Pics of our Teneriffa Trip

A long time has past since my last post and unfortunatly I am on the run again, but wanted to make a short post so people know we are still alive.
OK, so what's going on here:
Devin just finished his swimming lessons and got his seahorse (a little thing which gets put on his swimming trousers so people can see he can swim). He is so proud! Especially because he was one of the younger ones from the course with 8 kids and 4 of them did not pass.
Shilda is still having lots of fun in school, singing all day long her Christmas songs she learns in school and getting in some trouble lately. 2 days ago, while I was taking a shower she took out her cocoa butter and oil products for her hair and went in her room and did every Barbie's and Doll's hair!!! While I was putting make-up on I even thought to myself that something smells so good....
YEAH, and what I saw is beyond my wildest dreams and just to hard to even discribe. So, I will leave it at that and everyone's imagination can go free....
But it's all cleaned up now, all the doll's and barbie's got a bath, Shilda had a GOOD time and mommy almost a heart attack!

Next wednesday I am going with the two angels to Teneriffa (a little Spanish Island off of the coast of West Afrika) for a week. We are very excited and can't wait... Unfortunatly, Christian is not going. I have been begging him for years to go on trips (and sometimes he will), but wasn't too lucky. He did go twice to Spain and once to Austria and many places in Germany with us and always seemed to have fun, but it always takes a lot of talking him in before hand. So, once again we agreed I would take the kids myself and went ahead and booked it. After we read some about Teneriffa (Vulcano Island, all the climat zones, so many things to do and really beautiful) he got really interessted and says he wishes he could go now too. AAAHH Even thou he has over 60 days of leave saved up, he can not take them before Christmas and I can't change our tickets to another date. Aergerlich! Same thing happend when I went to Gran Canaria with Devin last year. Maybe he will remember next time...

Those are pictures from our walk this afternoon. We went to church this morning, out for lunch and then out to "play". At least that's what Devin called our 2,5 hour walk.

Dustin's visit
Christian's brother Dustin visited us for a few days and just left today. We haven't seen him for 5 years and were just sooo glad he finally made it over here. We had a great time with him and can't wait for his next visit!

Ok, these are pics of my grandmother, mother and sister - my travel gang!

Vacation Time
Not yet, but soon! My grandmother, mother, sister with her two boys and me with my kids are going on vacation. We have been wanting to do that for a long time now, but never had the perfect excuse to go without our husbands. But do we really need an excuse?? My sister is turning 30 this year, my mom 50 and my grandmother 70 next year, so this is the perfect time to do that. We want to make it as easy as possible for all of us, so we are taking "all inclusive" (with a 10, 5, 3 and 2 year old it's a MUST) and going to a country where the flight does not take any longer than 4 hours. We are thinking about Greece, Spain, Turkey, Egypt and Tunisia. I am sure we will have LOTS of fun wherever we go.
The week is planned for February, as my mom and grandmother are going already on a couple of trips the next few months. They (grandfather, grandmother, stepfather and mother) are leaving for Sicily on Satarday for 10 days. Then my stepfather and mother go back to Italy to visit their friends in October (they will help harvest olives and make oil - just for fun) and then my grandfather and grandmother are going with friends to Turkey for 2 weeks in November. AND then Christmas they are spending in Italy too. So, now you know about their busy lives, too ;0
Anyway, me and the kids can't wait....and I am sure Christian either (all that time to himself and not having to clean up after himself for a week).

Our dogs!
We have two dogs, Mara and Maxi.


Mara is a German Shepherd Mix and about 8 years old. We have had her for 5 years now and absolutely love her. I have been taking her to dog school for all these years, so she listens very well to me and knows all the commands. She loves everyone and everything; people, other dogs, cats (she has raised little kittens before), rabbits and even Devin's rat. Just know everyone comes back "showered", as she LOVES to lick!


Well, and then there is Maxi!
She is a different Story. Maxi is about 6 years old and we have had her for about 4,5 of them.
She is a souvenir from Spain. Yes, Christian has still not forgiven me and is very hesitant to go back on a South European vacation with me; the streets are paved with stray animals and I get in my Mother Teresa mood. So, here is how Maxi entered our lives: we went to a pound in Mallorca and I saw this little dog with lots of big dogs around looking very scared. I sent Christian there to check on it and he came back telling me that the dog tried to bite him. I did not believe him, that this innocent little thing would hurt a fly. To make a long story short, we came back to Germany with 2 dogs and 11 cats. Good homes were found quickly for all of them, except Maxi. And that's the day our lifes changed dramatically. She thinks she is the biggest and most dangerous dog around (keep in mind she is only 6 pounds). She barks all the time, runs away whenever she can (she even jumps over our fence) and has nipped at people before. She is a pain...Christian even claims that he can't stand her, but has been known to secretly let her sleep in bed with him whenever I take the kids and Mara to visit my family.
Well, Devin really loves her and she is still a cutie. And besides, every family has to have that one person...

Today was Shilda's first day in school (german kindergarten)!!!!
And she loves it. I'll be staying with her for the next couple of weeks. She is in a different group then Devin but they are right next door to each other. The two groups share a bathroom (where they can meet) and the outside is all together too, so she will still see him a lot. It's very different from other preschools - translated from German it's called a forrest school. The place is in the woods, so their playground are LOTS of trees, treehouses, sand, mud and of course some swings and slides...AND they grow their own veggies and some fruit. They are outside in sunshine, rain and snow (they have to have rainsuits, mudsuits, snowsuits.....) basiclly at almost all times. Anyway, it's a really great place and Devin has just loved it the last 3 years he has been there.
Oh, he has a rat now. He named her "Phoeby". She is still a baby and so cute. Christian and my first pet was a rat too, so we knew he just has to love them.
The little cuties are sleeping finally, so we will go to bed soon too. Both kids have been wanting to sleep with us the last few days and some of you might know what sleep means then for the parents. We are TIRED!

Well, a long time has past and we have been very busy since I last wrote.
Yesterday was my birthday. We had people over for coffee and cake and went to the movies with some friends in the evening (The lake house). My mother and grandmother came up for a visit (4 days) and left yesterday. They brought Devin back from his FIRST VACATION WITHOUT US. Yes, do you believe it?! My dad and his family were here the weekend before and he wanted to go down to Schwandorf (the town my whole family lives - 4 hours away) with them for the week. Well, we let him and were pretty sure I had to go down to get him the next day because he would be crying his eyes out. But even parents can be wrong! He even wants to do it soon again AND is planning his first trip alone to New York City to visit Jenna and Jeff (Christian's mother and step-father). I have a feeling this little stinker is growing up to quickly.
So, we have had visitors all last three weekends and the week before that we went to an African-Caribbien Festival. There was music and dancing, stuff to buy, food, lots of kids things, people who braided hair ...It was a lot of fun and we will definatly go there next year again.
For the coming up holiday weekend we are thinking to go up to the North Sea to camp. Christian has never been there and it's so worth going....in fact, people come from all over the world for it. We are thinking of going eighter on the German or Netherland side of it, as Denmark would be a couple of hours longer to drive and more expensive (BUT I looovveee Denmark).

My sister and brother-in-law with their two boys were here until yesterday. They planned on staying for two days, but we had such a good time so they stayed 5 days. We went to the movies, barbequed, relaxed (as much as you can with 4 wild children running around), made a fire in the yard, went to the petting zoo...
Devin and Shilda are going to bible camp this week and really enjoy themselves there.
Christian's brother Dustin is coming from the States on saturday for a few days. We will be going to the African-Caribbean Festival this weekend. YEAH. I wanted to go there for years but there was always something else going on so this year it is a must.

Busy, busy week
We have been running around this and last week getting things done like applying for Devin's and Shilda's passports, getting Shilda a German visa, taking care of the German re-adoption stuff, applying for Shilda's American Citizenship, trying to get a 10 year Green Card for me, dentist appointments, and looking for a house in Bavaria. All such fun things (especially USCIS are the funniest) in 100 degree weather. Yeah, the weather is something....the hottest summer since 1891 in Germany! The real killer is the humidity and not having air conditioning.

Devin didn't have any school today, so the kids and I played some games, went to the doctor (they both have pinkeye) and met Christian after he got off work at the PX. He is going for a couple of months starting in September to America to school, and he needed a laptop for it. So he finally got one today.
After dinner we went with our friends to an italien ice cream place. Their 4 and our 2 kids had a sugar high so we had to leave quite fast when things got a little out of hand. The sweeties are sleeping now, Christian the sweetie is playing with his new toy (laptop) and my sweet self will walk the sweet dogs now.

Shilda has been home for 6 months!!

Wow! Can you believe it?! To us it seems sometimes like yesterday when we picked Barbara and Shilda up from the airport, but some days it seems like she has been with us since day 1. Christian and I sat out on the porch last night watching her play and he said to me:"Dana, isn't it amazing what a happy child she is and that it seemed so clear to her that we are her family right from the beginning". Yes, it is totally amazing! She adjusted so well and quickly and brings so much happieness in this family! When we saw her on video's and pictures in the orphanage in Haiti we imagined her so different. She was almost always serious, didn't play, just sat somewhere looking sad. NOW, she is full of life and THE PARTY herself!
She has come a looong way. When she first got here in January she could walk, but was still unsure (you know, the airplane walk; both arms out to balance), now she runs, jumps off chouches, stairs, dances (I try to pick up some moves from her, but my butt and hipps just don't want to swing like hers). She also understands and speaks most everything in German and some in English. She is potty trained, feeds herself and likes to dress herself (which I still try to do as much as I am allowed, because my baby is just too independent sometimes:).
Don't give me wrong, she is still very delayed in some areas, but has learned sooo much already. She will be starting school in September. Devin is thrilled to have her in "his" school and they both can't wait.

Well, it's a two days later now, so this post was meant to be there 2 days ago....it already starts with me, right!? But you'll get a pic we took of Shilda today.

Well, I hear our neighbors yelling and screeming. I guess they are watching the final world cup game. I am still so dissappointed that Germany is out, but I hope now that Portugal is going to win.
We went to the town of Giessen today and got some stuff for our veggie garden at the "farmers market". We stayed most of the day in the town and had lunch at our favorite Turkish place and took the kids to a little festival. They loved it!
Before Devin and Shilda went to bed we let them help in the garden. Oh, we are so proud of our first GARDEN! We have strawberries, tomatos, cucumbers, celery, kohlrabi, different kind of lettuce, rubahrb, zucchini, radishes, kiwi, blueberries, rasberries, blackberries, apples, hazelnuts, grapes and lots of different kind of herbs. We may not win any blue ribbons at the county fair, but we certainly will be eating healthy this year.

As a few of you were asking about our website which we haven't updated in months I thought I would start blogging and try to keep you better updated on our lives here in Germany. Most of you know that I am not very good about writing, but I promise I will try hard. I will also make one for our German family and friends...
Ok, let's see what we did the last few days...
Last week we went down to Bavaria (about 4 hours south of here) to look at houses. Oh, maybe I should mention that we are thinking about buying a house closer to my family. There is a good chance that Christian gets stationed down there after this caserne closes next year. We are sooo ready to have at least a home base. Depending on where the Military wants to send us, the kids and I might just stay in Bavaria while Christian does a (2 year?) tour. But we are still open to anything...we will deceide when the time comes and do whatever is best for our family.
Also, we finally were able to start Shilda's German Re-adoption yesterday. The lawyer was a little lost with our case being a German-American-Haitian family but we are positive it'll work out somehow.
Afterward we took the children to the strawberry field. You bring your own container which they weigh before you pick the strawberries; but since they didn't weigh Shilda before we paid for the strawberries we got the 3 pounds she ate for free.
Well, it's 1 am and I am VERY sleepy....