Its been sooo long....

I know it has been so long since I have updated the blog. The last couple months have been somewhat of a nightmare and I have had no time to blog.  A couple months ago my back pain that has existed for about 8 years became terribly worse.  I was bedridden for a couple of weeks out of the last few months.  We had to take Brooke out of preschool because I simply could not get in the car to take her and Nick had to take some time off of work to wait on me.  Luckily I found a massage therapist who I think has made a big difference and I am finally able to function.  Still not without constant pain but the back spasms and inability to move have finally ceased.  I missed out on a considerable amount of study time due to the pain and medications that I was on, not to mention the fact that I could not sit.  Due to the fact that I had already bought my plane tickets, I could only push my test date back one week. 
    
Brooke and I got back from the states the day before Thanksgiving.  We had a great time with my family and were able to celebrate my Mom's birthday with her:)  I was so nervous about my back on the 11 hour flight but with medication and constant movement I was able to keep it in pretty good shape.  Thank God!  Also, through my 4 hour test I was worried but I was able to focus and get it done with minimal pain.  Once again Thank you God!  My test went as well as it could possibly go and I will be getting results around the 8th or 9th of December.  Please everyone say a prayer that I passed.  It is going to be a great pain in my back and pocketbook if I have to make another trip to the states.  Hopefully that wont be neccesary and I will be done:) 


For our Thanksgiving in Germany we went over to our friends house and had the traditional turkey meal.  Then the rest of the weekend we got to go and see a couple sites in Germany.  First we went to Rudeshiem which is only about 30 minutes from our house and is along the Rhine River.  There is a cable car ride that takes you down the mountain and into town.  We rode the cable car down and went to the Christmas Market.  At the Christmas Markets it is tradition that everyone drinks Gluwien which is a warm wine with some spices and the kids have warm kinder punch.  The taste of the Gluwien is okay but I think I would rather have coffee or hot cocoa and I think the kids agreed.  We stayed down in the market for a couple of hours and then made our way back to the cable car for our ride back over the town and to our car.  It was cold but everyone managed to stay warm.


The next day we set out for Cologne to see the Dom Cathedral and the Chocolate Factory.  Cologne also has 7 Christmas Markets so there were festivities and people everywhere.  It was not very nice weather and started raining a bit on us when we first arrived.  Walking inside the cathedral was breathtaking to say the least.  The moment I stepped in I had a peaceful sense rush over me.  We walked around and looked at the sculptures and saw the relic of the Three Wise Men.  The girls wanted to light a couple candles and say some prayers so we did.  After leaving the Cathedral we went to eat.  There are tons of places to eat so it was hard deciding where to go.  We found a cozy looking steakhouse so we ended up there.  They immediately brought small glasses of warmed Gluwien and Kinderpunch to our table.  It tasted better this time, maybe because we were so cold.  The waiter was smitten with Brooke.  He kept being silly with her and touching her hair.  I think it is funny that even though we are in Germany, her hair still seems to attract alot of attention.  The food, service, and atmosphere were great but like all other places we have been the prices were a little steep.  That is probably why people are skinny here, they can't afford to eat out all the time:) 


Next we headed to the Chocolate Factory which had its own Christmas Market situated around it.  We toured the factory and we are all experts now on how chocolate is made.  The girls really enjoyed this tour, especially since they got a couple little treats along the way.  We left the chocolate factory about 5pm and it was dark as can be outside.  It was a beautiful site to see.  All of the boats along the Rhine were lit up with Christmas lights and decorations.  The Cathedral and bridge as the backdrop were beautiful as well.  Nick wanted to walk the bridge before walking back to our car so we did.  The bridge is very long and the train runs over it across the Rhine.  On the side rail of the bridge and fencing there were locks everywhere.  I would say about 5000+, they all had couples names on them and they were all shapes and sizes.  We were amazed by this and walked along reading and looking at all the different locks.  When we got home we googled the reason for this and the story is that couples write their name on the lock, attach it to the fencing and toss the key into the Rhine River to symbolize there never ending love and commitment.  Awwwww!  That was the end of our great visit to Cologne.


We are looking forward to many more great memories such as the ones I have shared.  We are getting into the Christmas Spirit and the weather is getting so cold.  Just waiting for the first snow so that we can have some fun in it:)  Below are pictures of our outings.  We miss yall!

 

 Our new aprons, thanks Granny!

 Brooke's the most fashionable soccer player

 Cologne Cathedral

German Dining

 Brooke wanted a pic with this log on the Locks of Love wall

 View walking back to car

 Cathedral and Christmas Market

 Decorating the Christmas Tree

 Rudeshiem Cable Car Ride

 Rudeshiem Market

Busy as a Bee!

It is Saturday morning here in Germany and instead of hitting the books like a mad woman I decided to write a little, who am I kidding, A LOT!  Growing up and even now I feel like it is so therapeutic to write down your thoughts, it really puts your life in perspective.  I hope those reading enjoy “catching up” with our lives here in Germany and being a part of my therapy sessionJ 

First I will start with the fun stuff in life.  Taylor started school this week at a very small school, Aukamm Elementary.  There are 7 girls in her class and 14 boys.  That is a big difference for her; it seems there have always been a lot more girls in her past classes.  Not to mention her teacher is a Mr., last name is Miller.  He is great and has a strong history of teaching children with learning difficulties which in my mind makes him a saint.  Mr. Miller has been teaching for 20 years but he only looks about 35 so he is still “cool” to the kids and so funny.  I was nervous for Taylor her first day because she is very sensitive and wants to make that perfect BFF from the start of things.  This explains why I was so ecstatic when I saw her skipping out the door holding a little girl’s (Hannah) hand with a smile on her face from ear to ear.  Coincidently, we had met her mom and her before on the bus and they had helped us with a small cell phone crisis.  At that time the girls barely even looked at each other so they didn’t even realize they had met before.  Mommy has also met a few very nice friends at the school.  Natalie is one of them and she has a 6 year old and 3 year old so the girls enjoy playing with them.  It is a very small community here so it seems like no matter where you go or what you are involved in you will see someone you know. For instance Hannah’s dad is the coach of Taylor’s soccer team so Hannah is also on her team.  Speaking of soccer, Taylor has made a phenomenal improvement in her game.  Just writing about it gets me excited seeing that this may be a possible sport that she plays throughout her academic career.  When Nick would coach her she didn’t really care too much about the game and I felt like we were forcing her to get out there and play.  She took a couple seasons off and at practice the other day she was a different little athlete.  Never thought I would use the word athlete in the same sentence as Taylor.  She was hustling and dribbling the ball with intentional accuracy.  I think with age and confidence she will only get better. 

We decided after a lot of thought not to start Brooke in German preschool.  The only reason we were really doing it was for her to learn the language.  When I told her she was not going to do it she didn’t really mind but that’s just Brooke.  She goes with the flow and doesn’t complain.  The day after we decided this, the Strong Beginnings program on base called us and said there was an opening for part day preschool from 1-4pm Monday – Friday.  I decided to try her in this since it was only 3 hours a day and this program specifically focuses on getting her ready for kindergarten at the American school.  I felt this would benefit her so much more and she is so smart I want her learning as much as possible early on in life.  We went to the school and met her teachers and they are both wonderful women.  Also, Brooke is in soccer on Tuesdays at the same time as Taylor and she is enjoying this.  For some reason Brooke has always acted older and I feel like she should be playing soccer with older kids.  This week Brooke also starts Ballet on Wednesdays.  She did so well in her last dance class so we are excited for this as well. 

As for Nick, well he has started an extra-curricular activity as well.  Nick has started coaching football for the High School team here on base.  I believe his title is Varsity QB and RB coach, not sure about the second part of that but you get the point.  We went to the church picnic after mass last week and met a woman and her kids in line for the food.  We all ended up sitting together and fighting the bees for our food.  The bees are so annoying here and they are everywhere.  That is about the only reason I am looking forward to the cold weather.  As we sat chitchatting she brought up that her oldest son played football and that they were looking for coaching help.  I knew immediately that Nick was drooling just thinking about the opportunity.  He acted all non-chalant about it, “oh maybe I would be interested”.  It was funny watching him knowing that he was doing flips inside from excitement.  So to make a long story short, he contacted the head coach and started coaching the next day.  Actually they have their first scrimmage this morning and that is where he is now.

So everyone has all their “fun stuff” they are doing and then there is me.  I just scheduled my test for the 12^th of November in Houston.  Brooke and I will be flying to Houston and staying about 2 weeks or longer if possible.  We have not booked our tickets yet but I am thinking around the 9th-21st or somewhere around then.  With Taylor starting school and everyone’s activities it has been almost impossible to study but I am praying that once we get into a routine it will get easier.  It seems as though every time I sit down the study something happens or needs to be tended to.  This house is a nightmare to clean, 4 stories of delivering clothes and hauling up and down stuff.  Not to mention the 4 floors and flights of stairs to rid of dog hair.  Since I cant seem to relax till it is all done that means I hit the cleaning in the morning and then by the time I get to study its time for picking up Taylor from school and then to evening activities.  The anxiety of passing the test is probably the worst.  Everyone says, “Oh you will pass, I know you will” but no that is not the case.  I have failed and tons of people fail so I will not know that I passed or failed until I get the score and neither will you.  I was so desperate this morning I googled, “Life after the CPA”.  It brought me to this woman’s blog that talked about how enjoyable life was now to have options.  You can actually think, “What do I want to do today?”  After reading about her life after the CPA I saw light at the end of the tunnel.  That brought me to think, man I need to update this blog, hehe!  There is not much more to me right now than the CPA exam, I know boring to say the least.  I did get to meet the head football coach who we saw eating out the other night.  I was wearing my UTSA shirt and he asked if I graduated from there.  I told him yes and he said his son graduated from there.  It turns out he graduated a year after me with a major of accounting!  I am sure we had at least one class together.  After that he said that he was good friends with the Director of Finance here in Wiesbaden and that he could for sure put in a good word and introduce me.  That is good news for the future but I have to focus on the present.

So that is our life as we know it at this second in time.  I will end this with an awesome quote from my sister’s Facebook page that I wish I had the strength to live by but I am trying. 

“Most stress comes from thinking of the past or the future. The present moment is always the most powerful time in your life.” ~Craig Townsend

 

Rockclimbing at Ramstien AB

Taylor on the Rock!

Brooke and Daddy 1st day of Prek

Icecream and Coffee on our date

Brooke's Prek Classroom

After 1st day of Prek, so excited!

Indoor Playcenter in Mainz on a rainy day

Taylor all ready for 2nd grade

Brooke telling Tay she will miss her

First Day Soccer Practice

After Taylor's first day with new friend at school

 

The older you get the harder change gets...

I know it has been a while since I have blogged.  It is hard to find a spare moment to even think these days.  Once again I have started on my long road of studying for my CPA exam which I will fly back to the states in November and take.  The pressure to pass the exam is at its peak right now knowing all the money we will spend on getting me there and child care arrangements for the girls.  Ugh ok enough talking about that, it makes me want to go cry in a corner somewhere, preferably in Texas.

We have been very busy getting settled in.  Our house is pretty much situated and is starting to feel like a home to us.  Besides the 3 flights of stairs that Nick and I have to drag ourselves up every evening to bed, all is good.  The girls are going to be starting soccer the last week in August.  They are playing on base so it will be with other American kids.  Living on the economy and with all the Germans has been harder for me than anyone else.  I dont want to say that I dont like it, but rather that I am adjusting.... The kids dont seem to mind it too much.  I am most impressed with Taylor, she seems to have done a 180 since we have left the states.  I felt like in the states she always wanted to be older and be cool.  Here she is enjoying being a kid and really dosnt care what she is wearing or that she has to play with her younger sister all the time.  I love the change I have seen in her.

On the 29th of Aug Taylor starts DOD school which is only about half a mile from our house.  There is no bus service so I will be walking or driving her everyday.  Brooke will start German Preschool on September 1st.  Nick took her for a test run on Monday and said that she did well.  Preschool in Germany is not based on learning as American preschools.  Nick said they had alot of free time playing but she enjoyed that.  She would basically be going to learn the language but not much more.  This is making me have second thoughts about it. 

Our weekends here have been packed with adventure:)  Our friends from San Antonio came down from Ramstien last weekend and stayed with us.  We took them to the Wiesbaden Winefest which took place downtown for 10 days.  It was a blast!  This past Friday evening we went to Sonnenberg downtown which is just a short walk from our house and they had a little carnival set up.  The girls rode a couple rides and had a gingerbread cookie:) On Saturday we took the girls to the park on base which is really nice and Nick and I played tennis while they played.  It was great, on Friday I beat Nick twice in ping pong and then on Saturday in tennis.  Poor guy :(  Saturday we attneded a USO Sesamee street show on the base.  The girls had a good time but Brooke was upset at the end because she didnt get to hug elmo. :(  Yesterday we went to a city called Mainz only about 10 miles from our place.  First we checked out the city and the Mainz Cathedral which was amazing!  I have never seen anything like it.  It was huge and had so many detailed and gothic structures everywhere in the church.  You could just sit there all day and look at all the detailed statues and pictures.  Next we took the kids to the Volkspark in Mainz.  The park was great and had a water play area which was great because it was hot here.  I swear it got up to 85 degrees, hehe!  My favorite part of Germany so far is the scenery and the parks.  It is so nice to be able to sit outside in comfortable weather and take in the fresh air and greenery while watching your kids run and play and be kids.  I dont know what I will do when it gets cold.  I will defenity have to find a new favorite part.  We ended our day yesterday at an Italian restaruant at a tennis club down the street from our house.  The food was good but not amazing and I wasnt a fan of the prices.  It seems here a family of 4 can eat for about 45 dollars or more which is not so cheap.  Maybe that is why people dont take their kids out to eat very often.

I will try to blog again soon. Enjoy the pics!  We miss and love everyone!