What happens at Terra's...comes to Germany!

I just read the book that Terra made up of the extraordinary goodbye party she threw - photos of everyone and letters too. Thank you so much everyone!! It was so much fun, and to have the pictures and your letters to me really means so much! And thanks, Terra, for organizing such a great time! It makes me miss you all quite a lot! Enjoy each other. I'm realizing in a new way what a gift it is to have a community like we have at home.

Folks from home...

This week, my parents, sister, BIL (Brother-In-Law), and niece arrived at 6am at the airport an hour away, and Marc's licence has expired, so it was up to me to drive them. I was a little nervous to find my way on my own, but everything worked out very well. I was even able to drive my neighbour to work on the way. The luggage and people didn't all fit in the van, so we loaded up we could, and two people took the tram home!
We had a few fun jet-lagged days of shopping and seeing a few local sights, and then I drove my sister and BIL to a different airport a little further away so they could go to Scotland. The rest of us continued on to a small town in Holland. We didn't have too much time, but we did manage to see bicycles and a windmill, so what more do you need?

I have previously sang the praises of our GPS system, and now I think I would sing them even louder because we have a new rental car (a VW, not a BMW), with a new system and a new lady. She's nice enough and everything, but she's a little cryptic. Not really what you want in a GPS system. When we get on a straight stretch, she says something like, "Prepare to go straight on soon!" So, if I understand you correctly, right now, I am going straight, and I need to prepare myself to go straight in a little while? Okay, deep breath everyone, and... straight on!
On the way to the airport, we were going on the Autobohn (LOVE it), and she said, "Follow the parallel carriageway". Ooh, a riddle! Fun! But then again, not so fun when you're trying to get somewhere! I'm still not sure what we did right and what we did wrong, but we ended up going in circles - not big circles, little tight expressway circles. Round and round. Things were looking pretty familiar, and we were getting a little nauseous when finally, they started to look a little different, and we were on a different highway which happened to be the one we wanted! I have yet to follow the parallel carriageway (I think), but I'm sure it can't be as fun as those circles.

Yesterday all of us went to Cologne, which was wonderful - the beautiful, sunny weather certainly helped - it's been rainy and chilly lately. We saw the huge cathedral there, and went to the chocolate museum! http://www.chocolateatlas.com/Cologne_Chocolate_Museum/Cologne_Chocolate_Museum.htm) We had schnitzel along the Rhine, watching the boats traveling down the river.
On the way there, the children had been very well behaved, but were getting restless. A certain someone was driving, and a certain other someone told the first someone to do a quick U-Turn. The resulting swerve caused a certain younger someone's head to connect with something hard. Immediately, she started crying (more like bellowing), "I want to go HO-OME!!!" Just as immediately, the other younger someone started wailing just as loudly, "I don't want to go HO-OME!!!" Both of them are not really prone to this behaviour, and they had the same pitch, volume and intensity. It was so funny, the adults burst out laughing which didn't help matters. Thankfully, we were close to the parking lot, and could get out and find something fun!

We're heading to Africa this week. Everyone's a little nervous for various reasons. We'd love to have your prayers for my parents babysitting, and us travelling. We're excited though - should be fun and eye-opening! Stay tuned - it might be a few weeks...

The first month - a restrospective

I can't believe it's been a month already!!
A quick status update:
Our house:
We have been to IKEA 3 times, and expect to need to go again maybe once or twice more. But mostly, we have what we need. We're putting up curtains and lights, which is quite the endeavour - the ceiling (and walls) are a thin layer of plaster over concrete, and we have yet to find the right drill bit. We still don't have an oven, the dishwasher racks do not roll, but the bees are gone, our grass has been cut (reduces risk of ticks and poison ivy) and we have most of our furniture (most excitingly, a dining room table and chairs, and wardrobes!)
Language learning:
I have had 3 German lessons, and am learning all the time from friends. (Funny story: At the gym, my trainer asked for my phone number, and I said that I didn't know it, but I could go get my handy (cell phone) and tell her. She looked at me strangely, and I realized that she had said "Vorname" - for nah-muh - which means my name. Kind of sounds like "phone number" with an accent, don't you think?) Extracurricular:
I've been to the gym 4 times and have gone to 2 group classes (in the last one, the instructor came off the stage and corrected me, and later spoke to me from the stage - she must have thought I was a little slow...).
Marc has been go-karting, and to a men's breakfast, we've been to a football game, and I've sung at a wedding, gone to Mom's group twice, and to a flea market .
The children:
Lia is settled in Kindergarten, more or less. She talks about all the kids there, and seems to be enjoying herself. She is entering the Terrible 3s, but it's comforting to know that this is a regular stage, and that she is actually adjusting very well.
Kaia is no longer nursing, is learning to walk, and has lots of hair. She is very busy and LOVES playing on the stairs. I went to the neighbour's for something really quickly, and left the door ajar so I could get back in when I returned (the door locks automatically), and Marc found Kaia up the stairs and heading for the street! Pray for her safety, and our energy!
Work:
Marc has yet to have a complete full week at work due to numerous appointments, but is starting to feel in the groove.
Other stuff:
We have a housecleaner and babysitters and most importantly a church home with quite a few friends, and fabulous neighbours!
We miss home, and all you wonderful folks, but are feeling pretty settled here. More and more visits are starting to get organized- so make sure to book yours now!! :)

Are you ready for some football??

We had a great time at the football game. It was a small event- just 20, 000 people. ;) Tobias had just been to a 'real' football game the day before. 70,000, I think? But, "our" team won - we think - we left early to beat the crowd on the trams!










It was pretty exciting for a number of reasons: to be out without kids, to be out with our new friends, to be at an organized sporting event of any kind (kinda new for me) and to be at a real live football game in Europe. Hence the big smiles.








The away team's fans were crowded in a little triangle of the stadium, surrounded by police. Things get a little crazy, apparently. Nothing while we were there, though!
I really enjoyed all the funny cheers, and seeing so many people all jumping together looks really strange - a little like the crowd in the background of Wii sporting events, Marc thought.








Here are our neighbours, Miriam and Tobias, sharing pretzels and cheesy bread with us! Lecker!






















Rivalry, yes - Violence, no!
(Remind anyone of "Clean, yes! Germs, no!"?)

An upward swing

So things have definitely improved since the mid-week hurdle - thanks everyone for your prayers and nice thoughts and comments! :)
Lia still cried a bit, going to Kindergarten the next two days, but stayed and had a great time. Friday evening was a social time at the Kindergarten, for families to hang out and have pizza and talk. So that was good for her, I think. Our neighbours came over after their kids were down, and we had tea and looked at both of our wedding photos. Great conversation and fun times had by all.
This morning we went to a nearby town - kind of a town within a town, and found a good spot to visit when people come to visit us -- nudge-nudge, wink-wink -- and had a delicious lunch of savoury pancakes. Even Lia ate well!
After dinner (Marc cooked, and it was very 'lecker'), we went on another walk in the woods near our house. It's HUGE - I had no idea. There are amazing animals (wild boar, deer with antlers, and goats), holly growing everywhere, and huge trees (which one might expect to find in a forest...). It was all very beautiful, with the setting sun shining through the leaves and lighting up the ferns under the deer's feet. Food for the soul.
Tomorrow we're doing church and our first outing sans children: a football game with our neighbours. Yippee!

"My momma said there'd be days like this..." a.k.a "Every little thing will be alright"

It all began Tuesday night. Marc had a dinner out with a few important folks. I was to put the kids to bed. And meet with Anke to go over the music with me for the wedding next Friday. We quickly ate dinner, and Marc left. Kaia went down like ... Kaia. No problem. Lia's turn. She wanted a snack. She wanted a book. She wanted a butterfly story. All very regular requests, which was fine, but then it came time for me to leave. The clock was ticking and soon Anke would be here. Lia could sense this, I think. She would NOT let me go. Sometimes she resists, but never like this. She kicked and fussed and said "No!" and "I don't like you!" and would NOT stay in her room, much less her bed. Anke came. Lia came upstairs and was VERY sweet and cute. "Mommy, I forgot to say I love you!"
It's all a blur to me at this point, but for the next hour, I bargained and cuddled and sang and ignored and changed a completely dry diaper and fed her a snack and let her play...all while Anke and I spoke for minutes at a time. My blood pressure was a wee bit high. At one point in all of that, as I was leaving her room for the 100th time, hoping it was the last, her door handle came off in my hand (we have to pull really hard in order to close the door completely)! This made me feel even more crazed.
Finally, I told her that she had to stay in her bed, but she didn't have to sleep. In fact, she probably shouldn't even close her eyes if she didn't want to. She said, "But I'm a little bit tired, so maybe I'll close them a little." And Lia was down.

So after a late and frustrating evening, Wednesday began. Marc had a big day, and needed to be at work early. I would get Lia to Kindergarten and be back to meet the housecleaner (yay!). While eating breakfast we talked about her friends at Kindergarten and all the fun she has, because she was making noises about not wanting to go. I was feeling Momma-guilt over dragging her across the world and sticking her in Kindergarten in a foreign language, but we persevered. We put on her 'dancing dress' and headed out (a little late), although I hadn't had time to feed Kaia. No problem, I'd turn right around again, and attend to her every need afterwards.
Long story a big shorter, Lia wouldn't stay. I was late for the appointment, and stressed about it, and I just didn't have the heart to force her to stay. Tears were welling up in my eyes. Our neighbour Miriam was there dropping off her child, and I told her the situation. She offered to go let the cleaner in and explain what we wanted. She also offered her cleaning supplies because we didn't have any - what were we thinking?!?!
So I tried (gloomily) to get Lia playing with something fun. She wouldn't. She did, however, have a poopy diaper which I changed. This procedure was not without its share of problems...let's just say I decorated my shoe. Having recently become VERY sick from a minute amount of this substance, poop makes me VERY stressed. I had had enough. "Lia, let's go back home." She brightened up immediately, just in time for her teacher to come out and see her chatting away, a huge smile on her face. She didn't look like she needed to go home, but I did!
We opened the door to the kindergarten and realized it was raining. Anticipating a rapid return to the house, I had not brought the umbrella. Now I should note that I have a few odd and unreasonable fears, and getting caught in the rain is top of the list (although I DO like pina coladas). We ventured forth - what else could we do? As we hurried along the uneven paving stones, Lia tripped. She scraped her chin a little and her knee a lot. Waaah! So I'm pushing Kaia in the stroller in one hand, holding a bawling (and very heavy) Lia in the other, trying to avoid the massive slugs and dog doodoo everywhere (very European).
In this fashion we arrived home. Our house cleaner was there, and things calmed down, although it wasn't a great day even from then on. It just wasn't as catastrophic as the morning. (The cleaning lady actually made the floors and windows look worse, which is quite a feat.)

When Marc came home, things really picked up. We had dinner and Lia and I worked on painting and re-wallpapering her doll house. (I'm way more excited about this than she is, but I'm sure everyone would have expected that!)
Miriam came by with some beautiful Gerber daisies for me, and our two families hung out on our stairs, having ice cream, chasing children, and deciding that 2 children is really lots to have.

We've been listening nonstop to Puntamayo World Playground because it is awesome and it is one of two CDs we brought with us. One of the songs is sung by Bob Marley's mother and Taj Mahal: "Don't worry about a thing, 'cuz every little thing will be alright..." When it's not playing on the CD player, it's playing in my head, and it's quite a good theme song for this move, and for days like this.

A photo strip

A quiet Saturday morning stroll through the woods.


















Ah, here we are at the restaurant. Time for a refreshing local beer.

















Hey Daddy, that looks yummy.


















I'll have a sip!


















Hmm. That doesn't smell very good!


















I think I'll just have my water.

Teething...nothing more than teething...

Today we were awakened early by Kaia. She's going through something, and I think we'll use my go-to diagnosis: teething. So it was a weird day of being always a little bit sleepy and a little bit quiet for those who were sleeping and a little bit awake when asleep.
KAIA TOOK HER FIRST STEPS TODAY!! Daddy witnessed this milestone while I was at the gym. Multiple steps, apparently, and a few times. She showed me her newfound talents when I returned, and I was so glad.

Another day, another IKEA wardrobe assembled. We're thinking of applying for jobs. We would have preferred to have them assemble, but it takes WAY longer for them to arrive, so we bought a few things and put them together ourselves. Our house is becoming ever so slightly less echo-y. Yodelayheehoo!

I fought my nerves and went to the gym. It felt like my first day of school. I had a trainer show me the machines and set up an exercise program for me (all included, just like childcare!!). So I'm excited that some normal parts of life are returning. Plus I needed something to offset the chocolate and cheese and beer and cheese and sausage and bread and cheese and chocolate...

Our neighbours were going to the park this afternoon and we tagged along. Lots of fun, and really good conversation. Then back to their place for coffee and chocolate. It's so amazing to have them - it makes all the difference. We prayed for community here, and voila. And they were praying for neighbours. I'm not sure what kind of neighbours they were praying for, so hopefully we are also that. Neighbours we are for sure...

Please enjoy the new gadgets on my blog - the webcam helps you keep your eye on places pretty much anywhere around the world, and you can translate words into German and back again. I had a German joke of the day, but until I can read the jokes, I thought maybe I should delay that one. You never know! :)

We're hoping for a better sleep tonight. How much sleep can one toddler lose?

Feelings...nothing more than feelings...

So far things have been too crazy for anyone to be shocked by anything - culturally or not. I was hoping that if I held my tongue just right and had a good attitude, I would escape culture shock. But nope. Apparently no one is immune. Now that things are a little more routine, I find I'm missing home, and missing people (ahem, flights to Europe are remarkably cheap sometimes, you know...), dreaming wacky dreams, and frustrated how everything is more of a hassle than it should be.
But yesterday, they really were because our tap was being fixed right at the dinner hour, and then when I finally had carefully made dinner (involving unwashed pans, unwashed vegetables and raw chicken) sans water, I discovered that also our oven doesn't work. Aye Carumba! (Not German, but it felt right.) So we microwaved the casserole, and it was passable. (My neighbour heard the story, felt bad, and made us supper tonight!!)
Looking back over our calendar causes lumps in my throat. Remember when? It was just 2 weeks ago, but it seems like forever! So weird.
However, our kids are really adorable, and they cheer me up quite a lot. Here's a photo of Kaia at the top of our slide!Lia has adjusted to being in Kindergarten better than her mother is adjusting to Lia being in Kindergarten. It's hard to know how much to leave her there each day, since it's completely up to us.
Did I mention that Kaia is eating again?? And guess what her favourite food is? Meat! Some of you know that I am a meat-a-saurus, and now so are my daughters. Tonight, we were having a pre-bed snack, I was washing dishes and heard Marc say, "Don't cuddle with your meat, Lia." Apparently she was holding it close, petting it, and telling it that it was okay. Maybe we do need a child psychologist?? I muttered, "Another sentence you never thought you'd say." And Marc said, "Oh Karla, I've said that to you!"
Having kids along when I'm out and about can be a good and a bad thing since people stop me all the time to make comments and ask questions. It feels friendly-like, but I have no idea what they're saying. I smile and nod, and mostly that works!

We went to city hall Tuesday to get some papers signed. And then to Ikea again. This time with one child only, and enough money. What a difference!!
Wednesday was mostly finishing unpacking boxes. At last! It's feeling really good to have the boxes out of the way. Now if we just had some furniture to put the stuff in...
This morning I walked Lia to Kindergarten with our neighbour and then she and her 2 year-old came in for tea and cookies. Fun! IKEA made a delivery and Kaia and I went to the mall for the afternoon. I have found several of my favourite stores here (C&A, H&M and Pimkie), which is exciting! :)
Tomorrow, we're going to investigate the language school. Then we need to find childcare for Kaia during the class times.

Marc is enjoying work. He biked today for the first time - 8km, uphill both ways. :p Everyone eats together in the university cafeteria which is fun and social.

So things are good. Overall, I'm feeling quite positively about being here, but not so much about not being there.