Homecoming!!

We were killed- of course- but Sam got to play lots, because the other team kept making points and so he kept being put out on the kick return team! 

He also played on kick off team and linebacker and the linebacker played on the line.  No clue what was going on there!  They lost by less than the varsity did.  After the Varsity game, of course,  the "Our football team sucks!" statements started flying.  Emma pointed out that football is the only sport where people start saying that if they loose one game!  She's right.  They might say it in basketball, but other than that, can you imagine if the the volleyball lost one game and everyone started saying how bad they sucked, or cross country.  That one is hard to imagine because our cross country team has won every meet, both boys and girls for a couple years now.  But if they lost to a team once, can you imagine people going around saying, "man, our cross country team sucks!"  Nope, doesn't happen!

So... the cross country team won. 

Emma had her best race ever on that particular course- which is the hardest course in Europe.  I might point out that they won without trying.  They have all Europeans this weekend, so those that were going were either paired up with someone who was close to getting a varsity letter or just told to go slowly.  You could see who was paired up with whom, because the one was smiling and waving to the crowd and the other one was huffing and puffing and in pain.  Our fastest guy said he was going to run in the back.  I can't believe it, but he actually stayed in the back the entire time. I bet he has never run that slowly in his life!

Before the race, they gave out flowers to all the seniors.  I knew they were going to do a Senior recognition, so I made a little bouquet of flowers from the ones I had bought to make corsages with to give to Emma when they called her name.  Well they didn't call her name!  When they got to the R's it was obvious that they missed her.  At that point they called someone who was not actually a senior and so there was a little discussion going on.  That's when I piped up and yelled, "yes, but you forgot Emma.  Emma Kress is a senior."

So she got called up before they ended the calling up of seniors.  All the parents around me said, "good job, Mom," but I was afraid she was pretty upset and maybe embarrassed by me, so I handed the bouquet to Robert and told him to go give it to her.  They broke up and a whole bunch of girls surrounded Emma to give their sympathies.  That's when her Dad, who is always dashing this way, swooped in, told her that she was never forgotten in his book, gave her a kiss and the flowers and all the girls went "AWWWWW!"  Later we assured her that it was her baby face that made her look like she was much younger (they actually do have her down in the cross country files as a Junior) and that she would be thankful for that when she gets older.  Her coaches also apologized a couple of times, so I think she was good in the end.  It's just hard to be forgotten!

I made treats to be sold at the concession booth for the football game.

I made brownies and dirty white trash mix.  I put tags on them, so people knew that the brownies didn't have nuts in them and knew what the other stuff was.  Apparently the principle walked up and had an apoplexy about the Dirty White Trash labels.  They assured him that a white person made it, so it wasn't racist, but he made them take off the labels.  They said they still had people coming up and asking for the Dirty White Trash, however.  There was none left for me to take home.  The kids were not happy!

In the end, since I had to work at the concession stand for a while, I didn't have time to make the corsages.  My friend and Emma's friends mom, got the flowers and made most of them before I got home.  I ran over and finished helping her and then took them all over to the girls who were getting ready at one girls house.  I thought Emma's turned out perfect!

Emma was supposed to have a date, but his host family wouldn't let him come down because he had been down too often with other girls- he is an exchange student from Utah, that Emma met at a stake dance. He is coming down this weekend to make it up to her.

The girls were taking a really long time to get ready, but they were the same girls who had a tantrum that I would dare go to the Oktoberfest the same time as them and actually want to ride on the same train, so I decided to stay out of that mess.  The three that were ready were getting very antsy, but I told them to give them a little more time.  Finally I came up with a compromise that seemed to work- we took pictures with just the three then sent them on their way.

George, Emma and Mary Katherine 

The others came with one of their dads.  Apparently, I was still hated on.  They complained that I was trying to hurry them up.  Emma pointed out that I didn't want pictures of them, just of her- which is absolutely true and that I had been the one that had said to give them more time, but they said they were still going to be mad at me.  People will find a reason, no matter what you do- you just stay away from those people!!  

Emma had lots of fun at the dance by mostly staying away- she danced with the other two she went with and then found a couple boys to hang out with.  She also did some Yearbook Editor work.  She succeeded in getting two dates for this week with two different people that night and a birthday invitation to one of the other guy's birthday party. 

Sam is so sad that football is over now!  That Sunday we played football out back.

The little boys both learned how to throw much better and Sam had a great game with some friends.  It was beautiful weather.  I'm going to miss these days, as the weather turns cold.

The Swan District

We had a 4 day weekend this past weekend.  Living in Europe, you would think that would mean we would be traveling somewhere.  Nope!  The school decided that it would be a great time to have some sports.  Two weeks ago we had a bye for football.  Why the bye wasn't put on a 4 day weekend, I will never know!  Next week we play the number one team in Europe... for our Homecoming.  These are the questions that make you go "hmmmm?"  I asked the Sports director, who was the brilliant person that came up with that.  He said, "it just happened that way."  Haha- I already knew the answer and shouldn't have been so rude!  So instead of sprinting out of town on Thursday night with everyone else, we stayed around- cleaned the house, went to a BLS class, went to a party, enjoyed a lovely Oktoberfest day with friends on Friday.

Saturday we were at football all day long!

The day started at 8 am when the German team that was supposed to play our JV didn't show up, because their bus broke down.  So the team was split into two and played each other.  There were some valuable lessons learned from that.

First, the coaches are schizophrenic and I will never understand them.  Both sides wanted Sam, but the side that won him, didn't let him play for the first 30 minutes of the game.  He was one of the only guys that didn't go in for offense or defense.  In the end he did get to play and went in for both.  This seems to be par for the course for this year.  I just keep telling myself that they are saving him for next year when he is bigger.  They do keep telling him that he is just too small.  

Second, Sam said his team was actually pretty stacked with great players, but that they only ended up with 3 actual linemen.  Sam's team lost-  Proof that linemen are important.  At one point they put Sam in to stand right next to the quarterback to block all the people that kept sacking him.  They put all kinds of random people in as the extra linemen, but they kept getting hurt- because they aren't actually linemen.  So Sam actually was put in as a Tackle at one point.  Sam, the guy they keep saying is just too small to run the ball!!  Also, the center wasn't very good at hiking the ball.  This caused some of the problems.

Third, Sam definitely isn't a lineman and has no idea how to play it.  He didn't even use his hands, but just hit the guy with his shoulder pads.  The guy just shot right around Sam.

Fourth, this is definitely a growing year for the JV team for everyone, including the coaches.

After that game, all kinds of people showed up for the Varsity game and kept asking me if the JV won.  Well, yes, yes we did!  By this time, Emma has ceased being the big sister of a football player and instead became "Wonder Yearbook Editor" instead.  (They also had Cross country that weekend, but when they travel they can only take their top runners and 5 extra runners that they choose from some 50 girls.  She got to go last time, so she stayed home this time.)  She had taken my camera and taken tons of pictures.  By the time the Varsity game was done- we played Lakenheath, England and killed them.   I was so happy for them when they finally got one score!  By the first quarter, I was already cheering for them.  I always feel bad for the underdog, especially when there is no mercy rule!- so by the time it was done she had taken over 490 pictures and run my battery down to nothing.  

So when the JV suited up again and got to play their reserve players and Sam actually got to carry the ball, twice!!- I didn't get any photographical evidence to prove it!  And he did great too.  He got out of one tackle, spun and made it another 5 yards or so the first time.  I think both times he got 10-15 yards.  They only have one play where he carries the ball and they have never used it before and most likely will never use it again this season.  So those were the two carries of his Freshmen year and my battery was D E A D!

During the Varsity game the JV cheerleaders had Sam doing backflips with them.  He was still in his pads.  One cheerleader did 7 in a row, so Sam did 12!  They all begged him to try out for Winter cheerleading, telling him that he would for sure make Varsity.  I think it's a great idea, but he won't even hear of it.  I reminded him of the professional football player we knew in Virginia who had also been a cheerleader in High School.  That didn't sway him.  He has determined that he wants to do wrestling.  I don't like wrestling.  I don't like boxing either.  Both of them, I will stay away from.  I told him, if he did it, I wouldn't come to any of his matches.  He said, "rude!"  But seriously, I can't watch that!!

Sunday I ran a one woman show.  I conducted Relief Society and I gave the lesson.  I had very little time to prepare, because I just learned I would teach on Thursday- and we were kind of busy as you can see.  Luckily it was from the book and people piped up and helped out.  It all went smoother than most of my other lessons.  Guess less time to worry about it, the better I do.

Monday, we finally traveled.  We haven't seen Schwangau with the kids since we have been here, so we took them to see Hohenschwangau

and Neuschwanstein. 

We also made it up to Marienbruche even though they were all complaining by this time because of the rain.

It didn't rain the whole time and was actually pleasant when it wasn't.

It truly is a beautiful place!

Motherhood ADD

Motherhood ADD- it's real people!  And there should be a public service announcement about it.  I waste tens of dollars a year because of it- possibly hundreds, but let's not get hysterical!   Today was a typical example.  I told my husband I needed to bake cookies and clean today.  I decided to make two types of cookies.  Why?  I have no idea- blame it on the A..D..D.  So I start making one and then right in the middle start cleaning my kitchen.  Well it needed to be cleaned, but while making cookies is probably not the

Whoops, sorry, I just remembered that the boys were invited to a party and had to call and see what time. Now what was I saying...

best time.  After cleaning up the kitchen a little, I finished making the cookies to the point of chilling and then went to start on the next set, except I got distracted by what I was thinking and had to go look up whatever it was on the computer, except when I got to the computer I decided I wanted to turn some music on.  That whole sentence shows I can concentrate even when it comes to English and sentence structure.  After I turned the music on, I had no earthly idea what I was there for, so I just surfed the internet for a little while and it never came back to me, so I went back to cooking.  Again with the run on sentences!  That happened to me two more times during the course of making cookies- not run on sentences.  Computer-interruptess, brain-farc.  I also decided to have lunch somewhere in there.  That batch did not turn out well at all!  So I threw them all in a box for the kids to eat, because no one else is going to and started on the other set.  As I started those one cooking, I remembered that I was supposed to be cleaning.  Clean, look up something on the computer, oh no, cookies, computer, clean, oh no cookies!  Luckily that batch did turn out.  But here's the problem-

Whoops, cookie alarm...

the first batch was the Reese cookies- 24 beautiful reese cut up and baked into cookies are now thrown in a box for children consumption only.  That's expensive kid fodder!   And now I only have snicker doodles to bribe Football coaches with.  Do Football coaches appreciate snicker doodles?  As much as Reese cookies?  Or do I need to go buy new Reese and start again?  My kids' football coach needs some serious bribing and I want to make sure I do it right!

Oh, I could go on and on about the football coach, but that would just make the ADD worse.

I'm telling you, I don't think I am the only one out there.  We need a serious Public Service Announcement!  Avoid Distracted Cooking!  Save your money!  Avoid Distracted Cooking!

School started... American Style

Living in Germany you notice the differences between Americans and Europeans quickly when school starts.  So here are some signs that Americans have started school.

1)  Mom's converge on the bus stop dressed in pajamas and sweats with their hair tied up in a knot on  top of their heads to wave to their kids at the bus stop.

2) Friday's become dress up days.

3) Those Saturday's you used to love walking on the paths in the woods are now crammed with cheering mothers and fathers and racers of all sorts.

4) More traffic on the roads in the afternoons as mom cart kids to soccer this and soccer that.

5) The craft store starts running low on craft supplies.  I hate projects!

Joseph's idea of a sock puppet.  I made him redo it on a paper bag and we actually added hair with yarn and a copy of one of Duke Ellington's famous songs.  

6) Field trips!  We use public transportations and they just love it when we shove 2 classes full of kids on the public buses!

 Pumpkin festival at Ludwigsburg palace

 Fairytale Garden's boat ride

The up-side down house.  The inside swings and then the outside goes around you.  It looks like you are going upside down!  Scary the first couple of swings, but then I was just ready to get out!

 The trick fountains inside of the maze.

Loved these fun use of gourds.

7) More cars on the roads at all hours of the day on Saturday.  We can travel as far as Venice, Italy or Lakenheath, England for some of our matches.  They keep coming to us instead, though, darn it.  I really want to give them a break and travel up to England!  Come on, let us be nice like that!  One of these matches was only 3 hours away by bus, but the team didn't get home until 3 am, because the German's have to get a break after so many hours.

8) The American next door is actually home.  Studiously planning their next vacation, but at least home for the moment.

I would add #9 dances, but ours still haven't happened.  We have the latest Homecoming ever!  It is the second to the last game of the season.  Seriously, do they even know what "Homecoming" means?  We have our first home football game next week.  You would think that would be Homecoming, right?  Um, nope.  Guess we don't believe in the traditional use of the word!

10) Fundraisers!  Love them!  *sarcastic voice*,  PTO, Potlucks, Parents running everywhere doing a million things!

We had the Stake Relief Society President write us and ask if they needed to have an interpreter in the class on helping your kids with school since they weren't sure how involved parents were with their kids in American schools.  If they only knew...!