Wow, it has been busy just handling the daily tasks of life. I am a bit behind but will catch up. We have so enjoyed the beauty of fall - my favorite season. The colors have been brilliant - especially the golds! I'm not sure what the type of tree is here that turns so yellow - the leaves look kind of like an elm tree. They are beautiful. We've enjoyed a number of walks in the nearby woods and the "crunch" of leaves under our feet everywhere. The weather has been quite damp and somewhat rainy so when we get a dry day we capitalize on it and enjoy it. We find it so funny here. They dress like they are in the Artic - you'll note the picture of Dayna and her friend. Dayna has no coat, no socks and crocs while her friend is all bundled up. We thought as Texans we would be the wimps!! Anyway, since the girls get out so early we have time during the week for some outings. One of our trips after school with our Icelandic friends was to a nearby town called Bad Urach (pronounced "Bod Oooorachchch" - gotta get that guttural ending!). It was about 30 minutes away and is the site of some ruins and a beautiful waterfall. There's also hot springs there (we didn't get in although the day was warm enough to). The Germans love their hot springs and mineral baths. We have yet to do that - good for the winter months! The kids opted to wade at the top of the waterfall and of course got wet. The site was very pastoral with cows in a pasture and the Swabian Alb mountains in the background. It was a great time. Another day we went a few miles away into the Forest Preserve to see some wild boars who are in a fenced area. They are supposedly all over here along with deer. I've yet to encounter one and don't have any plans to! The kids had a ball feeding them, especially the babies (didn't dream ANY size wild boar could be deemed "cute"). We have collected enough leaves, horse chestnuts, walnuts, acorns, and pine cones to last a century. The girls have enjoyed playing in the leaves (remember we have only 3 spindly little trees at home!!) and yearn for someone to ask them to rake some leaves for them!! Another chilly day, I went with Karissa's class to the farmer's market downtown which was a huge treat. The farmers/bakers/cheese/meat vendors were all so kind and gave out lots of free samples - YUM!! We went to the city hall for a snack of our purchases and then back to the school and made pumpkin soup with all of the vegetables. It was really delicious (the one variety of pumpkin they eat skin and all so it was "chunky" soup). The scary part for me was all the 3rd graders equipped with knives to cut up all the veggies (German kids are a bit unruly in school)! In addition to all the cabbage, Germany grows apples, pears and plums over here like crazy and there are different varieties than in the states - delicious!! The best apples are called Cox Orange. I can't wait for spring to see all the fruit trees in bloom.
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