It is DONE!!

It’s Done! It’s Done!

Before we moved I was somewhat confident that I could combine our guestroom and my sewing room.  When we got here, however, all my confidence went out the window.  The room was a MESS.  OK, the whole house was a mess and the guestroom was last priority since it really isn’t a living space.  So, each day I would go down and want to do something about the mess, want to sew, but there was no time to clean and no conceivable way to fit the old full bed, dresser, my sewing table, and cutting table in the room. 

Finally, about two weeks ago, we had a breakthrough.  IKEA! Yes, I realize that we are probably contributing to the downfall of the West by buying all this Made in China stuff, but I love IKEA.  It came through again with a daybed that pulls out to create a full bed.  I didn’t want to ask our adult guests to sleep on a trundle that was low to the ground and it was hard to find one that popped up. While we were at IKEA for the 4^th time, we saw this bed that pulls out and after you transfer the second mattress over it makes a full bed.  Yay!

Now the room looks like this

and my first sewing project, S’s curtains, is done.  I even made S another dress-up dress out of the material.  There is enough left to make one for A and many of the animals that S has been wanting to clothe.

Before-Trying to keep the curtains away from vent.

After

Sewing Note-This fabric was tough to work with.  It was hard to cut straight, sew straight, and not pull.  I actually don’t know what it is other than to say that it is gauzy.  It is a miracle that the curtains are similar in length.

I have missed the blogosphere

I do not actually mean that I have missed writing my blog.  I like to write but usually only when I have something that I think is cool to share.  The passed several months have not been full of those things.  Who wants to hear about how frustrating it is to get all the paperwork in for a loan or how annoying it is to go buy a luggage carrier for a car and get it home only to find it has a crack in it.  These things are not fun or educational, just annoying.  Life is full of annoying things.  We all have our own little annoyances and we do not really need to hear about those of  others...in my opinion...unless funny or educational.  So, I have kept quiet.

Now, after the move, we have a bit more time (and with snow days, a LOT more time) to do fun stuff.  Since I am creatively challenged I go straight to the web for ideas on what to do and how to do it.  The latest was homemade Valentines.  I like having the kids make homemade stuff for a couple of reasons.  First, it means it really comes from them.  Secondly, if I take them to the store to buy something we will end up with tons of stuff for them not for their friends.  Sad, but true.

As you may know, S loves many things including butterflies and the color blue.  When she loves, she goes all out, so it should be no surprise that she wanted blue butterfly Valentines.  I knew there would be some cute stuff out there and when I googled  it, I was not disappointed.  One of my favorite sites, Skip to my Lou, was first on the list.  She has a printable from last year and it hit the spot!

The girls and I made a shopping list and headed to Staples which is just a second from our new house.  I just happened to have a ton of Dum Dum suckers since that is the girls' favorite so did not even have to get those.  Now, we were going to just do glitter glue eyes, but got the shopping bug and headed to Target after Staples.  Target had the googly eyes and even though I thought they were a bit too big for the Dum Dum suckers, it turned out well.  We spent the rest of the afternoon cutting, napping, and decorating.  S's got finished up this morning, but I don't have any pics.  Sorry.

This is just another reason, I love blogs!

A chose pink because that is as close to Elmo's red as the pack of pastel paper came.

She is so proud!

Hard at work...notice the artistic heart sticker on the forehead.

1,623 miles

We started our move way back in October.  E and I were able to go on a house hunting trip by OURSELVES because my parents were nice enough to take care of the kids.  What happened on that trip? I got a stomach bug and felt like death.  The good thing: we found a house anyway.  It is on a little circle, near a good school and a cute town center.  Yay! It might be 50 years old and less than half the size of our old house, but hey at least that means no maid service to pay.  Yay! Wait, did I just say yay to no maid.  Yep.  I'm pretty sure I have already confessed to being cheap.

little circle

The next couple of months consisted of bank loans, saying goodbye, and dreaming up complicated logistics that was suppose to make our lives easier in the long run.  One of these logistical ideas included driving to Tennessee for Thanksgiving and allowing my sister to babysit my dog for a month.  I know, so sweet of me to include my whole family in the move! So, as of Thanksgiving we had no dog and only one car.  We didn't miss the car, but man I missed my little hoover.  I did not realize that A was soooo messy with the goldfish until Jasmine left us.

We moved out of our Texas home on the 19th or the 22nd of December depending on your definition of "we." We spent a wonderful Christmas in Tennessee and an all adult New Year's in Blowing Rock, NC.  Yay friends with houses in beautiful places.

S and cousins surveying their loot

The whole family gathered at Oma and Opa's

The women at Blowing Rock 

The adults

I didn't want Sophia to spend her 5th birthday in a house full of stuff on the floor (the movers take the boxes but leave the unorganized stuff) and no friends, so we stayed in TN one more week to allow her to celebrate her birthday with her Opa and Aunt Angie who both share it with her.  It was a grand time that led to many a beauty session the following days.

S with her "frog"-google frog cupcakes, I swear you will see this!

The best gift ever-The princess salon

Finally, we headed up to New Jersey.  The trip wasn't too bad, just a bit boring.  The first night in the house was AWFUL! The contractors who were painting, installing new doors, and refinishing the floors were JUST finishing up when we pulled into the driveway at 5ish.  The house reeked (and still does according to recent visitors) of polyurethane.  We opted to sleep on air mattresses in the basement the first night to be as far away from the smell as possible.  Unfortunately we were not that familiar with the thermostat and FROZE while the baby was up all night most likely freezing her chubby little ass off.  Not once did it occur to me to go upstairs and turn up the thermostat.  My brain must have been frozen too!

The next morning came and so did the movers.  As mentioned earlier they unpack everything, but put away nothing.  As I looked at A's room I had a little breakdown.  It looked like an episode of Hoarders.  I made an emergency phone call to my friend Gina and she calmed me down.  Now you know why she gets the gifts!  Soon after that the driver/leader told two of the more unhelpful movers to leave.  Everything calmed after that but I still told them to leave 10 or so boxes unpacked because other than floor space we had no other room for the stuff.  The next several days would include a LOT of TV for the girls and a LOT of packing material for me.

It has been 3 weeks now.  We have made 4 trips to IKEA, 3 to Walmart, 2 to Target and 2 to Costco.  If you refrain from looking in certain kitchen cabinets, the guest room, or along the walls where all of our pictures still lean you will think that we are moved in.  The kids go to school three times a week, but have yet to have a full week. We have had a bit of white stuff (19in  sorry, 29in.  The 19in was just the latest.) since we arrived.  E comes home at lunch (oh yeah, that 10 min. commute is awesome).  Neighbors have come by to say hi while others have actually helped shovel snow. The Jets lost their Superbowl bid (their practice field is across from E's work).  And we have finally made our first trip into the City.  We are on our way.  We are hopeful.  Still a bit scarred, but hopeful!

On train-notice my new, very warm jacket!

When you least expect it...

things change.

I have neglected the blog.  I did it intentionally since the summer was so busy and the sewing was so little.  I did get to do some fun stuff (all gifts that have been given away BEFORE pictures.  Shameful.) like the gathered clutch and  my new tote bag pattern.  They both turned out really well.  Normally, I would not buy a tote bag pattern but it was suppose to be the basis of my very first beginners' sewing class!  So exciting.  The girls finally went back to school in Sept., I had time to sew.  All was well.

Two weeks in we had a trip to Germany scheduled.  Last year I resisted this trip because I think it is hard on kids to begin a new schedule only to be yanked out of it.  But this year, I realized that next year Sophia would be in KINDERGARTEN and we couldn't pull her out of "real" school.  So off we went to enjoy friends, Wurstmarkt, and Oktoberfest. Yes, we really ought to have had enough of these things, but no.  We enjoy them in a different way now with kids.

We had a WONDERFUL trip.  The weather and events were on our side.  The weather was perfect at 75F and sunny.  We enjoyed the Wurstmarkt with Anna and Filippo.  It was not the best place to catch up with friends, but the kids had a big time.

Filippo, Amelia, and Sophia,Wurstmarkt 2010

Mama and Amelia on the Riesenrad, Wurstmark 2010

Sophia on the Riesenrad, Wurstmarkt 2010

Sophia on random ride that goes round and round and round, Wurstmark 2010

Amelia enjoying her first Hollandische Pommes, Wurstmarkt 2010

We also had a great time with Joe, Melissa and family at many events, but the one that we loved the most was the kulinarische Wanderung in Rodenbach near Kindsbach.

Eric, Sophia, Heather, and Amelia at Stop #2, Kulinarische Wanderung  2010

After a few wonderful days in our old home state (Rheinland-Pfalz) we headed off to Munich to visit other old haunts.  I know we should break out, but we can't help it: we love these places!!  So, off we went.  The first day in Munich we actually traveled by Strassenbahn to Oberpfaffenhofen.  Then we endured enjoyed a 3 or so mile hike up to the Andechs Monastery.  If you love dark beer (specifically doppelbock) you NEED to go to Andechs!   The hike there is heavenly (even with two kids) and when you get there, the reward is...heavenly.  Sorry, there are just no other words.  The fact that the weather was still on our side was just plain old good luck.  The amount of people there surprised us, but everyone was having such a wonderful time enjoying the moment!

Amelia with the best strawberry ice cream ever, Andechs 2010

Mama and Sophia, Andechs 2010

However, our carefree times were about over.  While at Andechs, actually during our second bit of doppelbock, Eric got a phone call.  

Amelia and Eric hard at work, Andechs 2010

He got a promotion, yay!  We are moving to NJ, fun?! Holy **** we have a lot to do!  But before that, we still have several days of fun...

Amelia's first real taste of apple juice.  I swear it is like crack for babies!

Sophia and Amelia enjoying apple juice, Hirschgarten 2010

Collecting chestnuts so that we could feed the deer at the Hirschgarten in Munich.

Deer, Hirschgarten 2010

Taking Amelia on the Riesenrad at Oktoberfest.  This was Sophia's first ride when she was 9 months old.

Amelia, Eric, Heather, and Sophia, Oktoberfest 2010

Octoberfest 2010

Amelia's first kid ride, ever.

Amelia and Sophia, Oktoberfest 2010

Family time at a great event.

The family in the Augustiner-Festhalle, Oktoberfest 2010

The girls +girl/elephant, Oktoberfest 2010

After Amelia discovered her love of juice and Sophia her love of big, ol' pretzels, we headed back to Kindsbach.  We had a wonderful last few days that included a great Oktoberfest celebrations in Kindsbach and a lot of computer time on city-data.com trying to figure out where we should move.  It was a great vacation!  And now, it is back to reality...

NJ bound!

Sewer's Block

Unfortunately, I don't mean that I am going to talk about a block of a quilt.  I mean, I think I have sewer's block as in writer's block.  Between my month of family visits and a summer schedule that doesn't have a lot of free time (meaning when the kiddos are somewhere else), I've lost not only my time, but also my desire to sew. What is happening to me??  I hope when the summer chaos calms, I will find my inspiration again.  Maybe a new serger will help. Hee hee.  My poor hubby.

Even though my summer has not been full of wonderful creations, I was lucky enough to get the girls' Fourth of July dresses done.  I actually got them ready in time for Memorial Day which was fitting.  I even got pictures!!

The fabric was leftover from last summer when I made place mats and napkins for my mom.  I used the Leisurely Dress pattern from SewMamaSew for Sophia's dress.  Amelia's is just a layered version of the Summer Smock dress from Weekend Sewing.

Both girls were nice enough to pose.  And yes, that scrunched up face is what A does every time someone gets a camera out or says cheese.  Wonder how many years of that we will have? Well, at least she is happy!

Bye Bye Sadie Dog

I know that she is just a dog, but we love her very much.  Today, we have to say goodbye and it breaks our hearts.  She was a very good dog, companion, source of entertainment and frustration.  She was my first baby.  

She has lived a wonderful life and made ours happier.  We will miss her terribly.

Randomness-Why Do We Love It?

So, there has not been much sewing going on here since the family has invaded.  We were fortunate to have my parents down over Memorial Day for Sophia's dance recital.  Talk about a whole lot of stress that resulted in a whole lot of entertainment and fun.  I still haven't decided if it is worth it for a four year old, but I am definitely happy we did it this year.

After oma and opa left, Tante Sonja, Eli, and Ella came down.  They are still here and Sophia and Amelia are enjoying their cousins a lot!  Eric, Sonja and I are just trying to get by.  None of us are used to four kids.  It can be a handful at times!!  

But Friday the World Cup started, so now Eric and I have something to enjoy for the next month.  Yay!  We watched the US tie England and enjoyed it.  But yesterday we got to watch Germany win over Australia 4-0 and we loved every minute.   

(picture from http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/round=249722/match=300111116/summary.html)

As I was sitting there watching, several thoughts kept running through my head. The first was the normal: Why do we care so much?  I don't understand how sports can get us.  The emotion involved can be incredible: heartbreaking or ecstatic.  It is amazing to me because only international soccer has gotten me like that.  Before my first WM (weltmeisterschaft), I truly did not understand how men could get so worked up over college or professional sports. Now, I have at least gotten a taste.  My question, though, is: Do my emotions run high because of the memory, the spirit, the experience that I associate with it?

You see, my first WM was the summer after I moved to Germany.  I was a bit lonely without friends, family, or job.  So, when the WM started coming on, one game each day (we only had basic cable) it gave me something to connect to.

But actually, the whole love for soccer started before that.  In May 2002, Eric and I were fortunate enough to be in Madrid, Spain when Real Madrid was playing Bayer Leverkusen for the Champions League Finale.  Even though we were sort of rooting for Leverkusen, being newly expatriated to Germany, we were thrilled when Real Madrid won because the city went berserk in a very happy, fun-loving way!  The next day the joy continued as the team toured the city stopping at different squares to wave to fans.  They ended in a church to say mass. I loved the otherness of it all.  The players, many of them millionaires, all wore the same suit.  They all wore ties. It was just different than American football.

That otherness continued through the WM.  I loved how they have the kids walk out for the national anthems.  I found it inspiring how the players were so international even when playing on their national teams.  I mean, the German coach, Rudi Voeller, who is German gave interviews to the Italian reporters in Italian since he had spent much of his professional career in Italy.  The same was true for foreign players who played or had played in Germany.  They would give interviews in German to the German reporters.  As someone struggling to learn that language, I was impressed.  In the US, we (or maybe just me) are pretty quick to pigeon hole people and one of our favorites is "dumb jock."  Well, these guys, who do not go through a college system to play professionally or internationally were doing a fine job being informed about the places and people they encountered.

I really can not pin point why I fell in love with it all, but I did.  The memories of that WM after which I wanted, to the horror of Eric, to name our first born son Oli or the one in 2006 which was in Germany  (we never got tickets) and inspired two of my favorite German songs, Dieser Weg 

and Was Wir Alleine Nicht Schaffen,

must have caused my tears on Sunday. I love that place and that time.  I miss it lots even though I am so fortunate to have wonderful friends here.  We feel so connected to Germany and its team even though we have no right to.  It makes no sense, but life and love are often like that.  Hell, sports are often like that.  All I can say is, "GO DEUTSCHLAND!!" and I hope you all enjoy the 2010 World Cup.  We will be watching!

(picture from http://www.dfb.de/)