Swim Meet

13 Sep - Jamie had her first swim meet Saturday with the Kaiserslautern Kingfish at the Baumholder pool - about 45 minutes from our house. The other teams were from Lakenheath (England), Weisbaden and Bamberg. The meets are run pretty much the same as in the States. Jamie did very well. Jamie placed and earned points for her team in the 100m Individual Medley (4th), 50M Breastroke (4th) and 50m Freestyle (2nd). Her relay team finished 2nd but it was an exhibition so no ribbons were awarded. She is making friends and having a great time. Her times were just a sec or two slower than her best from Virginia but with a 2 month break, is was pretty good. Very proud of her. Her next meet is in 2 weeeks here at Ramstein. She has a meet in Berlin over the Columbus Day weekend. We'll be taking the train to Berlin to spend the weekend. Jamie relaxing between events with her friend. Jamie with her 3 ribbons in 3 events.

Jamie's school and Teacher

12 Sep - This is a pic of Jamie's school and her teacher Mrs Thomsen. We met her at the school Back to School night. Very nice and from what we hear - very tough :) She has been teaching her in the Army schools for 22 years. She asked for parent volunteers so I did. Looks like I'll be teaching on the Electoral College - great right into one of the greatest debates of our time with 5th graders - no pressure!!! Jamie and Mrs Thomsen Jamie's school on post. This is the bldg for 3-5 grades and Gym. The K-2 are in a different building behind me taking the picture. The other building has the cafeteria, a gym and the office. Her classroom is on the top floor last windows on the end to your right. Tschuss, An Yung, Ahoj

Leiwen Wine Fest

6 Sep - Michael's family invited us to spend the day in Leiwen and attend the Weinfest in town. After we arrived, we gave Alfons and Petra some Slovak Wine that Tina's parents sent to them as well as a bottle of special Tokaj wine from Slovakia. Tokaj is made from a grape with a special mold that provides a unique flavor. We also gave Michael his key to our house because he is a member of this family!!! Jamie helped Petra cook a wonderful lunch of mushroom soup, roasted pork with gravy, Spatzle (egg noodles) and broccoli. Michael's Oma (Grandmother) joined us for lunch. Of course we had some wonderful Stoffel sparkling wine before lunch and a great 2007 Reisling feinherb with lunch. For dessert, we had a Panna Cotta (Flan) and Alfons served 2007 Eiswein - SNAP!!! After lunch, we showed them some pictures of our home and from Slovakia. Then Michael drove us to the top of the mountains and we had a great view of Leiwen. Jamie stayed with her new friend Petra!!! Then we drove to a tower and when you see the Mosel River from that point, it looks like 5 lakes in the valley - really neat. Afterwards, Michael drove us to his school - really neat school. When we returned, we ate a wonderfully light cheesecake (Kaesekuche) that Petra cooked with homemade (hausmachte) whipped creme and coffee. We then went to the wine fest on the main street (hauptstrasse). The wine makers on that street set up booths and sold wine and food. There was a DJ that played German traditional and some American music - Jim Croche, Elvis, Richie Valance, etc. Michael plays French Horn in the local youth band. they were playing and we watched them. Pretty good and real traditional which was perfect. After they played, they passed a bottle of wine around the band - the songs got better and faster as the night went on!!!!!!!! We drank a rose sparkling wine from Alfons cousin, ate a nice shrimp scampi and a schwenkbraten (swinging grilled pork steak) and of course WINE - a couple bottles of feinherb and a bottle of Kabinett. Trust me, when Alfons recommends a wine - get it. Kim and Jamie had grapejuice (trabbensaft) that was really strong and really good. We finished the night at 2230 and headed home with Jim and Alfons dancing the Waltz in the streets. Its a guy thing. Thanks to the Stoffel family for hosting us. It was a wonderful evening and we had a great time with many memories. We're very proud of Michael and his school and playing. We would not have missed him playing with the band for anything. It was great!!

Petra's Pork Loin with Gravy - SNAP!!

Street Fest Tents - all with wine & yes ....food...

Kennedy's with Michael and Alfons

Stoffel and Kennedy family!

Shrimp Scampi at the wine fest - cooked in sunflower (sonnenblumen) oil with garlic (knoblach)

HOUSE FINISHED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

6 Sep - Well. We finally unpacked all the boxes, placed all the furniture and put all the picures on the walls. Not easy when the rooms are smaller than we are use to and we have alot of slanted walls upstairs. here are the pics of the house.

First Floor (Erste Ebene)

Living Room (das Wohnzimmer)

Ahyoung/Michael/Tina's Room (Gast Zimmer)

Guest Full bath (Gast Badezimmer)

Only Closet in the house (yes former 1/2 bath)

Dining Room (das Esszimmer)

Kitchen on First Floor

Entrance Foyer and Stairs (die Treppe) Upstairs

Second Floor (Zweit Ebene)

hallway (die Diele)

Master Bedroom (das Schlafzimmer)

Master bathroom

Jamie's Domain

Main Kitchen (die Kueche)

Basement (der Keller)

Office Oil Room (Oel Zimmer) (400 gallons)

Laundry Room (Die Waeschezimmer)

Hope you like it. Some differences from American house - major one being no closets. The Army has Wardrobes they loan to families. They also loan Washer and Dryer, Microwave, and LARGE refrigerators. Life is good. We have 3 other rooms but two are just storage for empty boxes and 110v items, luggage and stuff - you don't want a pic of those and the other is Jamie's game room (Spielzimmer) and we'll - we're not taking a pic of that room!!

Remember, that you are welcome to visit. Just let us know so we can ensure a room is booked in your name. :))

Cologne Trip

29-30 Aug - We took a trip to Koln (Cologne) on the Rhine this weekend. We visited a student that we knew when Ahyoung was with us in 2006. Her family was kind enough to invite us to stay at their home. We met Hannah and took her some things she missed from the US she cannot get here in Germany - Oreos and Lays Chips!!!!!!! Hannah was kind enough to walk us around Cologne. We visited the Dom Cathederal, had lunch and visited the Lindt Chocolate Museum. I sampled the local beer called Koelsch. It is also the name of the local dialect. They have a saying in Koln, that Koelsch is the only langauage you can drink. Hannah's mom, Andrea, cooked a wonderful meal of Wurst, Red Cabbage and Mashed Potatos. We spent the rest of the evening talking many topics and having a great time. Hannah's father teaches German and English and her Mom teaches French and Russian. Her sister, Laura, and brothers, Julian and Claudio, visited also. Her sister was an exchange student also 5 years ago in Virginia. The next day, we had a great German Breakfast (Fruhstuck). We then took off to ride the Cable Car over the Rhine to a very nice park along the Rhine River banks where we tried to skip rocks. We visited the very unique (not eunich) St Martin's Church. It is very plain on the inside but you can see where the original paintings and markings were on the walls and columns. It was very nice. Afterwards, we snacked on a pork sandwich then visited an "American Sports Bar." It was pretty close to a family sports bar near a stadium with a single team theme. We finished the day with Jamie helping cook a schnitzel meal with fries and salad. Thanks to Hannah and her family for their hospitality and time. We look forward to returning the favor in the future. Hannah and the Kennedy's with the Dom in the background St Martin's Church - One of 10 Romanesk churches in Koln Famous fountain that tells the story of the Gnomes that worked in the city. Jamie and Kim on the 2000 yr old Roman Road Ruins Koln Dom - 600 years to build - So big it won't fit in the whole photo.