Well, it's October 31st, and today's post will be just what you expect.

We went over to our friends the Fellows' for some amazingly yummy soup before the kids set out trick-or-treating.  The Fellows' live in a neighborhood that has lots of Americans who work for the embassy, and it is truly the Hot Spot for trick-or-treating in Berlin.  People come from all over the city so their kids can trick-or-treat here, since Halloween is more of an American holiday than a German one.  There was a steady stream of costumed kids at the door - literally a steady stream.  I don't think the front door was shut for the two hours or so of trick-or-treating.  By our best calculations, the Fellows' gave out more than 800 pieces of candy.

Here is Pep the soccer player ready to set out with his buddy J, who is a very official-looking firefighter.

Adam the vampire attacks Darth Vader (Luke).

All in all, it was a delightful Halloween!

Adam's Happy Place.

If I'd let him, Adam would sleep and take all his meals here.  He is addicted to a game called Minecraft right now, and we've had to lay down some rules and set the oven timer so he doesn't spend ALL of his time here.

This morning, Lukie and I drew each other's portraits.

Here is Luke with the picture I drew of him.

And here is the portrait of me that Lukie drew.  

He wanted to take my photo with it, like I took his, but I flatly refused.  I was in my pre-shower state, wearing my ratty old Thunderbird sweatshirt (which he accurately depicted), so I was in no shape to be photographed.  Let's just say that this drawing of me was extremely flattering.

Last Tuesday, Beatrice's mother came and stayed the night with us.  She brought us some amaryllises to show her appreciation.  I've never seen amaryllises before (my only experience with them is The Music Man, where the little boy pronounces it "Amarylith" until I am ready to hit him in the mouth), but I think it is my new favorite flower.

It took a few days for them to open up, but now they are fantastic!

This is what I drove through on my way home from school today. 

I love Fall.

When I got home from my class today, I was just exhausted.  I don't know why, but I was.  So, I crashed on the couch.

When Luke got home from school, apparently he joined me for a while on the couch.  Beatrice snapped this photo - obviously, I was oblivious.

When I woke up, this is what I saw on the living room floor:

I guess I wasn't the only one exhausted this afternoon!

Every once in a while, I have a moment in which I think my life is so weird.  This afternoon, I went visiting teaching, which is pretty normal, except that I took the S-Bahn to do so.

Growing up in Orem, UT, I never would have imagined myself in this scene.

Tonight for FHE, we went bowling.

Out of respect for Jessica, I will not publish who had the lowest score.

Today, Brad turned shhhhh...40, and he got lots of birthday love from his boys.

Okay, seriously, how cute is this orange car?  When she drove away, the driver looked like she was in a child's toy car.  And, I think the little plaid suitcase on the back is the perfect touch.  This car is more like an accessory than a vehicle!

Today, Brad is finally home from 3 weeks in Chenai, India.  He wasn't super impressed with the cleanliness of Chenai, but he found the people very friendly and the culture fascinating. 

I'm just glad he's home.

Brad's birthday is on Sunday, so we all headed to the mall to do some birthday shopping.  We were only there for about an hour, but the boys decided they were exhausted and took a little break on these massage chairs in the middle of the mall.

Comfy?

Today, the elementary school had parent/teacher conferences, so Adam and Luke didn't have school.  We spent a very quiet day hanging around the house, watching their new favorite show, Phineas and Ferb.  Here are the boys taking a short break from the TV marathon to have a lovely (?) lunch.

Aaaahhhh, just what I need on a chilly night before I crawl into bed.  Perfect!

This morning, Shawna and I wandered down the Golden Road, which is a little row of houses built right up against the Prague Castle wall.  They were built to house the guards, so they would be close in case of an attack.  Because of limited space, they are just tiny, and now they resemble children's playhouses more than soldiers' quarters.

And now, to commemorate the Fabulous Girls' Weekend in Prague, a collage:

Thanks, ladies.  Caw Caw!

I have literally hundreds of photos to choose from on this day in Prague, but I am the model of restraint and will just share two.  You're welcome.

Here we all are in the morning in front of our adorable hotel.  We were all ready to HIT the town!

 And, here we all are at the end of the day with our cute ghost tour guide.  The ghost tour was pretty hokey, but in a spooky place like Prague, it is a must.

This morning, I climbed into a van with some of my American church friends and we officially began our Fabulous Girls' Weekend in Prague.  

Prague is about a 4 hour drive from Berlin, and we stopped in Dresden for lunch.  There was a mall nearby with a Toys R Us, and that was the site of this photo:

I think this shot of Denise perfectly reflects our giddiness at a weekend away from our kids!

Almost 17 years ago, Brad's Grandma Herndon gave us this blanket as a wedding gift.  It was big and soft and kind of furry, and Brad and I used to snuggle underneath it on our couch as we watched Star Trek: Next Generation in our little newlywed basement apartment (clearly, I loved him more then than I do now - Brad watches all his sci-fi shows alone now).

When Pepper came along, he adopted this blanket as his own, and it has gotten a lot of use and love through the years.  Its furry goodness is a fond memory now, and it is nearly transparent in places.  

Pepper was only two months old when Grandma Herndon died, and I can't help but think Grandma smiles whenever she sees Pepper wrapped up in her blanket. 

This is Adam and Lukie fresh off the school bus.  They hadn't seen me yet waiting for them across the street, so this shot feels very authentic.

(And, how much do I hate the graffiti on the wall behind them?  So gross.)

Jessica's friend took this photo of Jess on Argentinische Allee near our house.  I like it because it shows my little city girl on a very typical Berlin street.

Like all five-year-olds, Luke's favorite part of school is playing on the playground, which is covered with sand.  Every day, he comes home with his shoes just full of sand.  

I had to laugh when I came across his little boot spilling out sand in our coat room.  I don't know how the playground has any sand left!

With our Apple TV, Jess and I have discovered Project Runway.  

 We are watching season 5, and we are finding it impossible not to talk like Tim Gunn.  Always the consummate gentleman, Tim's mannerisms and voice just beg for our interpretation.  Jess is particularly good at imitating his "Thank yoooo". 

Recently, Sister Berndt from our ward passed away.  It was pretty sudden and a big shock to the whole ward.  All three of her grown children are in our ward, and they play a big part in it.  Her two sons-in-law are former stake presidents and her son is our current bishop.  

I went to Sister Berndt's funeral today, which was held in the stake center and absolutely packed.  Even though it was all in German and I only understood about 20% of it, I still cried nearly the whole time.  Her husband was one of the first presidents of the Berlin Stake, and at the end of the funeral, a visiting area authority read a letter from the first presidency expressing condolences and gratitude for her faithful life.  It nearly did me in.

This is a photo of Sister Berndt with her husband.  Brother Berndt is seriously one of my favorite men in the whole world.  He is one of Pepper's young men leaders, and he is so awesome with Pep.  He calls Pepper "Peppermint" and always has a big grin and hug for Pep.  My heart breaks when I think of him alone and grieving for his wife.

Today I was able to attend the civil wedding of my friend Sarah from our ward. Sarah met her groom Ryan in America last spring while she was there visiting her aunt, and he recently moved here to Germany so they could be married.

In Germany, the government doesn't recognize a temple sealing as a legal marriage, so couples have to be married civilly before they go to the temple to be sealed.  From what I understand, this is common practice in most countries outside the U.S.  The civil marriage took place in a local Rathaus (city hall).

So romantic!

My first year on BYU's ballroom tour team, we toured the Northeastern States and Canada.  There was a LOT of bus travel time, and one of the things we did to entertain ourselves was play backgammon.  A couple of the guys organized a tournament, which - I hate to brag - I ended up winning!   

(Just kidding - I don't hate to brag).

This morning, I downloaded a backgammon app for the iPad, and I've been a little bit obsessed all day.

Every time I play this, I feel like it's 1991, I'm in some random northeastern state, and Lee Wakefield is calling me a chump.  When I make key moves, I can hear Robert McNinch's commentary in my mind or see Rob Cummings grin as he asks, "You feeling lucky?"

I haven't really thought about backgammon for 20 years.  It's amazing what the brain remembers.

This picture showing the Happy Birthday banner still up three days after Pepper's birthday could mean one of two things:

Either

1)  It has been a non-stop party honoring Pepper's 13th birthday, and we simply can't stop the fun

or

2)  The kids are off school this week and we have a new Apple TV that allows us to download shows in hi-def (which is blowing our minds after 2 years of pixely streaming), so we have all turned into couch potatoes and done nothing around the house, and I had to strategically angle this photo to hide the mess in the kitchen.

My true friends will assume it is the first scenario.  Honesty isn't always the best policy.

My friend Danielle got married in August, and she just posted her wedding video online.  I was watching it while I ate breakfast, basking in the romance and obvious bliss.

Lukie, however, had a completely different reaction to all the lovey-dovey stuff:

First he moved the cereal box in front of the screen to shield himself from all the smooching, but when he snuck a peek and saw more kissing, it was too much.

Pepper got a new camera for his birthday yesterday, and this is one of the first photos he has taken.  This is a true-to-life shot of his bedroom - if his bed was made, we'd all know it was a fake.

Hertha Birthday Pep!

Today, Pepper turned 13 (I know - a TEENAGER!).  We started the festivities a day early with dinner at Good Time, a family favorite Thai restaurant.

One of the things we love about this restaurant is the food art.  This bird was carved out of some sort of potato-ish vegetable.

Pepper's "real" birthday coincided with General Conference, and we had some friends over for our General Conference Brunch-a-palooza.  It made for a perfect all-day party!

After conference, we all sang "Happy Birthday" to Pepper and dug into this awesome cake my friend Susanne made.

This was a very "Hertha Birthday" for Pep because nearly everything revolved around the Hertha Football (soccer) team.  He got an official team jersey and ball, and of course his cake was all Hertha.  When we lived in MI, he was obsessed with the Pistons, and here in Berlin he is obsessed with Hertha.

So, Hertha Birthday Pepper!  We love you!

Today we invited a bunch of friends over for our semi-annual (twice a year, right?) General Conference Brunch-a-palooza.  

Everyone also sang "Happy Birthday" to Pepper and we enjoyed this awesome cake my friend Susanne made.  Is there anything more delicious than chocolate cake with buttercream icing?  I think not.

Tomorrow is Pepper's 13th birthday, so we celebrated tonight with dinner at Good Time, my favorite Thai Tuesday retreat. 

I don't think I'm ready for my Magoo to be 13.