Merry Christmas

We have posted some new holiday photos in the Gallery.

Weekend Christmas Markets

From Weekend Christmas Markets

We spent the final weekend before Weihnachts traveling around Germany to visit as many Christmas markets as possible. The boys love all the treats and sites.

Saturday, we were first in Cochem, home to one of the country's most scenic castles. This small city on the Mosel River had a small market in its bustling little centrum. We strolled the winding streets, sampled some wurst, and climbed to the castle.

A short drive downriver gave us an evening in Bernkastle-Kues. This beautiful town -- actually towns, like the twin cities across the river -- had a market that meandered through its streets and a huge advent calendar on the facade of one its many half-timbered houses.

Sunday took us up the autobahn to another pair of twin cities. Mainz, home to the St. Nicholas Market and a giant Chrismas pyramid was our first stop. We sampled excellent potato pancakes, hot orange juice, visited the cathedral, and the boys took a ride on a flying Donald Duck. The evening was spent across the Rhein in the town of Weisbaden. This Weihnachtsmarkt was overcrowded and even Eli found it tough to lead the way in the stroller. Still, we had enough time to play in the Schloss garden, drink some hot chocolate, and pick up a new German Christmas pyramid (you know those wooden spinning things with the candles that turn the horizontal windmills).

Late evening brought us back to 19 for a taste of home... tortilla soup, rice & beans, and a Carvel ice cream cake... oh, and an expresso fresh out of Matt's new machine!

Christmas in PA

We returned to Germany over the weekend with full stomachs (thanks for the cookies), full suitcases (thanks for the gifts), and empty wallets (darn US stores open 'til midnight)! We miss you all already.

Jack and Eli loved spending time with their big cousins, and meeting their new little cousin(s). They loved playing with all the grandparents, aunts, and uncles. Mom and Dad enjoyed a few days off.

Check out the Photo Gallery for some updates.

Thanksgiving

See the gallery for pictures of Swim class, Thanksgiving, and the Mannheim Christmas market.

Veterans' and St. Martin's Day

Check out the gallery for our update from Nov. 11. We enjoyed a day out and also visited Burg Nanstein, the castle in Landstuhl, Germany. This evening, the Germans celebrate St. Martin's Day. We went with Jack's kindergarten to the village church where all the children parade with lanterns thru the town streets. There was singing, pretzels, gluhwein, and a bonfire.

Eli's First Haarschnitt

Eli got his first haircut today at the Ramstein barber shop. He sat very still, no crying, while eagerly awaiting his lollipop. Jack thinks he looks cool!

Bye Bye curls :-(

Autumn Digital Scrapbook

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Halloween and Nuremberg

The boys celebrated Halloween as Handy Manny and a bat. They went trick or treating with Lizzie and Robby and got lots of candy! You can also see some pictures of Kristy's trip to Nuremberg in the photo gallery.

Italian Adventure

Back from our five fun days in Italy, and we wanted to share some photos with you. View the gallery for the latest additions.

We spent the majority of our time in Bologna, Italy. This beauty has streets lined with seemingly endless porticoes, a plentiful supply of large churches, two leaning towers bigger than -- but less famous than -- the one in Pisa, and enough gourmet cuisine to fill six bellies. Yes, even Eli left full!

We also took a train to Venice to take in the sites for a full day. The water and color of Venice was a spectacular site.

Bruges with Mommom and Poppop

Mommom and Poppop are visiting. Besides the obligatory visits to kindergarten, Yabadoo, and the BX, we just returned from our weekend in Bruges, Belgium. Despite the inclement weather, we thoroughly enjoyed our two days in this splendid city.

Check out the Photo Gallery to see our adventure.