Happy Mother's Day!

OK, I'm a couple of weeks late with this post, (ok, more) but the point is the same - Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers we love - our mothers, grandmothers, Godmothers, friends who are mothers, sisters, nieces, mothers to mammals, fish and fowl, you name it.

We just wish you had been HERE on Mother's Day.

Why?

Because Sunday was Sekttag in Germany. In English, that means (basically) Champagne Day. (In my book, you've got to love a country that has a day for such a celebration. And, the fact that it coincided with Mutterstag just goes to show how much moms are worth celebrating. :) But I digress.)

What does one do on Sekttag? Why, head for the Rheingau, of course! That would be one of the major wine-producing areas in Germany, and lucky for us, it's only 30 minutes away. (John can make it in 20 minutes if he drives 160km/hr.)

Cayla stayed with the boys while John and I met a German colleague and his wife for a few winery tours (in German).

We started at Mattheas Mueller, where they make Mumm, Rotkappchen, MM, and Jules Mumm sekt - a really large operation. We learned the difference between sekt (AKA "Cava" in Spain, or more generally, "Sparkling Wine") and champagne - which has to do with the method of fermentation and where the grapes are from...I won't bore you with the details, but if you're interested, you can check it out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sparkling_wine. Of course, looking it up online takes away the fun of trying to understand the tour guide explain it in German.

Then we headed to Ohlig: http://www.ohlig-sekt.de/ where we had some really lecker (yummy) sekt and got the inside scoop on making sekt on a smaller scale. Here we had lunch - pflammkuchen, which is similar to a really, really thin pizza, with a cream cheese-like spread and smoked ham and red onions (or other topping) cooked in a stone oven. This seems to be a favorite treat at the "afternoon at the winery with bands and children playing in the sun" events. We dig it.

Finally, we toured Vaux: http://www.schloss-vaux.de/ which isa boutique sekt manufacturer, with perhaps the best sekt I've ever tasted: Lady Vaux. Not my favorite name, but really a fabulous, delicate taste.

At days end, we headed home. Did I mention John could make the drive in 20 minutes going 160km/hr? (That's about 100 mph...and it's considered slow around here if you're in the fast lane.)

So, you see, we would have loved to spend our Mother's Day with you...and perhaps you might have enjoyed it too!!

Much love from the land of Sekt...

Springtime on Hölderlinstraβe

When we returned from Austria, we were amazed to see that Springtime had magically appeared. When we left, the trees were gray and bare, and upon return, we were met with the beauty of a new season.

This is the road leading into our neighborhood. Two days after we took these pictures, the pink blooms coated the sidewalks and the trees were solid green. Amazing!

Last winter, John and I planted 5 tulip bulbs as a tribute to our family and I was gratified to see that all of them bloomed.

To new beginnings....

Nude Recreation Possible

OK, admit it. You read this post faster than most. :)

I was recently in Amsterdam for a couple of days. Inspired by my daily swim in Austria, I woke up early and headed to the hotel pool for a few laps. The pool had a unique bridge built over the pool leading to an opaque glass door. http://www.dorint.com/en/7e2352f0-215a-cd30-7ae77d3a714269f8

On the door was the following sign:

REALLY???!!!

I spent the rest of my swim pondering it…a threat? A promise? Recreation? Possible? Why didn’t they just say “Sauna – clothing optional” or something equally benign?

Perhaps the funnier scene was actually procuring the picture you see above. Once dressed for work (our office does not offer nude recreation), I stopped by the pool on my way out of the hotel. Dressed in my suit and high heels, I crossed the bridge confidently, focused on snapping my picture, then quickly exiting before I got into trouble.

A man’s voice rang out, “Great sign, isn’t it?!”
“Yeah,” I answered, “the folks back home will love it.”

Clearly I wasn’t the only one whose mind had been captured.

Good night from Deutschland!

I just found this video, from a couple of months ago, right after Luke had chicken pox. We wanted to share the madness before bedtime with the family back home...so if you're interested in that sort of thing, take a look...

The Carpenter Boyz Make a Splash!

While in Austria, we swam everyday. By the end of the week, Luke's swimming genes were showing. Well, perhaps more accurately, his daring genes, as he realized jumping into the pool was great fun...especially if Mom was there to catch him. (Thank goodness he wasn't jumping in alone!) Here's an action shot:



Meanwhile, John and Jack had discovered the water chute. It was a huge twisty turny tube (reminded me of the old "Crazy Straws" I drank Kool-Aid through as a kid) with water flowing through it. After climbing 5 flights of stairs, you reached the top, stood in line for a while, then sailed down the chute on your back, ala Luge style. John and Jack, in continuous improvement mode (as you will hear on the video), could cruise so fast that when they reached the bottom, they traveled all the way to the end of the water tray in a huge wave of water. (As reference, once Jack and I reached the bottom, we only needed half the length of the tray to stop.) So, take a look as John and Jack come flying at the end of their ride.

Needless to say, the whole family had fun!