Feeling like Christmas

Watching Varners put up Christmas lights last weekend put me in a Christmas mood. Well, that and singing Christmas songs at school all day. Here are some of my decorations. I know it's not after Thanksgiving yet, but a little early Christmas spirit never hurt anyone.

recognize these vases?






Lights!!!




my new fall/winter jacket (might I add, a great deal)


And I, too, made it to Aldi for some Christmas candy shopping. Guess which two items were hand delivered from Germany.

Fall Break!

My fall break is coming to an end. =( Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures to document my little vacation ~ I guess I was just too busy having fun. I spent the week in Columbus relaxing, visiting family, shopping, watching "arrested development" episodes, some more shopping, the usual...

Here are a couple of recent additions to my apartment.

a cute little night stand lamp


a doormat


dining room curtains


This cardigan is representative of my fall break shopping. Notice anything about it? Anything out-of-the-ordinary??

2nd Attempt

I wasn't quite happy with the way my bedroom was coming together and decided to try to find something different to put on the wall above the bed ~ something that would tie the different shades of reds in the room together. I found these two pictures (with a little help ~ thanks, Daniel!) and they are perfect. I love the way they look in the room!




The cherry blossom pictures are much happier next to the window and don't look as "lost" as they did in the middle of the big wall they were on before.


I drove by this on my way home from Columbus and had to stop to take a picture. Coincidentally, I was talking to Mommy about quilting when I took this picture...

Around the apartment

I've been trying to put things up on the bare off-white walls in my apartment to make them more aesthetically pleasing. Here are some of my recent improvements. My bedroom and the kitchen seem to be the preferred spaces as they, once again, received the most attention.

I came across these pictures while I was browsing Walmart one day. They are nice to look at when I am doing my dishes.


These "cherry blossom" pictures and curtains were financed by a visa gift card that I received for finding my apartment on rent.com. I put the curtain rod up all by myself ~ after much deliberation and consultation with the mounting experts in our family. Thanks for all your tips! I followed the ones that were the easiest and would take the least time. =) I basically just eye-balled everything and surprised even myself with the outcome!

Apartment and food

Here is the first thing I put up on the wall on my own. I used a screw that was part of the packaging because I don't have any nails...resourceful, I know. I even figured out how to "fix" the clock before I put it up. The minute hand was loose and kept dropping to the bottom. I was able to get it to stay in place and now it is ticking away happily.


I also got a new set of fluffy indigo bath rugs to better match the room and replace the old ones, which were starting to show some wear and tear (they served us both well, Steffi).


Here are some dinner-for-one pictures. Even though it's just me, I try to cook every evening ~ or at least make a lean cuisine meal look nice. =)

taco salad


Asian stir-fry mix from Aldi with soy sauce


random things layered in a casserole dish


this one's a lean cuisine dinner ~ you can hardly tell when it's all plated. (That, and I don't usually slice my carrots that way.)


my variation on soup, salad, and bread sticks


"grilled" veggies with bbq sauce


ensalada


And for the grand finale: Linsen and Spaetzle was on the menu tonight. I knew it would take a while to cook this, but I didn't want to wait for the weekend. The late dinner was well worth the wait ~ mh-mh, always a winner!!

Weekend Trips

This weekend and last, I did a little bit of traveling. Last weekend, I went on a day trip to see the Varners. It was a very productive day for all of us. I got all my laundry done, Steve gave my car a make over (oil change), Freya did LOTS of baking, the boys were in and out, and all the while we enjoyed each others company.

One of my favorite cookies are ginger bread cookies, so I was especially excited that we had time to cut out and bake them before I had to go back home. The pig-shaped ones taste the best so I took lots of those home with me.


Freya was in charge of strategically placing the cookies on the cookie sheets. There is a system for everything in Freya's kitchen. =)


Throughout the day, I accumulated all of this to take back with me!




This weekend my trusty car, which is now officially in my name with its shiny new blue license plate, took me to Columbus. I spent the night with Daniel and Elizabeth and got to see Rudys, too on my quick visit.

My time there was also very productive, as I did some "big city" shopping that I cannot do in Marion. We went to the big music store downtown Columbus, where I found three great recorder books for my 4th- and 5th-graders. I also acquired a few other random items.

a non-stick frying pan (notice where it was engineered)


This is one of two mixing bowls Daniel and Elizabeth gave me, along with an extra set of measuring cups and spoons and a few other kitchen utensils. I put it to good use pretty much as soon as I walked in the door.


Also a gift from D and E so that my guests have some privacy in the shower. =)


This is one of those kitchen sink necessities that I simply couldn't pass up. Just the extra little touch my kitchen needed.

Home Improvement

Last week, I started this 1000-piece puzzle. I bought it at Aldi earlier in the year and never got around to making it. It took me several nights, but I finally did get it completed on the weekend while watching some Pride and Prejudice. I kept replaying the last 2 chapters until I finally got the last pieces in the right place.


On Labor Day, my first official holiday as a teacher, I drove to Warsaw to meet up with some people at Grace. I had a really nice and encouraging day! I got up extra early, so that I would have plenty of time for some therapeutic shopping at Kohl's before my first appointment. Kohl's and I had a happy reunion! Not having a Kohl's is definitely one of Marion's short coming...


Here are some recent home improvement items.

a napkin holder


the best-smelling candle in the world for my kitchen


another candle ~ for the bathroom


This is a long-lost friend whom I decided to place in the living room so that I would see him often and start practicing again. My cello-playing muscles are definitely suffering from lack of use.


Last night was the first night I had to stay up really late to prepare lessons for school the next day. I was finally turning off lights and shutting things down for the night around 1:30 when I discovered this nasty gigantic cricket in my kitchen! I could not bring myself to go to bed knowing that bug was hopping around my apartment. After much deliberation about how I was going to dispose of this black nightmare, I finally decided that it was not leaving the apartment alive. After a quick photo session, a primary injury to some of the legs, and then a final blow after it tried escaping to the carpet I did get the better of it (on my brand new carpet!).


Not that the above episode wasn't bad enough...while I was trying to get up the nerve to move in on the cricket without being too disgusted, this sick spider crawled right across my path. I had to choose one or the other, and since the cricket hopped and was generally nastier than the spider, I decided to go for it. The spider unfortunately escaped under the oven. These spiders happen to be almost the exact same color as my carpet, making them extremely difficult to see. Luckily they are dumb enough to crawl around on the kitchen and bathroom floor so that I can get to them with my insect-squashing shoe.

Knowing that the insect world comes alive in my apartment at night makes me very uneasy. I have not seen any in my bedroom yet, but my dislike for insects increases with each sighting.

This and that

Here is the first cup of coffee I made in my coffee machine that didn't taste bad. I finally figured out how much coffee grind to put in the machine for one cup of coffee. (Hey ~ small successes are worth celebrating, too.)


I have also finally learned how long to cook chicken so that it isn't totally dried out inside. This one actually tasted really good!


my bee-stung arm ~ big, red, puffy, and itchy


So, today I ventured out into the laundromat at the apartment complex to do my laundry. Most of the machines were not in use, so I was able to get everything done in under two hours.

washing machines...


drying machines...


While I was at the laundromat, I talked to Daniel who reminded me of the OSU game at noon. So I hurried out to Walmart to by a TV antenna and hopefully watch the game. Well, after I got everything hooked up, I was only able to receive 2 channels. One of them has a show called "Good Hoosier Cooking" featuring favorite Indiana recipes. Another show on that channel is "Fireside Sketches" which is the guy below who just sits on his porch painting and talking about what he is painting. Truly fascinating!


Wait, could it be? The game I was hoping for? No. This channel showed football all afternoon ~ not college, not pro, but high school!!! Talk about a huge disappointment! I tried to be a good fan. I'm thinking I might need to consider looking into a cable plan with some basic channels. Right now, I don't even get ABC or FOX!

All moved in

This weekend, Varners helped me move the rest of my belongings into my new apartment in Marion. To my own surprise, I have pretty much everything unpacked and in it's place! I've had a lot of help from a lot of people, as well as "donations" and house-warming gifts. THANK YOU to all who contributed in any way!! I couldn't have relocated so smoothly without your help and encouragement.

Pig and I are very happy here.




some of my super-helpers (Helen and Daddy, I didn't get you on a picture)

before...boxes everywhere

my bathroom, complete with shower hooks and super-soft pottery barn towels

Here is the dining and living room area. Thank you, Rudys, for the table, chairs, and couch!

the study/work room before...

...and after

the bedroom before...

...and after

the kitchen before...

...and after

I had my first visitors over today. (At least visitors whose primary purpose wasn't to help me move and assemble furniture.)

on the menu: au gratin potatoes, chicken, and green beans

My first visitors were Greg and Nancy who will always hold a special place in my heart and who have been so generous and caring over the past four years. We had a lovely afternoon together!

Marion

Look who I found in front of the hospital!


Some important-looking building ~ possibly the court house.

I felt a strange force pulling me toward this building

and found a very familiar set of books in the music section.

some deer crossing the road

and finally, here are two of the three schools I will be teaching at

D+E Wedding

Part of the pre-wedding activities included manis/pedis for all the girls. We had a fun morning together and were all happy with the results!

Which toes are Freya's and which are mine? Who can tell?

three cute bridesmaids in pool

awe...

sweet Megan who we all enjoyed meeting

the reception hall

wait...is that real silverwear??

Congratulations, Daniel and Elizabeth!!!

Wedding Shower

These are just a few pictures from Elizabeth's wedding shower at Monica's house. We went with a red and pick love theme ~ very appropriate.

cute mini cup cakes

yummy ice cream cake

chocolates (also referred to as colored artificial candy)

cookies

covered prezels

candied peanuts

punch

pretty bouquet

the whole spread


This was a new game we tried. It was really fun as you can see on the faces of the participants.

It did require some focus and fine motor skills, though.

Phone

With the help of Daniel, Elizabeth, Helen, and Zach, I purchased a cell phone today. The phone was free and it came with a $100 gift card for phone accessories. I got all the accessories I could for my phone with money to spare. It was pretty exciting!

Marion

Now that I have signed a lease for an apartment in Marion, I decided to explore the area a little. Helen joined me after the tour of the apartment to check out the mall not far from my apartment complex. We weren't too impressed, but it was fun to look around nonetheless.

This T-shirt was made for you, Daniel.


Here are a few shots of the apartment. My apartment will be on the second/top floor in a complex with a total of 121 units. It is right next to an elementary school (not one of the three I will be teaching at) and also right by a middle school. You can find more information about the complex here http://www.rent.com/rentals/indiana/marion-and-vicinity/marion/somerset-apartments/591878/

The kitchen...(notice the dish washer!)

This is what you see when you walk in the door. Living/dining area.

that same space from the opposite side

bathroom

and a few views of the two bedrooms

Can't wait for my first visitors!

Super Mama

On Thursday, I was going to take the Varners van to Chicago to pick up Mommy, Daddy, and the kids from the airport. When Freya tried starting the car in the afternoon, it didn't start. So, I pushed (in heels) and Freya steered the van out of the garage for some maintenance. To my great thrill, my car saved the day and jump started the van. Thanks to Freya's car knowledge and skills, which far ourweigh my own, we got the van going and I had no trouble getting to the airport and back.


Freya gave the term hot mama a whole new layer of meaning. Nice work! I'm impressed.

Yia Yia Cookies

Yesterday, Freya and I got on a serious roll, twisting and baking 600 Yia Yia cookies for the wedding. We did it all in an afternoon and were quite pleased with the results.

Henry - a happy "helper" in his flame apron


different stages of mixing together the dough


some long skinny cookies waiting their turn for the oven


cooling down

the fruits of our labor by the end of the day

Columbus Zoo

Today, I went to the zoo with Monica, Clara, and Nicholas. Since it was raining a little when we first got there, we started out with the indoor animals.

This is the picture of the day.


This was rather unusual. A zoo keeper was petting the tarantula to get it to climb on his arm so that he could remove it from it's exhibit. If you have ever wanted to be a zoo keeper, maybe this will change your mind. It was pretty creepy to watch.




some reptiles

bats (this one is for Steve)

pheasants

in my opinion the best animal of the entire zoo

this one is for Daniel

a sun bear

tiger

And what would a trip to the Columbus zoo be without a ride on the marry-go-round?

Last impressions from Salt Lake City

Some final "lunaberry" crepes. This was Daniel's dessert crepes.


and I had a ham and pineapple one. So good!


mango frozen yogurt


We visited Elizabeth at work and found this cool book. I didn't buy it, but thought it was definitely blog-worthy.

For our last dinner, we went to a restaurant that was having and all-you-can-eat pizza and salad night. This was our favorite ~ the dessert pizza.

We definitely all pigged out.

Brunch

Here is a little healthy place to eat in Salt Lake City. We all got outmeal and enjoyed it with some fresh coffee at home. Healthy and delicious.




the happy skinny couple =)

More fun in Salt Lake City

Daniel and I have been to just about every Joann Fabrics store around Salt Lake City the past couple of days to pick up some wedding fabric and flowers. We were successful in finding just what Daniel and Elizabeth had envisioned and it was even on sale.


brunch while out shopping


Today was job-rejection day for both Daniel and me (I was double-rejected). So, to cheer us all up, we went to the race track where Elizabeth's dad works to go kart race a little. We went for two 10-mintue rounds. The second time, I was only lapped once by one person! Let's just say I'm too safe and conscientious of a driver to really fly in and out of the curves. It was fun, though! Maybe it will help King Boo race better... I'm going for first place next time.


signing away our lives before the race

receiving our racing instructions

in full gear

we toured the museum between races and saw some nice-looking cars

Food, Mojitos, IKEA, and Mario Karts Wii

Elizabeth's Beef Bourguignon


a minty mojito


IKEA!! YAY!

we found Pappas in a box with lid ~ how about that

the loaded cart

King Boo's moment of glory =)

Temple Square tour

Today Daniel took me to Temple Square for a noon organ concert in the Tabernacle and then a tour following the concert.

impressive organ and nice organ playing




lots of translations of the book of Mormon


Zach, you recognize this place? (Ooo, the Grand Canyon!)

the temple

reflection of the temple

tabernacle

some scenes from around down town Salt Lake City

Mount Olympus

and it just wouldn't be a proper visit without our traditional pedicure (well, it's tradition now)

Food, food, and more food

These pictures speak for themselves. Delicious all around.

Daniel's famous steak dinner

Daniel made his famous "healthy" steak dinner tonight. It was like watching the food network, but better and funner. Elizabeth and I were the viewers and occasional assistants.


food close-ups

the plated ensemble ~ needless to say, it tasted super!

last but not least, a fresh cup of coffee from the blue IKEA mug.

Salt Lake City

Here are a few things I've done during my first two days in Salt Lake City. Yesterday, Daniel and I had lunch at "lunaberry," a fun little place to eat. We both had Chicken-mango crepes and pomegranate frozen yogurts for dessert. Very yummy!

Here is proof that King Boo is back to his old self ~ on the winner's podium. Still working on making it onto the 1st-place spot but 3rd is a pretty good start.

Today was OUTLET DAY!! We only made it to one store. =) Who can guess which one? Here are some picture of the pretty countryside in Utah. I wish I could bring some of these mountains back to Indiana. There's just nothing like it there. A welcomed change of scenery.

And yes, of course this is the store we went to. They were having a 40% off of everything sale! Too good to pass up. We all found some nice items at great prices.

Happy 23rd Birthday!

June 15th at 6:15 ~ Birthday Party Time!!


Varners came over to have dinner with Greg, Nancy, and me. They agreed to let me cook and happily ate my food ~ what a lovely birthday gift. =)

On the menu: honey-pecan chicken with "awesome carrots"


a pear-walnut salad (with Knorr dressing)


parfaits for dessert (aren't they cute?)

After dinner, Greg had a special treat for Max and Henry. They both got several rides around the house on his John Deere mower. Oh so cool!

Here is my skinny, stainless-steal coffee mug with a handle ~ just what I wished for. =) Thank you Varners!!

Weimers got me fun placemats and napkins to go with my new dishes. They're perfect. Thank you Greg and Nancy!

Just to clarify

So, some of my blog-followers were confused about my last post. I didn't know it could be so confusing. This is Orson. He ist just visiting for a few days. I didn't mean to leave him out of the solo-shots. There are two pictures of Tucker because I couldn't decide which one I liked better. That should clear things up.

"The boys"

For all you dog-lovers, I thought I would introduce "the boys" to you. We spend lots of quality time together these days since I am home most of the time. Don't be fooled by this picture. It was such a rare occasion that I couldn't resist capturing it as evidence that they actually can settle down.


Trapper


Tucker 1 (aka the baby)


Tucker 2



Orson is just visiting for a few days.

Papaya and Zoo

These are for those of you who might have been wondering what the inside of a Papaya looks like. I was not expecting to find this when I cut it open.

This morning, Mimi, Freya, Max, Henry, and I went to the zoo in South Bend. We were having so much fun, we didn't have time to get through the entire zoo.

traditional stop to admire this antique John Deere tractor

the disappointingly empty warthog exhibit =(

Alpaca

petting zoo

Max waiting in line to wash his hands after petting the goats

my soul mate

up close and personal with the flamigos (new exhibit since my last trip to the zoo)

Master Oogway enjoying his lunch

We all went on the train together ~ a first for me.

waiting for the train to arrive


ready for take-off

a happy Henry showing me his teeth

Happy Birthday!

Yesterday I received my first birthday present for this year. (I'm off to an early start!) Mommy got me these tall and short glasses at one of the many many Kohl's we browsed over the past few days. Thank you! I can't wait to use them...

Flowers and fabrics

These were given to me by one of my ESL students on my last night teaching. Sad night, but beautiful flowers. (One young lady took the earrings she was wearing that night out of her ears and gave them to me ~ wasn't expecting that!)




When people talk about how valuable quilts are due to the number of hours that go into them I had never thought about the hours spent choosing fabrics. Well, Mommy has opened my eyes to this time-consuming but kind of fun task. We have spent many hours thinking about fabrics, talking about fabrics, matching them, and, with the help of Susan, choosing fabrics for a number of projects. I know all the quilt lingo now.

here are some of the things we (Mommy) purchased

Graduation Day

some of my fans

my "only" friend

ready to walk across stage

in the crowd

Daddy on skype

Day before graduation

the day before graduation at rehearsal

getting my class picture taken

paparazzi

the School of Music faculty and all five of the music graduates!

Mommy and I matched even though we hadn't coordinated our outfits at all ~ great minds think alike!

Corsica

I have been driving a Corsica for the past four years, so it is a little ironic, that that is the set of dishes I decided to buy for myself. With the help of some Kohl's gift cards (thank you Jody and Grosses!) I purchased six sets of dishes plus the "fun-colored" additional dishes. My base colors are the cherry red below and the dark blue that you can see on the multi-colored dishes. I love them! Thanks to Steffie for helping me think through the purchase ~ I think I got a really good deal. Got to love Kohls.

A lovely meal

We made this lovely meal for dinner Monday night...


...and then I tried my new dessert dishes to see if they work. Thank you Greg and Nancy!

Daytrip to Chicago

Since we had to pick Mommy up in the evening, we decided to spend the day in Chicago. Here is what we got to see during our quick visit to the "Windy City."

Riding downtown on the "blueline"


our stop (or were we supposed to get out one stop before this one...)

self-portrait on the Sears tower

one of the views from the top on this beautiful May day

Chicago river and this cool-shaped building

Yay! This will have to be a destination on the next trip to Chicago.

here it is...

don't know what this gold building is but it caught my attention

Which way is out?

Chicago ~ one Olympic 2016 candidate City

the "Maginicent Mile"

We found Abe ~ this is where he comes when he gets tired of all the tourists in DC.

pretty fountain right by Lake Michigan

looking back at the city from the park

the lake

I enjoyed taking a little walk on the lake

and I ran into this guy

We had only a little time to pop our heads in here. These are a few of the things we came across.

I couldn't resist

pigs!

a Chinese pillow

Who can guess the title of this work of art?

Right across from the Art Institute is the Symphony center but we were all out of time...there's always next time.

I'm wireless!!

Check out my "aesthetically pleasing" wireless router. After some initial trouble getting connected (which turned out to be an issue with my computer rather than the router ~ shocker), I finally was able to get everything up and running (thanks to the wireless hotline in Salt Lake City!)


Oh, and thank you Varners for making this an early graduation gift!

Self-portrait

It has been a while since I've posted a self-portrait without any occasion for one. =) Since I was all dressed up for an orchestra concert, I thought it was the perfect opportunity for just that.

Summer hair cut!

So, I got tired of my long think heavy crazy hair and had Shelley cut it short again. I feel so much lighter... Here is my new look.

M-m-pizza

Here is my version of a BBQ chicken pizza. So what if there's no chicken on it. Cooking is all about altering recipes, right?

Happy Easter!

Freya carving the roast (lamb) beast


turning it from this...


...into this


also on the menu: Greek bread

yogurt sauce for the lamb

super-beans (can't spell the real name)

and Dijon roasted potatoes

These are my Abitur Easter socks...see how far they have gotten me =)

Happy Easter!!

Fun day!

the egg coloring assembly line


Max was good at putting the eggs in the cups very carefully.


here are all the pretty colors

During nap time, Freya and I made some greeting cards. (I brought up all of my supplies for the weekend. There was so much paper to chose from that we had to set up an extra table.)

Look what showed up in Henry and Max's rooms during bath time!

and someone hid a bunch of eggs in the living room, too

here are all the findings

Play-Doh creations a-la-Erika

pig


snake


Easter bunny

Easter package!

Take a look at what came my way from Greensboro/Germany. Thank you to everyone who contributed!

The flower side

Here are a couple more pictures from the "flower side" where the Rudys sat. Thanks for sending me the pictures, Monica!

tuning


eyes closed again =)


my super-cool cello cake and I

I did it!!

The night before...a hall full of intimidating empty chairs

the stage (Anyone like my special "cello bench"?)

Here we go...this is it

check out the cute flowers in my hair

I don't remember ever closing my eyes like this, but I'd say it looks pretty cool. (Thanks for taking LOTS of pictures during my recital Freya.)

Here is my wonderful accompanist Judie with me.

Happy to get to the last piece on the program. It was a fast one ~ and memorized!

A couple of flageolet shots for Mommy =)

That's about as high up on the string as I went.

Rhoda and Jody (two ladies I work with at the library) decorated these beautiful cakes for my reception. Thank you so much, you two! You outdid yourselves!!

Here is the reception pig from Jill. She made its earrings, as well as the ones I wore for my recital. Thank you, Jill!

And here are all the beautiful flowers I got. Four bouquets ~ WOW!

These are from Debby, my cello teacher

these are from Rhoda

these are from the Weimers

and these are from the library

this one makes a great spring desktop background

I don't know if these qualify as bouquets, but these are some cute little flowers from Freya's garden.

Thank you to everyone who made my recital a very special event. Thank you also for all the prayers and thoughts of those of you who could not be here in person. You were missed! I will try to get audio and video recordings to you soon.

Senior Recital

My senior recital is rapidly approaching. I feel ready, though, and am starting to get excited about it. I just wanted to show off my awesome poster one more time. =) Thank you, Daniel M.

End-of-Spring-Break Creativity

After spending most of the afternoon on a school project, I decided to end my spring break with a little bit of creative fun. It may have taken me a loooong time (6 hours!) but I'm pretty happy with the results.

Chimichangas

It's not quite Hawaii but it sure tasted good! A great Friday night Mexican dinner.

A day in Bremen

Applying for jobs seems to be just about as exciting as writing a dissertation, so I decided to spend a day in Bremen on Tuesday. Since it was such a beautiful spring day, we took a little trip to Woodies to buy ingredients for a new recipe.

the boys in the double stroller

fascinated by a fork lift

the famous Woodies

In the afternoon, we watched "the elephant movie" that Max had been looking forward to watching.

complete with caramel popcorn

Fun dishes for dinner ~ what a marketing trick!! Who would ever buy something like that?

Balsamic Braised Chicken Thighs

complete with awesome carrots

What a nice and productive day!

Spring Break!!

Yesterday was my first real day of spring break. Last Thursday I passed my senior recital hearing (yay!!) then I had to take a Praxis Music Content Knowledge test on Saturday morning (I'll find out whether or not I passed that in 4 weeks) and now I can finally relax a little.

So yesterday, I finally had a chance to unpack all of my new Christmas paper and explore new designs. Here is what I produced while "glotzing" movies ~ something I haven't done to that extent since I got back from Germany. If your birthday is coming up, you may see one of these cards again soon. =)

Shopping adventure

Freya got a Banana Republic gift card for Christmas (I wonder who gave her that?), so we went to the mall in South Bend for her to buy something.

arriving at the mall on this windy day


getting everyone unloaded and situated


Henry seems to be a natural mall-shopper ~ look at how happy and excited he is!


We passed this store in the mall, much to Max's enjoyment

Here's Max being a great entertainer for Henry spinning him around (carefully, of course) in his stroller.

Proof that our trip was a success. Freya found some cute things.

The boys' reward for being great shoppers.

What would a post on my blog be without some nice food shots. Here is a recipe from Daniel and Elizabeth ~ Chicken Masala.

There is chicken between all those peppers ~ really. You just have to look very closely.

It tasted as good as it looks. What a lovely meal! Thank you Daniel and Elizabeth! Keep 'em coming.

And last, but not least MC Chicken ~ an all-time favorite. I added fresh mushrooms this time which made it even more delicious if you can imagine that.

Happy Valentine's Day

So, I'm a little late getting these pictures posted, but my new addition to the pig family from Grandma was begging to be posted on my blog. What's even better is that it NEVER eats my food.


Speaking of food...here are some recent successes. Au gratin potatoes weightwatcher-style


followed by a delicious sugar free, fat free dessert.


This one, I did a couple of weeks ago. It's a Mexican brown rice casserole. My first casserole ever!

Final round of Christmas presents

I am back in Winona Lake (and my DSL connection is switched on again - finally!). When I got back, a few more Christmas presents were anxiously waiting to be unwrapped. Thank you Varners for the great new paper for my cards. Thank you Rudy's for the book. (Max and I listened to the music and looked at the pictures together. That will be a great resource when I teach.)
And thank you Daniel and Elizabeth for the fancy jewelry box. I can't completely fill it, but it's a start. (That's not supposed to be a hint.)




The things on that surface clash just a little, but it's the only place I could find for the big shiny black box for now.

Döner!

3 happy owners of Schülerdöner mit Allem ohne Scharf ~ oh, so good!


Guten Appetit!


Helen and me on the top level of the Doppeldecker bus


me eating Haribo Brixx to counter the lingering garlic taste from the Döner...it kind of worked

Snow!!!

Somehow I got roped into the snow-clearing team today. Fashion-forward as I am, I decided to broom the snow in style wearing the "warm boots" that Mommy is always promoting. (I think they once belonged to Helen - a long time ago in a galaxy far far away.)


Here is Helen using the snow shovel that does not really clear the snow


and Zach doing most of the work with his ice breaker

Kiddli kiddli

A game of Siedler (Helen won)


some people obviously partied too hard


a pot full of good old Maultaschen


my contribution to the pot luck at church tomorrow ~ Wookie cookies a la Betty Crocker =)

Happy New Year!!

I added party hats as a new tradition this year. I think they suited everyone quite well. New year's eve self portrait with party hat =)


Even pig got into the festivities and started the year 2009 out with a healthy drink.

the usual ~ chocolate fondue

Luftschlangen

Max showing me his "crazy eyes"

out on the balcony for the fireworks

Pig, walk, and cookies

I am now the proud owner of a smokey pig. Thank you Dietmar, Steffi, and Helen!


Daddy's new jacket goes on its first walk




a classic view of Unterkochen

we found horses

and a pig statue

Here is the annual Vanillekipferl baking session. (Zach always sticks around for about 5 minutes and then disappears.)

baking away in the oven

the work station

and the final product ~ mh-mh

Christmas Eve in Aalen

Who can guess who this is?


Mh-mh-mh!!!


the spread (with lamb and corn!)


some family portraits

a classic photo

Who are these people? They're facing the wrong direction. Oops.

Downtown Aalen

the spy overlooking the city


YAY!


Tueringer for the hungry shoppers

Christmas in Aalen

the famous tree with two cardinals on the top branches and other random ornaments


the mini Nutcracker


Zach's Grinch slippers

It has come to our attention that there are five years (!) worth of walnuts sitting around in the basement. So we decided to take a "crack" at them =) Here are some of us hard at work.

what we have done so far...only about a 10th of the nut inventory

Various school activities

practicing for a performance of "O, Holy Night," arranged by Daniel, for the Junior School Christmas assembly


a listening activity about music and emotions


learning a Greek dance and the grapevine step

a nice display Lydia put up for me

some pictures of me with the EC (early childhood) kids

Last weekend in Munich

Out and about again. After going to a school play with Lydia and her family and being treated to a wonderful lunch in a restaurant overlooking the Starnberger See, I went downtown to check out the Christmas market.


Who are all these people? One must be crazy to voluntarly enter this madness.


a little later going back in the other direction


I walked by lots of these stands and others selling all kinds of yummy-smelling goodies.

Happy Nikolaus Day!

Check out what Nikolaus brought for Helen and me! I think he is trying to make up for all those years of Mandarinen and peanuts =) We must have been especially good this year!

Sight-seeing Saturday

I decided to do a little more sight-seeing today. I went to Dachau to visit the KZ Gedaenkstaette (concnetration camp memorial site). It was very interesting and, of course, sobering to walk through the museum and the other parts of the site. This was the first concentration camp to be built and the only one to be used by the SS for all twelve years of Hitler's rule.

a self-portrait of me waiting for the S-Bahn on this sunny morning


proof that I do own jeans and wear them occasionally


various impressions from the memorial site

Neue Pinakothek

I was a chaperone for a 3rd-grade field trip to an art gallery called "Neue Pinakothek" today. It features pieces of the 19th century. Despite having to keep my eyes on the six students that I was responsible for, I managed to take a few pictures.

Here's a famous Monet


Paul Signac


Vincent van Gogh

Portrait of Goethe by Joseph Stieler

Madame Soler by Pablo Picasso

Caspar David Friedrich

our energetic Australian tour guide

my group of six students hard at work filling out answers on their work sheets

Me showing off more of my colorful wardrobe =)

Lydia has been taking pictures of my teaching, which is great. Here is me teaching the first lesson of my unit about orchestras. The students started out in groups, and their task was to organize a stack of cards with instruments on them into groups and explain the reasoning behind their organization of the instruments.

A quick visit to Aalen

It worked out for me to go home Friday evening and stay until last night (Sunday), which was a nice break from Munich. I had a really fun and relaxing weekend, complete with watching the Buckeyes beat Michigan via skype (thank you Thomas and Gina!!)

famous balkony view


Zach worked hard to clear the driveway


I worked on improving my limited guitar skills while I was home, so that I could accompany a song about the weather in the early childhood classes this week. I tried it today, which was quite fun ~ and the kids loved it!

Erika in action

Here are pictures of some of the different lessons I have taught.

Rainbow

I saw this beautiful rainbow as I was leaving school today. The colors were really bright. If you look closely, you can even see that it is a double-rainbow!

Downtown Munich

I thought is was high time for me to see downtown Munich, so I made that my goal for this weekend. Today was a beautiful day, so I took advantage of that this afternoon to see the big city.

Here are the two main paths I take to get to the S-Bahn station



me waiting for the S-Bahn


the bright Munich sun


what you see when you come up from the S-Bahn station right below the city center


first things first...I took my time browsing the very crowded H&M

Some impressions from downtown Munich:

City hall ("Rathaus")

interesting sign on that building

I did not even dare to go into this little shop, although the sight and smell of it was very tempting.

Recognize anything on this picture?

There were tons of police cars driving down the streets and parked along side of the streets in the center of the city. I thought thas was kind of strange, so I took some pictures. I found out when I got "home" that they were on strike. At least some were on strike and others were striking against the strike ~ very interesting.

Actually, I found out today (Monday) what really went on downtown Munich on Saturday. A right extremist group had permission to have some sort of rally that day, which drew out the left extremists to protest the rally. The police were there to keep the two groups under control and to hinder street fights. That also explains the banner that was hanging on the Rathaus. Of course, I was totally oblivious to what was going on around me ~ dumb tourists =)

What you see just below the surface of downtown Munich ~ tons of little tiny shops and stands, as well as lots of busy people hustling to get to their next destination.

Here is the S-Bahn I take home every day.

Made it! What a nice excursion.

St. Martin

Tuesday was St. Martin's Day. I joined Lydia for the St. Martin's Day traditions at her daughter Carmen's Kindergarten. Here is Carmen, Lydia's son Sidney, and me after the parade waiting to go inside where all the yummy Lebkuchen were. =)

A peak inside the classroom

the wall of xylophones


some shots around the room

Kids hard at work in small groups

Display case

I had to create a worksheet for the 3rd-graders. Lydia, my supervising teacher, put some of the completed ones up in the display case in front of the music room. They look really cool on the big paper.

Scenes from around the neigborhood

I went exploring a little bit on the weekend. Here are some things I found within walking distance from the apartment.

nice walking trail

my all-time favorites =)

my S-Bahn station

apartment buildings (I am living in the one right behind the tree in the middle of the picture.)

If German schools had such a thing as a fog delay, today would have definitely qualified!

It was still foggy when I got to school. (This is the building I teach in.)

Erika in Munich

Munich International School (MIS)
This is what you see from the parking lot across the street.


Here is the castle.


one of the school buildings

playground and the junior school building in the background (that is where I will be teaching)

a mountain view from the school grounds

Here is my new "home:"

dining area...

living area...

kitchen...

my room...

Steffi's cello joined me here as well...thank you, Steffi!

Snow!!

We got our first snow here. I commented on the constant drizzle and gloomy weather yesterday ~ this is not exactly the change of weather I had in mind.

Zach and I walked into the "Dorf" to get some fresh rolls at the bakery this morning.
Here is me in front of the famous "elephant butts."


our self-portrait


the Kocher


some balkony shots

approaching Unterkochen...

Rice bag

Mommy made me my very own rice bag for my back. I have had back trouble (one muscle in particular is giving me trouble) and putting some heat on it really seems to work.

Mommy cutting fabric


Mommy sewing with her fancy sewing machine


almost there


Ta-da! Isn't it cute? It works woderfully, too. Thank you master-seamstress!

Pig is cooking in Germany...

Check this out! Oh yeah! Weight Watchers ~ chicken with broccoli and oranges (except we used turkey)

served on top of rice

and with a beautifully hand-grated carrot salad

Here is everything put together ~ what a feast!

Quick trip downdown

We made a couple of quick stops during Zach and Helen's piano lessons today. Here are some familiar sights from the Gmuender.

Home at last!

I was welcomed back home by an old friend and some special treats...yum, all my favorites!

Happy Birthday, Max!

I joined the Varners in celebrating Max's birthday today. Here are some pictures from our trip to the zoo.






my all-time favorite monkey


original King Julien


one very relaxed camel




"hellooooo"


"ahhhh ~ so relaxing!"

Blind date

...just kidding
Greg and Nancy surprised me with these beautiful roses at my conducting debut Thursday night! What a special treat!

HS concert

Here is Daniel's piece "Sweet Suspense" on concert night. Many people in the audience told me after the concert that they really liked the piece. The students really like it, too. This is the best they have ever sounded on this piece. It was fun for me to conduct an original Pappas - and a world premier at that!

Fall

Here are some fall scenes around here:
cute seasonal antibacterial soap (it was free),


pig showing off his fall/harvest outfit,


and here is the constant messy state of my work area, which seems to be rapidly expanding all across my room. For those of you who might be wondering ~ yes, of course it drives me crazy! But I'm afraid this is what it is for the next 5 weeks. Hopefully, the psychological damage of having to live in such a state will wear off eventually...

Pig

Check out the featured pig on my pig calendar for the month of September ~ it greets (more like scares) me every day.

(not recommended as a desktop background)

I'm famous!

It took me three years, but something of mine finally made it into the prestigious display case at Morgan Library ~ check it out...


The proud greeting card designer and maker ~ me =)




Jody, my photographer and fellow contributor to the display case (her things are REALLY nice!)


some of the cards that made the cut

Fall is here...well, almost

Today I discovered the Halloween aisle at WalMart =) That put me in Christmas mood and since I love preparing for Christmas I decided it was high time I made some cards for the occasion. I even broke into some of my special one-of-a-kind sheets of birthday paper from Thomas and Gina (the Holly print paper). It fits perfectly with the red, green, and gold paper that I have (click to enlarge =))

Student teaching and earring stand

Well, I've survived my first week of student teaching and so far everything is going really well! I've even taught a few classes already.

This picture is my latest multi-purpose bathroom addition. It's an earring stand ~ a great organizer and cute decoration at the same time.

New card making supplies

I got three new stamps and a packet of "glamorous print" card stock which you can see on these beautiful creations by Freya, Helen, and me. (click to enlarge)


my new stamps are all modeled on this card ~ I love them!

Desserts

Here are the desserts I made for dinner with the Weimers and Helen last night




and these I've been looking for everywhere and finally found them today :)

Columbus zoo/amusement park

Today I went to the zoo in Columbus with the Rudys and Helen. As you can see, it was a beautiful day and we had a great 4 hour stay enjoying all the animals and then some rides before we drove home again ~ what fun!!


perfectly blue sky


anticipating the fun ahead...


self-portrait :)














birds
















the aquarium






Master Oogway


for Daniel




Here's an expecially exciting exhibit :)






Clara up close with a gorilla






flowers




After seeing all the animals we went to the amusement park area




we noticed unusually many people (even for Columbus) wearing Ohio State gear as we were going through the zoo...this is why ~ Brutus and some cheerleaders were there to mingle and pose for pictures! Here is Brutus and some of the cheerleaders on the big boat swing

Back to school

Usually I get a little addition to my room toward the end of the summer as a "back-to-school" motivation gift to myself. (I start two weeks from today!!) This year I got this hanging shoe shelf to match the sweater shelf next to it (Daniel you would like that one). It's great! I don't stumble all over my shoes now every time I walk in and out of my room ~ what a concept.
I'm still not quite ready to start student teaching but at least I'm a little more organized :)

Good enough to eat

On the menu: old-fashioned chicken pot pie, crescent rolls, and salads

here's the filling happily simmering away


everything assembled and ready to bake


golden-brown and bubbly


cute little salads that Nancy prepared


and to make this lovely meal even more enjoyable we set up on the patio and had lunch outdoors ~ what a pretty sight!

Blueberries

After work today, I met Freya and the boys for some blueberry-picking at the "Pickin' Patch" about half way between Bremen and Warsaw. It was a great day for it ~ not too hot, no rain, AND both boys were happy!!

Here are Max and Freya picking berries (notice Max's precision)


Henry closeby in the stroller


me snitching a berry ~ they are really yummy!


self-portrait

Au gratin potatoes

Oh yeah! I love these ~ and it's a weightwatchers recipe!! Needless to say it was delicious.

Zoo again

I took yesterday off and Freya, the boys, and I went to the zoo again. It was hot, but we had a fun time there.

Max checking out what various animals eat


some snakes...notice the size on this one compared to Max's head!




original King Julien :) (he's not movin' movin' at the moment)


I call this monkey the "Phantom of the Opera" monkey...poor guy




Max and Henry brushed and pet some goats






the free wandering peacock just happily roams the zoo


hm...this reminds me of someone...who could it be?


the kangeroos were hot ~ no boxing match today




Max up close with the tiger


for all you flower lovers


forgot to mention the last time that this is a red "Kung Fu" panda :)

Sunday morning in Goshen

We all went to the first service (of three) to see Helen in Goshen today. During the second service she didn't have any obligations so we were able to take her and a friend, Britany, for a quick run to Bob Evans. We had a really nice time and great food! (and we got Helen and Britany back right on time for the third service ~ whew!)

The South Bend Zoo

Despite a chance of rain, we went to the zoo today and the weather was great! We had a very nice time seeing all the animals.


















these two are for you, Zach




What's he so happy about?




Oogway, the Kung Fu master, having a little snack


food!!!






bad hair day ~ I know exactly how he feels




nice tongue




helloooo






We saw lots of action from the kangaroos. These two seemed to be batteling out something. They put on quite a show.






here's the winner with a victorious glare