Fasching, not Carnival in Southern Germany

They take their parades seriously here! We went to our 2nd Weil Der Stadt Fasching Parade yesterday. John didn't get to go last year, as he was in the states. Well, it didn't disappoint. The floats and entries were once again FABULOUS! And Ava "braved" the masks about 1/2 way through...

First shot, before the parade. The rest are as the parade went on...

A Day at the Park

Some friends from Bremerton tour are now living in Mons, so they drove down for the weekend and are staying at the DeHan's. We went over for park and dinner, so here's 4 of the 5 having fun. #5 was tired, so she went to take a nap.

Another oldie, Dec. 2004

Oh, not even two here...and there's Annie:*(

More Ballet

Livin' the dream

My camera battery died(forgot to charge before we left), so more photos as I get them from others.

Beautiful weather, great friends, good food...what else? Our inkeeper was "cranky" to say the least, but that didn't stop me from trying to charm her. We were able to ski in Germany and Austria in the same day. Aidan thought he had a leg in each country!

The views were SPECTACULAR!!!! Ava's skiing is going very well...we'll go again the end of Feb for a week of instruction; can't wait!

Trust the Gorton's Fisherman

That's Gorty for short...

An oldie from Feb 2005

Look at my baby....almost 5 now:*(

Off to Austria tomorrow

Some members of "The Group" are off to Kleinwalsertal for skiing(click on title for info)....I'll post photos when we get home Monday:*)

Photo Booth

Macs have a feature called Photo Booth, where they transform you(good or bad) into another being....

New Year's

Even more swimming

This made Gwyn laugh, so I thought I'd post it.

More swimming

New case for camera

First Tantrum of 2008

We wanted her to wear some pajamas while we ate pizza and calamari in the room last night. But, she wanted to wear her Dora nightgown....this is her story.

Watch for Ava in 2022

Good skiing, not-so-good-skiing

Can you guess which one is which?

Presenting Dr. Holmes

Gwyn's Rockin' Eve

So much fun to be had by all! But John left early, as he wasn't feeling well:*( It started snowing and it was magical! Snow, fireworks, champagne, and friends:*)

Where's Santa

What's more important, Santa, or posing for a photo?

More Christmas Eve

Jump!

Aidanoke (with Ava dancin' backup)

AvaGywnoke

CrembruKen

Merry Christmas

JohnScottyoke

Johnnyoke

A Merry Christmas to all, and to all, a good night

Everyone is in bed, so it's my turn next. Had a fabulous Christmas Eve last night at Anne and Ken's. Then, today, everyone was here for prime rib...mmmmmmm! I'll post tomorrow when I have a bit of energy, but needed to put down a few words about our evening.

John's sister and partner got us....drum roll.....

A KARAOKE MACHINE:*)

Boy, did we have a BLAST! And believe it or not, I wasn't the only one singing! I even shared the microphone like a good girl:*)(wink, wink....Santa, are you reading?)

And a close up

Ava REALLY skis

Sleep Talking

Touch the link to go straight to YouTube

HO, HO, HO

lS

We got elf'd

The New Chipmunks

Weekend in Garmisch

Severs come to town

Time for skiing

Bremerton Floods

We got flooding in our basement, and no insurance....oh well. Our tenant Rob pulled up the carpet and our friend Ed may go up to do the work. Thanks everyone!!!

Ready for racing

This is dedicated to Steven

Snow angel

Took this the day she made the angels, a couple weeks ago:*)

A typical November day

Weihnachtsmarkt

We (no John, he was feeling under the weather) went to Weihnachtsmarkt in Stuttgart last night. Alot of people enjoying the not freezing evening by shopping, and of course, drinking Gluhwein(otherwise known as hot mulled wine). Kids got on some rides, and I went on a ride of my own:*(

Thanksgiving in Portugal:*) No dishes!!!

A few from our trip... Just trying to finish all these so I can go to sleep....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

At the beach in Tavira...gorgeous!
On a ferry from Tavira to the beach.
Ava and a cow.....again?
Castle in Sintra.
John and Ava at a beautiful beach near Sintra.

Our little angel

My birthday cake

Thanks to my friend Anne who put together this beautiful cake, and I'm not kidding when I say she put it together!

Lantern Fest 2007

Martin was a Roman soldier who one cold November night shared a piece of his warm cloak with a beggar. That night, he dreamed that the beggar's face was really Christ, and he learned that by helping others, he was really in service to God and the betterment of Man. He quit the army and devoted his life to service, eventually becoming the Bishop of Tours.

Kids get to walk around with fire....makes for some excitement! Last year, one of the kids in Ava's kindergarten almost caught on fire.

Happy Birthday to Me

Went to the spa today with Anne and Helen. Did water aerobics, floated around, then ventured downstairs to naked sauna. EVERYONE is naked down there, and they look at you funny if you have your suits on(which we did, initially). Scroll down on the link to SinnBad (45°C, 90-100 % Luftfeuchtigkeit)
So, we striped down and went into the aroma therapy sauna which was not made of cedar, but granite. We go in, sit down, and then it begins; the "laser" light show, which really isn't laser, but made me think of the days when people would go lay down and listen to Pink Floyd during a laser light show. This music sounded more like Yanni.
Then, after the sauna, we went in the foot pool, where you walk one way in hot, then one way in cold, and that was it. We returned to the world of bathing attire. Showered, had lunch and came home.
But you know, I'm ready to do it again...it really was fun being naked without risk of arrest:*)

"I need my exercise" as quoted by Miss A

Ava now loses a show when she tells a lie, no matter how little. So, she just said, "If I don't get my exercise, I'll get old and I'll die. I need Boogie Beebies. Where's Boogie Beebies?" (a kids exercise show on BBC)

First Snow of November 2007

So we're having the first snow of the season...We've got flurries, a bit of wind, now sun, and who knows what the day will hold after 2pm? Stay tuned for more news!