Bastogne, Belgium

Have you seen the HBO series, Band of Brothers? If not, watching that is a must, no matter where you live. It is a ten-series show about Easy Company, the 101st Airborne Division in World War II and their journey throughout the war. One of the episodes specifically shows Bastogne, Belgium and the Battle of the Bulge.

I thought Bastogne would be an incredible place to take my parents while they were visiting. My whole family really enjoys WWII history. We spent the first few nights of their visit watching all ten episodes, then set out for Belgium yesterday morning. We packed a picnic lunch, jackets, gloves, scarves, potty chair, etc. and headed out on the two hour drive. We knew there was a 70% chance of rain, but felt we needed to just get up and go. It poured rain almost the entire drive. Approximately 10 minutes prior to arriving in Bastogne, it stopped raining.

Our plan was to visit the Mardasson Memorial and attached museum, then head to Luxembourg to go to the American Military Cemetery in Luxembourg City.  While driving in to the Bastogne, we spotted a local cemetery. I knew that it was unlikely to be Americans buried there, but it was very neat-looking and I encouraged my husband to use the roundabout and go back, since it was not raining at the moment. He amazingly obliged me.

We got out of the van, bundled up, and walked across the street to look. We didn't stay long, as it was so windy, but it was beautiful. Several people buried in one small area, flowers on almost all the graves, crucifixes and crosses, pictures, and much more.

As we were leaving the cemetery, my mother saw this sign across the street and wanted to walk over and look at it better. 

The Bastogne barracks is where the 101st Airborne's headquarters was. While reading the sign a bit, we discovered that they give tours of  these Barracks for free. But we didn't know if you had to have an appointment, if they were in English, or what. So we walked through the gate to to see if there was further information. My father (bravely) walked in and tried to ask (The main language in Belgium is French, which none of us speak a lick of). The man inside didn't really speak English, but did tell dad the next tour was in 10 minutes and pointed us to the waiting room! We had no clue if there would be English or not, but figured just getting to see the barracks would be fun, so we decided to wait it out. (At this point I took our newly potty training daughter and older daughter back to the car to use our new €3 Ikea potty chair before beginning the tour. Very helpful for little bums in the car while traveling!!!)

As the tour began, the man said "Who speaks English?" and asked who spoke French in French. Those were the only languages he spoke, and he spoke English beautifully! He informed us the tour would last approximately 2 hours. The whole tour, he'd speak a bit of English, then a bit of French, explaining everything in both languages. He took us all over the barracks, giving a great history lesson the entire time. This is where the famous quote from General Anthony McAuliffe was made when told by the Germans to surrender or be killed. 

His reply? It made him famous...

Apparently when the Americans returned this letter to the Germans, the translation was misunderstood and the German asked "Is the response positive or negative?" The American said "The answer is in the letter." The German said "Yes, yes, I know this, but... is it a positive answer or negative answer. We don't understand what he means." American said "It is definitely a negative answer." (Not exact quotes, a rough translation of what the tour guide told us.)

The tour also included many military vehicles and a museum of artifacts that were all original to the 2nd World War, including a container of blood for transfusions, cigarettes, gas masks, machine guns, and so much more. We were unsure if the children would last. Part of the tour was outside, so we let them be just a bit away from us and run around however they wanted. When we went inside the buildings, we explained everything we saw to them and they behaved fabulously. They LOVED the vehicle restoration center. 

The barracks were originally Belgium. They were at war with Germany for 17 days, then the Germans took over the barracks. The Belgiums were forced to help the Germans and train them here. Then Americans  drove the Germans out and the Americans used it as their barracks while in Bastogne. Bastogne was the halfway point from Normandy and Luxembourg. The Germans had attacked all 3 at the same time and wanted to get Bastogne to use it when going back and forth between Normandy and Luxembourg. This is the only place where there is any evidence that the Germans were there.  You can see the white with black on this wall.

After the tour, we went ahead and went to the Mardasson Memorial. This was incredible, to see how much the Belgium people appreciated the Americans and that we would always be allies. It was amazing to see the American flag flying in Belgium. The Memorial is in the shape of a star, with all the states listed at the top. On the sides are all the units that fought in the Battle of the Bulge. On the inside of the circle is the story telling about Bastogne and the Americans. Unfortunately, the museum was closed for reconstruction. I was so glad we had found the Barracks, otherwise I would have been slightly bummed to have driven two hours just to see the memorial. The museum is suppose to reopen in May or June, 2013. 

The Memorial

 Our family

 My mom and my daughter

 Our flag

 Me with the 101st Airborne Division sign

We ended up postponing our Luxembourg trip, and headed back toward our home around 5:30. On our way back, we stopped at one of our favorite local restaurants, Hotel Anna's, and ate dinner. It was a fabulous day and very moving. We couldn't help thinking how chilly we were and we were dressed warmly, while the soldiers were fighting in the snow with no warm gear. It really made me think of them and thank God for the sacrifice they gave for Americans, and people in other countries as well! I pray they are resting in peace. I strongly recommend this trip to others. 

Information from the Bastogne Barracks Facebook page:  Bastogne Barracks - district Hi Heintz - Street rock 40-6600 Bastogne Free Admission Days and hours: daily except Mondays Guided tours only, starting visits: 09.00 Hr, Hr 10.00, 13.00 and 14.00 Hr Hr For groups of more 20 persons, appointment bookings 32 (0) 61 24 21 24 bb.mra @ skynet.be http://www.klm-mra.be/

I would recommend calling to make sure they are doing tours and finding out if there is an English one before going. 

Information for Mardasson Memorial: Maison du Tourisme du Pays de Bastogne, Place McAuliffe, 6600 Bastogne - tel: 061/21 17 11 - fax: 061/21 2725. No guided tours.

Living the Catholic Faith

I may have done a post similar to this in the past, but I feel a need to do it again.

As many of my readers know, I grew up in a very large Southern Baptist Church. Attended this church my whole life. A Church that to this day, I still love dearly and have many friends who continue to attend there.

When I began to date Jonathan, I began to lose some of my friends. I know there were many issues that played in to this. I wasn't at the church every time the doors were open, because Jon lived 4 hours away, so many weekends, I wasn't in town. However, there was still the opportunity to email me, talk to me in other ways, as my closest friends, even to this day, still do. Many events transpired to make me feel like I should not be attending the church anymore. My faith was also shaken and there were some things I just really struggled with.

Jonathan was a Catholic. Honestly, I faced a lot of issues from my friends because he was a Catholic. Many comments about how we were unequally yoked. I ended up losing many friends over our relationship. However, many of the things I was struggling with, he could answer.

I began on my own journey, studying about Catholicism, hoping to find fault in it as I had always been taught growing up. But as I began to study it, I learned that the things I had been taught, weren't exactly what Catholics believed. This isn't a post to talk about why I converted though...

For a long time, even after converting, I was afraid to change my Facebook status from Christian to Catholic. I thought "Why should I. I'm still a Christian." Truth was, I didn't want to have to explain myself to any of my friends from my old church. I KNEW I belonged in the Catholic Church, but yet, still felt some... shame? I hate to say that word, but it's the only word I can think of. I had studied everything and in 2 years time, decided to join the Roman Catholic Church (RCC). Yet, in 2 yrs time, I hadn't learned how to defend many of my new beliefs.

After a while, as I began to grow in my faith, I quietly changed my status. Then for a while, that was it. I didn't post anything possibly Catholic sounding. But then I began to grow more. I began to want to share stuff. My group of FB friends that were Catholic also began to grow, and I wanted to share with them the exciting things I was finding and learning. Slowly, I began to post Catholic links, comments, and more. I think now, all my friends probably know that I am Catholic.

Growing up, the Catholics I knew were 'cafeteria Catholics'. I hate that term, but we all know some of them. They picked and choose what they wanted to believe about Catholicism. But that's not Catholicism. When you're Catholic, you can't pick and choose. Don't get me wrong, sometimes people are struggling with a certain aspect of the faith. Maybe they're struggling with Mary, or confession. But if they are, the wise thing for them to be doing is studying more about it, praying about it, and seeking Christ and why the Church teaches what they do. Usually, they will see and understand it better eventually. But to say "Oh no, I think the  Church is wrong about XYZ (Abortion, gay marriage, contraception)" without studying WHY the Church says what she believes, is wrong.

But recently, something has occurred to me. If the majority of the Catholics I knew growing up were not devout in their faith, or never expressed to me why they believed what they believed, what does that say? That says it is time for me to be THAT Catholic, the one among my non-Catholic friends who DOES talk about my faith, let's it be known that while I am Catholic, I truly love the Lord, serve Him, and know I am getting the most out of my faith possible. THAT Catholic that can explain (to the best of my horrible debating abilities) why we believe what we do. I need to be an example to the friends from my youth, of what a Catholic is suppose to look like. A sinner, seeking after Christ, doing my absolute best to live a Holy life, using all the wonderful things my faith has available to help me live a Holy life, and receiving Him in the Eucharist each week, not because it's a Holy Day of Obligation but because- it's Christ!! I should WANT to be there to receive Him each week.

I have been a Catholic now for 4.5 years, and could not be happier in my faith.

Knights of Columbus

When my husband was in high school, he attended a Catholic boys school. While there, he joined the Knights of Columbus, a Catholic men's organization. He became a 1st Degree Knight, but never went further with it.

When we got married and moved to Colorado, I heard the Knights of Columbus mentioned several times. I kept trying to convince him to get involved, but he would have been the youngest by far and was not interested at all. I just kept praying that eventually he would, as I knew he would make some Godly friends and grow in his faith if involved. 

Forward 5 years when we got stationed here in Germany. I made several female friends, and they asked me if my husband was a Knight, as their husbands all were or were in the process of becoming one. I began praying again and trying to convince him. After meeting some of the men, he decided to get re-involved and became a 2nd and 3rd Degree Knight. 

Twice a month, he would go to their meetings and socials. I all of a sudden began to see a new man form in my husband, one that was truly seeking God, wanting to know how to become a more Godly man, husband, and father. I knew that having this time with other Godly men was having a serious impact on him. Usually at the meetings, one of our local priests was also there, and he began to get to know them better. 

During this time, I was also getting to know more Catholic women better, and my Catholic faith was really growing. Slowly, I noticed my husband suggesting we go to Confession more, and for Lent, as a family, we made the commitment to start attending daily mass once a week. This has even continued for the most part since Lent. 

In May, the KOC decided they wanted to have a 4th Degree Exemplification. This had not been not in Europe yet, and would be a big undertaking. This past Saturday, October 13, was the first 4th Degree Exemplification. When they began to plan this, they expected to have about 40-60 men participate. Instead, this past Saturday, they had one hundred and twenty-one men make their 4th Degree Exemplification!!! Here is a picture of all of the men. (This picture was taken by the KOC, but I cropped it)

It was an amazing day. The men had the Exemplification in the afternoon, then we met them for a special mass with Bishop Spencer, Episcopal Vicar for Europe and Asia. He was an incredible speaker. (And on a side, he is one of the guest speakers at a Catholic women's conference I'm about to go to, and it makes me super excited to get to hear him!) Following this was a formal dinner at the Officer's Club. The food was great, the company fabulous, the speakers entertaining and enlightening.

Through one of the speakers, we learned this was the 3rd overseas military 3rd Degree Knights of Columbus order (in fact, we have a local German priest that sometimes says mass on base, and he became a 4th degree as well!) It is the 3rd in 6 months, but by far the largest! Men came from all over this country, and even from England and Naples! There were also 5 sets of fathers and sons doing it together, one of which we knew.

It was so exciting to see 121 men stand up, all dressed in their uniforms or tuxes, in the front rows of the church, and know that these are our leaders, the men in our homes setting Godly Christian examples, for their community, wives, and most importantly, their children. I am so proud of my husband, and the other men in our lives living here, and so thankful for each and everyone of them, and what they mean to our family.

Please pray for these men, as they continue to be leaders, following Christ and setting an example to others. Also, please pray for their wives, as we are all about to leave for a European-wide Military Council of Catholic Women conference. We know God has a lot planned for each of us, but prayers are welcome.

Struggles of Diabetes

I don't talk much about my life with diabetes. It's not that I dislike talking about it. After having it for 27 years, there's usually not much to talk about. It's just "normal". However, today I had an incident that I thought I would share. I will start by saying it was very, very scary and has made us decide we need to make a plan, and educate our 5 year old son more.

Ever since moving here, the thought has crossed my mind "What would happen if something happened to me?" I had it all planned, I'd tell Zach to call the number on the board for daddy's job, and go get one of our 5 neighbors. Today, we put that in to practice, but it did not go like I had planned.

I woke up sick, spending the whole morning in the bathroom and bed. Around 11am, I was feeling mostly better and had a bowl of cereal. Around 1pm, I started feeling so nauseas. I took an anti-nausea pill, and threw up the cereal I'd eaten 2 minutes later. I knew that I had insulin in me for that cereal, and without it, I was going to crash. But at the same time, I knew that if I tried to eat or drink anything, it'd likely come back up. And I was sooo tired and exhausted. So I drank some juice, turned my insulin pump off (to get no insulin) and laid down for a nap. After a bit, I woke back up knowing my blood sugar was very low.

I yelled to Zach to bring me some juice. I have something called a glucagon pen. It's a prescription shot that is suppose to get your blood sugar up SUPER fast. Growing up, mom said they didn't help, but I have used 1 or 2 since having kids, when sick and pregnant, and they help. I had one, but it was expired a year ago (I know! Bad me, but with the struggles I've had getting good diabetes care here, it wasn't a top priority unfortunately.) So I called my mom to see if it was ok to use it, while checking my blood sugar. It was 39! (Normal is 80-120 usually) My mom told me to get my neighbor up here and husband home.

Thirty-nine is the type of low that I would send Jon to get me juice for. Yet, I had to do it. I sent Zach to get a neighbor, mainly because if I went in to a seizure, I needed someone to be able to call emergency, or to help get me stuff, etc. NONE of my five neighbors were home! I called Jon multiple times (Later found out it was 8 times!) and he wasn't at his desk. I was hoping calling that many times, the person at the desk would pick up, but the officers didn't. I was able to give the glucagon shot. A very short time later, I was trying to check my blood sugar again. I couldn't see. My hands were shaking, everything was blurry, and I was praying. I was seriously probably just a few seconds from going in to a seizure and felt like I was going to black out. I was about to call emergency myself, not knowing what would happen to my kids, how they'd notify Jon, etc. when the glucagon shot kicked in and started working. Jon called me about 30 min later and came home.

Thankfully, I'm doing fine tonight. But I don't think I've ever been so scared. I informed Jon that I need a way to be able to reach him if he's not at his desk, to get someone in the building to track him down. We're going to be teaching Zach more about my diabetes and what to do if mommy is having a serious issue, like today. Tonight, we're just thanking the Lord that I am okay, and praying nothing like this happens again any time soon.

Schooling, work and travel

Life has been busy, as always. We've begun to homeschool, Z in kindergarten and H in preschool. It's going much better than I ever imagined and I'm really enjoying it. We still need to figure out some kinks, but it's not bad. I'm making sure I hit the main subjects, and still want to touch on the 'extra' stuff more. My favorite comment recently is "Z, what sound does an 'e' make?" .... "Umm, the same sound as yesterday." Ok, thanks kiddo lol! He's got lots of answers like that.

We haven't been doing much bike riding, because almost immediately after we got back from our trip, Jon had to work 14 days in a row, for 14-15 hrs a day. It was exhausting, and we're so glad that time is over! However, while the girls and I went to a birthday party yesterday, hubby and Z went on a TWENTY MILE bike ride!!!

Aside from that, the other thing keeping me busy lately is I finally called and made all of our 'annual' appointments for the first time since we got here, and some others I needed. We've all got our annual physicals, are about to have dentists appointments for all, endocrinologist for my diabetes, ENT for H (She may get her tonsils removed), etc. So, yeah, those have kept me very busy and hard to have extra time. Plus, MOPS and Bible study have started back up.

Tomorrow is October in Germany. What does that mean? Octoberfest! What's it mean for us? well, ok, nothing ;-) We actually have a lot of plans, but none actually include a festival full of beer (Not saying we won't be drinking at any festivals though haha). I will be heading to a Catholic women's conference, ALONE, for 4 days. I absolutely cannot wait for some alone time, focusing on God and hearing what He has for me. This is something I have definitely need for oh... 6 years or so?? LONG overdue.

Jon will be going back to the states for several days to be the best man in his best friends' wedding. We're really excited for P and his new bride. I wish I could be there as well. P is one of the ones that introduced my husband and I, so he's very special to us. And, the other incredible part of Oct is my parents are coming!!! I cannot wait. When they come to town, we have plans for Paris and Europa Park, and hopefully several day trips.

Any way, that's a quick update. Life has been flying since we got back from our trip, but overall it's been good. Oh, and please continue to keep our family in your prayers, as we're trying to discern several things in our life right now. Thanks! And God bless all of you! :)

One Year Anniversary

It's hard to believe, but today marks our One Year Anniversary in Germany! The first six months were a struggle, but we have loved the past six months. We are amazed by the friendships God has given us. Friendships that are real, and challenge us, especially in our walk with God. We are still trying to be content in our current house, but are seriously praying about moving off base to a village in January or February. We have two more years here, but are hoping and praying we can extend for another 3 or 4 years. Not much time to blog today, but attached are a few pictures that would have been great to post with yesterday's post.

Zach and Hannah at a restplatz eating PBJs for dinner.

 Abby and daddy eating as well.

 I forgot to mention that we climbed to the top of the tower in the Stephansdom Cathedral. This was one view we had.

 Stephansdom

 In front of Stephansdom

 Inside Stephansdom ...

kids walking with Fr. Nathan

 Kids in the park with Father

 Family photo in the park

 Kids, hubby and Father playing in the park.

 The palace we saw

 Hubby and me, taken by Zach

 Being silly

 Hannah doing a flip in the middle of the street lol

 Abby getting a backride- sorry for the sideways pic.

Zach proud of the fish he helped cook.

 Zach with Brother Stephen, who taught him how to say "rod". :)

Austrian Vacation Part 1

Our big trip finally arrived. We were heading to Austria to visit my husband’s brother, Fr. Nathan. The trip was suppose to begin “early” Saturday morning, but Friday night, we found out Fr. Nathan would need us to pick him up from the train station late Saturday.  This meant that we weren’t suppose to leave until closer to 1pm. This allowed me to spend the morning doing a quick housecleaning, and I was so thankful knowing I was coming home to a clean house!

We picked Fr. Nathan up from the train, arriving just 10 minutes before he got in. This meant we made perfect time! We headed to the house that a lady owns, but allows the Legionaries of Christ to use. It’s a large farm house with it’s own small chapel, and it was beautiful. It was very interesting thinking about how we were sleeping in a house where Jesus was physically present. We got in very late, put the kids to bed, and Jon and I joined Father for a late evening mass.

The house is used as a retreat center for that area of Austria, and had a room with 4 beds that we used, two rooms for priests only, 2 rooms for others to stay in, a youth recreation room, a small conference type room, 2 kitchens, 2 bathrooms, a spare water closet (just the toilet), and a large room with extra mattresses for the youth to sleep on during camps over the summer. They are also doing other large renovations to the house.

The next morning, Sunday, we attended mass again in the chapel with Fr. Nathan, and then headed to Wein (Vienna), which was 2 hours away. In Vienna, we got to see St. Stephen’s Dom (said in German, not like our Steven) and it was beautiful. We also went to a large, nice park where we ate lunch, and then headed to the Legionarie’s house that is in Vienna, where we used the bathroom, enjoyed a nice cup of coffee, and played Hide and Go Seek with the kids for a few minutes. Afterwards, we went to the palace, where there were tons of horse-drawn carriages. The palace was huge and beautiful, and is the spot where Hitler gave a speech when he took over Austria. Then we headed back to “The White House”- the house where we were staying that was white. This is what Hannah called it. When we got home, we made brats and mac’n’cheese for a quick dinner.

One of the other brothers was there, Brother Steven, had (illegally) gone fishing that day and came home to clean and cook the fish. When Zach saw the fish, he got really excited and started following the Brother around and helping him clean the fish. Br. Steven is from Australia, with a great Australian accent. He decided to teach Zach about some things regarding fishing, such as what a rod and reel was. We all got a great laugh when Zach told us what the thing you use to fish with is a ‘rod’ with a very thick Australian accent. We couldn’t stop laughing, and he had no clue why we were laughing at him. It became a laughing point for the rest of the week.

The next day, we had mass at 8am again and set out for Salzburg. First we went to Hohenwerfen Castle, about 30 minutes from Salzburg. We ate lunch, and hiked up to the castle. We got a tour of the whole castle (with English audio guides), and got to watch an incredible falcon show on the castle lawn. Then we went in to Salzburg. Here, we went to Mirabel Gardens, where one of the scenes from The Sound of Music was filmed. We then went to look for some other sound of music scenes, but were in desperate need of dinner.

We were going to eat at a restaurant, but a lot of the places were expensive, or did not look at all child-friendly. I spotted an Imbiss type place (Imbiss is a German word for like a roadside stand) selling grilled cheese (Or “Cheese toast”), and brats and pommes mit ketchup (French fries with ketchup), so we bought food there, and ate on a staircase behind it. It was pretty good. When we were almost done with dinner, Father Nathan decided to do something for the first time ever, something he’d never done before. He caught a flying rat! AKA a pigeon! Gross!!! Then he was forbidden from touching the kids or anything else again until he could find a place to wash his hands.

Then, I needed more Euro, and there was a bank behind the Imbiss. In Europe, many banks have ATMs available inside the bank, but you have to use a debit card, any bank’s, to get in to the building. So, I went in and got some more Euro. We then walked around a bit more of the city. We were not able to go in, because it was so late, but we saw and took pictures of the gate where the VonTrapp’s were hiding in the cemetery of the convent. I hope to go back again one day and see it when it’s open.

I had taken pajamas with us, knowing we would leave Salzburg late, and we changed the kids in the parking garage, gave them a snack, and set out for the hour drive home. During the drive, they all fell asleep and stayed asleep into the house and bed. We were praising God.

Much more to come about the trip, but I don't want to make the posts too long, so I will add more in the coming days. 

Road sign

I found the picture I had been looking for. This is one we took before on a walk near a castle. But these signs are on trails everywhere, at every intersection! It's kind of cool. 

Bike riding in Germany

So, we've really been going on more bike rides lately, and they have been fun experiences!

We recently set out, went along our 'normal' course, and when we got to the flightline on base, my husband said "There's a road that apparently goes all the way around the flightline. I said "Sounds like fun! Let's go!" So, we did. We got to the other side of the flightline, away from the majority of the base. There, we found a "Do not enter" sign, that also included bikers and joggers. We took the other road, where a Military Police officer stopped us and informed us that in just a few feet, we'd be on the flightline. Therefore, we had to turn around and go all the way back. When we got home, my husband charted out our course online, and discovered we'd rode 11.6 miles! It was tough going so far, being a newbie to biking, but I was proud of how I kept pushing and got through.

Two days later, we went on another ride. I suggested we go off base this time. We began, at 7pm, on a long course, no idea where it was leading exactly. Eventually, two hours later, we ended up on a very busy road that led to the opposite gate. (Ie we live by the north gate and ended up at the south gate) When Jon checked out this course, it was 11.7 miles! This one was much more difficult that the flightline, because the flightline road was a road, nice and smooth. This course was old roads that are mostly gravel.

We had fun speculating that these were the roads used prior to the modern highway system. There are tons of gravel roads around the area, and they all have signs at the intersections, saying which way to which village and how far to that village. On the ride off base  I took a picture once of such a sign, but can't find the picture anywhere. :)

In great news though, I have lost 2.5 lbs from riding, wahoo! :) I'm sure the German pancake we just had for a late breakfast didn't help the weight though ;-)

Yesterday, we went back to Lusienpark. We got there about 1pm, knowing there was going to be a hot air balloon festival in the evening. We had a great afternoon, Jon and I split a beer and we enjoyed our favorite currywurst mit pommes frites (curryworst with french friends). The french fries are seasoned and seriously, some of the best fries I've ever had. :) Amazing for 'amusement park' food. We found a spot on the huge open field about 5pm, waiting for the festival. It was my understanding that the balloons would set up at 5:30, and then their would be a hot-air glow at 10:30. I hadn't really planned to stay there that late, but figured we'd play it by ear. The balloons did not set up at 5:30. In fact, we waited until 10pm, when they announced (by the best of Jon's translation abilities) that they would not be taking off because it was too windy. So we left, very bummed we were not able to see them. But at least we had a great day as a family.

Bike Rides and Parties

I need a light-hearted post I have decided, so here we shall talk about bike rides and parties, our normal life stuff. :)

Recently, my husband somehow convinced me that my bike was junkie, and I needed a new one. Low and behold, after I got the new one, my other one WAS junkie in comparison.

My husband rides his bike to work most days. We bought him a cheap, used, $50 bike when we first moved here almost a year ago, because I said before we spent a lot of money on it, he needed to show he was going to actually use it. (This sounds very "mommy" like, but it was agreed by both of us ;-)) So, he has, and he recently convinced me he also needed a new bike. He is 6'3, and a 16" bike is just difficult for him, so he got a new 18" to 21" bike. Today, we went on a bike ride with our new bikes, and the kids. Oh! Now's the perfect time to show you what our family bike ride looks like, minus me. :)

 This picture was last weekend, on his old bike. It's not a great one because Jon was wanting to go and getting frustrated I wanted to take a pic. But, he has Zach on the tagalong behind him, and the girls in the trailer behind that! He's amazing I tell you!!

After our 8 mile bike ride today, we headed to the park for our good friends' 3 year old's birthday party. Hannah was so excited and insisted on carrying her present, and took her "birthday book" with her to read to B. It was a book of prayers, and on one page, there as a cake, and Hannah really wanted to share the book with B.

I love Hannah's heart. She is almost always seeking God in some sweet, child-like way. She is often looking for Jesus in her play, loves to pretend her cups are the Blood and Body of Christ, loves to pretend she's in mass, puts her blanket on her head to be Mary, etc. She will tell us "I did XYZ because that's Love mommy, and Jesus likes it when we love others." I have been trying lately, when she's screaming a bloody fit about something, to think about her sweet, Christ-like moments and ponder them during the rough times.

The other normal thing we did was go to pick flowers the other day. In Germany, there are Blumen fields, and you go pick whatever flowers you want, and they cost €0.60 for each one you pick. So, for €4.20 I got all of these beautiful flowers.

**Disclaimer... they're prettier than they look, I just don't know how to arrange flowers well apparently, and it was 10pm when I took the picture. Oh, and they look like they're dying already, because I've inherited my mother's black thumb. My friend told me today to put sugar in the water, so I did. We'll see how they look in the morning.

This week was busy as well. On Tuesday, Jon had Schola practice, and then a Knights of Columbus meeting. Wednesday was the Feast of the Assumption, so we went to mass at 11:30, and then Jon returned at 7pm for the first Latin Mass at our parish, where he lead the Schola (Latin choir). There was some humor there, because of all days, he woke up with his voice partly missing. Therefore, he wasn't able to do all he was suppose to, but it still ended up okay. Apparently, they had 117 people there, which was more than at the other two masses! Rumor has it Father hopes to make it happen more often. I'm very proud of Jon and do enjoy seeing the enthusiasm he gets from the Latin mass.

Thursday night, my good friend and neighbor and I went out for her birthday. Her husband is deployed, and we've never gone out together, so I decided it was time! Jon was wonderful and watched all 5 kids. I took her to one of my favorite restaurants, an Italian place called Gabriella's. Her reply was "Why have I been putting up with the Macaroni Grill for a year?? This is delicious!" We enjoyed a glass of wine, Spatsele I believe it was, that we both thought was delicious. (I'm not a huge wine fan) I had Tortellini, and her a pasta and shrimp dish. Both were fabulous. Then they gave us a free shot of Apple Schnapps I think she said... Apple something. It was DELICIOUS so my friend asked where we could get it. It was homemade and they didn't sell it. Bummer! Then we decided I needed to show her around some areas off base, as she knows almost nothing of the villages. We ended up at Globus, a German grocery store, at 9:30. She hadn't realized they were opened until 10. There we bought several bottles of different Spatslese wines to try, yet we haven't drank them yet. Another night :)

Tomorrow, I am going to a baby shower for a dear friend here, who many would say is pregnant with a miracle baby. I don't feel comfortable sharing her story without her permission, but many are rejoicing in this little boy she is carrying. I can only stay for an hour, but I'm thankful I get to go. I have to leave early because one of the Legionary of Christ Brothers is coming in to town, for a short stop over at our house for the night. My husband knew him in high school and we got to spend time with him in Rome during Fr. Nathan's ordination. We're very excited about seeing him for a bit and going to mass with him tomorrow evening.

So, there you have it, a bit of the normal "What is going on in our lives."

God bless!