Weihnacht im Nuremberg

So, the first weekend that Kim was here I had mentioned that we went to the Christmas markt in Nuremberg. I like Nuremberg, and it was nice to visit again. We found a couple of streets we hadn't been down before, and found a cool fountain. It even had naked people on it. Even though we didn't stay long and we froze our butts off and Dustan got lost and the kids were screaming for more than an hour, it was beautiful. But I think I will leave Dustan and the kids behind from now on, because they're not interested in anything but crying!

Goodbye Aunt Kim

Yesterday morning we said goodbye to Aunt Kim. We had fun while she was here visiting, but it's nice to get back to normalcy. Wait... what am I talking about? We had only 24 hours of it before my in-laws showed up this morning. But, the kids loved Aunt Kim staying with us and being silly, and I had fun taking some daytrips and visits to the bakery. Mmmmm....

Christmas Fun

Christmas. Oh, sweet Christmas day. The joy of our Savior's birth is what I try to teach my children. But the joy of their own presents seems to take the foreground for an hour on sacred Christmas morns. Nonetheless, it is a joyful time, giving gifts in honor of the King.

The kids enjoyed unstuffing their stockings and finding all the goodies that Santa brought for them. In the excitement was Ariel screaming each time she opened a gift, and Nathaniel saying he would play with each thing "tomorrow". As each gift was opened, the previous one was tossed aside in anticipation that the currently opening gift would be something better than the last.

By and by every last gift was opened and smiles were on all faces. Cleanup ensued and the new toys kept them busy all day while Aunt Kim and I cooked and prepared for dinner.


It was a nice holiday, despite the rollercoaster ride of emotions that always fills our days, and it turns out that the children do know the real Christmas story. This special day is to celebrate the most in important birth of all- Christ Jesus!

Visiting Heidelberg Altstadt

I lost my heart in Heidelberg. This is the catch phrase for the city, and it is true for me. I love

Heidelberg and its' history, the old buildings and beautiful castle ruins that sit above the city nestled near the Neckar river. I took Kim here this past week to shop and to enjoy the Christmas Markt and investigate some nooks and crannies in this university town.

Losing Teeth

Who would've guessed it? We came home on Friday to find little Miss Ariel missing her first front tooth. Yup, sure enough her bottom right tooth came out. She was so excited about it and had to show it off immediately. I cannot believe that she's old enough to lose her front teeth already, and indeed she is still quite young for it to happen. The tooth fairy left a dollar, along with Spongebob toothpaste and toothbrush. She couldn't have been happier.

Merry Christmas!

To all our friends and family, we wish you a very merry Christmas! We love you and miss you all!

Strasbourg

Christmas in Rothenburg odT

Rothenburg is a fabulous daytrip, no matter what time of year you go. This was my first Christmas visit, and I took Kim along with me. It was a lot of fun, although we froze our nubs off. Such a romantic town. We got there around lunch time and first climbed the stairs to the medieval wall to get a view of the town. We then attempted to view the inside of the biggest church there, but to no avail. You had to pay to get inside, which is total nonsense, and so we didn't. But, we had fun exploring the rest of the streets and shops.

Friends Lost

On Friday, Kim and I were out and about and she said she had some anxiety about something, but didn't know what. When we arrived at home, we learned that our friend, Kelli Wood had passed away.

I think of Kelli every year on her birthday, which is on December 4th. I don't know why I always remember this, because I don't really remember anyone else's. But I always think of it, and say a little prayer for her. Well, this year, I thought of her the day before her birthday. The day of her birthday. The day after her birthday... by this time I am feeling suspiscious that something was going on with her and so began to pray. She was brought again to mind the following day. Another prayer. And then nothing. And so, all though I knew something bad was happening in her life, I never suspected the end of it to come so soon. She was 28 years old.

Kelli was a very fun person to be with. Always thoughtful and kind, extremely nice person. You know, the kind of person that makes you want to be a better person yourself. She seemed to always be happy, even when she wasn't and her smile alone would lift your spirits. She was a single mom, and loved her baby very much. She was so very close to her family, and my heart goes out to them. We continue to be in a state of shock over this and are praying for the family, especially her son, Taten. Although he is no longer a baby, and we haven't spoken to the family in many years, they will always remain special to us, a warm, fond memory of times past, a smile from the shadows of a strange time, a comfort to us that life, or rather God, is kind, loving, giving.

For a little while we roam this earth, learning pieces of God's truth, and instead of embracing what we know to be true, we hold on to our own foolish, stubborn and ignorant ways, only to find that what we hold dear is but dust, our efforts are forgotten in the space of time and our righteousness as rags before the one High God. He is our righteousness. Our Savior. Our Creator. Our Protector. Our Father. The One who calls us home to Himself when He desires. Let us run with open arms to Him and the comfort He gives there.

He knows us best, as He is the One who created us and designed us to fulfill His plan on earth. Everyday spent here is ordained by God, and none are taken away too early. Each thing that happens in life, both big and small, are pointing us to the Savior. The all-knowing God desires that we should know Him in all of His glory. And we know this; we know His sacrifice; we see his creation; we marvel at the complexity of our selves alone and wonder what kind of God creates such complicated beings? We experience His mercy in every breath that we take. For who gives life? Only God. And what do we do to earn it? Absolutely nothing. All we can offer to Him is our broken, disfunctional selves, and in return he clothes us in Christ's beauty and righteousness. It is the only way to see God. For we are not holy. We cannot obtain holiness from anywhere or any other than Christ's blood alone.

Allerheiligen Again

Last Sunday Kim and I hit the road and south we flew to the Allerheiligen waterfall in the Black Forest. It was a cold, windy day and we were instantly chilled when we climbed out of the car. We hiked a ways up, marvelling at the ice covered grasses and trees, and enjoying the water falling. Half way up we had to stop, as the cement stairs were covered in too much ice. So, we drove to the top of the mountain and hiked back to that same point. Afterwards we drove on down the highway to discover the Mummelsee. Within 2 minutes we were climbing the highway upwards into the slopes of the Black forest. There was snow everywhere but the road, which is my kind of perfect winter circumstance, and the views were beautiful.

After so much time in the car and being thoroughly chilled to the bone, we had to go for a walk and see for ourselves the famed Mummelsee. It turned out to be merely a large pond, but we walked a bit down the path, and here is the result of our slippy- slidy adventure in the powdery German snow.

Allerheiligen Wasserfall and the Black Forest is always a perfect daytrip.

updating schedules

And so, this week has flown by already. We are pooped out, and we have another week of busyness to go. After seeing the Heidelberg Castle, we went to visit our dear friend, Denise. Saturday we left her house after breakfast and took a brief detour to Nuremberg on a chilly, yet sunny day. I love Nuremberg, and the Weihnacht Markt was busy as usual. Sunday soon came 'round, and Kim and I went south to the Black Forest, namely to see the Allerheiligen Wasserfall near Oppenau. It was beautiful, as only a waterfall can be, and the icicles adorning the tall grasses and fallen trees aligning the banks and even in the midst of the falling, rushing stream bore the dripping, slowly freezing splashes of water spraying upwards onto the objects in its' path.

Monday, it seems we did a quick cleanup job and then hastily saw what? I cannot remember. Yet another thing to wake Kim from her sleep on the couch to recap. Tuesday was yesterday. Already so far away. We drove around in Mannheim, lost and looking for a Museum that did not show up correctly on our navigation system. And so, with only an hour left to do something, we shopped a bit for Christmas. The afternoon was spent doing a bit of homework with the kids and then going to a birthday party for Jesus. That was quite fun. The kids got to make some ornaments, have snacks, play a game and listen to the Christmas story. We sang Happy Birthday to Jesus and had cake too. Then bedtime came, and the kids were still up. So, late they went and they were sleepy heads this morning.

Today, we managed to find the elusive Reiss-Engelhorn museum and we visited the Mummy exhibit. Ewww... and so disrespectful. But, it was still interesting to see. Then we spent an hour walking thru the Weihnacht Markt and window shopping near the Zentrum, where the wasserturm is located, hustling past all the stores, in a hurry to get back to our expired parking permit and the children waiting to be picked up from school.

Tomorrow we have plans. Or do we? We never quite decide until we're in the car. But, I think shopping is priority, probably in Heidelberg. Then Friday, off we'll go to Rothenberg ob der Tauber for the day. Saturday we have high hopes to visit Strasbourg, just so we can say we've been to France. ; ) Wish us luck with the French!

Heidelberg Schloss Again

Here, another day of my life was spent visiting the beautiful Heidelberg Castle remains. This day I enjoyed the surroundings with my sister, Kim. It was a cold and lovely December day, and after getting lost for a bit on the roads, we managed to find the castle in time for the English tour.

Our guide was the best so far of all the guides I've had in my four visits here. He was detailed and seemed to take great interest and pride in the history of the grounds and of Heidelberg itself.

Here, we found the bath house made for the young wife, Elizabeth, in the yard of the backside of the castle. A few steps beyond, and we came upon the next view below.



Following the path, it lead to the outer walls and gardens to the estate, and lead to this view from the side, that will continue to the road and woods.

The inner courtyard was quiet and serene when we arrived. They had a Christmas tree displayed, only adorned with simple white Christmas lights. The beautiful facade of the ladies' quarters shown in the morning sun, and I got a fantastic photo of it below. The statues here are of the family members of the Palinate Elector and those who married into the family.

Happy Birthday, Joshie-poo!






Today is my little brother's birthday. Although he is a pain in my butt, and I don't see him often, I still wish the best for him and hope he has a great day! Enjoy the lemon meringue pie!

Countdown to Aunt Kimmy

We have been counting down to the arrival of Aunt Kimmy now for 2 weeks. On the first of December, we placed 12 candy canes on the tree; one for each day 'til the coming of Auntie Kim. So, each day they get to share a treat, which happens to be a good bribe for good behavior. Now, there are only 2 candy canes left. Hooray! The kids are so excited. And, frankly, Mommy & Daddy are excited too. It's gonna be fun to have family in the house again. It is few and far between that we get to share family moments. Only 2 days left!

Christmas Wish List

Trying to get a photograph of my two silly kids is a true effort. But today, they both got cleaned up real nice, and we attempted to get them both in a picture together, and smiling at that. I decided to put it together with their wish list, and this is what we got;

Can you believe that today is the 10th anniversary of Dustan proposing to me? Yup, it truly is.

Being from Battle Creek, the world's Cereal City, and known for its' Festival of Lights, we had planned a romantic evening out, walking thru town to see Christmastime aglow along the streets. We walked along the pathways, sighting the 12 days of Christmas theme and the other displays trailing the beautiful river. We crossed over and continued our walk down towards the waterfall made of lights. Here we paused and talked a moment. It was very lightly snowing, and it was a calm, quiet evening. We seemed to suddenly find ourselves alone, all other passersby had vanished momentarily. Dustan seemed nervous. He kept fidgeting with his hands in his pockets.

I was supicious of the very thing he was about to ask me. What surprised me though, was that after he lamely suggested we sit on the freezing cold, metal bench, he quickly stood again, and then got down on one knee. He then asked me a question in Norweigian. It sounded a bit odd, a bit familiar, and so romantic.

He, in earnest, had taken an extra step to show that he had a sense of what I was all about- family, history, being together, being understood. I just watched his face. All the emotion there, each passing briefly, intensely again and again across his face. He had really worked himself into a frenzy. But I could see the vulnerability, the openness, love, and desire; the quest to earn my affections in return. He then asked me the same question, but in English this time around. Will you marry me?

After seeing the sincerity in his eyes, I paused long enough to make him nervous. I also reflected on the rapid, recent events of the previous season, and I in no doubt wanted to be his wife. And so, I finally looked at the ring he was offering. It was simple and beautiful, a single, oval diamond set just lovely. On a pedastal, and needing nothing else to show that only one love will suffice, and none could be more beautiful.

Obviously, I said yes to him, and we were so excited. Passersby again began to stride by, and they were happy to be witnesses to the end of the event. We decided we would announce the engagement the next day. For the rest of the evening we just enjoyed the newness of our decision and talked through the night.

Tea Party, Anyone?

So my children had themselves a tea party a couple of weeks ago, and Nathaniel was dressed as a vagabond. Not that that was his intention- he just thought it
was cool to wear his new gloves, and gloves go well with a improvised headscarf and skirt. Right? Right.

They spent hours cooking for themselves and enjoying their imagined feast. How much fun is that? Besides, it was their way to celebrate the start of the Christmas season, and the decorating of the tree.