More Christmas!

I wanted to add a few more pictures from our celebration. The missionaries joined our Nativity production (Elders Johl and Ricker) and were good sports, especially Johl who was the donkey. The kids pretty much got what they wanted, bikes and a Wii (thanks to Grandma Fraze's shipping savvy :) We ended the day with a walk at Versailles with Darren & Tisha--brr! It was wonderful to have family with us since we're usually on our own. God bless us, everyone.

Joyeux Noel

Merry Christmas everyone! We had a great time with the festivites from school concerts, Christmas lights in Paris, Christmas eve with the missionaries, to Christmas day with Darren & Tisha. They arrived safely and have been enjoying Versailles and Paris, yet have to deal with the dreaded jetlag. We will be leaving for Bretagne/Brittany on Saturday so we've got lots to do before then. We've rented a house in Cancale, on the coast not far from Saint Malo and of course, Mont Saint Michel. We'll also hit the Normandy beaches since Darren & Tisha haven't been there. So much to see and do, so little time!

The kids had a wonderful Christmas morning and pretty much got what they wanted--bikes and a Wii (thanks Grandma Fraze :) We were also humbled by the Spirit of our Savior, Jesus Christ, as we had the opportunity to help out some members and friends from our church. We are truly grateful for our blessings both physical and spiritual.

Happy 38th Birthday, Mark

Mark feted his 38 years on Dec. 9. We had a low key, Sunday celebration with the family. Just having him home is a reason to celebrate. Now I'm not one of these people who posts pictures of their meal/dessert from the Cheesecake Factory (come on, get a life :), but I added a photo of his lovely three mousse chocolate bday cake. We love you, Mark, Dad, Hambo, whatever you are called!

Medieval Times & Tribal Dances

Both Mason & Marina had big days at school last week. Mason's grade wrapped up their Middle Ages unit with a big costume bash celebration while Marina's showed off their knowledge of different tribal games and dances. Strangely, Mason couldn't get enough of the camera while Marina avoided it like the plague (get it, like the medieval plague?). I'm losing it.

Mason was a thief and really enjoyed himself. I also saw plague victims, monks, court jesters, wenches--without cleavage, thank you :), and lots of historical figures. It's so much fun to see your kids enjoying history, learning in general, without worrying about being teased since everyone's doing it. School can be cool!

Turkey, Strings & Spiderman

What do these things have in common?  Other than our children, nothing at all.  I'm late with the Thanksgiving picture but that's fine since this one is rather silly.  Nico and his friend, Andrew, decided to stack two chairs and play on the computer together.  The guys next to them are missionaries from our LDS Church.  They teach anyone wanting to learn more about the gospel and are all miles from home for two years.  So, it's fun to have them over and our kids love having them around, too.

One day Nico decided to climb from floor to ceiling via his bedroom door.  I guess the winter boredom is getting to him!  The boy is part monkey, part crazy.  I really want to enroll him in a gynmastics class but I'm not sure how he'll do in the French setting.  Probably after the holidays...  For now, he needs to get over his month of ear infections and general cold troubles, poor little guy.

Marina had her String Recital, playing "Minuet No 3" by Bach.  Ooh la la.  She did a fantastic job, and we also enjoyed her string ensemble's rendition of "The Holly and the Ivy" and the timeless classic, "Jingle Bells."  There were many beginners this year which reminded us how far Marina has come and how nice it is to see more picking up the instrument.   On another note, Mason has Medieval Day this Friday, so I'll post some more hopefully this weekend.  The 6th graders have been studying the Middle Ages and even got to watch some Monty Python Holy Grail action.  Mason said it was the best social studies class ever!  :)

Meuse-Argonne Part II

Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery

We've/I've wanted to visit this WWI cemetery for a while, but each time we passed the way was never the right time!  We had to make a 3 hr. detour on our way home from Germany.  It's quite far out in the middle of nowhere and I understand why it doesn't receive as nearly as many visitors as the WWII beaches in Normandy.  However, there are over 14,000 American soldiers buried here (blowing Normandy out of the water in terms of numbers).  It's a very sobering place and we were honored to visit.  I hope the kids will remember the feelings and sights of the cemetery.

Legoland

Legoland was the reward for all the upheaval of traveling here and there. We had a great time and I even got to participate in an Einstein-themed show. It's pretty silly trying to understand German and having the actor playing Einstein speak to you in broken English and French (he couldn't decide which :) Emma was a bit small for the rides, Mason a bit old, and Marina and Nico just right for everything in between. Actually, I'm with Mason to believe that Legoland San Diego is still the best, and going on a ride that turns you every which way is not our idea of fun. He takes after me, while the others are more daredevil like their Dad!

More from Germany

There are just too many pictures and not enough time in the day to post them! I really should be in bed (a common theme in my life lately), however, my kids are enjoying seeing themselves on the internet. Some of the pictures are from Frankfurt, Rothenburg, and Legoland. We had a great time, and on the way home, stopped at the Meuse Argonne American Cemetery in the middle of nowhere, France. I'll make a separate post for that one.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! We will celebrate on Friday when Mark is home from his trip. Our family is grateful for all of you reading this, and we count our blessings that you are in our lives.

Halloween 2007

I don't have a picture of my little dumplings all dressed up together, but here are few of them in action with their friends. Emma was a ladybug, Nico was Harry Potter, Marina was Hannah Montana (demented Halloween version?), and Mason was an alien. The American School of Paris has little parties for each class and also a parade for the younger kids in the lower school. Marina played violin and recorder with the traveling musicians who led the parade. Unfortunately she wouldn't let me help her get dressed in costume since I was running around with Emma to different class parties, thus her costume is a melange of this and that, her choice, folks! 8 going on 18. It was a fun day--I just wish they could've gone trick or treating. Life is rough, eh? :)

Storchenreiter und Eierdiebe

Ah yes, the German language . . . how it rolls off the tongue. I really wish I could speak it as well as Spanish, Dutch and Chinese but it's mostly all a dream. French seems a lot easier now that I've seen consonants in action! Anyway we had a lovely trip, LOTS of driving, mostly done by Mark, but a good time had by all. Here's the temple in Frankfurt. It was wonderful to feel the peace and beautiful spririt inside. It was the first time we'd done sessions in French and it was pretty neat. In the temple, we perform sacred ordinances and there are also marriages, baptisms, and so forth (in case someone who isn't LDS reads this). Of course, I haven't shared this blog yet with anyone so there you go! Maybe someday you'll see for inside for yourself :)

We also spent some touristy time in Frankfurt--downtown and the zoo. Then we headed southeast to Gunzburg by way of Rothenburg ob der Tauber. It received 3 stars in our Michelin guide so we had to see why. It was worth it! What a lovely, well-preserved little town. We regret not having more time to visit, especially since we found out later that Mason would have loved the Kriminal Museum. It had various displays of torture, public humiliation, death, and general punishment methods during the Middle Ages. How charming! I'll post more on the trip later and some Halloween pics as well. It's getting late and my eyelids are drooping.