UB

So we went up to Wiesbaden and met the newest member of Chris and Christie's budding family--Isaac Thomas! He is really cute and actually doesn't have that newborn scrunched look :) He looks more like he's already a month old. Anyway, we were talking about how he's actually a cutie and ventured to talk about how some babies just aren't really that cute. It's the truth, people!!! Radley loves to say ours were ugly babies (UB) but I prefer to think he says this for the shock factor (he loves getting people riled up, and that does it)--I certainly thought they were beautiful! Anyway, Christie told us that she'd heard that nurses that work in maternity wards sometimes put "UB" on particular unattractive babies' charts to ward off unkind shocked expressions upon gazing at the little one's giant head or...whatever makes a baby unattractive. I thought this was sad but interesting information worth sharing :) Cerntainly something that would bring up a lot of strong feelings and debate in a crowd of mommies!

#4

Happy birthday, Aiden (a day late)! Four years-old...Where have the years gone?!?!?! I remember spending our first days together in the hospital(s) and how I loved you so much the power of it left me breathless and on the verge of tears. I love you, Bebop!

It's my friend!!

It's not uncommon for me to be doing something around the house and hear Aiden in the next room talking--to himself/on the "phone"/with his friends. And every now and then he'll run past me all excited and yelling, "My friend is here!" (You see, he was on the phone talking to him and then invited him over.) And he'll actually run and open the door and talk to his friend as he comes in and takes off his shoes. Then, he excitedly tells him to come on and "they" run to the living room to play. Well, at least he has an imagination!

Easter Excess

Easter. Bah!! There is so much candy in this house that if Aiden got another Easter basket from someone (He's gotten 4 already) he would just look at it, wave it towards me, and request that I add it to his stash for future consumption. And guess what? Tomorrow's his birthday! More gifts and goodies! I'm overwhelmed by the sheer monumentality of rationing or getting rid of this candy without Aiden noticing and yelling, "No! That's my favorite!" He even got upset when I tried to throw out the grass from his baskets before Ava ate it all--"No! That's my present!" BOY! We're going to have to do some deprivation intervention to purge him of his Mine, All Mines.

Pop up history

I've always had this intense curiousity about old buildings. If a building looks ancient--even if it's plain or ugly--I want to know it's history and the life stories that took place in it. Maybe that's why I liked art history so much because it sort of let me indulge that curiousity a bit. Tonight, on the way to K-town with the kids sleeping in the back and a moment to just look around, I noticed for the thousandth time this old, delapidated building that I've been noticing and wondering about ever since I first rode A6 to Hoppstaetden. It's being redone in some way--not knocked down. And I told Radley that I wish so much I knew the history of that old building. It seems to have this life and something in it that makes me stare at it each time I drive or ride by it. And simply the fact that's it's remained there, neglected but still standing, through all these years must mean something of its importance. So then I had this idea that maybe in the future, there might be a service where you could see an interesting place and think, "pop-up", and the history and interesting stories related to it would pop up above it like on those VH1 pop up videos :) Those are cool and funny and interesting, so if you are interested in old buildings and architechture, that would be very fun! Just an idea...I call patent!

Muddy shoes

My running shoes are muddy and I'm taking special pride in it. It makes me feel like a hard-core runner. Like a Nike commercial or something...Hear the sounds of my feet pounding the road, my hard breathing (edit out the inevitable snort of exertion as I hit the uphill part), see my breath puffing out in cold weather (again, edit out runny nose from cold), but I'm running...Oh yeah...

And another thing...

RAIN, RAIN GO AWAY! I can't remember the last time I saw the sun for a full solid hour!!!! It's really putting kink in my running rountine!!!! I usually shrug my shoulders when people talk about SAD and hating the rain because normally it doesn't bother me--I actually like gray, rainy days a lot (call me weird, whatever), but now I've had enough!

Good neighbors

Yesterday, we had our nanny's family (cousin and family visiting from KY) over just to hang out and eat pizza. But while Rad was out with some of them getting the pizza and beer, and I was waiting for the others to come, I saw my across the street neighbor, Marianne, going back to her house. So I called her into the house to come have a glass of wine with me and we just chatted for about 30 minutes or so before she had to get back. We have taken to ambushing each other with invites to come and "have a glass of wine" ever since she invited me in for a "glass" at 10:30 one morning when I was giving her a package the mail man had left with us (Do they do that in the States--Have a neighbor take and deliver the package when the person's not home?). Anyway, that glass turned into the whole bottle and it's our joke now :) This is the first place I've ever lived that I've associated with my neighbors and it's made me realize how valuable this little piece of life is that is disappearing from American social norms. Not only because good neighbors watch your house for interesting goings-on and would call the cops or fireman when you're so in need (or run out at 2am with a super-soaker to put out your barn fire--as Rad did for Marianne much to my chagrin years ago), but because having that positive social interaction can be fulfilling when you're learning about a different perspective, experiences, and opinions. And Aiden talking to our 80-something year-old neighbor over the fence is the cutest Dennis the Menace replay! I laugh as I watch the old man raise his eyebrows and fein amazement as Aiden shows him how he can kick the soccer ball :) Not all neighbors are worth knowing, but it's worth taking the time to figure out which are the good ones.

Educational Debate

So Rad and I have very different opinions about where Aiden (and eventually Ava) should be educated. Rad is pro-German schools and I'm sort of pro-American (well, DoDDS). Radley simply feels that the experience of getting a German education will be unmatched by a DoDDS school experience. At least that's what I get of his arguments. I think it is hard to switch from a German school culturally and academically (I've seen it first-hand with students at my school), which he may have to do one day. Also, their vacations & holidays are largely out of synch with ours. However, I can see that the fact that he is making friends at the German school will be a major factor in the decision. I do want him to have local friends and he's making them already. I don't know...I said we'll see when we get there. He still has at least one more year of German kindergarten. He wouldn't be able to start American kindergarten until Fall 2009, so...We have a little time to decide.

I win

So thanks to Rad and his sneakiness, I won my belly dancing skirt right after I got back from my second class--Yay! Though, tonight, my teacher was all over me like...green on a clover :)...It's much harder than it looks, people!! And the champagne, mid-way-through did not help!

I want my TV

So yesterday, we woke up to a crazy storm that was blowing gale-force winds and rain/snow was pouring down. Didn't have much time to worry about the house because I was responsible for my friend Christie's baby shower up in Wiesbaden 1.5 hours away and we had to get ready and go set up and cook. By the time we were 1/4 of the way there, the storm had passed and I didn't think about it. The shower was great and everyone had a great time. Big sigh of relief (until the 29th when I throw Jill's shower!) and we're 1/4 of the way home when I realized we forgot my purse out of all the 50 things we had actually remembered to reload into the van. Turn around (not an easy task on German autobahns), get it, go home, get kids in bed, get myself in bed. I remember Radley mentioning that the power had gone out at some point. Got up this morning (my turn to sleep in), and the first thing that Rad tells me is that the satellite decoder (our only link to American TV) is fried. Waaaaah!! We have to get a new one asap. How can I miss America's Next Top Model? Survivor? American Idol? Many people get up on their soapbox about how TV is poison, wasted time, blah blah blah...But for me, it's the only way I can turn off my spinning mind for an hour or two so I can get in bed and sleep not think, conjecture, worry, plan...It's my Death by Chocolate reward for making it through another work day with snot on my work outfit and fitting in a run and taking care of my kids and attending to rashes and the house and cooking dinner that no one really eats while I fold the last load of laundry for the day...I want my TV!