Wordless Wednesdays: Would You Shop Here?

OMG, Hilarious!!

I need to tell you all something that happened on our way home from this place. Before I begin let me just remind you it was a long day and I was tired.

We stopped in McDonalds (don't judge) for a quick dinner. My husband wanted me to order for everyone. I do so and the guy pretends not to hear me. Really, I didn't believe this. I was speaking very loudly after the first attempt. So, what do I do? Absolutely refuse to speak German to him. Cheeseburger=Cheeseburger. By the time we get to the window I am busting up laughing at my behavior. We pay and are instructed to go to the next window. While waiting my oldest says, 'Mom, be careful. They smell fear.' WTF? Where in the world did this come from. So, at the next window I was again laughing. These people probably think I'm a fruit!!

What Are These Guys Thinking?!?!

Sorry, no wordless Wednesday. I need words today. What are these guys thinking? Everyday I see these people and freak out. At least the first 3 days :)

NINJAGO!

Have you not heard of Ninjago? Really? You must not have little boys running around your house. Well, they are these little Asian lego guys that spin on these top-like things. And like most brands that want to suck parents dry of their $$ there is also some sort of card game that goes with it. Don't forget to buy: weapons, more little people, more cards, booster packs, a plastic 'ring', the carrying case and who knows what else. It's very similar to the recent fad of Bakugan. Yes, I have stopped caring about this stuff. Legos are freaking expensive!

Friday night we decided to go to Legoland on Saturday. Both my boys are thoroughly enthralled with Ninjago, so I knew this would be a homerun. And it was. The actual Ninjago area was less than impressive. It just wasn't as great as the website led me to believe. There was one ride for kids 120 cm and above, and a playground. Thankfully the little person was happy at the playground while I took the giant on the ride.

Let me give you a little hint about having a lot of kids. Getting things done takes forever. For.Ever. Because of this we were only able to get through half the park. It really worked out well. My husband took the oldest on some rides while I hung out with the little people. Everyone got to do what they wanted. My youngest son is 4 and about 100 cms. There was only a handful of rides that he couldn't go on. He was totally ok with this until he couldn't go on the dragon roller coaster. A trip back to the Ninjago playground solved the hurt. Ahh redirection. It's nice while it still works :)

By far the best part of the park was the Hipp Baby Center. Hipp is a brand of baby stuff similar to Huggies; except Hipp has food too. Ok. Firstly, it's right at  a large playground. The center has lots of windows so you can see your family while you feed your baby. Anything that you might need for a baby they sell: food, nappies, wipes, bottles, spoons, etc. There was a comfortable, warm nursing area too. I was so thankful to find this. The baby and I are quietly nursing for a while and then the unexpected happened. The attendant came and asked if I needed anything and if I wanted a cup of still tea. What? Actual customer service. I didn't even buy anything. I wished I had liked still tea just to take advantage of the hospitality. As the mother of a baby I was thankful that there was a place we could go while my family still got to enjoy the park.

If you go:
Legoland Deutschland
Wilhelm-Maybach-strasse, 89312 Günzburg, Bayern, Deutschland (just past Ulm)
Open until 4 Nov, 10-6, some days have later times
Tickets are 38E for adults and 34E for kids 3-11
Season passes are 59E. There is a deal where you get 4 for the price of 3. Adults/kids are the same    price.
You can bring food and drinks in. Meals in the park will be expensive.
Shop early. Don't wait. Once the rides close (1hr early) the store is a mad house.

Language School

During March  I was able to take German classes at the Heidelberger Paedagogium. It was a refreshing experience. I thought I would walk in to a bunch of English speakers. However, this was far from the reality. There was one Australian and the other 10ish were from Mexico, Cuba, Columbia, Chile, Portugal, Russia, Turkey, Italy and Estonia. We divided ourselves into Spanish speakers and then everyone else. For the most part I sat with the Turkish guy. In German, we talked about the NBA. A lot. It was so nice to be able to speak to and understand people that I would normally not be able to communicate with.

Germans capitalize nouns. All of them. Don't they know this is weird? We're cruising along learning different forms of the present tense, the different articles, lots of vocab, split verbs and then the big whammy: some verbs have more than one form. What? So confusing, at first. The only thing about being in a class like this was that there wasn't as much conversation as needed. My solution: there are a couple guys at work that I speak mostly in German to. One happens to the the computer tech, and he's unforgiving. Ich habe eine probleme. (not clue it that is spelled right)

Before I took this class I bought a copy of  The Hunchback of Notre Dame byVictor Hugo. I gave myself until we move back to the US to be able to read it. Now, we're going home a lot sooner than I planned/would like. Must do tomorrow: sign up for the next round of classes that begin next week!!

Viernheim - Yang Yang

I was able to do the near impossible: get my husband out to a Chinese restaurant. We went to Yang-Yang in Viernheim. It's a bit of a drive, but the food is okay. I had been there once before on my lunch break and it was packed with GIs. I suppose it's b/c Chinese is basically the same in both countries. I like this place b/c it has one of those grills where you chose your own food to be cooked. You can choose all the veggies to be stir-fried with out the noodles! I seriously doubt real Chinese people use spaghetti.

You can either order off the menu ( a little pricey), or have the buffet to include the grill. We've already covered spaghetti, but the veggies were frozen! I had expected fresh. The rest had typical stuff: rice, noodles, meat dishes with sauce, egg rolls, fries and chicken wings. I had always assumed that the latter was always to appease unappreciating American pallets. There seem to be German ones as well. I had stir fried veggies, an egg roll and wonton soup. All were very good choices!

If you go:
Yang-Yang

Schwetzinger Straße 7

68519 Viernheim

 

Lunch Buffet: 7, 90 E

Dinner Buffet: 13, 90E

Menu prices are 10-15 E pp + drinks

 

 

Are you a Bread Person?

When I lived in the US I could never eat a piece of bread and live a happy life. And then I moved here. There are bakeries on every corner. I'll have to remember to bring a camera to take a few snaps for ya'll. Anyway, I love to get loaves of bread at the bakery, but I'm not sure how to keep them the freshest at home until it's all eaten. I found this at Real.

It's just a simple ceramic pot with holes for breathing. It's also dishwasher safe. Have you used something like this? Do you have any advise for keeping bread fresh? Please help!!! Thanks, you rock!

Wordless Wednesdays: Funny Signs Edition

A to Z

A is for age: 29 

B is for breakfast today: Half a grapefruit

C is for currently craving: A good glass of wine. Yum.

D is for dinner tonight: Hot dogs and mac n cheese. Classic American.

E is for favorite type of exercise: Cycling. It's definitely time to get back to spin class. 

F is for an irrational fear: Snakes. About 3 months after we bought our house we found a baby copperhead near the patio. I was seriously ready to pack up and move on base.

G is for gross food: Well, the healthier that you eat the less I 'like' the processed junk that were once staples. Like hot dogs and mac n cheese.

H is for hometown: Lake Charles, Louisiana, USA

I is for something important: Being the person I want to be and not the person other people tell me I should be. 

J is for current favourite jam: There is this catchy Portuguese song all over the radio here. And Godsmack, Drowning Pool and Metallic. There is a possibility that I have already scarred my children.

K is for kids: Yes, 3. They are 9, 4 and 6 months. They each are so different, sweet and present different challenges.

L is for current location: At home in Heidelberg, Germany. 

M is for the most recent way you spent money: Today I bought a few things for my 9 y o's bday party next weekend :)

N is for something you need: I need to figure out this mid-life crisis thing.

O is for occupation: Depends on who’s asking :) Wife, mother and in a few days I will once again be working in logistics.  

P is for pet peeve:  When someone gives you their word and then lets you down. When others judge you because you've made choices that are contray to theirs.

Q is for a quote: Work smarter not harder.

R is for random fact about you: I have a black belt in Tae kwan do. 

S is for favourite healthy snack: Almonds

T is for favourite treat: Starbucks with friends.

U is for something that makes you unique: I think I have a great sense of direction. Driving somewhere new with my husband is just painful. 

V is for favourite vegetable: Green beans, hands down.

W is for today’s workout: A nice leisurely bike ride.

X is for X-rays you’ve had: I broke my finger once. 

Y is for yesterday’s highlight: Girls' night! 

Z is for your time zone: At this very second it is Central European time (GMT +1). In about 3 hours it will be Central European Summer Time (GMT + 2).

Wordless Wednesdays: A Smooth Ride