Our quick trip to the states

 Waiting for Dave and Tana to arrive in Baltimore.  This is the American Visionary Art museum and one of the coolest places ever.  This is the place Dave has his new, sleek photo booth set up.  They will be having it there for 11 months.  I was glad I was able to see it.  It's pretty awesome.  We were able to finally meet Tana after being married to Dave for what? 2 years right?  That's pathetic, but at least we could see her, even though she was pretty much in labor when we saw her.  She was such a good sport and I have to say...Dave is a lucky man.  She's pretty awesome.  We hope we can see them again soon.  We ended up not being able to see the new baby and I was pretty bumbed about that.  Hopefully it won't take two more years.

 Inner Harbor of Baltimore.  Very clean and lots of fun!

 On Friday we were able to visit Oma and Opa Ehrmann (Lokodi).  We had a little birthday celebration there.  Oma made this yummy cake as well as a TON of german cookies from scratch.  She's such an amazing cook.  Chelsey and Jake came along for the ride and it was nice to have them there.

 Hans and I left on Saturday morning (hence the pajamas.  Sorry chelsey, it's the only picture I got).  It was way too short a visit to her house.  We had a good time just hanging out and talking.  Sarah was such a great big cousin to Eva and Gabriel.  We left the kids with them for a few days while Hans and I drove my friend's car out to Missouri for them.  We only had a little bit of time before Hans had to go to work, otherwise we would have tried to drive up to Iowa and visit my brother Jason and his wife Michelle.  We just couldn't squeeze everything in that we wanted to.  We'll have to try it again maybe in 2012 and make sure to get to Janson's house.  Hans still hasn't met Michelle or their kids. 

 We drove as far as Dayton on Saturday and stayed the night at Adrianne's house.  We had never met their kids yet...I know, it's quite sad really.  I have to say, it was worth the wait though.  I have totally fallin head over heals for all those cute little boys.  They have such sweet personalities.  They each contribute something different and special.  I forgot to get a picture with Adrianne.  :(  We had a short, but fun visit with them as well.  We headed out eary Sunday morning to finish the drive to Missouri. 

Along the way, we couldn't help but laugh when we saw this on I-70.  Welcome back to America right?...  We arrived to Kansas City on Sunday night.  We spent Monday with Brandee and her family then flew back to Baltimore on Tuesday morning.  We had Hans' parents bring the kids from Chelsey's to Baltimore for us.  We had to catch a Space Available military flight back to Germany that night.  It was a fast and furious trip, but we're glad we did it.  I had a good time visiting with part of our family and only wish it could have been longer and that we could have seen everyone.  It made me miss them so much more.  It's nice to spend time with them as grown adults with kids of their own.  They're my friends, not just my sisters and brothers.  Thank you to everyone who helped us along the way.  Mike's mom Carol Richard came and picked us up at the airport at 1am when we arrived and let us stay at her home.  Then she drove us around to get my friend's car at the port the next day.  She was such a HUGE help to us and I really appriciate her kindess.  She truely is a sweet spirit and I would love to spend more time getting to know her.  Mike, you are a very lucky guy to have such a kind and loving mother.  My kids call her Grandma Carol.  :)  Thank you to everyone for taking time out of they days to visit us, or allow us to crash at your home with such short notice.  Thank you to Chelsey and her family for watching our two crazy kids, even when Gabe got sick and Chelsey had to take him to the urgent care for us.  That meant alot!  We love you all and hope we can do it again soon.

Lindsey

Too busy to think

 Well, it's been a while since I've posted.  I seem to be too busy these days.  Between the kids, soccer, piano lessons, the out and about group my friend and I started, the choir I'm in and Hans' work stuff, life is pretty crazy (not to mention girls night outs. :) ).   A few days before we headed off to the states, Christy and I headed up another ladies Out and About Discovery group.  We went to my favorite restaurant, which is a greek one downtown Wiesbaden.  We had a great turn out.  I think there were 14 of us.  I love being able to show ladies new places to discover in Germany.  I know I've said this before, but I really feel very blessed to have such an amazing group of ladies in my ward.  I have really loved getting to know each of them. 

 This is the waiter I get every time I'm there.  He always remember everyone that comes in.  He love the Americans and speaks great english.  This has been a family run business for a very long time.  He's one of the grandsons of this family.  Notice all the individual checks for each lady in the group? 

 A couple nights after my O&A group, Hans and I had a work function to go to.  This was the enormous cheese burger we got to share.  Suprisingly, it tasted pretty good too.  We were eating the leftovers for days.

 The next night, we went down to Kaiserslautern to celebrate Eva's birthday with the Terhunes.  They used to live up here, but about a month ago, Chris was reassigned an hour south of us.  We have been very sad not to have them so close.  We went swimming at a really cool german pool then went and had dinner and afterward, had cake and ice cream. 

 On the actual day of Eva's birthday (October 6th), we were heading to the states for a quick trip.  So, we had her open her birthday gifts on our bed in the morning before getting ready to go.  Gabe was really upset because he didn't have a present to open.  I guess Eva must have felt sorry for him because she eventually let him open one after crying for a bit.

Happy 4th Birthday Eva.  We love you and are very blessed to have you as part of our family. 

We LOVE Disney Cruise Line.

We're back!  We had a wonderful time on our cruise.  I've come away really loving Disney.  It's going to be hard to cruise with anyone else after that experience.  We all had such a great time.  The weather was on our side too.  It didn't rain once!  Now I've got to get to the gym and work off the 10 extra pounds I just put on from all the amazing food on board.  Check out our pictures from the trip.  Hope you enjoy them.

http://picasaweb.google.com/roberrabbit/0140?authkey=Gv1sRgCKHX3auE6ahM#

Lindsey

Our trip to Garmisch thru pictures. Enjoy.

 We hope you enjoy some of the photos we took on our long weekend in Garmisch.  The army was sponsoring a marriage retreat for 102nd Batallion this weekend and we had the opportunity of attending.  It was a great time to spend with the family.  I've been down there 8 times now and I never get tired of it.  It makes me appriciate God's amazing ablility to create such a specatular world.  This place takes your breath away with it's beauty.

 This two pictures were taken from the balcony of our hotel room.

 We rented a row boat for an hour on Lake Eibsee.  The kids loved it!

 It got a little cold at the end.

 This is the lobby of the hotel.

 Last winter, Hans and I came down by ourselves and skied here.  This is one of the lifts we took.  It looks completely different in the summer time. :)

 Just one of the beautiful gardens in the area.  The people here really take care of their land.

Cutest Kid Contest

Hey everyone.  I just entered Eva and Gabe in a cutest kid contest.  I could use all your votes.  If I win, I get a free photo session with this photographer and a free print.  What you have to do is go onto this link: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=159118&id=112247258819248#!/pages/Wiesbaden-Germany/Holly-Nichole-Photography/112247258819248 and "like" it.  Then you find the picture of Eva and the picture of Gabe and just type in the word "vote" in the comments.  You can also just look on my profile on Facebook and vote for them.  Thank you all!

Lindsey

A tearful goodbye

 Why do I have to be left behind?  I would much rather be the one leaving.  Being part of the military has is ups and downs.  One of the ups is you tend to make friends faster and feel more connected to the friends you have.  At least in my case.  I have made some really amazing friends here in Germany.  We all seem to cling on to eachother and support and love one another so much.  Two of my very best friends are moving and leaving me behind.  Lisa is to my left and Brandee is to my right in this picture.  Brandee is leaving tomorrow morning.  Her husband is getting out of the military and they will be settling down in Missouri.  I have become extremely close to her.  She has helped me through a great deal in the four or five years we've been friends.  She is one of those people who would do anything for you.  She is a GREAT listener.  She doesn't try and "fix" your issues, she listens and lets you just vent.  She never judges me and seems to love me unconditionally.  She and our other friend Alisha Johnson are always there for me.  We used to be a lot like the three amigos.  I waited every morning for a phone call from Alisha to tell me what we were doing for the day.  Alisha moved away last year but I still try and talk to her on the phone at least once a week.  It should be more though.  When some friends move away, you know you will eventually lose contact with them just because of distance and time.  However, there are just some people you know that just won't happen with.  Alisha, Brandee and Lisa are some of those people.  They are truely friends for life.  I thank my Heavenly Father for putting these women in my life and at such a time in my life when I really needed them most.  I know he had a hand in bringing us together.  I love them all with all my heart.  I will miss you Brandee, but I know this isn't goodbye.  This is just a "see you later". 

 I love her family too.  She's got some of the most amazing children in the whole world.  She and Logan are wonderful parents and have done a great job raising five very polite, beautiful children.  I love you kids!

Lisa's family is moving next month.  Thankfully they are only moving about an hour drive south of here.  They will be in K-town for another year, then headed back to the states.  Lisa, that drive will be made many times in the next year!  I'll be needing my Lisa fix on a regular basis.  You are the salt of the earth and the most amazing person.  You truely are an inspiration to me.  Thank you for your generous heart and warm smile.  I love you so much!  My kids are going to miss you guys so much too.  I will be bribing my kids with visits to see you if they are good. :)

Anyone who has friends like these, are truely blessed and I hope you remember not to take them for granted.  Make sure you give them a hug this week and tell them thank you for their friendship and love.  So, this isn't goodbye, this is "see you later".

Out & About Discovery Group

 This is kind of a random post, but I thought I'd share a little of what's going on in my life.  Last weekend, we took care of four other children while their parents went to London.  We had them from friday til monday night.  Two of those kids are my kids best friends.  This little boy is Evan.  He's four months younger than Gabe.  His older sister Sierra, is Eva's best buddy. 

 I've started teaching piano lessons to two new girls.  They are identical twins.  We are actually doing a trade.  I will teach them for free in exchanges for them to help me out around the house or with the kids.  They are 11 years old.  This is Xoe.  Gabe LOVES her!  Both my kids love these girls like crazy.  Eva follows them around like a lost puppy.  Xoe even got Gabe to take a nap on her while watching TV.  He doesn't even do that for me.

 My friend Christy (Xoe and Xanthe's mom) and I started a new group for relief society.  It's called the Out and About Discovery Group.  The purpose is for women in our ward to learn about the different treasures of Germany.  Over the last few months we've done quite a few things.  We went to an outdoor swimming pool, an indoor swimming pool, a thermalbad, a german restaurant, we toured the cities of Wiesbaden, Mainz, and Eltville.  This month, we started it out with a tour of the castle "Burg Eltz".  I've been there one other time with Bill and Diane Knox when they came to visit me.  Last time I was there, there wasn't any scaffolding, but it's still amazing huh?  We had a good turnout.  It was a beautiful day for touring the grounds too.

 This is the group that came out.  We're actually missing a few people in this picture.  I'm really glad Christy and I started this group.  It keeps us busy and it gives us a wonderful opportunity to get to know sisters that we normally wouldn't.  I think it's really making the women in the ward feel fellowshipped.  It helps to eliminate the feeling of clicks or hard feelings toward one another.  I have really come to love every one of these women in the ward.  They each contribute something special or unique to the group.  It's interesting to see the different dynamics that each different activity has.  We get different ladies coming each time.  It gives all of them an opportunity to get to know one another.  Thank you ladies of the Wiesbaden Military Ward!  You all are wonderful women and are great examples to me!

Let's get this party started!

This little guy is gettin' potty trained (whether he likes it or not!).  I had to take a picture of Gabe in these little boy briefs.  He looks so dang cute!  He went pee in the big pottie this morning.  This isn't the first time he's done it.  There was a week back a couple months ago that he went pee quite a few times and poop once in the toilet.  However, since then, he hasn't shown any interest.  Well, I've decided it's time to do it.  Let's just bite the bullet and get it over with.  I have very selfish reasons for doing this however.  Not that I want to save money on diapers, not that I hate changing them (which I do of course), not that it would just be so much easier, but because....

We are going on a DISNEY CRUISE!  We have decided to celebrate Hans' accomplishment of finishing his MBA by taking a cruise.  Believe it or not, one of the best deals we got was a disney cruise (which is usually the most expensive cruiseline to take).  The reason we feel so strongly that we need to potty train Gabe is because the kids club on ship is for ages 3 and up.  The only way they will take Gabe in the kids club being under three is if he's potty trained, if they have enough available slots, and if they see that he can be a little independant (which he is, let me tell you!!).  The kids club is free of charge and they do amazing activities with the little ones.  It will also give Hans and I time away from them so we can actually have a vacation too. :) (that's the real reason we want them in there) The last cruise we took, Eva loved the club so much that she cried every time we came to pick her up.  Let me tell you, I sure didn't feel the love comin' from her.  It was the first thing she wanted to do when she woke up.  That was with Norwiegen cruiseline.  NCL takes 2 and up, which is the only cruiseline that excepts kids that young.  Disney is supposed to be the best of the best for kids.  I'm so excited to share this experience with my kids.  They are really getting into all the disney movies lately. 

Here's the itinerary of where we're going:
http://www.vacationstogo.com/fastdeal.cfm?deal=11911&disp=103

We've already been to Barcelona, Rome, and Malta, but we loved them so much, we have no problem going back.  Besides, Rome really required a whole week just to see everything.  We only spend a day there last time.  Who wants to come with us?  We'd love to have another family come play on the cruise with us.

Nature induced mayhem/human induced mayhem

Well, we had quite the storm last night. It made me feel like we were back in Indiana watching a tornado. I even went outside and just enjoyed the rain (which is a first in like a month here) in the middle of lightning and thunder. I loved it! However, it did some damage. Lightning struck our building and burnt a fuse. It also broke one of our windows. This tree is just ouside out appartment. Notice how close it was to this car.

Can you see how the window is only attached by the hindge?

On another note: I, Lindsey Clark Lokodi sewed for the first time since eighth grade. The only other time I've been on a sewing machine was in school. I had to sew an apron. My friend came over the other day and brought everything I needed to make this curtain for my kitchen. She even provided the fabric. She showed me what to do and I DID IT! I can't believe it. My kitchen colors are blue and yellow, so it worked out really well. I was pretty proud of myself. It took forever, but I survived. I'm nowhere near being as domestic as my sisters (and I'm not trying to be because that's just not my thing) but at least I did something productive. :)