December pictures

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Finn and Lily discovering on December 6th that St. Nikolaus (or "Niggelaus" as Lily calls him) filled their boots with toys and a little treat!

Lily got these cute little Playmobil cats, complete with a scratching post not unlike ours, a food dish and a boy and a girl to take care of them. There are 6 kittens, two "Lennies", two "Blues" and two white ones. Lily loves them all and if one goes missing we have to search high and low until we find it again, a major undertaking considering their size.

Sunday, Dec 6th, there was a Nikolaus party in our town, in front of the church. It was the usual: a few booths with food and drinks, an enclosure with sheep and a couple of freezing teenagers ("Mary and Joseph"), a visit from Nikolaus who gave all the kids fruit and chocolate, and most of our town standing around drinking hot sweet wine and chatting. And the ponies. Lily fell in love with a pony named Heidi (no offense, cousin :) ) and she wanted to ride again and again, sitting up there like a queen and chattering all the time (explaining to Heidi where the sheep were, asking her why she was wearing a "Niggelaus-hat" and making plenty of neighing and snorting noises). Meanwhile Neil and Finn were busy eating huge crepes filled with nutella; I think they managed three. The ponies belong to a stable close to us and you can rent them to lead your child around. They also offer classes for young children, teaching them about safety and horse behaviour, and of course how to groom and ride a pony. Lily (and Mama) can't wait! :)

Last week we went to Neil's work Christmas party. It was fun! There was lots of food, room for the kids to play and, of course, a visit from St. Nick.

They loved playing with the nativity scene and in this old sled.

Now look, who just came through that door, Finn!



Claudia got to hold the staff, and Lily helped.

Last Sunday it snowed, and Finn and Lily loved watching the yard turn white. Unfortunately it didn't stay because the ground still wasn't cold enough. Finn got to play in it though before it disappeared. Now that it is about -2 all day and the ground is cold there is of course no snow in sight. :(

They can be so sweet ...

Reading "How the Grinch stole Christmas" with daddy. I'm afraid Lily was not impressed.

Our neighbours won this awesome gingerbread house at a party and since little Katharina is only 3 months old they gave it to us. We took it to Finn's preschool yesterday morning so he could share it with his class. Lily got to break a few pieces off right away so she wouldn't miss out.

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We really have the greatest kids in the world; I thank God every day for them! Lily is so cute. Today we went shopping to buy things for a gift basket for her Zwergelpark (playschool) teachers. She asked me what I was looking for and I said "piccolos". Piccolo is what those small single-serving bottles of champagne are called here. She said, "Piccolos? I help you look for piccolos." So when we went down another aisle she shouted, "I see them, there, Mama, lots and lots of piccolos!" She was so excited and proud that she found them that I gladly put them in our cart - chances are we will need those pickles soon. :)

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And last night, when I tucked Finn in bed he hugged me and out of the blue said, "But Mama, I really really love you and I don't want you to go to heaven when you're an Oma." What on earth do you say to that? I told him I would stay with him for a very long time. I hope I'm right. :)