Out and About in Baden-Wurttenburg

Germany is divided into regions and Baden-Wurttenburg in the region that includes Stuttart and the surrounding towns. Our field trip today included learning how to use the bus/train system as well as seeing a few local sites. Above is the Alteschloss, the castle in the middle of Stuttgart. This is right in the city center and is only one of about 5 different castle buildings that comprise the palace... a couple of which have been converted into an Opera house and an indoor market. We didn't go inside today, but will try to get out there this weekend with the boys. Then to lunch and a tour of Tubingen, a village in the suburbs.



It almost seems like Disneyland... so quaint and "European" it seems contrived. It's hard to wrap my head around these house being the real deal... structures that have been around longer than the US has been in existence.


This former monastery was turned into a hunting lodge by Carl Wilhelm in the picturesque town of Tubingen, nearby where we'll be living. We toured this home filled with (still original I think) heads of game killed on various hunts, enclosed fireplaces that heated the room, seen below
... and enjoyed such modernities as electricity in the late 1800s and bathrooms with running water. Even the door jambs were older than 200 years... and they actually allow people to still open and close them; most of the rooms were roped off for "just looking" but many of the pieces were also out in the hall and still available to be touched if someone didn't listen to the signs. They're not as anal about their antiques as the Americans are (as we put everything behind glass); maybe because they have so many of them??

After the tour of the hunting lodge we headed to the Ritter Sport Schocoladen (chocolate) factory, which also, unfortunately or fortunately, is in the town we'll be living in. Free chocolate as we left was a sweet bonus.

The New House

No... no pictures of the house here. We didn't exactly expect to decide that this was THE ONE until later that night, so I didn't take any yet. They'll come later. Apparently we passed the landlord test because when we called to say we liked the house and wanted to rent (the verbal agreement being binding by law), the landlords said they were very happy to rent to us. 

It's in the village of Waldenbuch (pronounced Valdenbooke) on Goethestrasse- in typical German fashion instead of just having the name and the word street (Strasse), they just push the words together into one un-pronouncable multi-syllabic mush of a word.  For instance, instead of a One Way Street, you have a Einbahnstrasse (Oneroadstreet). Not easy for the language-impaired.

Anyway, it's a 4 story, 5 bedroom house with very modern upgrades. The refrigerator is actually about 1/2 the size of an American one - like as big as one side of a side-by-side fridge-- quite large by German standards. Also has a dishwasher (rare) and microwave included (also rare), and the small backyard is actually enclosed, rather than merely divided as is more typical. So I'll be able to let the dog out by herself once and a while. Our landlords live next door and are American and there are 3 other neighbors who have small kids and also speak English. 

Ric would be about 15 min to work and can take the back roads rather than the autobahn and therefore ride his motorcycle safely through green pastures.  Here are a couple pictures of the kids playing on the dangerously dangerous playground in town where our house is:

And here are some sheep nearby. The villages are each divided by lots of farmland. I'm not sure if these sheep are bound for cute little sweaters or tasty lamb chops, but either way, it's quaint.

The Elementary School

Today Ethan and Alex started their first day of school. We're staying at the main part of Post, Patch Barracks so they were enrolled in Patch Elementary School last week and started today. Notice how dark and cold it is here in the morning.  It is very hard to get up when there is no light and the sun doesn't come up until after 8:00 am. Post is so small, the school is about 3/4 of a mile and everyone walks because there is no parking or no circle drop off, per se. It's a cold, dark walk. 

The boys both have nice teachers and were really excited about getting back to school. 

Too bad that we...

Found a house yesterday!! 

It's in a quaint village and located in the other military school district. So we warned the boys not to get too settled in as we'll probably switch them over to the other school later this week and start driving them in until we move. Once we move, they'll catch the bus to school. 

The Temporary Housing

By popular demand (well, 2 people - let's call them my fan base), I present to you: Our Temporary Housing. Above is the "kitchenette" in our room. Microwave, refrigerator -- by the way, this is a standard size German refrigerator as found in most homes. One might have 8 kids and 6 bedrooms in the house, but the refrigerator is merely this size. 

Above is me demonstrating how you flush the toilet.  This funky device actually dumbfounded me in the Stuttgart airport - I had no idea how to flush the toilet and had to admit as much to the (American) ladies behind me in line. I think they understood. Mainly because there was another suspicious-looking pipe sticking out of the wall that did nothing. It was very confusing. 

Below is our beautiful kitchen down the hall. It has a table, but only 3 chairs, so Ric and I perch along with the kids to eat. We have no table in our room. The kitchen is adequate- with refrigerator, microwave (doesn't work), oven, and dishwasher, but it's a community one so gives me a little bit of the heebie-geebies when we're in there. However, we cannot cook from our smaller kitchen in the room, so I have to hold my nose and take it. It's a little like those OCD people on Oprah who were immersed in grim and germs to get over their OCD.  Fortunately, I don't have a germophobia, but still, this is just gross.  I want my own kitchen.

Below is the dirty sponge remaining in this community kitchen. It's not visably dirty, per se, but it was here when we got here, so I had to get my own damn sponge. Just a little yuk for me.  In the distance you can see the dirty sponge, which is not really that dirty but since it was here before we got here ... just very yucky. 

I'll try to take pics of the villages when we head out again. 

The German Landlord

After a couple exasperating days in this godforsaken hotel with a kitchen down the hall, which only has 3 chairs and a dirty sponge, with these three loud and boisterous cabin-fevered kids, we'd had it. Better start house shopping this instant.

And it seemed as though our timing might have been perfect. At the housing office at 2pm a listing had just been put in 10 minutes ago... a house close in, 4 BR, 2500 sqft, 2000 euros, seemed to good to be true! After a quick viewing, we knew we loved the house at once. Come to find out these German landlord-types don't just get your email and cell phone number and a thank you, please let us know- as we do in the US. When she invited us inside for coffee and juice, I did the polite (American) thing and nicely refused, saying that we were fine, we're all fine, no the kids don't need anything, no we don't need a snack, no you do not need to make me a cappuccino. This would not do. Oh no, this would not do.

You have to come to their home, take your coat off, sit down and have coffee (pray your kids don't act up) and visit a while so they can get to know you.

Over a couple cappuccinos--made right in the kitchen with her spiffy cappuccino-machine-oven combo (only by Bosch, I'm sure) we proceeded to engage in quite an interview (love affair) with this Silvia and Billy. Apparently they didn't think the childless couple who proceeded us needed that much room, and the family that was to follow us had children too young for the number of stairs in the house. They had already made up their mind: we were it. We were the perfect large (but not too large) family for this 4-floor (5 if you include the cellar) apartment. And, it was perfect for us!

Until... "Oh, we don't allow cats or dogs." The guillotine came down and all hopes at the table were dashed. As they explained their exclusive policy on no-pets, voted on unanimously by all the owners, the husband still held out hope that we might wiggle our pet out of the picture. "Maybe if the dog was only here on weekends; you could have it stay somewhere else during the week." He even bent down to explain to little Evelyn that if her little doggie just visited sometimes instead of lived with her, she could have the nice little house that she loved. And as he walked us solomnly out to the car, his arm around Ric, "I know how important pets are to children. Do you think they could do with a rabbit or something?" Honestly, they loved us.

So much that they even found another available house in the village nearby that might do (and it takes pets). We quickly sped over there and found a very European cottage, climbing ivy and all, view of the rolling green hills and all, wine cellar and all. But Ric found it too small, too tight, too cottag-y. So we're still looking.

So we learned that these Germans are very serious about choosing their tenants. They are the ones doing the choosing. There is no question. There is no first-come first-serve over here.

But as we drive over the cobblestone streets, through the adorable villages, farmland separating each of them... I'm pretty sure that we'll grow to love it here.

Willkommen in der Heimat!

Welcome Home! To Deutschland, that is.

Mostly I spent today coming to terms with the fact that I no loner live in the US. And all that comes along with that thought... 

--I'll miss almost all of Obama's presidency

--I have to figure out how to translate km-miles, english-metric, dollars-Euros (math not being my strong point, this is daunting)

-- I don't know this language, am not even close to understanding road signs, street signs, and people. 

I'm feeling a little trepidation about this whole thing at this point. The good news is that Ric doesn't actually have to start work until another 10 days or so, so he can hold my hand through the first adjustment to school, post, town, getting a drivers license, looking at real estate, etc. (whew!)

Travel went great- kids slept most of both flights - or Ethan had his head in a book. So no crying, fighting, whining, or jumping around. It was great!

The boys are registered for school but I haven't told them that first thing tomorrow they have to get an additional required vaccination. That's not going to go over well. There's no space in the preschool so Evelyn will be home with me for the most part. She's very excited about the thought of being homeschooled. Now the pressure's on... I actually have to teach her stuff while muddling along myself. 

Anyway, all's good, kids are happy to be here. I'm nervous, but I also haven't really been able to look around in the daylight... so hopefully I'll like what I see when we get out tomorrow. 

Hotel is not great, but adequate. Two bedrooms, adjoining bath and kitchen down the hall, not hardly at all equipped. Dinner will have to be very creative and VERY SIMPLE. I guess I can handle that for a while. 

All in all, at least we're all together and we can get this party started!

Good-bye Colorado!

We watched Pikes Peak disappear in our rear-view mirror yesterday as we headed out to Dallas. Just drying my tears after saying all the good-byes (except, of course, for Sandy who would NOT let me cry - she is such a pain in my ass) and wondering what my good buddies are doing skiing this weekend without me!!

Made it to Dallas today to spend a couple days with my friend Wendy from Baltimore. We both lived in 100 year old row houses on Pratt St. in downtown Baltimore. Those of you who were fans of 'Homicide: Life on the Street' would recognize that street because of all the murders depicted there. While in Bal'mer we lived next to an old man who housed prostitutes; sometimes the Johns would knock on our door by mistake. Thankfully they scattered when the man passed away. And one Spring, a week before Mother's Day someone stole the flower from my beer barrel planter (everyone in Baltimore has a beer barrel planter in front of their house). I was told that this typically happens when you plant flowers before Mother's Day. They get stolen by derelicts to give to their Mothers. (!) This was the Baltimore we knew and loved. The bar-on-every-corner, drunks littering the street every weekend night, goin' down the ocean kind of place. Right, hon?

Anyway, we're reminicing. Life before kids was fun.

Next stop: Stuttgart.

Rock On Ladies

Note to self:

When I start a girl band, Sandy can play guitar, Susan can sing, and I will play the drums. Turns out I love playing drums.

And I'll be looking up a cute little guy named Jack for some super angle shots of our rockin' selves.

Bye-Bye Little Home in the Springs

Moving Day.

I think it escapes the kids a little as they build forts out of the packed boxes and run around the empty rooms and jump on mattresses on the floor, that we really are moving. I know it's escaping me in the hustle and bustle of the packing, cleaning, moving, checking, double checking that I really am almost out of here.

Maybe it's the craziness that makes us forget for a little while. Maybe we're in denial.
Either way, we've loved this place, loved this house where our children began their childhoods, and loved our friends along the way. We will miss it terribly.

Bye-Bye Keystone

Thanks for the memories. We're winding down our last hurrah here in Summit County before heading out of country. We did a lot of the usual: ski, swim, dinner, bed. Add a pajama day, some night skiing, and a movie to round out the week.

And some new things as well - Ric gave in and (with head hung low) let the boys take a couple snowboarding lessons. He fears that his excellent skiers will choose boarding over skiing and not hang out with Dad when they get to be teenagers. I think he's getting a little ahead of himself and it's fine if the kids want to try something new sometimes. They had a great time taking lessons together and progressed well. We'll squeak in one more ski day with them just to hammer home that they're skiers who sometimes ride, not boarders. Big difference.

Meanwhile, Evelyn got stronger skiing and could actually go all the way down the mountain without sitting down and crying that she was tired. Never mind that she's great for a 4 year old and skis blue runs like a champ. Apparently she skis for Daddy; for Mommy she cries. Well, I can't win them all.

Anyway, it's been a great week.
Good-bye little condo. We'll miss you.

Dear Kristi,

Kristi I've known the shortest time here, but she's quickly and easily a good friend. Whether it's a run, a race, a ski day, or a night out, Kristi is always ready and willing to jump on it. There may be a plan B or a plan C and a "it depends," at times, but there are plenty of things she can be counted on for. Fun and friendship and a good bottle of wine are just a few.

While we're spending our last week in Colorado skiing, Kristi asked if there's anything I need her to do while we're gone, in terms of getting ready to move. I'm pretty certain that if I said, "Yea, can you start packing up my kitchen?" she would be totally on it. Kristi is one of the most thoughtful people I know.

She's very tight with her family and her friends and you just know that she's there for the duration. This is what I love about her.

Thanks Kristi, for rounding out the book club, pushing me on a mid-morning run, and always ready for a quick get-away to ski. It's been great calling you my friend and I've had a lot of fun with you.

Just wanted you to know that Ric decided to give you a full 2% chance of actually visiting us in Germany, so we'll see you there... if only just to prove him wrong! If not, we'll just have to catch you in a few years, back at Keystone when we're here for a visit.

Thanks for the memories,
Love, Katy