'Laterne, Laterne'

Saturday was the Martinszug in our village. Kids gather around with their handmade lanterns (Laterne), walk through the village singing songs, and get a Martinsbrezel at the end.

St. Martin was a Roman Soldier who later became a Monk after being baptized as an adult. The most famous legend of St. Martin states the he was riding his horse through a village in a snowstorm and found a homeless man. St. Martin cuts his coat in half to give to the poor man. Later while St. Martin was sleeping, he had a dream that he saw Jesus wearing the coat he gave to the poor man.

The kids made these lanterns in their German class. kylee has a snail and Wyatt has an apple. They are really proud of them. 

St. Martin on his horse. He rode through the village with the kids.

Kids either carry lanterns or the torches. You can see some young kids in this one carrying torches. I find this highly dangerous. I wonder how many children are injured each year!

St. martin and the bon fire

Enjoying a Martinsbrezel after the walk. These sugary pretzels are delicious! They only make them this time of year. I'll be sad when our Bakery no longer makes them. 

Here are the kids singing a song they learned in German class. They sing this while walking in the Martinszug.

Laterne, Laterne,

My Lantern, my lantern,

Son-ne, Mond und Sterne,

Sun, moon and stars that turn,

brenne auf, mein Licht,

Sh-ine on, my light,

brenne auf, mein Licht,

Sh-ine on, my light,

aber nur meine liebe Laterne nicht.

Please don't let my pret-ty lan-tern burn tonight.

Way to go Kylee and Wyatt

I am SO proud of my kids! They amaze me every day. Today was parent/teacher conferences up at the school. Let me tell you just how awesome my children are:

Kylee is doing excellent in 2nd grade! She is currently reading at a 4th grade reading level! WOW! I am so thrilled with that. This girl LOVES to read, write stories, and of course art work. She is doing fabulous in math as well. Those are the two main subjects they focus on in 2nd grade. Of course there is science and social studies, but that is a smaller unit. She has great behavior as well. The only complain from her teacher (and it really wasn't a complaint) was that she likes to read TOO much. For example, when the teacher is reading out loud to the class Kylee likes to read her own book.

Kylee is a bookworm, what else can I say. And I love it!

Wyatt also had an awesome report for Kindergarten. He knows all of his letters, all of the sounds, site words (words that children are taught to see and know, rather than sound out. example: is, the, like, little). He is also starting to put letters together to form words. AND he can read short stories. :D He's doing excellent in Math. He actually knows addition and subtraction (thanks to Kylee teaching him). I help with his class's literacy centers pretty often. When I sneak in I get a chance to see how Wyatt does in class. He is a very well behaved boy. :D Sure makes this momma happy.

Both kids also have an art class here as well as a German class. In German they learn about customs and holidays, songs, and of course, the language. They recently made lanterns for St. Martin's Day (which I will post about this weekend) and they also know a few German songs for St. Martin's Day.

Kylee is also taking guitar lessons. She's pretty good with it too.

As for James and I, we are still going to school. This Spring should be my last semester for my Bachelors. Then I'll start my Masters next Fall. I also plan on getting a job at the school while I work on my Masters. James recently finished taking a German course through the college here. He is now working on a Speech class and then will have his CCAF: Community College of the Air Force. I really hope he continues school and gets his bachelors. I still have some arm twisting to do on that one though.

Süßes oder Saures!

Süßes oder Saures! Or, as the Americans say, Trick or Treat! The actual translation means 'Sweet or Sour' though. Halloween seems to be an American holiday but Germany has picked it up within the past 10 years. This year for Halloween we went to the base to do some 'trick or treating'. It was extremely busy as you can imagine all the American kids in the area going to one housing area for candy. Our friend said she got about 600 kids that night!

Our first stop was at our neighbor's house. Jess had a little gift bag for the kids. 

Kylee is a vampire. She just had a gothic dress, some eyeliner, and lipstick on. My iphone camera took this picture, making her look like she has more makeup on. 

We had to get them new bags this year for Halloween. The ones Jackie made disappeared in the move. These are cute felt pumpkin bags. 

Wyatt is a Ninja!

This little boy is a fireman, driving his Feuerwehr (fire truck)

These were the coolest costumes! The mom made them all by hand. In this picture they are looking down, so you can see the tops of their hats which were the characters' face. These were just fabulous and must have taken a very long time to make.

After the base trick or treating we went into Bitburg, the larger village close to us. They had 'halloween shopping' that night. But really, it was a pretty awesome festival. Here the Germans are carving their pumpkins. 

Some pretty awesome punch at a shop. Instead of going door to door, the Germans have a festival on the walkplatz (outdoor shopping center). The shops pass out candy to the kids and alcohol to the adults. The Germans know how to do Halloween!

The sign for the festival: Halloween Einkaufsabend- Halloween shopping night

Some scary people pretending to be mannequins. 

Some fun drinks for kids.

This guy was a lot of fun. Sorry for the horrible photo. I did not bring my normal camera and had to use my iPhone camera. 

The kids had a great time celebrating with the Germans. I think we'll be doing it again next year. 

This weekend is another holiday: St. Martin's Day. Stop by on Sunday for a post about that. :D

Its Fall

Yes, it is THIS gorgeous here in the Fall. 

Pictures

James went sky diving for his 30th birthday. Here are a few pics from his dive in August. He loved it. 

Our softball team went to championships last month. Its an All Forces European championship tournament. We placed first place. This is a picture of both men's and women's Spangdahlem teams.

 Wyatt's first day of Kindergarten. He didn't do well when we dropped him off. But when I picked him up that afternoon he said he would never cry again and that he loved it. He has had no problems going to school since. He even loves riding the bus to and from school.

 James and I went to a winefest in Bernkastel, Germany. Its a very cute little village with so much personality. We had such a good time.

Me and the vineyards. There is a castle ruins up on the hill. 

Gorgeous view of the Mosel river and Bernkastel.

He was making fresh candy.

This wine was fantastic! Its new wine and hasn't been through the fermentation process  yet.