St. Nikolas Day!

St. Nikolas made a visit to our house the night of December 5th.

The boys put their wooden shoes from Holland out and got a great suprise in the morning.

They each got animals, candy, and a clementine.

They were all delighted and happy for German holidays!

SNOW SNOW SNOW!

In December we got a lot of snow! More snow than Germany has had in over 30 years! The kids loved playing out in it. The first night of a big snow storm we went outside and made snowmen from all the snow in the street. Since here in Germany they are not used to this much snow they don't plow much. One Sunday church was cancelled and the Friday before winter break they cancelled school. We also had a few 2 hour work and school delays. It was fun to have a lot of snow and be stuck at home. :)

Our Visit to Liechtenstein #1

This is what Liechtenstein is made of...high mountains...

...and a low river valley. Just past the Rhein River is Switzerland.

The landscape is still green during the winter, just like Germany.

Here is what they call the Gutenburg Castle at the southern tip of Liechtenstein.

Our Visit to Liechtenstein #2

We took a drive up to the mountains. The road got very narrow and we thought we were lucky that no one came down the mountain. But then we realized it was only one way at that point.

.
It was a beautiful drive with the fresh fallen snow.

We passed some holiday homes along the way.

As we came out of this tunnel we were in the highest ski town. It was nice and clear and the moutains seemed to be begging for skiers. The town was dead because the resort had not open yet. I am sure they were opening that weekend.

Our Visit to Liechtenstein #3

Here is the main shopping area in Vaduz. You can see the castle up on the mountain. This is where the Prince lives. It is private so we could not get a tour. :( Thats okay...how many castles have we seen here in Europe. :)

Here is the Rathaus in the main square.

Here is a close look at the castle. We took a drive up the mountain.

Here is a church in Vaduz right by the main shopping area.

Our last fall in Germany

I am going to miss the fall in Germany. It is so beautiful since it is covered in trees. It will be a change when we go back to Utah.

This is the Kurhaus in Wiesbaden. Well, the back of it.

The leaves were in big piles everywhere. They loved playing in them and making it rain leaves.

They loved watching the ducks below in the pond. It was a great day out!

A bike ride in the Kurpark

We went for a bike ride in the Kurpark and had a great time. It was perfect weather. Not too cold just jacket weather. The boys had a great time.

They loved this tree because it was just the right height for them to jump on.

Gotta love Germany! Little boys...well just about anyone can pee in the open. Brandt takes advantage of the situation whenever we are out. He thinks it is great!

This is Zachary's big crash. It looks like it is set up but he really did take a spill. Gotta love helmets.

Preschool

This year Rex is in Preschool. We rotate between homes and it is working out great! This week it was at our house. It was P Day! We ate popcorn and pinapple for a picnic. Then we made sock puppets and had a puppet show. Brandt is also so happy to be included when it is at our house. The kids seem to enjoy it and Rex looks forward to going every time.

Cubscouts...Do your best!

Spencer and Zachary are both in Cubscouts this year. Spencer is a Bear and Zachacy is a Tiger. They are both half way to getting rank. I am glad that they are excited to work on achievements and learn new things.

Here is Spencer and he best friend here in Wiesbaden.

Here is Zachary just after he earned his Bobcat badge. He got his face painted as a welcome to the pack.

Here is Spencer receiving his awards.

Here is Zachary and his Tiger Den after receiving awards.

1/2 Marathon

I did it!

And I actually didn't do to bad. With Amy's help, I'm posting this on here. I ran the 1/2 marathon in 1 hour and 50 minutes. So, I figured that was about 8.3 minute mile. Not to bad for an amateur runner. There were about 50 total runners. I got 10th place overall. I got 2nd place in my age group. I only got beat by one girl. :)

I also ran as part of a team. We named it the LDS team. John Lord, John Vail, and Myself. We got first place as a team. There were only four teams.

Anyway, this was my accomplishment for the year. Now the goal is to keep my running up for another year so I can run with my sisters next year back in Utah.

Congratulations to Spencer!

Congratulations to Spencer! He ran a half marathon on Saturday! The official half marathon is next Saturday. He has been running with a friend in the mornings for a long time. I am proud of him for getting up at 4:45 am to be out the door and running by 5:00 am. He has stuck with it and has lost a lot of weight. About a month ago he was happy to come home from a 10 mile run knowing he has officially ran further than me. :)

Good Job Spencer and Good Luck next Saturday!

First Day of School!

The first day of school! I am so glad that school is back in session. :) It is nice to have a set routine and have it a little quieter at home. I am also thankful for school because now we have a bigger library for Spencer. I couldn't keep enough books in the house and our library has a poor collection for his age and level of reading. Spencer is starting third grade and Zach is in first.

Rex also started Preschool. We are rotating between homes every Tuesday and Thursday. So far they have really liked it. I did the same preschool with Zachary and Spencer and we had a good experience so I decided to do it with Rex.

Here is Rex with his Schultüten. In Germany it is tradition that when children enter 1st grade they get these cones filled with school supplies and sweets. Tina, Calvins mom made these for the kids and did a great job. It was a big highlight of Rex's day!