a german christmas

an almost-mountain

i found out you can rent snowshoes on the Feldberg - the highest "mountain" in the black forest. but from the top we could see the Alps, some real goddamn mountains, like the ones i'm missing, and i lusted after them.

and then the days got longer

for a while there was snow.

and now marc is here from ohio.

happy solstice.

wonderland

::biked downtown on unplowed streets
::ginger hot chocolate and a cozy window seat
::beautiful new swedish daypack (happy xmas to me)

white

there is something to be said for delayed gratification.
this morning i drank my tea very fast,
put my tie-dye leggings on under my jeans,
and beat three of the four kids outside.
i sprawled out in the yard and let them bury me.

today i believe in love at first sight

mixtape

tomorrow is the kids' last day of school before the holidays. i think there is some baking in our future, and hopefully more christmas art. and then they go to grandma and grandpa's for christmas and i get a break from aupairland (rejoice). my friend from montana is coming to freiburg for christmas, and my parents are coming for new years.
o sweet distraction.


hey look!
i made you a christmas mixtape!





(the picture at the top is from my first unusual christmas in germany)

it's beginning

...to look a lot like christmas, though much more unusual.

today it snowed. the tiniest, slowest snowflakes i have ever seen. but when i saw them from my window i squealed and did an awkward happysnowdance. my own little ceremony.

we took a long time walking home from the school today, catching snowflakes on our sleeves and inspecting every one. and after lunch we decorated the christmas tree.

but isn't that supposed to be a family project? my christmas tree memories are warmfuzzy family scenes, tramping around tree farms and digging through boxes of old ornaments together and listening to the vince guaraldi trio and the nylons. in general, i think the family i work for is wonderful and loving and functional, but today i felt a little sad. after the kids left for school, mom and dad dragged a little tree into the room and left me with a box of ornaments and a string of lights. it took the kids just a few minutes after school to bury our charlie brown tree in origami stars.

i'm missing y'all today, and i hope your trees are beautiful.

green

from the Belchen, once upon a time.

this one's from the vault because i'm sick in bed, looking at old pictures instead of taking new ones.

faux

unseasonably

warm.

i've resigned myself to the freakish december weather and made my own paper blizzard. the kids made snowflakes for the downstairs windows, and i taught them the (apparently american) joys of the construction paper chain.

the halls, they are decked.

and freiburg is decked out too. those big red star lights are my favorite. come on amerika, ditch the plastic santas already.

i wish it would snow.

hello december

i live in christmasland.

christmas has never been my favorite, but germany somehow turns me into a christmas fiend. there's a christmas market in freiburg, and it's magical. something about the mulled wine and the lights and all that pine, it melts my heart.

one day into december, and i've already drunk plenty of glühwein.
a sufjan christmas is on repeat on my itunes.
i spend a lot of time at the window waiting for the rain to turn to snow.
wish y'all were here.