This morning, the kids discovered the joys of Nutella. Now I know why I've withheld it for so long.
I knew when I heard the giggles coming from the other room that Isaac was involved too.
Today we went to the town of Lemgo, which is a 40 minute regional train ride from Bielefeld. It is known for its medieval city center. Lemgo has a population of around 40,000.
Grace working on a pretzel on the ride to Lemgo.
Dave reading up on the town.
Here you can see a couple of the church spires above Lemgo. The spire on the right spirals (see below for a closer view.)
The old city of Lemgo (the city center) is ringed by an old wall, which is now essentially a levee with a lovely walking path on top. As we explored along the path, we were passed by a Deutsche Post mail deliverer on her rounds. I think I want her job.
We landed at what might be the neatest playground we've experienced to date. This climber had it all - hammock, balancing wire, giant tunnel slide.
The playground backed up against a city park that was in the midst of a festival - live music, food, beer, and wine stalls, people selling crafts, and rows and rows of picnic tables. The festival carried on throughout the city, with food and craft stalls lining the pedestrianized streets.
This was the coolest swing ever. The "log" is made out of rope. I love that it can fit so many people. How many times do kids have to wait for a ride on a tire swing? With this swing, every kid in the park can just climb on!
And we did! As you can see, it was a blast!
Grace loved the swing.
She let Isaac share her ride. They cruised like this for at least 20 minutes. They were a perfect fit for the swing.
This building has a dark history. It was the home of a former Burgermeister of Lemgo (aka the mayor). In the 1700s, the house was the scene of trials of many suspected witches. The house is called the Hexenhaus.
Sam and Katie toured the house with Dave. Dave tried to build up the tension by calling it a haunted house, but the kids weren't scared. Though they were taken aback by the skeletons of the giant crabs brought back from Japan by a former owner of the house.
A closer view of the spiraling church spire.
In this open area, there was a stage set up. The featured attraction as we were walking by was a group of ladies showing off their step aerobic skills. You would have though they were rock stars - they got a good reaction from the crowd.
Most of the buildings in the city center were built in the 1500s. It was just one neat building after another.
We enjoyed ice cream and bratwurst from some food stands and fit in one more visit to the playground before we headed to the train station for our return home.
Dave and Isaac enjoying the green views of Germany on our way back to Bielefeld.
This morning, Sam and Katie put Grace in jail. That is their way of protecting Isaac from Grace's curious hands.
Grace's quarry. He is so cute, I can't blame her for being drawn to him.
Sam and Katie are in the upper left of this photo. This is the main entrance of the university. I don't think you can see any examples in this picture, but the summer weather is bringing out the capri length pants - on the German men. It's a pretty popular style - there are whole sections of the mens departments in the clothing stores dedicated to clam diggers.
Sam models his new Universitaet Bielefeld t-shirt. The German phrase on the shirt translates as "think outside the box." That's a reference to the one-building university - everything inside one box.
Most of the time, Grace can be trusted with Isaac.
The kids and I went shopping this afternoon. They found ways to stay cool.
I was feeding Isaac on a bench across from an outdoor cafe and playing a game of I-Spy with the other kids, when a woman came over from her table at the cafe to say how nice it was to see all the kids so happy, and that they have a similar game in German ,which she played with her children: "Ich sehe was, was du nicht siehst" (I see what you do not see). Travelling with the kids leads to the nicest interactions with the local folks.
On the way home, Sam "accidentally" stepped into a fountain in front of the University.
Katie managed to limit the dunking to just her hands.
Grace is consistently waving at people who make eye contact with her on the Stadtbahn these days. It's a cute, backwards wave, and it's definitely not random!
Getting ready for bed. Sam claims he doesn't like to read these days, but sure enough, once he heard Dave reading the Monster Bugs book to Katie, Sam joined in.
Isaac in his fourth outfit for the day. This fellow is a lethal combination of drool, spit-up (though less frequent these days), and diaper blowouts.
Today, Sam got a birthday card from Grandma Strei with some birthday money. He used the money to purchase a Lego prisoner paddy wagon. Thanks Grandma!
