Oh my gosh! We are loving Venice, Italy!!!!!

We are having so much fun in Venice, Italy! I promise to blog about our trip a bit more later but in the mean time enjoy a few candid shots from our adventure. ("Don't go ninj'in nobody don't need ninj'in!"... ***You have to be Shaun or Kalynn to truly understand and appreciate this phrase, lol!)

It is cold and rainy, but they are HERE!!!!

After quite a few switcheroos with Delta Airline in the U.S., my family finally made it to Germany this morning. They are all taking a nap right now since I fed them a big American breakfast (except for Daddy, he never sleeps). We took a bus and a subway ride to the Marienplatz. There were hoards of tourists there in the rain with cameras ready to take photos and videos of Munich's famous Glockenspiel. We were able to capture the moment as well.
We also toured the Frauenkirche where Shaun said a prayer and lit a candle. At this church you can find the devil's footprint burned into the floor in the foyer.

"The legend goes: This is a black mark resembling a footprint with a small hooked tail at the heel, which, according to legend, was where the devil stood when he curiously regarded and ridiculed the windowless church that Halsbach had built. In fact, it is a large casting in the square base plate, and none of the side windows can be seen from the spot when one looks to the high altar. In another Version of the Legend the devil made a deal with the builder that no windows were to be built in the church. But the devil was tricked by the clever builder who had set the columns so that you couldn't see a single window from a certain spot in the entrance hall where the devil stood. When the devil found out he was tricked the church was already consecrated so he couldn't enter but left a footprint at the entrance where he madly stomped his foot. (Source: Wikipedia)"

It is still raining right now... we may just stay in and rest and get ready for our trip to Venice, Italy tomorrow!

We're getting excited that family is visiting...

My dad, sister, God son, and one of my best friends are all about to board a plane in just a few hours to come visit! They are leaving Saturday but due to the flight time (10 hours) and time difference (6 hours), they will not be here until Sunday morning (Berlin Time). I am so excited that I have so much nervous energy I need to expend. I did make KO and outfit from the fabric she chose. She said "here, Mommy, I like this 'fagric', make me something." Her daddy loved the matching hair accessories! I loved the ego boost.
Anyway, back to our family's upcoming visit. I just got off of the phone with my God son, Shaun. Just like a typical teenager he was more concerned about whether or not the malls in Germany have the same type of clothes and stuff that they do in the U.S. than the long flight. In this instance I am glad for that way of thinking because at least I know he is not worried about the flight (with all of the recent airplane crashes). On the hand, my friend Fonda has never been on an airplane before... I think she is looking into sedation, lol!
In the meantime, fairy princess Kalynn has sprinkled every room in our house with fairy dust while we eagerly await their arrival. See you guys in about 18 hours or so.

Stomach in knots

Today KO is going on her first field trip with her class. They are studying "Erde (Earth)" right now and her group planned a trip to a local Schrebergarten and will see their Komposthaufen (compost heap) and process. They will catch a couple of buses and walk the rest of the way there. I am a nervous wreck! I know she will be fine but it took me a long time just to get use to her being away from me at the kindergarten... away from the kindergarten is a whole other creature. If I hadn't given up bread products for Lent I would sooooooooooo demolish a cake right now!

We got our new car today, yippee!

It is only another 9 days until family arrives in Munich to visit us for Kalynn's birthday and our small 2-door coupe was not going to be of any use to us with a total of 7 people! Today, though, we got our new car!!!! It is a seven-seater, so we will get 'em all in (may be a snug fit, but a fit nonetheless). When we got off of the bus just a few minutes ago (today was gymnastics day for KO) Marco was installing the car seat. Kalynn ran down the street yelling "Daddyyyyy".
She was so excited about 'her' new car. She supervised the installation of the car seat and wanted to sit in the front afterward to check out all of the buttons and gadgets. I seized that moment to get 10-15 minutes of quiet time in the house while I could! I'm looking out the windows and the sun is now shining and it is snowing. Well, at least her allergies were better today, lol.

This stinks!!!

Yesterday was a bit warmer than it has been in awhile (probably around 45 maybe even 50 degrees). The sun was shining a bit so we got excited and decided to go outside in the yard to play (Kalynn didn't want to go to the park, she just wanted to play on her own playset/swingset). That was cool, it was nice to be outside. Shortly after we went outside she sneezed one or two times. Although it did cause me to raise an eyebrow I didn't think much of it... afterall, it is supposed to snow again this weekend so I am not in the "Springy" state of mind and all that comes with the Spring season. Fast forward to just after our trip to IKEA, right before bathtime. The little one's cheeks are rosy and her eyes are watery. Surely this is not pollen allergies attacking my baby already?!?!?!? Marco gave her some Claritin before bed but it seems to be too little too late. She was miserable all night and today she has been sneezing and her nose has been running non-stop. I feel so bad for her, she seems miserable. She always has such a time with pollen. It has covered our car already! When I picked her up from school her nose and eye area were so raw from rubbing. (Sabrina... I know you are reading this... Your niece needs some Claritin when you come!)

The local ice cream shop just opened back up this week and since she was so miserable and a bit whiney with it, I took her for some "vanilla therapy"! Please send up some prayers for Kalynn, she really does suffer during pollen season and I don't want her to repeat the cycle this year.

Studying Earth/Dirt/Soil

(Picture of moles the children crafted.)

The kindergarten has moved from fire and air on to an earth theme. I snapped a couple of photos of some of the "projects" the kids are working on.

Can't wait to see what she comes home with.

Going NAPtural today!

Kalynn's hair is showing signs that it needs a break from being pulled up into a puff again so she will be sporting her "naptural" hair. It is super thick and curly so it is 'bushing out' but a little princess band helps to keep it under control and adds a little bit of color. Her teachers LOVE it like this and all the kids want to touch it!

When Aunt Sabrina visits in a couple of weeks, I hope she will twist Kalynn's hair again. I do not have the patience right now. (As the little one says, "Mommy is grumpy".)

Finally... she likes dressing as a princess!

Kalynn is a diva and a princess through and through but she never really was interested in 'dressing' the part (at least not like I wanted her too). Today after naptime she went downstairs for a few minutes and came back up as Princess Olivia (yeah, she likes to use her middle name sometimes). I was soooooooooo delighted that she had put down her snakes and dragons for awhile to indulge MY visions.


In the video she is complaining about "stinky animals", lol. Diva.