Snowbound Gnome

We've been getting a lot of snow lately and with temperatures never getting above freezing, it's starting to pile up. Our gnome Fritz doesn't know quite what to make of it all.

Mamma Mia! Take Two

Last October during our trip to London, we all (save for Emilie and Rebecca) saw a fantastic production of Mamma Mia!. An international English-language version of the musical is in the Frankfurt area for a few weeks and we couldn't resist seeing it again.

This time it was my friend Kathy, her daughter Elizabeth, Micaela, Emilie and me. And what made it all so doable was that it was being presented at the Jahrhunderhalle, a 12-minute drive from home.

One of the first questions we had once seated was "What are those screens next to the stage?" We got our answer when Sophie began singing the first song of the show, "I Have a Dream," and the German translation of the lyrics appeared on the screens. I was wondering if everyone coming to see the show could understand English.

Emilie during intermission. She wanted to clap along with all the songs, even the slow ones.

Breaking in the new sleds

It snowed all day yesterday, so today was the perfect time to try out our new sleds on an actual hill. James had two friends sleep over last night and we forced everyone to join us.

We walked to the fields just a few blocks away and walked and walked and walked.

Emilie is also breaking in her new snow pants and boots.

All bundled up

After much trudging, we finally came to a big hill across a field. Perfect. The kids recommenced trudging (and whining) and after 15 minutes, I heard someone yell, "What the heck? We've been walking this long and we're not even at the hill yet!"

It was true. It must have been an optical illusion. It took the kids forever to finally reach the hill and then they had to climb up it.

In the end it was almost all for nothing. Because no one else had yet tamped down the snow, the sleds could not make their way through the 10 or so inches of snow. Well, at least we all got some exercise. And the kids were laughing as much as they were whining.

German Sleds

When we took the kids sledding two weeks ago on their little plastic toboggan and shovel-like sleds, we couldn't help but notice the beautiful wooden German sleds everywhere. With all the snow we've been getting in the last month, David was not able to find any such sleds in the stores or on-line, but one week later, he came across some on the internet and ordered two.

Here is one sled, with its removable backing, with room for two, maybe three kids.

This one is my favorite, with its lovely curved design. You also see these sleds being used as Kindergartener transporters. For the last few days I, and several of my fellow parents, have been pulling children to Kindergarten on such sleds. The Kindergarten teachers are also asking for parents to leave the sleds at school on certain days so they can take the kids sledding in the fields behind the Kindergarten.

Chili Cook Off

Our church had one of its most popular events this evening -- the Annual Chili Cook Off. Parishioners had a chance to sample many different kinds of chili and then vote on their favorites.

There were three categories: Hottest Chili, Most Unusual Name, Best Overall. For most unusual name, "Un-Boar-lievable Chili" got my vote. As the name implied, the chili was made with boar meat. Pictured above are the prizes for the winners -- all the fixings for a Mexican meal, including some Corona beer and the elusive Doritos tortilla chips.

I was impressed by the number of slow cookers. I had had great difficulty finding one when we first moved here and we ended up finally finding one on Germany's e-bay. These folks probably had to do the same thing as no one in any of the stores we visited had ever heard of a slow cooker or Crockpot.

I voted this chili "Best Overall" and not just because the cook served it with Fritos, which you cannot find in German stores and for which there is no German equivalent. It was lecker!

Toilet talk

Yahoo.com has been featuring the Good Housekeeping article "2010 VIP (Very Innovative Products) Awards. Winners included a digital camera with its own built-in projector, a folding camping chair with embedded insect repellent, and Dolby technology that keeps TV volume level, preventing loud commercials from giving you whiplash. Another winning product made me chuckle:

"Brondell Perfect Flush, $79. This simple system is the first to turn nearly any toilet into a water-saving dual-flush unit, for a fraction of the cost of buying a new one. And it will slash up to $100 per year off your water bill. Installation takes a half hour or less, even for an inexperienced DIYer. The two-sided button sits atop the tank or can be mounted to the side with double-stick tape. Press one side for a small flush, the other for a full flush (or any of 10 increments you can set)."

Dual flushing systems have been standard in Germany for years and make a lot of sense. I was heartened to know that we will be able to set up such a system for each of our commodes once we move back to the U.S. With a family of 6, there is a lot of flushing going on. Here are some examples of dual flushing toilets here in Germany:

You also see toilets where you don't have two different buttons, but you can stop the flush to shorten it.

Here is the kids' bathroom toilet. You push on the bottom section of the large flush activator (not sure what to call it), and the flush begins. If you need just a short flush, once you've flushed away whatever needs to be flushed away, you press on the top of the activator to halt the flush. It works well for us.

A new way to bake bread

This afternoon our neighbor Jonna celebrated her 4th birthday with a little party and Becca was on the guest list. We were the first to arrive since we only live 2 doors down and when Becca handed Jonna her present, Jonna immediately began tearing off the wrapping. I wasn't sure if Anne, her mom, saw what she was doing, so I hesitantly asked, gesturing to the girls, "Um,...is that OK?" Anne looked at Jonna and said, "Oh, yes. Wait, in American you wait for everyone to open presents, don't you? We open them as each kid arrives." Just when you think you know what you're doing in a foreign country.....

Parents were told they could stay at pick-up time to do some grilling. I wasn't sure what would be grilled.

It was bread dough wrapped around stakes and the kid were very excited to give it a try.

Jonna's dad showing off his German flag hat.

Little sister Jette getting some fresh air.

Party kids

Grilling and chatting

Munching on warm bread

Chatting and grilling