Where in the World is Waldo??

For those of you wondering 'where in the world is the Phamily going next?' - we have to admit we really don't know! Seriously! We are totally open to going wherever God wants to take us, doing whatever He wants us to do. But we do have a couple places on our hearts - well, lots of places actually, but these 2 are at the top. I bet you're dying to know those top 2 huh?

Well, maybe I'll talk about the weather first - rainy here in Freiburg. Or maybe about the Europa Meisterschaft (European Championships) in soccer that started tonight (sorry to the Swiss - bummer loss). Or maybe I should talk first about the falling exchange rate of the US dollar to the Euro. Or maybe the American election - naaaww, too controversial.

Ok, just take a gander at the maps below. Those are the top 2 'places' we are praying about right now. That's right - Africa and Asia - they've been on our hearts (that's right, I said 'our') in the last few months. I never ever wanted to go to either of these places, but this year, I have been thinking a lot about these 2 continents. Now, that doesn't mean that we'll end up anywhere on those maps. But we are praying for those continents. And seeking God's face in this. So pray for us and with us.

But first to sunny SoCal!!! (And Mexican food and shorts all year round and In-and-Out and and and ....)

Prayer - 'Stick' With It!

Saw this cool little 'stick-man' video on Corby Stephens' church blog, (Corby is pastor of The Exchange Church in Forest Grove, Oregon). It really hit the nail on the head for me. That's exactly how I feel sometimes with prayer. Thanks Tim and Corby for sharing the video. Love it!

Prayer - 'Stick' With It!

Saw this cool little 'stick-man' video on Corby Stephens' church blog, (Corby is pastor of The Exchange Church in Forest Grove, Oregon). It really hit the nail on the head for me. That's exactly how I feel sometimes with prayer. Thanks Tim and Corby for sharing the video. Love it!

Roughin' It

We are coming down to the wire now - only 7 and a half weeks left until we fly back to America. Just a quick update on the moving plans. We have basically given away all the furniture that we can - all we have left are mattresses on the floor to sleep on (the 2 younger kids still have their bunk bed, but that goes away in a month also), a garden table and folding chairs to eat off of and an old laptop and monitor for the kids to watch their Veggie Tales on! So it's down to the bare minimum.

We were blessed that some people from the church 'sponsored' shipping boxes for us. As you can see in the foto of the living room, there are also about 7-8 cardboard boxes that will be shipped - mostly clothes, fotos, a few of the kids toys and some other stuff that we can't bear to give or throw away. Makes you think - on the one hand our last 11-12 years here can be stuffed into 5 pieces of checked luggage and 7 cardboard boxes. But on the other hand, all the memories, friendships, love, care, provision, relationships - they would never fit in any moving boxes. The only place they fit (and belong) is in our heart. Naja, I am waxing poetic / sentimental - gotta move on.







Living room













Our bedroom (notice the throw-together-with-whatever-wood-you-have clothes rack!)








Kids' bedroom (yep, all 4 kids in 1 room - you can't see the bunkbed for the 2 little ones, but it's in there!)









Playroom / Workroom - living out of suitcases. No more dressers for the kids' clothes - instead each kid has 1 suitcase of clothes.

Roughin' It

We are coming down to the wire now - only 7 and a half weeks left until we fly back to America. Just a quick update on the moving plans. We have basically given away all the furniture that we can - all we have left are mattresses on the floor to sleep on (the 2 younger kids still have their bunk bed, but that goes away in a month also), a garden table and folding chairs to eat off of and an old laptop and monitor for the kids to watch their Veggie Tales on! So it's down to the bare minimum.

We were blessed that some people from the church 'sponsored' shipping boxes for us. As you can see in the foto of the living room, there are also about 7-8 cardboard boxes that will be shipped - mostly clothes, fotos, a few of the kids toys and some other stuff that we can't bear to give or throw away. Makes you think - on the one hand our last 11-12 years here can be stuffed into 5 pieces of checked luggage and 7 cardboard boxes. But on the other hand, all the memories, friendships, love, care, provision, relationships - they would never fit in any moving boxes. The only place they fit (and belong) is in our heart. Naja, I am waxing poetic / sentimental - gotta move on.







Living room













Our bedroom (notice the throw-together-with-whatever-wood-you-have clothes rack!)








Kids' bedroom (yep, all 4 kids in 1 room - you can't see the bunkbed for the 2 little ones, but it's in there!)









Playroom / Workroom - living out of suitcases. No more dressers for the kids' clothes - instead each kid has 1 suitcase of clothes.

Hamburg

David already said a little about our trip to Hamburg, so I will just a little more. :)
We had a great time with Zachy's auntie. We were able to stay with her in her flat which was a lot of fun! We sat up and played games and ate junk food after the kids were in bed, it was great!
She also showed us lots of fun stuff in Hamburg, which I have to say is a very beautiful city. We went on the ferry and saw the harbor with the HUGE contianer ships (very cool!). Then we went to a tropical aquarium. It looked like disneyland with animals the design was great! Of course the kids loved that. We saw turtles, fish, lizards, snakes, sharks and many more!
So that was the first day...
The second day we went the mini wunderland (see the last post) then to the North Sea, about an hour and a half away. The North Sea is very unique in that when the tide goes out it leaves 'dry' (mud) ground. The tide goes so far out that you can't see the water any more, there is just a big mud field. There is actually a sport/hobby called watte wanderung, which is simply taking walks in the mudfield while the tide is out. (But beware the tide comes in quickly!) It's pretty cool to walk out a ways when the tide is out, it really is more like mud than sand. The kids found clam shells, and jelly fish and even a few dead crabs. The had a blast playing in the sand on the beach too.
For our last full day in Hamburg, we took it easy. Eva had to work so we went into town on our own and just walked around a bit, had lunch and headed home. Eva and I cooked stir fry for dinner (her request) and we had a nice meal together before putting the kids to bed and playing phase 10 again (which I lost).
So it was a very good trip and we wish we had had more time, I think we could have spent a month there and still not have seen everything. But we got to see the most important person there! And best of all spend time with her! Thanks Auntie Eva!
(Now we just need to round up the aunties here in Freiburg and coup them up in small quarters with all 6 of us for 4 days so it'll be fair! ;) )

Mini Wunderland

I have tons of pics from tons of trips so here's the first few. While in Hamburg we went to a place that has landscapes in miniature. And of course there is a model railroad that runs throught the whole thing. It was in a 3 story building and was amazing! I have to admit that I am a fan of model railroads, airplanes and minuatures in general. I find it fascinating, but could never do it myself because it would drive me INSANE to place every tree and rock by hand with tweezers. But I love to admire the work that others have done!
I think there were more adults than kids in the place, and the majority of those being men. It was fun the kids thought it was pretty cool too, except that it isn't to touch. ;)
I have to admit I took alot of these shots with my dad in mind. In case you're wondering where I got my love for model railroads etc.... ;)
So here are the pics, some are blurry, sorry. And some were taken by the kids so...
I don't know how well the detail will come accross in the pics, but it was unbelievable! And keep in mind that lots of the cars moved as well as other parts of the 'scene'. There were buttons to push in order to make something in the scene happen. The technology behind it all is beyond me! Just click on the picture to go to the album. I did it this way this time because there are so many of them!

Miniature Wunderland

Hamburg

David already said a little about our trip to Hamburg, so I will just a little more. :)
We had a great time with Zachy's auntie. We were able to stay with her in her flat which was a lot of fun! We sat up and played games and ate junk food after the kids were in bed, it was great!
She also showed us lots of fun stuff in Hamburg, which I have to say is a very beautiful city. We went on the ferry and saw the harbor with the HUGE contianer ships (very cool!). Then we went to a tropical aquarium. It looked like disneyland with animals the design was great! Of course the kids loved that. We saw turtles, fish, lizards, snakes, sharks and many more!
So that was the first day...
The second day we went the mini wunderland (see the last post) then to the North Sea, about an hour and a half away. The North Sea is very unique in that when the tide goes out it leaves 'dry' (mud) ground. The tide goes so far out that you can't see the water any more, there is just a big mud field. There is actually a sport/hobby called watte wanderung, which is simply taking walks in the mudfield while the tide is out. (But beware the tide comes in quickly!) It's pretty cool to walk out a ways when the tide is out, it really is more like mud than sand. The kids found clam shells, and jelly fish and even a few dead crabs. The had a blast playing in the sand on the beach too.
For our last full day in Hamburg, we took it easy. Eva had to work so we went into town on our own and just walked around a bit, had lunch and headed home. Eva and I cooked stir fry for dinner (her request) and we had a nice meal together before putting the kids to bed and playing phase 10 again (which I lost).
So it was a very good trip and we wish we had had more time, I think we could have spent a month there and still not have seen everything. But we got to see the most important person there! And best of all spend time with her! Thanks Auntie Eva!
(Now we just need to round up the aunties here in Freiburg and coup them up in small quarters with all 6 of us for 4 days so it'll be fair! ;) )

Mini Wunderland

I have tons of pics from tons of trips so here's the first few. While in Hamburg we went to a place that has landscapes in miniature. And of course there is a model railroad that runs throught the whole thing. It was in a 3 story building and was amazing! I have to admit that I am a fan of model railroads, airplanes and minuatures in general. I find it fascinating, but could never do it myself because it would drive me INSANE to place every tree and rock by hand with tweezers. But I love to admire the work that others have done!
I think there were more adults than kids in the place, and the majority of those being men. It was fun the kids thought it was pretty cool too, except that it isn't to touch. ;)
I have to admit I took alot of these shots with my dad in mind. In case you're wondering where I got my love for model railroads etc.... ;)
So here are the pics, some are blurry, sorry. And some were taken by the kids so...
I don't know how well the detail will come accross in the pics, but it was unbelievable! And keep in mind that lots of the cars moved as well as other parts of the 'scene'. There were buttons to push in order to make something in the scene happen. The technology behind it all is beyond me! Just click on the picture to go to the album. I did it this way this time because there are so many of them!

Miniature Wunderland

Road Trip!

We are in Hamburg in northern Germany this weekend (after a nine hour drive from Freiburg to Hamburg with 4 small kids in the car!). Never been to the north part of the country so here we are to visit Zachie's godmother who moved here last summer. We are having a blast - will post some more fotos after we get back to Freiburg next week. but here are a couple to tide you over until then...

Here we are in Hamburg in the Speicherstadt (customs warehouses?? - don't know the English word, but it's the place where all the freight is unloaded, inspected, logged and stored until pickup/delivery).

2nd foto of me in Buxtehude is kinda an inside thing, I think only the Germans would understand. ;-)

Road Trip!

We are in Hamburg in northern Germany this weekend (after a nine hour drive from Freiburg to Hamburg with 4 small kids in the car!). Never been to the north part of the country so here we are to visit Zachie's godmother who moved here last summer. We are having a blast - will post some more fotos after we get back to Freiburg next week. but here are a couple to tide you over until then...

Here we are in Hamburg in the Speicherstadt (customs warehouses?? - don't know the English word, but it's the place where all the freight is unloaded, inspected, logged and stored until pickup/delivery).

2nd foto of me in Buxtehude is kinda an inside thing, I think only the Germans would understand. ;-)

One Day at a Time

We really are taking it one day at a time right now. I look around sometimes and if I think too much about everything, i.e. what still needs to be done, what we will do in socal, and how it's all going to happen, I just shut down! Instead of getting up and doing something towards the goal. When I get that 'overwhelmed' feeling I have to stop and go to God and ask Him to help me take things one day at a time and not look too far down the road.
We are blessed to have so many helpers here, I couldn't have as much done as I do without them. Mixed feelings are beginning to appear for me now. I am excited, sad, scared (not knowing what is next, but I know that God already knows).
We moved more furniture out today. The apartment is slowly but surely becoming more and more empty. I am glad for that. I need to be able to see what we still have when all the big stuff is gone, so that I can better judge what still needs to be done.
We will be taking one last road trip this weekend. We get to go to Hamburg to visit Zachy's auntie Eva. We've never been to northern Germany so we are looking forward to it. Then we will stop in at the Calvary in Siegen for a couple of days for a confernce. We will be able to say some goodbyes there.
After that David does one last wedding and then we only have 8 weeks before we fly!! I can't believe how fast the time is flying! I knew it would, but I still can't believe how fast.
Anyway, enough rambling, I just wanted to update anyone who's interested! I have a ton of pictures and fun stuff I want to post about but the boxes are calling my name!! Maybe another time :-).
In the mean time, please keep us in prayer, it is a pretty stressful time for us all. Thanks!

One Day at a Time

We really are taking it one day at a time right now. I look around sometimes and if I think too much about everything, i.e. what still needs to be done, what we will do in socal, and how it's all going to happen, I just shut down! Instead of getting up and doing something towards the goal. When I get that 'overwhelmed' feeling I have to stop and go to God and ask Him to help me take things one day at a time and not look too far down the road.
We are blessed to have so many helpers here, I couldn't have as much done as I do without them. Mixed feelings are beginning to appear for me now. I am excited, sad, scared (not knowing what is next, but I know that God already knows).
We moved more furniture out today. The apartment is slowly but surely becoming more and more empty. I am glad for that. I need to be able to see what we still have when all the big stuff is gone, so that I can better judge what still needs to be done.
We will be taking one last road trip this weekend. We get to go to Hamburg to visit Zachy's auntie Eva. We've never been to northern Germany so we are looking forward to it. Then we will stop in at the Calvary in Siegen for a couple of days for a confernce. We will be able to say some goodbyes there.
After that David does one last wedding and then we only have 8 weeks before we fly!! I can't believe how fast the time is flying! I knew it would, but I still can't believe how fast.
Anyway, enough rambling, I just wanted to update anyone who's interested! I have a ton of pictures and fun stuff I want to post about but the boxes are calling my name!! Maybe another time :-).
In the mean time, please keep us in prayer, it is a pretty stressful time for us all. Thanks!

Thank God for Godmothers!

Well, I finally got a moment to sit and post about a couple weekends ago when Becks went off to the Women's Conference in Siegen. And I was home with 4 kids. Somehow that weekend was really chaotic. But thank God for the kids' 'patentante' (German for godmothers). They helped out a lot that weekend - that kept me somewhat sane. Well, as sane as I normally am, which really isn't that much. ;-)

Dariah's Auntie Doro took the kids out to the construction sites near our house. They loved it - playing with cinder-blocks, pieces of broken up concrete, boulders and junk from the building sites. Why buy toys when your kids love playing with trash?!?! Amazing what a child's imagination can come up with - they had built a whole 'city' from trash, replete with yellow insulation foam for cornfields.

Then the next evening the 3 older kids got to spend the night with Zachie's Auntie Simi and her husband. They had a blast - I'll post some fotos of that when I get them. So I only had Dariah at home that night, which was good because I still needed to finish preparing for Sunday's message.

On Sunday morning, Auntie Merle helped with the kids, which freed me up to focus on the teaching. A big thanks to all you Aunties (and 1 uncle)!

Here are a few fotos of the troop in the construction site...

Thank God for Godmothers!

Well, I finally got a moment to sit and post about a couple weekends ago when Becks went off to the Women's Conference in Siegen. And I was home with 4 kids. Somehow that weekend was really chaotic. But thank God for the kids' 'patentante' (German for godmothers). They helped out a lot that weekend - that kept me somewhat sane. Well, as sane as I normally am, which really isn't that much. ;-)

Dariah's Auntie Doro took the kids out to the construction sites near our house. They loved it - playing with cinder-blocks, pieces of broken up concrete, boulders and junk from the building sites. Why buy toys when your kids love playing with trash?!?! Amazing what a child's imagination can come up with - they had built a whole 'city' from trash, replete with yellow insulation foam for cornfields.

Then the next evening the 3 older kids got to spend the night with Zachie's Auntie Simi and her husband. They had a blast - I'll post some fotos of that when I get them. So I only had Dariah at home that night, which was good because I still needed to finish preparing for Sunday's message.

On Sunday morning, Auntie Merle helped with the kids, which freed me up to focus on the teaching. A big thanks to all you Aunties (and 1 uncle)!

Here are a few fotos of the troop in the construction site...

Pictures as Promised

David gave a bit of an update already, and I have some picutures to go along with it. It is a blessing that others can use the stuff that we need to get rid of! The kids are really enjoying having a 'sleeping room' and a 'play room'. I must say it is easier for us too, to have them all in one room and the other room available to put stuff in and be able to sort through it at night after they are in bed! The kids can't wait until the living room is empty...they will have a huge room with (almost) nothing in it to play in! And purely from a mom's perspective, it will be a whole lot easier to clean when there is no furniture in the way!! So enjoy the pics, I will post 'afters' when we get back from zürich...and from the trip of course!

So as you can see it is chaos...but only for a time. And I have to say we are very blessed that our kids 'go with the flow' quite well. I think I would loose my mind if they didn't! Those of you who know our place can see how big the hall looks when it is empty...it is weird to have it seem so 'free' nothing to walk into or around! Like David said, it's like when we moved in! Fun!

Hello, Anyone Home...?

You might have wondered that yourselves, over the last week or so. You saw correctly, we haven't posted anything in a long time. No worries, we're not lost in the Black Forest or snowbound in the Swiss Alps or on vacation in Italy (we wish!). We have been busy packing, cleaning, taking cabinets and tables and beds apart and reorganizing.

A couple from church is moving to the area around Stuttgart and will be taking most of our furniture - this Sat. And because we are in Zurich this weekend, we have to get everything ready for them to take. Thus the manic rush to empty out closets, wardrobes, cabinets so that they can take them on Sat. So right now, all our stuff are chaotically (is that a word) heaped in moving boxes. It feels like when we just moved in here - no furniture except beds (those will go in a few weeks too) and living out of moving boxes!

Our kids love it - something new to look at, to explore, to push over, to empty out, to climb in. At least we are blessed with kids who are not thrown outta whack with change and new environments. We put them all in one room for the next 2 months. They love it! Anyways, we'll get some pics of the Phamily Chaos soon!

Pictures as Promised

David gave a bit of an update already, and I have some picutures to go along with it. It is a blessing that others can use the stuff that we need to get rid of! The kids are really enjoying having a 'sleeping room' and a 'play room'. I must say it is easier for us too, to have them all in one room and the other room available to put stuff in and be able to sort through it at night after they are in bed! The kids can't wait until the living room is empty...they will have a huge room with (almost) nothing in it to play in! And purely from a mom's perspective, it will be a whole lot easier to clean when there is no furniture in the way!! So enjoy the pics, I will post 'afters' when we get back from zürich...and from the trip of course!

So as you can see it is chaos...but only for a time. And I have to say we are very blessed that our kids 'go with the flow' quite well. I think I would loose my mind if they didn't! Those of you who know our place can see how big the hall looks when it is empty...it is weird to have it seem so 'free' nothing to walk into or around! Like David said, it's like when we moved in! Fun!

Hello, Anyone Home...?

You might have wondered that yourselves, over the last week or so. You saw correctly, we haven't posted anything in a long time. No worries, we're not lost in the Black Forest or snowbound in the Swiss Alps or on vacation in Italy (we wish!). We have been busy packing, cleaning, taking cabinets and tables and beds apart and reorganizing.

A couple from church is moving to the area around Stuttgart and will be taking most of our furniture - this Sat. And because we are in Zurich this weekend, we have to get everything ready for them to take. Thus the manic rush to empty out closets, wardrobes, cabinets so that they can take them on Sat. So right now, all our stuff are chaotically (is that a word) heaped in moving boxes. It feels like when we just moved in here - no furniture except beds (those will go in a few weeks too) and living out of moving boxes!

Our kids love it - something new to look at, to explore, to push over, to empty out, to climb in. At least we are blessed with kids who are not thrown outta whack with change and new environments. We put them all in one room for the next 2 months. They love it! Anyways, we'll get some pics of the Phamily Chaos soon!

You Supply the Caption...

Found this foto very interesting. Can't for the life of me figure out what he's doing with that cat. So help me please - add your own caption!

Could it be...
Man - 'Let me feel those lymph nodes...'

or...
Cat - 'Oh yeah, right there, under the chin, little to left; now scratch faster...'

Anyone got better captions? ;-) Post a comment below with your best caption.

You Supply the Caption...

Found this foto very interesting. Can't for the life of me figure out what he's doing with that cat. So help me please - add your own caption!

Could it be...
Man - 'Let me feel those lymph nodes...'

or...
Cat - 'Oh yeah, right there, under the chin, little to left; now scratch faster...'

Anyone got better captions? ;-) Post a comment below with your best caption.

Funny girl

Dariah is the clown in our house. I really think it is a 4th child thing, they seem to be the ones who like to make everyone laugh, and know exactly how to do it. Here are a few pictures of Dariah from the last two days that made us laugh!

She knows how to get what she wants from the kitchen by pushing a chair from the table there. But if mommy won't let her take one from the table in the dinning room, then what?









Go get a chair from my room....

position it....

and viola!


















And she is an expert at hide and seek....








First climb in the cabinet...












close the door...















taaadaaa! The perfect hiding place! (she's learned from the best)

Funny girl

Dariah is the clown in our house. I really think it is a 4th child thing, they seem to be the ones who like to make everyone laugh, and know exactly how to do it. Here are a few pictures of Dariah from the last two days that made us laugh!

She knows how to get what she wants from the kitchen by pushing a chair from the table there. But if mommy won't let her take one from the table in the dinning room, then what?









Go get a chair from my room....

position it....

and viola!


















And she is an expert at hide and seek....








First climb in the cabinet...












close the door...















taaadaaa! The perfect hiding place! (she's learned from the best)

Spring is finally here...

...I think. We've had a couple of really beautiful days here lately. There have also been some cloudy/rainy ones (like today) mixed in. But the temperatures are not as cold as they were on Easter so hopefully spring has finally 'sprung'. Flowers were already starting to bloom even before the cold snap on Easter, but now more and more of the little wild flowers are popping up everywhere and trees are starting to bloom. We have a flederbaum (lilac tree in English, I think) in our back yard that is starting to blossom. It is one of my favorite trees, it gets big cluster of purple flowers that have a very strong sweet smell. When it is in full bloom you smell it as soon as you open the back door. We also have a Magnolia tree that has big beautiful flowers, that are a redish-pink. I love the creativity of God in all the colors and designs of this world!

We as a Phamily have tried to take advantage of the nice weather when it is here. I don't know how it is where you live, but here in Freiburg when the sun is shining you get out there and soak it up any way you can!! So on Sunday we went for a walk and ended up at our local ice cream parlor (along with a good portion of the rest of the Rieselfelders), for a special treat. Then on Tuesday we took an afternoon outing to Mundenhof, which is an animal park near our house that is free. If you drive you pay 5euros for parking, but there is no admission cost. It takes us about 15-20 minutes to walk it with all the kids. There are a pretty good variety of animals to check out, and it has a cool playground on one side of the park. The animals are all in open enclousures, some that you can even walk through and pet the animals in there. Well right now it is only the goats that you can walk through, but they are going to make the antelope enclosure a walk through one as well, they are working on getting the animals used to being exposed to people right now.

At the end of our time at Mundenhof we got ice cream, again (I think that's a record for us twice in 3 days! Jesaiah doesn't even really like ice cream!) before heading back home. Needless to say the kids were wiped out! We were gone for about 3 hours. The kids rode their rollers (scooters) and laufrad (literally 'walkbike') all the way there and back and walked around the whole time at the park, so it was a very good (tiring out) outing.

Zachy can't wait to get a 'real' bike. Right now he is riding the laufrad, which is basically a bike with no pedals or chain. They push it with their feet and learn balance. Most kids here start on one when they are 2 or 3 years old and move to a 'real' bike within a year or so, without training wheels. They are pretty cool little things! And Zachy jams on his! He gets going really fast then picks up both feet and coasts as far as he can. He also gets very creative with the way he pushes. It is quite entertaining to watch sometimes!

Enough rambling....on with the pictures!! Enjoy! Sorry there's alot, we got a little 'snap happy'!, but if you go to the source of the album you can skim through them quicker.

Spring is finally here...

...I think. We've had a couple of really beautiful days here lately. There have also been some cloudy/rainy ones (like today) mixed in. But the temperatures are not as cold as they were on Easter so hopefully spring has finally 'sprung'. Flowers were already starting to bloom even before the cold snap on Easter, but now more and more of the little wild flowers are popping up everywhere and trees are starting to bloom. We have a flederbaum (lilac tree in English, I think) in our back yard that is starting to blossom. It is one of my favorite trees, it gets big cluster of purple flowers that have a very strong sweet smell. When it is in full bloom you smell it as soon as you open the back door. We also have a Magnolia tree that has big beautiful flowers, that are a redish-pink. I love the creativity of God in all the colors and designs of this world!

We as a Phamily have tried to take advantage of the nice weather when it is here. I don't know how it is where you live, but here in Freiburg when the sun is shining you get out there and soak it up any way you can!! So on Sunday we went for a walk and ended up at our local ice cream parlor (along with a good portion of the rest of the Rieselfelders), for a special treat. Then on Tuesday we took an afternoon outing to Mundenhof, which is an animal park near our house that is free. If you drive you pay 5euros for parking, but there is no admission cost. It takes us about 15-20 minutes to walk it with all the kids. There are a pretty good variety of animals to check out, and it has a cool playground on one side of the park. The animals are all in open enclousures, some that you can even walk through and pet the animals in there. Well right now it is only the goats that you can walk through, but they are going to make the antelope enclosure a walk through one as well, they are working on getting the animals used to being exposed to people right now.

At the end of our time at Mundenhof we got ice cream, again (I think that's a record for us twice in 3 days! Jesaiah doesn't even really like ice cream!) before heading back home. Needless to say the kids were wiped out! We were gone for about 3 hours. The kids rode their rollers (scooters) and laufrad (literally 'walkbike') all the way there and back and walked around the whole time at the park, so it was a very good (tiring out) outing.

Zachy can't wait to get a 'real' bike. Right now he is riding the laufrad, which is basically a bike with no pedals or chain. They push it with their feet and learn balance. Most kids here start on one when they are 2 or 3 years old and move to a 'real' bike within a year or so, without training wheels. They are pretty cool little things! And Zachy jams on his! He gets going really fast then picks up both feet and coasts as far as he can. He also gets very creative with the way he pushes. It is quite entertaining to watch sometimes!

Enough rambling....on with the pictures!! Enjoy! Sorry there's alot, we got a little 'snap happy'!, but if you go to the source of the album you can skim through them quicker.