Hohenschwangau and Neuschwanstein

So apparently I am not cut out for blogging but maybe (just maybe) I'll get into the habit of making posts about trips we go on. It would be a start.

First off was our trip to Hohenschwangau and Neuschwanstein Castles! Goodness gracious they are beautiful! We went on a trip organized by the post and left on their bus at 5am. David and I was not too friendly that early in the morning but after sleeping on the five hour trip to the castles I was good to go! The weather was awful but we had a good time anyway. We took tours of both castles, hiked a little to get a gorgeous view from St. Mary's bridge, and ate a typical German meal of bratwurst and beer, then hopped back on the bus for the trek back home.

Lake Alpsee

Hohenschwangau

view of Hohenschwangau from Neuschwanstein

view of the lake from Neuschwanstein

Neuschwanstein from St. Mary's bridge! Love this view!!!

us and the castle

a little rain-soaked but still enjoyed out trip!

Hallo Deutschland!

It's been two months since I've posted anything (which is WAY too long) and so much has happened in those two months!! Let me catch you up, and I promise I'll try to write the short version!

July was moving month for us! The movers came, packed up the majority of our belongings and shipped them off to Germany! We spent about a week getting only two or three hours of sleep a night, scrubbing our house from top to bottom, and getting all of our paperwork in order for the move.

Then (in what was probably a moment of insanity) we decided to drive back to Texas at midnight on July 20 to be back in time for a dear friend's wedding! The girls and I had the opportunity to sing at Lisa and Thad's wedding which was wonderful until we all started crying in the middle of the song. It was great to catch up with the girls since it'll be at least three years before I get to hang out with all of them together again (unless someone else gets married!!).

Then it was the great shuffle game between my family in SA and D's family in ATX. Family time was the best and definitely made it difficult for us to leave!!!

Then our great move started on July 30! We left ATX at 4am (ew) for our flight to Minneapolis, then to Baltimore, and then to Ramstein, Germany! It was a grand total of 15 hours of flying. Then we waited four hours for our seven hour bus ride and we were finally in Hohenfels. Two full days of traveling later we had reached our destination and got to eat food and take showers. It was exhausting and we both got a little grouchy but that was to be expected. I can't imagine what that trip would have been like with kids and a pet like so many of the families on the bus/flight with us!

Now we live in Germany :) And it's so incredibly cool!!

We spent two weeks in the hotel and then moved into our German duplex. We're currently on week three with the beautiful loaner furniture the Army let us borrow and it's just finally starting to not smell like feet. We're taking advantage of not having any furniture by painting the kitchen and living room. It's been kind of fun to be able to slip and slide around in my socks and put anything anywhere because we basically have nothing but I am so looking forward to having our things back. I'm a little nervous that everything will turn up broken or missing but I guess we'll find out when it's delivered (hopefully) in a few weeks.

Until then, I'm planning trips for us for every weekend for the next three years. There are so many places I want to see, it's so hard to know where to start! I can't wait until our families come to visit so I can show them our beautiful new home :)

Chipmunk Cheeks

I had my wisdom teeth taken out on Monday. So not cool. Anyone who knows me knows that I am a big huge weenie when it comes to pain and I am a horrible patient. I've never had surgery, never had to stay in the hospital, never broken a bone, and (up until last week when I had a questionable freckle removed from my tummy) never had stitches. Thankfully D has had a really slow work week and had the 4th and today off so he was able to dote on me and be my nurse. He's been so wonderful, making me mashed potatoes, running out to get me ice cream, and reminding me to do my salt water rinse. I kind of like him :)

Today is the first day I haven't been watching the clock and taking ibuprofen EXACTLY when I can take my next dose. I gave up the hydrocodone approximately twelve hours after the surgery, since it made me puke back up the vanilla pudding I had for dinner (which I haven't had any more of since). I'm also looking less like a chipmunk today which is a great accomplishment! I can *almost* smile normally and I only talk a little strangely now. I can't wait to get the sutures out on Monday and be back 100% :)

Kiss on my List

I am obsessed with making lists. Lists of everything. Lists of lists.

D and I are moving to Germany in FIVE weeks and the lists are taking over. I have lists of what needs to be done before the move, what needs to be in our checked luggage, what needs to be in our carry-on luggage, what needs to be brought back to Texas with us, what to do when we first get to Germany, places to see in Germany...... I could go on and on and on. But I won't.

These lists might seem ridiculous but they keep me sane. I feel like if I put everything that is running through my head down on paper I'll be able to think clearly and be productive. After creating my fun OCD Germany notebook, I feel like I can conquer anything :) D and I have been incredibly productive since I got back to Georgia (more about my Texas trip once I upload my pictures) and I think we might actually be ready to go before it's time to leave our house here in Georgia in less than a month. Maybe.

Hello, gorgeous!!

This weekend D and I went to northern Georgia to celebrate our first anniversary a few weeks early. Words cannot describe how beautiful it was!!! We stayed at the Lake Rabun Hotel which is a quaint little bed and breakfast with only eight rooms. They have a restaurant with an incredible chef whose dinner was fantastic on Saturday night and breakfast each morning was probably the best breakfast I've ever had. We had a couples massage, went on a couple hikes to see a few waterfalls, toured and tasted wine at a local vineyard, and relaxed and read our books outside with a view of the lake. It was such a wonderful trip and we didn't want to leave! As we were driving around we talked about the area being somewhere we could live one day. Now we just have to convince our families to move out here!

anniversary dinner 

Minnehaha Falls

one of the upstairs lounges

D fully absorbed in his book

Bargain hunter

Everyone knows I am obsessed with finding a good bargain. I love hunting for good deals and finding what I am looking for at a great price. Just a few days ago I was at Ross (one of those great bargain places) and I found this awesome set!

7 super bright neon nail polishes for...... EIGHT DOLLARS! EIGHT! Now these aren't at the very top of the line, but they're still $8 a bottle if you buy them individually, so I think it's a pretty good bargain. 

Crochet Obsession

If you know anything about me you know I'm obsessed with crafts. Crocheting, knitting, scrapbooking, making random things to decorate our house with, refinishing furniture, you name it, I love it. 

Lately I've really gotten into crocheting. I learned when I was in middle school and would get really into it for spurts of time, but this time I'm really hooked (get it?!). I've been making baby things nonstop for the past few weeks and I'm loving it! I have made a bunch of hats, a blanket, and most recently a sweater. They're all so stinking cute!!

We have a little gift shop on Fort Benning that sells homemade items and I decided a few weeks ago I was going to try it out. I dropped off a bunch of goodies this past Tuesday and we shall see what happens! 

I might just have to start making a little stock pile to keep for myself for the future :)