Nabburg -- Medieval Market in a Medieval City!

We have a senior couple here on a military relations mission that we ran into and met at the USO one day last week.  They invited us over for dinner on Saturday night and we showed up about 6 p.m. only to be told that they were going to take us on a mystery and so here's a peanut butter sandwich and some chips and let's get in the car!

Ok first of all, we did NOT ride in the mission car -- it's against the rules.  And it wouldn't fit us all anyway.  Another sister in the ward who has a van drove us in her car and we all went together. 

We drove on the Autobahn -- dang!!  Chopper and I have been learning the driving rules in preparation for testing for our licenses hopefully soon.  One big rule is that you DO NOT pass on the right and you DO NOT sit in the left lane on the Autobahn.  There really is no speed limit, REALLY, and we were passed A LOT by very fast driving cars so I totally see the point in the laws but it was kind've crazy!!

Anyway,  I just love looking out at the countryside anyway because it's hilly and forested and then there are villages everywhere peeking out of the trees and usually with either a church tower or rathaus tower rising above everything else.  But we came to a town called Nabburg that literally had the old town portion on a hill with the church at the top.  I should've taken a picture from the car but it was awesome to see as we drove up.  Turns out this is a medieval town that does a medieval market every two years for two days only and it was Saturday and Sunday!!  So we wandered this amazing town and there were cool booths selling awesome stuff, musicians, dancers, lots of people dressed in costume, and demonstrations of various crafts and occupations.  It was a little crazy keeping all the kids with us but we had a great time!!

Ok this is actually the road that we parked off of before walking up several flights of very steep stairs and then winding still upwards through the oldest part of the village.  I'm showing it because this is what German village roads are like: narrow and twisty!  And German drivers go fast!  There's been several roads that Chopper and I have been on and have asked if it's a one-way road.  Nope.  But good luck fitting two cars.  Side note -- yes there are a great number of mopeds, smart cars, Fiats, and other small cars, but I've seen plenty of regular size and larger cars.  Maybe not Suburbans or the really big trucks, but even my mini-van shouldn't pose a problem for the most part -- except in the villages and we've been told just to park outside the villages and walk in.

Ok all my pictures are filled with people -- it was really crowded!!  Next time we'll go during the day.  But the crowd was not rowdy or obnoxious and there were plenty of kids around.  And if that's a German drinking crowd -- it's 10 times better than an American one!

Working blacksmith -- fun to watch

One of the random entertainments -- I don't think there was a schedule or anything, there were just random performances and they were really good.  Although we missed the fire juggler :(

This house has 1939 at the very top -- I don't know if that's the age of the house or the decor but it was gorgeous!

Rathaus is town hall and they're always nearly as big as the churches and with a bell tower at the top as well.  Bells in every village everywhere!  I love it!

Since we were there at dusk, I've lightened up a lot of these pictures so that the details are clearer.  They're all from my cell phone so I hope that they will enlarge with good clarity!

This beauty says 1939 at the top - I don't know if that's the age of the building (doubtful, it's probably older) or the decoration.  So I know that it's been about 70 years from World War II and we haven't really been anywhere but we haven't really seen any evidence of war time destruction.  I don't know if that's because we're in a rural area or because Bavaria wasn't affected much -- I have so much to learn about local and country history!

Ok so seriously there were so many people walking around in medieval costume and it was awesome (and you know I was completely jealous!).  But the thing I noticed most?  It was believable and modest!  I don't really enjoy renaissance fairs in the states anymore because so often the women are exposing way more than I think is necessary and it's all about the sexy princess or wench or whatever.  But it just seemed like the costumes here were understated and realistic and we didn't see a lot of boob!  It was awesome!!  And it was old and young, male and female, elaborate and simple.  I think my favorite things were the flower crowns.  Sigh.  I'm such a costume fanatic!!

One stall was selling honey and beeswax candles and had brought this small case of bees to show.  The kids watched them for 5 minutes and we had to drag them away.  

Once you get up high there are alleyways that had INCREDIBLE views!  Pictures never do this kind of stuff justice but I just can't even imagine how glorious it would be to actually live there and wake up to this every morning.  Maybe people in general would be a little more laid back if they had this kind of view to soak in every day!

The Catholic church at the top of the hill -- Chopper said it was a cathedral and I guess I don't know the difference between a church and a cathedral but if it's measured in ornamentation, then yes, this is it.  The missionaries told us that there's another amazing one closer to us that I need to ask about again and write it down so I don't forget!!

The inside of the church was mainly lit with candles which Megan said was creepy but was actually really soft and beautiful!  But with the interior darkened and it still being light outside the stained glass windows were brilliantly beautiful.  There was a line to go up to the tower and we decided not to -- we probably should have!

And it's not just the windows!  The arches!  The stonework!

The statues?  The church in Grafenwoehr has a crucifix on the outside that the girls think is pretty gross.  They're really not used to seeing portrayals of Christ with the blood and piercings.  This one had some statues that weren't too bad in that respect but these individuals are apparently all saints.  Elder Johnson thought the middle was Saint Sebastian and the left end was Saint George.

The ceiling!!

The next day was Sunday of course and we went to church down the street.  Abby wanted to know why we weren't going to "that church we went to yesterday".  I think for the first time every I explained to the girls that not everyone who goes to church has the same beliefs as we do.  Of course they have friends who are different religions or not at all, but they're all been generally Christian and we haven't been to tour any of their churches!!  It's only been a week and already their worldview is expanding and I love it!!

This is part of the original wall and I think dates back to the 1500s.  And when we went up the stairs and stood on the wall this is the view we got:

Yeah.  Amazing.

One of the stalls was selling more of the "dark" side so to speak -- Harry Potter, dark arts kind of stuff.  The kids thought this dragon skull was cool.

A tower in the village with a stork nest at the top!

This would be an incredible city to see even without the medieval market.  And they have a Christmas market so we may be going back!!  The surprising thing about it was that it was cheap!  I always associate fairs and festivals with spending an arm and a leg but entry was only 4 euro for adults, kids free, and they kids all got gelato and giant pretzels (which they LOVE -- ok I do too) for a euro each.  Actually, I feel like food here is either about the same as America or cheaper.  We have a bakery and a gelato shop on the same street right around the corner from where we're living right now and they are both delicious and both inexpensive.  Our entire family gets single scoop cones of gelato for less than 5 euro.  And they change their flavors and have some I've never heard of before we we've liked every one that we've tried.  Although I think right now the zitrone (lemon) is my favorite.  

Also, the language.  I feel it necessary to learn what we can and to try to speak Germany but I am admittedly woefully inept and Chopper isn't any better.  Yes, so many people speak English and I am so grateful and impressed!  It makes my life easier certainly but I often wonder if they are laughing at me later or if they appreciate the effort.  I guess it doesn't really matter but we are trying!  

What Life Looks Like

Because we're here with the military and not simply as ex-pats, life looks a little different I think.  The military is helping us extensively -- we have most of the same privileges as military members: commissary and PX, help with housing, DOD schools, etc.  But all of that takes time and lots of steps and paperwork which takes more time!  We shipped our van in the beginning of June, the estimated arrival is August 22.  IF it arrives by then, there's still the process of inspections (American and German), customs, licensing, and making sure that we have our driver's licenses and insurance in order before we get it back.  I won't be driving for a while!  We are planning on purchasing a second car for Chopper and something that we can fit the entire family into but that too is a process and we probably won't have a car in hand for another week or two even though we've identified the car that I think we're going to get.

The housing process is also interesting.  There's military base housing, government housing off base, and housing on the economy.  We can go through the housing office and look at what they offer (we're not eligible for base housing) or we can get a realtor and find something on our own.  A lot of people (well maybe not a lot) get houses from people in their units or buildings that are leaving.  But that can only be done with off-base units that are rented privately -- although privately means you have a German landlord/lady and a contract with them.  The housing office will still help us navigate that which is really nice.

We've met several people who have housing but it won't start for 6 weeks or so.  It appears that the average temporary living stay is running 6 weeks to 60 days.  With William wanting to go home and have our stuff every day, I'm struggling with the temporary living.  But we also got lucky.  A building of furnished apartments specifically for people coming to the base was recommended to us and had an opening right when we needed it.  We have a 2 bedroom, 1 bath apartment and it is a HUGE blessing over living in a hotel room.  We have a full (small) kitchen, laundry facilities, and it's very close to the base and right on the edge of the town so we can walk onto the base or we can walk down the street AND the church is literally around the corner at the end of our road.  Incredibly convenient, pretty new, clean, and comfortable (thanks to IKEA!).  And it's kind've an introduction to things like smaller fridges and washers/dryers and ovens, the recycling system (oh my heck!  Everything gets recycled and you don't just throw it in a can like we did in Texas, you have to separate it out according to category and sometimes I'm not sure what goes where.), and how the windows work!!  That sounds weird but they are the coolest things ever!  There is no air conditioning in Germany (and we certainly haven't needed it -- hello 60 degrees during the day!) and the houses are made largely of stone and concrete.  The climate is lush and humid and rainy and so to avoid mold you have to leave your windows open for a certain amount of time every day so that things get sufficiently dried out -- particularly bathrooms.  I thought that this would lead to all sorts of bug problems and I'm sure if we were on the ground floor it would, but being up here we haven't had anything major (because there are no screens on the windows).  And we've had the windows open almost 24/7 because it's nice weather.  I don't know how these things work but the way you turn the handle determines how the window opens.  If the handle is pointing up, you can pull the window forward and the top leans in just a few inches.  If you point it sideways, you can pull the window open like a door.  The doors do it too!  It's crazy cool!!  Then there are the Roladens (I hope I spelled it right and my German friend Melanie totally laughed at me when I pronounced it roll-a-den, it's more like row-la-din).  Anyway they are metal shades on the outside that you raise or lower with the strap kind of thing and when they're completely down they block out all light.  You can put them down but leave cracks to let some light in but they're basically made for the very light nights and early mornings that are here.  Long days.  Chopper read somewhere that it will be opposite in the winter -- really really short days.  And cold.  I'm not really looking forward to that honestly.

Anyway so Chopper went right to work the first day.  He's been doing a lot of in-processing and hasn't actually started his job duties yet, but he has a ride and he does go to work every day.  The kids and I keep enough groceries on hand to do breakfast and lunch here (it's just so much easier) and find something to do during the day.  I packed some light toys, books, and card games, we've found the city park that they really enjoy and then we're planning this week to go on base and find the library and also try out the local grocery and send some letters from the post office.  William has been throwing fits every time we go walk somewhere so that's kind've made things difficult.  Then Chopper gets home after 5 and we find somewhere to eat for dinner!  And that's what life looks like right now!

A few notes about the area that I don't think I've already mentioned:

The flowers are fantastic!!  It probably isn't good to generalize but the Germans love flowers in window boxes, in pots on the steps, in the yards, as hedgerows, all over the place!  It's beautiful!!  Although I do anticipate having to take care of quite the yard and I'm not a yardwork/gardening person.

The church in the main square is set back and we finally walked around it.  It's pretty simple compared to what I think we'll see and we weren't able to go in but the architecture is still beautiful.  Most of the churches, especially the older ones, are Catholic of course.  Abby has informed me that she does not like the statues of Christ that portray him on the cross rather bloody.  I've realized that they don't really know that there are other religions out there.  We go to church and so when we say -- look at that beautiful church! -- they think it's one of ours!  So we've started to explain that churches are different (although I'm so grateful right now that Mormons are the same everywhere!).

And I think that's a pretty good assessment of what life looks like right now.  I need to post where we went Saturday night but Chopper says I need to edit my photos first so they're better!

More pictures

Because we don't have driver's licenses or a CAR yet, we've been walking everywhere.  Although the kids have not really enjoyed walking and are very slow.  Fortunately, our apartment is a short distance to the Commissary and PX (grocery store and Walmart-type store) on base and also a short distance off base from several German grocery stores, restaurants, a park, and the central town market.  There are so many side streets I want to explore but William especially has been a screaming mess when we go anywhere.  We tried to buy an umbrella stroller today at the PX and they didn't have any and I almost cried.  I know he doesn't get it and he says he wants to go home nearly every day but the screaming and crying is wearing on my nerves big time and I just don't know what to do about it.

Anyway, I'm feeling low today.  But it's only been a week -- less actually -- and things are really good for what they are.  I can't complain.  And everything is beautiful!

I just love the architecture.  The village we're in isn't perhaps super old - 1700s I think which is really only young in Europe!  But everything does have that European feel -- it's true.

A little better view of the Rathaus (town hall) which is a building that's in use.  I'd love to see the insides of these places but it was a Friday night and everything was closed.  Things close early and they certainly don't keep hours for the tourists/visitors!!  And I don't mind that -- I just need to remember it!

This is the tower that gives Tower Barracks it's name (the Graf base).  There was a sign that said it's a water tower that was built in the early 1900s in the Swiss romantic style.  I don't know where the water containment would be, it's certainly not like the water towers in Texas!!  The entire base is done in the European style and I like that.  But it is also nice to shop among things that are familiar and brands that I'm comfortable with while we get used to things that are not.

When we get a house it will be off-base which I'm totally fine with.  We have a few people in the ward who are going to be moving out and so we're going to start with their houses and see if we like and want any of them -- that would be the easiest thing.  We can also work with a local realtor and the housing office on base.  My goal is to either be in a home or know where we're going to be when school starts so that the kids can start at the right elementary school and not have to switch a few weeks in.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed.  There is not really an excess of housing here so it could take a while to find something.

The other thing we're both working on is studying for the driving test and finding a 2nd car that can accommodate our family until the van arrives.  Because we are military people (even as civilians), we have to have a military driving license.  Tourists/visitors can just get an international license from AAA if they want to drive in Europe but since the government is basically responsible for us, we have to have their license.  Germany drives on the right and the cars have the steering wheel on the left like American cars but they do operate in kilometers and road signs and of course some laws are different.  I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around them.  Another thing to make flashcards for I guess!!

First Impressions

Arriving in Nuremberg I felt out of place.  In fact, that's how I feel much of the time honestly.  Being on the base is different of course because it is American although built in the German architectural style.  But walking around the town and eating at restaurants I feel acutely conspicuous and very much the intruder.  Two years of German in high school was certainly not enough and oh how I wish I had taken it in college rather than trying French.  As badly as I did in French, when I try to recall what I know, I'm more likely to bring French to mind than German!

That being said, no one has been rude or cold even.  I know that the people in this town are used to the Americans who don't know anything, I guess I just don't want to be that person!  The Elders at church offer classes and there are classes on the base as well and I fully intend to take advantage but practicing with vocabulary and apps is very different from conversing with someone!  

Despite my feelings of ridiculousness, I am actually really loving this area.  There is a feeling of a slower pace and it is certainly a smaller town.  The trees are everywhere and we literally walk out the door and smell something -- flowers?  A bush?  Something wonderful.  The bells ring every quarter hour and at 9 p.m. go on for several minutes of pealing that is really beautiful.  Today they did it several times and I wondered if it was because of the tragedy in Nice or if there's another reason that I'm unaware of.  Our apartment is on the third floor of the building and it is lovely to sit on the balcony in the cool air and look over the homes and listen in peace to the bells.  Abby also loves the bells but she views them as an invitation to begin singing and although I think it's adorable, it's not very peaceful!

The view from our windows

The girls are also loving the green and trees and want to explore outside more than we have been able to so far but their first absolute excitement has been over the snails -- not kidding, real live large snails that stick their heads out and unfold their eyeballs.  It is fun to find them and their spiraled striped shells.

The building in the background is the Rathaus or City Hall and I believe it's where the bells come from.  The spire behind it is the kirche or church and the kids thought it was really gross that there's a statue of the crucified Christ on the outside.  I had to explain to them that they would see many of those statues and that we needed to be respectful.  We all have a lot to learn!

My brother Jeff gave us grief over eating at McDonald's our first night (his visiting rights have since been revoked!), but we ate at a German hotel/restaurant the next night.  Chopper had a curry wurst (very good), I had bratwurst and sauerkraut (also good) and onion soup and Abby had schweineschnitzel.  And all the kids got pommes frites (french fries) which are exactly the same.

Abby has been the adventurous eater here!  She has tried pretty much everything and even though I don't think she necessarily likes everything (if she doesn't touch it again) but she declares everything to be amazing and the best she's ever had.

Chopper says I need to edit my pictures and make them better and that may be true but I'm not very good at it and I think that pictures could never do it justice anyway!

We are staying in a furnished 2 bedroom apartment that I am very grateful for but all the kids are sleeping in the same room and it's been it's own adventure.  They do sleep eventually though!

Abby has adjusted the best so far.  Megan is in a perpetually bad mood and is more sensitive and anxious than usual about strangers and strange things.  William has been terrible.  He asks me almost every day now if it's time to go home and get his cars.  We've talked about going to a new home but without our things all he knows is that we're still in a "hotel" and he's ready to be back to his cars and his bed and his daily routine and comfort of sameness.  He spends a lot of time screaming and begging to be held, especially when we walk anywhere.  His latest complaint when he doesn't want to walk right now is that he's run out of power.  The boy is the child of an electronic age.

30 Hours Later . . .

Because we shipped our van to Germany at the beginning of June, we decided that it would be best to rent a car for the duration of our stay and to get us to the airport.  We didn't want to have to worry about finding someone to transport us and all of our stuff.  We needed to drop off the car at 9 and then our flight left out of DFW at about noon.  We debated and debated how best to do this -- in the end we all stuck together.  Which means that things looked like this:

At 9 a.m. we pulled into the rental car lot and unloaded all our stuff.  This totaled out to:  5 people, 5 suitcases weighing 50 lbs. each, 3 car seats, 5 stuffed backpacks, 1 carry on suitcase, 1 large purse, 3 stuffed animals, and a hamburger pillow (yes I'll explain that one!).  Chopper had to go track down 2 carts to carry it all (which I can't stop calling trolleys -- thank you Harry Potter!)

We cart all of our stuff to the shuttle and load it all and then wonder why they don't have shuttles that will just load the cart?  Because when we got to the airport we had to find more carts . . . yeesh.

At the airport we tried to get our boarding passes and check our luaggage outside and couldn't do it.  By the way -- this was at 10 a.m.  It took us an hour to do all of the above.  So they get a guy to load it all on one cart and take it inside where we stand in a line for Delta Special Services.  A very slow line because it's everyone with special problems.  Like ourselves.

Our original travel plans included a flight to Minneapolis with a 45 minute layover, then a flight to Amsterdam with a 2 hour layover and a flight to Nuremberg.  Leaving DFW at noon and arriving at Nuremberg about 9 a.m. the next day.  Well the first flight was delayed an hour (thank you Texas thunderstorm!) so we automatically missed our 2nd flight so they were trying to find all new travel arrangements.  We waited in line and then stood at the counter while they found new flights for an HOUR AND A HALF.  Thank goodness for Shivers the pirate.  And quite frankly -- my children were amazing.  

Ok finally get our flights and then get through security (not bad actually) and on to the plane.  

Now I don't know if this is standard or new but Delta now has screens in the back of every headrest with a variety of complimentary movies and tv shows and music and free earbuds.  Thanks to some blogger out there, I had brought over the ear headphones for all the kids and they worked with the screens so our first flight the kids ate snacks and watched movies.  Another side note -- also thanks to a blogger I had bought 3 boxes for fishing tackle (small ones for about $3.00 each) and filled them with a variety of snacks.  The kids loved it and it lasted the entire trip.

Another note -- because of what had happened with our flights, we had no seats together.  Delta told us that we would be able to switch with other people and get them together but they wouldn't switch them for us at the gate.  So we were one of the first ones on the plane (family needing extra time) and had everyone sit in their assigned seats and waited for others to get on the plane.  By the time we were all switched around, every single one of my kids was crying because they were sitting by themselves with strangers.  It was awful.  And no amount of assurance that we were changing things helped.  Other fliers were very understanding but I should have been smarter and been the LAST people on the plane.  Then we could have boarded and asked people to switch in the moment and we would have saved a lot of tears.

In the end it was a pretty good flight -- William had some issues but Chopper was sitting next to him so I was happy!!

We flew to Detroit and had about an hour before boarding for Amsterdam.  In Detroit they did our seat assignments at the gate so we didn't have the same issues as before.  We boarded about 7, and got off the ground.  They handed out pillows, blankets (thinnest blankets EVER - bring a jacket) and did drinks and pretzels.  Then they did dinner -- surprisingly good and plentiful and even though none of my kids ate the main entree, they all ate sides (salad, roll, crackers and cheese, shrimp?!?!?!?!).  Then we turned everything off and made them go to sleep.  Abby put on an eye mask and fell asleep fast and maybe got 4-5 hours.  William slept well too.  Megan took longer but she and I both got some as well and Chopper pretty much none.  He has a hard time sleeping while traveling.  Ok another side note -- I LOVED the neck pillows, Chopper hated it, and the kids didn't use them because they're small enough to curl up sideways and lay down.  So we maybe carried around 5 of those things for nothing.  In the "morning" (8 a.m. Amsterdam time but it felt like 2 a.m. for us), the flight attendants handed out a breakfast (yogurt, croissant, cheese and juice) and we landed in Amsterdam.

Oh Amsterdam.

I think this airport is a major hub for flights coming in from the U.S. and also for flights into and out of Europe.  Everything was in English although all announcements and signs were made in Dutch as well and then often in French and German.  It felt just like a U.S. airport except for the languages around us and going through customs.  We didn't know we would go through customs in Amsterdam so were unprepared and had to dig for passports and Chopper's orders but it wasn't a big deal and we didn't even have to declare anything.  Then we spent the ENTIRE day there.  We had an 8 hour layover.  We found a science exploration play place for the kids and Chopper napped for a bit while I watched them play.  Then we found some lunch and waited in our terminal until it was time for our flight to go.

William spent a LOT of time looking out the windows at the planes and all the vehicles that are used for various purposes. It was literally all the entertainment he needed!

Our flight out to Nuremberg was small so we road a bus onto the tarmac and walked up the steps into the plane.  Again we had issues with seating and William screamed his head off that he didn't want to sit next to me so Chopper switched after which we took off and William promptly fell asleep and slept through the flight, the landing, the retrieval of luggage, and woke up for the drive home.  He is heavy to carry when he's sleeping!!!!

When we arrived in Nuremberg, that's when I felt that we were in a foreign country.  It's a small airport so it's all in German and it took some doing to figure out where we needed to be.  All of our luggage arrived (yay!) and we were able to find our sponsor and a bathroom and then get on the road to Grafenwoehr where we were staying.  Our sponsor (someone at the base you are traveling to that helps with the whole process) wanted to take us to dinner but the girls fell asleep in the car and would NOT wake up so we stopped for our first meal in Germany at McDonalds and I'm not sorry.  It had been about 30 hours of travel and all of us wanted easy food and beds.

Driving through the German countryside was beautiful.  It is green and hilly and trees everywhere and then you see villages nestled in those trees with typical German architecture.  We are staying in some furnished apartments that I think we were lucky to get into and we walked in to a clean and inviting place with 2 bedrooms so we could get the kids down and unpack without waking them.  It was awesome!!!

I don't think we'll be doing a massive flight like this with the kids for another 3 years (William will be 7 -- Hallelujah!!!) but I learned some things.

Snacks are good.  And so are books and things to entertain but really what kept them entertained the most was electronic devices either provided by the airline (the screens in the seats) or by us.  The kids hated carrying their backpacks because they were heavy and it was a pain to get the and their stuff on and off planes.  But I also carried jackets and a change of clothes for each kid.  Jackets they needed on the plane when they cooled down.  Change of clothes we didn't!!  William miraculously had NO ACCIDENTS.  Seriously -- that's a miracle.  Megan did throw up once but we got a bag under her in time but we had the clothes and even though we didn't use them, I wouldn't change that.

People are helpful and compassionate when you're traveling with kids -- especially if their flexibility means that your kids travel better and are less annoying!!

Card games and books to read out loud are a necessity!!  When we sat waiting in the airports I read aloud to the girls a fun book called Shivers, The Pirate Who's Afraid of EVERYTHING by Annabeth Bondor-Stone and Connor White and it was perfect -- funny, interesting, lots of pictures.  Even William enjoyed sitting and listening.  The Chicken Squad by Doreen Cronin is also good.  And actually I could go on and on with early chapter books that we love.  I've taught the girls to play UNO (finally) and it's been a lifesaver as we wait in lines for everything on base and it just fits in my purse.  And for travel, it saves the batteries on the devices. I highly recommend coming prepared and then using devices for backup instead of the other way around.

Now this week we've been getting over jet lag and getting things taken care of on base.  We haven't been out much into the town yet but I still am falling in love with the country and place.  I'm going to do a blog post about my first impressions but the kids are asking for lunch right now and this has been a long post anyway.

On the Road Again . . . By Air!!!

Well I guess I should change the title of the blog again since we've officially up and moved to Germany!!  And there's so much to say!  Particularly these first weeks and months that we're fresh to the country, I want to make sure that I document things because they're different.  When things become routine and familiar, they're not as likely to get documented because I won't think about them!!!

So for starters I think I should say that moving with professional movers is SOOOOO nice!  It was stressful to think about what needed to be packed by whom to go when and where though.  We ended up with FOUR different shipments so to speak:

1.  Items that needed to go in suitcases -- this was harder than it sounds.  Because we flew commercial airlines, we had one suitcase of checked baggage per person for free.  This means 5 suitcases, no more than 50 lbs. each to fit everything that I thought we would need before our unaccompanied baggage arrived (more on that later).  Because Bavaria has a cooler climate than Texas (doesn't everyone???), that meant not only summer clothes, but fall clothes, decent jackets, and rain gear.  All of that was just in case our stuff doesn't arrive in a timely manner.  I also packed an inflatable mattress, pump, and sheets for William because I didn't find out until the last minute that the place we were staying was providing a toddler bed.  Then of course toiletries and activities to help occupy the kids -- a lot of that went in their backpacks for the plane though.

2.  Items for Unaccompanied Baggage -- this is stuff that goes express - by air.  It's a small shipment (weights vary and our limit was 1200 lbs. but our actual shipment came in at 704!) but includes things like linens, kitchen items, school supplies, etc.  The lending closets on base will often provide basic furniture pieces but not the small stuff.  So the UB is anything that will make life livable in a house without most of your stuff.

3.  Non-temporary storage -- for us it came down to anything that plugs in (won't work in Germany) and some memorabilia stuff that we don't anticipate needing, a good portion of our Christmas decor including the tree (pre-lit and the lights won't work), and a large number of books (which made me sad because I love ALL my books -- but Chopper says we won't have space to put them anywhere and quite frankly, I'll just buy more!).

4.  Household goods --everything else.  It will arrive by boat hopefully in the next 2-3 months!

The kids have had varying reactions to the move -- Megan has mostly been in a bad mood about leaving her friends.  Abby is excited for German chocolate but gets upset when we leave something specific for the last time (the school, a friends house, etc.).  William hasn't really registered it, until his cars got packed onto the truck and driven away.  He has now asked several times if we can go home and get his cars back from the truck.

I was surprised but it makes sense - every single thing we owned either was packed in a box or wrapped in brown paper.  Then it was very snugly packed in wooden crates that were nailed shut.

This one was funny -- mostly because it really is a box of rocks.  Megan's father's day gift that she made in Activity Day Girls is a box of inspirational rocks.

The last day I had wonderful friends who came and helped me clean the house in a few hours.  Then we went to visit Mrs. Sutherland one last time and drove off to the hotel by the airport!

This picture of the girl's in front of the house just warms my heart and breaks it at the same time.  I don't think they were super sad at the moment but it certainly looks like it.  This is the only house that any of my kids have known in their memories -- Megan was 2 1/2 when we arrived and Abby just 6 months!  We've had so much happen here with the kids -- lots of firsts, lots of joy and laughter, lots of tears and in all honesty, lots of yelling and frustration!!!  Because they're kids.  And I'm mom.

William took my phone at Mrs. Sutherland's house and took a bunch of pictures.  These are actually some of the good ones!!

This teacher has been amazing to Megan and has really become a friend of mine as well (although I have a hard time not calling her Mrs. Sutherland because I've known her as a teacher first I guess!).  We have loved her and I'm going to miss her personally as well as "professionally".  We've worked together on a lot of projects!

We went to eat dinner and as we were finishing, a Texas thunderstorm came rolling in fast.  We managed to get to the hotel before it got too bad but just barely - we get in the elevator to go to the 9th floor and apparently there was a lightening strike really close that fried some circuits - including the ones to the elevator we were on!  So we were stuck between the 8th and 9th floors.  It was a glass fronted elevator and this was the view:

The kids did NOT freak out which was awesome and we attracted a pretty big crowd who all took pictures and perhaps video!  There were a lot of phones pointed our way!  The hotel people couldn't get it open so they had to call the fire department and William was very excited about them coming although he really wanted them to bring their "fire puppy" (dalmatians are in every book about firemen and it's NOT TRUE!).  We were only in there for about 15 minutes but got lots of cheering when they finally broke us out and the hotel sent ice cream up to the kids and gave us the room for free so I guess it wasn't a bad start to our traveling adventure but I did have to wonder if it was an omen . . . more on that later.