Swiss Missus!

Yup! We did it! BOTH of us broke away from real life and took a girls trip to Bern Switzerland. I left the kids in the care of their favorite babysitter's and took off on a bus with Bree. Can't beat that; girlfriend to share with, couple of great books in a bag, plenty of diet coke and snacks and a driver to do the hard work. With Swiss Francs in our pocket and a skip in our step . . . well, really there was absolutely no skip as we were still in full recovery from our Alp dissension, we were off to find chocolate, cheese and whatever else Switzerland had to offer.
The city is really pretty for how large it is. With the river running through it with beautiful crystal blue water (due to the glacier runoffs), a grand cathedral (aren't they all grand?) and a 6 km shopping walkplatz we were set for the day. This cathedral really caught my eye as we walked around inside. All along the ceiling we discovered this magnificent vintage floral pattern in black and white. I've never seen that before and instead of having that dark Gothic feeling of foreboding, I left a little less forboaden, ehr forebade, uhm forborne (is that a word) and lighter . . .

. . . look, this cathedral liked me too. The seat I choose for my picture is my birthday!

Bern is famous for the bear pit that sits at the end of the main city street. We were lucky, he was out and about that morning.

This is the clock tower near the main square, where we got to see it's performance at the strike of noon.
This next picture shows that people in large Swiss cities can still have a garden. At the top of the picture I cut off the massive apartment complex than runs down the riverside. As you descend down the hill toward the riverbed there are plots spotted along the way, visibly marked off and with either flowers or fruits and veggies growing. I just loved that!

We were lucky enough to visit Bern on market day. All the vendors were selling their goods which included the famous braided butter bread, varieties of cheese, flowers, fresh meat and fish, crafts and the fabulous Easter eggs shown in the picture below. I can't figure out how they made the image show up, maybe a bleach stamp? No matter, I fell in love with the rustic look of them.

This next picture is of fresh ravioli.

Next we traveled to a small countryside village where we toured a cheese factory. We were able to see how it is made, taste to our hearts content and then spend the franc left in our pockets on yummy treats and of course lots of Swiss cheese (holes included)! Here are the cows that help us to have the cheesy experience!

And here is the swiss cheese piano in the dining hall.

And now are you wondering about our Jane Austen experience??? Yes, Mr. Darcy did redeem himself quite well in the end. After all, what kind of girl can turn down Pemberly and a knight who rides in on his white horse to save the Bennet family from despair (although, if he spared Mother Bennet less the world would be a better place). Bad, bad Wickham. Now today I'm finding new vocabulary in my conversations using words like alliance, insufferable, splendid, "shall we", make haste! and bugger. Although I don't really think that Jane wrote the word bugger in her works but I like saying it anyway. Toodles!

Tomorrow we are on a quest to find the "Pride and Prejudice" with Keira Knightley. We won't be able to understand it as poor Keira is the most frustrating actress in the world. She tops her dripping accent with a little mumbling to make it completely gibberish. No matter, we have been introduced thoroughly to the story line and I'm sure we will follow along just fine.

Maybe you are asking what sparked our Jane Austen interest? The book I read from cover to cover on the bus to Bern, "Austenland" by Shannon Hale. I really enjoyed this book, easy read (Bree finished the days after) and with a good bit of humor.

Cruising der Rhein!

The kids and I took Bree on a cruise up the Rhein River on Friday. This is the 3rd time I have done this and every time I am overwhelmed by the scenery; endless grape vineyards surrounded by little timeless villages that you just want to pick up and put in your pocket, and that doesn't even include the mystical castle ruins and lovely old little cathedrals spotted along the way. You just climb onto the top deck, grab a lounge chair, sip a little something wet, don your fabulous red sunglasses and wonder why on earth there is a war going on when there is something this beautiful to look upon.


This is a picture of the 4 of us from atop the Rheinfels castle ruins. This ruin is fabulous, all kinds of little catacombs, nooks and crannies that let your medival imagination go wild. We stopped and ate lunch there and took in the view . . . took it in a little too long and found ourselves running back down the elevation of what felt like the alps to jump aboard our boat to go home. That was close, way too close. We have been paying for it ever since with severe shin splints. I think my bones and muscles are literaly on fire. No amount of ibuprofen has taken the edge off for either of us. What we learned from all this: we are getting a little older and the view of the river from the castle is VERY distracting. But leave it to Bree, as I was in a full blown panick racing down the hill cheerleading us all on, Bree was behind us skipping and laughing the whole way down. This is classic Bree and what I love so much about her. I'm the ying, she's the yang.

We lucked out with the boat that was ours for the day. This is what the kids got to do while we took in all the sites. I think McKenna burned a hole in the slide and I was half expecting the captain to escort my "slide rebel" or "slide addicted" kids off.


And this is what happens when you slide for 4-5 hours in one day, run down the elevation of an alp and have the growing body of a 10 year old girl. Wiped!

And now tonight I can't type fast enough to get off the computer. Bree and I are in the middle of the BBC version of "Pride and Prejudice", you know they one, the one that takes up half your life. I have yet to figure out why Colin Firth is so wildly fantasized by so many women when I find him rude, stiff and annoying. I'm starting to wonder if I have any Jane Austen connection at all (because I have tried to read a couple of books and I can't get through the first 15 pages without throwing it against the wall) but we are only half way there and Mr. Darcy has a huge amount of making up and wooing to do. He has his work cut out for him, he must satisfy two women who have been without their men for WAY too long. I can't wait . . .

Two gals, a pocket of change, and a day in Alsace!

France is one happy country now that the two of us came and took all the euro from our pockets and put it into theirs. They saw us coming, we didn't stand a chance. We started in Strasbourg and took in the grand cathedral. I have seen this twice in the last month and it still is so striking and amazing to see, especially when you learn the history dates back to the 13th and 14th century. The second picture is of the Astronomical Clock built in the 16th century, you betcha it is astronomical. Wowee!

We ate crepes for breakfast and lunch, first with sugar, cinnamon and nutella then with ham and cheese. Baguette sandwiches were a must followed by a chocolate eclair, unfortunately the eclair wilted in the car but never fear, the next town is so very near. We heard about this creative little village from a friend of mine. The following picture is an example of the traditional French pottery that is so famous in the Alsace region. It is so intricate with an old fashioned country style theme and then they throw in a bunch of birds. It is beautiful but it is not me. I was a little worried walking through the first couple of stores, of course, my wallet was breathing a sigh of relief until . . .



. . . these beauties screamed out to us. We took one look at all the bright vibrant colors and simountaneously said, "I love it, I'm so glad I brought my visa!" These potiers are 3rd and 4th generation and have kept the long time traditional design but became bold and went out on a limb. I love it!!!! Bless their little bit of rebel behavior. Plenty of pop and red to boot.



The polka dots and swirls grabbed me and didn't let me go. I bought a serving set specifically for appetizer and dessert occasions. We will be having a brownie party before Bree leaves.



We lucked out once we crossed back over to the German side. A good "early bird" German farmer got his field in line and these beautiful tulips were ready and perfect for picking. We picked out a group of 8 and only paid around 3 euro, pretty much all we had left after the pottery extravaganza. Bless those blumen fields!


One last thing I love about France (because it brings such smiles to my girls faces) are the fabulous carnival rides we find along the way. This one was a double decker!!

And I can't quite end without a little more of my man. Even as I am having a fabulous time with the girls, my mind rarely wanders far from thinking of the safety and happiness of this great guy! We are past the half way point!

Strange things are a foot . . .

My good friend Bree has arrived and all is good in my world! She brings contagious laughter, intriguing girl's talk and a co-parent that can read my mind! Every gal deserves a friend like Bree. She even helped me clean my bathrooms! We've always joked that the day I cleaned her bathroom back at Scott AFB, was the day we knew that we were friends for life. You can't clean a gal's bathroom and then grow distant. We haven't seen each other in 2 1/2 years but you would never know! The first item on our list was for Bree to spoil us with her famous homemade pizza, so fabulous. I don't even try to replicate it, it will only enter our mouths if Bree's hands are the maker.

Being the good friend that I am we spent the first few days touring all the military bases in the KMC. Forget Germany, let's go check out the BX! HA! Thankfully she forgave me and I rewarded her with a true German shopping experience, the outdoor walkplatz which had a farmer's market and an Easter market going on simultaneously. We indulged in my favorite bakery, and bought the fixin's for a fabulous dinner, fresh salmon, fresh baguette and some funky cheese to try with my crazy crackers. We also hit a bunch of shops and toped it off with gelatto. Yippee!

Monday we joined my good friend Melinda and her kids and caravaned down to the Stuttgart zoo. We saw every animal there ever was in every Disney and Dreamworks production. How sad is that, every animal they shouted, "That's so and so from this and that movie".

I must say there were some quirky animals like this rhino, at least that is what we think it is. Maybe it is a rhino on steroids as it looks as if they have an extra layer of armored steel rhino skin. Crazy.


This guy had it all right! Layin' on his back taking in the sun while rubbing his belly, dosing in and out of an afternoon nap! I'll take one of those! Wait, except for the fact that he is in a cage, dependent on humans for his food and I didn't even see any banana peels!

More "eis" please!!!

Holy crow, who is this hottie pants?! Oh, wait a minute, I vaguely remember this guy. I think it is my wonderful husband that has been gone a little too long. He is still having a good time while he works his hind end to the bone.

And here is proof of the fun he is having in those moments he works so hard to get to, the performance! I think he would tell you that all the crappity crap is worth it when the rock and roll comes out to play! He is safe and he is coming home soon!

Just wait for my next post on the adventure I'm calling "Bree and I on the loose in France". Our husbands should be scared; very, very scared.

And while we are talking once again about Bree, are you finding yourself asking, "How did this gal get 2 weeks away from family to come dote on me???" Well, gals, get a hold of your husbands and tell them to read this: Bree's great husband, Aaron, took 2 weeks of leave to stay home with their kids while Bree gets to go on holiday! Sounds like a winner to me. Hubbies, take note, wives, there is hope. So, to Mark and Aaron, I'm next! Aaron needs to schedule a TDY or go be an officer or something (no pressure) so that I can go on my holiday!!! Thanks Aaron, you are pretty swell, and even though you aren't a musician, you still ROCK!