A few weekends ago we decided to go for a walk on The Rhine, a few blocks from our place. There’s a fun nighttime scene here- especially on the weekend. (Unfortunately I only had my iphone with me for pictures, which doesn’t fare as well at night.) The […]
Around Köln
Wild Animal Parks
So far we have been to two really cool wild animal parks. One in Köln and one in Zons. Since both of the girls are obsessed with pretty much ANY kind of animal or insect (they’ve held tarantulas, snakes, baby alligators- you name it!), this is one of their favorite things to do. Maxim feeding […]
Herbst is here!!!
This is the first year that the girls have experienced a real Fall Season (Herbst in German). They are beyond thrilled and so am I! Fall is my favorite season and being a New England girl at heart, I’ve really missed having a TRUE Autumn (during the past 12 years in San Diego). […]
The Duck Pond
Right near our place, on the way to and from school, is The Duck Pond. Since we aren’t in a rush on the way home from school I let them play there almost every day. This pond has the trifecta- ducks, pigeons, and chestnuts. What more could you ask for (lol)?! The girls cannot help […]
Kiera’s KiTa
KiTa is short for Kindertagesstätte (Preschool). We got really lucky again- Kiera was placed in a great one. She really seems to like it and never complains about going. We pay a fraction of what we were paying in the States. Tuition is on a sliding scale based on salary until the child turns 5- […]
Quinnie’s School
We were very lucky to get Quinnie into the same school that Simon, his sister, and his Tante Bärbel went to. Cousin Maxim goes there also! It’s a very popular school and placement there is much- coveted. We just found out that Great Uncle Martin designed some of the inside of the school! Before school […]
Seilbahn (rope train) to the Rheinpark
Directly across the Rhine is our favorite Spielplatz (playground). We can see it from our living room window! It is AMAZING, like most German playgrounds. I’ve noticed the playgrounds here seem more organic/ natural than ones in the States. I don’t think I’ve seen a plastic structure yet- and we’ve been to LOTS of playgrounds […]
Ebertplatz Spielplatz
Our local playground/ park is a 3 minute walk from our place. We spend lots of time there… Quinnie LOVES to make these flower chain necklaces Sometimes we find surprising things there…
Our first day…
Opa and cousin Maxim picked us up at the airport in Frankfurt and drove us the two hours to Cologne (Köln). We were all pretty jet-lagged due to the 9 hour time difference and pulling an all-nighter the night before (Quinnie woke up at 2am the night before our flight and we let her stay […]