Birthday Fun in the Rain!

Kids' sky hike and miniature golf in ridiculously humid weather followed up with a ride on the train to enjoy the shade and perhaps catch a few wisps of breeze = adventure.

Getting absolutely soaked by rain on the way to the car and skipping/puddle-splashing/singing rain songs while everyone else huddled under shelter = what made it a most fun and memorable birthday morning!

Builder Man

Gabe's our builder!

He likes to play Jenga the conventional way, but he's thrilled when the tower falls over and he gets to build free form. In fact, partway through the game, he usually commanderes the pile of "already removed" blocks and begins construction. Then, as each block is removed from the Jenga tower, he eagerly claims it for his project!

The Church Parking Lot!

The kids absolutely love riding bikes in the church parking lot. This time they even raced with Naomi on foot and Gabe on bike. Andrew trotted around, begged for (and got!) rides on both bikes, and played in the bushes.

Summer Reading!

Turning in summer reading charts and selecting their prizes!

Gabe selected one about Henry and his huge dog Mudge (I was previously unfamiliar with these characters, but we liked the book). Naomi chose one that compared great white sharks to killer whales...not what I GUESSED she would choose, but both kids were fascinated by it!

Cow Appreciation Day 2012!

Continuing the tradition!

Flying High with Dad!

A Sunday Morning Moment!

Andrew often grabs a book, backs right up to me and plops in my lap. On Sunday morning, he thrilled Naomi by plopping in HER lap! And it thrilled this mama to see some quiet group kissin' and gigglin' over books!

And...the picture to accompany the previous post!

Toddler Bed!

Andy's trying out the toddler bed right now. He's thrilled about it, but I see no signs yet of him thinking about actually falling asleep in it!

Andrew!

Andy has some...quirks, shall we call them? Tucking his ears in (either ear!) and munching fruit through the peels are all in a day's work for this boy!

New Pajamas!

4th of July Festivities!

We actually didn't get pictures of most of our Independence Day activities...but we're big on fire safety, as you can see!

We are proud to be American, and I love teaching my children the significance of our country's symbols, the history of our country and how to be respectful of the flag and the people who have served our country. Happy 4th of July!

Back in the swing of things!

I'm back in the swing of things and thrilled about it! Our activity of the day? Washing the van with water squirters! Perhaps not very efficient...or effective...but filled with laughter!

A few tidbits...

I'll get Matt's input later, but here are a few things I'll want to remember about our trip:

1. You pay 50 cents for bathrooms in public areas.

2. You pay for water at restaurants, and in Germany, water was more expensive than beer.

3. It is vital to look for "niet" when reading train schedules...that means the train is NOT stopping in the listed city!

4. When you pay to have your clothes washed and dried, you have NOT paid for them to be folded. They will be stuffed into your bag and quite wrinkled if you don't pick them up in a short amount of time.

5. Shopkeepers in Noordwijck are most generous with their city maps and helping you figure out how to get back to your hotel.

6. Your spouse will be impressed with how much of the city you covered on foot, despite you not having any idea where you were until the aforementioned shopkeeper helped you figure it out.

7. Ice cream/gelato/sorbet portions are small.

8. My hair devices did not work, so I (mostly) embraced the short hair sticking out all over style.

9. My wonderful parents urged us to go and came to stay with the kids while we headed over to Europe. When we left, the boys were both fighting colds. A few days after we left, my parents turned up in the Urgent Care with strep throat! I felt so terrible (but they probably felt worse!). Thank you for suffering through that for us, Mom and Dad!!

10. My wonderful friends who were a few time zones away and responded to my pleas to help my parents. Thank you for easing my mind and my parents' load!!

Schloss Neuschwanstein

This castle was incredibly beautiful! Construction was immediately stopped when Ludwig died (under suspicious circumstances), but the parts that were completed are breathtaking.

It's Sleeping Beauty's castle! 

Schloss Hohenschwangou

The "orange" castle, or Hohenschwangou. Matt spent the better part of this day being entertained by my efforts to pronounce the name correctly.

 

This was the castle in which King Ludwig II grew up. 

The entire fountain was supported all the way around by lions. 

There were swans aplenty as well. They were associated with the area and so were integrated into the castle design, even down to swan chandeliers and door handles.

Fussen

Who can resist a picture of armor? Not Gabe, our 4 year old, so this one's for him! (As a random aside, we met some other BYU fans while waiting for one of the castle tours to start. It always takes me a minute to realize we are easily identifiable as such because Matt is usually sporting a BYU hat or shirt.)

Marienbrucke, or Queen Mary's Bridge. This bridge was a birthday present for her. !!!

I imagine I would find a bridge an acceptable birthday present.

A picture taken while we are standing on Marienbrucke. It was hard to navigate the bridge amidst all the umbrellas, due to the rain! Lots of rain and clouds, but still incredible!

A bakery and hotel that we saw on our way out of Fussen.

Austria, continued...

At the Mirabell Palace in Salzburg, wandering through the gardens before the concert...

...the concert room, in which Mozart performed in his day. String quartet + pianist... 

One of the few times Matt would allow me to hand off the camera to someone else so we could both be in the picture!
 

BIKING IN AUSTRIA!! The views were fantastic (although the temperature was a fair bit warmer than Holland)!!

More of Austria!

This is the second hotel on this trip that has provided slippers.  Matt found us some GREAT hotels!

For Naomi and Gabe to see the horse-drawn carriages the tour all over Salzburg. 

Recognize this? (Not the creepy eyes! The background!) Think Julie Andrews.
 

 On the way down from the Hohensalzburg Castle, which is up on a hill. One of those lovely squinting pictures!

The castle from a little ways down the hill. This one's for our kids, because we told them we were going to a castle today!

Also on the agenda today was the house where Mozart was born, the catacombs, several museums and cathedrals. Still to come is a concert in the Mirabell Castle, where Mozart actually performed!

On to Austria!

Last few minutes in Noordwijk, enjoying some Flemish fries! They actually give them to you in a cone-shaped paper with a fork. If you requested some type of sauce, a whole bunch of it is squirted over the top, and you just eat it with your fork! Matt chose plain fries, and I went with a curry sauce (which seemed very similar to sweet and sour sauce). Yummy!

We took a sleeper car on the overnight train from Amsterdam to Munich. Quarters were tighter than expected, but it was more comfortable than sitting in a chair all night!

Lunching in Austria!

View from our hotel room in Austria, over the Salzach River!