My New Love

Some friends of ours, the Bollenbachs, invited us to go to an auction with them today. It was at Ramstein Air Force Base, which is half way between where each of us live. We decided to give it a try, and it was great! Brad and I took all the kids and had a quick, I mean quick, look around. We talked about a few pieces, and then my wonderful husband took the kids to the park for the afternoon while I stayed at the auction. He told me to get what I wanted, and before I knew it, I was on my own.

If you have not been to a live auction, you are missing out! It is really fun and super addicting! I decided beforehand what I was interested in and how high I was willing to go. I saw a few small tables that I liked, and there was a 1930's pewter coffee set that I liked, also. The tables that I was interested in, the Bollenbachs liked also. I guess we both have good taste. I let them bid on the first one that we both liked, and they let me bid on the second one that we both liked. I ended up getting a small Danish table that is from the 1830's. The next one that I was interested in, I was not sure about because it was bigger than I thought I wanted. I completely forgot that the tabletop folded in half to make a smaller table. It is a really pretty table! I will take some pictures of it. I ended up being the only one that bid on it, so I got it for the reserve! Finally, I bought the pewter coffee set. I decided that my limit was $50. Well, I got a little caught up in the excitement of it all, and I went a little over. The person who was bidding against me sounded a little hesitant, so I thought that I could outbid them. In the end, I only went up to $56, but I can see how a person can get caught up in the moment. It is really fun!

Here are some pictures of the purchases:

Danish 1830's table:


Game table from around 1900; view from the top:


Game table open:


Game table closed:


1930's coffee set:


All in all, I think that it was a very successful day. I think that I have found my new love. If you have not tried it, go out and give it a try.

Picture Frames

This Christmas, the girls both got picture frames. Here are some pictures of the finished project.

Hoops

As previously mentioned, here are some pictures of Clayton playing basketball. Not to be biased, but Clayton was awesome this year! He is a great little defender, shooter, dribbler and passer. I am pretty impressed! Now, we just need him to grow (good thing he has such tall parents!).

Slip Sliding Away

It started out as a normal morning. We were pushing it on time, but nothing new. I should have known that things were bad when the girls stepped out of the house and both fell flat on their backs. No big deal, I thought. I will just help everyone to the car. The girls stood on the grass, and I carried them one by one to the car. Now, you may be thinking, if it is that bad, why would you get in the car? Looking back now, I am thinking the same thing. However, at the time, I pressed forward. I thought, it may be slick here, but usually it is not that bad once I get to the main road in my village.

I started down the hill and we basically just slid the first half of it. I knew that once we hit the bottom part, where it is driven on more, we would be ok. Sliding down the first half made me nervous, so I decided that we were just going to head home. So, I went to the bottom of the hill, turned around, got a good start, and made my way up the hill. We did fine until the last little leg of the hill, where we just stopped and started sliding backwards. Luckily, the van decided to do a 180degree turn, so I was facing down the hill. I slide all over the place again, but I was able to stop before the main crossroad. I turned around again, and we made it most of the way up the hill, and we just parked the car.

Here is where things got tricky. I had Zoe, Georgia and Lincoln with me. Lincoln needs to be carried, but the girls needed a lot of help, too. There was another guy who parked next to us, and he told me to follow him because he had salt, but he was so fast, we were only able to follow him for about 5 feet. I stood looking at the mountain (it is probably only 50 feet, but it felt like miles) and said a little prayer. I really was wondering how we were going to conquer it, but some German neighbors saved us. This little elderly couple loves us, and they came out to help. The man grabbed Zoe's hand, but I still was holding Georgia's hand and carrying Lincoln. What a nightmare! Georgia fell on her own about 10 times. At one point, Georgia and I were standing still on the hill, and we just started sliding backwards. We slid for about 5 feet and both fell down. I was holding Lincoln, so I went down hard, so as not to injure him! It was horrible. We ended up getting high enough on the hill to move into someone's grass, and then it was smooth sailing from there. Sort of.....We still had to cross some driveways, and once we made it to the top of the hill, we had to walk down the street for a little bit to get to our house. If it had not been for our German neighbors, I don't know what I would have done!

Well, we are now home, and I am not planning on going anywhere today. Hopefully it is better by the time Clayton gets off the bus!

December Fun

Alright, I have not been so good about putting things on here since Brad has gotten home, so I am just going to put pictures of all the fun things that have been going on. Brad got home at the beginning of December, which was great! Clayton, Zoe and Georgia all had Christmas parties at school. We went down to Garmisch right after Christmas, and we stayed there for a week. With all that, basketball has started up, and Brad is coaching Clayton's team. Also, Zoe is now doing cheer! I am not sure if I have basketball pictures, but I will post those later.














As a side note, Brad just got his orders, and it looks like it is official! We are headed to San Antonio, TX this summer! Yeah for warmth and sunshine and spending a whole lot of time outdoors!

He's home!

Enough said!

Let the Countdown Begin!

Well, it looks like it is actually going to happen. We have been hearing for months that Brad might be able to split the deployment with another attorney, but it looks like it is really going to happen! He is packing up his stuff and beginning to out-process. Yeah for us! It seems surreal. We should have him here in less than a week! I don't even remember what life is like with him around. I think that it is going to be an adjustment, but it is one that I am more than willing to make.

Life has been hard without him around, but we did much better than I had originally thought. We are all much stronger than we imagined. The kids were grumbling this morning because their dad had to deploy, but we are really very fortunate! Brad only had to go for 8 months instead of 15 months. That is basically unheard of in the Army. Also, this was his 1st deployment, and most people I know are on their 2nd, 3rd or 4th deployment!

Please be praying for the kids that the adjustment goes well. I will post pictures once he gets here.