My Parents in Germany, Part II, Week 2 and Other Updates

Castles! And more castles yet to come next week.

Tim vs The Grill. So, I didn't buy a grill...yet. I was in the check out line, with the grill. Then I thought, next week I might find out that they are moving us to Manila, where we will live in a high rise apartment building, where there will be no grilling. I'm going to wait a week. Alas, still no news on whether we're staying or going. And Katie teasing me all the while.

Madeline vs Her Mother. Maddie told Katie about her "date" for the upcoming Halloween dance, so perhaps this conflict is in detente.

My Parents Came to Germany (Again!)

They came while the kids are in school this time, so mostly they've been helping with chores, which I'm sure is why they came. They got to see Maddie's first game as a Frankfurt Warrior.

And we went to Rudesheim

Their first sunny (mostly) day in Germany

And then to Burg Eltz ("So it's castle, but what else?" was the joke I attempted seven or eight times. No laughs.)

A Few Storylines

Tim vs The Grill. How we spend our summers in this overseas, frequently moving lifestyle is a point of grave debate and the most ernest consideration. For one thing, it is getting rather expensive to house a family of five in short-term rental quarters for two months.

So I presented this awesome idea of how we could buy fixer-uppers, spend the summer fixing them up and then sell them the next summer (or after a few summers as dictated by transaction cost, blah, blah, blah). To which Katie responded, "You can't even grill a steak."

I am purchasing a grill. Will Tim learn to grill a steak and thus earn his wife's confidence in fixing up old houses (because they are totally related)? Or will he succumb to his wife's prejudice that he cannot perform traditional male roles? Stay tuned.

Madeline vs Her Mother. 

"Mom, what did I do?"

"What do you think you did?"

"I don't know. I was just sitting on the couch."

"Maddie, I'm tired of being yelled at."

"I just wanted some food."

"The kitchen is full of food. You're eleven years old. You need to learn to get your own food."

"Do you hate me?"

Stay tuned.

Caleb's Tae Kwon Do Quest. Caleb achieved his blue belt in Cairo. In Germany, he discovered that the standards were different (more strict). He likely would not have qualified for the belt here without more precise movements. His confidence was shaken and he felt to retreat. To his credit, he is back on the mat and committed to advancing to blue-with-red. Stay tuned.