Bring me Back to Germany...

Do you ever go through your old photo albums in Facebook?? I was looking for a picture tonight to send to a friend and while I was searching through some of the albums- I saw some pictures I haven't seen in a long while. It made me realize how much I miss Germany... I thought I would entertain you with pictures of some of the things that made Germany such an amazing place to live for over 4 years...

Let the show begin... In no particular order (other than the one that Blogger chose-lol)...

 

 

 Christmas Markets! Gluwhein (warm spiced wine), snow, yummy food, good friends... The second picture is of my favorite- Edinburgh Scotland...

 WINE nights!!! This was routine with my fantastic neighbor Melissa- who you will see in one of these pictures. These wine nights got us through the deployment! We would sit for hours outside on her patio and just talk... FYI- this fantastic glass holds an entire bottle of wine! WooHoo!

Our walks. Trails are everywhere. There is something so amazing about being able to go walking in fields where you are surrounded by nothing but green grass and sometimes- sheep!

SHEEP! The kids would get a kick out of this (honestly- so would I)

 

 

 I am a runner. So what could be better than running in awesome German towns?? This 6k was in the medieval walled city of Rothenburg ob der Tauber. One of my favorite cities. It is along the Romantic Road in Bavaria and we were only about 25 minutes from it... In fact- this is the town my Godson was born in!!

 Traveling... Prague was only 3 hours away (my fav city ever). This square is where I sat on our last trip there- alone at 5:45am  in the quiet- a week and a half after my cancer diagnosis. I sat there in the sunlight and just watched and thought... it was perfect...

 Girl trips to Poland! This happened several times. This trip here was the first girl trip. 9 women. Lots of Polish Pottery. A cool little Polish hotel. A great exchange rate:)

On a seperate trip, this little lady over on the right->

She make look sweet and innocent... But is the perfect person to have with you when a jerky Polish guy wants you to pay him for cleaning your windshield while you are shopping- even though you did not ask him to. Lets just say that I sent her out there (mind you she was preggo) and I came out (after cowering inside like a wimp) to her telling him that we "liberated their asses" and him telling her to "go home stupid American." It was super hilarious and I think the other 8 of us were highly entertained. Did I mention this fantastic lady is my kiddos Godmother?? And I am her sons Godmother. Like seriously people. All official in the Church and stuff! lol

On a side note- we have been together since 2003. Fort Rucker Alabama. Fort Bragg North Carolina. Katterbach Germany. And they will be here in Fort Carson Colorado in about 7 months! Woohoo!

 Here is Mel. I promised you a picture and I am sure she will be thrilled I chose this one! We celebrated her thirtieth birthday in Nurnberg. We all dressed in 80's style and rode the train up there. We ate at one of my favorite places- Tapasitos- and had LOTS to drink... I miss Melissa tons! We were always together since we shared a duplex. Our daughters were super tight and our toddlers went to school together. We did everything together! Neighbors like that are special!

 

 Here are Hais and I in London. Such an amazing trip!

 German traditions and being lucky to be a part of it. This was the annual Lantern Walk in our little town. Every single town does it. The kids make lanterns at their schools and then everyone gets together and walks through the town- ending at a ceremony of sorts and food!

 I miss this house. We were the first tenants. I moved in while Lee was deployed. I brought Carter home for the first time to this house. I loved this house. I loved the neighbors. I look at that yard and picture my kids playing in the grass.

 Oh, these girls. It breaks my heart to see this picture and know that I do not get to see them daily. Lillianna (blondie in the middle) I have known since she was 2. The girls have celebrated every birthday together since then. This coming June will be L's first that we are not there. Anna (brunette) is Melissas daughter. She was at our house everyday. I love that little girl so much! This picture is from the last outing for the three of them together. We went to shop, eat and dye their hair. Yeah- I am that momma. You send your kiddos with me- I will put a stripe of color in their hair!! lol

 FESTS! Here is a pic of Lee and his cousin Alli when she came to visit.

 Euro Disney. We went 4 times! Once a year! How can you not? It was fun for everyone!

 Girl coffees. This particular coffee shop (backerei) got me through deployments! We would meet there and just relax for hours. Sometimes it was 10 of us- sometimes it was 2. We celebrated birthdays here. We found out about pregnancies. It was a special place.

 Sundays, I would go by myself. I would get up super early- and be there at like 7:45am. Then I would just sit. Sometimes I would read, plan out my week, or just people watch. It was my time. I looked forward to it every week. Haven't found a coffee place here that makes me that relaxed...

 Bowling league! This was sooo fun! We were 3 Hawks and a Hooker (Chinook helicopters are called Hookers- we had one Chinook wife and 3 Blackhawk Pilots wives). This night in particular we were playing our good friends and this was just a hilarious picture... Serious bowlers right?? All on our iPhones....

 A super fun event we went to- Ball der Vampire. In Heidelberg each year- they have this. It is super amazing and something I never imagined myself doing but I had SOOO much fun!

 Another pic of the backerei food... just cause you cannot have enough! lol

I shall leave you with that picture.

Oh and one more story... See those big bread rolls on the back wall? They are held up with baskets in this picture but they used to not be. A friend, who shall remain nameless for her protection, was sitting under one of those bad boys. It had molded and weakened. See where I am going? Lets just say- that moldy bread fell off the wall and smacked said friend right on the shoulder. Hilarious!

 

Hotel Living and baby makin'

So...we are officially homeless! We cleared housing today and are living in the hotel n post...which is awesome. Finally got a good sleep last night. Think the amount of stress lately is wearing on me. I have had a sty in my eye, a cold sore, back pain and general weakness lately. I know it is stress. What can you do though? I feel a huge relief today. I am more relaxed and can finally take a big breath.

Hard to believe that this time next week... We will be waking up in Colorado. That is awesome. Unbelievable how fast it has gone.

So...some updates. My neck is healing beautifully. It is numb around the scar and up to my chin. Small price to pay though. But the actual scar is great.

Our house is going great. Still set to close on November 8. I cannot wait to see it and only one more week until we get to!

I convinced myself I had MRSA. I believe I may have cervical cancer. My husband believes I am not officially a hypochondriac. Lol...Get cancer. It happens. Haha (by the way...I don't have either).

I have been a lot more confident lately. I know this is treatable.i know this time next year I will be ok. So that makes me think of my future more. I am so sad we lost the baby this past spring. Now I thank that baby for saving my life. Since I was no longer preggo- I finally was able to have my thyroid taken care of. I would have put it aside even longer. But I haven't lost my desire for the third Koko baby. That may seem crazy. At this point, I don't even have the energy for the two I have. Getting preggo can raise hormone levels that some say can increase my risk of cancer. Not saying it will happen... Heck, the hubby isn't even on board, but it is tempting.

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It has been awhile...

Wow. I honestly do not want to look back to when my last post was... Ignorance is bliss right?
Here are some highlights of life....

*Over 4 months into this crappy deployment. Yep. Crappy is the best word I can think of. Only a little bit longer until I get two weeks with my man though! I miss my hot Pilot!

*I have surgery next week. Taking my thyroid out. I had put it off cause of the pregnancy but now that we have decided to officially be done with kiddos- time to take care of myself!

*My mother in law comes a week from today and the father in law comes ten days later. Super excited.

*WE ARE MOVING TO COLORADO!!! Yep! Yay! It won't be til next Spring but Lee will be part of the new 4th CAB opening there next year. It means a few years of non-deployable time. It means outdoor family time! It is just where we wanted to go. A cheap flight to both sets of parents. The amazing outside lifestyle we miss from Washington State. We are thrilled. The position is amazing for Lee's future!

* We had a fantastic trip for 6 days to Vienna Austria and Berchtesgaden Germany. 9 women. Something like 21 children. A lodge. Wine. Perfect!

 Kim and I in a fantastic Biergarten in downtown Berchtesgaden.

 Yummy meal after a busy first day in Vienna. We had 2 tables of people. SO fun. (Paige Kimball Photography)

 Of course we found an amusement park in Vienna! Hilarious! (Paige Kimball Photography)

Have you ever heard of a Rodelbahn? It is a luge sort of course down a mountain on a metal track in a sled with a brake you use to control it.  I raced a 17 year old. I flipped it. Crap! lol

*We did an 80's Themed birthday dinner for Melissa's 30th! We trained it to Nurnberg and ate an awesome dinner at Tapasitos (a Tapas bar)... So fun!

* I have a new glass. We call him Magistan. Magic Mike meets Afghanistan. Lol





Long time coming!

Ok, back to blogging friends! Here are some pictures from my Fathers Day 6k in Rothenburg ob der Tauber. Not my best run. I chose the wrong clothes- and fought the entire race with pulling my pants up and my tank down. It was awful. The course alternated from dirt to pavement to cobblestone over and over. It was a series of circles and we were constantly crossing paths with the half marathoners and the 10K'ers. And did I mention that it was SUPER hilly? The final stretch before the finish line was straight up hill. Like STRAIGHT up hill! By the time you got to the red carpet stretch at the end- you were completely toasted.

Amy and I with our near beers after the race.

Somehow my friend Nancy got out of the loop and passed me the opposite way during the race. Luckily, she was able to get this killer picture of me.

Here is Ronda and I nearing the finish line. It took me a grueling 51 minutes to finish about 4 miles. Way slower than I am used to  but I guess this is what happens when you stop running.Back to the grind.

I am signed up for another race. It is Oct 21.

Yep- Amsterdam!!

Training starts next week. I even bought a treadmill:)

A bunch of friends are doing it and I am excited. Wish me luck! 

Guess how I will celebrate Fathers Day!

 Welcome to Rothenburg ob der Tauber.  In the heart of the Romantic Road in Bavaria Germany.

I have visited here COUNTLESS times. It is only 20 minutes from my house and it is where my gorgeous godson was born.

 But I will be seeing this amazing walled city in a totally different way this weekend. Running a 6k through it.

It is supposed to be 79 degrees. Does not sound hot right? When you are used to 50 or so degrees- 79 feels like a 100!

Add in the fact that I will be pushing my 30 lb son in his jogging stroller through the cobblestoned hills.

 Crud- did I mention that I have not run regularly in like 2 months? Yeah. Not been running regularly since early February. This is going to be interesting.

Have to get back in the groove somehow right?? How much better can I do that than running one of the prettiest cities in southern Germany!

Plus- we have a tentative date now for Lee coming home on RnR... which means I have a timeline to be ready for our romantic getaway to Croatia with my hubby. Running is my all over body workout! Here we go!



Listening to a Voicemail

Today was one of those days. I have an old voicemail on my phone from a few months ago. Nothing important- just him clarifying what I needed him to pick up on post for me. But I just wanted to hear his voice. I may have listened to it like five times- or so. I had talked to him earlier today. He sounds good- just tired. He flew up to the Memorial for the two pilots we lost last week and they all got stuck on that base cause of the weather. I cannot believe that next week- we will hit two months already. It has flown. No complaints- but makes me sad that he is missing so much...

On to a better note. Trying to figure out where we want to go for RnR. His parents are coming over and overlapping with him being here. I have amazing inlaws and having them around is always nice. The kids adore them and it is nice for Lee to see his dad. I know he won't tell me some things or talk about some stuff cause he doesn't want to worry me. So when his dad is here- he can talk to him- over a German Hefe.

The real benefit is that Lee and I get a little mini vacation with no kiddos! I am going back and forth between Dubrovnik Croatia, Siciliy and Santorini Greece. Right now I am leaning towards Croatia. Looking at 4-5 days at an all inclusive resort.

 Croatia

 Croatia

 Sicily

 Sicily

 Santorini

Santorini

I am SO looking forward to some time with my man. This is one of the HUGE benefits to going back to NC after here. My inlaws are right there!!

Any thoughts friends... locations I have missed?

Add two to the growing total...

Today we got the awful news that two of the wives in our community joined the ranks of a group that none of us can imagine... widowed Army wife.  There were two Blackhawk crashes yesterday in Afghanistan. Both were from our Brigade. They were in different areas of the country but both were too "close to home."  One- there were no serious injuries. All survived. The other- we lost both aviators. Both were great men. Both were husbands. One was a father. Both were sons. Friends. Patriots. 

It is not something that anyone of us can think about with tears welling up in our eyes. The reality that all of our husbands are in the position everyday to be another casualty. They all have the same training. They all fly in the same area over there.

These pilots were there fighting for something they believed in. Whether you agree with it or not- they did. They died fighting for that cause. The sad thing is that to most Americans- these two aviators will be just another number.  These two men left a huge hole in this community. The loss has rocked the core of the entire post here. Every wife that is in the midst of this deployment is holding on for dear life right now... thinking that awful thought of "What if it happens to me?"

 My aviator- CW3 Koko flying in Afghanistan 2012

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On another note- I have started the application process for my Masters in Social Work!!! WOOHOO! I am ready. I will spread it over 4 years. First off, since I have a toddler, not sure I can go much faster! Secondly, I do not want to go to work until C is in school- so this would have me finishing when he is 6. Which is perfect!! I am going through University of New England. SOO excited!

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Now for some pictures from the last few days...

 Flowers from the kiddos

 Hais and C playing in the yard

Gigi Regular sent C new shoes for school- on his first day wearing them- he came home looking like this! The toes are worn bad on the FIRST day!!!