First Day of School 2013-2014

The first day of school has come.  And the angels sang.  To say it has been a long summer is an understatement, but then again I think I feel that way every year.  This year Matt started Bitburg High School, Nate had his last first day as a middle schooler at Spangdahlem Middle School, and Danny started the same middle school as a 6th grader.

There are a few things to get use to.  Both schools use a block schedule which means their classes are longer but they only see all their teachers every other day.  Also Matt's high school has less students than his 8th grade class, which he has decided he really enjoys.  Both schools have really dedicated teachers with a more of a family feel.  We are excited for this new year.

Historical Burgenfest Manderscheid

Just down the road from our house is the Manderscheid Castle Ruins.  Once a year they hold a festival there that reconstructs life in the middle ages or a Renaissance Festival.  Is there a better place to have one than on the very ground that held events like this thousands of years ago. 

In the main area there were booths with food and entertainment.

In the castle ruins is where they set up merchant booths.

Some of the entertainment included jugglers and singers.

And of course the joust.

"The Holmes Have Gotten Their Junk" Party

After living three months without our stuff, I said that as soon as we were unpacked that we would have a party and so we did.  As both Doug and I were busy being good hosts there are no pictures.  We wanted to say thank you to everyone who helped us, opened their houses up, and welcomed us while we transitioned.  We invited people from the ward, from our village, our landlord, and the missionaries to help with translation.  

I spent the day cooking and getting ready. We had hotdogs, burgers, and brats.  Stuffed mushrooms, jalapeno poppers, chips with dips, baked beans, funeral potatoes, creamed corn, and desserts.  I tried to make sure that we had at least a few items that our German neighbors would be familiar with but found it interesting that their favorites were the burgers and hotdogs.  I only made a few cultural fopas 1. when I served cold mineral water, 2. not providing cups until asked, and 3. serving creamed corn (according to my dad corn is a food that is served to pigs in Germany).  Not too bad for my first time.

 The missionaries brought a family that had a sons the boys age.  We able to say thank you to everyone with the missionaries translating for our neighbors.  The boys played basketball and showed the German boys how to throw an American football.  We sat and ate, laughed and enjoyed each others company.  Elder Holmes (no relation) even gave the blessing on the food in german so our guests would be able to understand.  It was a great night that we hope to repeat soon.  

It Can't Be That Bad

Life can't be that bad when you wake up to these sunrises and have sheep outside your front door.

EFY 2013

This year Matt was able to attend EFY (Especially for Youth) this year for the first time. In Europe this is call SMYC (Special Mulitstake Youth Conference) and Matt's session was the only international session.  He attended with youth from 10 different European countries, most english speaking but not all.  He was able to enjoy the time in Brisbane, Germany.

Matt was able to make friends with a lot of youth and came home wondering why we were not stationed at Ramstein.  He enjoyed the classes and the activities he was able to participate in.  It was a great way to get him ready for Seminary.

 Matt is on the outer right side three people form the top.

Dinner at a Castle

At the end of July we were invited to Dr. Pat McDoungh home for a cookout.  The big draw was that Dr. McDoungh and his family live in a restored barn that is part of a Manor House/Castle.  Yes a real castle.   Can I say how cool it is to sit outside looking at a tower that was build in the 1100s?

This is the original tower that was built in the 1100's.

View from the Tower

Manor House that is now a Bed and Breakfast. 

Formula 1 Race

Doug and Dan had the opportunity to go to the Formula 1 Races at the Nederburg Ring in the middle of July.  As I didn't attend I don't have a lot to add except do you see how happy my Danny is?  A boy after his dad's own heart.

  

4th of July

Ok, I wasn't going to write anything about the 4th of July because we really didn't do much this year and the pictures are really limited, but then I saw some pictures of Danny and couldn't help but put them up.

For the 4th the base did an Appreciation Day which included a BBQ, paintball, prizes, live music, games, and a go kart track.  Matt and Nate earned money for scout camp by being on litter duty for a couple of hours while Danny stood in line FOREVER to drive the go kart.  To his mind it was worth every minute of the wait.

Pretty sad picture of fireworks, but we were able to go home and sit outside our front door to have a great seat for the show.

52 Dental Squadron Picnic

All the way back to the beginning of July the 52nd Dental Squadron hosted a picnic for all the service members and their families. 

In the Air Force there is a tradition of "Hail and Farewell".  This is an opportunity for command to welcome in the newcomers to the unit and also to say goodbye to those moving on.  It has been our experience (on large bases) that this is more of an announcement or FYI situation.  Not on Spangdahlem though.  Nope here you are introduced by your sponsor and then you get to say a few words.  Usually this takes the form of where your last duty station was, where you will be working, and your family.  Well, between both our sponsor, Jake Atwood (who we have known for 10 years), and Doug our family was not introduced like the others.  So in my typical mild way, I speak up introducing myself and the boys with the closing remark that we are the family that Doug is "so proud of".  Needless to say I made an impression.  Not only on co-workers but also commanders.  I am still being referred to as the wife that introduced herself. 

   

There were lots of activities to participate in but my favorite was seeing the boys suit up in Sumo wrestling gear meant for adults and try to take each other down.  I may have to invest in a set.

Dan trying to get the gloves on

Nate can't see without his glasses with his wig/head gear falling down

Our German House

View from our front door.

Last Tuesday we moved into our off base house.  Although it is nice to have our own place, I don't think it is going to feel like home until I get my stuff.  That should happen sometime the end of July.  We live in the country and on the edge of our little village.  All you can see out our front door is fields and on a really clear day you can see the Air Base. 

  

If you think this picture is lacking color it is because my entire house is lacking color.  Everything is white, gray or black.  The house is two story with an amazing attic space for storage. German's don't believe in open concept living so each room is separate. When I have more than base furniture I will take interior pictures.  

This is our landmark. The tree has been trained to grow up the house. We turn here to go home.  

Our neighbors back yard.  This is one of two cows they have. 

The best thing about the little village of Gindorf is the church bells that ring on the hour and half hour. Love it!!!!

Trip to Trier

Train Station in Spiecher

  Our first sightseeing trip in Germany was to Trier.  Trier is the oldest city in Germany known by locals as the city started 1,013 years before Rome.  It has so much history.  We took a train to Trier to teach us how to use the train. It was a great experience and nice not to have to worry about wrong turns, getting off on the wrong traffic circle exit, or where to park.

Train Tracks at Spiecher Station

The scenery is so green.  But you pay for the greenness with rain and boy did it rain the morning of our adventure.

Dom (Catholic Cathedral) 

 Have you ever been someplace and asked yourself if you are really there.  I stood outside the Dom in tears, amazed that I was actually standing outside something so amazing.  Dreams do come true.

Street in Trier

You can see all different building periods in Trier.  I love how they all come together in an eclectic mix that says it is comfortable with their past while continuing onto the future.

Basilica 

The Basilica dates back to Roman times when Trier was the capital of Western Rome.

Wall inside the Basilica 

On the walls you could see the marks put into the brick so that marble could be attached.

Ceiling inside the Basilica

The building is three stories high and the roof is amazing.  

After walking around in the rain we enjoyed a huge German lunch.  The overall favorite was the tomato soup which I was quickly told that I needed to find a recipe so I can make it.

There was so much more to see but we figured that this was a must stop for all our friends and family when they come to visit that we will be able to see much, much more on future visits. 

Information Overlaod

I have officially hit information overload.  Above is a picture of just some of the material that we have received since arriving in Germany.  Everything from how to make a phone call, use a washer, temperature conversions for the oven, driving, shopping, and so on must be relearned.  Needless to say I am ready for the learning curve to shallow out a bit.  I think I may get through the stack by the time we leave Germany.  

Driving is a new adventure here.  I have studied more for this driving test than I ever did for the one I took when I was 16.  I have learned all about strange looking signs, priority roads, and how to drive with no limit speed limits.  I am ready to gain my independence again and Doug is tired of driving me around.   

The German Difference

Living in TLF is a really great way to adjust to living in a different country. It has both American and German electrical outlets, German appliances except the washer/dryer, and American open living concept. It allows you to get use to a few different things without a complete immersion experience. 

Bought eggs and was blown away when each of them had a stamp on them

Simple things like flushing the toilet are just a little different

Love the windows that open two ways:  tilt in and open on a hing. 

Some of the other things to get use to:

  Km instead of miles

  Baking in Celsius 

  All German road signs

  Drivers going really fast

There are other things that are really easy to get use to:

  The weather (hasn't been above 75)

  The friendliness of the people

  Ward members that I haven't even meet yet that are willing to help

I am sure that eventually all these things will seem common place. 

Traveling to Germany

Monday, 10 June we left Phoenix with 10 check-in bags and 9 carry-on items. A huge thanks goes out to Papa and Aunt Taty who got up at 3 am to take us to the airport.  Our flight to Baltimore with Southwest Airlines was as good as could be expected.

Once in Baltimore we got a Skycab to help with the mountain of bags and show us where we needed to go to catch our rotator to Germany. (Best money spent).  We spent most of time in the USO watching new students for the Navel Academy get picked up. Once on board our flight we settled in for a 9 hour flight. 

Uneventful is how I like my flights and that is exactly what we had. We had three movies to watch, a nice dinner service, and a breakfast snack. Some of us were lucky enough to sleep, but for the most part once we landed at 7 am local time we were a bunch of sleep deprived zombies. 

Through customs and with our bags we headed out to meet out temporary sponsor, Maj. Patrick McDonaugh.  We caught the shuttle to Spangdahlem and checked into our TLF room. Maj.  McDonaugh was kind enough to take Doug and I to the commissary so we could put some food into our room.  Let me tell you, grocery shopping with two men when you are brain dead is an interesting experience. One I hope not to repeat in the future. 

Our final chore was to try to stay awake just as long as possible. The boys went to sleep nearly immediately, Doug stayed up for about two more hours, but I was the winner staying awake until 3:30 pm. I slept the clock around and was up at 6 am the next morning. 

We are slowly getting our internal clocks adjusted and acquainting ourselves with the base. We have found a place to live with a move in date of 25 June and should have our car here on the 27th. Maybe next week we will even venture off base. 

Danny's 5th Grade Promotion Ceremony

Danny finished fifth grade this year with a big promotion ceremony. He has really worked hard this year and is looking forward to middle school. 

We had to have one last picture with Mrs. Castanoñe.