Monday, January 31, 2011

So, I was making gravy tonight to go on hot turkey sandwiches, and I had a moment of gratitude for my sauce-making-powder.  I have never, ever been able to make a decent gravy.  It was either lumpy or flavorless or something else unappetizing.  Well, when we moved here, I went shopping once with my friend Susanne, and she showed me this powder for making gravy.  I've never seen anything like it in the States, but it is like a miracle.  All you do is bring meat drippings and broth to a boil, then start adding this powder and stirring until the gravy is as thick as you want it.  It works every time, and it's actually good!

Sunday, January 30, 2011

 

Here we are having Sunday dinner at the home of our friends Hugh and Vivien.  The people around the table are Pepper, Denise, baby Oliver, Elizabeth, Hugh, Vivien, Jessica, Brad, and Gunther.  Hugh and Vivien and their daughter Elizabeth are from South Africa, but they have lived here for about 8 years.  Denise is from Canada, but her husband works for the U.S. military, so she is a reluctant American.  I just met Gunther yesterday, but I learned that he grew up in East Germany, escaped to West Germany, and spent some time in prison for that.  I wish I'd had more time to talk to him, because I felt like I was sitting next to a living bit of history.

We had a lovely afternoon with these people, and the time passed way too quickly!

Saturday, January 29, 2011

 

Today, Adam went to an agricultural fair with the Primary Scouts.  Here in Germany, they don't have Cub Scouts, but the church does something similar to it called Primary Scouts.  Basically, the boys meet with their leader every other week for activities, but there are no merit badges or pack meetings.  It is AWESOME!  (those of you who know me well know how inept I am at keeping up with scouting requirements)

Anyway, this is Adam just after he got off the bus with the boys.  He was very excited to show us this shirt that he won in some race at the fair.  He also told us that they put the boys in giant bubbles, then let them run around in the bubbles in a swimming pool, like the boys were hamsters in those plastic balls.  Adam could not get over how cool that was!

Friday, January 28, 2011

The Pile has now been separated into "to keep", "to donate", and "to throw away".  Finally some progress!

Thursday, January 27, 2011

We went to New Beginnings tonight, where Jessica did a presentation on chastity using orange juice and mints.  She had everyone taste the orange juice (good), then eat a mint (good).  Then, she had everyone taste the orange juice again (yuck).  She made the point that it is important to do things in the right order, like orange juice before a mint, and waiting to be married before sex, in order to have the best result.  She did a great job, especially considering that she did it all through a translator.

Now, if I could just get her to clean her room. . .

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Jessica disappeared into her room after school this afternoon, and I had high hopes that she was tackling The Pile.  But alas, this is what I found when I went up to check on her.

She is going to have to pay for my therapy.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Step Two:  Resist All-Consuming Desire to Nag

Jess was supposed to sort through this pile yesterday to determine what to keep and what to throw away.  Did she do it?  Obviously not.

Deep breath, Jill, deep breath.  Let the lure of the promised shopping trip do the talking. . .

Monday, January 24, 2011

Operation De-junk Jessica's Room.

Step One:  Remove all junk from under bed and closet floor.

(Oh, she is going to be soooo grumpy when she comes home and sees that I've done this!)

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Sunday dinner with the Fam.

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Look what Brad found in England!  Dr. Pepper Zero!  It's a whole new (and delicious!) taste sensation!

Friday, January 21, 2011

There was much rejoicing when the oil man pulled up to refill our heating oil tank.  We ran out of oil, so we haven't had heat for three days.  The heating system in this house is a complete mystery to me.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

I had the stomach flu, so this is basically all that I saw today.
In extreme close-up.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Our neighborhood fox.  This arrogant little fellow makes an appearance in our backyard about once a week or so.  He just sort of saunters in like he owns the place and usually heads for the bushes behind the fountain, where he hunkers in and gets comfy.  We'll see his face poking out from the leaves while he calmly watches us in the house through the windows. 

Lukie and I were watching him today, and he came out of the bushes and strutted around for us like a fashion model.  He walked right out into the center of the yard and did this little stretch for us, all the while staring right at us like he dared us to do anything about it.  Cocky little fox!

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

No, this was not taken at midnight.  Here are my boys trying to play a little soccer after school.  It gets dark about 4:00 p.m. around here.

Monday, January 17, 2011

This is where we keep the only key to the loaner car we're using while our regular car is being fixed (it got broken into AGAIN last week and the navi system stolen).

Look closely at the shelf.  Do you see the only key to our loaner car?  No?

That's because it is in Brad's pocket, which is on an airplane to England for the week.

Did I mention it's the only key?

Surprise validation

A friend posted this link on Facebook, and I was a little nervous to read it, being a Mormon stay-at-home-mom who blogs.  But, it was surprisingly positive.

Why I can't stop reading Mormon housewife blogs By Emily Matchar 

Enjoy!

Sunday, January 16, 2011

This is the sight that greets me several times a day - cereal boxes, milk, and bowls half-full of warm milk and soggy cereal.  Obviously, cereal is my kids' snack-of-choice, but how many times do I have to nag them to put it away when they're done?  I wish there was some way to put all this in the LOP box. . .

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Brad took this photo of me while we were out to lunch at the Sixties Diner, an American restaurant not far from our house.  They have the only decent chocolate shakes we've found around here.

Friday, January 14, 2011

We have 40+ episodes of Friends on our Slingbox DVR, and Brad and I love to chill with an episode or two at night after we're in bed.  But tonight, after a long week, we spent the whole evening watching episode after episode of old Friends.  Sometimes a Friends-fest is just the thing.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

One thing I love about Germany is that fresh cut flowers are considered a necessity.  They are available everywhere, and they are cheap.  The other day, I ran into the grocery store to grab something quick, and I couldn't resist these cheery tulips for €1.99 a bunch.  They are just what I need to see when I look out my window at all the tired, gray, January snow.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

It is so not-like-me to be fancy, so I had to take a picture of these little hors d'oeuvres I made for book club tonight.  Aren't they just too fu-fu for words?

(And are you impressed by my use of the word "hors d'oeuvres"? 
  I had to google it to get the spelling...)

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

We have these screeny things in front of the radiators at our house, and they unfortunately get broken pretty easily.  Last week, I repaired them the best I could, and rearranged a few so the worst spots would be hidden.

Well, this morning, I heard a suspicious crunching sound in the living room, and when I rushed in, I found Luke kicking at the one screen front and center in the living room.  I sent him to his room so I could cool off.  When he came out a few minutes later "Ready to be a Good Boy," I asked him why he kicked the house.  His answer was, "Because I thought it would break."

Serenity now!

Monday, January 10, 2011

After two days of watching semi-lame Pepper limp around, we decided we ought to get the toe x-rayed before we sent him back to school. Sure enough, no broken bone. Sorry Pep. The sympathy ends here.

Sunday, January 9, 2011

The boys watch Up on a quiet Sunday afternoon.

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Pepper fell down the stairs and now his toe is swollen and bruised.  We don't think it's broken, but he's having a hard time walking on it.

Friday, January 7, 2011

This photo was taken at noon.  There is no sunshine in my soul--or anywhere else--today.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

 Some of my institute students after class tonight.  Man, I love these guys!

A Year in the Life

This year, I thought it might be fun to chronicle 2011 with a-photo-a-day.  I saw a friend of mine on Facebook was doing this, so in the spirit of plagiarizing a good idea, I decided to copy her.

I've set up a new blog where I'll be sharing my daily photos, and if you're interested you can take a look.  The blog address is:

http://bjyear.blogspot.com

or you can click here
(there is also a link here on this blog to the right under the pictures of my kids) 

I really hope I'm not setting myself up for failure by endeavoring to do something on a daily basis. . .

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

A German sled/stroller.  Last winter, when I saw parents outside pulling their kids on little wooden sleds, I thought they were all taking their children to a sledding hill for some family fun.  Now, I've learned that this is just a way for parents to transport the kiddies in the wintertime, and I see several of these a day.  I guess it beats trying to push a stroller through ice and snow.

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Jessica and her friend G play Dance Central on the X-box Kinect

 

When I got up this morning, Adam and Luke were playing a swell game behind the chair

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Our street, or rather, our luge.

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Brad rings in the new year with sparklers