Mommy and Me Date

I realized this week I completely neglected Emily's wardrobe and undermined her fashion sense.  On Wednesday as I left for work, she said in a very angry voice, "It's not fair.  You get to wear that and I have to wear this."  "That" happened to be jeans disguised as dress pants and a blouse to make the outfit appear dressy while "this" was a striped long sleeve shirt from Gymboree.  Of course, Owen, never missing an opportunity to annoy Emily, told her she looked like a boy.  As the only mother in the world who hates shopping for kids clothes, I quickly noticed that Emily legitimately lacked fall clothing options.  I promised her I would take Friday afternoon off so we could hit H&M.  (Emily's school is closed for over a week for Fall Break.  I mean, after four weeks of school, the kids really need a vacation.)

As soon as we exited the train, Emily insisted on finding a snack.  You do need energy to shop.  We bought a big soft pretzel and headed to a Jeffery Koons exhibit I had wanted to see.  I decided to use the opportunity to indoctrinate Emily into loving art.  We entered the gallery only to find it closed for the next two weeks.  The guards directed us to the Museum of Modern Art around the corner.  As we ventured toward the museum, we found a Zaget rated cafe to stop in for lunch.  A cookie, quiche, and cappuccino later, we headed to the museum.  I loved the gallery.  The space alone evoked a wow from my daughter as we went into the first room.  Several photographers' work hung on the first floor while the second and third floors exhibited a room filled with words and an artist protesting consumption.  Emily giggled when we came across a statue resembling pieces of poop on the floor.   I think it was her favorite.

A back ally on the way to the first museum 

Enjoying lunch

We walked back to the Zeil, Frankfurt's famous pedestrian shopping street, to find H&M.  Emily picked out blouses, pants, headbands, tights and dresses.  A lot of pink for my taste.  But it is her style and that is what is important to me.

P.S. - Emily wanted everyone to see the acorn she collected with the Madagascar sign in the backdrop.

One of My Favorite (German) Things: Public Transportation

I love the bus and U-Bahn systems here in Frankfurt, and more importantly, I love living in an area where it is so easy to access them.  Actually,  I have not driven the van since leaving Virgina.  (I know my college roommates think that is probably a good thing.)  The bus system posts its schedules on every stop and abides closely to the pick-up times.  I never see trash or dirt littered on the seats and most people wear headphones and don't say a word.  In the mornings, I frequently see kids of all ages as the German schools use the public system rather than separate yellow buses.

One Saturday morning, I discretely climbed on the bus with the double wide stroller (everything in Europe feels tiny) and two loud American kids yelling, "Stop it Emily" "No you stop it Owen." I slid into the open area I assumed could host strollers as well as wheel chairs.  At the next stop,  a very large man on a little scooter rolled onto the bus.  He took one look at where I positioned myself and started yelling at me in German.  The entire bus fell completely silent.  I looked at him blankly, said I did not speak German, and focused my attention on the kids.   Emily whispered, "that mean man is yelling at you mommy." (Nothing like your child to point out what you are trying so desperately to ignore).  He proceeded to yell through the next stop where he then got off the bus.  Thinking I had just violated some German rule, I asked the women next to me what I had done wrong.  She said, "Nothing.  I ride the bus all the time and that man is always mean."

The U-bahn system resembles the metro but with more efficiency.  Most places in Frankfurt can be accessed by a 20 minute train ride.  We rarely wait long and computer signs report the time until the next three trains come through the stop.  (Dave's last experience on the metro:  In June, he enjoyed last minute behind the bench seats at the Nats/Yankees game.  He left the game at four to take the twenty minute metro ride to Springfield so I could pick him up for the DMB concert.  70 minutes and many delays later, I picked him up at Eisenhower.  It would have been another 40 minutes had I waited at Springfield.)  Unlike in the States, Germany uses the honor system for ticket purchases.  You board the train without ever walking through a turnstile or showing anyone your ticket.  However, people in plain clothes randomly walk through the trains and if you are found without a ticket, you owe a hefty fine.

I love picking up my book as I go places instead of silently cursing the cars around me as I sit in long delays trying to get anywhere.  Though I do miss the long phone calls I had with many of you as I waited for the accident to clear.

My Favorite (German) Things: Food

We love the food in Germany - especially the farmer's markets.   Everyday a neighborhood in Frankfurt hosts a market where they sell fresh produce, meats, cheeses, and flowers.  (We now try to buy our  produce every few days instead of stocking up for a week like we did at home.)  Our Saturday morning tradition includes exploring these markets.  We take the bus to Bornheim where stands line the main road and surround the neighborhood clock tour   Everyone gets a treat.  Dave looks for the sausage stand.  The kids eat chocolate croissants while I enjoy my cappuccino, and we watch people go by.  I wish my "market German" was a little better as I mostly point to the apples or fennel I want.  Last weekend, we took the train just a few stops to Konstablerwache to try a market in the Innerstadt - center city.  I asked the butcher for Italian sausages to make tomato sauce, but he did not sell them.  He insisted the kids start eating German sausages and gave them each a skinny cured German sausage to eat.  Owen loved it and I ended up going back and buying five more.

At home, we frequented four different grocery stories.  Each week, Dave stopped at Whole Foods (Whole paycheck) for chicken nuggets with real chicken, turkey, and produce.  We went to Trader Joes for snacks and sauces.  We ran to Safeway for those last minute ingredients and Costco for bulk household items.  Here, we are lucky enough to have access to the military commissary where we buy some American snacks and cereals and all of our paper products.  The local grocery store Rewe, similar to Safeway but with European freshness, sells fish, locally grown meats, spices, etc.  (And the five euro French wine tastes incredible)  We hit the markets or the street stands to get produce.  I actually love grocery shopping here.   Now I need to start cooking more... 

Typical Weekends

The last two weekends we stayed around Frankfurt.  While the white walls, neutral rugs, and plain furniture in our apartment leave me a little homesick, we needed down time and more typical activities to aid in our adjustment.  (We hope the 7000lbs of jackets, photographs, pottery barn rugs, kitchen supplies, etc we shipped arrives before Halloween.  A comedy of errors prevented its timely arrival.  First, the company forgot to ship it.  Then our four crates missed the next boat.  Hurricanes delayed the following boat for four weeks from sailing.  Finally, someone shipped one of our crates to England instead of Germany.)

Emily played soccer the last few Saturdays.  Dave is the assistant coach.  The kids run, stretch, and practice dribbling drills and then play a game where they all chase the ball.  Owen's age prevented us from signing him up for the team.  We bought him shin guards and allowed him to attend practice, but he could not do the drills or play the game with the bigger kids.  He just wants to be with Emily and do whatever she is doing.  Next year I hope he can join.

 

I started photography classes.  Maybe by the time my tour ends, the pictures on the blog will be decent!  My instructor held our second class at a high school cross country meet.

And of course, we spend every night reading.

Pictures from Heidelburg

We recently visited Heidelberg, a small university town with a beautiful 15th century castle.   After a pizza lunch and an Italian latte in the city center, we started our trek to the castle.  We looked for Swiper the Fox in every old door in order to keep Owen entertained.

Of course, every trip ends with a 1 euro gelato cone.