Pictures

our bathroom
living room
living room/dining room
living room looking into the kitchen
Ben and Jimmy
Baby's Crib bedding, thank you Aunt Susie!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!!! I'm up super early this Christmas- I'm pretty sure the earliest ever. Ben got up about 3:30am and I climbed out about 20 minutes later! I got up early to make the breakfast casserole and make some calls.

I should have known better than to make a breakfast casserole half asleep and talking on the phone. I put what I thought was everything in the bowl mixed it up and threw it in the oven all proud of myself for being such a great little wife. I made a big 9x13 pan and was thinking how much the guys at the kennels where going to enjoy it. Should have known better. It was about half way done baking when I noticed it didn't look like I thought it would. I kind of brushed it off and went into the bedroom to lay down. I started going over everything in it thinking maybe I left out something and then it hit me. I left out the entire amount of sour cream. 16 ounces mind you!!!!!!!! AHH I was soo frustrated! So I marched into the kitchen grabbed that casserole out of the oven, found the biggest bowl I had, dumped it in, mixed in the forgotten sour cream, and threw it back into the oven. haha Then I called my Mom to tell her what I did. Does anyone else do things like this or is it just me? hhaha Mom said she's done things like that, everyone does, but they just don't tell anyone else. Well, I just pulled the casserole out and it looks good, smells good. I'm just praying it tastes good.

Ben and I had our little Christmas on Christmas Eve with our gifts since he has to work. We're going to save the gifts from our families until the come in. Ben came home and I had just finished wrapping his last present! haha Between the both of us we used all the wrapping paper I had, about 3 rolls. We're really good at wrapping..... It was so wonderful. We took turns unwrapping making it last as long as possible. This was Ben's first Christmas since basic training that he was with family on Christmas. Beretta had to lay between his legs on the floor beside me. She even helped rip the paper off the gifts. It was really funny, silly girl. Wow, next year I'll be writing about a little one sitting on the floor trying to help open gifts! WOW! We gave her a bone thinking it would keep her busy while we did our presents, but she had it finished in about 7 minutes.

Ben got a much needed boot dryer, socks, a book, knives, almonds (his favorite), little things like shaving stuff, chocolate, t-shirts, camo jacket, clothes hmm seat covers and shorts from my Meemaw Merd, super nice hat and gloves from Mom, oh my some other things I know I'm leaving out. Ben got me a stocking full of chocolate, gum, hand sanitizer (that I desperately needed), a Vera Bradley lunch bag, Office trivia game (soooo excited) picture albums, a purple blanket, a huge Tupperware bowl with a lid, and new hair clippers!!!! I was a good girl this year!! :)

Yesterday, after I made the casserole I got really homesick and sad I called Ben and he came and picked me up. It was about 0630am. I just hung out there all day eating and watching Christmas movies. It was wonderful even though Ben had to work. The other wives brought things for lunch. My breakfast went over well, and we pretty much ate all day long. It was a good day. Ben and I were both soo tired. We called our families, put the rest of the Christmas movie in we didn't finish, and played our Office Trivia game! We are so thankful we could spend Christmas together. It was super rainy and windy all day.

There's no more snow left on the ground and it's finally above freezing!!! Beretta is enjoying her time outside at the moment barking at who knows what. I just finished cleaning the bathroom and running the sweeper. I think Ben and I are going to see if the German version of Walmart has anything fun on clearance when he gets home! Nothing beats clearance!! Hopefully find some fun things to decorate with next year!

We hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas wherever you are and pray for God's blessings on all of you! We miss you!

Such a Slacker!

haha Im honestly embarrassed that I haven't written anything since the 30th... wow. I'm such a slacker, sorry! I mean really, it's not that hard to sit and write. It's not like I go back and spend time proof reading or anything :)

Anyways, time is flying by here in Germany. I'm sure its the same in the States too. I can't believe Christmas is 11 days away. Work is going good for both of us. Ben is enjoying his schedule, all except waking up at 3:30am. It's a really nice schedule getting every other weekend off for 3 days. Jimmy and Ben are working together great. He said that sometimes when Jimmy is acting up or won't listen he said he has to stop himself from hollering "knock it off Beretta" haha!!! Poor guy, he's an awesome handler who works with the most obedient dogs out there and then comes home to our 2yr old wild woman who can barely contain herself. She's doing pretty good too! She loves when Ben has off during the week!

I've been at WIC for almost three whole weeks now! It's going great. I'm enjoying the work, the families I get to interact with, and the girls in the office. It's a definitely a change in pace but a welcomed change at this point in time. I'm not going to lie, I desperately miss the NICU but this is where I'm to be right now. I do not know how those girls worked 12-16 hours 8 months pregnant. I'm in awe, I really am!! Come noon, I'm so uncomfortable and I've only been there 4 /2 hours sitting the vast majority of the time. Then I think of my Mom who did the same thing with all four of us!! Your one heck of a woman Mom!! Wow. It is very nice to know that if I make a mistake it's doesn't have the potential to harm anyone. I'm working a long week this week so we can have Christmas Eve day off.

Our Christmas tree is up!!! Poor little thing. It can't help it's a Charlie Brown tree. I hung as many ornament on it as I possibly could. haha The limbs bend with the weight of all of them. Ben and I have our gifts wrapped and tucked underneath already. I've only managed to give him 3 presents! haha I just can't help it! If he'd let me I would have given them to him as soon as they came in the mail! I've never been able to wait to give someone a gift or tell them about it. It drives me crazy! I just get so excited about it and if they'll like it that I either tell them what it is or give it to them! My Mom is still surprised that I didn't find out what the little one is.

Speaking of the little one...aka big little one, baby is doing wonderful! Extremely active and growing like a weed. I get asked at least once a day if we're having twins. I just smile and say nope, its just a big baby. If you saw my husband-you'd understand :)! That was one of the first things the nurse practitioner I work under asked me on my first day. She worked in OB/GYN for 10 years and said she would have put money on it. haha I go for another doctors appointment on Thursday. I'm right on track for measurements but I just look huge I guess! We'll see what she has to say.

Ben and I went to our first every Christmas Market last week! It was the one in our town so we didn't have too far to drive. A coworker of mine actually met us at our apartment and we followed her down. The market is in center of town, like a town square but much larger. They don't have malls here so all the shopping is in a different store but for the most part centrally located. We went to some stores on the way to market to check and see if they had any maternity clothes. H&M had some but the style in German is not to this girls liking. haha I'm not really into the short dresses/longer t-shirts that barely cover your bum, worn with thicker pantyhose and high boots. No thank you. Not only would I freeze but I'd probably wear a hole in the bottom of the shirt from trying to pull it down. Not to mention I have no sense of balance or grace so anything with a heel is a no go! haha I did find some black dress pants that work lovely! I'm carry this little one so low it makes it a little difficult to find clothes that are comfortable. My Mom and Mom-in-law got me some awesome clothes before we left but I'm almost too big for some of them :)! As soon as I get home I go to Ben's closet and grab his t-shirts and sweatshirts to wear! haha

Back to the Christmas market... We made our way through the brick streets to the center. There is this old rust colored brick church in the middle that everything surrounds (like it sound be). Vendors were on every branch off of the main center. It was pretty crowded for a Thursday evening, I can't imagine what the weekends are like. The big thing with German Christmas Markets is the Gluhwein (you say it like glue-vine). It's red wine heavily spiced and served warm in a mug you can keep or you can return it to get 2 euros back. Ben had some and I enjoyed smelling his. He really liked it! It's extremely popular. They have stands with wee little tables set up so you can stand around with your gluhwien and mingle. You can walk around with it too. They had all types of little shops selling everything from opium scented candles to wood carvings.

Naturally, we made our way to the food section and stood in awe! The smells were incredible!! They had fresh potato pancakes with applesauce, bratwurst with the most amazing horseradish mustard on fresh toasted buns, whole mushrooms in a cream sauce that reminded me of stroganoff sauce-super yummy, and these baguettes with feta, tomatoes, garlic, and parsley!!! Not even mentioning the roasted, candied nuts, chocolate, and my favorite-nutella crepes!!! I'm a huge fan of German Christmas markets!!

We're in the middle of a cold streak here! The past few days it's been sticking to about 1o degrees. Poor Retta doesn't like the cold! haha She's a little bit of a priss, but then again, I don't like 10 degrees either! Its finally snowed and is supposed to snow a little more tonight. Thank goodness it's only a three day work week! Ben has off Monday and Tuesday then works five days straight through Christmas, but then gets five days off! AND.... I can't forget to blog about Beretta's 2nd Birthday tomorrow. Is it possible for pups to have terrible twos? I'm thinking yes.

I had my 27 week checkup this week. Everything looks good, just slightly anemic. My glucose test went great, and they drew again to make sue I won't need the Rhogram. I'm pretty positive I'm A positive but just to make sure, they drew some blood work. I go back in 3 weeks for my 31-32 week checkup. Baby is very active and has found a very comfortable spot at the top of my belly with prefect access to my ribs.

Well today is a big day, everything that I haven't done all week ( ie cleaning and laundry) is waiting for me. :) I hope you all are having a wonderful holiday season. Please say a pray for me, it's been a bit of an emotional time for me. God love my husband who takes such great care of me, even when I have no idea why I'm crying. We miss you all sooo very much and wish you a Merry Christmas!!!

First Thanksgiving

I hope everyone has recovered from Thanksgiving! We are done with leftovers here! This Thanksgiving was a few "firsts" for me. It was our first Thanksgiving together and my first Thanksgiving away from home and family. It was hard being away from loved ones but I was able to see and talk to almost all of them, so that helped so much.

Ben is starting a new work cycle and because it was in the middle of starting and stopping one he got 4 1/2 days off! It was so wonderful!!! We had thought he'd be working Thanksgiving at initially but thank God he got a bunch of days off. It's really a blessing getting that much time with him. I start work on Tuesday so I was thrilled to get so much time together.

I had made somethings the night before so I wouldn't have as much to do on Thanksgiving. I had forgotten about thawing the turkey haha so I had to put it in a water bath all night. It worked and the bird was all ready to go when we got up! Ben was the best helper. He went to the store the night before to get me some last minute things, chopped all the ingredients for the stuffing, made my grandma's punch, and did the turkey.

I have never baked a turkey and really wanted to see how I would do. I honestly called my Grandma about 6 times that morning to make sure I was doing things right haha! I can't handle whole, dead, birds. I don't know why but thinking about them and then pulling the necks and bag of guts out makes me gag. So, Ben took care of all things dealing with the turkey. He cleaned it an everything. I said there were parts in the cavity or bum of the bird. He pulled the neck out and said there was nothing else. I said they usually put the other guts in there. He said nope, none in here. I looked really quick and didn't see any! So, we seasoned him up, rubbed him down with olive oil and attempted to put him in the oven.

Let me paint a picture for you. Our oven is half the size as the ones back in the states. You can only fit a 9x13 pan in at a time and nothing else with it. It's itty bitty and I miss big ovens oh so bad. Now, when I got my Pampered Chef roasting pan I made sure it would fit in the oven. It fit just BARELY. I was like whew!, thank goodness because I really really wanted to use my new pan. Well when Ben went to put the bird in the oven, it would not fit. hahah I was like you got to be kidding me. Then Ben looks up from floor where he is on his knees holding a roasting pan with a 9lbs turkey in it, with the a look on his face that read " I thought you made sure the pan fit Jaimie Kay?" haha I swear I did! So we did a little pushing and shoving and we made sure that pan was in the oven! haha

Next on the list was the stuffing. Because the oven is so small I wasn't sure about how well the stuffing would cook inside the turkey and how long it would be. I just wanted the turkey to be cook the whole way. I put the stuffing in the crock pot instead of in the bird. Ben chopped and diced everything! I was mixing it all together and realized I didn't have half the spices the recipe called for. I did have poultry seasoning and when I read the back of it, it had all the spices I needed. SO... being the genius I am, I just figured I'd triple the amount of poultry seasoning to equal the rest of the needed spices! hahahahahahaha Well everyone- my stuffing was green. No really, it was very green! haha Very yummy, but very green! hahaa wow.

When the turkey was done and finished with it's rest time Ben started the task of craving it! He did an awesome job! Never seen it done better in fact!! :) It wasn't too long after he started that I noticed the juices were a reddish brown color when he was craving up towards the neck. It was a little odd, so I called gram again and told her. haha I knew the turkey was done with the temps and all that jazz so I really didn't know what to think. Gram asked if we took out all the guts and I said yup! Well not 2 minutes after I hung up we found the cause. haha We found the bag of guts we left in the turkey. It was tucked under the skin up by the neck! haha We laughed and laughed! I had to call my Gram back and tell her! It was extremely funny! Why can't they put all the spare parts in one spot, instead of hiding them all through the dumb bird?

After all the excitement, we sat down to have our first Thanksgiving together. We had the best dinner. What made it even better was throughout dinner we talked about everything we were thankful for and all God has provided. It was wonderful. We cleaned up and both decided to take a nap. After we woke up from our turkey induced comas, we laid around, talked, watched some movies, talked to our family and friends, and ate again. It was marvoulous!

Next year, Ben's going to smoke the turkey in his smoker! I pretty excited about it. I'm really okay with never baking a turkey in a german oven ever again!! Ben will be off for Christmas Eve but will be working into the evening on Christmas day. The nice thing about that it he'll have 5 days off in a row after. I'm just so happy he's home this Christmas and we can spend it together.

Tomorrow is my first day at work! I'm excited and a little apprehensive at the same time! I'm so excited to have my own office! haha Also the WIC is very close to the kennels so Ben and I will be able to have lunch together! I can't help it and I know it's so silly but I'm worried about leaving Beretta! haha She's been with me all day everyday. I know she'll be fine but I just I'm thinking she's going to have such a hard time with me gone, she'll be beside herself. haha Wow. It's probably a good thing I'm gong back to work! haha I'd appreciate your prays as I start this big adventure! I don't know where I'd be with out prayer.

We miss you all very much! Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers!

Special Guest coming soon

About two weeks ago I went to the USO to sign up for their Battle of the Bulge, Band of Brothers tour in Belgium. I was too late and the tour was already full. I was so sad but put my name on the waiting list. We were I think number 6 and 7 or 7 and 8... something like that. I really didn't expect to be called. Well......... on Friday about 1400 they called and asked if I still was interested, they had two open seat! I said absolutely I am, I'll be down in 10 minutes!!!!! I debated on telling Ben or surprising him, but the tour started early and in order to get him up that early- I had to tell him. He was soooooooo excited!!

We had a great time. The weather wasn't too bad (no rain) and the tour was wonderful. Ben's going to get on and tell you all about it. He's much better at all things military and has a great way of explaining. It may be a day or two until he posts something, but don't worry, it's coming soon! We'll try and put up a link so you'll be able to see the pics!

I did pretty good on the trip! The little one behaved and I really enjoyed the tour and time with Ben. My ankles and feet did swell pretty good but quickly improved when I slung them over Ben's knees. haha It was pretty funny. I had taken my shoes off on the bus and at the following stop, I went to put them on but quickly found they wouldn't fit!! haha

Oh and I almost forgot! I got the call from WIC and all my papers, background checks, applications went through and I start on Dec. 1st! Thanks for your prayers!!

Stay tuned all!!

So many things to talk about!

I'm a little embarrassed at my lack of attention to the blog... hopefully I can redeem myself :) Careful, this one might be a novel!

Last week we had a little bit of a scare. I hadn't been feeling myself. At first I was scared I was getting the flu but it didn't quite feel like the flu. I was just soo tired. I would wake up worn out, like I had been up all night. I was taking naps, thinking it was just a need for sleep but they weren't helping. Then last Sunday, after the early and late church, I started noticing some cramps. There were only a few and lasted just a few seconds so I didn't really think too much about it. I knew braxton hicks could be starting so I was wasn't worried. Later on the night, they happened again. I called in just to check and they said take some tylenol, drink lots of water, lay down, and if it doesn't get better in an hour-call us back. Well when I laid down, I fell asleep. It was like 830! They baby was still wiggling like crazy so, I wasn't too worried. Monday came and I was so worn out, again, that I just laid on the couch with Retta right beside me and watched some movies. It was a rainy day and I thought it would be the best idea to cool it. Well that and my husband telling me to cool it. Around 3 the cramps started again and didn't stop. I called the doctor and they said to come in. Sometimes, knowing the things we know can cause more grief than anything. I called Ben but couldn't get ahold of him, they had just left for working out. I kept calling and got him. I was praying so hard to get him home. Anytime between 4 and 5, the gate to leave base backs up so bad sometimes your waiting for a half hour or more. I called my Mom and talked to her until Ben came home to take us to the hospital.

We got there and they hooked up the monitors, checked the heartrate (which was beautiful), and did a urine check. I was on the monitor for about an hour and no contractions. The urine test came back great which surprised me because I thought for sure thats what it was after she said I wasn't contracting. The doctor came in and ran a bunch of more tests just to be on the safe side. Everything looked good she said. A few of the tests wouldn't be back for a few weeks but a couple would be done tonight and she would call me if they showed anything. She was so great. Ben and I really liked her. I'm really hoping she does clinic hours so I can see her.

We got home around 9. I was so thankful everything looked good. She had also said it couldn't have been round ligament pain from all the stretching. We ate a late super and went to bed. She called me in the morning to check on me and to let me know one of the tests came back and that I had a common infection. She called me in a weeks worth of antibiotics. She said that's were the cramps came from and it was a good thing I came in to be seen because this infection is the main cause of preterm labor. I was really thanking God. I called Ben and let him know. He was so glad everything was okay and that we got things under control. I was just so glad we went and got checked out before I went to London and all that! No joke, I felt a huge improvement after the first dose and a world of a difference after 24hrs. I have energy now!! Look out!

So, after that time flew! Before I knew it, it was Friday and I was leaving for London that night! I'm usually packed days, sometime a week before but not this time! haha It was Friday morning, nothing was packed and I had a list a mile long! I got all of it done and was packed by the time Ben got home! haha He took me to the lady's house we were leaving from. It was a little hard! I haven't been away from him since June, when I went home early. I know it sounds funny, I was only going for 2 nights a a day but it really was hard for me to do! I guess because being here, he's everything ya know? Like I'm making friends and everything but I don't know how to describe it. haha Anyways, we went to the little airport for Ryan air. We got there in great time.

I have never flown Ryan Air and from the way the girls were talking, I was in for a treat. You are only allowed ONE carryon including your purse. So not like the states where you can have one carry on AND your purse. Nope, not Ryan Air. They had sent me emails and emails reminding me that my carry on had to be the right size or it would be checked for a fee of 35 euros which is about $52. I made sure I had the right size, I was scared not too!! I had good reason to be too! While we were waiting for the gate to be open a woman came around to each person checking the size of your ONE bag. If you couldn't fit your purse into your bag, it had to be checked. People were getting very angry with the woman. It was almost comical. I didn't feel bad for the people though- it sent reminders and reminders about it and when you bought your ticket, you had to click the box that you read and saw the info about it. Not to mention, it was Ryan air, not United or anything like that.

On Ryan, you had no seat assigned. You also had to walk out on to the run way to walk up the stairs to get on the plane. People were running to be first in line to get their seats. It was like a free for all! haha But I guess thats a big reason why they can keep costs so low. When we got into the plane-yellow was everywhere. The seats were navy blue and yellow was about every where else. They also had advertisements on the seats and luggage stow. It was a very colorful plane to say the least. No drinks, no snacks, no frills! haha They were also selling smokeless cigarettes. Never in my life have I seen an airline selling cigarettes. They were these plastic cigarettes that only provided the nicotine. I was amazed! haha It was really odd to me. The flight was about 50 minutes. We had the roughest landing, I've ever had. The plane even shot to the side it was so rough. I guess whenever there is a really good landing or the plane is ahead of schedule everybody claps and this bell thing goes off, neither one happened. We got out and worked our way through customs. I was soo excited to get a stamp in my passport! haha It doesn't take much. We got in really late at 1 which was really 2am in Germany time. I was a sleepy Momma. We grabbed a taxi to take us to our hotel. London Stansted is a pretty rural airport. It was hard to see in the dark but you could just tell. Here in Europe, traffic circles are all you have. It took me awhile to get used to in Germany. Now imagine this- your so super tired and a little foggy, you get into a little van that had the steering wheel on the otherside and you pull out and get on the other side of the road. Now, since your on the other side of the road you enter the traffic circle on the left side and go the opposite direction. It took me a second and I calmed down. haha I was overstimulated.

We survived the taxi ride and made it to our super sweet hotel. I took a picture of the room but I think I deleted it on accident. I shared a room with another nurse who also works at WIC part time. I'm pretty sure that was the first time I've slept on a twin bed since college. The room was sooo adorable. It had a darker pink wall paper with cream trim around the door and windows. The beds were white with a dark purple blanket at the bottom. The carpet was also a shade of dark pink. The curtains were a mix of the dark purple and pink. There were a table by the big old old old drafty windows that had assortments of teas. On the wall across from the beds was a huge, cream colored entertainment center that had built in storage space. There wasn't a TV in there, it was sitting on a little stand kind of in the corner between the tea table and the wall length entertainment thing. Right after that was the door to the bathroom. It was pretty tiny but had bidet, that had spiders in it. haha

We climbed into bed to get some sleep before our big day ahead of us. I was out like a light. I slept so sound, it was almost scary. I got up early in the morning and dozed in and out until it was time to get up. I got up to go the bathroom a little before our alarm was to go of. My roommate was up and and said um- I can't get the toilet to flush. haha I have never worker harder to get a toilet to flush in my life. I finally got it to flush. You had to keep pushing down the lever to fill it up with more water so it could flush. The other girls came down to our room after they had gotten ready and said the same thing. They also had no water pressure and had to wash their hair in the sink. haha Other than that the hotel was great!

The taxi came to pick us up and take us back to the airport so we could catch a bus into London. It was chaos. People were jumping line, the bus people could have cared less. We waited about an hour and finally got on. It was about an hour ride in to the city, so I dozed. haha It was hard work standing in line that long! :) It was raining pretty hard so I wasn't missing anything out the window.

As we got in to London we came across the Tower Bridge that was under construction on on side of the bus. Never, will I ever, attempt to drive in London. I don't think the bus driver was aware of anyone else on the road, including the woman he came extremely close to hitting! When we got into Victoria we sat down with our map and figured out which train to hop on to take us to Picadilly Circle. We made our way around on the tube, which was pretty exciting! The only thing I didn't like was the yucky, warm air on the platform and the crowed cars. We got off the tube and found our theater.

I knew it was the theater district but didn't realize how many there were. They were also pretty small. We had about an hour before the show started and went to find some where we could sit and grab a snack. I had some very yummy peppermint tea and come cheese. We made our way to Her Majesty's Theater and found our seats. The last time I saw the Phantom was in Toronto , I remember how large and grand it was. This theater was sweet but a lot smaller. The seats were a dark red velvet. We looked down on the stage from our seats. I just had to sit on the edge just a few times.

The show as amazing, no surprise there!! The cast was wonderful and I loved loved loved it! I got yelled at though.... I tried to take a picture at intermission. I honestly thought it was okay since the curtain was down but... haha it wasn't.

We left and went to find a place to have a nice dinner. The girls all really wanted a sushi bar. I've never been and didn't want to be the one stick in the mud. Plus they said there were other things to eat than fish. We went to this place called YO Sushi. Look is up on google- it was really neat. You sat at the bar and different plates of sushi went in front of you on a conveyer belt. It was priced by the color of the plate and they just added it up at the end. I got shrimp and chicken dishes. I also had a seaweed salad. haha It was okay. I found myself really missing Ben at that moment. He would have loved to try it!! And to make it even better they had little water fountain things in front of every two chairs! I loved it!

After dinner we thought we would check out some shops. The lady that had been to London a few times said we HAD to go to Harrods. I was really excited to see that. It had so much gliz and glam- I felt out of place. When we first walked in, I was greeted by either and man in a black suit or a woman in a black suit every few feet holding $900 cologne. We went up the marble staircase, complete with the Egyptian exhibit and Princess Diana fountain to the women's department. haha It was almost comical. Some of the clothes where really something else... Like you knew it was something else when there were only one piece of each item of clothes. All of the crazy expensive, expensive lines of clothing were there. I thought about asking if they had a maternity section but didn't. haha We tried on hats that cost more than a semester of college! haha It was great!

It was 8 when we left and all of us were starting to wear down. The one girl had worn these high heel things and could barely walk anymore. haha Poor girl, but really, who wears high heels to walk around London? We stated making our way back to the bus stop. we had some excitement there too. When we got there, this one bus driver said you can no go any further. He wouldn't tell us why or what was up. I was like great, there's a body or a crime scene around the corner where our bus is supposed to pick us up and Ben's going to hear about it and be all worried. No sooner did we see the London police come flying down the road. We walked further down and could see more what was going on. Here a bag was left on a bench and the police just walked right up to it and took it away.

I fell asleep on the way home and crashed as soon as I hit the bed! We decided not to get up so early to get some more sleep. We made it to the airport and had a good trip home. The landing was much better. I was ready to be home and see Ben and Retta.

I had a great time and I'm really looking forward going back with Ben to see the palace and all that. Now I know I wanted to write more but it's getting later and we have a big day tomorrow. We're going on a tour of the Battle of the Bulge and Band of Brothers in Bastogne, Belgium. We were on the waiting list and the called today with two open seats! I'm more excited to see how much Ben's going to like it! He's soo thrilled!! We got our bag of snack, water, and camera. We good to go. Stay tuned for more adventures of Ben, Jaimie, and the little one!!! I'm sure we'll see a ton tomorrow to write al about.

We miss you all and love ya a ton! Take care!!

Late and Early Birds

haha I couldn't wait to put this up today! haha I remember vividly thinking this morning, okay church is at 1030 so it will be done around 1130- wow, Pastor has really gone over these past few weeks, like an hour over.. hmmm. Didn't even click, not at all. We were doing good, leaving the house about 10 after but we usually take Retta with us and then go on a walk afterwards. Retta was not in the mood to behave or listen this morning at all. So were didn't make it in to the car till about 1020. I was like ahhh we're going to be late, no parking spots, great. We pulled into to the church and what do we find? No parking spots. Ben dropped me off while he and Retta parked the car.

When I got into the church, they have a TV in the vestibule and Pastor was already praying. I was like wow, he is really moving along today. Ben came in a few minutes later as the prayer was ending. We snuck our way as the worship was starting, or at least we thought it was starting. I grabbed our bulletins and we sat in the very back.

I started noticing that people were a little restless and were getting their coats and kiddos gathered up. I was like hmm, a little early for that. hahaha Then as I opened the bulletin I saw it... haha second service didn't start for another 20 mins. We were really late for the first service, and very early for the second. haha I leaned over and told Ben. He just shook his head and we had a little giggle. After we made fun of ourselves, he said "you know you have to put this on the blog" haha! And that my friends, is an example of pregnancy brain.

Anyways, we had a great weekend. Ben took me to Globus on Friday night which is like a German WalMart. It has everything and is HUGE! We walked in and I was overwhelmed! One of Ben's trainers said his wife goes there for a lot of their groceries and most is cheaper than on base. There are some great deals on base, especially with coupons. Not to mention I know exactly what it is. But, somethings are more expensive and being that the commissary only carried name brand, and everything there is shipped extra far, makes it a little more too. So we thought we would do some price compare and just have some fun in a grocery store on a Friday night. You will never believe what was directly across the road from Globus, that we had no idea was even in Germany..... Babies R us!!!!! We both were like NO WAY haha! We thought it would be best to save that excitement for an evening this week.

It was the best! Most things with the conversion rate is more expensive and tax is also included but it was still fun to go look. Milk was cheaper and they had more produce, cheese, and candy that I have never heard of before! Their cheese counter was bigger than any meat counter in the states! I was in awe! It really doesn't take much though.

Saturday we found out some of our mail has been going to the wrong box, which would explain why we have been missing some things. I think some of the mail may have been returned to sender too. Yay. But, we got it sorted out (hopefully). We headed out and found our way to this antique place. Ben and I were really excited about it! I was like, I'm going to find something for Poppa Huff and he's going to be sooo excited! It was run by Americans in this old, old stone quarry building. It got really cold while we where driving and this place had no heat! We got there and where blown away. Never in my life have I seen so many expensive or beautiful things! We were really surprised that most, well pretty much all the furniture was English. In fact, we didn't see any pieces that were German. Ben said maybe because we blew it all up in the war? It was really neat to look. It's a good thing dreams are free!

After we got back we went to a coworkers or Ben's for a cookout/get together. It was really nice. We ate a bunch, met more people, and went home sleepy. Today after the late and early church we went for a walk, cleaned a little bit, and hung the rest of the pictures. This week we really don't have too much going on. I leave for London next weekend WOO HOO!!

Oh Ben's work schedule came out and he's on dayshift!!! It's such a blessing and I'm sooo glad! We'll see each other when I start working, he won't have to do mid's when the baby comes, we're so glad! He starts on the 22. The shifts go from 4am to 4 pm, so it's going to be early bedtimes in our house! He starts the day after we go on a tour of the Battle of Bastogne, Battle of the Bulge and Band of brothers tour. Ben is sooo pumped for this trip!! I just hope he won't be dragging too bad the next day. Also he'll be working Thanksgiving but thats okay, we'll just have our Thanksgiving on Black Friday. He'll also be able to go to my doctors appointment with me on the 25th. It's a good schedule. Ben's happy about it.

Well... I think thats all the news from Germany! We miss you all and love you very much! Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers- it makes a world of difference.

Short and Sweet

It's official, there are no more boxes to unpack! WOO HOO We're working on hanging pictures this week! We're having a good week so far. It's been a little chilly and rainy the past few days. The leaves were looking amazing here and then it started raining, knocking them all down. The little one is growing like a weed and my belly is constantly in motion! It's the best feeling and so neat to watch!

Just a quick little story because I'm still a newly wed and my husband thinks it is good blog material... :) Someday, I will be an amazing cook like my Mom and Mom-in-law. Notice I said someday. That someday wasn't this past night. haha Before we came over, Ben's Mom made ham, beans, and potato with all the super yummy ham juice and vinegar. It was amazing and I ate like a horse. Well baby was craving it and so was Ben. So I called and got the info needed on how to make it and set on my merry way. Well after 30 minutes of trying to pick out a ham and all that I got it home, defrosted it, and was bound and determined to make an amazing meal for my husband. Well, I overcooked the precooked ham, I made probably three times as many potatoes, and dumped all the ham juice down the drain. All of it. So Ben gets home and I set everything on the table and we start eating. God love him, he was making a huge deal about how good it was and then sorta stopped and asked, um do I need to bring over the juice for the potatoes and beans... I said nope, no need, I dumped it down the drain. haha It still turned out, I'm eating it now actually but it was a lesson learned.

Sorry Nate, I tried to keep it short and sweet :) Love ya all and miss you like crazy!! Have a great day!

2nd Car, Beretta's Babydoll, and London

Happy Halloween! This week went pretty fast now that I realize it's Saturday morning! We're starting to get into the swing of things. Ben's enjoying work and I have all but a few boxes to unpack. At least all the boxes are opened! We're going to try and hang pictures up this weekend. We're waiting to get al the boxes out to get some pictures up. The baby's room is a nightmare with empty, broken down boxes. I'm not a betting girl but, I'm going to bet if we didn't have 8 flights of stairs we would have them out by now but it's okay. I'm still looking for two of my cutting boards. How do you loose two cutting boards? Oh the joys of moving!!

We got our second car this week. We were keeping our eyes open for one but really wasn't pushing the issue. At first we were just going to stick with one but, once I got the WIC job it turned into a different story. Once Ben starts shift work here in a few weeks he will either start and 4am or 4pm. I start at 0730 in December, so we thought we'd look around. Ben found a 1998 Audi station wagon Diesel. It's a navy blue with navy inside. It is the cutest car ever!!! It has much more room for baby things and a dog, much more room! It's also a lot more comfortable to us to sit in for longer trips. I now have a real Mom car! :) When Ben brought it home we started giggling and said really, this is the only time in our lives we will own, at the same time or separately, a BMW and Audi. Honestly we'll put pics up! haha :)

Not only did Ben get me a car this week but he got me tickets to go see the Phantom of the Opera in London in two weeks!!! I'm so excited I can hardly stand it! A group of ladies from the church we're going to (which also are some of the same ladies I'm going to be working with) came up to me and offered me a ticket. I wasn't going to go but Ben said I was going. I have the best hubby in the world! We leave late Friday night and come home Sunday afternoon! I'm a little nervous but this is a good thing and good for me to do!! I saw the Phantom with my Mom in Toronto before they shut that theater down and LOVED it! I can't wait to see it again!! IN LONDON!

Beretta also got something this week! She got her babydoll! We thought it would be a good idea to get one and have around her. We've been carrying it around, holding it on the couch, talking to it and everything! haha I can't imagine if someone peeked in and listened into our apartment, what they would think. haha She's doing pretty good with it. She just gets so excited, she does not know what to do with herself. She's a work in progress...

Today we're going to get some end tables, coffee table, and rugs from ikea. We scoped it out a few weeks ago, now were going back on a mission!

Have a great day and be safe tonight! We miss you all!

Wonderful ultrasound!

We just had our ultrasound this morning and it was wonderful!!! The baby is 12oz and is in the 81st percentile and growing beautifully! When the ultrasound started, the little one had his/her knees to the nose! (And for clarification- we do not know the sex of the baby so if I put he or she, it's just easier to do that than put both! I get excited and start typing fast so I works better this way :) ) It was sooo sweet! Just about bent in half! We couldn't believe how clearly we could see our little one! It was amazing to see the little arms and legs just going! I'm pretty sure I'm right, we have a gymnast on our hands! I lost track of the flips and flops the little one made during the whole ultrasound!

Everything looks wonderful. The heart has four chambers and is the best little heart in the world, the spine is intact and very flexible, three vessel cord, lovely bladder, sweetest hands and feet, appropriate nuchal fold, and beautifully form little mouth! It was so awesome, right at the end we were getting some profile pictures of the little one and all of the sudden he brings his hannie up to his face and starts sucking his thumb!!!! It was sooo cute! Oh my gosh I couldn't believe it! You could see the little tongue moving and sucking! Then then thumb came out and the little one stuck her tongue out!!! We were able to get pictures of both!!

We couldn't be happier that God has blessed us with such a wonderful, healthy baby! Thank you all for your prayers!! This little one is already loved so much! My dates are pretty accurate. The estimated due date is March 18, 2010!! This ultrasound says it will be a few days sooner but only by four days. We'll see. We can hardly wait!! My next doctors apt is the 25th of November with all the lab work.

We had a great weekend here! We unpacked and got organized. Well, my wonderful husband unpack and organized while I baked and cleaned :). I think I finally have come to an understanding with my oven. We weren't on speaking terms after I made the most wonderful pumpkin bread. I had two loaf pans, baked them for exactly the time required with the right degrees in celsius. However, after I let them cool a little bit, I went to cut a piece for Ben and me, the batter oozed out of the loaf onto the counter. Both loaves were like that! I was mad! So I thought I'd try my luck again but with some pumpkin chocolate cookies. Well, they would have been great if I didn't over cook them. haha It was not a good day for baking on Saturday!

Now yesterday, the oven and I had a great day! haha We made super yummy mini pumpkin gobs that I sent into work with Ben, so we wouldn't eat them all!! I think I might just have to make another batch to freeze! (If they even last long enough to be froze)

The living room is unpacked all but the boxes of lamps. We don't have anything to set them on yet. The couch and loveseat are set up with the tv. We put the tv on the card table. It's not the greatest tv stand, but it works for now. Really, the only unpacking left to do is my boxes of clothes. Notice I'm writing this blog instead of unpacking... :) This week we're going to try and hang up or pictures. That'll really bring things together.

Ben the great put up the little ones crib on Saturday night in about 10 minutes! It looks soo nice! That room has quite a few of broken down boxes in it yet so pictures will be once they are all out! :) He used the lap quilt I made him a few years ago as the bedding, and it's adorable!

Well, I guess it's that time- time to get to work!! Have a great day!!

**The picture is our little one sticking out his/her tongue!

Home.

Thank goodness we're in our place! Boy do I have some things to tell you! Brace yourself once again, it's going to be a novel. So go grab a cup of coffee,tea, what ever you please and sit back!

So Wednesday morning we drove over to meet the housing person at the apartment to do our walk through. We both were so excited! I think we both forget how many steps it took to get to our new front door, 4 floors later... We walked in and I was instantly happy! When you open the door (which weights a ton) you walk in to a little foyer area. To your left is the little one's room/ spare bedroom, to the right is the bathroom. The bathroom has double sinks, big ol' tub, and the heater is in combo with a towel warmer! Can you believe that? It's been heaven getting out of the shower and wrapping up in a warm towel! The bathroom is huge! We both can be there and never once do we touch elbows!!! OOO and a little off track I found out what the faucets above the toilet are! I asked the German housing man and its the water shut off!!!! I couldn't wait to tell you all that! Anyways the next door on the right side as you walk in is my laundry room!!! It's small but still a laundry room! I was a very happy girl!

After the baby's room there is a built in coat rack, then a built in linen closet. When you walk in the door straight ahead of you about 15 ft is our bedroom door. It is the biggest bedroom ever! The right side of the room is completely built in closet's and shelves! You could easily fit two queen beds in our room!

All the floor's are beautiful hardwood except the kitchen, bathroom and laundry room are white tile. If you facing our room with the front door behind you, your turn right into the living room/ dining room and kitchen. The dining room is in with the living room. It's a huge area! The door to the balcony lead off the living room. If you walk in the living room about 15ft you swivel on your feet to the right in you in my BIG kitchen! It's so big I have empty cupboards! I could've jumped up and down when I saw the kitchen! It was a little bar area to the left then opens into the kitchen. I have to get on a chair to reach the second shelf from the top!! It's bigger than our TLF kitchen (and a lot nicer)!!

Both of us were extremely surprised how nice the apartment is. We weren't expecting this at all. We got our keys at about 830 and the first set of movers came about 930. The next movers with the 5 crates came about 1130. They were here about 4 hours total. They came in and sat the boxes down. They did put up our bed but that was it. I wasn't real sure about the movers. The one guy who was hauling the boxes from floor 2-4 had to have been in his 70's. He was sweating, panting, wheezing, you name it. I was like oh man, I really don't want to do CPR on a man that smells like the biggest ashtray on the forth floor landing because he had a coronary. He took chairs from the crate and set one on each landing. I was scared for him and was worried a little bit but then I looked out the window and he's puffing on cigarette like it's going to save his life. THEN- he came in didn't ask or anything and shut himself in my bathroom for about 20 minutes. I waited awhile before I went in and when I did I about flipped. He peed on my floor and didn't bother cleaning it up!!!!!! I WAS MAD!! Then he comes wheezing up the stairs, stinking up our apartment with body order and smoke. I had get busy and not think about it. Ew, ew, ew, ew.

Anyways, the other two movers were in better physical condition to be moving. The one, very polite guy had long dreadlocks and a Jamaican beanie on. I had to stop watching out the window as they threw boxes and tossed things on the ground. so far only a few things are scratched and minor dents. None of my dishes or any kitchen things were broke! We're very thankful the movers in WA did such a great job packing us up!

As of tonight, the kitchen is all unpacked as well as the bathroom! The living room is stacked with boxes. The couch and loveseat hidden amongst them. We were just sitting here looking at the mess and realized we really only have a table, couch, loveseat, and cabelas chairs as furniture. Not that we need a ton but we have no coffee table, no TV stand or end tables. Hello IKEA! :) We're also really going to have to get rugs soon!

Beretta is adjusting nicely except for tonight she's been a bit of a handful. There are a group of cats outside our building that will come and sit below our porch and just taunt the daylights out of Beretta. She just losses it. Like she doesn't know what to do with herself. haha Ah it's something. I'm not able to take her out anymore or take her down the stairs. She's put on weight and I'm so off balance it would not be a good mix. I actually tripped over her yesterday and fell. I knew I was going to fall so I turned my body and landed on my right side/hip. I laid there just scared to death. I just prayed and prayed for the little one that I didn't hurt the baby. I haven't had any cramps, bleeding, and the baby's been moving all over so I not worried. I just really know now I have to be so careful. I really have been clumsy and forgetful too! haha I'm going to say it's baby!

I have really been able to feel the little gymnast the past few days! I mean it seems like it grows in intensity daily! Ben was able to feel the other day and was SOOOO happy!! He loved it! You have to press a little bit to feel it but its there! The baby really moves or I can tell better when I'm resting or laying down. Then it just goes to town! :) We are soo excited for the ultrasound on Monday! Ben has the morning off so he can go with me and not be rushed. SO excited!!

I passed my drivers test on Thursday! Thank you so much for your prayers! I forget every single thing I needed to take the test but some how managed it. haha Such a nightmare. I'm telling you, I have been so forgetful it's scary! Driving isn't too bad! I've gone off and on base a handful of times! I even put gas in the car with the ration card today!! ALL BY MYSELF! It's too bad I couldn't figure out how to open the gas cap and a very nice guy and gas attendant had to come and show me. Everyday is adventure!!

This weekend is full of unpacking and organizing. Ben doesn't have to go in at all! We so thankful to be in our new place and finally getting things put back were they belong! No more limbo! We also got our internet and phone hooked up!! Thanks again for all your thoughts and prayers. It just amazes me how it works and how much God has taken care of us!

We miss you all and love you very much!! Talk to you soon!

Doc's Appointment

This morning went good! We finally got everybody on the same page with my dates. They corrected my dates with the information from the lab work so it's back to March 18, 2010. So I didn't get my 20+ week lab work this appt., I'll get them when I go the 25th of November.

She said everything looks great, the heartbeat was the best sounding heartbeat ever (our opinion but I think she thought so too:) ) She also said my measurements are right on track for 19 weeks, which made me feel much better.

We can't wait for next week when we get to see the ultrasound. We're still going to be surprised on the gender! Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers, it means the world to us.

Busy week ahead!

We had a great weekend and both agreed it went way too fast! On Saturday we went to the IKEA outside of Mannheim. It was the biggest IKEA I have ever seen! I couldn't believe it or contain my excitement! Thank goodness they put everything on display because we really had no clue what anything said.

I never would have thought that I would learn so much about German culture by going to a Swedish store. The very first thing I learned is that in Germany, you have no personal space. It's nothing to stand right up against someones back, shoulder, and anything else. I like my space, I don't like being able to feel so stranger breathe on me! Second lesson learned- they can't get enough PDA, at all. I'll admit- I couldn't help staring but really there was nothing else you could have done but stare. Then laugh about it later when I'll telling Ben!

It took quite a bit of time to walk through! We needed to check out a coffee table and rugs. The apartment looks like a looker room shower to be honest with you. The floor is white tile and so is everything else, all white. We have a few rugs but need a couple more with everything being tiled. Ikea had some great colorful rugs and even a few on sale! A lot of our things are neutral so we need a little bit of color.

We even ate lunch at Ikea!! It was pretty good actually!! I had pasta and sauce for a huge 1.99euros! Ben got some cordon bleu with french fries and gravy. It was an odd combo but that what goes together for them! It was fun trying to order in German and figure out what in the world they were asking us. Another German fact- all their drinks are carbonated. You name it, they carbonate it. Water, apple juice, orange juice... everything. I was soo thirsty and forget about the fizz, and take a huge drink resulting in hick-ups for the next twenty minutes. I'll learn some day. We tried to make it to the car after lunch but got lost in how they do things at ikea and wound up going through the entire store again just to get to the exit! haha It was kinda funny but by that time we both wanted out!

We thought we would try to shoot down to Heidelberg from Mannheim and take a quick drive through. Ben had his map and set out! I fell asleep. I'm actually a better copilot that way. It was starting to get dusk out and it had been raining so it got darker quicker. Ben found the road he needed but it took a minute to figure out the signs and by that time, thought it would be better just to head back. We came home and got to talk to a good bit of our family which was sooo nice!

We checked out a church on Sunday. It was a Faith Baptist Church and we both enjoyed it. There was a ton of kids, all ages running around which we both really liked about it. Also, it was pretty much all military. We're going to check out a few more and see which one we should be going to. After church we went and scoped out our apartment building. We found it and thought well, since we're here why don't we just see if we can find our apartment. We new the number so we started climbing stairs...and more stairs... and a few more. We made it to the 4th floor and found ours! haha Wow. It's a lot of stairs. We didn't get to see the inside or anything but that's okay. They all look the same. It looks out into some woods which is very nice. We also don't have anyone above us since we're the forth floor. I'll just really have to watch the steps, they can get pretty slick.

My doctors appointment is tomorrow!! YAY! I'll have my blood work and just a check up I believe. My ultrasound isn't until next week. Wednesday is move in day followed by my drivers test on Thursday! It's a very busy week! We probably won't have Internet right away so it may be a little bit till were back on. But don't worry, it'll probably be a novel when I'm back! Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers! We miss you all very much! Talk to you soon!!!

Sweater weather!

It's sweater weather time here in Germany and by the sounds of it, it's that time at home too! We haven't had any snow showers yet but it feels like it! Thanks goodness we'll be able to get our things next week, including our winter coats!

Tomorrow we're planning on an adventure! We found an even closer IKEA to us in Mannheim! We're going to go and check out the store then head into the city. I'm a little nervous haha I really don't know why? Ben is an excellent driver, I guess just being a country mouse in a big, foreign city! We're going to try and get a little pocket guide with some phrases so we don't like complete dummies. We have our map, our required first aid kit, warning triangle, and reflective vests! We should be good to go! Have a great weekend everybody!

WIC job update

I had my interview today! It went very well. The ladies that interviewed me were wonderful and made it a very comfortable experience. It took about an hour total. It's a full time position, I'd be working directly with families, and I would be apart of a great team! They said they needed to send my app to corporate and would let me know today or tomorrow. They called about 45mins after the interview to offer me the job!!!! Thank you soo much for all your thoughts and prayers! There is a ton of paper work to battle through so it won't be until the first week in December that I'll start. God is so good and is really taking care of us! Thanks again!

7 months!

We've been married 7 months today!! We just got back from a nice dinner and a browse through the mall. When we were done in TX, we went to the movies to see The Proposal and loved it!! So we got it and are having a movie night!

Today has been a very productive day!!! Ben had a long lunch and we were able to spend time together to get some things taken care of. I scheduled my drivers test for next Thursday... it's time to be a big girl. I was really hesitant to even think about taking the test. I was even going to try and get away with not getting my licence but with the size of the bases, it won't work. Also Ben has a pretty busy schedule coming up with all his training. I need to get out and make friends! However, your not going to find me on any Autobahn anytime soon!!

Tomorrow is a biggie too! My WIC interview is tomorrow! It'll be about 5 am east coast time. Also, the baby is 18 weeks! Thanks for all your prayers!! I'll let you know how it goes!

A few updates

We're just about a week away from getting into our apartment! YAY! We're both really ready to get into OUR place.

The car is still being worked on... It needed a little part the guy didn't have so it's still in the shop. It took all day yesterday and hopefully we'll get it back today.

During our welcome to the base meeting a week ago I was able to meet the team leader from WIC here on base at the info fair break. It was only by the grace of God that we started talking.

I was talking to a woman who was there giving out information on employment for spouses on base. She asked what I did and I told her I was a nurse and so on. We got to talking and she said did you look at the Army Hospital's job postings, which I did and there aren't any open nursing positions at all. I was pretty down about it but knew if I was to having a nursing job over here, I'd have one. She gave me some advice on what jobs on base would be better for me to get into and recommended the child care center. That booth was right beside the employment's. She had heard me talking and said they would were in need of providers and with my experience, I would fit right in. I took her card and planned on checking it out until the woman at the WIC booth said she heard me talking and asked if I was a nurse. I told her my background and she said I should really drop my resume off at the WIC office, they needed another nurse. I got her email and sent her my resume. That was last week and I hadn't heard anything since. I was okay either way.

They called this morning and asked if I would like to come in for an interview this Thursday!! I'm pretty excited but I also know if it doesn't work out, there's a reason and it's really okay. Please pray that it goes well! I'll let you know how it goes!

The novel

Sorry this note is so long... brace yourself! We were having some issues with our internet. It's hard to believe we've been here over two weeks! I hope I can say that 2 years from now! It's been a busy past few days and the internet hasn't been on it's best behavior! Ben took the car to get inspected on Friday... it didn't pass. It's almost funny now. haha We have to get it inspected by the base in order to get plates put on it. We can only have temp plates 30 days. When we bought the car the car salesman said if it doesn't pass inspection, bring it back and I'll fix it. He had to of known we'd be back. The muffler needs replaced, a parking light, and something with the windshield wiper. We take it back Monday morning to get worked on.

I have the best husband in the entire world, for real. Yesterday, he got up early to go grab a wireless router at the mall. He just walked in the door and guess what he had for his wife and little one??? A decaf coffee and the big Cinnabon!!!! So wonderful, then I hollered at him for taking a bite of my cinnabon! hahaha

Anyways, now that we have working internet, I can catch up on emails and blog! We had a great weekend and it not over yet!!! Yesterday was the castle tour and medieval dinner, today was church and relaxing, and tomorrow Ben has off for the holiday! Okay, where to begin...

It started out as a cold rainy day yesterday. I kept thinking I'm glad we're not doing a walking city tour today! The leaves are turning so fast and are simply stunning! We hopped on the bus about 1130. We were set with our umbrella, maps, camera, coats, and snacks for me and the baby!! I stayed awake for a few minutes, I had never been on the Autobahn. It really wasn't too bad. The bus driver was an excellent English driver who did not feel the need for speed. It was raining so I think that slowed the people down a little bit. It didn't take long for both of us to feel the strong urge to take a nap! The bus driver had the bus nice and toasty-we were out like lights! It was about a 2 hour ride. I think it was only supposed to be about 1 1/2 but there was quite a bit of construction. I never thought I would say I miss PA traffic patterns in construction zones... but I do. A few minutes before we got into the sweet little town the tour guide for the trip came on and gave a little talk about the castle and town.

Driving down the steep hill into the town of Cochem was so beautiful. The rain had stopped and it was a little overcast but made for the best castle backdrop! You looked out the window and saw fields climbing up the steep hill side along the bank of the Mosul River. I think they were mostly vineyards. We got down into the town and it was exactly what you would think a small European castle town would be. The streets were incredibly narrow and, naturally being on an extra large tour buss,were under construction. We had to stop at times to let others go through first so we could go into the other lane. There were people on the patios of restaurants everywhere! There was also a market going on outside of the town square!

The bus driver dropped us off for our 2 1/2 hour's of free time before we toured the castle and had our dinner. The leader of the group took us through alleys that couldn't possibly have more shops, cafes, and restaurants carved into the sides. Theses aren't like alleys back home, they're about half the width. I was a little worried because I have a hard time with large crowds but it was okay. We made our way to the town square were we would meet to walk up to the castle. We thought we would back track through the madness we just walked through and make a big circle. We stopped into a bakery to grab a pretzel then to a street vendor selling sausages on fresh, homemade buns with spicy brown mustard. Ahh, my mouth just watered again! :)

I just cant get over how in every nook and cranny, there was some type of shop stuffed in there! About every 3-4 shops, there was a shoe store. All leather, mostly knee high boots! It was fun going in a trying to figure out what size I would be. I think 39 is my number! haha We walked through the market looking at all the different type of um... junk they were selling! haha It was like a big yard sale more than a market. There were also alot of beer gardens, naturally. We didn't stop at a beer garden, they were all outside on patios where people can smoke, it was a bit much. We wanted to sit down for a bit so we stopped at the sweetest cafe I have ever seen. On the outside in the display window where all the baked goodies they had- I was sold. We walked in and sat ourselves down in the velvet covered tea room. It had parlor chairs, lace curtains, and doilies. Not to mention how snug everything was!! It wasn't over the top, it was somewhere that I could sit for hours and just watch. we looked at the menu and tried, really tried to figure out something! haha I walked up to the counter to look at the cakes and sweet things. The woman spoke to me in German and I offered my broken hello, good afternoon. They really appreciate attempts at speaking their language and tend to help more if you at least try. She said you pick then I bring to you. haha So I picked out a huge piece of what I thought was chocolate cake and went and sat down. We figured out coffee and cream and ordered that as well. Our waitress brought the coffee in two china tea pots with matching cream, cups, and saucers. It was prefect! The coffee was amazing, simply amazing. The cake... haha wasn't what I thought it was. I just that's just what I get for having no idea and just pointing!! Here there was a type of plum liquor jelly under the bits of cake alternating with layers of real whipped cream. The hubby loved it! I ate the cream and the bits of cake without the plum. We loved it, every bit of it! We were like little kids sitting side by side laughing quietly to ourselves about getting what we deserve having no idea what we're ordering! The older couple across from us kept looking over and smiling. It's not assumed rude or uncommon for people to just stare at you... and they really do. It takes a little to get used to! We sat for awhile long taking our time with our coffees and plum cake.

I stayed up at the town square while my other half went down the river to grab some pictures. I needed to take a break and conserve my energy for the walk up to the castle. I loved sitting by the fountain, people watching. Right around 1600 bells started chiming and as though it was rehearsed the people started singing a German song. It was awesome! I was just standing there in awe! They went on for a few minutes! haha It was so much fun! Then the bells stopped and we all clapped! Quite a few people in the beer garden kept singing and singing. I don't think they heard the bells stop.

We met the group a few minutes later and walked to steep hill to the castle. It was a beautiful climb and wasn't the worst hill I've walked up. We made it to the top and the baby and I needed a drink! I saw a soda machine and went to grab us some water. Well, 10 minutes later I'm still trying to figure out how to work German coke machines. We both tried but couldn't figure out how to do it! I know, I know, how hard can a soda machine be- trust me it was hard! Don't worry there will be pictures to follow.

The tour of the castle was very neat! Both of us were a little let down that it was only one section of the castle but still enjoyed it. We have a ton of pictures to share! After our tour they took us into the castle's chapel for our dinner, which took about 3 hours! It was 5 courses long with no utensils. The first was veggies and dip. I ate pretty much the whole basket. Next was bread and sole. At home when your at a nice restaurants you usually get bread and butter right? Well in Germany you get awesome bread and lard with bits of meat in it. That's right, LARD. At first we thought it was cheese haha. They said it's meant to coat your stomach... and arteries. Next was the soup course. In the medieval times a knight was chosen to test the food to make sure it wasn't poisoned. Guess who the brave knight was? He did a great job! The soup was mainly a chicken broth with spices, peas, and little hunks of meat. After the soup came out the servants came out with two buckets of water and a towel around his neck. You dipped your hands in the water then wiped them off. Gotta love hand sanitizer.

After the soup was taken away they brought out our bibs that also served as our napkins. Our plates were cross cuts of tree trunks. Then the meat came out. Just imagine the size of the drumstick Fred Flintstone ate and it was about that size. Never in my life have I ever seen a turkey leg that big. I was really really trying not to think about the meat until they sat it in front of me. It was almost too much for both of us. After they brought the dirty water bucket around again and we went to the bathroom to wash our hands they brought out the best cheese, the sweetest grapes, and little oatmeal crackers.

All during dinner they had a man singing and playing. They also showed different ways people were punished for not eating enough, or not eating enough. At the end they had two guys knighted for the games they played. It was really neat. We had a great time and are looking forward to more castles!!

Dr.'s Appointment

This little one must be growing again, I'm ready for bed and it's only 7pm. The appointment went okay today. A little frustrating, but okay. We filled all the paper work out and met with the nurse who was wonderful. Because my cycles have always been irregularly irregular, my date are a little confusing. By the my last cycle, if we were to go by that, (which is not correct) I would be 21 weeks and 2 days. I know thats incorrect but it was all she would go on, even though I had the ultrasound on Aug 6 that dated me at 8 weeks. So, that would make be 17 weeks tomorrow! I finally get to see a doctor the 20th and then I'm having an ultrasound the 26th. It was the soonest they could get me in. If there one thing troops and soliders know how to do beside protecting our country, it's making babies.

The car is all taken car of for now! We have new shocks and won't have to go back to the car salesman again. We have to get it inspected again for on base with in the next 30 days but other than that we're set. Thanks for praying and thinking of us!

What a day... :)

Wait to you hear what I have to tell you!!! What a day! Today started very early for us, very early. For Ben, it was 3am early and for me, about 5am early. You see, our temporary housing is super close to the flight line and last night was a very busy night for the flight line. Now don't get me wrong, I love hearing planes and such but, not when it seems like the planes are in our room and I'm trying to sleep. Oh and Beretta heard a dog outside this morning that must have disturbed her peaceful slumber so she thought it was in her right to disturb everyone else's!

After we drug ourselves out of bed be went to our welcome meeting. It was very informational. I have a little better grasp on some things now. I'm also hoping that God was opening some doors for me too. On the way there, a guy Ben works with we telling me about how his wife had a hard time finding a job in her career field. I told him what I did and he pretty much said good luck. The hospital is currently not hiring any nurses, at all. His wife has a degree in lab work and is working in a shop at the mall. I was pretty bummed but wasn't going to let it get me too upset. About halfway through the meeting they had a little info fair with different agency's and programs to help us out. I thought well I better open up my options for employment at least for now. I'm really only looking for something that I can go part time to after the baby. I started talking to the woman who was in charge of employment. She was asking what I did and I said I'm a nurse...etc.. She asked if I checked out the hospital and I told her everything I found out. We talked a little more and she gave me some info about working on base. It amazes me how God works things out, it really does. Right beside the employment woman was the child care and WIC booths. They heard me talking about being a nurse and asked if I would please send them my resume!! I was like WOO HOO, of course I will! So please pray that if this is what I'm to do, things work out!

After our meeting Ben and I had a really nice lunch. I got to see the other side of base and found some good resources! We then left to go pick up our car, or at least we thought we were. Ahh I completely understand that we are the "silly Americans" trying to live in their country, but we're not idiots. We got there and the sales man was like oh well...I don't have the work done on it. To which Ben replied- you told me to pick it up today, the work would be finished. He said yes yes it will be done today-2 hours MAX. So Ben said okay, well be back in 2 hours to pick it up. We went to the base where we're going to live in 15 days and found our apartment building! I was sooo excited! It's a nice area, nothing but housing, but still very nice. It's a newer remolded apartment building. So we drove around saw it then went to the registration building to get the car squared away. We found out just how silly the car sales man thought we were. Thank God the woman just thought Ben was the nicest guy she dealt with all day and went out of her way to help us. Here the car sales man tried to get out of paying the tax he owed to the German government and pass it off on our form. God bless that woman at the desk.

While we were standing in line, I noticed this woman across the room. She look like she was at the end of her rope! She was on the phone with the States trying to get a problem worked out she had with her car they shipped over and was getting no where fast. She also had a screaming 2 year old, a newborn, and was getting no help. Her husband came over from what he was doing at the other window to take the newborn leaving her with the very unhappy little man. I felt so bad for her. She couldn't hear, her son was having a severe meltdown, and she was struggling with the issue of her car. So, I dug in my bag for anything that would distract him. I found a highlighter, some pens, and a note pad. I walked over to her praying she wouldn't think I was so weirdo and started talking softly to the little man. I made a big deal about his baseball shoes! He got real quiet and started warming up to me. I checked to make sure the highlighter was washable and gave it to him. The Mom looked up noticing he stopped screaming and kept mouthing thank you thank you thank you! haha I picked him up and sat on a chair and we colored. I felt so bad for her and her husband. He came back and kept thanking me too! Needless to say, he was so covered in yellow highlighter that he almost glowed haha! The parents said they could care less. I was pretty glad I could help them out.

We left and went back to the car lot to find... da da da daaaa... an unfinished car. Ben was like um, why isn't the car finished? The guy explained that he realized he needed to put 2 shocks on (which was good) and didn't have both so the part wasn't in yet so it would be another 2 hours. Ben reminded him that we needed the car today. We also told him about the little tax issues, which he promptly fixed. So we told him we would wait there until it was done. That got him moving faster. He said they had other cars to fix, we could take the car and come back tomorrow. We had him put it in writing that he owed us work and parts. He seemed pretty surprised at this but, did write it down and sign it. HA! SO, we go back again tomorrow after my doctors appointment.

We're both wore out pretty bad tonight. I'm sorry if somethings aren't spelled correctly or doesn't make a lot of sense... it's been a long day and I'm really not in the mood to go back and reread. haha sorry. Thanks for all your prayers! Good night!

I love Sundays

Before we left I was doing some reading on Germany and the culture. I was so surprised to find that in Germany, Sunday is a day to be taken seriously. There is a quiet time observed for a few hours each day but all day on Sundays. On Sundays the shops are closed, even some of their Internet sites and shut down for the day. We've noticed that it really is quieter on Sundays. I love how the Germans are serious about Sundays. It's very encouraging to see. Unfortunately, Beretta doesn't seem to think Sunday quiet time applies to her and her squeaky. She will chase after the squeaky until she lays down mid-stride or my favorite, hide it from us. The harder she plays, the better she sleeps!

Another traditional Sunday observance in the states, football, is a little more difficult to enjoy. In order to catch a live game in the evening, we'd have to stay up till at least 2am. Afternoon games back home would be like evening games here. We both like watching a good game of football but I guess we wouldn't qualify as die hards. We'll just have to watch is the next day after we hear the score. I remember when Ben was deployed and we talked after the game. He got up super early in the morning just to watch the game.

I took a nice long nap this afternoon! Some days I'm pretty much worthless if I don't catch a nap. I'm thinking it has something to do with the CRAZY dreams I've been having at night. I don't know if that come with pregnancy or just the type of cereal I eat before climbing in bed. Almost all of the crazy dreams have to do with me forgetting to feed the baby! haha Its so awful! I wake up and have to tell myself I don't have a baby to feed right now and that there is no way I would forget to feed the little one!

We have an exciting full week ahead! Ben goes in for the start his training tomorrow. We were supposed to pick up the car tomorrow but the dealer didn't get back to us for the VIN so now we have to wait until Tuesday. In order to register a vehicle here, must must have proof from the insurance company directly which takes no less than 24 hours. Back home we would just show our insurance card but we can't do that here. We're both ready to go exploring around base and see where our apartment is going to be. I can't wait to check out the library and the pool!! As long as we have the car for Wednesday, we'll be just fine. I have my doctors appointment on Wednesday. I'm so glad I could get in quickly but know I won't see a doctor this time. I have to go through the process from the beginning. All of the blood work, the meeting with the nurse educator (which I've already done twice), and then hopefully get scheduled to see a doctor. Oh well. Then Tuesday we have a meeting that's sort of the "Welcome to the base". I'm pretty excited I get to go with him!!

Saturday is going to be an even bigger day, Ben and I are going on a castle tour then a medieval dinner! We were debating between a few options, and decided on the tour and dinner. There are a few different company's that offer guided tours and packages. We thought it would be a good idea to go with a tour since we're not too sure of our way around. It doesn't take Ben long at all to get his sense of direction! Me, well, I have no sense of direction. I try my hardest though! I'll get there some day!

Beautiful Fall Day

Today was absolutely beautiful here. The air was crisp and cool while the sun stayed out all day! It really felt like fall today. The leaves aren't really changing yet but they're starting too. Hopefully it will look a little bit like PA in the fall with all the colors.

We thought it would be a good idea to take a walk to the grocery store since it was so nice outside. I'm pretty sure the was the same idea as everyone else, there wasn't a spare cart to be found. Both of us were seriously thinking about turning right back around and head home. But, we both have developed an addiction to cereal and leaving without milk was not an option! The line for the regular check out wrapped around the store back to the dairy isle. If I had to guess how many carts where backed up for the like I'd have to about 60+. Then the self checkout was at least 30. I was in awe! haha I guess that's what happens after pay day.

We came back and had a good time playing ball with Beretta. She's been sleeping since, which is just fine with me! She's adjusted just fine. We're really trying to put weight on her. Right now the little piglet is up to eatting three, 3 cup meals a day, with some extra snacks here and there!

I've found that the more places we go, the smaller the world! We were walking yesterday and a man and his son were walking by. The little boy was all decked out in Penn State gear and Ben had on his Penn State hat. The guy stopped right away and started talking to us. He had just flown in that morning and was from Lewisburg. It was really nice talking to him. He was really excited to run into people that knew where that was. Also Ben had working with one of his guys a few times.

I really can't believe that we're here. Sometimes it hits me that we're all the way across the ocean, but then it goes away. I wonder how long it will be until it really sinks in for good that we're here. I'm trying not to get antsy about moving into our apartment but its getting a little hard. We're both ready to be settled for awhile! Or at least until the little one comes!

It hasn't been real exciting lately but I'll try to keep up the post's every day or other day. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers!

16 weeks along, 20 days away, 1 week in and a 1995 BMW

Today I'm 16 weeks along!! I can't believe how fast time goes! I know, what am I going to say when we have this little one? I think time flys now, silly me! I've been feeling okay. I think the little one new today was his/her 16 week benchmark because I was extremely worn out. I'm still having the hardest time eating any type of meat except bacon (go figure). Meat, mainly beef, just makes me gag. I'm really trying to make sure I pack enough protein into my diet with peanut butter, dairy products, eggs, and the carnation breakfast drink along with my breakfast. At dinner tonight I was able to eat more than I ever have at a sitting since I've been pregnant. I was pretty excited about it! Ben couldn't believe we didn't have any leftovers!

Today is also 20 days from when we can move into our apartment and get a routine started. We really haven't had one since... wow I can't remember when. I'm so excited!!! Ben set everything up so that the movers are coming that day and unpacking all of goodies that have been in crates since July 13! The are we're going to be in is mainly just housing so hopefully we'll meet people pretty fast.

We bought a car today!!!! Praise God we found one! It's a 1995 BMW 316i 5 speed, blueish gray. We will put pictures when we get it on Monday. We wanted to get Ben a work car/ little beater that will get us around base, then look for a better family car in a little bit. It's in great shape! Ben and I were laughing, it's going to be the only time we'll own a BMW!

We've almost been here a week, hard to believe that! While it looks so much like PA, its so different here. Like, we still haven't figured out the potty's, and I can't tell the difference between a door bell and a light switch. haha In our temporary apartment building there are light switches outside each door that look the exact same. I was standing outside the first apartment door just pressing the daylights out of the door bell and Ben's just laughing saying "Jaimie, jaimie thats not it" haha Then I had to explain to the man why I wouldn't stop pressing his door bell. I guess I can't win them all!