Last weekend I headed by train to Germany for what will likely be my last trip to see Leigh and her family. Seth and the boys came the next day to meet me in Germany. It was a bittersweet weekend. I helped her pack boxes and helped her throw Katy Jo’s 1st Birthday party. It was so much fun to get to be with them and it was good to feel like I could attempt to help when they are going through a rough time with Bo in the hospital and their upcoming move approaching. But since I am still in denial about their moving I will focus on the party.
A few months ago Leigh mentioned wanting to do a French cafe theme party. She sent me this link….
French Cafe Birthday
Here is the invitation, if I had had more time I would have redone it but it was a quick job and it was probably better because the perfectionist in me would have likely given up and told Leigh I couldn’t help with it. Better I just sent it as is.
And here is how the cafe turned out…
Leigh’s parents made an amazing awning and she borrowed her neighbors patio. It looked like a real cafe.
Leigh’s friend, Heidi, made the window boxes with paper flowers…she also made homemade chocolate eclairs! So yummy!
what’s a French cafe without sweet macaroons?!
Leigh’s friend, Stefanie, made delicious chocolate cupcakes!
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we used french yogurt containers on the cafe tables with a few daisies in them…when we go to France next week I have decided I will eat a daily yogurt so I can collect 10 more of these. Nope, not going for 10 days but maybe I can force feed some to my kid and Seth too!
Sweet birthday girl
KJ’s GiGi was in town helping out and made the yummy strawberry cake…and KJ’s daddy, Bo, got to leave the hospital for 2 hours to join in the fun!!
Jackson was reunited with his buddy Grayson. They were sitting on the step comparing bruises!
So cute together. I really wish they lived closer so the boys could play more!
Owen loved running in the grass and sneaking behind the bushes.
We all had a great time! Happy Birthday, Katy Jo! I hope I can help with your Sweet 16 one day…and your wedding! But that is way down the road. We want to keep enjoying you while you’re little! Thanks for sharing the past year with us! (ps-I’m sure glad I got to have pink heart-shaped waffles with you for breakfast and champagne mimosas with your mommy and GiGi to celebrate your mom successfully being a momma for a whole yr!!! )
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Some of you may or may not know that every few months we take a trek to Heidelburg, Germany to buy groceries at the commissary there. The reasoning isn’t that we miss Ranch dressing or salsa but that we can’t afford to buy groceries solely on the Swiss market. And the Embassy knows that and provides us with a base pass in Germany. I about died when we arrived and I did our first grocery shopping trip. Our social sponsor took me to the big grocery store to stock up. I got a cart full of basics and it cost over $400. No joke. This lasted us about a week and I was almost in tears to return to the store the following week! If I hadn’t been in so much shock I would have taken a picture of the receipt. In the future maybe I will do a blog on how much basics cost here like bread, milk, etc. Just for fun! I remember telling my friend Katie when we arrived that we would have to drive to Germany or France in order to buy full out groceries. She gave me such a hard time and teased how “bad” she felt that I would have to pop over to France for groceries. In all honesty, it isn’t a luxury to drive to another country for groceries. France being closeby is so nice, having to go there for food, not so nice. It isn’t a given that post will have a commissary. We had a small one in Bogota with “necessities” so it is really nice to have a full store in our part of Europe. We know our access is a luxury. Can we live without American products? Absolutely. Can we afford to buy only locally? Ummm, not so much.
Okay, back to Heidelburg. So basically in addition to a few treats we buy nearly all of the meat, paper goods, canned goods and bread we will need for 3-4 months. If we are having guests during those times we buy extra to make sure we can have plenty of meals to offer. It is a bigger job than I ever imagined to attempt to anticipate our grocery needs that far in advance. And an even bigger job to get there, buy that much food, pack it into coolers of ice in the trunk and make the trek back. My friend Leigh has been a trooper on 2 occasions and has made part of the trip with me. She has the benefit of getting a few American goodies but I score the bigger reward of getting a day with her, kid-free!!
A week or so ago Seth and I decided we needed to do a trip but I didn’t want to do the trip alone, and I really didn’t want him to do it alone. SO, in a moment of insanity we decided to make the trip again with both boys! In all reality the day went much better than I would have expected. We had moments of laughter and lots of moments when the boys were reaching to peel off the seal around the windows to make an escape from the car!
We left home at 8 AM and arrived home after 9 PM. Because it was a Friday and lots of people are Spring-breaking we ran into lots of traffic and slowdowns. We made the most of it and enjoyed some family time. We took a few videos and pictures throughout the day to document a typical Heidelburg grocery journey for you!
[youtube=http://youtu.be/SreddNWmBNg]
about 10 mins into the drive. We stopped for gas, trunk full of igloo coolers, and the boys already a bit edgy!
using his sleep sack to attempt a nap…trying to block us out
Blues skies and lots of fields of yellow goldenrod- looking flowers
miles and miles of cars…or kilometers and kilometers of cars, whichever you feel more comfortable with! For us it was miles and miles! We sang lots and lots of silly songs and attempted to lighten the mood. Sometimes our listeners welcomed our singing at other times it caused eruptions of whining and other potentially obnoxious behaviors. The good news is that our kids tend to take turns “having a moment”…well, it could be good news but really what it means it that when they each take a turn you potentially have many minutes occupied by someone’s turn.
3 1/2+ hours and we were finally getting close!! Hang in there boys!
As we approached the gate and sat in a line waiting for our passports to be checked Jackson made up a rap song…Seth did backup
[youtube=http://youtu.be/m0nG3y-6ivo]
After a quick lunch at the base food court the boys and Seth went to the park on base while I did the shopping.
Jackson immediately recognized the park as being just like the ones in the US that he went to with his cousins. It was padded ground, child-size climbing gear and there was even a safe section for Owen!
after the boys got refreshed and I had the majority of the shopping done they came to offer moral support on the final lap around the store. By the second cart, I was getting weary and wishing that Leigh was there to help me hunt for the final items on the list! Checkout took a good while. But can I just tell you how amazing it was that cheerful employees bagged my groceries for me. You bag your own groceries in Switzerland which is fine but with 2 carts full I may have melted on the floor in tears. It was so nice to have their help!
We loaded the car, buckled the boys in, refreshed their drinks and snacks and headed on our way.
(oh wait, don’t forget the potty. We strategically held Jackson’s potty out so that it wouldn’t get buried in the massive load of stuff….you are probably thinking for sanitary reasons, however it was for very practical potty emergency on roadtrip reasons. always thinking.)
[youtube=http://youtu.be/uwkYQ9oQJZE]
by 4 pm when we pulled out of the parking lot Jackson crashed! And we jumped right into a huge traffic jam!
We pulled over when we saw a family-friendly place called Schnitzel Huber. Turns out it really was family friendly and the boys were even able to play in a play corner. The food wasn’t as delicious as these boys in the sign make it looks but it was a perfect stop for weary travelers.
We got the boys in their pj’s after dinner, Jackson tried out the new hoola-hoop from the commissary to get the final energy out and we hopped back in the car for the final leg of the trip.
When we arrived home we got the boys in their beds and began to unload the groceries. I meant to count the bags and show you all of the organization of the giant freezer but by then I was a tad bit worn out and had to focus on unloading the slightly defrosted items.
above is one of the loads…this doesn’t include the freezer or fridge stuff. And I meant to take a picture of the receipt. It was as tall as me! After previously budgeting more on a weekly basis it can be frightening to buy for a few months!
In the end we forgot Dr. Pepper for Seth. So sad. That is one of the treats I always bring back for him. Poor guy! If that is the only thing we forgot though in our 14 hour journey I would say we did pretty well!
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We have joked about someday having a guest home or B&B. Since being in Switzerland we have had lots of practice! Last weekend we had the calendar booked for Bo and Leigh and Katy Jo to come spend the weekend to kick off their Spring break. A couple of days before, Leigh called and asked if their friends the Higg’s could come along! Why of course! The more the merrier. The Higg’s family also work at Black Forest Academy and have 2 little boys. And more importantly, they are also from Texas!
The gang arrived Friday night and we all had a fun evening grilling and making homemade ice cream. The kids played until they all crashed. The next morning when we were all up and ready we headed to Neuchatel. It is a beautiful town in the French part of Switzerland. We originally went because we had heard there was a big brocante/antique sale. When we got there and realized you had to pay to even get in we decided to just enjoy the gorgeous city. We browsed the Saturday market and let the kids have some run time in and around the daffodils. Our other motive for going to Neuchatel was that they have Domino’s. We can’t get an American pizza here so it was a big treat. We picnicked by the lake and had a hard time leaving because it was so beautiful. We came back home for another evening of grilling and chilling. We had dinner after the kids went to bed which was a big treat.
Owen teasing KJ with flowers
Seth, excited for Domino’s!
Sunday morning, Stefanie and Alex made us a delicious omelet breakfast. After breakfast we went down for some river time. The little boys young and old enjoyed skipping rocks. After some fun play time Bo and Leigh had prepared a big picnic spread. I don’t know if any of us could even fit a picnic after all of our eating throughout the weekend but who could resist?!
Owen, learning to skip rocks
after skipping a few rocks Jackson decided he needed to rest….I guess he missed that nap from the day before.
Jackson’s friend Ella from school and her family ended up picnicking next to us!
The weather for the weekend and the views of the mountains could not have been more beautiful. With 11 people in the house, including 5 kiddos, you would expect chaos. But the kids played really well and Jackson loved having a live-in buddy. And I think all of the adults really enjoyed themselves too! It was a nice break from normal routine. We all enjoyed watching each others children and knowing that we are all in the same boat…the same crazy, rocking, kid boat.
Someone please check on me in August after Leigh has moved back to the US. We are savoring every minute!!! Switzerland is much more beautiful with my best friend close by! We have met lots of great people but you all know how it is, there is something so nice and comforting about having someone from home.
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