yesterday, after four and a half years of German preschool, Logan had his "graduation" party. He is now ready for real school! This morning he told us that yesterday was "the best day of his life." That sounds really good and it is an encouragement to see how well he has done. Especially after so many mornings where we had to drop him off crying and wanting to go back home. (Those days were not as frequent lately, but never ever completely went away.)

Here are some shots and video of the great day:

The traditional tree, decorated with leaves and sugar-bags, only of the wrong sort in both cases:

The tree after the kids properly decorated it:

They all do a conga-line:

In fact, they did a lot of dancing and singing:

Logan receives his cone:

All the kids with their cones:

After eating, the kids have some more dancing in the disco set up at the preschool:

Copenhagen

2011-05-10T08:22:00.007+02:00

Here are a few pictures from our day in Copenhagen. We pretty much walked the entire city. I think we hit most all the most recognized spots. We didn't go into Tivoli, the large park with concerts and amusement rides because of the cost.

Rosenborg, castle in the city park that now houses many of the royal jewels and a museum.

The round tower (aptly named).

Gefion Fountain near our favorite church and the Little Mermaid statue.

Our favorite church, an St. Alban's Anglican church.

The kids in front of the most famous Copenhagen site: The Little Mermaid, from Hans Christian Andersen's story of the same name. He is the most famous Dane.

Nyboder: Homes built for the royal navy in the 1600's. This street has the only remaining original homes. The others in the area were built in the 1700's.

Alexander Nevsky ChurchThe Marble Church near Amelianborg Palace, the royal residence.

Amelianborg and the Marble church behind us and the Opera House in front of us. Seen below:

The Royal Danish Theater.

The stock exchange with a very interesting tower made from the tail of 4 dragons.

Nayhavn, the most famous street in Copenhagen. Also, the prettiest!

Scandanavia

2011-05-01T17:05:00.008+02:00

Jason had been wanting to head up north to Denmark and Sweden and Norway for about 4 years now. So, when the kids had off a week at Easter we decided now was the time since we are headed south in a few months.

I found this great little vacation house about 45 minutes from Copenhagen and just off the beach. It was a good spot, quiet and scenic.

We drove into Koge, the nearest city to grab some goodies and see the largest town square in Denmark. The city was a disappointment, to say the least.

There were a few neat, old buildings and a pretty church.

The day after our 9 hour drive through almost the entire country, we hit Copenhagen. I will add pictures of Copenhagen later so there aren't so many pictures.

We spent a day in Copenhagen and then on our second day, went to Helsingor, (spoken like Elsinor) a city on the far north border of Zealand and home to Kronborg. Kronborg is a castle made "famous" by Shakespeare in his play "Hamlet".

Kronborg was used originally as a toll fort and then was built into a castle. I read that they held meals here that consisted of 65 courses and each guest was provided their own vomit bucket!

It is built at the narrowest strait between Denmark and Sweden. It is built in a star formation with moats around the outside walls and the inner walls.

Looking out toward Sweden.

The town of Helsignor was quaint and prettier than Koge. We walked a few of the streets and found a few interesting buildings.

Jason liked this building because it was so narrow, really just a door and window in size.

Graz

2011-03-22T20:28:00.005+01:00

We went to Graz, Austria in February to check out the city and meet some people already serving there. As per our last visit, it was very cold and gray. I think living there in the winter will be difficult but having the Alps nearby may be enough to make it better! Other than the cold, gray weather, I like the city. It is more traditionally European in size (everything close together) as opposed to Dresden that is very spread out. It is also much smaller, half the size of Dresden. We are looking forward to and dreading the year away from home.

Town square

We aren't sure who these men are but they were loud!

On the Mur river across from the very strange looking Culture Palace. We have nicknamed it the body organ building!

2011-03-17T13:54:00.005+01:00

We celebrated Logan's birthday in Prague a month or so ago. Here are some of the pics. Logan turned 6 and will start school in Austria this year. It is hard to believe our baby is already 6.

He wanted a Toy Story theme so we had Toy Story strawberry cake!

Lego plane from the Chumbley's

New Lego Ninja fighters. He had these first before his brothers!

Transformer Bumblebee

Logan had asked for a remote controlled helicopter for Christmas but we weren't sure he was old enough but we went ahead and got one for his birthday. It has been a hit except now it is broken but we aren't sure who's fault!

2011-01-16T16:40:00.004+01:00

When you live in a river city like Dresden, you get to where you are aware of what the river is doing. For us, we check out the graffiti under the bridge every time we drive by. Sometimes, when it is really up, you measure it by how disrupted your running trail is. This week, we are officially at warning stage 3. Roads are closed! When it finally reached 666cm, we had to go gawk with the rest of the locals. It was impressive!

Here is a painting showing the super high levels reached in 2002. Not the white square with the words in it, but the yellow and black about 10 feet above the ground. We are nowhere near that level thankfully. As you follow the metal fence with your eyes over the next two pics, you can see where we are today...

The moon has nothing to do with the flood (right?) but it was pretty.

This pedestrian bridge is normally about 15 above water level.

Jack was excited to get out. With the past two months of snow and ice, he has developed a bad case of cabin fever.

more moon
We stopped for ice cream and Logan had to ride the horse at the Eiscafe.

2011-01-09T16:15:00.005+01:00

Here are some picks from our December here in Dresden. We had a wonderful Christmas with lots of snow!

The Christmas market this year was better than ever. It was the 576th year.

And some shots from around town...

A party for three birthday kids, including Ashlyn, the 11 year old! And some fun time spent with friends.

Christmas Eve, the presents!

2010-12-07T18:11:00.004+01:00

The kids and I went sledding today up on the hill not far from our house. Caedon and Logan had a good time, but Ashlyn and Jonah got frustrated pretty quickly. The weather was nice though, about 32 degrees and lightly snowing.

My camera was acting up and I couldn't get a decent picture but I managed a couple.

Caedon looks old to me in this picture. I guess he is 8 but he will always be 3 to me!

I don't know what happened with this picture either. He didn't have black eyebrows on his hat!

2010-11-06T19:16:00.003+01:00

Ice cream is a beloved treat here in Germany and is enjoyed all year round and all day long. I have seen people eat it as early as 9 a.m.. There are many different and interesting flavors and one can even get their alcohol fix.

Here is a pic of downtown from the riverside flea market. It was a rather rainy day, which is typical for fall. This fall has been really mild and sunny and we have enjoyed it immensely!

The other day we made a trip downtown and decided to eat at one of only a couple "mexican" restaurants in town. I asked for an english menu because I knew it was not well translated! Here is a sample. The third is especially funny.

Chicken stripes anyone?

Whistle rolled? and they used the french word for mushrooms (champignons)

Good thing it is only a little covered. But what if I want it completely covered?

Compilate yourself (not sure how to do that?) Nipple, anyone?

2010-09-04T15:46:00.004+02:00

We went to the Amarillo amusement park the last night in the Borger/Amarillo area. Mike and Janis, Joel and Mama all went with us. They are only open from 7-10 pm so it was just right to get in all the rides the kids wanted to ride. We started off slow...

Then the older kids did the Rainbow with Jason, it went a little too high for my taste.

To finish up, they let the kids have one final spin on the Merry-go-Round.

I was a little sick from the dizzying rides that I rode in quick succession. That was a new experience for me but overall it was a good night. Here is a picture of us at the end of the night.

2010-08-22T12:08:00.002+02:00

After our week in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area we headed to the Panhandle. Jason's grandmother, aunt and uncle, and many of our friends live there. We stayed in Jason's Mama's house the whole week and saw friends there and drove into Amarillo to see others. We caught up with several college friends and their families and some of my high school friends. We went one night to Wonderland (the local amusement park) and encountered a typical panhandle creature!

At the water play area in Borger with a college roomate of mine and her in-laws who came to take care of the kids a couple years ago for a retreat here in Dresden!

Here is a pic with the aforementioned creature. I (Cheryl) found him at the local shopping area and brought him home for the family to see. Logan was the only kid who would hold him.

Popsicles, a great summer treat!

Meeting with my friend Stephanie from high school and her mom, who was like a mom to me for a few years in high school and college. Good friends and a good time at Chilis!

Stephanie and her girls, Cora (12) and Sydney (10)

2010-08-19T14:10:00.003+02:00

After a week in Houston with my family, we traveled up to Snyder to talk at FBC and then off to the metroplex to spend a week or so with the Dietz clan. We spent two days at a cabin in east Texas with the entire Mike Dietz family and let the cousins play, get to know each other and waterslide. We then went and spent a few days with Jason's sister Emily and her family. One day we went down to Nacogdoches to visit Jason's grandparents.

Eating, which we did a lot of! Luke and Emily Panter, Jeff Dietz

All of the cousins. Trying to get a good picture of everyone was very difficult. 5 of these cuties were new to us (had been born in the 4 years we were away).

The Mike Dietz Family, Mike, Jeff, Jason, Emily, Jonathan, Janis, and Joel

Papa Bill Kimsey and family

Mema Kimsey and family

Our newest niece, Loralei Dietz. Isn't she precious? She was just a month old when we got to see and hold her. It was wonderful!

2010-08-15T14:17:00.004+02:00

After two weeks in NM and a shortened trip to Virginia for work, we headed to Houston for a week to attend my grandfather's funeral. He died before I had a chance to see him, so it was a very difficult thing to be there knowing that if I had made different plans I would have been able to say "goodbye". I hadn't seen him in over four years and my grandmother told me he had "held on" to see me. So, after the funeral, we decided to change our plans and stay in Houston for a week to spend time with my family and help with funeral things. During the week we went to NASA, visited with my brother and his family, my other grandmother and just relaxed.

My grandmother and I after the funeral.

NASA

Visiting my other grandmother (Hawkins)

Cousin Joshua

Cousin Morgan and Jenna

2010-08-13T20:17:00.004+02:00

Well, we are now back home in Germany! After 2 months in Texas and New Mexico, 12 days spent driving at least 4 hours, one funeral, meeting 5 new nieces and nephews, eating out too much and sweating a lot, we are glad to be home and settled into a routine. Here are a few pics of the highlights from our first two weeks in New Mexico...

the Rockies

Soda Springs

Santa Fe

Albuquerque Aquarium

Indian Cave Dwellings

Albuquerque Zoo

Museum of Natural History

2010-05-08T20:01:00.002+02:00

Jonah celebrated his birthday last weekend with his best friends in Prague (it is customary now!)We had his favorite german chocolate cake. He got money for our trip to the States this summer. He also celebrated a couple weekends ago, by inviting two friends to a movie (3D How to train your Dragon) and ice cream. Happy 12th Birthday, Jonah. We can't believe you are getting so grown up.

2010-05-07T22:21:00.004+02:00

Some of the cute little visitors we have had in our backyard recently. We can't keep the feeders full. We have to fill them every other day. These are some hungry birds. The saying about eating like a bird is totally false!

2010-04-20T15:07:00.004+02:00

I feel terrible, I just noticed that I didn't post anything about Logan's birthday. So, here you go... Happy 5th Birthday, Logan!

We celebrated in Prague with our best friends. Chocolate cake and Spiderman, what could be better?

2010-02-26T17:41:00.004+01:00

Jack-in-a-Box

2010-02-02T16:47:00.002+01:00

Jonah had a minor transformation recently. His eyesight was keeping him from being able to see the chalkboard so we made an appointment with the optometrist. He was told he is nearsighted like his father and following in Jason's footsteps, was prescribed glasses. A week later (Monday) he was given his glasses. To go with this change in his appearance, he decided we could cut his hair. I am not sure if anyone knew (except our friends in Prague) but he had grown it out pretty long. (not like girly long!) Anyway, he went to school a "new man" today! Here is a pic before:

And here is the after:

2010-01-12T15:43:00.003+01:00

Ashlyn had a dog themed birthday. She invited 4 friends to eat cupcakes, build pizzas, decorate and bake dog bone and doghouse cookies and watch "Hotel for Dogs". Despite some theatrics from Ashlyn, I think everyone had fun. Ashlyn even invited a boy to the party, what am I going to do?!

2010-01-12T15:25:00.006+01:00

Better late than never, right? Here are some pics from Christmas and a few from the recent snows.

She looks so grown up to me in this picture.

We got close to a foot of snow over a 4 day period and the temps haven't gotten above freezing so it has stayed. I am loving it!

Snowball Fight!!!

2009-12-05T09:47:00.007+01:00

November proved to be a crazy month, too. Unfortunately, it was sickness and health problems that kept us busy. Early in the month, Ashlyn complained of stomach pains. This had happened once before and nothing came of it, but after 12 hours of pain, we thought it best to take her to the ER to get checked out. After 8 hours in the hospital with multiple opinions, a pediatric surgeon decided to operate immediately to remove her appendix. During the surgery, her appendix ruptured. Here she is at the hospital, near the end of her 1 week stay. (more of her story can be read here.

After the appendix problems, 4 out of the 6 of us got what I believe to be the Swine flu. Thankfully, everyone's case was mild. A couple days fever and a cough was all anyone really had. By the end of the month, only I was still feeling a little puny, but we were still able to go to Prague and celebrate Thanksgiving with our friends there. The kids don't have Thanksgiving day off, so we traveled down Friday after school and stayed the weekend. Fun and delicious food was had by all.

Here is a picture of the boys during Ashlyn's hospital stay. Amy took good care of them when Jason and I both needed to be at the hospital. They even had a homemade hamburger picnic in the living room! Thanks Amy!

Here are 2 pics from the hospital. The courtyard:

and here is the sign pointing to Ashlyn's wing. She was in Haus F and the Kinderklinic.

2009-11-01T09:13:00.004+01:00

When your busy, time flies. This was the fastest October ever! In addition to a busy work schedule and new, harder school for all the kids, we had a lot of additional things going on.

Cheryl's parents came out for their second visit. It had been two years since they had seen the kids, and at that age a lot changes in two years. They also got to meet Jack. He loved them... and never let them out of his sight.

Jonah and Ashlyn and I took them out to Berlin on a cold day to show them the sights and the history. The kids enjoyed a classic of Berlin cuisine, Currywurst!

Cheryl and I took advantage of their visit and the fact that we live so near it to visit Paris for our 15th Anniversary.

To cap the month off, we had a family visit us for a week so we could get to know each other and show them the sort of work we are doing. The kids had a blast carving up pumpkins and sharing our strange American culture to the neighborhood. We got some nice reviews!

October ended as usual with a cold front blowing in and sending us below freezing. Jonah and I spent a lot of the day outside helping some friends move out of their apartment. Before we knew it the whole month had flown by.

Time to start playing Christmas music!

2009-08-28T14:22:00.005+02:00

Back to school pictures. The kids started back on August 10th. We were the first german state to let out of school (June 26th) and the first to go back. Jonah started Gymnasium this year and Caedon started school with Ashlyn. Jonah is in 5th, Ashlyn 4th and Caedon 1st. (We held Jonah back a year so he wouldn't have the stress of learning German and catching up in math in the same year.)

Caedon at his desk at school.

Caedon's class, 1 a

Ashlyn and Caedon at his welcoming program. He is holding his Zuckertüte.

Walking out of the program. Ashlyn, as a 4th grader, danced and sang at the program and then each 4th grader picked a 1st grader to walk out to their Zuckertüte presentation.

Caedon with his best friend Tim and their Zuckertüten.

Jonah on his way out the door to walk to his first day at Gymnasium

The Germans really celebrate when a child begins school. The parents, grandparents and friends (and church) all give the children cardboard cones filled with sweets, school supplies, and toys, etc. The parents' is the biggest usually. Then they usually have a party with family and friends. We were invited (last minute, which is amazing) to Tim's party.His parents, grandparents anda adult friend/neighbor were there. We had good food and after dark, we had sparklers and small hot air balloons that we set off. (Tim's dad is a fireman.) It was fun for the kids and very special that they invited us to a "private" party.

2009-08-22T09:52:00.006+02:00

Some random pics from our drive down to Bavaria for our annual meeting. We saw Nurenberg and Rothenberg ob der Taube, two medieval cities in Germany. Both were very pretty and we enjoyed ourselves.

2009-06-28T21:36:00.005+02:00

Some pics from the last weeks before summer break officially began.

The boys' new bikes. We bought them for 15 euros each at the flea market on the river. Bikes are really expensive here (60 euros, $75) for the cheapest, smallest bikes (too small for even Logan)!

Caedon riding Logan's new bike. After Logan got his,Caedon decided he needed one, too. Logan's was a bit too small.

Logan riding his new bicycle. He learned without training wheels and was riding it within 30 minutes or so without help. He still needs help with stopping and starting though.

Jonah's school won 1st place in the state for their grade school newspaper. The teacher says it was because of Jonah's comic strip! Here are some of them receiving their award and "interviewing" the artist Jonah.

Ashlyn at her end of year recorder recital. She has been learning on it in preparation for the flute or oboe, she can't decide.
Jonah's report card. The 2's at the top are grades for working with others, neatness, etc. A 2 is anywhere from a 80 to a 94. The numbers below are german, math, science, crafts, art, music, english, ethics , gym and french. He received two a+s for english and ethics.

Ashlyn's report card. She received an a+ in her industriousness. She earned a 1 (95-100) in music and ethics. She only got a b- in math but her grades are good enough to get her into gymnasium too!
Good jobs kids!

2009-06-19T15:35:00.000+02:00

Caedon and Logan had school pictures done!

2009-05-20T10:05:00.002+02:00

Time to do some bragging on Jonah. Yesterday, he was accepted into Gymnasium. It is the German equivalent to High School, but goes from 5th through 12th grade. It is college prep school. Only the best kids get into Gymnasium. The rest have to go into middle school, which then leads to trade school or a possible later jump into High School. There is a lot of pressure on kids and parents all during 3rd and 4th grade. And in the GErman mentality, it isn't even about trying hard to get in... some kids are cut out for education and some aren't.

Also, he was featured in a state wide magazine this quarter! His school newspaper, where he is the resident cartoonist, was the subject of an article in the Sächsische Zeitung's Family Magazine. Their newspaper won third place in a state competition of school journalism, but they were the one featured in the magazine. Jonah was the lead off part of the story, with a couple paragraphs describing the mascot character he created and then information about him.

It was pretty cool! Here are some scans of the story:

2009-05-03T14:33:00.002+02:00

So what is this all about? "Do not let your dog give the birds rides!" (Seen in Basel)

2009-04-24T16:41:00.008+02:00

Some random pictures from our time in the mountains near the border of Germany and the Czech Republic. We had a great time, the kids had VBS and the adults had a teaming workshop called Grip-Birkman.

Jonah and Jason on the alpine slide not far from the retreat center.

Ashlyn and one of thousands of frogs migrating from hibernation to the pond at the retreat center. The kids had hours of fun catching, holding and watching them.

All the kids in front of the waterfall near Schneeberg.

2009-04-21T17:27:00.002+02:00

Jonah celebrated his birthday a little early in Prague with his best friend Camden.

He had a german chocolate cake (his favorite) and we forgot candles so Jonah settled for a 1 for 11 and Camden a 2 for 12! He will probably celebrate with friends here in Dresden but when things settle down a little. But he is a happy 11 year old for now.

2009-04-02T14:18:00.002+02:00

Not pics of the kids or us this time, just some shots of Berlin. Berlin was just ranked in the top ten cities to live in, behind such cities as Barcelona, London, and CHICAGO (at number one?!?!?!?) by some magazine out there. (Probably based in Chicago.) I definitely like Berlin a lot. I would live there in a heartbeat if I didn't already live in one of the cities I rank higher than Berlin on my pesonal list.

Here we have the pride and joy of GDR Architecture:

And again below. The juxtaposition between 1960s Soviet style and 1700s Neoclassicism is interesting:

Berliner Dom: (Lutheran) Not quite as beautiful as Dresden's Frauenkirche, but pretty darn close:

Berlin's Catholic Cathedral. Maybe the most unusual one I've seen:

The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe:

Potsdamerplatz: There is a Film Museum here that I have to check out, especially before May 10th since they have a temporary exhibit on Hitchcock.

2009-03-05T15:48:00.007+01:00

February was a busy month:

Happy Birthday, Logan!

Cheryl made another great cake.

Opposites attract.

Logan is prone to red-eye, and no matter what I did, my photo software would only correct one eye so... forget it.

Fasching!

A beautiful, almost Spring, day... in March.

2009-02-08T20:07:00.001+01:00

A little fun in January:

Our igloo:

Caedon's first tooth loss:

New PJs from friends:

2008-12-28T10:25:00.004+01:00

We live within just a couple of hours of some very historic sites. The place where Luther began the Protestant Revolution, or where Bach did most of his composing. But, yesterday we decided to make the journey there a bigger deal than just a short ride in the car. So, in sub-freezing weather the whole day, we spent 6 hours on trains.

Wittenberg, where Luther peformed the most historic of hammering...

In Leipzig, we went in the Thomas Church, and they were playing some classic Bach on the little organ...

2008-12-25T10:59:00.007+01:00

Christmas 2008
The kids enjoyed opening presents. Imagine that!

Something similar to sea monkeys, translated to prehistoric crabs. You "grow" them in a small aquarium.

Jon's new t-shirt that says Dresden, Germany

Ben 10 watches from the cartoon network series, Ben 10.

Scrapbooking supplies

Stockings

2008-12-13T17:50:00.006+01:00

Dresden is a winter wonderland:

The boys got to build a snowman...of sorts.

Our backyard, if you click you might see a little of our tree in the window.

Some shots around the block from our house.

Out at the big park downtown. The ducks had made trails through the ice on the pond.

The Christmas Market.

An early attempt at that snowman.

2008-11-22T09:35:00.000+01:00

2008-11-03T16:39:00.003+01:00

Happy Birthday (again... late... extra...) Caedon!

Caedon did his birthday weirdly this year. He got his main present a month early when family came to Dresden from the states. Then he celebrated with his preschool friends and the family on his birthday back in August. Then he had his party late in October so he could do it with his friends in Prague. Way to spread the celebration out there, buddy!

Had to sneak this pic in, since Cheryl doesn't like me putting pictures of her up, but, isn't she lovely?

2008-10-23T19:51:00.002+02:00

Well, I spent some time in the Costa del Sol area of Spain and... not impressed. The meeting and time in retreat were good, but there is a reason God sent us to northern Europe. That being said, we did have good weather for our stay--meaning cloudy and cool:

Yes, there were palm trees...

and some weirdly neat trees (check out the thorns on the trunk)...

and I night life that you don't get in Germany...

We did get to spend a day in some of the most beautiful rocky landscape...

but it was nice to get back to my German fall.

2008-10-08T16:50:00.005+02:00

Here are a couple of random pics again. The first are of Jack after his surgery and without his stitches. He has returned to his normal, playful puppy self. One of his favorite things is to catch a ride in Ashlyn's stroller. He will jump in it himself and wait to be pushed!! He is quite the character.

He can actually get a little jealous of the dolls when they are in his spot! He is full grown now and weighs in at 3.4 kilos or about 7 1/2 lbs.

Logan, Ashlyn and I were playing Memory on the floor the other day and Logan laid down and put his chin in his hands. I had never seen him do this and thought it cute. So, I had to take pics. This is another day but the "pose" is the same. He is quite the mischief maker but when he does these things it is hard not to think him cute!

2008-09-27T21:00:00.004+02:00

Jack suffered a serious knee injury last Friday. Jason was away (of course) and I am not sure exactly how it happened but he wouldn't put any weight on it at all. Monday we took him to the vet and they said he would need surgery to put some pins in his knee to keep a really small bone in place that had broken off. Tuesday, he had surgery and Wednesday we brought him home. He had a blue bandage on his leg till Friday and now his leg is bare. He has to wear this cone to keep from biting the stitches. He is quite a pathetic site!

He seems to be recovering well. I hope he has no more problems. He cost me more than Ashlyn's caesarean birth! Thankfully he is rather cute! But what are you going to do? When we visit the states, if anyone wants puppies, he is available!

2008-09-16T21:05:00.002+02:00

Just a few random pics. Logan asked to be "Batman, i mean Robin" the other day. I thought he looked rather cute and snapped a couple pics. He is so sweet and loving that it almost makes up for the mischief he is so good at making!
I took Ashlyn to a "professional" hairdresser to see what shecould do for Ashlyn's hair. I think it looks really cute. I took good notes so I think I can duplicate it when she needs a trim in a few weeks. These pics were after time in the wind so it isn't as cute as straight from the "frisuer". She and I have exact opposite taste and so I think it looks better "poofy" and she likes it straight!

2008-09-04T20:03:00.002+02:00

Jack got a new haircut. He is a yorkie but has a schnauzer haircut now.

It is hard to tell, but his back and head are shaved and the sides and legs and face are kept long.

I like this pic too because of beautiful Ashlyn. She is getting prettier by the day.Jack looks pretty handsome too! He is now 6 months old and almost full grown. he weighs in at about 8 pounds!

2008-08-03T14:24:00.004+02:00

Here are some pics of our trips to show Randy, Paula, and kids the south of Germany.

2008-08-03T14:17:00.001+02:00

This time we finally got to go into the cathedral in the Prague Castle complex. They had some beautiful stained glass windows:

2008-08-03T14:13:00.004+02:00

Cheryl's brother and family came out to visit and we showed them around here and Meissen before heading out to Bavaria and Prague.

2008-08-03T14:08:00.002+02:00

A few misc. pics of the two little boys from earlier this summer:

The boys getting ready for the European Cup. Germany came in slightly short to Spain.
Frau Görlich, the preschool teacher that taught both of our little boys German, retired in May.
After two years here, we finally made it 20 minutes south of town into the famous Saxon Switzerland.

2008-06-05T20:49:00.000+02:00

2008-05-26T17:05:00.003+02:00

We have been trying to enjoy the spring weather this year. Saturday we went out to further explore our beautiful city.
In New Town, we took a lot longer than we should have to climb the tower at the Three Magi Church. It was a bit scary to climb and some of us had to try three times before making the top.

The view was worth it. Across the river to Old Town:

Looking below to Albertplatz:

Here are the kids at one of the fountains at Albertplatz:

New Town has a historic "Dairy" It is really a milk store and it is touted as the most beautiful milk store in the world. Imagine the smell of lots of cheese for the full effect.

We had some ice cream and fed a few sparrows.

2008-05-24T20:18:00.004+02:00

Took a trip down to Vienna this month to meet and evaluate the past few months since language ended. Passed through Slovakia on the way...

...and caught a glimpse of Bratislava.

Vienna. A monument to the victims of the National Socialists.

A monument to Vienna's most famous composer.

Appropriate to his pose, there is a nice arrangement of Pansies in front of him.

Karlskirche

A ways up the river from Vienna is Dürnstein, a little village with some castle ruins where Richard the Lionhearted was held for ransom.

2008-04-29T14:16:00.003+02:00

Happy Birthday, Jonah and Cheryl!
The above picture has nothing to do with any of the rest of these, just Logan being cute.
Jonah had a good day with four friends from school. We all went to see "Horton" and came back for cake and presents.
Jonah choose German Chocolate Cake this year which was interesting because no one in Germany has ever heard of this cake, and half of the German kids wouldn't eat it. I wonder how it got its name? Maybe the Chocolate is German and not the cake...

After 2 years of thinking, wishing and asking, we went to Berlin and got "Jack" a 9 week old Yorkshire Terrier. He is pretty cute... but manly, thus the name "Jack" as in Bauer. Caedon says he is the best dog in the world.

2008-04-25T10:24:00.004+02:00

I finally have a funny language mix-up. I am sure I have had some in the past but this is the first that I was made aware of. The ironic thing about this conversation is half of it was in English!

I was relaying to my next door neighbor (and giving a little of a warning) that Saturday we were going to get a dog. The conversation went a little like this:

Me: Saturday we are going to Berlin to get a dog. (in German)
Her: How are you doing that?
Me: I called the Landlord and asked. He said we could get one if it is small.
Her: Where are you going to keep it?
Me: In the house but when we let it out we will keep it on a leash (we have adjoining yards and wanted to reassure her the dog wouldn't bother her.)
Misc. talk while walking home. Talk turned to meals , what the kids would eat, etc.

It may sound fairly normal although I did wonder a little at the slightly hesitant reaction she had (she is not an animal person) and the unusual questions and statements she used. But the whole time she had misunderstood my pronunciation (maybe it had to do with the wrong article) of dog, "HUND" for chicken "HUHN"!!!

So you can just imagine the conversation she had with her husband later that evening:
"Well, those crazy Americans next door are getting a pet chicken!"
"What?"
"Yeah, they said the landlord was OK with them having it in the house. And get this, they plan on keeping it on a leash when they bring it outside!"

It would explain why she said something about eating our pet at Christmas!

2008-03-24T20:17:00.007+01:00

We took a couple of days after our annual meeting (see pictures 2 posts down) and stayed near the Italian-Slovenian border. We took a train into Venice and enjoyed the sights. (See the next post too, for a favorite sight.)

2008-03-24T20:06:00.005+01:00

If you are a fan of the Indiana Jones movies, go pop in your copy of The Last Crusade. The church in Venice that was converted into a library is fiction, but the actual church they used exists. It is off the tourist path, but if your priorities are right you have to find these sorts of things. What is history, when there is pop-culture to be seen? There is only one manhole in the courtyard, and it doesn't look like the one in the movie, so they must have changed it since then. The bridge you see behind me is the one they cross on their way to the church at the beginning of the scene. Check it out.

2008-03-24T19:54:00.004+01:00

Well, we had another great annual meeting, this time in the Castle in Mittersill, Austria. The kids got to enjoy an Easter Egg hunt early with all their "cousins."

Logan insisted on wearing his new sunglasses for the end of the week musical performance.

Caedon looks appropriately miserable in the Mittersill dungeon. It is the oldest part of the castle, almost 900 years old!

The kids got to enjoy the Krimml waterfalls this time. When we went in 2006, they stayed at the castle while we climbed the falls. This time it was a little too "slipperly" (according to Logan) for us to hike very high.

2008-03-06T08:58:00.004+01:00

We had a visitor from the States... Flat Stanley! We took him around town and showed him some sights. Today he heads back home via the German Postal Service. Thanks for letting him come, Morgan!

The Opera House

The Dresden Frauenkirche (Most beautiful Lutheran Church in the world)

The Fürstenzug (A wall showing Dresden's Royals through history.)

A Statue overlooking the Elbe River

The Castle and Hofkirche

The Hofkirche (Catholic Cathedral)

2008-02-23T16:14:00.003+01:00

Logan is now 3. We celebrated with cupcakes on his birthday for his preschool class and a family Party today at home. Here he is opening up the only thing he asked for: a guitar with a strap.

We also got him a drawing board because he loves to draw and he is actually pretty good.

He was surprised and excited by his new airplane and Hot Wheels cars.

Playing his new guitar!

He wanted a SpongeBob party so here he is blowing out his candles on his Spongebob cake.
One time, when asked how old he would be on his birthday he replied, "Older".
He also is a spontaneous singer and dancer and has begun telling us "I am silly".

2008-02-15T21:35:00.004+01:00

I finally worked up the courage to go to the hairdresser. After more than 18 months of waiting and a few home haircuts (which weren’t too bad) I asked my speaking partner for help. She has a friend that does her hair and she has “normal” hair. This means it is not short, spiky, and a non natural color. (Blue, pink and purple are very common colors!) I had been concerned that I would not be able to communicate my wishes to her so I brought pictures of the color and length I wanted. So, after a 45 minute trip on public transportation and 2 hours in the chair, I had a new hairstyle. Well, it turned out as I feared. The color is not as I had hoped, not as blonde. The cut: not shorter like I asked and many many more layers. After I got hope I trimmed the lowest layer off so it was the length I wanted. It is beginning to grow on me and it actually is a pretty good cut, but I am still not happy with the color. All this for just $37. I think I may wait a while to go back! Can anyone recommend good at home hair color?! The picture isn't the best but it gives you an idea.

2008-02-13T17:02:00.003+01:00

Took advantage of the kids being out of school this week and went to the Leipzig Zoo. Had a good time seeing the animals that were either indoors or didn't mind temperatures in the upper 30s. One of our favorites-- the tigers (behind a mere moat and a 3-foot wall!) were as tigers in zoos usually are: sleeping. I guess that is a good picture of life in general and our work in particular. We think it should be all action and excitement, but there is a lot of ordinary downtime.

2008-01-23T22:06:00.000+01:00

Just a little note again on cross cultural living! We had a birthday party for Ashlyn last month and due to some circumstances we ended up inviting all the girls from her class to our house. (Apparently it is not impolite to only invite a few kids and doesn't hurt feelings!) Anyway, we planned to let the girls make their own pizzas. Now, in the states we would have cheese, pepperoni, and maybe hamburger or canadian bacon. I had cheese, pepperoni, olives and ham. I did cut up some onion and peppers and mushrooms for Jason and I. When the first girls began to make their pizzas they saw my "measly" offerings and asked if I had anything else. The first thing they asked for was corn. Unfortunately I didn't have any, and the girls had to settle for the toppings I had cut up for Jason and I . Anyway, I just thought it humorous that most of the girls wanted much more than plain cheese pizza.

Pizza places here offer some very unusual toppings. This week we got a flier in the mail with the newest pizza offerings. The toppings: hot dog wieners, pickles, and a few other things! Another new offering : bacon and egg pizza!
Popular toppings: corn, broccoli, tuna fish

Life is good here, Who wants just pepperoni on their pizza!!!

2008-01-18T19:46:00.000+01:00

Just a little something that happened here the other day that I want to share with ya'll. Logan was asked to pray at dinner. Usually he doesn't say anything but I guess the other night he was feeling talkative. Anyway, in his sweet but sometimes difficult to understand voice he began:
Dear Jesus, thank you for today, thank you for grandmommy's birthday, and help Payton get better. Amen
He may have added thank you for the food but Jason and I can't remember for sure. It was very sweet and heartfelt and cute. (the grandmommy thing came from a conversation we had had at lunch earlier that day. I had seen on the calendar that my mother's birthday was the next day and told Logan this. He actually remembered this and then prayed about it.) He continued throughout the meal to talk about her birthday. It was cute and comical.

2008-01-15T21:48:00.001+01:00

A picture of our new mailbox

The old, blown into 4 pieces mailbox!

You probably wonder why I put this on here but I thought it a "good" culture adjustment moment to share. On New Year's our mailbox was blown up by a firecracker. We had to replace it because we never found the lock and the hinges were unrepairable. Anyway, the next day we were off to the hardware store for a replacement. Now, I have never shopped for a mailbox in the states but I would guess it is a little different here. We had probably 20 to choose from but we wanted metal, not white, and big enough to fit the holes already in the cinderblock wall. So, that narrowed it down to 5 or 6. We bought the cheapest we could get and it cost us about $100 dollars for the box and the drill bit and the mounting hardware. Luckily, it just covered the holes and damaged stucco. (The one that was blown up is twice as big and much heavier duty, it must have cost a small fortune!) Anyway, I just find it humorous that we have to pay so much for a silly mailbox that is often only for junkmail!

2008-01-11T15:24:00.001+01:00

We had an eventful few hours Wednesday. Logan was on the stairs and (I didn't see what happened)he fell and split his chin open on the metal carpet strip at the top of the stairs. Luckily it didn't bleed too much but we thought it best to take him to the ER to have it looked at. After a 5 minute or so wait, the nurse taped it and glued it and then we waited another 5 minutes for the glue to dry. The Dr. came in later and explained a couple things and we were off. Jason paid all of the whopping 38 euro bill with our check card and the lady was so surprised that she had to have help figuring out how to use the machine! For being brave, Logan (and Caedon) got water shooters! (I am not sure the medical term for these, but they are used for putting medicine in IVs and things without needles). PS: the nose bruise is unrelated and happened a couple days before on Ashlyn's bed ladder.

2008-01-01T17:02:00.000+01:00

Well, we have had an exciting New Year's Day. Ashlyn and I spent the morning in the Hospital making sure she doesn't have appendicitis. (We still don't know why her stomach hurts, but it appears as though it is not serious.) On our way out of the house this morning, we discovered our mail box had been blown up. We were the only house on the street hit. I knew I should have brought it in last night! New Year's Eve is an exciting time here in Dresden. (See my post over at NonModern.) Here's wishing everyone a blessed 2008!

2007-12-27T22:23:00.002+01:00

Cheryl's new gloves, hat and scarf.

Logan and his new 2 legged Spiderman. Jonah's Spiderman figure had only one leg but Logan would play with him anyway since he loves Spiderman. So when he opened his figure he was shocked and excited and exclaimed, "a Spiderman with 2 legs!".

Here is Logan opening his toy airplane. It is rather large and awkward to "fly". After playing with it for a few minutes he laid on the floor and said, "it is too schwer (heavy), I think I need the helicopter!"

Caedon's new Dr. Who figures. Caedon was very excited about all his presents and was excited for Logan too!
This picture captures just a tiny glimpse of how excited Logan was when opening every gift!

Ashlyn's Adventure in Odyssey cds

Jonah showing off his homemade gift from his dad. Jason made each kid a set of Dr. Who figures they can play with, and the bonus of more to come. Jonah and Ashlyn are awaiting their Nintendo DS from the states. They are coming by way of collegues but not until January.

2007-12-17T19:30:00.000+01:00

The Christmas service at the local fellowship. (These pics are not so great sorry.)

2007-12-17T19:23:00.000+01:00

A Few pictures from "Kids Klub" a local effort our fellowship is involved in.

2007-12-16T19:33:00.001+01:00

Christmas Decorating

Jonah was in no mood for pictures the day we took these.

2007-12-16T19:26:00.001+01:00

Just a few pics from Cheryl's trip down to the Southwest corner of Germany and into Switzerland. That's where the Dietz family stems from and sure enough, she encountered our name for the first time since we've been here. It seems there is a Dietz juice company.

2007-10-23T20:26:00.001+02:00

2007-09-26T10:38:00.001+02:00

A rare picture of me on the Rhein River, and a couple of cute Logan pics.

2007-09-26T10:32:00.001+02:00

Caedon had a good 5th Birthday in August. He had a football themed family party, and also took cupcakes to Kindergarten. He and Logan are both doing really well with German now. At the park the other day a girl asked me if Caedon was speaking English. I said that he was, but that he could speak a little German too. He corrected me, in German, and said he could speak a lot of German!

2007-09-26T10:31:00.001+02:00

More Images from Colditz

2007-09-26T10:24:00.001+02:00

At a fountain on the Polish border

Three shots from Colditz Castle, used as a "Escape Proof" Prisoner of War Camp

2007-08-13T09:41:00.001+02:00

We had a good time away in Prague this month. It was a good first vacation for many reasons, but two stood out in particular. First, it was a great demonstration of how far we've come. We stayed in a house away from downtown and did our shopping and cooking at home. We rode public transportation everywhere. We didn't understand a bit of Czech! It was a great reminder of where we were 14 months ago in Dresden. We really have come a long way in German! Secondly, it was really good to come home-to Dresden-and have it feel like home!