Welcome to Germany!

Germany

We arrived in Germany a week ago Monday and it’s been crazy since then. The flight went well, the dogs did great and Colin did pretty well too. Right away we got the dogs to the kennel and checked into our hotel room and then Shelby had to run around doing work stuff for a bit. That first week was a lot of appointments and checking in, studying and taking the driving test and renting cars. We have been all over the area house hunting which is fun, interesting and exhausting. German houses are definitely different and I had heard no closets and no kitchens/cabinet space which had me a little worried. Most of the houses we have seen do have some cabinet space and it’s not nearly as bad as people say. There are no closets in the bedrooms for clothes but every house we have seen has LOADS of storage room. The houses are huge and the entire basement area is usually unfinished but is nothing but storage and laundry. There are rooms worth of storage in the basement and then a lot of houses also have some sort of garage or out building with even more storage. Finding a place to put things is definitely not a problem. Finding a house with a yard for the dogs however, is. Some have no yard at all and some have very small yards. We have seen three houses with nice large yards and we will finally decided on one yesterday. It is only three bedrooms, most of the ones we looked at had 4 or more, but the kitchen and living area is humongous and makes up for it. The inside was totally redone and renovated last year so it’s all brand new and nice inside. There are apple, pear, plum and cherry trees out in the back yard plus a garden area and a great patio/balcony off the main floor to overlook the huge yard. We scheduled movers to come in next Wednesday so hopefully that will go as planned.

Colin turned 9 months last week and the day after we got here he took off crawling at full speed. He is in to EVERYTHING and thinks when you say “NO” mean like that it’s absolutely hilarious. He is obsessed with cords of any kind and now has us both on our toes all the time. He is babbling and playing all the time now and he walks all over in his Jeep walker. We have been to the playground and the pool (which is like a water park!) and he had a ball at both. Yesterday morning he woke up with a cold which sucks. Hopefully it passes quickly!

This week Shelby has a few appointments and we are hoping that my car will arrive. At first we rented a car that was 250€ for 2 weeks while we waited for the cheap place to get more cars in. Finally we were able to get one from the cheap place which rents older cars for 300€ a month! It’s an old BMW that has rust and no air conditioning…but for that price you deal with it! The hotel/TLF doesn’t have internet which is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard of since the housing office posts new available housing listings online every morning. How do they ever expect you to move out of the hotel when you can’t access the housing list! We have to go to the library to get internet and get the list every day so that is a pain and since you only get 30 minutes that doesn’t leave much time to do anything else online…like update blogs  So here are some things I’ve learned about Germany that I can recall at the moment, there are more but my mind is zapped…

1. Germany is GORGEOUS! It’s green everywhere! Huge hills of rolling green grass and fields with all kinds of trees, the fall will be spectacular. From atop a hill or mountain you look off and see green fields with a village of homes scattered here and there and windmills. It’s awesome!
2. Contrary to popular belief there is a speed limit on the autobahn in many places. However, it’s 130kmh (about 80mph) and Germans don’t pay attention to it. We’ve been going 160kmh (about 96 mph) and been passed like we were standing still. Drivers are fast but courteous and attentive. It’s against the law to talk on a cell phone at any time while driving here.
3. Things are expensive here.
4. They recycle EVERYTHING and it’s a requirement.
5. Cars are smaller and faster.
6. German women do not shave their armpits!
7. German wine is TASTY!
8. There are lots of wild birds here and they are totally different than the ones back in the States.
9. Dogs are much bigger than in the US and furrier too.
10. German bakeries are evil!

Trip to the ER

After the big Disney adventure Colin came down with an ear infection. Thursday morning he felt a little hot to me and then that evening he was burning up. I took his temp and it was 103.5! He cried if you pulled at his ear so I knew what that meant and off to the ER we went. Thankfully it wasn’t a long wait and he was a happy camper with both Shel and I there to entertain him. The doc said his ear looked a little inflamed down in there and could possibly be brewing an infection but since we had to fly to Germany on Sunday we would start a course of antibiotics. Colin got some amoxicillin and home we went. He thinks the medicine is candy and happily downs it as fast as you give it, hooray for small favors!

Disney Trip - Day 5

Disney Trip - Day 5

Today we planned to leave Colin with the family before they headed home and go over to Islands of Adventure to ride the roller coasters. We got there right when it opened and the place was DEAD! We went straight to the best roller coaster ever, The Hulk, and there was no line so we got to sit in the very front. When it was over we got off and walked right back on and sat front row again! After that it was off to Dueling Dragons where we got to ride front row of both the Fire and Ice tracks too. After that I had to take a break and grab some food. I never get sick on coasters so I don’t know what my deal was but I was feeling a little yucky. We rode a few more rides and then went over to Universal Studios and hit the new Simpson’s ride, Men In Black, and a couple others. While there we went to the Dr Seuss area to get Colin a “Thing 1” onesie. Shelby saw adult stuff too and decided that we all needed Thing shirts so Colin got to be Thing 1, I was Thing 2 and Shel became Thing 3 by default because both Colin and my shirts were only available with a 1 or 2 on them. We headed back to the hotel and said goodbye to the rest of the family who was heading back home today. After a swim and a nap we went to Downtown Disney for dinner at the T-Rex Café. It’s like a Rainforest Café but with dinosaurs and super cool. Colin loved it! Downtown Disney had a Lego store with all kinds of giant Lego things built out front, there was a huge sea dragon coming out of the water, and in the windows were scenes of different countries built entirely out of legos! This was our last night in Disney and while we were sad to head home on Tuesday it meant it was almost time to leave for Germany!

Disney Trip - Day 4

Disney Trip - Day 4

Happy Mother’s Day! Since it took me so long to become a mom this was a special day. Last year I was pregnant and that was a relief compared to previous years, but to have my little guy alive and healthy in my arms on this day is the best thing ever. Celebrating at Disney isn’t half bad either! We started the day with a breakfast where I got cards from Colin and Shelby and a pretty silver mommy heart necklace from my in laws. After that is was off to Animal Kingdom. We got there right as it opened and Shelby and I left Colin with the family and ran straight to the roller coaster before the line got too long. It was an OK coaster and we hit a few more “big kid” rides before meeting back up with the family. Once we all got back together we climbed in the Jeep safari tour through the wild to see the animals. Colin and Dawson fell asleep almost instantly and missed most of the animals but good nap time is never a bad thing! We got to see rhinos, giraffes and elephants up close. The baby elephants were so cute. There were these funny deer things that were standing up tall on their hind legs to climb the tree and eat. About lunch time it was HOT and we went to Rainforest Café for lunch. The boys were too tired to fully appreciate it and get into the animals and rainstorms, bummer. When we got back to the room I tried to nap but it didn’t work out and then Shelby surprised me with a mother’s day massage from the resort. I got about 15 minutes notice that I was scheduled for an hour long massage and hurried over there to enjoy! That night we hit Epcot for dinner and the laser and fireworks show. We ate in Germany and discovered these yummy mini pretzel rolls that we really hope to find more of in Germany. We asked the waitress, who was from Germany, and she said some places have them…SWEET! We made it out just in time to catch the laser show which was great. Since Shelby and I sampled a good bit of German beer and wine during dinner we passed Colin off to the grandparents for the night so we could have some down time.

Disney Trip - Day 3

Disney Trip - Day 3

Finally Magic Kingdom! We went last night but got there right before the fireworks began, watched them and ran out of there to beat the crowds to the monorail. We also got Colin the most adorable little Mickey ears to wear to the park today. Today is the first day we are really going to ride the rides and see the characters and all. Shelby's parents made it in last night about dinner time so the whole family met for breakfast and then it was off to the park. We got there nice and early right as the gates opened so there was no waiting in line for about the first hour that we were there, that was great! I have been to Magic Kingdom more times than I can possibly count and my favorite ride has always been Pirates of the Caribean. I wanted that to be Colin's first ride at Magic Kingdom so we went straight to Adventure Land. He loved it and looked around in all directions while standing in Shelby's lap for the ride. His little head was whipping from side to side the whole time checking out the scenes and the music and all. After Pirates we headed over to take the Jungle Cruise, which he liked as well, and then Shelby took him on Aladdin's Magic Carpet ride. Like just about every other human on the planet Shelby and I both cringe at the thought of It's a Small World but it's bright and cheery and just the kind of ride that Colin would love. Note to Colin...when you are older and accuse me of not loving you remember this moment, when your father and I sat through the longest three and half minutes of our lives listening to the most annoying song known to man just for you. The ride was a big hit and Colin was bouncing/dancing in Shelby's lap through the whole thing. We also did the Haunted Mansion and a few other rides that day. Grandpa watched Colin for a little while so Shelby and I could ride a few things Colin was too little for like Thunder Mountain, Stich's Alien Escape & Monsters Inc.

About lunch time we headed back to the hotel to get some food, naps and a swim. Colin was sporting his new sunglasses at the pool today, what a stud! After dinner at the hotel we headed back to the Magic Kingdom to catch the light parade. It didn't start until 9 so Colin was pretty tired by the time it started. We lucked up and got front row seats right at the start of the parade route which worked out great. We dressed Colin in his PJs right before the parade started so that when it was over we could lay him down in the stroller and he would be ready for bed when we got home. Good thinking Shelby! Colin LOVED the parade. He was watching everything and sat there with his mouth hanging open the whole time. He was fighting to stay awake because he didnt want to miss it. At one point he yawned really big and then slumped his little head over and fell asleep for a few minutes. When he woke up he jumped and started looking around to see what he had missed. He got his bottle on the monorail and was asleep before we hit the hotel again.

Disney Trip - Day 2

DIsney Trip - Day 2

Friday morning we got up early and headed down to the breakfast buffet at the hotel to meet up with Shauna and Dave. I love breakfast food so I was excited over the huge buffet, they even had Mickey Mouse shaped waffles! LOL After we ate we caught the bus and went to Epcot. It wasn't very crowded so that was nice. We took the boys on the Nemo ride and through the Living Seas exhibit with all the fish. Colin loves to watch fish swim around so he was pretty pleased with this part of the park. The grounds at Epcot were gorgeous and they had some flower festival thing going on. We walked around through some of the countries and let Dawson play in the dancing water fountains, he had fun chasing the water around. About mid day we decided to head back to the hotel for lunch, naptime and a swim. Today we put Colin in the big pool in his turtle float that Shelby bought for him. He thought that was super cool and splashed all around and squealed.

After cooling off in the pool and having dinner at the hotel we went over to Magic Kingdom to see the fireworks show. Colin has never seen fireworks before so I wasn't sure what to expect. I was a little worried the noise might scare him, but considering he lived with F-16s taking off with full afterburner at Kunsan I hoped it wouldn't phase him. He was so tired by the time 9pm came around and they started that he was barely awake. He did perk up some when they started and watched for a while before losing interest. He sat up on Shelby's shoulders for most of the show and towards the end he was ready to lay down in his stroller. He was out by the time we got on the Monorail.

The Disney Adventure

Disney Trip - Day 1

For months we have been planning to go to Disney for a week when Shelby got back from Korea. Disney is doing this fabulous deal for military where the service member (that would be Shelby) gets a 5 day park hopper pass for free and they can buy 5 additional passes for family members for just $100 each. So the three of us got 5 day park hopper passes for a hundred bucks, can't beat that! We also invited Shelby's parents, sister, brother in law and nephew to take part in the deal. Originally Shelby was supposed to be home from Korea at the beginning of April and that was when we were planning to go. Since Shelby had to stay an extra month in Korea for the ORI we had to bump it back to May instead. May is much warmer than April anyway, but I guess it didn't matter since the weekend we chose happened to be a record breaker for heat. It would have been nice if the heat had driven away some of the crowds but we didn't catch a break there either. Clearly there is no recession at Disney World!

Our first day we got up and headed down to Orlando in the Jeep, packing it FULL since it doesn't really hold too much. We stayed at Shades of Green, the military resort on Disney property. We checked in, got settled and hit the pool. Colin had never been in a big pool before so I was excited to see how he would like it. We ended up just putting him in the kiddie pool that day, he liked it a lot. It was just deep enough for him to stand and hold on to the side. He would bounce up and down and splash around in the water. He had a great time playing. While in the pool we saw four wild turkeys walking all around the pool area. They must live near the resort or on the property because we saw them several times. Later we met up with Shauna, Dave and Dawson for dinner after they checked in and went to get our tickets so we could get an early start the next morning.

Florida Fun

Florida Fun

We've settled in now and are finally all adjusted to the time change and the weather. Shelby got to see his new Jeep for the first time and has been playing with it ever since. It's even better than he thought now that he finally gets to see it in person. Colin has been having fun playing in the pool and working on the Jeep with Daddy. I took the weekend and headed down to Boynton Beach to see Melissa and my new nephew Kaden. He's even better in person too...picture don't do that handsome guy any justice ;) While I was gone Colin cut two new upper teeth bringing the teeth count to four up top and two on the bottom.

When I got back from South Florida we ran around Gainesville hitting up the Gator shops for Gator gear. At least $200 later the three of us and the Jeep are now fully outfitted with orange and blue for the next year or so. We also took Colin to the stadium for some pictures. It was his first ever time inside the stadium so it was a big important day for him. We got plenty of pictures and it wore him out. As soon as we got back to the Jeep he fell sound asleep with his new "Future Gator" hat pulled down over his face. We went to one of our favorite Gainesville restaurants, Ballyhoo, for some seafood. Colin woke up and had a great time playing at the table with Shelby and passed out again on the way home. Here are the pictures we took at the stadium.

First Stadium Visit