Christmas

Vern and Beth Lentz

Maddie with Brian and Ann Lentz

Maddie with one of her Santa gifts

We're here in Connecticut with Skip's family for Christmas. Both of Skip's brothers and their wives and Vern's two boys were here for Christmas Eve, so the whole family made it this year. Good German girl that she has, Maddie created a system for organizing and handing out the presents. She took her role very seriously and the distribution of gifts went extremely smoothly, I must say.

Skip and Maddie and I went to the church service at the Congregational Church where Skip attended growing up. It's like something out of a Christmas postcard. There was a great moment during the scripture reading, right after the reader read that the angel of the Lord appeared to the shepherds, there was this tremendous feedback over the sound system that just about blew everyone out of our seats. Of course the next line after it cleared up was "Be not afraid." Kind of gave us a real feel for just how startled those shepherds were.

Here are some pics. We had a White Christmas and Maddie has really enjoyed the snow.

I scored an I-pod from my husband, so my reflections on the birth of Christ may be interrupted by the downloading of music. Actually, I can download the Christmas podcast from several churches out there and have sermons to go.

Merry Christmas

Christmas in Germany

You haven't heard Feliz Navidad until you've heard it sung by a German choir at a German Christmas market. There are all sorts of German singing groups made up of adults that just like to sing. They have these singing clubs and at Christmas, they show up at the markets. In Kaiserswerth last week, we saw this Gospel choir. All Germans singing American gospel songs.

Wow! Was it cold at Schloss Moyland yesterday, but the market was really nice. They even had a tent set up with a cast iron oven and the kids could cut out and decorate cookies and come back after 10 minutes and pick up their baked goods. Just a tip for any of you who are planning a German Christmas market vacation--the markets that take place at castles tend to have more of the local vendors selling handmade goods, where as the big city markets are fun and have better food (not to be dismissed lightly), but they tend to have the same booths over and over and a lot of manufactured items.

Today we will stop by the home of Natalie and Russ Harwood (Nat's a New Zealander and Russ is a Brit) for a holiday open house. Natalie recently had a birthday and her present was two tickets to see the Spice Girls Reunion tour in Cologne on Thursday night. Tonight we will head to Christ Church for the annual carol and candlelight service. We're hoping Maddie doesn't set anything or anyone on fire.

Busy week as we wrap up Christmas preparations, pack and get ready to fly out to the states on Friday. Have several friends who are not able to head home for the holidays, so I try to play down my excitement. I'll be hauling over Christmas cards to mail for a couple of people. I'll be sending mine from the states as well. I sent 5 cards out from here last week and it costs 8 euros. (about 11 american dollars).

Hope everyone is having a frohes fest.

How to Attract Attention in Germany

So, I was in Real (the German Wal-Mart equivalent) yesterday and people were staring at me. BTW, Germans are not discreet about staring. If you're doing something stare-worthy, they don't try to sneak glances, they just stare. It's really much more honest.

Anyway, I was by myself, so I wasn't speaking English to anyone--which often draws stares. And I was dressed like a typical German in December: boots, all-weather coat and scarf. I couldn't figure out what was causing folks to stare. I looked in my cart to see if I had made an unusual selection. No. Even glanced in a mirror to make sure I didn't have anything on my face. It wasn't until I got all the way around the store to the beverage items that I realized that Real was piping in Christmas carols sung in English, and I had been singing along. I wondered why I was in such a good mood!

Speaking of beverages, here's something you won't see in Arkansas. We went to the Christ's Church Advent Market. There were English books and British foods and kids toys and white elephants. But the way the British Businessmen's Club was raising money for the church was to sell chances on beer and alcohol. Skip bought two tickets at a euro each and left with six pints of British ale.

We also went to the Advent Market at Schloss Dyche on Sunday after church. It was a beautiful setting, but almost too crowded to really enjoy. Still, they had a lot of handmade and specialty items that one goes to these markets to see.

Today, I went to Europe's largest shopping mall to try to wrap up some Christmas shopping. On a weekday, the mall was busy, but not overly crowded. You couldn't pay me enough to show up there next Saturday.

Conversation Topics

Was at a good-by gathering for friend Jennifer last night, and it occurred to me how different conversation topics are here than in the U.S. We met at this restaurant and sat at a big table. And the women were on one side and the men on the other. According to Skip, the men talked work and sports--much the same as they do in the states. The women talk about the two things we all have in common: kids/ISD and travelling.

We can't talk about movies because we there's only occasionally a movie in English at the theater. We can't talk tv. One woman tried to describe her passion for Project Runway which she gets via her satellite or something--and apparently it's last season's eipsodes. But no one had seen it. We can't talk books, since the only time any of us are reading the "latest" is if our husbands pick it up for us at the airport. Politics is not a topic since we're not all from the same country, and we Americans aren't getting bombarded with all the info. The only reason I knew Oprah was stumping for Obama was by logging on to Cnn.com. We don't know what's happening in Germany because even those who speak pretty good German aren't quite to the reading German newspapers or watching German news level.

However, it's not unusual at all to be comparing hotel stays in Paris, hearing about the pros and cons of a Greek cruise and tips for how to drive without getting killed in Italy.

Had a funny exchange on the travel front. Was talking the other day to a woman who's family is going to Egypt for Christmas and I said, "How Biblical!" She thought I was being sarcastic, and I had to let her know that rumor has it that Mary and Joseph actually took the baby Jesus to Egypt after he was born to escape the wrath of Herod. It was the first she'd heard of it.

Out Sick

Haven't posted anything on the blog this week because I've been struck down by strep throat. Boy, I can't remember the last time I have been this sick. Spent two days just completely in bed and went 3 days without eating or drinking anything other than a Starbucks Frappacino (docs office is right across the street from one) a few popsicles and when we were out of popsicles once I sucked on frozen fruit. Just a tip--never contract strep throat in a country with no smoothie shops or 24-hour pharmacies.

I'm still not well, but I'm not supposed to be contagious and the Tylenol and ibuprofen actually control the throat pain now. I'm going to have to go on some kind of detox diet after this is over to help my liver heal from all the medicine I've taken trying to make my throat stop hurting. I never took more than the daily max of aceteminophen or ibuprofen, but I've hit my limit for several days in a row.

My doctor, while actually Romanian, fits in well here in Germany. The whole reason I went to the doctor and found out I had strep was that nothing I was taking was stopping the pain.It hurt to bad to even eat, so that's really serious when you're me. She said, "It's strep. It's going to hurt" and kind of shrugged at me. I want my American doctor who would hold my hand and smile empathetically and hand me a prescription for something that would stop the pain!

Since strep is so contagious, we quaratined me in the guest room. Skip had Maddie duty for two days running. Even in my feveish haze, I had to admit enjoying that it was him and not me having to hear, "But I don't want that in my lunch today." down in the kitchen.

And this is such a rotten time to be sick, because Christmas in Germany is really cool. They do it up right here and I've missed a whole week of it. It's made me a little Grinchy.

Am really glad I brought back a can of Lysol from the states this summer. Last February, when we all got sick, the house just felt like a germ factory. This time, I was able to spray down bathrooms, doors and even the mattress that served as my sick bed. I'm not sure why disinfectant spray is not a German thing. There's lots of air freshners--you can get Oust, for example--but no disinfectant spray. I think they're of the germs-build-up-your-immunity camp since you can't get Purell here either, something else I have in my arsenal.

It's time to come home. I've almost used up all of my stash of Tylenol. There's no more Easy Mac or chili seasoning packets. Am low on vanilla extract ( by the way, the butter vanille extract here in Germany is butterscotch flavor) and hydrogen peroxide. And Maddie is all the time talking about the Quaker Instant Oatmeal with the Dinosaur eggs that "hatch" baby dinosaurs when you add the hot water.

Two weeks from today. Woo hoo!

Advent Pics

Duesseldorf Christmas Market on a Sunny Saturday

Maddie and Skip about to enter the fray

Maddie in front of a nativity scene carved out of Olivewood from Bethlehem

Roise gets decked out for the holiday

Me sporting my "JOY" tatoo from the Breakfast with Santa

Ho, Ho,Ho

Fist day of Advent in Germany. Advent begins the first day of December. That means Maddie AND Roise got to start their Advent calendars. Maddie's is a mini-Baby Born with accessories and Rosie gets a special bunny treat each day.

We had "breakfast with Santa" this morning at the ISD commons room sponsored by the American Women's Club. It would have a been a lovely time had Maddie not thrown the fit of all fits toward the end over something ridiculous (but then, aren't most fits about something ridiculous?).

If we were good parents, we would have cancelled the rest of the day's planned activities, but the sun was shining on a Saturday. When the sun is shining, in December, on a Saturday, in Duesseldorf, you would have to be crazy to stay indoors. So we made her stay in her room for about 45 minutes. She emerged her usual delightful self and we all went into Downtown Duesseldorf for the Christmas Market.

It was packed with people and all the stalls were busy. Lots of food and drink and gifts. One lingerie store really took advantage of the crowds by putting not just manequins but real models in their underwear in the window. It did garner attention, but it was more amusing than provacative. Real people standing in a store window in their underwear looked kind of ridiculous.

Last night Skip and I went to a party for American Women's Club Board members and their spouses. My world is a world of women. The men work and are rarely around for drop and pick up at school. When Skip is out of town, I can go two or three days without speaking to anyone who is male or has a job outside of the home. So, when I was talking to our friend Ron about just what it is he does at Bayer, he commented that he was probably boring me. I said, "Are you kidding? This is not about car line, cupcakes, a playground sqaubble or a lament about what you can't find in a German grocery store. PLEASE, tell me more!" So now I know all about the ins and outs of having to deal in Styrene--which is not something that's profitable, but as it's a by-product of a product that is profitable, you lose less money by brokering it yourself than selling it to another company to deal with it. And it's nice to know what your friends actually do instead of just who they work for.

Sunday we're splitting up. Maddie's Sunday School group is singing at the Anglican Church and I've been invited to preach at the Methdodist Church. Afterwards, if the weather holds, we'll meet back up and head to another Christmas market at Schloss Dyck. Skip heads out to London tonight to attend his company Christmas dinner tomorrow night. I was not invited. Someone needs to be here for carline, cupcakes and playground squabbles. Tis the season and all.

BAMBIs

My friend Robin is back in town for a very quick visit. Got to have dinner with her tonight. Fun and sad at the same time. Forgot how much I missed having her here! We had dinner with another friend who will be leaving at the end of December. Too many comings and goings in this ex-pat world.

Got home just in time to see Bon Jovi on the Bambi Awards (www.bambi.de) which are being held right here in Duesseldorf this year. The Bambis are the German "best of" awards. They go to everyone from athletes and muscians to philantropists and activists to models and actors. There's no surprises. Award winners know ahead of time they are going to win. Bon Jovi receive the Bambi for international music. I can't believe I didn't run into Jon Bon Jovi in Duesseldorf today. Tom Cruise apparently won the "courage" award for his willingness to take risks in film make. Not really getting that one. Queen Ranier is also receiving a Bambi. That one mkes a little more sense.

Christmas markets are up and running, and we're hoping to hit a couple this weekend if the weather is decent. It will be cold. We just need it to be dry!

Advent Coming

We had a HUGE dinner at the Foster Family home along with Oklahoma Mary and her family. Bless her, Mary made cornbread dressing. It's great to have someone over here who comes from around the same parts in the US. Nobody else understands missing a Route 44 diet cherry coke from Sonic or knows how to make dressing.

The pre-Christmas season has officially hit in Germany. Meaning that the Advent Markets are open. Except for yesterday which was Totensontag--or the Sunday of the Dead. Basically it's the Protestant All Saint's Day. So all the markets closed after being open for just one or two days. It's amazing how many religiously based holidays they have in a country where not many people actually attend church!

Speaking of church, I've started holding "Wednesday Worship" at my house on--of course--Wednesdays at 1:30. You can check out what's happening with that on my OTHER blog at www.wednesdayworship.blogspot.com. Anyone think I might have a blog problem? My friend Andrea is amazed that I believe that other people care about what I have to say enough to actually post it on the Web. She may have a point.

Used my last packet of chili mix today. Good thing I'm coming home soon. It's very much chili weather here. It has not been nearly as wet as last November, but much colder. I never thought "cold" would become my preference, but I'll take it over daily rain anytime!

Before I get Maddie from school and get her to ballet (I HATE ballet days! Lot's of screaming, excited, hungry, tired little girls changing from school clothes to leotards and back to school clothes in a too-small dressing area with no place for moms to watch once they actually get in class), I have to seek out purple candles. Lots of Advent wreaths in Germany, but they all come with Red candles. I thought the whole liturgical color thing was universal, but I haven't seen a purple candled advent wreath yet. Here they are red. Come to think of it. I'm not going to look for purple candles. I'll just use the red ones, and I have no doubt that at some point, someone here can explain to me why the red is just better.

Thanksgiving at the Holiday Inn

We were fortunate that ISD had a break on Thursday and Friday. It wasn't for Thanksgiving, since that's not a holiday here. It just happened to fall that way.

So along with several other American families in Duessedorf, we drove up to Leiden, Holland where the Pilgrims lived for several years before heading to the "new world." There's a church there that isn't used as a church, but every Thanksgiving hosts an interfaith Thanksgiving Day service.

Leiden is a beautiful, historic town with canals and the oldest university in Holland. Rembrandt grew up there and there are tons of little art galleries along narrow alley ways. I got to wander while Skip took Maddie back to the Holiday Inn to swim.

The Holiday Inn put out a huge Thanksgiving Day buffet. It was fairly authentic. No cornbread dressing or sweet potato casserole or mashed potatoes. But there was turkey and pumpkin pie and all the food was delicious. They even had chicken nuggets and french fries for the kids--complete with ice cream for dessert.

Maddie was pretty much a pain the whole day unless she was swimming or playing, and sure enough, she woke up with an ear ache Friday morning. We decided to cancel going up to Amsterdam as planned and brought her back to Duessedorf to the doc. He looked at her ear, gave me a prescription for antibiotics, but suggested that I hold off for a day on getting it filled. He said that her ear was at a place where it could become a full-blown, terribly painful middle ear infection, or it might just go away on its own. Kept her dosed with Tylenol yesterday for the pain, and sure enough, this morning, she is pain free.

This afternoon, we will go over the our friends the Fosters. Most of the Foster family was in Leiden with us, but dad Ron had to work, so they wanted to have a second get-together. Madison Foster (who is Maddie's age) is recovering from busting up her chin at the aforementioned Holiday Inn pool. You may be getting the picture that it wasn't a seamless holiday.

Thanksgiving Prayer

This was my contribution to the November issue of the American Women's Club magazine. I've received a lot of positive feedback from it, so I thought I'd post it here.

A Thanksgiving Prayer for Women Who Love Their Children but Aren’t Always Crazy about Being a Mom
Submitted by Anne Russ

Gracious and loving (insert deity here),

Thank you for my child. I am blessed by his/her presence in my life. There is magic and mystery and wonder to be found in his/her eyes.

Thank you for the extensive education that I can now put to use baking cupcakes, waiting in car lines, packing lunches, juggling sports schedules and presiding over petty playground squabbles.

Thank you for the profound sense of peace that I have in my heart. For it is that peace that prevented me from smacking my child upside the head when he/she said for the fourth day in a row, “But I want a different snack!” after school on the playground. It is that same peace that kept me from doing bodily harm to the lovely woman who recently asked, “So, when are you going to have another one?”

Thank you for those times when my child behaves like the gracious, kind and loving person I have tried to raise her/him to be. Help me to hold those moments in my heart that I might be sustained in times when he/she behaves like the spawn of the devil.

Thank you for that moment last week when I got to see the mom who always looks perfect, packs nutritious lunches and never raises her voice, roll into the school parking lot with no make-up and shove her kids out the car with two euros yelling, “Just go to the cafeteria and grab a donut!” It really gave me a lift.

Thank you for helping me find that apple core behind the couch before it started to grow mold and for the ability to remove that unidentified stain on the living room carpet.

Many, many thanks for the strength of character I displayed in not screaming at my friend from the states who wanted to know what I did with my time here.

Thank you for those times I am blessed to witness my child thrilled out of his/her mind over a new friend, a discovered talent, a revealed truth, an acquired skill or a simple “found” treasure. Those moments keep me from curling up in a ball in the corner of the room after hearing “I’m bored!” ten times in one day.

Thank you for the moms who nod understandingly and don’t judge when my child throws a fit. Thank you for the wisdom to avoid throwing tantrums myself, and I pray such wisdom will continue in my life.

Thank you for happy and healthy children. I ask your help in raising a child who will make the world a kinder, stronger, more peaceful place.

May my child know that, even on days when I consider running away to join the circus, I am grateful for his/her presence in my life. May he/she always know that he/she is always loved by you and by me come what may.

What a Day!

Skip went into downtown Duessedorf today, and as he was coming out the British chain H & M, he noticed quite a crowd at an establishment across the street. Going closer to see more, he discovered that there is now a Dunkin' Donuts in the Altstadt of Duesseldorf. This is one of the two stores (the other being Trader Joes) that I feel would make Little Rock the perfect place to live. If we get one of those in Duesseldorf, I may have to stay. The line was too long for him to pick up a bag of coffee, but it's there for the taking. What a great thing. For those of you who don't know, I ate a Dunkin Donuts chocolate covered donut and a small iced hazelnut coffee almost every day of my pregnancy with Maddie. Have had very few donuts since giving birth, but still LOVE the coffee.

Maddie has friend Lizzie spending the night tonight. They have had the best time. Lizzie is from England, but will be in Germany indefinitely. How odd it will be back in the states when all of Maddie's friends have similar accents.

Skip really blew it on the phone tonight. When calling a hotel in Amsterdam, he asked the woman who answered the phone if she spoke English. To which she replied, "I'm speaking English." Oops!

I'm a German Girl Now

Friend Andrea headed home to her one husband, two kids, three dogs, four fish, two guinea pigs and a couple of hermit crabs this morning. It was really great to have her here. We had a super time. She was able to hit three countries--Germany, France and Holland. I think she had just about recovered from the jet lag when she boarded the plane this morning.

Today there was a joint meeting of the American Women's Club and the British Women's Club and the American women showcased the "talents" of the group. I was asked to put together a little ensemble of singers and we sang this song that I adapted. The tune comes from singer/songwriter Christine Kane. She wrote "Southern Girl" after she moved from Boston to North Carolina. I changed the lyrics to reflect the experiences of living in Germany.

We were quite a hit.

Here are the lyrics:

Never been to Munich, never been to Berlin-O
Never really thought about it, never cared to go
I thought I’d live back in the states in some cute suburb out of town
But living here in Duesseldorf
Guess I’m a German girl now
Yes I’m a German girl now

I talk too loud. I smile too much. But I’m not without some class
You never see me pour an Alt beer in a pilsner glass
No one’s in a hurry in the cafes or the bars
But you better get a move on when you’re driving in your car
Cause you’re a German girl now.
Yes you’re a German girl now

Well days since I have seen the sun
I guess it’s seventeen,
But think of all the money that I’m saving on sunscreen
A scoop of ice is half the cost of Coca Cola light
Guess that’s the reason why my jeans are getting kind of tight
Cause I’m a German Girl now.
Cause I’m a German Girl now

I go to the café where I order ein café
The waitress clearly thinks that for this I must have all day
And laundry loads take all day too, they’re clean as they can be
My shower is too small, but then there’s less I must squeegee
Cause I’m a German girl now
Yes I’m a German girl now

You ride your bike all through the town in rain or wind or sun
And take the train to Alstadt to get all your shopping done
You only need five bins to separate all of your trash
Toss all of your credit cards, you better carry cash
Cause you’re a German girl now
Cause you’re a German girl now

I know all of the wursts including curry, brat and weiss
Those German beers are heavy but the white wine’s mighty nice
A beer with cola, lemonade or Fanta is the tops
And when we’ve finished all of that I’ll offer you a schnapps
Cause I’m a German girl now

Paris...The Adventure Continues

Here I am in front of the Eglise De La Madeleine--the church that bears my daughter's name. Got her a book all about the church and its design and art. Someday, she may actually appreciated it!

Here is another one in the series of Andrea pondering Paris. Here she is looking over the Place de la Concorde

Continuing the series, Andrea contemplates a giant bottle of Dom Perignon

Here are the stairs that lead up to the church of the Sacred Heart (or Sacre Couer) in Monmantre

Here is the little tram car we COULD have taken if Andrea hadn't insisted we take those stairs

The view from Sacre Couer

Andrea ponders the wonder of Sacre Couer

Here I am in front of this store we found in the Marais district called "Thanksgiving" that specialized in Louisiana Cajun foods. Who knows what you'll find in Paris?

We have seen a lot of Paris in two days and have the blisters to show for it. Andrea has a sore calf and I'm pretty sure I've slightly strained a hamstring. But...we're in Paris!

Paris Day Two

Andrea in front of the L'Arc d'Triomph. We took a moment to imagine what it must have looked like to see Napolean's troops make their victory march down the Champs d'Lysee and through the arch. We decided everyone looking on probably did the very first version of the The Wave.


Andrea ponders the meaning of art at the fountain of the Musee Pompidou

Anne is just happy to be in Paris

Here we are next to a guy who suffered from a bad case of getting "the big head"

This is a rent-a-bike station. With a credit card you can "check out a bike" as long as you return it to this or another staion throughout the city. Andrea and I considered it, but figured we would never make through Paris traffic alive. We still have children to raise.

Here we are at Notre Dame--Home of Quasimodo



I have run Andrea into the ground today. At least I got her to stay out until 8 p.m.--this is a late night for her! Way to push through the pain, Andrea. We did take advantage of the Metro (the Paris Subway), but we also covered quite a bit of ground on foot.

Our hotel is right by the Bastille. Hard to imagine that we are just feet away from where such a bloody revolution began. And that some of the buildings that surround us date back to around the time of that revolution. Andrea is overstimulated-too much walking, too many sites, too much history to contemplate. Oh, well, she'll be ready for another round after a good night's sleep.

Flashback:Germany

I realized that I never posted anything about my friend's time in Germany. We only had one full day there before I wisked her off to Paris, but I tried to give her a real German experience.

The day she arrived, we walked along the Rhine in the windy cold to try to keep her awake and went through the old town of Kaiserswerth where we live.

The next day, we dropped Maddie off at school and took the train into the Altstadt of Duesseldorf. We got off the at the Heinrich Heine station where we went and got my favorite bakery item in Duesseldorf--it's a pretzel covered with pumpkin seeds and just a little gouda cheese to hold them on.

We explored the German department stores where Andrea coveted more modern looking houseware designs, strolled down the Konigsallee where all the out-of-our-leaugue shops are. Then we went to the city market where there are stalls selling meats, cheeses, veggies, spices, craft gooods, etc. We bought a beautiful bouquet of flowers from a little old lady at a flower stand. Andrea even understood that woman was explaining that these are the perfect colors for fall. She'll be speaking German in no time. If she had waited a few more weeks, she could have hit the Christmas markets.

She had her first Alt beer--which is the Duesseldorf beer and we split a pizza sitting at a common table with a group of German electricians on a lunch break. She was amazed, but not disappointed, by how much of life in Germany revolves around food.

Before we headed back to our house, she even to to see a little old German woman push a pregnant woman out of her way. Thus learning one of the cardinal rules of living in Germany--don't mess with the Omas. They've seen and lived through too much.

That night--in keeping with our food theme--we took her to our favorite local German restaurant.

So, after we both get our hair dry, we're off to conquer Paris!

Anne and Andrea in Paris

So, we arrived today in Paris. Our driver from the airport got confused about the location of our hotel, so we spent an undue amount of time in the car getting here. However...we are IN PARIS! And we shared the ride with a group of women from West Virginia. Small World!

Anyway, we are here. Tomorrow we hit the Centre Pompidou (modern art museum) and possibly Montmartre. There will be food involved. Andrea has been amazed at how much I know about European food and drink. Then she looks at the circumference of my waist and ceases to be surprised.

Ahhhh, Venice

Okay, so our trip to Venice had it's snake bitten moments--the hotel was further from Venice than we thought, Maddie had a cough, the discount airline was kind of a pain, and various other obstacles. But then, how much can you really complain when you get to go to Venice? It was crowded and over-commercialized and didn't have enough bathrooms for people traveling with a six-year-old, but it was still absolutely magical.

The hotel where we stayed was over an hour away from Venice, but it was fabulous. The best shower I've taken in all of Europe. Check it out at www.locandacandola.com.

So there are no cars allowed in Venice. And although there are all these canals, many of the homes and apartments sit on pedestrian streets. I want to know what happens when you need a new refrigerator or buy a new couch. It would literally have to be walked to your door from a boat.

I left my cell phone there. hoping to get it back, but in the meantime have picked up a replacement. I just do a pay-as-you-go plan, so it's not that big of a deal--except all the numbers are in the old one and that's the number everyone has. Told you--the trip was kind of snake bit. But it was still Venice.

Friend Andrea has come to visit from the US. She is jat lag recovering, but we are planning a grand time while she is here.

What Have We Learned Today?

I learned today that the Hungarian language is not closely related to the language of its neighbor countries, but more closely related to the Finnish language. I found this out when I also learned that the nice German lady who is married to a Brit that I see every morning on the playground is not, in fact, German, but Hungarian. When I asked her if Hungarian is like German, I got my morning lesson in linguistics. Hungarian and Finnish are also related to the language spoken in Estonia. So there you go. I am going to be so smart when I come back, I won't be able to talk to regular people.

Speaking of smart, got locked out of the house last night and Maddie and I went to our friend's house until Skip got home from Amsterdam. At the Foster's house, we played "Bug Bingo" where each "number" is a picture of a bug and the card has a description of the bug on it. When we got to the walking stick, Joy asked the kids "Why would a bug look like a stick?" Maddie said, "So it can blend in with it's surroundings." I looked at her and asked, "How do you know this?" She just shrugged.

Anyway, today my education continued when I went down the International Aisle at the local Real store to see if I might possible score some canned chicken broth. And had to reconcile myself to the fact that you have to boil your own chicken bones or use a powder and some boiling water. However, I stumbled upon a find in the Russian section. Germans do not use sweetened condensed milk, but apparently Russians do. Not that I have a daily need for condensed milk, but it's nice to be able to access it.

We have Trunk or Treat tonight at ISD. Maddie is quite excited. It is really expensive buying Halloween Candy here as you do not have the benefit of the seasonal specials!

Time Change

We here in Germany fell back one week earlier than our American counterparts. So for those of you in the Central Time Zone, for the next week, we'll only be 6 hours ahead of you instead of 7. Just an FYI.

Am trying to muck through a pile of laundry that appeared over the course of this week and catch up on all the other stuff that got left behind in the wake of the Halloween Party. Have I mentioned that I'm glad that's over?

At church this morning, we prayed for the Queen. That would be the Queen of England. We didn't pray for the prime minister or any other world leaders, but we did pray for the Queen. I think it's time the Anglicans updated their prayer book.

Skip is off at a Brussir Dortmund game this evening. He has really enjoyed the season tickets he got with his cousin Torsten. Maddie and I had her friends Matthew and Madison over this afternoon to give mom Joy a break as she's juggling 4 kids and a husband in the hospital. He continues to improve, but will probably be there for at least a week. To make things even better, all the kids are out of school on Thursday and Friday for All Souls and All Saints days. They don't even pretend to hold school at that place!

Want to get Maddie to bed early tonight. It is so hard to get her out the door when it's still dark outside! I think it should still be light when we leave the house for another month or so, but I have to get her up when it's still dark. She hates that. She also hates going to bed in the spring when it's still light. Would have made a good farm kid. To bed when the sun goes down. Wake up when the sun comes up. It's all that work in between that wouldn't work for her.

Phewff!

We did it! Pulled off the Halloween Party for the ex-pat population of Duesseldorf. The whole thing came off very well and everyone had a lot of fun. Here are some pics


Maddie going against type as an angel

Me as Tracy Turnblad from "Hairspray"

My favorite costume--this woman is 8 months pregnant--she had a bun in the oven!

Halloween Madness

Raining...metaphorically

As this monster Halloween party approaches, Skip is scrambling with a problem at work and Maddie's foot has begun breaking out where she got stung by the jelly fish over a week ago. Skip went online and learned that you can have flare ups for up to 4 weeks after being stung. Arrrrgggghhhhh! So glad I grabbed that box of chewable children's benadryl last time I was home.

Our friend Ron is out of ICU, but really uncomfortable. Just FYI, in Germany, when they ask you to rate your pain on a scale of 1 to 10, you better make it at least an 8 if you want any medication for it. Our friend Michelle, who is also in the hospital, learned that the hard way and I think Joy has got Ron set up now as well. All of Joy's German lessons are really paying off as most of the staff in the hospital don't speak English. They are at a hospital in Duisburg instead of the one here in Kaiserswerth. A couple of miles makes a huge difference. Everyone who grows up in Germany takes at least 5 years of English in school, but some of the staff at the hospital grew up in what used to be East Germany and they never studied English at all. Their second language is Russian.

Joy and Ron attend a Catholic church in Duesseldorf, but the American community here pretty much functions like a church community back home. People have helped with food, child care, etc. Joy has been beseiged with offers of help. It doesn't hurt that she has really nice kids who all of our kids love to play with!

Maddie is going as an angel for Halloween. I keep making remarks that she might be better suited to go as a little devil, but she's not feeling it. Hope the jellyfishyness works it way out soon. There's a party tonight and Trunk or Treat on Wednesday.

Never Rains But it Pours

Actually not talking about the weather--which has been pleasantly dry, if rather cold.

Getting ready for this big Halloween Party I am co-chairing on Saturday. I can't wait to have a paying job again. This volunteer stuff is exhausting.

So, trying to get all the stuff together and get a message from my friend Joy that her husband is about to have surgery. Ron has had a sore throat for 2 weeks that morphed into ear, head and neck pain. Turns out something is actually stuck in his throat that is causing the infection. Took three trips to a GP and a visit to an ENT to figure that out.

What began as a fairly non-invasive procedure ended up being major surgery that took about 3 hours. There was a little sliver of something no bigger than a hair lodged in his throat and causing this huge infection. The doctor said it was very lucky that they were even able to locate it, it was so small. Really bizarre that something so seemingly insignificant could cause so much damage!

While all this is happening, Joy's neighbor Mary has their four kids and I'm waiting with Joy in this swank hospital room in Duisburg, reserved for private pay patients. Germany has socialized medicine, but being here has not sold me on the concept. The people with money (and private health insurance) still get the better deal. You should see this hospital room. Complete with a robe and slippers, a mini-fridge stocked with water and juice and a collection of herbal scented toiletries in a raffia-tied bag. Good thing for Ron, because he's likely to be there for at least a week. In Germany, they don't send you home as soon as they can. They wait until you're well. Interesting concept, huh?

Now I just have to find someone else with a van to help move the Plinko board out of storage. Joy will be taking hers to the hospital to be there when they take the tube out of her husband's throat. If only she were more committed to Halloween!

More Mallorca

Maddie at the beach in Cala Agulla

Maddie in front of the cathedral in Palma

Maddie and Skip at the beach

Maddie and Skip walking down a street in Palma

Coming to you from the Mallorca airport McDonalds where they give you a free card for 30 minutes worth of wireless internet time with every purchase. Couldn't get access at the hotel, but you can get it at McDonalds! I believe Maddie has now eaten McDonalds in at least four different countries. We're very proud.

Here's some stuff I jotted down about Mallorca while were at the hotel:

So it’s been a little chilly for a beach vacation, but Mallorca has been really nice. The water may be chilly by now, but it is beautiful. That turquoise blue that looks like someone painted it for a postcard.

Our hotel is has an indoor heated pool that Maddie has loved and we have an 18-hole mini-golf course right on the hotel property. I’ve learned that “mini-golf” is the same word in any language!

We did have the run-in with the jellyfish. Skip and Maddie were in the ocean and they saw one. Skip didn’t think anything about it—other than to say to stay away from it. Then when she got stung and ran out of the water, he looked around and saw more. Then after he took her to the lifeguard for some first aid, we saw that they were washing up on the shore at a rate of a bout 10 a minute. Apparently, the storm from the night before washed them toward the shore. Needless to say, after that, not many people ventured into the water. Maddie was a trouper, though. Her foot swelled up with what looked like huge hives for about 30 minutes. We kept her distracted with ice cream and games of 20 questions. Then, after that, she was back to building her “sand city.”

We are staying in a little beach town called Calla Rajatda, but we took a car into Palma on Thursday to see the big city. There is this incredible cathedral there. It seems odd that such a grand cathedral should wind up on this little island off the coast of Spain. There is a beautiful old town in Palma with little windy streets that open up into unexpected courtyards and hide little shops and coffee houses. I could have wandered the streets all day. A shopkeeper recommended a local tapas restaurant to us, and we wound all around these old streets to find it, but boy, were we glad we made the effort. It was a little place that looked like something out of a movie. Terra cotta walls and tile work on the floor. An old ceramic fireplace and big strands of garlic hanging down in the open kitchen. The first thing the waitress sat down in front of us was a plate of olives that were the best olives I’ve ever had—and I’m not even that crazy about olives! Then we had dates wrapped in bacon, and they were fresh dates. I’ve never had anything but a dried date. It never occurred to me that they had to start out fresh at some point.

We're headed home and will arrive around 8:30 in Duessledorf. Maddie has a big day at school tomorrow. She has to do a presentation on what she did over her fall break. She's looking forward to telling about the jellyfish!

Mallorca

We´re here in sort of sunny Mallorca. Having a good time, but trouble getting internet access. Right now am unable to check email on hotel´s computer, but for some reason can access the blog.

Having a good time. Enjoying the island and the hotel. Our big mishap today is that Maddie got stung by a jellyfish. But she made a heroic recovery--although she did not get back in the ocean!

More soon--when we can get better access

Something You'll Never See in Arkansas

Every Thursday night, a school newsletter comes to parents through e-mail. The following was in this week's edition

CORK COLLECTION

Welcome back to the school year! Hopefully you opened up some wine bottles over the summer, because we are continuing with our cork collection! For those of you who don’t know this project, we, the International Honor Society, (a group of SrS students) started it up last school year. We are collecting corks so that they can be recycled into insulation materials for housing. If you have any corks and want to get rid of them, you can drop them off at:

the entrance to the South SrS building
Mrs. Walther’s office in the North building
the entrance to the Commons Room
the Elementary School Building
Thank you!

Re-Entry and Wedding Pics

Boy, re-entry is hard!

Maddie blew her record last night by waking up at 10 p.m. and pretty much throwing a fit until midnight. I knew the bubble had to burst! Rob and I are still operating at about half steam, but it's getting better. The weather has been really, really nice--if a lot colder than it was in Maryland--so that has helped.

Rosie the bunny really missed us and now we're going to leave her again to go to Mallorca (or Majorca, depending on whether you are in Spain or Germany). Maybe I'm making that up and she couldn't care less.

anyway, here are some pics from the wedding. Don't have any from the ceremony because all of us were otherwise engaged. Hopefully, the bride and groom will post some pics eventually. The setting was beautiful!

Brian and Ann are in Cabo San Lucas right now on the their honeymoon. Horst and Maja are on a Hawaiian cruise to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary and Skip and I are in Germany. If Vern and Beth would just head off to Asia (or maybe Australia), the Lentz family would be covering the 4 corners!


The Happy Couple

Hippest Flower Girl EVER

Maddie with her Papa John and Opa

The Groom, the Best Man and Maddie