You Make Me Smile, Please Stay for a While.

I'm back home, just spent the day with my one and only frenchie. I can't even begin to tell you how much it means to me to have Maud at my side once more. I've missed this girl so much, and to see her, to hug her, and to listen to her laugh is so comforting. This afternoon we sat at the pool and just talked about life. The ups, the downs, and all about the optimistic road ahead. This girl has such a spirit to her, it's really great to be around it. Together, we are addicted to coffee, so naturally we had a coffee date at the good ol' Starbucks.
This summer has really been a blessing. The past school year was so hard on me, physically, mentally, I just wasn't myself and I've been struggling with a lot. God is telling me something. I know he is, I'm not sure what exactly, but He has really been using my loved ones to reach me.
Well,tomorow, we will have more blogging, but for now I have to get back to my sewing. sweatshop, sweatshop, sweatshop!

Take a Walk in My shoes

Good Morning! ( I don't like saying this in english.... it only makes me miss Germany all the bit more.) I just back from a morning walk with mom and the boys ( boys, as in, Kaedyn and Chandler.) We took them to Lapham Peak Park, which is one of the most beautiful areas we have here in Wisconsin. The weather is gorgeous, only 67 degrees and the sun is cheerful. :)

So I must apologize for how long this has been taking me to get back to writing my blog. I promise to pick up the pace again. Promise. I just got home a few days ago from my world-whin adventures. Well kind of, I came home from Europe nearly a month ago now ( tears.) But I haven't actually been home, in Wisconsin, for a good 2+ weeks. I left immediately for Savannah, GA and met up with the bride-to-be, Meghan. She, Liz and I had some great girl time- Meg's last few days of being single!!! We then escaped from the Savannah heat to a gorgeous resort in Palmetto, South Carolina. It was beautiful. Us girls stayed in the bridal suite Cottage for 3 nights. we were able to ride our bikes through all the nature, run down the long docks to watch dolphins and catch the midnight bonfires to make s'mores. It was the most beautiful, the most relaxing place I have been to. And Meghan was such a calm bride. Liz and I were freaking out more than her! The most adorable thing though, was after the first dance with her new husband, she came up to me fanning her face and tears of joy were just streaming down her face. She was like, "It's just hitting me! I'm MARRIED!"
It was a beautiful ceremony, held in a tiny little chapel at sunset, and the reception was wicked fun! To sum it up in a few, I dance from start to finish. Literally. I caught the bouquet! ( that was very unexpected.) And I kind of met someone, who coincidentally caught the garter ...

Then from Savannah, I was off to TEXAS! WHOOOO! State of Bush!! My new boy from Meg's wedding, Tyler, was so sweet and drove me to the airport at 4h30am! I had 4 connecting flights that were all getting delayed and switching routes, but miraculousy I still made it into Amarillo, TX at my original scheduled time of 2h30pm. Seeing Christian and Jackie was so great! My girl Christian was the next to get married, but first she played texas tour guide for me. She and her incredibly sweet friends Camille, and Toni, took us to see the famous summer musical of "TEXAS." it was wicked fun. We drove down into the Palo Duro Canyon ( 2nd greatest canyon next to the Grand Canyon) What better way to learn about the history of texas than through a musical!!! :)
IT really was a treat to see Christian again, and kind of emotional, not gonna lie. I just look up to her so much and I miss her terribly already. She graduated this past year, and now my best friend won't be with me in Savannah any more, she was about to walk down the aisle and start the next chapter in her life. She was just glowing through it all, and it was the most beautiful thing ever to see how much in love she and Brady are. Brady cried the moment he saw Christian in her white flowing gown. It was such a moving ceremony. She is still on her honeymoon, and I miss them so much! While she was off with her new hubby, I ran through Texas. the day after the wedding I had a lot of cookies and cupcakes to run off, so I ran for 2hrs. It was quite the adventure, and as you can imagine, the desserts of texas are quite hot- so I ran through some sprinklers :) It's what I do. And then Meagann (Christian's Sister-in-law) took me to The Amarillo Dilla's Minor League baseball game. We went with Opa, and Blake. We won, and there was a great fight on the field. :) After that, we went to the Cadillac Ranch, which if you get a moment you should research. This artist is a weirdo, but none-the-less, he is pretty interesting. He was protesting against cadillacs and so he bought like 12 cadillacs, all different models and buried them in the middle of a field. And he just leaves cans of spray paint out there for people to come and grafitti. So we did. There was also a lightening storm that night. Texas has the prettiest sky I have ever seen. Each night I'd just stare up at the stars, and you can literally see every constellation out there, because the skies are so open, no trees no clouds, you become one with the sky. :)

Then it was back to Wisconsin for me! Here I am. It's great being home, though I miss everyone and every place so much! My days have consisted of being aimlessly busy. I go running every day, walk the dogs every day, try to catch some friends here and there. Maud is back in Wisconsin! She and I went to the Brewers game earlier this week! That was fun. I hope to see her more, she lives really far away though, so it is difficult.
I am also working on lots of free-lance work. I'm trying to at least, but it is SOO UBER hard for me to get motivated to sew. Not much has been completed, rather, I jsut bike out to the lake to enjoy this summer sun and peace. ....I may bike out there again today and paint!! I'm uber excited about that, and not so much about my summer homework and freelance work...eh. Well, for now I should probably get back to work. Love you! Stay tuned, I promise to keep on top of this blog from here on out. :)

Les Deux Moulins

Lundi 6 July

Woke up nice and early today, not wanting to waste a moment of our Paris adventure. Though our hotel is in the red district, we still have the greatest location!! We climbed our way through the cobblestone alley-ways, up  and up and around each corner to find ourselves at an adorable and scrumptious boulangerie. Breakfast time! Cori ordered  a pan au chocolat, and I got two petite madeleines. MMMMIAM MIAM! ( how the french say yummy!)  So delicious. We nibbled our little delicasies till they were non-existent and by the time we were done, we found ourselves standing at the base of the Sacre Coeur, overlooking all of Paris. :)!!! It was beautiful! Gorgeous weather, an incredible view, and  some hot swedes that we past on our way down, always a plus :)

There was also this adorable little old man who was sitting on a bench feeding the pigeons, so I took a pix.... he wasn't at all happy about that, so we ran. We ran right into the textile district of Paris!! I did a little fabric shopping here and there and then after that Cori and I headed to our new favorite cafe ever, Les Deux Moulins, the cafe where Amelie took place and was filmed. And get this, it was only 4 blocks from our hotel!!! I ordered a Noisette cafe and Cori a Chocolat Chaud. It was delicious and so much fun. Probably the cutest little cafe I have ever found myself sitting at. And the greatest thing was, that they didn't really advertise the fact that it was the Amelie cafe, and the prices were so reasonable and the boire chauds were so delicious! After fueling up for our day, we continued on, walking all over paris. Literally walking everywhere, which Cori and I agree, is the best and only way to go about our adventures- you get to see and experience so much more! :) When the day sun was coming to an end, Cori and I headed to the Louvre for our own little  photoshoot, and then we took a ride on the ferris wheels to see all of Paris. A storm was rolling in, so the sky against all the Paris lights was gorgeous. We just walked and walked, and called it a night probably around 1am, we were wiped! But so worth it. Tomorrow we get to see MAUD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

On the Road Again!!

Sonntag 5 July

Cori and i were up till...hmm.... about 4am. Well, Cori I actually think later. I "pulled a Cori," and passed out on her bedroom floor as she finalized everything for our trip to Paris. This morning we woke up around 7 and hit the road for Paris!!!! YEP! PARIS! The city of ... EVERYTHING! It was only a 5hr drive to reach the city, and a beautiful drive it was. I don't know if any car ride could ever beat the view of Europes country side. ... I think I fell asleep for some of this drive, yea, pretty sure. lol. Sorry Cori.  

Getting gas was our first stop in France. We both needed to use the lou, fill up the tank, scrape off all the bug guts from the windshield and place our feet on french soil.

We had a few more hours to go in the car, and the excitement was just building up. We kept driving, passing through several tolls, and taking in all the beautiful scenery.

FINALLY- we made it!  We made it to Paris, the architecture was amazing, the air was crisp, and the streets were practically paved in gold. We were immediately in love. 

Cori did such a great job handling the hectic Paris traffic- 10 pts for her. :) We drove to the heart of the city, kind of freaked out a bit when we passed Le Tour Eiffel, and then we continued to drive further into the heart of the city. We needed to find our hotel/hostel for the night before we went exploring. It was so hot outside! And no where in Paris is there free parking- haha, as was explained to us on several accounts from the locals. We found a few hotels and checked them out- their prices per night were much higher than what they listed on line. blah. so we decided to park the car and just walk around till we found a place. We checked out some places that were ...yea.... disgusting. You know the Wisconsin Dells/ northern howling wolf print, that for some reason is quite big in the midwest, yep, well that was the blanket for one of the hotels that was just thrown over the tiny twin size bed that was maybe 1.5 feet wide and 4.5 feet long. Haha. We only needed a place to get a few hours of sleep a night at, but still... this was gross. And it was located in the middle of an alley. We continued looking.

 We settled on the Tim Hotel, where a really hot italian stallion worked as our concierge. He offered us two nights for 150 9 which was basically giving us one night free....and he was hot.) We had a room! We signed in, got our key, then found a parking garage for only 15 euros a day, man gave us a deal, and allowed us 3 days for 30 euros! I owe all this credit to Cori for finding this space. We grabbed our uber stuffed backpacks and caught the next metro back to Pigalle (AKA, sex ave. because were right in the red district. Directly across from Le Moulin Rouge) where our hotel was located, dropped off our stuff and then began our exploring. We walked everywhere. Found ourselves at the Eiffel Tower for our first meal all day, a real french bagette, a bottle of cheap wine that didn't open, an awesome apple, and some cheese. we found a grassy patch and enjoyed our first meal in France. Some reallly good looking guys were playing frisbee and "accidentally"   threw the frisbee in our direction. They invited us to join them for dinner and open a bottle of wine. Cori, without thinking said "non-merci" and continued eating her cheese. .... I stared at her, jaw dropped, wishing she said "ah-bah-oui!" Haha. 

The warm evening sun was setting behind the Eiffel Tower, and it was one of the most beautiful sites I have ever been able to endure. After notre diner, we walked our way to the Seine River and overlooked all the boats passing by. There was a party going on next door, that Cori and I danced to.

The best part of our "Seine Experience," was when Cori was taking pictures with her artistic ways, and then everyone surrounding us began cheering and ooh-ing and aww-ing. She mumbled, "what, have they like never seen the Eiffel Tower before-" I tapped her arm and she turned around towards the Eiffel Tower, " WHOAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OH MY GOSH!!!!" And she became your typical tourist for about 2 minutes, taking pictures of the Eiffel Tower, because they had turned the lights on and they were sparkling lights. I swear her "WHOA" was louder than everyones reaction combined. Hahah. It was so great. After that, we just walked all over Paris, up and down the Champs D'Elyses and almost went to the club to see Lady Gaga perform, but went back to the hotel around 2am and we both "pulled a Cori." Bonne Nuit Paris!

Day Dreaming

July 4th

So Cori and I went for a fantastic run! We ran here and there, and up and down, and found ourselves at the public swim area, where this weekends festivals were being held. Awesomeness happened! The water park was open and actually free swim for the public. WE HAD FOUND OUR WATER SOURCE!!!! Cori and I were sooooo uber happy! We ran around the park, bumped into some friends, got cheered on by some lil ones as we ran up the uber steep hill, almost fell down the hill ( haha) and then around the lakes. It was so much fun, and it was so beautiful! We had been there the night before for the festival, so it was cool to see it in the hot summer sun.  After our run, we made our way back to the swimming grounds, stripped down to our swim suits and jumped into the water. I don"t even know how to tell you just how refreshing that water was. And it was free! We swam laps up and down the pool- man is Cori a fast swimmer! And then we went to the water slides and that was so great! SO SO SO much fun. We spent so many hours there, just swimming, and then lying on top of the hill listening to the bands practice for later that night.  

Cori and I were so excited that we ran to the festival grounds, and all Cori kept saying, was, "my dream came true! my dream came true!" All day she had been talking about just jumping in some sort of water, and today she go to jump into the greatest water ever!

After our relaxing on the hill, we ran back home, showered up, and then got ready for the nights events.

It's the 4th of July!! Time to celebrate!!! We gathered up the troops and headed back to the festival grounds with a blanket at hand and sat on the beach to watch the fireworks go off. It was so cool! Their fireworks were so beautiful and entertaining. They actually played classcical music with them, and everything was synced together- really neat way of doing it. Cori is hands down the best person to see fireworks with (by the way,) she was so excited to see each one shoot up into the air and then explode! :) We hung out at the festival for quite some time, and ran into Carla  and Christine ( Cori's awesome sister and friend,) and  just made our way around the grounds, singing and dancing and taking the night in.  I love germany.

It truly was a great day! I forgot to mention what I did earlier. I woke up pretty early, after a late night at the festivals last night, to go and see Max's Tennis match. I was so excited to go and see him play! I know tennis means a lot to him, so it meant a lot to me, that he let me come see him :) It was so cute because Felix and Mrs. Hartmann were telling me how much Dad had worked with Max on his serve while Max was in the U.S. I remember how much time the two of them spent together, it was really cool, and they would always go to play a match or two of tennis together. It was just nice, and felt like home being there with him. The sun was hot and shining, though rain clouds were pushing forward, Felix, Mrs.Hartmann and I, enjoyed a cup of tea as Max played his matches. He was really good! I had never been to a tennis match before, and I really like it, I also liked having a little brother to cheer on :) Max won his matches (of course,) !!!

Happy Birthday to the U.S. of A!!

yogging

hello my loves! I apologize for slacking again. I promise to catch you all up again soon... like tonight when cori is asleep again. haha. but for now I'm going to go running again, and Cori is coming too!!!! YAY!! we are running in our bathing suits in hopes of finding a hidden source to jump in and go swimming becaus Deutschland is HEATING UP!!!! Ciao for now!

Schlaff Güt!

Ciao! So it's approaching 2am here. I feel awful, because I went for a run not too long ago and Cori and I were going to have this amazing movie night, complete with The Office, and lots of chocolate! ..But I was on the phone, and now she is asleep...(sorry my love, sweet dreams!)
I love it here so much, I don't want to waste a single moment, so I'm often up early and to bed late.'Late at night when the house is sleeping and I go sit on the balcony and stare up at the night sky. I know this is one of the lamest things to say, but I think that the stars are the most beautiful thing we have, because no matter the distance, we all share their light- it brings us together. I love how here in Frankenthal, I am living in a city, and get to enjoy the city life, but once the sun falls, I feel like I'm back home in the country. Everything is quiet and still. I know my time abroad is quickly coming to an end, and I get so upset just thinking about leaving here. I feel like I have finally found my niche. I don't want to go, I don't want to leave all this behind, all the people I've met, all the adventures I get. I miss Cori already and her ability to laugh through life and her Grandma, who bless her soul, is the sweetest woman and I can't understand a single syllabul she says. I miss the city lights and the mountains in the horizon, and the cherry trees, and apple trees, and vineyards that hug every street. I love it here, and I've never felt more comfortable than I do now. I don't want this trip to end.
Today Cori and I woke up at a decent hour and Philip picked us up and took me on yet another marvelous adventure. He and Cori had planned a day of exploring in Heidelberg, Germany. Such a beautiful town with an emmaculate castle residing atop the hill. We went through the castle on a little self-guided tour and got lost in the beautiful view. It started to pour while we were there, and naturally we didn't think to bring an umbrella. But the rain only made the colors of the forests more vibrant. We then headed down the hill into town, and it was so beautiful! A very inspiring place to be, with views of the mountains through every alley-way, and streets lined with adorable cafe's. Apparently a great deal of Americans livehere because of the army base near by, so I had lots of 'tourist opportunities.'It was such a treat to spend the day with Cori and Philipp ( who by the way are just an incredible couple together- Cori, you have all of my approval for this bloke. :) ) They really did give me such a wonderful day, and have been since my arrival.
After we got back from a day in Heidelberg, Cori played mom, and dropped me off at Max's for a play date. It was so much fun! I love being with my brothers! Max, Felix, and I played a match of soccer, then played pass with the football for a bit, and after that we headed out to the fields and played some baseball. Max and Felix really love baseball, and they have gotten quite good! Max was playing so well, and was hitting the ball so hard, that he split it! We were all really impressed, and on that note, had to end the game because it was the only ball we had. Haha. So we treated ourselves to some 'eis,' (ice cream) and just walked around the neighborhood for a bit. I really want Max to come back home with me. I miss hanging out with him, and playing soccer and all that. Its so nice having him so close by. Today; I was at his school for 5-10 minutes and he met me in the courtyard just to hang out for a while. It's so nice seeing him and laughing about stories from when he was home in th US. Oh my gosh, and his jokes! They are so bad that they are HILARIOUS! I love it! Every bit of it!
I'm working on getting myself to Stockholm, but from the looks of it, I fear that it won't be able to happen :( But Cori and I are for sure headed to Paris in just a few days here! VRAIMENT!! we are thinking of driving and splitting the gas, it's looking to be much cheaper than a flight or train-oddly enough. YAY for road trip number 2!! We are planning on leaving saturday through tuesday, just enough time to soak up that french air :) oh man, I can't wait to have cup of coffee in a paris cafe. mmmmm. Can I just say, coffee in Europe, is SOOO much better than anything I've ever had back in the states. So delicious! Even the crappiest cup from mcdonalds or even a gastation is exquisite- kid you not, the gas stations actually have cafe's within them and barista's working to prepare it for you. It's incredible here. I love it. Love love love, LOVE IT!
Well, I should probably be signing off here in just a bit and get some sleep. I think tomorrow I'll go to the movies with Max and Felix while Cori works ( she works at the theatre so it'll be good. :) Ok. Schlaf GÜT my loves, and I will be writing you tomororow. Ciao for now!