Funny Faces

"I told you, I don't want my picture taken!"

"Wow, my mom gave me my own ice cream cone (and I kind of don't know what to do now)."

"But italian ice cream is YUMMY!"

(Note: This was on my birthday, and while James and his mom & dad were trying to find a bathroom, the boys and I stayed behind to finish our ice cream, but the ice cream was SOOO good and since it was MY birthday, I went back in and bought the three of us each another cone!)

"Hee-hee, I'm riding on the top of a double-decker bus, without a car seat or even a seatbelt!" "Rome is cool!"

"Why does my mom keep following me around?" "I'm NOT going to smile!"

"Seriously?"

Until later,

Emily

Like Father, Like Son!

Thomas and James sitting on ancient toliets in Ostia, Italy--October 8, 2009.

Until later,

Emily

Ostia, Italy--Oct 8, 2009

By some miracle I actually caught Toby smiling last week AND my camera took the pic at exactly the right millisecond! Thomas is a smiler but he can also have an attitude or be silly about his smile. It's always something. At least I think they both have clean faces and clothing. And this is what they really look like. I think these two pics will be my 2009 pics in my frames at home--good enough!

Until later,

Emily

One by One

The whole Snow family has managed to get sick to one degree or another this week. Toby was first, and now he is definitely on the mend. I was next, and while I wouldn't say I feel good now, I can honestly say I feel better than Sunday/Monday. The body aches I experienced were awful! Now, I'm just dealing with major sinus pressure and a nasty sore throat. How sad is that when that is relief? Some where in there James said he wasn't feeling well, either but I would say his symptoms are the mildest. He's a big baby when he's sick and he hasn't been too bad. Thomas came home yesterday from school fevered at 102℉, spent the entire evening on the couch but was back to normal this morning, all except for a nasty cough. So, I think we've successfully been sick and now today I will clean and sanitize everything because tomorrow Grandpa Dennis and Grandma Sherry are coming to visit us for 10 days!

Until later,

Emily

Quiet as a Mouse...but at Times Barking Like a Seal!

On Friday, Toby was diagnosed with Croup. His German pediatrician is on holiday so I had to take him to the general practice doctor in my neighborhood. (I tried seeing the base docs but they weren't taking civilians that day.) The nice thing was that we literally walked there. The bad thing was the language barrier was great. I was able to learn that he has croup, he is contagious and he offered to write me out a prescription for ibuprofen (yes, you have to have a prescription to get it here, luckily we have "base rights" so that is not an issue for us) and a prescription for something to help with the symptoms, which turned out to be an herbal concoction of Thyme and Ivy. Thank goodness for friends and family that have experienced Croup and for the internet. I really, really hate living here when we are sick.

He has been fevered, and when he coughs, he sounds like a seal. He lost his voice Saturday afternoon. He wants to watch movie after movie, which is just not like him.

Tonight, we are seeing glimpes of naughtiness in Toby, so we are hoping that he might be on the mend. However, I am also not feeling the best, with a fever and really bad body aches. Oh, the fun of cold & flu season begins!

Until later,

Emily

Ten Months in Frankfurt

While James was on his TDY, his office finally relocated to the Frankfurt Consulate. The move has been a long time coming. For a while they were thinking about moving to the Kaiserslautern area and if that would have happened, there would have been a good chance that we would have moved into a different home. But, then, they decided that renovating the building available was going to be a nightmare so that was shelved. So then they found out that there was space at the consulate. The date kept getting pushed back all summer long but it finally happened last week.

Now James will be driving a little bit longer drive to Frankfurt (because we did not have to move) with heavier traffic and will also spend quite a bit time commuting back and forth from Frankfurt to Darmstadt to support the US military team that he works with (they didn't move to the consulate). In other words, his productivity is going to go way down due to driving and the fact that his work station isn't just an elevator ride away any more. I think it will prove to be a VERY long 10 months... (for all).

Until later,

Emily

And...He's Back!

James returned last night from a 9-day TDY to Norway, Moldova and Norway again.   He was on an inspection...and now he's exhausted.  All went mostly well at home, I got an intestinal virus last weekend, but the kids were as close to angels as they could be so that was a good thing.  It was a busy, busy week but everything worked out.  Sometimes I don't mind it when he travels a bit because I have a little more flexibility in the evenings only because I don't have to cook real dinner.  The kids couldn't care less if they have pizza, waffles, mac-n-cheese, hot dogs...and if I feel like eating at 5:00 we can or push it back to 7:00 that's OK too.  I also really like reading in bed.  James gets irritated. 

So, he arrived home last night at about 10 PM, as I said exhausted.  Today, I co-hosted a baby shower for my friend G, only it wasn't at my house (those are the BEST kind to co-host!), this has been my mental "reward" for getting through the past 9 days...I knew when the 9 days were up I would basically get a day with the girls.  Good food, good times and the kids had bonding time with James!

Until later,

Emily

My Grease Monkey!

I can't believe I didn't take pictures of this...but I didn't! (It had to do with me not wanting him to get anything on me, the cat, clothing, etc...)

Last night, I could hear Toby playing with his toothbrush.  I thought he was trying to brush his teeth, it kept hitting the sink in the "guest bathroom" where we keep Thomas and Toby's toothbrushes and there is also a step-stool.  Mind you, I was in my bedroom 20 feet away.  But the sounds sounded familiar and at this point in the evening I really didn't care if his clothes got wet...he was getting bathed soon.

So a few minutes later, he came hopping into my bedroom, proud as can be and said, "Mommy, Mommy, look at my hair!" all the while patting the top of his head and still be very confidant and proud in what he had done.

What had he done?  He got into the vaseline and applied it to the top of his head. Probably 1/3 of a jar just smeared into his hair!  Not his forehead, but his curly blonde locks.  He has had his hair washed 8 times already, 3 times with salon clarifier and baking soda.  I think it will probably take another 8 times until it is normal.  At least now, it just looks like it should be crunchy, it's only when you touch it that you realize that it's actually very greasy.

Until later,

Emily

Our Weekend Getaway!

This weekend, James and I left our kiddos with our good friends, and neighbors, the W family.  We share a duplex with them.  We took their little boy the weekend before so they could get away. So this was our turn for a getaway!  It was sort of our belated anniversary trip, which we celebrated 11 years on August 21st, by the way! We even drove the Mini...we felt so European zooming around in our little car!

We went down to Luxembourg on Saturday and then spent the day in Trier, Germany on Sunday.  I don't think either of us cares if we ever go to Luxembourg again but this was our second time to Trier and we liked it.  James especially loved touring the remains of the gladiator coliseum.

On our way there AND on our way back, we also swung in to the Ramstein Air Base and checked out their new mall.  Truth be told, it's not all that impressive, there isn't a whole lot of new selection that we haven't been able to get except now the stores are bigger and brighter but the inside of the mall looks like a real mall and not a run-down Kmart!  There is also a decent food court and best of all (the real reason we stopped) a fully-functioning Macaroni Grill!  It did not disappoint and I can tell you right now I will most likely gain some poundage when we move home...I'm so ready for eating at restaurants again!  Eating at restaurants over here is such a drag.

Anyhow, it was fun to spend some time alone and realize that when the every day stress is peeled away, we really do get along rather well.

Until later,

Emily

I Remember...

Today is September 11th.  It has been eight years since the terrible terrorist attacks.  I think this day will always be somber day for me and I will always remember those hours that I wondered if James was safe (James worked in the DC area) and not being able to get  through to him because all cell phones were out and I didn't know if he ever made it to work or not (I later found out the building was evacuated) and thinking, now he never said anything about having to go to the Pentagon today did he? And trying to reassure myself that he didn't so he wasn't there.  But still your mind does crazy things at times like these. And still, I continued on with my day (looking back I honestly don't know how I didn't just tell my boss I was going home!)...eventually James walked into my place of work and I was relieved.  I think that thankfulness will always be intertwined with the thankfulness that our good friend, Rebeccah's, brother was also spared from harm or death that morning, he worked at one of the WTC buildings and his train was running late that morning.

Until later,

Emily

"You Heet Me!"

Last week, the first week of school, I couldn't find Toby's beloved brown crocs one morning.  We were out-of-time  so I threw on some boat shoes that haven't had a lot of wear because the brown crocs are so gosh darn beloved!

Well, the shoes ended up giving Toby a blister, a pretty big one at that.  The blister was sore and that scab on it has been disturbed more than once, so it starts to bleed and I know it hurts.  However, Toby has been on a shoe strike and now he likes to say, "You heet me!" to everything, not just my attempts at putting on shoes, but also combing his hair, brushing his teeth, putting on his clothes, etc, etc.

Until later,

Emily

Blondie

(A very tired Blondie)

Just like last summer, I keep getting comments about Toby's blonde hair.  Yep, it's still blonde--and he's 2 1/2! Where did it come from? Well, I was blonde when I was little and each year it got a little darker and darker.  As his is doing. (Scroll down to the bottom of my blog to see his hair a year ago, in the "Blue-eyed boys" pic.)  He also won't wear a hat...I know, GASP, so his hair is very, very sunbleached.  No, I don't "help it out to make it that way" nor do I something special to make his hair go curly...sometimes it is and sometimes it isn't.  Humidity and sweat bring out the curl.  Oh, I do leave it long on the top--that's a sneaky trick!

Until later,

Emily

All My "Kids" Like to Play with Trains!

July 21, 2009

Until later,

Emily

Inevitable!

Until later,

Emily

Thomas' First Day of First Grade

(For more info about the strange-looking gigantic cone that Thomas 

is holding, please see my post below this one!)

Thomas started first grade today. He was excited, he woke up 45 minutes earlier than he needed to, even 15 minutes earlier than I needed to! I am involved in a carpool with my neighbor that lives across the street. Although it was technically her day to drive, I decided to take Thomas on my own to make sure he got settled in OK, afterall, the first day of school can be kind of chaotic. 

So Toby and I walked Thomas into school. It was a piece of cake. He was the first boy to arrive and it was funny to see how he went to a set of tables all alone, and waited for the other boys to arrive. By the time I left he had three other boys hovering around him and they were playing with some sort of lego-like pieces. All the girls were at some other table doing something girlish, I have no idea what.

I went next door and wished Tristan (our neighbor) a nice first day at school and then peeked in at Thomas one last time (we had already said good-bye), he caught me, smiled but then gave us that look, you know the one--the "Mom what are you guys still doing here?" look.

And so, that was that. Not a tear was shed and all was well. He'll be home in an hour and fifteen minutes. Toby sleeps and the house is silent all but the ceiling fans.

Until later,

Emily

Schultüten

In Germany, it is tradition to give your child that is entering the first grade a "Schultüten" (school cone).  It typically has school supplies and "sweets" in it.  Although Thomas doesn't actually attend a German school, I was prepared with his own Schultüten so he wouldn't be the "only kid" in the class without one.  Turns out he was one of two that did have one, and actually we left his in the car with the understanding that I would go back and get it if it seemed like most of the kids also had one. He decided it was OK if we left it in the car, I guess this was one of those instances where it was "better to be safe then sorry" and we were safe!  Just a little history on this funny, yet cute, little traditon:

The tradition dates back to 1810, when the first candy cones made the children’s eyes sparkle in Thuringia and Saxony. According to the legend, at the teacher’s home there stands a tree which is decorated with a candy cone for every child. Once the tree has matured, it is time to begin school and the candy cones are handed out to the children. In those days, the godparents gave the children the cone-shaped, colorful packages, which were filled only with sweets. In eastern Germany, the kindergarteners even had a candy cone party, at which the soon-to-be first-graders were promenaded before the families before being allowed to remove a candy cone from a beautifully decorated tree. Nowadays, candy cones can be bought in all shapes and sizes, decorated in a wide variety of patterns, and are filled with school materials, small trinkets, toys, and sweets.

My neighbor, Simone, suggested I give Toby a small Schultüten of his own.  It was a great idea!

Back-to-School!

Tomorrow morning, Thomas goes back to school.  He will be in the First Grade.  Yesterday, someone asked me, "How does it make you feel to think that he'll be in the First Grade?" I answered him honestly when I said it's not that big of a deal because last year, when he was in Kindergarten (although his school calls in "Primary") he went all-day, so we kind of went through all the "big deals" all in one year.

Thomas was able to meet his new teacher on Friday and got to see which kids were in his class.  He was hoping that Calvin, Tristan and Ben were in his class.  Calvin is.  Tristan's in the other class and a huge surprise--Ben's parents pulled him out of the International school and enrolled him in the local German school instead.  But, the disappointment didn't last long because after all the silly boy Calvin is in his class so all is well.

Thomas has his bright orange t-shirt with Transformer's on the front along with the jeans with the skulls on the pockets picked out for the first day of school.  I have his gym bag packed. And his backpack and lunchbag all ready to go.

So, tomorrow, we start a new school year.  One that doesn't seem all that different from last year.  Thomas isn't nervous...he told me himself it's not that big of a deal--it's the same school and a lot of the same kids are in his class, the only thing that is different is that he has a new teacher.  My carpool days are the same and Thomas is thrilled to be riding with Tristan again all year.  Truth be told, I would have put him on the bus this year but it helps out Tristan's mom on the days that she works (those are my "permanent" driving days) and Friday's we alternate--sort of.

I am sure Toby will wander around most of the week, missing his big brother.  His schedule will have to be adjusted somewhat because he is generally still sleeping during the time that we will have to leave to pick Thomas up from school.  In September, I am going to start hitting the gym a couple times a week and he will go to daycare.

Speaking of Toby, I have had two different people (they were German) ask me within the past two weeks "If I'm going to put him into the German kindergarten this year?"  you see in Germany, they start attending "kindergarten" at age 3.  Toby WILL be three (where does the time go) in January...but I'm not interested in sending him to the German kindergarten (it's nothing more than daycare).  He can go to daycare (US military) this year when I need to do something without him (gym, doctors appointments, hair and nail appointments or any other thing that a 2 1/2 year old shouldn't tag along to) but that will be enough for this year.  I'll probably want him to start attending some kind of preschool next year when he's 3 1/2...and that is soon enough for him, in my own opinion.

Until later,

Emily

It's Been Two Years!

Two years ago today we boarded that plane to Germany.  As most of you know, we "put in" to leave 30 days early next summer so we should be leaving sometime around the 2nd week in July.  For months now, I have been counting down to July 9, not that that is the exact date that we'll leave but it should be close.

So, we reached July 9 and I was filled with joy and thrilled for about two weeks and then it hit me...this is coming to an end and as hard as it has been, it hasn't been all bad and I will miss some things, some people and I hate goodbyes and change.  I know where I'm going back to and certain aspects of that won't change but I know many things will.  Three years is a long time to be away.  There are also a couple of huge trials that we will be facing almost immediately when we hit the DC area...things that we can't worry too much about over here so we try not to.

James' position has been posted and we are starting to hear "bits and pieces" about the time off he has earned when we leave here and the fact that we don't have to fly to DC first after all.  So, my MD friends, looks like we're going to fly right over and join our families in Utah before eventually making it to MD sometime mid-August. Please don't take it personally.

Until later,

Emily

Taunus Wunderland

July 11, 2009

We went to Taunus Wunderland with our friends the W family. In Germany, amusement parks are a little different. This park was kind of amusement park/county fair/I've never seen anything like it...except that I had seen something similar when I went with Thomas to Lochmülle in May. They did have some "real" rides, they also had rides that had no operator (that is odd), you just load your kids up and then go press a green button. The safety standards are also quite relaxed. I found it interesting that you could take a 18 month old toddler on a ride where in the States they would probably have to be 8 or 9--just hold on tight! I also found it quite interesting that the bumper cars didn't have an operator so your kid could ride as long as he or she wanted and you just had to wait for said kid to get bored (consequently Thomas didn't get to drive the bumper cars!). It was an interesting day, but we all ended up having a fun time!
































Until later,

Emily

Spoiled Children

Today, for lunch, I served Thomas and Toby leftover mac-n-cheese from yesterday. Thomas declared that, "I don't like this mac-n-cheese today, it doesn't taste so good." To which I replied, "Well, that's probably because it's leftover from yesterday." To which Thomas replied, "What's 'leftover?'"

Until later,

Emily

All Thomas Wants for Christmas...

May 22, 2009




May 25, 2009




Until later,

Emily

A New Family Pic

June 27, 2009

Schloss Linderhof
(Linderhof Palace)

Located in the Bavarian Alps.

Ice Age III

Today, I decided to take both of the boys to see Ice Age III. I was taking Thomas to see kid movies at the theater much earlier than 2 1/2 but we all know Toby is not Thomas. However, they were showing it at 4:00 PM, so I thought we'd give it a try. Since I was going alone, I knew buying the popcorn and drinks and keeping track of Toby was going to be tricky. So, I threw on his little monkey back-pack, which is actually a harness and leash for kids but looks much cuter, and I managed.

Once the movie started, the boys seemed to be happy with their drinks and popcorn and I thought, "Well, Toby's doing better then I expected." Until about half way through when he got a little antsy. Luckily, we had about 20 empty seats all around us and he still had his monkey on his back. So, I allowed him to wander around the length of the tail. He'd wander around a bit, then would come back to his seat.

So, would I do it again? Probably, if it was a definite kids show and probably if it was showing at 4:00 PM. I think the 7:00 show was probably more crowded and because of bed time, things could get even more interesting if he started to get cranky.

Until later,

Emily

We Officially Have One Year to Go!

July 9, 2010 we will be boarding a jet plane back to the United States.  That's right exactly one year from today.  Now, I  REALLY don't know the exact date that we will leave...but it will be right around there.  I can't describe it accurately but oh, what a relief today when I realized that today was July 9th.  It was hard last summer when we made the decision to extend an extra year, it was almost like that first year counted for nothing and we had to start the clock over.  But of course, it wasn't for nothing and I hope one day it will pay off for James' career (because it surely hasn't paid off in the short-term, it's actually hindered his career--but that's a whole other story!).  

So, for the next year, we will focus on the traveling that we can get in and all of the "lasts" that we will do.  Our last Fall driving along 455 (the most beautiful leaves I have ever seen), our last Lamplighter Fair, our last Christmas markets, our last spectacular New Year's Eve fireworks, etc.  I know it will go by fast and I will probably be sad when it is time to leave.  But more sad to leave friends behind and sad that we didn't get to do "more".  I have grown to really love the neighborhood we live in, it will be hard to leave Thomas' school and it will be hard to say goodbye to the extra money that this assignment gives James.  And none of us are looking forward to James' DC commuting again, although his commute isn't that great here either, but at least he gets to go at a decent speed and not barely moving along the spur and up 270.  But, beyond that...I think we will all be ready to leave here next summer and move onto the next chapter in our lives.

Until later,

Emily

Way Too Hot!

We arrived back in our part of Germany on Wednesday night.  More about that later. Apparently, the "heat wave" struck a few days ago.  I have always considered myself to be a summer girl, I love the sun, I love getting a tan...but I do not like being in a hot house.  In Germany, *most* homes do not have A/C...some businesses do, some stores do, but many do not. We open the windows, turn on the fans and we even have 2 portable A/C units but they don't do much more than take the temps down a few degrees in the rooms they are in.  I haven't been able to sleep for the past two nights.  Although it's not because I'm hot because one of the A/C units is in my bedroom--the hottest room in the entire house.

The first night we got back, Toby slept the night in his room but Thomas joined us in our room shortly after midnight.  Tonight, Thomas couldn't fall asleep in his room because it was just too hot.  Again, Toby fell asleep in his room, but I was surprised to walk into my room and find Thomas on the floor in a slumber bag and Toby sleeping in the pack-n-play.  Apparently, James decided it's just entirely too hot for any family member to sleep in this heat so everyone is fast asleep in my bedroom--except me--not quite sure what my problem is but I can't sleep.  And it's not like I'm stressing out over something yet my body says it is...I hope it's just the heat making me a little nutty.  

This is my first whole summer here in Germany (and MY LAST--I'm getting so giddy, it's kind of funny--I think I am getting that first glimpse of the light at the end of the tunnel), last summer, I spent 2 months in Utah, came back to Germany and we were wearing jackets within a week.  I ran into a friend today at the commissary and she said it's usually like this for 2-3 weeks.  I'm going to try to find a wading pool for the kiddos today. Although the 5-day forcast does show slight cooling and quite a bit of rain...I can't believe I'm looking forward to rain but I am...

And all of this does make me realize how hard it's going to be stepping off that plane next July in Washington DC...(but here I go again...getting excited!)

Until later,

Emily

Swimming with Fearful and Fearless

A friend of mine and I decided to take our kids "somewhere fun" since it was their last day of school. It was actually her idea, and her family really, really wanted to go swimming. She has 4 children, ages 7, 5, 3 and 4 months. So, you could say she had her hands full (but she handled everything quite nicely!), but I felt like I was going to have my hands full with Thomas (the Fearful) and Toby (the Fearless), nevertheless, I thought I had to give it a try...it's going to be an awfully long summer if we don't get out and do some fun things every once in a while.

You see, Thomas, not surprisingly, has been quite fearful of the water. He had gotten a lot "better" last summer, but it has been almost a year since he has had the chance to swim. Playing in the mudponds at Playmobil FunPark does not count! So I did not know what to expect from him and how demanding he was going to be of me.

Then, there is Toby, last year, he didn't really like the water, but I thought it was mainly because he thought the water was too cold. I had no idea of what to expect; except the worst!

I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised to see that Thomas really did pick up right where he left off...as long as he is wearing the water wings he is not afraid and had a great time! I was also pleasantly surprised to find out that Toby really doesn't care for the water. Not that he was afraid of it and trying to climb up my legs when he got near it, but he was perfectly content to walk around "the beach" of the wave pool and get wet up to his ankles! I am quite OK with the fact that he isn't wanting to dive in or go off the diving board at the age of two!

One humorous aspect of my first time swimming at a German swimming pool: the dressing room is Unisex. Yes, you read that correctly. Although, the dressing room itself has lots of private dressing stalls (which we used), my friend told me she has seen more naked men in the dressing rooms of swimming establisments while living here in Germany, then she ever wanted to in her whole life! I didn't see any naked men and that didn't hurt my feelings.

Until later,

Emily

Last Day of School for Thomas!

Today was Thomas' last day of school. He passed Primary and will be onto Grade 1 in August! His class had a waffle party that morning and his neat teacher put together a cute slide show of the children. It was funny to see how young they all looked at the beginning of the school year. Thomas said good-bye to his teacher, Natalie, who moved back to the States the very next day. She was a great teacher. He gets eight week off and goes back on August 21st.

Until later,

Emily

Another Close-Call!

Today, I was at a friend's house, when all-of-a-sudden it got too quiet. Her older kids were around, but Toby and her 1 1/2 year old were not. She said, "I have a feeling they are outside." and ran outside...sure enough, they had gone outside, crossed the street and were walking down the sidewalk about three homes down the street. When we yelled out their names, they turned around and looked at us like "What? We're going for a walk!"

They say a cat has nine lives...I'm not sure how many Toby has, but he has certainly had some close calls lately! He's dangerous, I tell ya!

Until later,

Emily

No Fear

Toby has no fear. Well, he doesn't exactly like being left with a babysitter but besides that, he really is fearless. To the point that he is scary. Take tonight, for instance...I was busy cooking dinner, Thomas and a friend had been playing in the back yard with Toby and decided to go to the park next to our house. Thomas is 6, his friend is 8 so them going by themselves is OK, after all, it is right next to our home.

So, I was cooking dinner and assummed that Toby was in the back yard playing. Mind you, I had the radio on, two fans on, two pots of water were boiling so I very easily missed the sounds of Toby opening our front door and going outside (he did not shut the door, or I would have known he had gone out). So, he went down the stairs, into the street and walked to our park. I was at the sink peeling potatoes when I saw him walk past my car. The big boys went to the park and that sounded like a good idea to him, too!

I usually lock the front door with a key from the inside but it wasn't locked because the big boys went through the front to go to the park. They can no longer go around the side of the house from the back to get to the park because I've put up a fence to keep Toby in the back...and safe. Safe and Toby...it's not working out so well.

Until later,

Emily

The "Mean" Rain

Last night, right before the boys' bedtime, a pretty serious rain and thunder storm rolled in. Toby was absolutely terrified and we had a hard time getting him to go to sleep. I had to rock him for a while, while the thunder rumbled and the lightening struck all around us.

He turned to me and said, "mean rain, mean rain, da rain is nauny (naughty)"

Until later,

Emily

Why?

How quickly "What's dat?" has been replaced by "Why?" in our conversations with Toby. And he says it with such sincerity, too, that's what is so cute about it...but it has still gotten old.

Until later,

Emily