A Taste of our Lifestyle

Today, our friends got to live in Germany à la Nylund Family. Chris, Mariyka and Daniel got up with our kids to spend the day with them at the international school. Their school year back home ended last week, they had just spent a day in German school the day before with the children of friends, so I was pleased that they wanted to go to school yet again with our kids.

We took the little ones on a walk up the path that runs along our backyard, then along the Liederbach creek, past the chickens and on to the playground. We are having a heat wave, with temperatures reaching the high 80s. That doesn't sound too bad, until you factor in that we have no air conditioning and all the heat rises to our bedroom and guestroom. Plus, if you want to "when in Germany, do as the Germans do," then you don't wear shorts. Capris come in very handy. I was still sweating and red-faced by the time we got home from our short outing in spite of wearing capris.

The older kids liked the international school and remarked on how much freedom kids have in Germany. At their elementary school back in the states, the day is more structured (we often found it too structured): no free time before school, you cannot sit with whom you choose at lunch (boy-girl-boy-girl seating and no saving seats to be closer to a friend), complete silence during the first half of lunch to be sure kids eat, only one recess for the whole day, my kids had a mandatory silent bus ride home from school everyday...etc. Here, there's free time before and after school, two recesses, you can sit with whomever you like at lunch and get up and leave the cafeteria for recess whenever you feel like it. My kids love that aspect of their new school.

The kids were also surprised to see students changing for soccer practice on the edge of the playground, in full view of their classmates. In fact, James refused to change into practice clothes for months and I never knew why until one day I saw how the kids just change right there, not bothered at all that other kids may see them in their skivvies. I didn't make an issue out of it, but I'm curious to see if James will ever feel unselfconscious enough to change there like that before we move back home.

The only negative finding was that the school was not air conditioned. It made for a long, hot day. It does bring back memories of high/junior high school where we had no air conditioning either and were not allowed to wear shorts.

After dinner we celebrated, a day early, Laura's third birthday. The cake mix and frosting I bought at the commissary came in handy.

Check out those curls.

The book we gave her, Lauras Stern ("Laura's Star") is a popular series here.