Snow Boarding Pictures

So here we are. We look cool at least don't we?

See how foggy it got. It looks almost like we're floating.

And this is now Steve's favorite picture. He looks like he knows what he's doing.

It's all an illusion though. We fell flat on our buts so many times I can't remember and we both hurt so bad by the time we were done that we could hardly move our arms. Who ever thought it would be the arms that hurt the worst. I feel lucky that I had the opportunity to go though. It's not just any American that can say they've been to the Bavarian Alps. I feel very lucky.

Playing catch with Daddy.

So we thought that since Zachary is starting his first season of Teeball next week we better get him prepared a little. Steve ordered him a mitt online since the PX here has absolutely nothing to offer us but he forgot to get balls and a bat. Luckily we found everything we needed at the awesome PX in Garmisch.

Steve was impressed that Zachary wasn't afraid of the ball. It's not like he caught every ball or anything but he didn't duck or back away from it. He'll do great with more practice. I think Steve is enjoying having older children. He likes being able to actually do things with them.

These pictures were taken in behind our house. That little hill is the same hill they used for sledding in the snow. I think that might be the reason there is now not any grass growing on it. The building that we live in is just like the ones you can see in the background on the left.

Hyacinths

I really love flowers. They make a home feel so warm and cheery. These hyacinths are bright and cheery, even if I don't have a pot for them, and they smell absolutely delicious. I have them in my kitchen window. I also got some other flowers such as daffodils and some other ones that have a german name but the flowers are all ready gone. Darn.


I am hoping to slowly add more flowers and then next year I will be set. I would like to get some better indoor flowers because these are more for outdoors. If I had my own garden I would plant tons of things in it. I seem to be able to grow things outside without too much assistance but my green thumb does not extend to the indoors.

Battalion Easter Egg Hunt

So it finally feels like spring now that the weather has warmed up and the snow is all melted. I've even notices that little shoots are starting to come up on the trees and plants all around.

Thanks to the lovely weather, the kids' East egg hunt yesterday was wonderful. It was the warmest and driest day since we've been here.

Emmalyn and Zachary are very excited for Easter this year. They are finally old enough to remember how much fun they had last year. Emmalyn is constantly reminding me that the Easter Bunny will surely leave another jellybean trail and maybe even another game for the family. I just hope the Easter Bunny can manage to meet their high expectations.

Marriage Retreat - Garmisch, Germany

Steve's company offered a marriage retreat to the company since we are deploying in just a couple of months. We got to stay at the Army Recreation Facility "Edelweiss" in Garmisch for our stay. It was wonderful. It snowed the much of the time so we were cold but it was beautiful.

The classes were put out by the Chaplain for Steve's unit as well as the Family Life chaplain on Katterbach. They did a very good job and it was obvious that they had put a lot of time into the preparation for our classes. This program was a little different from our last one but we still learned some things and enjoyed ourselves. Everything was included which means food and lodging. They even had free childcare for most everyone. We didn't make it into that but the kids were able to each stay at a friends house. Thank heavens for friends.

Our schedule:
Sunday
6:30 a.m.-Drive to Garmisch (its about a 3 1/2 - 4 hour drive)
1:30-Classes until dinner
7:00-Hang out in the hot tub outside. This was so weird because it was freezing outside and snowing on top of that, but we couldn't even feel it in the hot tub. Steam is rising all over from the cold too so its like sitting in a steam bath. We wish we had a hot tub at home. :)

Monday
We had a free morning. Some friends had convinced us to try our hand at snowboarding. So yes, we got to attempt snowboarding for the first time. It was fun but I admit that it is very difficult and I've got a long way to go. I went home with not my butt or legs hurting but my arms from trying to stand up so often after falling. Apparently this part of the alps isn't necessarily the easiest place to learn on your own. My arms are still hurting today but at least I can brush my hair and unhook my bra again. After all the pain, we both enjoyed it so much that we will probably go again but to a smaller area closer by us. There is a facility over by Grafenwoer that is only about an hour away and has much smaller slopes.

After we got back from snowboarding we walked around downtown Garmisch which is classic Bavarian perfection. Everything looks just like a postcard. We also checked out the local PX which happens to be a lot better than ours. They had really nice bikes and camping gear as well as sports gear and clothing.


After dinner Monday we had one class.

Tuesday
We had classes in the morning and then since the line for lunch was like an hour long, we went to Pizza Hut in Garmisch. It was heaven. That is one of the things that has been very different living here in Germany. Pizza just isn't the same here and neither was Pizza Hut for that matter, but it had a regular crust and most of the basic toppings. After that we stopped for gas and then decided to walk through the thrift store/antique store/gift shop on post. I actually found some really cute curtains for the kitchen so it was a success.

2:00 p.m.-Head home.

We picked up the children and neither of them wanted to come home. I must admit it is sad to have your kids not really care that you are gone for 3 days but it is good that they are independent enough to survive.

I do have some pictures of us snowboarding but I haven't gotten them yet from Steve's friend. We will post them soon.