BUILDING BL(ayl)OCKS: Week 4 - Finding Balance and Routine

After a whirlwind of a weekend and such a hard week last week, I determined to make this week better by seeking more balance and routine. It started Monday by realizing I needed to have a physical calendar to look at dates and to see upcoming trips and plans and visitors. I drew them and added all the special dates and taped them to the wall. Jay and I also colored a couple pictures, and I am hoping maybe we will continue to color and fill up the wall to make it feel a little more like home. All of this may have come from the fact that I chose probably the busiest park in Munich to go to that morning. There were probably over 50 children at this park and it was too overwhelming for all of us. We snapped some pictures on the fun horses and then went to a nearby grocery store, Lidl. We haven't gone to Lidl before, so it was a fun adventure. I was soooo excited when I saw they had 18 count eggs!! I usually buy 5 dozen at a time when I'm at home and usually all you can buy here is a pack of 10. They also sold an XXL package of beef, it had about 1.7lbs of ground beef. Can you imagine what Germans would think if I ordered my usual 10 or more pounds? Unfortunately, my freezer is the size of a cheese drawer in the fridge, so I won't be purchasing that amount of meat anytime soon. I was grateful to find somewhere I could buy a little more regular proportions so I don't have to shop every day.

Here's the XXL package

Yeehaw!

This horse was resting

I am amazed with all the creative ways they build things into playgrounds to make sand play more fun

Giddy-up

Hugh looks a little scared, but he was having fun!

Tuesday and Wednesday were miracle days for us, our carpet was finally installed. Lindsay took the kids on Tuesday and hung out at our house the whole day for him to do the prep work he needed to. He actually arrived a couple hours early so I had to urgently call a friend nearby who ran over to open the door and let them in. Her service of being able to pause in the middle of her work morning was a big blessing. I got to video with Lindsay and see the progress of the carpet just before the guy left for the day and before we went to bed. Seeing it all laid out made me so excited! It took a while to fall asleep! Then, Wednesday, Jack worked from our house and stayed until the installer was completely finished. From the pictures, it looks amazing and beautiful and so good with our walls. I can't wait to see it in person! I feel like Heavenly Father was truly watching out for us and helped us get this installed and not lose our money. We had come to terms that we might get scammed and had to accept it, and I am so grateful we didn't have to learn that lesson exactly. I will be more careful in the future when I seek out contractors for work and ask more questions about their integrity, etc.

We found a few awesome parks this week! A couple on the way to a far away grocery store that we can only get to by walking, it takes about 40 minutes to get there. And, we found another park not too far from our house that was totally secluded and beautiful. After such a busy day at the park on Monday, we loved the extra quiet parks!

Ready

Set

Go, Jay!

Fun in the sand

Jay slid down that tiny steal bar, it was a little scary

Jay pretending to take a nap

Hugh loves carrying sticks, big sticks

Or little sticks

A built in volleyball net, or maybe badminton - cool!

Hugh was excited there was actually a playground he could access on his own!

See, so happy!

We saw this sand carving on the way to one of the parks

The boys love these donut holes, they are really good!

Each afternoon after naps, I have taken the boys down to the courtyard park right outside of our apartment. We play there for as long as we can, and then come back to up to get dinner ready before Matthew comes home. This has been a nice addition to our routine and has helped me feel a little more settled. I think the boys like the predictability as well. There is one boy who plays at the park a lot who is probably about 10 years old. He isn't very nice, he takes things from little kids, uses swear words, and I often won't stay long when he's there. This week I asked him to not swear around my children, which he tried to do a little less and I was grateful. One day he brought out popsicles for the boys and for a couple other little kids that were playing. I thought that was so sweet! It helped me realize he must have a really hard home life (I've seen some of the indications of this), but he can still find ways to be kind and generous. My heart was softened a bit towards him, and I hope that maybe throughout this summer we can maybe touch his heart someway. Also, so far, all the popsicles I've had here are 10x better than any popsicle in the US. Usually very creamy and full of flavor.

Friday I had a plan for a specific park that would get me close to a grocery store, so I could shop and play at a couple new parks. On our way to the park, we stumbled upon a super cool park! It was like a ropes course, with a big fun slide, and a little playground that Hugh could play at, great sand, and mostly shaded. We pulled off and we had such a great time, we stayed there for the rest of the morning. We'll go to the other parks another time. This is one way I enjoyed the moment, realizing a great park and not worrying about things not being in the plan for the day. I did the ropes course, and I had a lot of fun!

Jay's getting his adventure legs back, always eager to climb up to the slides

Just a little view of the obstacle course

When you wake everyone in the family up at 5AM, this is your punishment!

Hugh loved these little platforms

Sometimes it's hard to leave the park when everyone is so happy!

I thought maybe we could start a tradition of going to a bakery on Friday evening for a treat. It could be our date night, and an inexpensive way to enjoy time together and the German cuisine. We walked to one after dinner on Friday and realized bakeries are definitely better in the morning. We got a couple treats, but mostly everything was sold and gone. And, the treats we did get were really not very good which was sad. We'll have to change our plan to Saturday morning or something.

We didn't even finish this....it was just really not that good.

Saturday we had a regular Saturday in Munich! It was nice to take it easy in the morning and we stopped at Aldi on the way to our ward party. Matthew had never been to Aldi so I wanted him to be able to experience it. We shopped for things that could stay good in the stroller for a few hours and then went to the church. Our ward is being dissolved in a couple weeks, so this was a big last hoorah. Jay got to participate in a little kid scavenger hunt by finding things around that we various colors. And, he got to do a little obstacle course. He wasn't a fan of the obstacle course, but he enjoyed the yummy popsicle in return. We had delicious food, they grilled and had a ton of American chips (a rare delicacy around here), fruit, and vegetables. The boys were totally worn out and we made it home with them awake and then took naps. We wanted to go swimming after naps, it was sooooo hot. It was about 90 degrees plus humidity. We walked to the pool and the line was insane just to get in. We rerouted to our favorite splash area and then stopped at Aldi to grab some pretzels for dinner. The delicious ones with cheese are only 59 cents, so it's a steal! The boys should have been so tired, but they put up a fight for going to bed. We also found some free toys! Woohoo! Jay was super excited about a little wallet he found, it's like a day timer and Matthew made some paper pages and we found a coin at the store that he now keeps in it. Such a funny kid!

They had an adult sized ball, of course I had to try it out! Matthew did too!

Daddy is so much fun

Jay doing the obstacle course

Jay looking for the colors to add to his scavenger hunt

The final product! The pink is an actual strawberry that was growing

On the trains home, trying to escape the heat of the busses

Free toys!

Sunday we had a Munich-wide meeting, with all three wards in Munich. They asked for our sustaining vote on behalf of the changes to dissolved the English/International ward and combine everyone into two wards. It was sad to see some oppose the change, and I pray their hearts will be softened as we approach the change. I have enjoyed going to church in English and it will be so different to attend church with translation needed for everything. I used the headset today, but they didn't have enough so Matthew couldn't understand anything. It was interesting singing in English and hearing German, but it was beautiful to see so many saints gathered to worship. I am excited to meet more German people and see what the next couple months bring. We went to the park in the afternoon to get some wiggles out and enjoyed a game after the boys went to bed early for the first time in a couple weeks!

Jay's favorite free toy is what he calls a "purse." So cute.

Beautiful river right by our house.

A nearby park that Daddy got to come with us, Jay loved having him come

What's Jay been learning? ---- Jay has been pooping in the potty so much more! He tells us when he needs to go and if we're home, he is usually doing it on the potty. After over two years of cleaning poop out of underwear, I am soooooo grateful! He also still loves being a helper, getting the diaper changing stuff for Hugh or helping me make dinner, he's on it. He will always pack his backpack for our park adventures with his water and Hugh's. He reminds to me to take the key and to take my ring (aka my wedding ring) with us everywhere. He loves the trains now, he always requests we go on the train and has an eye for the above ground elevators. He's putting two and three words together so much more, and sometimes even more than that. He loves being silly and getting everyone to laugh. I think his pull up that he wears to bed has been dry every morning this week! He's also so brave, trying new things and succeeding at all these extra hard playground challenges. I love watching his focus and determination to figure it out!

Jay helping with dinner

Being a silly boy with the bread

He did this all on his own, amazing!

I was nervous for him, but he did so good!

What's Hugh been learning? --- Hugh is so happy, until he's not, which is probably like most kids. He's quick to smile, gives the cutest and greatest hugs. We all get hugs at night, even Jay and it's a good squeeze around the neck. He doesn't really love slides, I think they make him nervous. He does super good and regular swings, especially since baby swings are hard to come by. He's getting so good at climbing, and loves to show me the random things he finds, usually rocks and sticks. He's also learned to show us he's done with eating by sliding out of his chair! He's super on point with his "please" and loves to say "yay mommy!" when he does anything good. He's got several animal names and sounds, which is very fun too. He also knows when it's time to go to the park, and he'll grab his shoes and attempt to put them on. He loves spinning and getting dizzy!

This little seat spun, and he loved it

Figuring out the big kid swing

Slide!

Big climber

This is a horse chestnut he found, they were all over one park

And, this is the slide of I'm done with eating....

What have I been learning? ---I've been learning a lot! It'll be hard to capture everything. I've been learning to enjoy the moments of watching my kids learn and grow. I have been learning to let them learn on their own and to take risks. Jay is really good at turning back if he doesn't feel safe, and I have to trust that. I also stay close by to make sure they're safe. Cuddles after naptimes are my favorite, and nothing else brings back my motherly love for them faster. It's okay to take naps everyday! I'm tired, and sometimes a nap helps. Giggle at the signs in German that kind of seem like a Madgab game and figure out what they're saying without translation. Buying treats or cheap pretzels is always a good idea, especially when they're on sale and you need a pick me up. I need exercise and a shower at the beginning of my day, and I need time with Matthew at the end of my day. This time of life is special, it may be the only time the rest of my life where I don't have appointments, school, social pressures, etc. and I should make the most of it! Enjoying every moment that I can, and focusing on what matters most. I don't need to involve myself on social media to feel connected with random people. Here I am connected with the people who love me the most who have cared to figure out a way to reach me and my connections with them are truly fulfilling! I need routine, quiet time, and organization - these help me reset and be a better person!