Mum's Visit

Mum visited us for a week this month. We loved having her here and (I hope) it was a nice break for her too.

We mainly stayed close to home so Mum could get to know where we live. We spent time in Leeste and Kirchweyhe.

We also had that visit to Osnabrück Zoo which was the highlight of the summer for me.

Despite the dismal weather we also made it into Bremen for lunch and shopping.

The main thing - especially with Isabella - is having time and experiences together and we did that. Mum got to see Isabella dancing, splashing and sliding in the paddling pool (among other things!) and learning to say "mine".

We really enjoyed the visit and we're really looking forward to the next.

Dad's Visit

We've had a lovely week with grandad here. It was another quiet visit - we'll plan more trips and walks next time dad. The weather was a bit hit and miss but the main thing is that dad and Isabella got lots of time together. 

Last time dad was here, Isabella was just a couple of days old so there was a huge difference this time. Not only has she grown a lot but she's much more aware and playful now. She loved having grandad here.

We had one day out in Bremen and grandad bought Isabella her first swimming costume and armbands - can't wait to try them out! We also had a lovely lunch at Dean and David's again.

Looking forward to the next visit already!

Grandad's Visit

A few weeks ago, my dad booked to come and visit in the hopes of meeting his new grandchild. Luckily she arrived in time and dad arrived the day we came home from the hospital. 

It was much quieter than his usual visits but we all enjoyed it and we had a lovely few days together.

We had a couple of trips out with the pram, shopping and walking in the park. We're getting into a nice routine - just need a little more sleep now.

The Saturday Update

It's a been a great week on many fronts this week.  First of all we had a visit from my Mum and Doug.  They stayed Sunday to Thursday and we showed them the sights of Huchting and around (they have been to Bremen before).  We had glorious weather at the start of the week too which made it even nicer.

They brought a lot of my things from England - mainly DVDs and clothes.  The DVDs went straight into our lovely DVD shelves that we bought in January but the clothes will take a bit more time.  They're my inspiration for getting back to goal since there are too many nice ones I can no longer fit into.  It seems to be working already as despite all the eating out and drinking this week, I lost two pounds!  

On Monday we had a quiet day, wandering round the park in Huchting, unpacking and visiting the Mongolian buffet for dinner.  Afterwards, we cracked out the board games, introduced Nico to scrabble, Mum and Doug to Dixit and then had a round of Carcasonne.  Lovely evening.

On Tuesday we headed first to the Baumarkt (German equivalent of B&Q) to buy supplies for finally putting a cat net on the balcony so we can sit out more - another project in the pipeline...  Afterwards, we met up with Loreto and headed out to Fischerhude.  It was my first trip there and we all totally loved it but more on that later.

It was back to work on Wednesday for me and Nico and the nice weather started to disappear.  At least it was a shorter working week that was mainly about returning grades and preparing year eight for London next week.  After work we had a nice, late lunch in Bremen and then headed home for the evening.

Thursday was the last day so we headed into Bremen to meet Loreto and Ed at a Thai restaurant for an early dinner followed by coffees at Cafe Bar Celona and then an early night as they set of back at 2am.

On Friday I had my usual short day at work before getting all my jobs done around the flat.  Today I've got more to do, including those clothes and heading to the Roland Center so we are going to be relaxing tomorrow.

In amongst all this, I completed my last knitting project of a mobile phone holder, took some lessons from Mum who kindly brought me tons of needles, wool and books, and started a new project which is going well so far (touch wood).

Next week should be pretty smooth with four of my seven classes away on trips, I will probably have lots of cover but at least there'll be less planning and marking!  I also have my English conversation group, an appointment at the council about my contract and a day and a half off for marking which is already in the bag!  Have a good one people.

The Saturday Update

Weekend breakfast in bed

 Good morning and Happy Weekend everyone!  This is how our weekend started - beautiful sunshine and a delicious breakfast in bed.  When we first talked about moving in together over a year ago now, the idea was to have less stress with travelling between flats and to be able to get a cat.  This morning really made me realise how many of our dreams have come true this year when we were in bed with breakfast and the cat watching German TV and just enjoying the weekend.  It's just wonderful!

 

 

 

Delicious gluten free croissants that Nico bought me

It's been a great week although very busy.  I finished another knitting project which I'm very proud of, conducted and marked the year ten English exam for my group and they did really well!!, and had another lovely lunch with Loreto, making a new friend - Camila and practising my Spanish!

On Tuesday I had a strange day when I managed to lock a pupil in a classroom over break, oops!  Luckily he wasn't as sensitive as I would have been and took it well...  It's made me a lot more cautious though!  I also had an interesting languages hiccup with a pupil which may have knocked my reputation at school.  He came to the staffroom asking for water and I wanted to tell him that we only had tap water - unfortunately I have visited one too many bars in Germany and said 'vom Fass' (from the barrel / on tap) instead of 'vom Hahn' (from the tap).  So while I may have gained a reputation as an alcoholic, I won't be making that mistake again and he took it in good spirit.  Tuesday also saw the last Spanish department meeting with our current head of department who is retiring at the end of this school year.  It was inspiring to hear her talk about her career at the school.  It made me both inspired to work harder in my Spanish classes and a little sad that I hadn't gotten to know her better over these two years.  It seems strange but I'm only just starting to feel like I belong in the school and that I'm part of a team there and not just the foreigner who's going to disappear again soon.  Still waiting on that contract though...

Wednesday was the exam day so it seemed really long, but as I said, the kids mostly did better than expected and when I worked out their overall grades, none have below a four which is good.

On Thursday I had a drink with my English students which was nice after not getting together for a while with holidays.  I don't always look forward to the meeting as it is a bit later in the evening and I'm tired after work but I always come away feeling good.

Friday was really nice as I had cover lessons now that year ten have finished and watched an English film with the year seven pupils.  I got all my cleaning and washing done before heading out in the glorious sunshine for a lunch with Loreto and Camila.  I find it hard to stay on track when eating out.  I guess it depends where you eat but we tend to eat at a restaurant which only has two salad options and neither of them sound very filling as they offer bread as a side which I can't eat.  I did okay though with a jacket potato and allowed myself a glass of wine.

This week I have stayed the same on the scales which is good considering how busy I have been and how I haven't had the energy for zumba in this heat.  We may head out to find the lake in Huchting later for a cooling swim so at least that will be some form of exercise and I have been cycling a lot including to work and back one day this week.  (It would have been two but a motorway accident on Friday meant that our route had very heavy traffic and I'm not comfortable enough on the bike to cycle through that.

Next week we will be having a visit from Mum and Doug so we will be out and about a lot.  We also have a nice long weekend due to a bank holiday Monday (with Tuesday off too) so let's hope this weather holds out!  We are visiting Fischerhude with Loreto on Tuesday which I have heard a lot about but will be new for me too so I'm excited about that too!  Have a good week!

The Saturday Update

We've had a great week here in sunny Bremen.  We had a lovely visit from Briony and Lucas as you may have seen from this week's posts.  Here are a few final piccies.

Enjoying a frappuccino in the sun!

Finding new friends

At the Mongolian on the last night

Posing!

Just lovely!

So we are now enjoying a quiet weekend, especially Pete!  We had some lovely mojitos in the sun this afternoon and will be catching up on some projects tomorrow.  

Next week is a back to normal working week except that it includes the English exam on Wednesday which is stress but also means an early finish and a day and a half off to mark in a couple of weeks.  

We will then be getting ready for another family visit the week after but more on that later.

When I got weighed on Thursday this week I had lost two pounds - must be all that pram pushing!  I will be being extra good this week too!  Have a good one!

Lucas' First Trip to the Beach!

Yesterday was another fun filled day for baby Lucas.  We started with a trip to the park.

We then took the tram into town for lunch at the Greek restaurant where Nico and I first met.  Of course, Lucas charmed all the staff and ate lots with us.  It was more filling than we expected so we decided to walk along the river to the beach afterwards.

So Lucas had his first boat trip across the Weser.  This was extra special as it was Fathers' Day here in Germany which basically means all the men (fathers or not) go out and get drunk while the women look after the children.  One group on our boat asked for a special treat on the river where the boat spun around in circles before arriving on the far bank.  Then Lucas got his first walk on the sand and his first paddle in the river!

When we thought we had well and truly worn him out for the day we headed home.  Of course he slept all the way back and was full of beans when we got in!

Back to the Zoo

Yesterday, we took Lucas to the zoo and either tired him out or bored him to sleep but we enjoyed it.  We even found a part that we missed last time with a giant snake and more birds!

The monkeys

Admiring the animals

More monkeys

Looking around - making sure mummy is following

Giant stone Horace

Buddha

The parrots

Having a break

Ostriches!

Red parrots

Lucas did not like the noise of the red parrots

Cutie Pie!

The fish

The snake!

The big monkeys

Lucas and Briony!

Lucas and Briony arrived yesterday (along with some hail stones).  It made my work day drag but it was great to see them when I finally got to the airport.  

Lucas trying to work out what is going on (on his first tram ride)

Meeting the Stadtmusikanten

At Knigge, waiting for the ladies to arrive

Of course, he charmed all the ladies and tried to get me and Nico some new artwork.

When he arrived at the flat, there was a stand off between him and Pete, they are kind of used to each other now - Pete gets his peace and quiet under our bed when it's all too much for him but on the whole they get along.

More on the visit tomorrow...

Dad's Visit

Dad came back to Bremen last week Saturday until Thursday.  On Saturday evening we tried the Sudhaus restaurant in Neustadt for the first time and it was really good.  On the Sunday we had a long walk around the Werder Lake, calling at Cafe Sand in the glorious sunshine.  When we got back we decided to carry on making the most of the weather and took a picnic down to the lakeside where we read our books and played badminton!

On Monday, we took Dad on the usual town tour of Bremen which of course involved the Stadtmusikanten visit.

We started in the cathedral which included all of our first visit to the lead cellars where some mummified bodies are kept which were buried in the cathedral centuries ago.  We also climbed the tower for the first time and here we are at the top.

I thought we had achieved quite a feat with 6 points on the pedometer after walking around Bremen and then to Walle but we achieved much more later in the week.  More on that tomorrow.