one hundred {thousand} M I L E S

And we have driven every one of them. We hit six digits on our last Europe trip- our trip to Prague. 

Just over 50,000 miles driven in Europe. While we didn't see everything we wanted to see, we covered a good part of this phenomenal part of the world.

so much to S A Y

We are out of our house.
We are still working to get out of Germany.

It has been one rough week. Really rough week.
I am reminded of our tough days getting settled in Germany. It has not been much easier wrapping things up.

The only difference is the prize of our home, friends and family on the other end.

My plan was to be blogging all week but, our Internet is horrible. We can't get on our laptop at all. Luckily, Ty's Mac works. The problem is I'm struggling using it- change is hard and I feel the need to let my brain rest.

We are excited but tired.
Tired of thinking.
Tired of working.

Ready for this transition to be over and the next stage of our lives to start.

Right now, working to get out of our phone(s) is proving to be a nightmare. Our house phone said they will be charging us through July even though we are no longer in our house. Even worse, the new renters move in May 1st.

Isn't that double dipping? Shouldn't it be against the law?

I got my hair cut the other day and the German girls in the salon told me the phone company can not do that to us. She tried to call for me. The system was down and they were told it's the law, we have to pay. They said to just close our bank account- they can not take the money.

Our landlord called for us to get it stopped- she was told the same thing.

Jim went to the bank to close our account. Our bank told us {on base, by the way} that if we close it and any company attempts to take money out- they will open it back up, GIVE them the money, then charge us the $ plus LATE fees.

Unbelievable.

It's no wonder Americans leave here with lawsuits and in limbo with German companies.

So, I went to the local office downtown this morning to finish out this phone account and return the router so we don't get charged even more.

After a 40-minute wait, the man told me I have to mail the router through the German PO, he can not take it. 

Strike one. 

Then, he said he can not do any customer service but he would help write a letter to see if they would consider canceling our account before July. He wrote the letter, then faxed it to the company for me. With the company logo on his building, I was still confused as to why he could not address my issues.

Then, let me know he usually charges 10 Euro {$14} for this service. But, since we do not know if this will help, he waived the charge just for today.

Seriously?

I told him at this point- I did not care. I would like to pay the three months service {we would NOT be receiving @$55/mo} and be DONE with Kabel Deutschland. He let me know, unfortunately he could not help with that either.

He could/would not accept my payment for my account.

Strike two.

It was all I could do to stay calm.

Until I got in the car and realized he mis-typed our e-mail address. E-mail is the only way for them to contact us. I should have checked it, but I WROTE it out for him. Think I'm back to square one.

Strike three.

Our cell phone company is even worse.
This is only part of why we are so exhausted.

Seven nights to go...

never A G A I N

Knowing that we N E V E R have to move again is something that is getting me through these stressful days. I know there are more to come, so I will keep that thought in my head.

Our list of to-do's is growing in spite of crossing things off.

Our stress level is elevated in spite of trying to stay calm.

Our {my} energy comes and goes- mornings seem to be more productive.

Moving is something we know how to do.

Moving continents in a month is something new that we are working to survive....

It's not easy, but I know we can do it.
Thank goodness, we have a nice prize on the other end.

one of a M I L L I O N reasons...

...why I love my man.

Our to-do list is so long and enormous we seem to add more each day than we are able to cross off.

Seriously, who not only moves continents but adds a retirement and all that goes with it in just over a month's time.

No one that we know.

As Jim made his retirement appointment with the VA this week, they let him know that most people call six months in advance to start the process.

We don't have six months.

We don't even have six weeks.

They put him on a fast track.
Good thing there is a fast track.
Fasttrack should be our last name. We tend to be a little crazy like that.

Yesterday, I thought I was doing good staying focused working on whatever I was working on. The thought came to get the boys out of baseball since we will miss most of the season. Instead of putting it off, I emailed our youth sports immediately.

I was so proud. It wasn't even on our list and I was knocking it out!
That lasted for a minute until I received this email response:

-----Original Message-----
From: Jim and Sheila DICKEY [mailto:jsdickey7@hotmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, March 18, 2014 3:28 PM
To: MUTCH, JESSICA A NF-02 USAF USAFE 86 FSS/FSFY
Subject: RE: Baseball season information

We have our boys registered for baseball, but just received retirement orders. We leave April 25th-ish, so we are going to miss most of the season. Any chance we can get a refund and give someone else their slots?

Caden & Coleman Dickey (both 9-10 yo)

Thanks,
Sheila Dickey

My response from youth sports:

Your husband already came in to get his refund.

Thank you,

Jessica Mutch
Ramstein Youth Sports Assistant
480-5660
Any one that I have to try to keep up with is a keeper. I'm reminded even amongst the stress and emotion right now that there is no one in this entire universe more suited for me.

I love this man.

a quick V I S I T from our KS friends

We were so excited to start December off with a quick visit from our Kansas friends {and neighbors} Steve and Tammy.

Oh, we have missed them!

We have really missed living across the street from such wonderful neighbors.
We loved watching as they worked on projects together as we worked on our own projects.

We really just want to be like them when we grow up.
Funny thing is how much Jim and Steve are alike.
Almost identical in a lot of ways.

Unable to get any time off work, our weekend together was quick but still wonderful.

We started off meeting them in Rothenburg ob der Tauber for the Christmas market and nightwatchman tour- a very cool way to learn a little bit about this walled city.

It was the first and only snow we have seen this winter and SUPER cold. We think they brought a little Kansas wind with them... brrr.

It was so nice to see them. I think we are even more homesick now.
Our countdown to get back to Kansas continues...

an A B U N D A N C E of home

It has been an abundant two weeks for us.
Every part of the definition is applicable.

a·bun·dance  (-bndns)n.

1. A great or plentiful amount.

2. Fullness to overflowing

3. Affluence; wealth.

 

To have an abundance of something is to have more than you need. 

Abundance is the opposite of scarcity. 

{plenty, heap, bounty, exuberance, profusion, plethora, affluence, fullness, opulence, plentitude, fruitfulness, copiousness, ampleness, cornucopia, plenteousness, plentifulness}

An abundance of noise. 

An abundance of laundry. 

An abundance of food. 

An abundance of dishes.

An abundance of messes. 

An abundance of wrestling. 

An abundance of brotherly love.

An abundance of craziness.

An abundance of happiness. 

An abundance of home. 

Justin asked that we not plan any trips over the Christmas break.

He wanted to be home. He wanted to chill. 

It has been just that and could not have been much more perfect. 

Working out {for the boys}, eating, movies and time together.

We were reminded again {click here for my post from last Christmas} with a visit from our Oma across the street how blessed we are. She reminded me again that I have everything. 

She does not want to come in past the front door.
She won't come for a meal as I have invited her many, many times.

She does not want to be a burden. 

She also lights up seeing her boys and her dog.

We broke the news to her that this is our last German Christmas, our time overseas is winding down. She looked at us with disbelief and tears filled up in her eyes. 

I told her I will write to her. She does not know it yet, but I will keep true to my word.

Yes, we have an abundance.

BEAUTIFUL Cochem and Eltz

A year and a half ago, we went as a family to Burg Eltz- possibly my favorite castle. 

At the end of that blog post {link above}, I said I would happily repeat a visit to this castle. 

I was delighted to take my mom and tante Marine. 

Even better, this time it was sans kids which made it the perfect day to take the tour.  

 

From Burg Eltz, we drove less than an hour to Cochem Castle.
The castle is beautiful,but the view of the Mosel River is my favorite part of going to Cochem.

We walked.
We shopped.
We ate.
Repeat.

I am obsessed with window boxes and the flowers here.
Flowers growing up from the smallest crack in the sidewalk amaze me.
{**click on picture to enlarge}

I was drawn to this window box in the above right corner. I then noticed an even more beautiful picture of the elderly woman next door standing at the window looking out.

This is typical and common. 

I still love it.

In our village, we have an older man who most afternoons can be seen standing in the window just watching the cars go down the roads in Mackenbach.

After a year of waving, he finally started waving back as we round the corner .
Now, we wave every chance we have.

not-so-homemade G E R K I N S

There are just some places in this world that I don't think you can ever tire of visiting. 

Two years ago, we went as a family to Kehlstein {Hitler's Eagle's Nest} with Starr and Mac.It was absolutely stunning and a place I definitely wanted to take my mom and Marine.

For this day trip from Garmisch, we left the little guys in the cabin with Ty while we headed down to the Austrian border alone for a day full of more laughs than we could have ever planned.

For information on the beauty and awe of Kehlstein, you can read about our 2011 trip here.

After our visit to the top of the mountain, we decided we were ready for lunch.

It is always a good challenge to find a cool off-the-beaten-path cafe or restaurant for meals.

It is way more fun hanging with the locals than with the American and Asian tourists, right?

Starving, we were shocked how difficult it was to find a place to eat.

It was early afternoon, but we weren't in France- things should have been open. Germans eat.

Finally, we spotted a patio area with umbrellas out that looked like a place food might be served. Taking a chance, we stopped.

In the small group of locals, one lady spoke English.
It was our lucky day! She and her husband had biked over the border from Salzburg to have a beer at their favorite little hang out.

She asked the owner if she had any lunch and let us know she would prepare us some sausages. It sounded perfect.

They literally pulled out the seat cushions for our patio chairs and made us feel at home. We were really excited- this could count as Germany and Austria being right on the border.

Doesn't get any more off the beaten path than this, right?

While we waited, we had a nice cold drink and soaked up some sun. The weather was delightful.

Then, our food came. It was not quite what we had in mind, but still very nice. Of course, her presentation was beautiful.

The breads are always delicious.
The tomatoes and cucumbers were garden-fresh fabulous.
The cheese was nice and mild.

Marine took one for the team and ate the onions and meats.
On top of this platter, we had pickles.

Delicious, crunchy German pickles.Not too dill. Not too sweet. Just right.

After being told {by our Salzburg woman} how everything was homemade, fresh and wonderful here we assumed that maybe the pickles were as well.

How in the world could we get a jar of homemade pickles?

By this time, our English-speaking woman was on her bike back to Salzburg. We were left with my rusty German and another man who let us know he spoke English as well.

On our first attempt, the woman said yes we could get more pickles and brought a plate out for us. We ate those, but still wanted to buy a jar. A whole jar.

The not-so-good translating of our German friend ended up with him taking a pickle off our plate back to the kitchen to ask her if we could buy some.

How hard could this be? Using my limited German vocabulary, I even told him gurkins. We want to buy gurkins!

The owner came out with the man in tow still trying to figure out what these crazy Americans wanted. When I told her gurkins- she said, "Ahh, gurkins... " We still can't figure out what in the world he was saying.

Even more funny, we ended up with a bottle {from Aldi} of Gurkins and an extra buck on our bill to cover it. So much for homemade pickles. I'm sure they are still laughing. We are, that's for sure.

Rothenburg ob der Tauber

My plan this week is to rewind back to August from here and pick up documenting our travels to Bavaria.

If you come to Germany, you have to make it to Bavaria.

We think it is one of the most beautiful regions in the world.

Our first stop on the way south was in Rothenburg ob der Tauber, just over two hours from our house. 
What a charming, delightful city.

They say if you want a sample of life in the Middle Ages, go to Rothenburg {on the river Tauber}, whose origins date back to the 12th century.

Little has changed since the early times for this city surrounded by the city walls.

It was nice to walk on the cobblestone streets, check out some of the shops and watch the people. Ice cream is always a must.

As with ALL of Bavaria, the window boxes were absolutely stunning.
Oh, I love window boxes.

One of the stops we did make was at the Handwerkhaus, or the Old Rothenburg Craftsmans's House.

According to their Web site, time seems to have passed by without a trace at the house at Stadtgraben No. 26. 

The house stands in the center of Rothenburg's old town and looks as if it has been conjured up straight from the Middle Ages.  

This historic protected building dates back to 1270 and has housed a variety of artisan businesses. 

Later the house was occupied by a hermit, who was against to technical and cultural innovation. 

It is thanks to him that this medieval jewel has survived to show us how artisans lived and worked. From the ground floor to the attic, every room is an impressive experience. 

We loved it.

 

I love handing over the camera and seeing what surprises I have when I get it back from the boys.
It is amazing how taking a few pictures seems to entertain them all.

R E A D Y to move, missing these P E O P L E

We have been asked a lot if we miss the United States.
Three years in Germany is kind of a long time.

Jim has been back many times and has been ready to move back for a couple years.
My answer has been the same for a while.

I really love Europe. I have not felt homesick at all. I've missed family and our close friends, but for the most part have felt fine.

The hardest part of living here now is being so far from Justin.
Putting him back on that plane after every visit is something I do not enjoy AT ALL!
We all miss him and I feel like we are missing out on a lot having an ocean between us.

I have not missed the food. German food is really, really good.
I have done fine without pay-at-the-pump gas and drive-through banking.

I've even said if Justin and Ty weren't in college, I would be fine living overseas for a few more years. I could really see living in Italy. I love that country.

Until now.

I'm ready to move back. We all are except for maybe Coleman. Jim thinks I had maybe suppressed feelings that I really was homesick to get through our time here.

I never really felt that way, but instead have just really enjoyed traveling and have been focused on experiencing all that we can while we are in Europe.

Having a dose of family and friends for a few days reminded me of how much I really do miss living close and how far we really are over here.

We got to see my parents- it's been four years since we have seen them.

Mom flew back from Germany with Ty and I while my dad met us in Kansas so we go to enjoy time with both of them.

A lot of growth has happened in four years- look at these big boys!

We got to see my little sister and her cute family including a brand new nephew that I got to hold and kiss and love on.

I love being an aunt and Germany is way too far for any aunt or sister to live.
I don't care how cool Skype is, it's not the same.

Sisters need sisters and cousins need to know their cousins. They need to play together, to get in trouble together, to know and to love each other.

We got to see my little brother- it's been somewhere around nine {9} years since we've been together. Nine years too long for any siblings to be apart especially ones that really like hanging out.

We got to see dear friends {Deb & Brian, Regan, Jayden & the Mulvane kids Jess, Tay, Chris & Jordan} who made the trip up from Mulvane to spend extra time together.

Late-night talks until we couldn't keep our eyes open along with afternoons checking out Dollar General and counting windmills were therapy for my soul.

And, we got to spend time with Justin and Ashten. To see their rooms and what this Highland gig is all about is something I should have done last year. I feel as though Highland has come to life for me now. Until now, it's all been kind of in black and white in my mind.

As small as it is, I think the days in Highland will always be a big part of Justin's life. In spite of lots of homesickness, it has been the start of his college football days.

He may never miss the town, but I reminded him that he is making friends and memories that he will eventually treasure.

While Highland won't be the small town that we settle in, we are ready and excited to get back and pick up where we left off either in our house in Haysville or another small Kansas town.

I miss it more now than ever.

our happy family with a mom that N E V E R gets caught up on her blog

It has been another insanely busy time. Nothing new. I should probably rename our blog at this point to something like:

Our Happy Family with a mom that never gets caught up on her blog,
or
How many miles can we travel this week?
or
Forever behind always with intentions of catching up...
or
Happy but always a little busy........................

Sometimes, I would like it to slow down but for the most part, I love our life and know that I'll eventually get it documented.

Computer crashes (yes, lost everything on our PC), two months as a single mom with a hubby gone, family visiting and whirlwind trips don't help the already-ADD me to focus and catch up!

Highlights I intend to blog, but we will see how long it takes...........

*Jim is back and looks more fabulous than ever.
Oh, we missed him soooo much.

*We fit in a couple day trips and an impressive trip to Normandy (another 1000 miles in less than 3 days) with my mom.

It was time well spent and we saw things we will never ever forget.

*Ty and I just returned from a fast-paced trip to Kansas filled with Justin, family, friends, and so much fun

* Life is really, really good

This is in addition to:
*finishing Sweden
*Poland (pottery shopping in 24 hours)
* Holland (tulips)
* Mom & Marine's Visit (probably 2000 miles)

It's all in my head. I just have to get it online...

91 degrees is hot over here

On a normal day, 91 degrees is blissful in my opinion.
I love the heat.
I love 100.

I know this is cool for Arizona.
Or, most anywhere else in the US right now.

In Germany, it is a little different.
There is no air conditioning.
Kind of like Alaska, only it is a little hotter for a little longer here.

Nope, just fans.

This being our third summer in Germany, it is definitely the hottest. The whole month of July has been sunny and warm and perfect for days at the pool.

Look at this nice melted coconut oil sitting inside the cupboard looks like it just spent a minute in the microwave.

It has been much-needed sunshine, but it makes for warm, stuffy, sticky nights.

We keep everything {rolladens} closed most of the way during the day, and crack the windows at night.

Of course, that only lets the bugs in. My legs are covered in bug bites.

It's ok.

I know the grey skies are just around the corner.
I love this sunshine.

T Y graduates

There is not much that can make this mom more happy and proud than to see my boys happy.

Graduation was Friday night. The weather was beautiful- our first week of sun and warmth this summer.

The ceremony was long {3 hours} but, really nice. With more than 200 in his graduating class, long is just part of the course.

Ty was so happy.

Once we found him after the ceremony, the smile on his face could not be wiped off.

He gave me the biggest hug while he picked me up swirled me around. Seeing him so happy brought tears to my eyes.

High school has not been the easiest for him, but he's done really well.

We are really hard on him because we know he can always do better.

Showing his work has always been more difficult than doing the work.

This last month was especially hard to keep his head in the game.

Switching high schools half way through his sophomore year was no fun, but I think both Justin and Ty now realize that our time in Germany and graduating from Ramstein High are experiences they would not trade for anything.
Change is hard, but it also brings growth.
Ty's growth has been phenomenal.
We can't wait to see what big things he does next...

We are so happy and beyond proud of him.

44 or so D A Y S

I can't believe it has been more than a month since my last post.
More than forty days. That might be the longest blogging dry spell that I have had since moving to Germany.

It's not that anything extraordinary has been going on. Just life. Good life.

We have had a few little changes that have kicked our schedule up a notch.

Jim is now in a new job {back on the flightline, out of his headquarters office} with a new schedule, little flexibility and longer hours.
I'm in a new full-time permanent sub job in a pre-k special needs room. Most days, I love it. It is nice being at Caden's school on the boys' schedule. Of course- summer off is a nice thing too.

Both are good jobs- we both feel blessed especially with so much government turmoil to be in a good place.

Coleman turned 9!
Jim has a birthday- TODAY!

Justin has been in Spring training. He flies home in a few weeks. We can't wait. I miss having my kid around.
Ty started track {hurdles, shot & disc} and is trying to stay healthy- stinkin' shin splints. Do they ever go away? He's enjoying lifeguarding on the weekends. He's really enjoying the extra fun money.

Graduation is just over a month away- yikes!

Coleman and Caden are playing baseball. Four days out of seven, we are on the ball field. I love it now that the sun has FINALLY decided to come out here in Germany.

It was a LONG, GREY winter here. Oh, we have missed the sun.
I will try to avoid going another 44 days without checking in to journal our happenings.

busy little B E E S

We have been busy.
Busy with the boys.
Busy with work.
Busy with school.
Busy with life.

Justin has had an abundance of free time with more than a few snow days. His little college town did not get too much, but enjoyed the time off. Last week, they cancelled all football practices {weights and conditioning} and school for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. They made this call on Wednesday before even a flake flew.

Kansas kind of goes crazy when a storm is coming through. This time they actually got a little bit of snow. Wichita was dumped on.

Ty has been busy lifeguarding. He is pretty proud of his new job and the income he is enjoying. He reminds Justin of the fact that he is working every spare second he gets to talk to him.

Coleman is in guitar club right now and baseball on the weekends still.
Guitar is pretty boring in his opinion. Oh, well. He gets to finish out the course.
We are all about life lessons around here- you WILL finish what you start!

Caden is about to start marathon club after school- running once a week for an hour. I think Coleman and I are going to join him. I might have to walk.

Baseball and track are around the corner. So is Spring, right?

This weekend, Jim and I are in Stockholm.

Ty is in charge while we are gone. Two little brothers and a dog. We will see how things are when we get home. I have complete confidence he will step up to the plate.

I hope to have cool new pictures next week from our trip.

T H U N D E R S N O W ?

We think Kansas weather is C R A Z Y!
German weather is proving to be just as W A C K Y!

Last year, we had NO snow. Maybe a flake but not enough to have to pick up the shovel.

A couple weeks ago, we had pouring rain, pouring snow {if you can imagine what that looks like}, then thunder and lightening on top of it. C R A Z Y.

Snow usually falls softly. Light and slow. Not this snow. Pouring out of the sky at the speed of a thunderstorm, the whole sky was white with snow. In the background, you could see the flashes of lightening.

Taken Friday morning as we were digging our way out

There is actually a name for it: Thundersnow.  It is also known as a winter thunderstorm or a thunder snowstorm. It is an extremely rare kind of thunderstorm with snow falling as the primary precipitation instead of rain.

It happened not once but twice in one day. During school, we received two or three inches of snow in approximately 30 minutes. It was something I have NEVER seen before. Listening to the thunder in the background made it even more exciting.

I was teaching first grade that day, so we stopped what we were doing, turned off the lights and watched Mother Nature's show out the window.
Friday night it picked up snowing again. Waking up to maybe four or five inches of fresh snow on the ground, we received the notice that there was a two-hour delay to start school. They just push everything back two hours.

It is the next best thing to a real snow day where school is cancelled!

By the afternoon, it was raining. Within twenty four hours, there was hardly a patch of snow left on the ground.

Taken 24 hous later on Saturday morning

It is fun, but I am SO ready for Spring. Ready for my tulips to show their faces.
Anyone else with me?

a little S K A T I N G

The boys love ice skating and begged to go back to the Olympic rink for an afternoon.

 With the Germans on holiday this trip, it was a little crowded. Last year, we had the whole rink to ourselves- it was really nice. This time was still fun minus the sore feet and bruised knees.  

Caden and Ty were last to come off the ice- they especially loved it.

I can't seem to get enough pictures of all four boys together.

W O R L D cup ski jumping

I'm SO happy for the fun we had during our winter break.

If you are going to live in Europe, you have to travel.

That’s all there is to it. It’s a trade-off being so far from family in the states and makes it worth being over here.

We are absolutely amazed each time we visit a new place.

This time with Justin home and the boys out of school, we planned another trip to one of our favorite spots: Garmisch-Partenkirchen in the Bavarian region of southern Germany. 
 

Staying at the military resort, it is the most central, most convenient spot. With a small base, we can shop at the commissary and get our rationed gas {saving a ton of money}. 

As a bonus, we always seem to meet up with friends staying there at the same time. It makes it so much fun for the kids to hang with their friends.

 About the only thing we do the same each time we visit Edelweiss is the hot tub and pool. There are so many things to do that our day trips and sightseeing is different every single time. 

 

For this three-night, four-day trip the survey of favorites ended up as follows:

Jim: Italy/Ötzi
Sheila: World Cup Ski Jumping
Justin: Italy
Ty: Olympic Arena Ice Skating {duplicate from a trip last year}
Coleman: Ötzi
Caden: Olympic Arena Ice Skating

I think it is super important when trip planning {especially with kids} to balance the busy with the relaxed. It is tempting to plan an agenda getting up at the crack of dawn every day to get as much in as possible.

 

This time around, it was nice to sleep in a little. It was nice to watch movies at night. Other than our four-hour drive down to Garmisch, it was nice to stay within a two-and-a-half hour drive radius of our hotel. Needless to say, we still saw a lot.  

Day One was my favorite hands down.

 

We drove straight to the hotel, parked and called a taxi to take us to the venue. With 30,000 people attending, we decided not to try to find a parking space.

The Germans were so excited. I loved the energy in the air. They were especially excited when their German competitors were up to jump. They started singing and waving their flags. It was great. The jumpers were amazing- even from a distance to see them take off and go so far was incredible.

It was cold.

It was even a little crowded.

The boys were a little bored, but did alright. They were much better with a hot cider in their hands and German kuchen in their mouths. It was fun to have our friends Randy, Michelle and Ryan to hang out with too.

The taxi let us know where he would pick us up in an attempt to avoid some traffic.

We called him and what was supposed to be a 15-minute wait turned into an hour. The boys might have liked my plan a little better had we not froze waiting for the taxi.

Oh, well.
 

It was a once-in-a-lifetime thing that we can check off our list. No regrets, right? 

Check out this brotherly love- melts my heart.