Computer trouble

Ok I know I said I would keep up with this blog and I will as soon as I get either a new computer or this one fixed. I can not up load any more photo's on to my Mac until I get rid of some of the 18,000 photo's I already have on it. When Rick gets home from his TDY I will try and update this blog with his computer he has all the new photo's on it. So check back soon and you will see some great photo's from the Black Forest and Oktoberfest in Munich. We are headed to France for a few days next week so hopefully by the next weekend I will have updated.

River cruise on the Rhine

River cruise on the Rhine, a photo by pshow242 on Flickr.

We finally took the river cruise and it was a perfect day. We left from Rudesheim and cruised to St Goar. It was a beautiful sunny day. we saw a ton of castles and castle ruins. When we stop at St. Goar we hiked up the hill to go see the Rheinfels castle. Abby and I wanted to take the trolley but Rick led us astray and we couldn't find it. So up we went and of course when we got to the top here comes the trolley boy was Abby mad. We had lunch at the castle then toured it. It was pretty cool and they views were amazing. We didn't have much time for anything else in St. Goar we had to catch the return cruise back to Rudesheim. When we got back to Rudesheim the wine festival had started so we sampled some wine and had even more food. The girls had a great time. We can't wait to finish the cruise in the spring.

Fansanerie and Taunus Wonderland

Fansanerie and Taunus Wonderland, a photo by pshow242 on Flickr.

We live about 15 minutes away from this little amusement park called Taunus Wonderland so we took the girls there and they had a great time. I am not sure how old the park is but it is very interesting. They have rides that you have to operate yourself. There is one that you have to pedal with your feet I went on it with Bella thinking she would pedal me around but she couldn't reach the pedal's I wont be doing that again. The day started out very nice then it started to rain and thunder and lightning so we had to leave. It was a fun day we will definitely go back there again.
there is also a free little petting zoo close to our house it is called Fansanerie the girls love going there. They have lots of animals to feed and room to run around. Both places are great to go to on nice days now I just need to find a place to go when it rains and it rains here a lot.

A little Natural History and some good friends

Natural History Museum in Frankfurt, a photo by pshow242 on Flickr.

We were very excited to spend time with our friends Paul and Dana Molnar and their kids. We were stationed together in Alaska and haven't seen them since. They were in Germany visiting Paul's parents and we were lucky to spend time with them. i say lucky because they are great people and they speak german. We went to the Natural History Museum in Frankfurt together. The girls had a great time with there kids. It was a great little day trip we learned how to use the subway and had a great dinner. Thanks Paul and Dana for sharing your vacation with us. Lets not wait 10 years before we see each other again.

Our first vineyard

Balthasar Vineyard, a photo by pshow242 on Flickr.

We live in the Rheingau area and there are vineyards every where. We went with some friends to the Balthasar vineyard so they could check out there vine lease and pick up there wine. I enjoyed the view and wine tasting and the girls enjoyed running through the rows of grapes. You can get a vine lease at the is vineyard for 3 years 10 years or 25 years our friends kids have a 25 year one. With the vine lease you get your name on your vine you can participate in harvesting the grapes and a couple of bottles of wine a year. The wine was great I think Rick should get me a vine lease for my birthday.

Finally a home to call our own

Our house in Germany, a photo by pshow242 on Flickr.

When looking for a house we had a couple of must haves. It must have off street parking ( my car is way to big to leave on the street or even drive down some streets) It must have a yard for the dogs, and it must have a dish washer. Well we found what we thought was a perfect house. Houses in Germany aren't like houses in the states there are no closest and some houses don't come with built in kitchens and some don't even come with light fixtures like ours. We had to purchase 21 light fixtures so off to IKEA we went and bought the cheapest ones we could find. It took Rick forever to install them our walls and ceiling are concrete he was not a happy man. The girls love the house and we have a very quiet neighborhood the only time it is noisy is when the girls are outside playing. It is a little father from post and it take Rick on average 45 minutes to get to work. We are still settling in and hope to make it a comfortable home. I will try and get photos of the house with our stuff in it. The only thing I hate about our house are the spiders that keep getting in they are huge and when I told the landlord he said there was nothing to worry about this is not Australia and to just use the Hoover on them. I of course was not happy with his comment, but the Hoover does come in handy once you get it plugged into the transformer to make it work.

Our Accidental trip to Koblanz

Koblanz, a photo by pshow242 on Flickr.

We did mean to go there but we wanted to go on a cruise on the Rhine but got there really late. Rick says we took the scenic route. So since the cruise was out so we walked around town. We came across this enormous statue Of Emperor Wilhelm II. If you want to know more about him google him I did not go up in the statue it was way to high off the ground for me. The Castle at the top is Marksburg Castle. I will blog about that castle later. It was a great trip to Koblanz and we will take the rhine cruise there next summer.

Trip to Mainz with German head start class

Mainz, a photo by pshow242 on Flickr.

Rick had to take a German head start class as part of his in processing. His class had a field trip to Mainz so the girls and I tagged along. We first went to the Bahnhof to learn how to take the train anywhere you want to go. Then we went to the Roman cellars it was a very nice place a lot of history we were 7 stories below ground. There were what seemed like miles of bottles and all the barrels are originals. We even sampled some sparkling wine. Mainz is a very nice town not far from wiesbaden. We really need to get back there and explore the city more. Enjoy the photo's

Arrival in Germany

Abby celebrating her 6th birthday in lodging, a photo by pshow242 on Flickr.

Our arrival in to Germany went smoother than I thought it would even though we were 2 hours late and the dogs were in there kennels along time. When we arrived in Frankfurt we had help with our luggage and our dogs. We did have to wait a while for the bus to wiesbaden. When we got to the welcome center our sponsor was there waiting for us. Billy took Rick and the dogs to a boarding kennel (the hotel didn't have any pet rooms for the first 2 days). Billy's wife Claudia took me and the girls and all our luggage the hotel. It really was a big help having them.The next few days were busy for Rick as he was in processing. We celebrated Abby's 6th birthday in the hotel with cupcakes and bowling. She didn't even say anything about a big party she thought moving to Germany was her present. We finally got to look at houses around day 10. There wasn't much to choose from but we finally found one in Taunustein. We were in the hotel for 30 days before we could move in. It was a nice hotel but being in a one bedroom room with all of us and the dogs got real old real fast. We did take some day trips while we waited for our house and I will post about those next. I am adding a picture of Abby with her birthday cupcake and her present of living in Germany. LOL:)

Let's try this again!

Ok people I am back. I am going to try and keep up with this blog again. I will try to give this blog equal time that I give Facebook. So what is happening in the Showalter house. Well I know all of you know we moved to Germany in June and we are settling in nicely. The girls finally started school. This summer was the longest summer ever. Bella is now in the 2nd grade and Abby is in 1st grade. They both like school so far (it is only the second week). Rick is busier than ever in his new job (job title to come as soon as I ask him). He will be taking a few TDY trips this year even a few back to the states which is good I can send him shopping. I am hoping to use this blog to keep all our family and friends updated on adventures while we are here in Germany so check back and see what is happening. I am working up loading photo's of some of the things we have done so far. Give me few days and I should be all caught up. Enjoy you week