Goodbye to friends and a few other things we'll miss...

We enjoyed being with friends one last time for an ice cream party. Below is the Familie Schaub.

Koko, Nikolaus, and Phineas, and their nanny Millie. Aaron is sitting with Koko's cousin.

We also celebrated Luise's birthday. Luise was our babysitter and was sort of like a little sister that we couldn't resist teasing.

Here are the boys with our friends the Hecklers, Rachel, Claire and Jack.

Jack and Connor were in preschool together. They were quite energetic buddies!

What a group hug!

Connor with his buddy Aidan.

Things we will miss...feeding spaghetti to the animals at the Waldau park.

And feeding spaghetti to ourselves...spaghetti eis that is...at our local italian eis cafe in Bad Godesberg.

We will definitely miss our strolls through Bad Godesberg.

Here's a picture of a german Konditerei...pastry/cake shop. The germans make simply fabulous cakes!
Of course we will miss many other things like our traveling adventures in Europe and playing our favorite german games with friends but we plan to keep doing both in the future!

Legoland Deutschland and Schloss Neuschwanstein

We just couldn't leave Germany without seeing the Neuschwanstein castle aka the "chitty chitty bang bang" castle to the boys. And on the way there, we stopped off in Ulm and spend the day at Legoland. It was so neat to see all the cool models of European sites that we have actually been to! Hamburg, Venice, London, and Neuschwanstein were just a few of the models. Grandma came along for the ride and we had a great time. The boys had a blast in the little water park and we even found an almost lifesize model of Thomas the Tank Engine.










Picture perfect Neuschwanstein Castle

We enjoyed a horse-drawn carriage ride up to the castle. We waited and waited for our turn to go into the castle. There were so many tourists and lots of americans. The boys did pretty good on the tour with exception to the adult size slippers that kept slipping off their shoes. After touring the castle, we walked up to the Marienbrücke to get a view of the castle. It was really neat.

Aubrey's Blessing and Aaron's Baptism

The first picture is of Mike and Aaron before Mike baptized Aaron. The next picture is of Mike holding Aubrey just before the baptism. I didn't get a picture of Mike in his suit and tie with Aubrey and so I just snapped a picture of the two of them before the baptism. The third picture is our family again before Aaron's baptism. The fourth picture is of Aubrey sleeping during the luncheon after Aaron's baptism.

Our last Sunday in Germany was a very special day and one that we will always remember and cherish. It makes me teary-eyed just thinking about it. It was the day that we had to say goodbye to the dear members of the Gemeinde Bonn. Mike and I look back with much gratitude for the opportunity we had to get to know such wonderful church members in Bonn. We were very grateful for the opportunity to serve. Mike served as the ward mission leader and I taught and planned activities with the young women. Mike was way more busy than I was. Not only did he have lots of church meetings but he also often had discussions and appointments with investigators some of which he spoke spanish. Even though it was very busy at times, we look back and see how the Lord has blessed our lives. Our ward made us a very special book filled with pictures and notes of gratitude. It makes me cry when I read it. Anette presented it to us at the luncheon after Aaron's baptism. It was so amazing to be in a ward where everyone is unique and you feel needed. It was so surreal saying goodbye. While last Sunday in our new ward was wonderful, it was also weird to once again be in a ward where there are so many families just like you. In one small moment I wondered how we will fit in. But we always manage to find our way. It always starts with seeking out the game players. :)

Summer Celebrations

Well, we've had a fantastic journey this summer! We are now in New Jersey and we will be in a hotel for just a few more days. The idea of moving into our house this week is really exciting to us especially after being in temporary housing for almost 7 weeks. July was a busy month for us despite being on summer break. A visit from Grandma, Aaron's birthday, road trips, and our last Sunday with our ward in Bonn are just a few things that kept us on the go last month.

Aaron and Connor at our favorite aquarium in Duesseldorf, Germany.

Mike and Aaron enjoying some fourth of July fun. We got together with some of our other American friends in Bonn. In Germany, it is not unusal to see these sparklers on top of birthday cakes. They are sold by the party supplies. They worked out perfect for our little celebration.

Connor was hesitant to join in the fun but eventually warmed up to the idea of holding a sparkler. As you can see by the picture, he was still rather cautious about it and insisted on holding the sparkler outside while standing inside.

Aaron celebrated his 8th birthday last month. He was really excited about his birthday this year. We had a few of his cub scout friends and church friends over for a pizza party. The kids had a good time especially when we played musical statues.

Aaron watched on as the kids danced and danced. Here's a videoclip of some of the fun.

Milkshake Shots!

My mom is visiting us as we finish our last few days in Germany (note the time-clock to the right). Last Sunday we had a friend over from Church (Luise) and two missionaries, Elder Jacobsen from Dallas (going home next week) and Elder Holzworth (from Austrailia).

I have been making awesome strawberry-banana milkshakes lately, so I decided to make some for the everyone. What is funny is that at the temp-hotel we are staying at, the glasses are all for alchoholic drinks...biersteins, shot glasses, wine glasses, etc. I thought it would be funny to have the elders drink a milkshake shot from the shot glasses (yes we live on the edge, don't we!)

It was actually pretty funny...here is the video:



Now this was a life lesson in the making. The missionaries learned (and us parents too) they must always show a good example, because they never know who is watching, or what influence they will have over young impressionable minds. Case in point...now see this video of Connor, 4 years old, putting into practice what he learned:



I sincerely hope this is not a scary omen of things to come! = )

We really did have a good time with the Elders. Elder Jacobsen is on his second time here in Bonn. He was here last year when we baptized several latin members, and has really been a valiant servant for the Lord. Elder Holzworth is newer in the Mission, and has a strong testimony. We have really enjoyed being able to meet so many great missionaries while here in Bonn.

Goodbye BIS...Last Days of School in Germany

AUF WIEDERSEHEN BIS!
Well, the last day of school has come and gone and we're finally posting about it! The boys have really made some good friends while here in Germany. It's been a great experience for them and we're really hoping that the boys will have made some future pen pals! Connor's class had a special assembly and luncheon during the last week of school and Aaron's class went on a picnic and also went on a field trip to a working farm which Mike was able to attend with Aaron. Both the boys really enjoyed the last few days of school!

On the last day of school, the primary school had their assembly in the morning. They called up all the students and teachers that would not be returning to BIS next year. So Aaron and Connor both went up there. Aaron was smiling so bright and was totally excited by the fact that he was getting attention. Normally, when the kids get called up to the front, they get a merit certificate. When students and teachers leave, the whole school sings this goodbye song. So they all start singing and Aaron is just smiling brightly. Connor on the other hand, begins to realize that everyone is singing goodbye to him and he get this look of despair and his shoulders all of a sudden slumped. He looked totally bummed. It was so sad. But, he cheered up later in the day and everytime someone would say goodbye to him, he would tell them that he was moving to New Jersey and that he was going to miss his friends very much. He gave lots of great hugs on the last day of school! We got lots of buddy shots on camera! Here are a few...