Isn't there a drinking age limit in this country?

Every fun day must come to an end...

Allie picking flowers...to eat. Allie doesn't like the 2 letter word (no). She screams, grabs her cheeks in disbelief (that I would actually tell her this 2 letter word), and arches back for the full effect.

This is the charming city of Bad Liebenzall which is on the way to Unterlengenhardt. "Bad" means bath in German and this city is famous for its spas since the 15th century. It is nestled in the Nagold Valley (where the river that runs through it gets its name from). Bad Liebenzall was first mentioned in literature over 900 years ago (in 1091). It is about 50 km away from Tuebingen.



It was a beautiful sunny and warm day (20 degrees Celcius)! It actually felt like spring. Isabelle was so excited to be without a jacket and kept begging to have short sleeves on.

On Sunday, we took a trip to the Northern Black Forest and visited this village (Unterlengenhardt) which is where Jamie's great-great-great grandfather was from.

A view of the Schwartzwald (Black Forest).

Pretty girl.

This yogurt is tasty!

The Oscar for the best dramatic performance goes to...

...Isabelle Lee Miller (insert applause here)



Isabelle is all about the drama...everyone warned me about the "threes", when simple tasks like going to bed, turning off a light, or putting a shirt on causes mass hysteria. When the infant comes shooting out the birth canal, I think that a guide book should come with it.

Where's the kitchen? I need something to eat.

With Allie's mobility, Isabelle has taken a new interest in her once stationary sister. She loves to crawl with her, after her, pull her out of corners that she gets stuck in, and otherwise boss her around as much as Allie allows her to.

I have been describing the Easter bunny arrival for a few weeks now and lately been using the giant rabbit in my empty threats of him skipping Rappstrasse 5 and leaving Isabelle's basket devoid of sugar and anything fun if she doesn't behave. It doesn't work, but that doesn't stop me from doing it. She looks so innocent here, but sometimes I swear that aliens have abducted her and left a screaming, incoherent, beligerent almost 3 year old in her place.

The courtyard inside Hohenzollern castle.

The Hohenzollern dynasty included two lineages, Franconian and Swabian. They were a powerful family and took control of Prussia in the early 18th century. This castle is actually a more of a monument and still owned privately by the families. The original fortress that was erected in the 11th century was destroyed in 1423 (during the Peasant's War). Nobody has actually ever "lived" in this castle, but they do hold concerts in the "Count's Hall", and the Prince (a co-owner) does have an apartment where he stays occasionally in the summer.

The castle is about 25 km south-east of Tuebingen and is built on the rolling Swabian Alb. The weather on Sunday was snowy and blustery! We have had temperatures in the 30s and snow almost everyday although there hasn't been much of an accumulation. I know all of you Iowans are rolling your eyes while I complain about the cold.

At one time the castle was built and re-built as a military fortress. We took the tour which was very informative (but no photos could be taken), and they had quite an impressive treasury in the old kitchen, with crowns, diamond-encrusted snuff boxes, swords, and armor.

I've got my hands full right now mom, can't smile at the camera...there are more eggs out there that I must find...

I found an egg! Interestingly, Allie spied alot of the Easter eggs before Isabelle even took notice that they were hidden in the living room. The girls were excited that the Easter bunny decided to make a stop in Tuebingen and Isabelle was even more excited to have chocolate for breakfast. Easter is obviously celebrated religiously and with visits from the Easter bunny for children here in Germany. We had "holiday" starting on Friday until Monday. Schools are on break for 2 weeks.

Allie samples some Nutella that her sister requests every morning on toast. Finger lickin' good.

Playdates are so fun!

Isabelle carefully dying her Easter eggs.

Isabelle and Mommy got a dusting of cake flour when Isabelle "helped" turn the mixer on full blast!

My favorite place to play!

Feeding the ducks...

is a great afternoon activity!

What is this shiny box, complete with sound and blinking lights, and removable paper???? Is this a dream come true?

Allie on the move! Allie had her 1st year check-up on Thursday. They call this the U-6 appointment in Germany. She did very well and even though she eyed Dr. Asenbauer with the most distrust she could muster, she made faces and waved at his high school daughter who was shadowing him that day. She is a tad on the small side...a whopping 18.6 lbs and 68 cm long but the doctor was fine with her development. Her cheeks are pretty misleading! She has another round of shots next month when Isabelle sees the doc for her 3 year check-up.

DENGLISH

I knew the day was coming that Isabelle would be speaking German words...and I didn't know what she was talking about! Her counting eventually changed..."one, two, three, four, five, six, sieben, acht, neun, ten". Then, she was getting little German songs stuck in her head that she would sing out loud all day..."alle Leut, alle Leut". (Jamie and I looked up the lyrics on-line so we could sing along). Then, she would be saying words that I obviously didn't learn in my short Berlitz course. Isabelle was saying "Owa" for a few weeks...thinking that she was forgetting the "I" in "Iowa", I would talk about Iowa related things everytime she would say the word...oh yes Isabelle, Iowa....yes, that is where your grandpas and grandmas live and lots of other relatives too..."Owa", Yes, Isabelle, Iowa has lots of corn and pigs..."Owa", Why do you keep saying Iowa like that???!!!??? Then, I saw two kids playfully slapping each other at a playground and one kid said, "Owa!". Oh yeah..."owa" must mean "owie" in German.

A view looking down the Steinlach River.

A very brightly tagged high school.

We see green leaves on the willow tree going over the footbridge to the Planatenallee.

Did I mention that I can crawl now? It makes me a little quicker to get into trouble.

Isabelle practices on the kazoo at her friend Vincent's birthday party.

Izzy is always on the move. She also has learned the art of negotiation. She seems to be bargaining anytime she wants something...i.e. one more movie...just one more...

She has been complaining that her board books are getting a little boring. She randomly takes books off our shelves and pretends to read them whether it be a neurosurgery text or a dictionary.

It's my birthday (March 13th)! I am officially 1! Here I am opening a birthday present from Grandpa and Grandma Koss...I love my new books!

Why waste my time with learning to crawl when holding on to Mommy's fingers is the way I like to get around.

Isabelle: "I just loooove her! She is so sweet."
Allie: "AAAAAGGGHHHH"

On Thursday evening we went out to a restaurant for pizza and ice cream. Allie even had her own ice cream cone! Allie loves to munch on the bottom of the cone (just like her sister), allowing all of the melted ice cream to leak out the bottom.

We hope you feel better soon Grandma Miller!

Remember I was singing the praises of Crayola markers washability a few blogs back? Let's just say that it doesn't come completely off wooden panel walls...but seems to only leave a bit of a residue on a very naughty toddler. After hearing Isabelle talk to herself for a half an hour while she was supposed to be napping...I yelled at her to go to sleep...the last thing I heard was, "I'll write it in my handy-dandy notebook"...and then silence...you can see what happened next. I saw her very creative work after the nap that she finally did take!

Among their book selection was a corner full of pictures, books, and letters from Hermann Hesse.

This past Sunday was the Spring Market in Tuebingen. It was a beautiful sunny day and most shops were open for a few hours. They also had many stands set up through the streets selling produce and flowers to garden tools. This is a antique bookstore that Hermann Hesse worked as an apprentice.

Isabelle "helping" with the clean-up after the party. Or not.

Isabelle had a great time...she had 1 cupcake (pupcakes as she calls them) and licked the frosting off another one...and Rosi was giving her bites of the chocolate cake. Lets just say she was full of energy.

A new dolly!

Yea! Presents! My sister helped open them all. I think she still believes that this party is for her...

I can't even focus on my cake, people...when there is just so much going on!