Think about it...

The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams.

-Oprah Winfrey

Food for Thought

Well, after a wonderful Christmas holiday with G's family, we are back in Munich. G's Mutter und Vater were sweet and thoughtful, as always. And considering hosting Christmas with a full house (2 children/adults, 2 significant others, 1 Puggle and 1 Jack Russell) G's Mutter was in a cheerful mood every day and seemed genuinely happy just to have her family together under one roof. And in order to appreciate her cheerful mood, even with the typical Christmas chaos, you have to appreciate her food! First let me explain....G's Mutter is the Martha Stewart of Germany. Seriously. She can cook or make or bake anything. Not only will it taste amazing but everything looks like it has been prepared for a photo shoot in a cooking magazine. She makes her own Marmelade. Yes, with the cute jars and appropriate labels. Every traditional German dish I have tasted for the first time, has been from her kitchen. And this Christmas was no exception. I tried Kartoffelpuffer with Rübenkraut or potato pancakes with a thick golden syrup. I also tried Seezunge, a white fish in a creamy mushroom sauce with shrimp. Dessert was an all day snack for us. G and I ate Weihnachtsgebäck or Christmas cookies non-stop. And G's Mutter surprised him with his favorite dessert, Tiramisu. Every afternoon, we were like children, waiting for her next surprise. But the best meal was, of course, my favorite, Kaiserschmarrn! Kaiserschmarrn with Apfelmus or applesauce and vanilla Waffeln or waffles. It was a meal and dessert all rolled up in one! So, on New Year's Day, she bakes bretzen or fresh soft pretzels. It's a tradition, like my Oma preparing black eyed peas or some Japanese people having Mochi, in order to bring good luck and prosperity for the new year. Because one of her Christmas presents for me was my first waffle iron (she also taught me how to make them from scratch) I've decided to start our own little family tradition of making Waffeln on New Year's Day. I think no matter where we are in the world, or how much we celebrate the night before, or when we eventually have white chocolate babies, I will always be coherent enough to make waffles, right? Well, just in case I don't do so well for the first round on Sunday, I still have a box of my Favorite Aunt's pancake/waffle mix stashed away! Shhhhh!

Christmas Market Teil 2!

Weihnachtsmarkt

NYC Freedom Tower

Yesterday in New York City, two 25-ton steel columns, with an American flag, were lifted and set in place. These are the first structures of the skyscraper that will replace the twin towers of the World Trade Center. These two columns featured signatures of September 11 victims' relatives and pictures of firefighters killed in the 2001 attack. The 1,776-foot tower, scheduled to open in 2011, will be the tallest of the five skyscrapers planned to replace the World Trade Center. What a wonderful Christmas present for America.

Think about it...

Happiness is not having what you want, but wanting what you have.

-Rabbi H. Schachtel

Germany & Gospel

Meine zukünftige Schwaegerin (my future sister in law) surprised us with tickets to see The Harlem Gospel Singers at the famous Circus Krone. I'm familiar with Gospel music, as most African Americans are, but I hadn't heard of the world renowned Harlem Gospel Singers. Well, I have to tell you....It was uplifting, it was spiritual, and it was explosive! The music was so powerful and the choreography was outstanding. Yes, they danced! I found myself standing up and clapping along to the music, something I rarley do at concerts. I had no idea Gospel music was popular in Germany. G was skeptical and tired (a.k.a super cranky) from a long day at the Englischer Garten Weihnachtsmarkt but I caught him tapping his feet 30 minutes into the performance. He won't admit it but he enjoyed it too!

Christmas Market!

Weihnachtsmarkt

Mein kleiner Welpe...

ein Herzschlag an meinen Füßen.

Sweet Dreams

When I saw this box of cereal, my first thought was, "Mmmmm. I would love to lie in bed and eat those little pillows straight from the box." Don't they look yummy? I decided to take a picture and of course, G protested and said people would think I was strange. When I insisted, he simply walked to another isle and pretended we weren't together. Anyway, then I wondered how can a breakfast cereal have so much sugar, almost like a dessert. When I was kid, my Mom didn't allow us to have sweet cereal. We were stuck with Chex, Kix, and Wheaties, the breakfast of champions. More like the breakfast of the bland. Her favorite was Cheerios. And we almost drooled at the table if were allowed to have...brace yourself......Honey Nut Cheerios. Party time! Don't get me wrong, as an adult, I appreciate my Mom giving us nutritonal breakfast cereals rather than cereal that would have rotted our teeth and made us fat. But when I was a kid, I would have traded my Cabbage Patch Doll for one box of Fruit Loops or Cinnamon Toast Crunch. I wanted to be cookoo for Cocoa Puffs. Remember Fruity Pebbles? And Lucky Charms? Those magical marshmallows.......pink hearts, yellow moons, orange stars, purple horseshoes, and green clovers. And don't get me started on the king of all cereals, Captain Crunch! Oh well, that time has passed. Now I'm a Special K and Shredded Wheat kind of girl. Thanks Mom.

Wo ist der Schnee?

Drum roll please..............

Here is our pride and joy, our little monster, Robbie Williams. He is a Puggle, a hybrid cross between a Pug and a Beagle. My Mom gave him this Christmas present early, anticipating a cold winter in Munich. Considering how warm it's been (I'm NOT complaining!), he'll have to wait to wear it until the real winter weather comes.

Wieder Zuhause!

I'm back! Our cruise was fantastic. After visiting the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands and Costa Maya, our favorite stop was Costa Maya. Inadvertently, we found a private beach house owned by a British woman. We spent the day at this private beach with white sand, crystal clear water, and the best margaritas I've ever had. We were alone the whole day.....it was like our own little deserted island. And that was a good thing considering how ridiculous we behaved after those margaritas. I know this because the chef came down to politely suggest we eat something. I wanted to share so many pictures but after reviewing them, there aren't too many I can post! Let me just say, 1 American + 1 German + 1 Brit + 1 Italian chef, on a private beach in Mexico = an amazing day. Serendipitous indeed!

German Advent Calendar

It's the beginning of Advent and G gave me one of my favorite things about celebrating Christmas in Germany - a HARIBO Advent Calendar! I already know what you're thinking but I can't help getting excited about opening a little door every day and getting a new surprise pack of candy. I'm such a big kid. So much of a kid that last year, I ate almost two weeks of candy surprises on one day. I'll be better this year......I promise.

First Cruise - Last Vacation of 2006

So we are off to Florida today for some much needed R&R - we're going on our first cruise. We hit the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands and Costa Maya. It's our last adventure for the year and we are psyched, to say the least. Hawaii was amazing so I can't wait to see the Cayman Islands. And in addition to swimming with dolphins and the shark encounter (G in an underwater cage feeding sharks), he now wants to swim with stingrays. Can you say crazy... Anyway, I'll have cool pictures to share with you when we get back. Bis Später!