It's all about the numbers these days.
Ray turned 27 on Wednesday. Yay! I pulled off throwing a surprise party for him. First my parents showed up, then a good friend of Ray's whom he works with, then some great friends from our first ward here, and finally our amazing neighbors who have three daughters that just love Ray to pieces. Our little apartment was crammed full of love- and all for Ray. We had so much fun eating spaghetti and banana cream pie, laughing, and of course playing some board games. I don't want to be too decisive, but I am pretty sure Ray had an excellent birthday.
This just also happens to be his third birthday while we've been married. I can't believe we're coming up on three years of marriage in June!
As for the 19... Well, we decided we should take advantage of the good rates right now, and book a cruise! We leave in 19 days from Barcelona, Spain! We then travel to Morocco, the Canary Islands and back to Barcelona. We can hardly wait. Yesterday we went shopping for some new bathing suits at our favorite discount stores in Saarbrucken (bless you Primark and TK-Maxx!). The sun was shining and just made me think of the 9 blissful days we'll soon be spending on a cruise ship. Best combined birthday presents and spring break vacation ever.
We had so much fun on Ray's birthday that we literally forgot to pull out the camera, so no documentation. But there wasn't too much change in Ray from 26 to 27... overlooking the new hairy mole on his nose... Just kidding!
Sunday, March 9, 2014
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Eventful
I really wasn't sure what to call this post. All I could think was, "This 3-day weekend was just so eventful! So many things happened!" So, there you go.
For Valentine's Day, I woke up at 0530 for work to find our table covered in chocolates and roses for me. Ray definitely won points for surprise this year. At work we had a treats exchange so I made cupcakes with raspberry frosting, and I designed a cute little tag for each cupcake. Then in the evening we went to a church dance for all the adults. There were brief lessons before the dance floor opened up so we practiced our waltz and cha cha. It was so much fun! At one point we were the only ones on the dance floor so we had the time of our lives just tearing it up and pretending like we knew what we were doing. Good times :)
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On Saturday we got to relax and catch up on some house cleaning. On Sunday we had the opportunity to drive my brother up near Frankfurt to our Stake Patriarch's home so that he could receive his patriarchal blessing. It was a truly beautiful, peaceful and memorable experience. I am so proud of my brother for deciding to attend church, search for his own answers, and then work to be able to receive his blessing. Ach, I won't get too mushy, but I was proud. This is Harrison after:
Aww...
me and my brudder!
Two of the men I love most in the world!
On Monday I walked to the grocery store in an outfit that Ray said made me look like Dora the Explorer. No photographic evidence available. Then the missionaries in our ward came over to play board games with us and have Family Home Evening. I won 2 out of the 3 games we played, so yeah, the day pretty much rocked.
Today, Tuesday 18 February, 2014, my little, baby brother enlisted with the United States Army. I can't believe it happened. Again, so proud of him as he becomes a man. We got to be part of his swearing in, where he received his first coin that showed the Armor of God. It was really cool. He's off to basic training and then schooling, and then... who knows where?! I'm very excited for him as he starts this new adventure!
For Valentine's Day, I woke up at 0530 for work to find our table covered in chocolates and roses for me. Ray definitely won points for surprise this year. At work we had a treats exchange so I made cupcakes with raspberry frosting, and I designed a cute little tag for each cupcake. Then in the evening we went to a church dance for all the adults. There were brief lessons before the dance floor opened up so we practiced our waltz and cha cha. It was so much fun! At one point we were the only ones on the dance floor so we had the time of our lives just tearing it up and pretending like we knew what we were doing. Good times :)
On Saturday we got to relax and catch up on some house cleaning. On Sunday we had the opportunity to drive my brother up near Frankfurt to our Stake Patriarch's home so that he could receive his patriarchal blessing. It was a truly beautiful, peaceful and memorable experience. I am so proud of my brother for deciding to attend church, search for his own answers, and then work to be able to receive his blessing. Ach, I won't get too mushy, but I was proud. This is Harrison after:
Aww...
me and my brudder!
Two of the men I love most in the world!
On Monday I walked to the grocery store in an outfit that Ray said made me look like Dora the Explorer. No photographic evidence available. Then the missionaries in our ward came over to play board games with us and have Family Home Evening. I won 2 out of the 3 games we played, so yeah, the day pretty much rocked.
Today, Tuesday 18 February, 2014, my little, baby brother enlisted with the United States Army. I can't believe it happened. Again, so proud of him as he becomes a man. We got to be part of his swearing in, where he received his first coin that showed the Armor of God. It was really cool. He's off to basic training and then schooling, and then... who knows where?! I'm very excited for him as he starts this new adventure!
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| We took up practically the entire room at the recruiter's office. It was excellent :) |
Sunday, February 2, 2014
1 Down 11 To Go...
Highlights of January 2014:
- Ray accepted a calling as Assistant Scout Master/Assistant Deacons Quorum Advisor
- Kailin accepted a calling as a Family History Consultant
- We agreed upon and posted our 2014 Family Motto:Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.Matthew 7:20
- We found some ancestors who needed temple work done and reserved the ordinances via Family Search.
- Ray re-uploaded his Final Cut Pro software so he could start making videos again!
- We hosted our first board game night with friends.
- We got a brand new oven when our old one decided to stop working one day.
- Kailin accomplished her monthly goal of indexing 500 names.
And drum roll please...
- Germany still has not gotten any snow! Woo hoo!
It has been an absolutely fabulous start to 2014. I think this year is going to be one of the best of my life. And I can't wait.
Friday, January 17, 2014
Throwback Friday
I missed Thursday. Oops. Nevertheless, I found these awesome photos I had never uploaded from summer time. They made me miss the warm weather, and made me appreciate how beautifully green and sunny Germany was.
Enjoy!
Sigh, I miss summer. Today the sun popped out after several days of rain and fog. I started quoting Thumbelina. "Once there was the sun..."
Enjoy!
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| We went to a medieval market. Free entrance if you dress up! Don't mind if we do. |
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| They had sword fights for the "fair maiden." |
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| Ray likes armor. |
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| There were lots of cool handicrafts for sale. |
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| ... like bows and arrows. |
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| Partying medieval German style, with alcohol free juices in fancy bottles. |
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| Then we went to Bernkastel-Kues for a wine festival and fireworks over the castle. Actually half our ward went together. All of the Mormons agreed, the white grape juice was excellent this year. |
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| Bernkastel-Kues was beautiful! |
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| They had some really fun traditional dance performances going on. |
Sigh, I miss summer. Today the sun popped out after several days of rain and fog. I started quoting Thumbelina. "Once there was the sun..."
Saturday, January 11, 2014
Bring on 2014!
And a Happy New Year to you, friend!
Alright, without gilding the lily... London was absolutely AMAZING! We had such a grand time there, and even Ray wants to go back. The city's charm is just too alluring.
Our bus ride there was long and tedious, full of inconsiderate people, but ultimately it got us there in one piece. It also gave us the opportunity to ride the ferry from Calais, France to Dover, UK. The wind was blowing like crazy over the Channel so the small ferry was tossed everywhere and more than one person was seasick- but we managed to sit in the center of the boat and make it through unscathed. It was fun waking up Monday morning and looking out the window to see the White Cliffs of Dover.
Once we landed, it was another 2 hour drive in the rain to London. This time when I woke up we were crossing the London Bridge! I wish every nap had such marvelous endings... We picked up our tour guide who gave us a tour of the city from the bus, which thankfully kept us out of the rain. He dropped us off at our hotel where Ray and I crashed for a few hours. We'd slept very fitfully on the bus and wanted to have energy to stay up through midnight on NYE.
When we woke up we went out to explore Piccadilly Circus by night. We had a good time seeing the signs of all the shows that were playing; we even tried for Phantom of the Opera tickets, but they were sold out. No night in London would be complete without fish, chips and mushy peas, so we of course indulged in that. Delicious! That was really the extent of our first night.
On Tuesday morning we woke up early to eat breakfast, and get to the British Museum just as it opened. We spent about 2.5 hours walking around the museum looking at mummies, ancient texts, and famous sculptures. I love that most of the big museums in London are free, I think that added even more excitement to the visit.
Here we are with the Rosetta Stone replica that encourages visitors to touch and feel the amazing etchings.
After the museum, we took the Underground to Victoria Station where the Apollo Victoria Theater is so we could pick up our tickets for Wicked! We then had some extra time to walk to Big Ben and back.
Now, I may be biased, but I think the next part of our trip was the best. It was most certainly my favorite. After nearly a decade of listening to the music and wishing and waiting, I finally saw Wicked! Words don't describe how happy I was. I cried every other song for the entire first act. Again, lack of sleep may also have played a part in those tears.
After the show, it was time for dinner, a walk through the Winter Market in Hyde Park, and then spot finding for fireworks! We showed up at Westminster around 8:15, and it was already swarming with people. Waterloo bridge was full and closed. We began walking towards Embankment to get a spot along the Thames so we could see the full show on the London Eye. Unfortunately, the security police kept pushing people further and further down and then began telling people there were no river seats left. So we made it back to Westminster and stationed ourselves in front of Big Ben and a big screen that would show the fireworks. It was fun hearing the new year rung in by Big Ben, and then watching the fireworks explode over the buildings and the full show on the screen. It was a marvelous firework show. We were both very impressed.
Maybe even more impressive, is that this felt like the least pushy, hassle free New Years we have done. Disneyland was worse, and Taipei felt intensely more crowded. I'm not sure of numbers for London, but it really didn't seem bad.
It started raining again right at Midnight, so we could only take a few pictures before putting away our new camera to avoid damaging it. Yup, whether you could tell by the pictures or not, we did finally get a nice camera. We got the Canon T3i Rebel as a Christmas present to ourselves. We love it so far!
2013 was an incredibly fun and challenging year, we look forward to what 2014 holds. More travelling, more learning, perhaps more school, maybe even another move? We're feeling that anything is possible this year! So bring it on, 2014!!!
Alright, without gilding the lily... London was absolutely AMAZING! We had such a grand time there, and even Ray wants to go back. The city's charm is just too alluring.
Our bus ride there was long and tedious, full of inconsiderate people, but ultimately it got us there in one piece. It also gave us the opportunity to ride the ferry from Calais, France to Dover, UK. The wind was blowing like crazy over the Channel so the small ferry was tossed everywhere and more than one person was seasick- but we managed to sit in the center of the boat and make it through unscathed. It was fun waking up Monday morning and looking out the window to see the White Cliffs of Dover.
When we woke up we went out to explore Piccadilly Circus by night. We had a good time seeing the signs of all the shows that were playing; we even tried for Phantom of the Opera tickets, but they were sold out. No night in London would be complete without fish, chips and mushy peas, so we of course indulged in that. Delicious! That was really the extent of our first night.
On Tuesday morning we woke up early to eat breakfast, and get to the British Museum just as it opened. We spent about 2.5 hours walking around the museum looking at mummies, ancient texts, and famous sculptures. I love that most of the big museums in London are free, I think that added even more excitement to the visit.
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| Super windy in front of the British Museum. |
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| Ray looks so great in this picture. I love it. |
Here we are with the Rosetta Stone replica that encourages visitors to touch and feel the amazing etchings.
After the museum, we took the Underground to Victoria Station where the Apollo Victoria Theater is so we could pick up our tickets for Wicked! We then had some extra time to walk to Big Ben and back.
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| It had started raining, obviously, and my lack of sleep caught up with me. Here I am in all my glory of grumpiness. Note to self: in 2014, be happier! Life is good, even when it rains. |
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| Of course, nothing can darken Ray's spirit. Good grief I love this man. |
After the show, it was time for dinner, a walk through the Winter Market in Hyde Park, and then spot finding for fireworks! We showed up at Westminster around 8:15, and it was already swarming with people. Waterloo bridge was full and closed. We began walking towards Embankment to get a spot along the Thames so we could see the full show on the London Eye. Unfortunately, the security police kept pushing people further and further down and then began telling people there were no river seats left. So we made it back to Westminster and stationed ourselves in front of Big Ben and a big screen that would show the fireworks. It was fun hearing the new year rung in by Big Ben, and then watching the fireworks explode over the buildings and the full show on the screen. It was a marvelous firework show. We were both very impressed.
Maybe even more impressive, is that this felt like the least pushy, hassle free New Years we have done. Disneyland was worse, and Taipei felt intensely more crowded. I'm not sure of numbers for London, but it really didn't seem bad.
It started raining again right at Midnight, so we could only take a few pictures before putting away our new camera to avoid damaging it. Yup, whether you could tell by the pictures or not, we did finally get a nice camera. We got the Canon T3i Rebel as a Christmas present to ourselves. We love it so far!
2013 was an incredibly fun and challenging year, we look forward to what 2014 holds. More travelling, more learning, perhaps more school, maybe even another move? We're feeling that anything is possible this year! So bring it on, 2014!!!
Sunday, December 22, 2013
"It Feels Like Christmas!"
Mine and Ray's favorite Christmas Tradition is to watch as many versions of A Christmas Carol as we possibly can throughout the season. My favorite is the musical, 1970's "Scrooge" with Albert Finney, while Ray loves "Muppet Christmas Carol." This year I read the book and we watched the Patrick Stewart version, which we also really enjoyed. The song that has been stuck in my head the most though is the Muppet's "It Feels Like Christmas" because, really, it does.
Minus the snow. Germany has had several icy mornings, but no snow! Hallelujiah! It's a Christmas miracle! :) I couldn't be happier about this fact. Though everyone and their dog seems to disagree with me.
Here are some pictures and updates of our Christmas season to demonstrate why this song has been stuck in my head nonstop.
Our real Christmas Tree! We drove out to a little town where a man and his family farm the trees all year, then sell them off the side of their house, and picked out our first real tree. I must say, I think it's a bit of an improvement from last years tree. We made all of our ornaments from applesauce and cinnamon, and then threaded our popcorn garland while watching yet another Christmas Carol. The whole tree smells amazing!
Yesterday we went to the Saarbrücken Christmas Market. We only managed to hit three markets this year (Kaiserslautern, Rothenburg ob der Tauber, and Saarbrücken) but of those three, the last was our favorite. It felt truly German as opposed to touristy like Rothenburg, and was big enough to spend 3+ hours there as opposed to Kaiserslautern which took 30 minutes. Saarbrücken also has fabulous stores for bargain shopping like TK*Maxx (the German TJ*Maxx) and Primark, which is arguably our new favorite store out here. We took advantage of the deals and bought some last minute Christmas presents.
We also ate some of the yummiest Christmas treats at the market that we have ever had...
Reibekuchen! A delicious mix of hash browns in batter that is then deep fried and served with applesauce. Oh my heavens, so so good! And a toasty treat to warm up our chilly fingers.
This one may be my next baking experiment. I have to learn how to make Dampfnudel. It's like a steamed bun of goodness, and then this one was covered in vanilla cream sauce and cherries. This one also had cherry jam on the inside. Ray and I devoured the whole thing in the blink of an eye.
We got some kinderpunsch also, but the picture turned out crazy blurry. Sad day, because the collectible mugs from this market are cute little boots with "2013" painted across the toes. We now have six fabulous Christmas market mugs to use each Christmas. :)
Saarbrücken market had some fun, new exhibits. Like the 12 meter tall Christmas Pyramid:
And the finale: Santa's sleigh with reindeer, and the fog below, flying across the night sky:
While the narration of the story of Rudolph booms over speakers, the sleigh glides over the entire market. It stops in the middle during the climax of the story. Then Rudolph's nose lights up bright, fireworks shoot from the back of the sleigh, and they zoom across the remainder of their course. It was fun to stand in the center of the marktplatz with hundreds of adults and children all staring up as Santa and "The Fog" waved to us below.
Only 3 more sleeps until Christmas! And then it's on to London for New Years!
p.s. I really did have every intention of sending out Christmas cards this year, but I failed miserably. We never got around to taking nice "card worthy" Christmas-y photos, so once again. This compilation posted onto our blog will have to suffice. Merry Christmas!
Minus the snow. Germany has had several icy mornings, but no snow! Hallelujiah! It's a Christmas miracle! :) I couldn't be happier about this fact. Though everyone and their dog seems to disagree with me.
Here are some pictures and updates of our Christmas season to demonstrate why this song has been stuck in my head nonstop.
Our real Christmas Tree! We drove out to a little town where a man and his family farm the trees all year, then sell them off the side of their house, and picked out our first real tree. I must say, I think it's a bit of an improvement from last years tree. We made all of our ornaments from applesauce and cinnamon, and then threaded our popcorn garland while watching yet another Christmas Carol. The whole tree smells amazing!
Yesterday we went to the Saarbrücken Christmas Market. We only managed to hit three markets this year (Kaiserslautern, Rothenburg ob der Tauber, and Saarbrücken) but of those three, the last was our favorite. It felt truly German as opposed to touristy like Rothenburg, and was big enough to spend 3+ hours there as opposed to Kaiserslautern which took 30 minutes. Saarbrücken also has fabulous stores for bargain shopping like TK*Maxx (the German TJ*Maxx) and Primark, which is arguably our new favorite store out here. We took advantage of the deals and bought some last minute Christmas presents.
We also ate some of the yummiest Christmas treats at the market that we have ever had...
Reibekuchen! A delicious mix of hash browns in batter that is then deep fried and served with applesauce. Oh my heavens, so so good! And a toasty treat to warm up our chilly fingers.
This one may be my next baking experiment. I have to learn how to make Dampfnudel. It's like a steamed bun of goodness, and then this one was covered in vanilla cream sauce and cherries. This one also had cherry jam on the inside. Ray and I devoured the whole thing in the blink of an eye.
We got some kinderpunsch also, but the picture turned out crazy blurry. Sad day, because the collectible mugs from this market are cute little boots with "2013" painted across the toes. We now have six fabulous Christmas market mugs to use each Christmas. :)
Saarbrücken market had some fun, new exhibits. Like the 12 meter tall Christmas Pyramid:
And the finale: Santa's sleigh with reindeer, and the fog below, flying across the night sky:
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| Santa and the lady personifying the fog had to climb up this tower and into their vehicles to prepare for their night flight. |
While the narration of the story of Rudolph booms over speakers, the sleigh glides over the entire market. It stops in the middle during the climax of the story. Then Rudolph's nose lights up bright, fireworks shoot from the back of the sleigh, and they zoom across the remainder of their course. It was fun to stand in the center of the marktplatz with hundreds of adults and children all staring up as Santa and "The Fog" waved to us below.
Only 3 more sleeps until Christmas! And then it's on to London for New Years!
p.s. I really did have every intention of sending out Christmas cards this year, but I failed miserably. We never got around to taking nice "card worthy" Christmas-y photos, so once again. This compilation posted onto our blog will have to suffice. Merry Christmas!
Sunday, December 1, 2013
Thanksgiving and December... finally!
This year for Thanksgiving, we were able to spend the holiday with my mom, step-dad and brother. It was such a blessing to be able to spend the day with family; something that most of our friends and acquaintances didn't get to do out here. I was amazed at the outpouring of love and warmth from the people we know here. Mormons as people are giving and friendly, and when you add on top of that Military lifestyle, well, we had no less than 5 Thanksgiving Dinner invitations. I'm so thankful for kind and caring people who open their homes to wandering couples who may need a place to feel a little American tradition.
We spent the day after Thanksgiving cleaning up, shopping for small Christmas decorations, and going to our first Christmas Market. The market we went to on Friday was the Kaiserslautern Weihnachtsmarkt- which was small and mostly food vendors. Nevertheless, it was cheery and the food was fabulous! We had: kinder gluhwein (warm grape juice with spices), reibekuchen (delicious hashbrowns with applesauce), and these amazing sticky sweet rolls that you dip in a vanilla cream sauce. Yum!
On Saturday, we got seats on a bus to Rothenburg ob der Tauber. We went there this summer when my friend was here visiting, but only got a few hours to explore and do the Night Watchman Tour. This time we left at 0700 and didn't get back until 2200- which meant 9 hours at the Christmas Market! Rothenburg o.d.T. is an amazingly well preserved medieval city, and the birthplace of the Christmas decoration supplier: Kathe Wohlfahrt. The little village literally had five retail stores of Kathe Wohlfahrt decorations- maybe a little overkill, but heck, it's just all so freaking festive! There were trees with bows and candles on every corner, and the biggest Christmas tree I've seen in my life right in the center of the market square. The stalls were selling roasted nuts, gluhwein, bratwurst, cookies, candies, candles, lace, and even more Christmas decor. We walked through the market, the town, all around the wall that surrounds the whole medieval village, and ended the night by attending an organ concert in the St. Jacobs Church. It was all beautiful, and the perfect start to our German Christmas.
This street was full of happy people, twinkling lights, Christmas carols, and a very cute Raymond :)
Here I am in the center of the market. Behind me is the gigantic real tree they had all decorated and lit up, and in my hand is an actual roasted chestnut. Yup, they exist. And they were interestingly delicious.
Christmas Experience: Level Up
That's how I felt eating a roasted chestnut at Christmas time.
Shh... you're not supposed to take pictures inside Kathe Wohlfahrt's Christmas Village.
But why did they make it so beautiful if you can't take pictures?! Can you believe this was inside a centuries old building?
I get the impression a brass band is a necessity at each Christmas Market. They have yet to play a carol we actually know. The drunk German men next to me knew what this group was playing though!
Ah, Rothenburg. You are delightful in both summer and winter. Though really I must say, this first Christmas Market is going to be incredibly difficult to top.
We spent the day after Thanksgiving cleaning up, shopping for small Christmas decorations, and going to our first Christmas Market. The market we went to on Friday was the Kaiserslautern Weihnachtsmarkt- which was small and mostly food vendors. Nevertheless, it was cheery and the food was fabulous! We had: kinder gluhwein (warm grape juice with spices), reibekuchen (delicious hashbrowns with applesauce), and these amazing sticky sweet rolls that you dip in a vanilla cream sauce. Yum!
On Saturday, we got seats on a bus to Rothenburg ob der Tauber. We went there this summer when my friend was here visiting, but only got a few hours to explore and do the Night Watchman Tour. This time we left at 0700 and didn't get back until 2200- which meant 9 hours at the Christmas Market! Rothenburg o.d.T. is an amazingly well preserved medieval city, and the birthplace of the Christmas decoration supplier: Kathe Wohlfahrt. The little village literally had five retail stores of Kathe Wohlfahrt decorations- maybe a little overkill, but heck, it's just all so freaking festive! There were trees with bows and candles on every corner, and the biggest Christmas tree I've seen in my life right in the center of the market square. The stalls were selling roasted nuts, gluhwein, bratwurst, cookies, candies, candles, lace, and even more Christmas decor. We walked through the market, the town, all around the wall that surrounds the whole medieval village, and ended the night by attending an organ concert in the St. Jacobs Church. It was all beautiful, and the perfect start to our German Christmas.
Here we are outside the first Kathe Wohlfahrt we went into... back when we thought that was the only one!
This street was full of happy people, twinkling lights, Christmas carols, and a very cute Raymond :)
Here I am in the center of the market. Behind me is the gigantic real tree they had all decorated and lit up, and in my hand is an actual roasted chestnut. Yup, they exist. And they were interestingly delicious.
Christmas Experience: Level Up
That's how I felt eating a roasted chestnut at Christmas time.
Shh... you're not supposed to take pictures inside Kathe Wohlfahrt's Christmas Village.
But why did they make it so beautiful if you can't take pictures?! Can you believe this was inside a centuries old building?
Ah, Rothenburg. You are delightful in both summer and winter. Though really I must say, this first Christmas Market is going to be incredibly difficult to top.
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