Constant Beginnings

Well, here we are--13 weeks. It feels great knowing we have made it this far. I am finally feeling like my old self again-a bit less tired, tad less forgetful, nausea has faded tremendously. I got my hair done yesterday, which makes me feel even more like "ME." Our approach to this pregnancy is so much different than the four previous ones. It feels incredibly odd writing four, knowing that we have only 2 children at home, but it is what it is. Anyway, I am much more discrete. I have shared our news with a total of two people outside of our family. I am not sure what is holding me back. I don't think it is worry or anxiety, but perhaps more a calmness and peace, knowing that all is well and the news will come out--in due time. We have yet to share the news with Claire and Mya. I was changing clothes the other night and Mya was talking with me. She looked at my tummy and commented about it jiggling. (That's my girl!). Anyway, I said something to the effect of it jigg...

Germany has thousands of festivals each year. Several are the same with rides for the kids and food, but this one is different. It is complete with corn mazes, straw fun, pumpkin foods galore and craft vendors. It is free aside from the 2 Euro to park plus food, etc. The kids had a blast. It was fun. We saw several friends, enjoyed pumpkin soup, which is a highlight of this festival. To top it off, the weather was perfect--sunny skies and NO rain. (It has been raining for nearly 2 weeks, so sunshine is much welcomed.) On top of the world--or at least the bales of straw. Miss All about the FUN. A view of the dining area. There were a ton of craft/food vendors on the other side selling everything from hats to cheese. Fun in the muddy corn maze. These are the huge vats they cooked the soup in. Giving the pumpkin soup a try. It doesn't look so great, but it is delicious! Mya hanging out, enjoying her drink. We walked away with a delicio...

Our two neighbor girls are great high school soccer players. They are so sweet to Claire, playing with her and trying to teach her skills. This attention has catapulted Claire's desire to play soccer this year. She is doing great, having scored 2 goals in 2 games. Claire is pretty fast and a great dribbler, so when she gets out in front of the competition, she's dangerous--scoring consistently. Mya at the Opening Day Ceremony. Claire's team in the Opening Day parade. Claire. The base makes a big deal of opening day and celebrating the military child, complete with games, food and soccer fun. Mya's turn.

Claire is in her 2nd year at Ramstein Elementary. She is in the 1st grade and has a wonderful teacher, Ms. Garcia. It is a great fit. She pushes Claire academically, is creative and makes learning fun. That's what it is all about. We'll see how things pan out as they are wrapping up their first unit in math and will begin differentiated small groups in the next couple of weeks. Claire is especially proud that she's had 3 spelling tests thus far and has earned a perfect score + bonus points on each one. Claire is in the same class as her best friend, Emma though she pretty much meshes with everyone. She seems to play with different kids each day. Chris and I kid that this girl will be in politics one day. She can negotiate like nobody's business and is a chameleon, blending in with whatever group she is placed. Claire is very rule based and does her best to ensure everyone follow those rules. She is also the kindest and sweetest big sister--most of the time. This is...

We flew to Paris directly from London on EasyJet. I arranged private vans to bring us to our apartment we rented just blocks away from the Arc de Triumphe. It was my first experience with using homeaway.com to rent an apartment vs the typical hotel. It was a great find for a group so large, location and helped keep the cost down. Typically, European hotels will only sleep 3-4 in a room and finding 5+ rooms in a single hotel is difficult not to mention considering the location. The apartment was perfect. I neglected to take photos though. We hopped on the hop on hop off bus tour with a 2 day pass. This allowed us to use this mode of transportation to navigate the city each day. We spent the first day completing the loop and checking things out from atop the bus, while the second day was a mix of sight seeing and riding. We went in the Louvre, saw the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triumphe, walked and rode down the Champs de Elysees, enjoyed Macaroons from the fam ou s patisserie, Laduree, put...