Life: Idiotropic

Kirk was off of work today and we needed to get out and do something, so we took Mom down to Aachen. She'd never been there before and it's a really nice little town - not too much history - it was only the capitol of Charlemagne's empire.

The potentially rainy day was absolutely beautiful, so we enjoyed the walk around the city. We started out in the square by the rathaus as usual where they were setting up the cute little wooden buildings for the upcoming Christmas markets, then we walked down one of the main shopping streets towards the Dom where Charlemagne just so happens to be buried. We've been to Aachen quite a bit, but it hasn't gotten boring. It is still a beautiful city and the Dom is so detailed that I still see new things each time I visit it. The cathedral is immense which always makes me curious since I've only seen a small part of it. It was built over hundreds of years too, so the architectural styles vary quite a bit from one part to another as is common in European cathedrals and castles.
From there we walked back around towards the market and the rathaus. Cut Christmas trees lined many streets leaning on light posts ready to be set up. The market on the back of the church had been mostly done and some vendors were already setting out there things, but a huge stack of trees lay in the middle not yet decorated. The youngest two girls kept trying to climb them.

Kirk enjoys the architecture and loved the gargoyles on the Dom. My mom and I enjoyed looking around and ducking quickly into shops to see what was there. We saw a beautiful tweed jacket that was a mere 600 Euros (and that was 50% off!) and a beautiful purse that would fit my camera perfectly - just "coffee money" at 990 Euros. The shop windows are all decorated for Christmas and the printen shops, especially, were inviting with foot and a half stacks of different flavored printen cookies filing the windows - some covered in different shades of chocolate and some not - it was hard to walk away without buying a bag of it. Tiara moped until I let her get her camera out and take her own pictures.
But the little ones, I think had an even better time than anyone. Instead of whining about being bored, they skipped along to the movable fountain where a man played the accordion and a older lady danced with her grandson, then searched the sidewalk for really big leaves. Then, as we got closer to the church, they found a sweet little grey pigeon to chase. Arianna was following it carefully trying not to scare it away, then Luci and Elise would run up and watch it flap, raise a foot of the ground, and land just a couple feet away. Then the process would begin again. Those three always manage to stay entertained.

Standing on the steps of the Rathaus we could see Starbucks over the tops of the little wood stands, so we went there for coffee. This the the only place where I break my rule not to go to American fast food... I still haven't gone to Subway, McDonald's, or KFC, but Starbucks is good and reliable. I know I can find spacious seating for myself and the girls, a clean bathroom, and really decent food. The food at Starbucks here is much better than anything I've had there in the states anyway... with a lot more healthier choices too! It was nice to have a small snack and relax before heading home. The girls know where the kid corner is too, so when they were done eating, the "older" people got to chat without wiping chocolate cookie off of anyone's face.

Both before and after our Aachen adventure, we let the kids have 15 minutes on the slide. It's great. The REALLY tall slide is just by the parking garage that we use, so they can climb up the narrow windy staircase to the top, then slide down the big tunnel. They figured out that they went faster sliding down on their coats, so the coats came off and they slid fast. Luci slid right off the end of the slide and then Tiara came flying off the end right after her with Elise on her lap. Last night Luci asked if we could go back to the slide again... it always leaves an impression.
So my kids, after living in Europe, will not remember the historical stuff at all, but they'll remember that Europe has cool slides and fun playgrounds. I guess that's ok.

Oh my goodness, I've created myself!

I remember the days when I'd cry if I got a B on a test. At the time it seemed quite rational. Now I realize that there is a bigger picture involved. But, my daughter is just like me in that. Last year she enjoyed being the only straight A student in her class. She got used to seeing A's on almost every test and assignment. Now, in 6th grade, she has the toughest teacher in the school and it's hard. I'm thrilled because I'd rather that she be challenged and get B's than earn an easy A and not learn anything. This year she's challenged and she's learning a lot. But report cards just came out and my emotional daughter got a B - one B. That upset her more than anything. She said that it would have been easier to get 2 or 3 B's but only one means she was very close to having straight A's again and no matter how hard she works, she won't be able to stand on the stage at the end of the year as one of the kids who got straight A's all year long.

So, I was the proud parent the other day looking at her report card knowing that she's learning and working hard. She looked at it and burst into tears then sobbed into her pillow when it was time for bed. So I sat there trying to reason with her and comfort her while she kept saying that "B is for Bad." It was like a bad Sesame Street episode. If she's going to cry this much over a B, I'm really in for it when she starts dating. Should I find a good therapist now?

Autumn is in full swing with misty rain, cooler temperatures, and gorgeous deep oranges and reds in the trees. A small protected forest weaves itself around the base and near several towns in the area, so there is gold all around as the sun shines through and a good wind sends the leaves down in a bright confetti mix not unlike the showers of flower petals that covered the streets in the spring. The girls are busy collecting leaves and pressing some and I am looking up online crafts to figure out what exactly to do with all of them. I sure love this time of year.

This morning I got up before the crack of dawn to go to Tongeren, but it wasn't painful like most mornings. The Sunday antique market there is so fun for me now that I couldn't sleep. I kept waking up worried that I overslept and would miss it.

The drive at that hour is beautiful and serene with virtually no traffic even in busy Maastricht and the home stretch from Maastricht to Tongeren is a straight 16 kilometers lined with antique shops, green cow covered hills, and cute bakeries.
It was relaxing to walk today. The colder weather and spotty rain kept a lot of people away, so crowds were easy to navigate. I brought just a tiny bit of money which made spending a lot a bit of a challenge, so the treasures that I did want to run away with were out of my reach. We walked all over the entire market area, then stopped for coffee and a small snack. Mom had an apple tart and I had pannekoeken with fruit.

The truly amazing finds of the day were hard to walk away from. One was an exquisite Steuben glass vase. The man was asking 350E for it, but it was from the early 1900's and a similar one on ebay had been bid up to $2600 and hadn't closed yet. It's easily worth at least $3500 - probably more. Another treasure was an English secretary in pristine condition. It was cherry and all original finishes with even the original ribbons on the inside flaps to hold notes and such. It was another absolutely amazing find - just perfect and worth so much more that it's 750E price tag. Most all these things in Tongeren appreciate the second they make it to the U.S. It's hard not to go a bit crazy here. Everything is beautiful and "special."
I did walk away with some very pretty prisms for my Christmas tree and mom found a fur muff. It wasn't quite as satisfying a shopping day as my first trip, but that was only because those things I found that were truly spectacular were sadly out of my reach. I'll go again next month with Kirk.

Once a month we get the Pfarrebrief in our mail slot. It is the area's church newsletter that covers events for three different local churches. This newsletter is where I found the information for our local St. Martin's Day celebration. In Teveren, we'd met at the school and ended at the school is a purely secular celebration, but in Gillrath it was very different. I knew that we needed to be there at 5 and though that there may be a mass, but I wasn't sure. We walked to the church from our house and got there just as mass was starting, so we sat in a pew in the back - or mom and Kirk sat and I stood to keep tabs on the kids and deal with a squirmy Elise. St. Martin was on the stage with his traditional red robes and his long fake white beard and gold helmet. The mass, of course, was all in German, but my mom, being Catholic, understood a lot of it. Kirk understood it all except the singing. I knew some of the songs because Luci had learned some St. Martin's songs in school and they sung them in church as well. The service lasted about 45 minutes and ended with communion and a couple songs. People trickled in quietly in the back. The girls behaved well, so I was very proud of them.
When it was over we walked outside to see the huge crowds of people who did not attend the mass. The band was assembled and the street in front of the church was packed already with children bearing lanterns and their parents holding Styrofoam cups of gluwein.

The band started playing and the crowd walked a short distance to the small town parking lot where all the local celebrations are held. Tonight the firemen were the ones holding the torches as we all walked along. In the lot was a huge bonfire like the night before in Teveran. I was glad that I'd been to Teveran because the crowds were so huge in Gillrath and the reenactment so brief that by the time we got to the back of the crowd, it was over and St. Martin was already riding away on his horse, leading the parade. So we walked again, down a long street, looping up right in front of our house, then walking all the way back the the church. St. Martin's horse waited outside. Fathers milled around talking and drinking gluwein and mothers joined the throng of kids and lanterns pushing in through the narrow church doors to see St. Martin. It took a while to get in and the kids were frustrated, but we saw why inside. Whereas in Teveren, many people handed out the bags of bread and chocolate to the children, in Gillrath, St. Martin shook every child's hand and gave them their treats. So we waited in line and Arianna and Luci both shook his hand. Elise was scared, so I grabbed her and Tiara got the goodies for both of them.
When we got back Tinny and Finny were waiting to see us. They'd waved as we walked by in the parade too. Finny said that she'd helped put together 495 goodie bags earlier that day. The church took all the donations for St. Martin's day and spent all of it on the kids, so each of my girls received in their goodie bag: 1 large St. Martin's bread, 2 clementines, 1 apple, 1 hanutta chocolate wafer, 1 full sized snickers bar, a package of 12 chocolate covered Aachener printen cookies, a bag of marzipan potatoes, a full sized milka chocolate bar, and a large package of butter spekulaties (cookies). The bags were almost too heavy for the kids to carry home. So the kids stuffed themselves on bread and fruit, and Kirk and I went for the printen. YUM! Mom and Kirk went to Il Genio's to get dinner afterwards. For some odd reason, the kids just weren't that hungry... :)

Tiara was there... she's in the first picture. The lanterns are carried on hooks on little poles with batteries inside and a little light bulb that hangs down into the lantern. They are VERY cheaply made, so poor Tiara made a lantern that afternoon, but her light just wouldn't stay on. Eventually, she just got tired of it and walked without it. Elise didn't make a lantern, so she carried a flashlight part of the way until she dropped it and it broke to bits. Next year, they'll all make lanters and we'll use glowsticks inside... those would be a lot more reliable.

Tante Tinny sung a song with the girls earlier that week. Here are the words: "Laterne, Laterne, Sonne, Mond und Sterne, Brenne auf mein Licht, Brenne auf mein Licht: Aber nur meine liebe Laterne Nicht!"

Kirk celebrated his 35th birthday tonight in Sittard at Mr. Kim's De Wok restaurant - a great Chinese restaurant on the market square that has only a buffet, so it is one price and you can eat until you drop. One table has fruit and sushi, another fried foods and typical Chinese meat dishes, and another long bar had endless bowls of meats, fishes, vegetables and noodles for soup or Mongolian BBQ. They also had a Japanese chef working at another grill cooking Japanese style tilapia, salmon, swordfish, and other yummy fishes. I hadn't eaten there before, but when I asked a Dutch friend for restaurant recommendations in Sittard, he suggested Chinese or Greek. Aren't there any good Dutch restaurants? No. "Dutch food is really bland and most people just cook it at home." Dutch just really like international food. The best restaurant in Maastricht is a satay bar.Tiara missed it, poor girl. She had point class from 1715-1815 and then a rehearsal immediately afterwards until 2030. When we picked her up afterwards she was exhausted and starving so we rushed home to feed her, eat cake, and open presents.

Kirk wanted bienenstich for his cake, so I baked that for him. Bienenstich is a German cake with candied almonds on top and custard in the middle. The name translates to "bee sting," so it is a sweet cake and very good. (I'll post the recipe eventually, but I have about 10 recipes for this that all differ slightly. This one wasn't as good as others I've made, so I need to find the better recipe... now I'm on a quest.)

For his birthday he was spoiled with a first edition book that he's wanted, an autographed Billy Joel LP, and a really nice bottle of wine. He was very happy and the girls were all excited to watch him open presents. They love birthdays - no matter whose birthday it is!


It gets dark here by 6, so Sittard was very dark as we walked around the market square, but the church is lit up at night and everything is pretty. So the photos below are of the market with the church... and me.

If any of you have ever stepped off of an airplane after a transatlantic flight, then you know the nauseous, overtired, achy, just-got-hit-by-a-semi-truck feeling associated with the word "jetlagged." Some might refer to this by saying, "I feel dead," and indeed, one might think by the pale, drawn, corpse-like appearance of some jetlagees, that they are on their way there.

My mother, upon arriving in Dusseldorf after a 12+ hour flight from Portland, did not look jetlagged. She looked irritatingly refreshed and beautiful (I never look that good), but she did feel a bit tired. So, sweet, considerate daughter that I am, I took her to a cemetary that morning.

WHAT?!!!??!?!?! Is that your reaction? Well, it might have been seen as a really cruel joke, but Tiara was singing with her class at the Margraten American War Cemetary at 11 for a Veteran's Day ceremony.

Due to some interesting navigation by our GPS, we got there right as it was starting. Both the Canadian and American anthems were sung, then some brief introductions, a shorter speech, and then the presentation of colors and wreathes and books of poetry done by elementary students. The half-hour ceremony closed with songs by both Af North Elementary and GK Elementary schools.

(As it was ending, I was thinking... I drove ALL OVER THE NETHERLANDS for this??!?!?!? And, as it turned out, the kids weren't even really assembled in a nice manner, but clumped together off to the side with the onlookers, so I couldn't even get a good photo of her singing, so, yes -- I drove 2 hours round-trip to attend a 30-minute ceremony during which I got a profile shot of my daughters head among a sea of tweenish heads that will be about the size of a pin-head in a standard 4x6 photo. Hey - the upshot is that I can rightfully call her pin-head now... she'll love that!)


When the ceremony was over, the classes began the "peace walk" around the perimeter of the cemetery. While they walked, Elise and Luci gathered large maple leaves from the ground and handed them to mom. The grass was dewy and reflected the sunlight very beautifully. The day was perfectly crisp autumn with a cloudless sky and a clear view of the Limburg valley below.


As the students returned from the quiet walk, they were each given one long stemmed rose to place by a grave. The boys humorously all sniffed the roses while the girls seemed indifferent to them. Tiara thoughtfully placed her rose at the foot of a cross of a man from Oregon. I turned to gather up Luci and Elise who were hugging the white marble crosses and we went home.

If it wasn't for the ceremony today, I would have forgotten about Veteran's Day. The weather was perfect though and the cemetery is in a beautiful part of The Netherlands in green hilly farm country, so even the getting to and from was special. On one narrow street a beautiful horse stood above us just on the edge of a grassy ledge looking out. It was one of many photo-ops untaken.

Luci with her lantern, unlit
St. Martin of Tours was a Roman soldier who led a simple life. He became Bishop, but didn't want to, so at one point, according to legend, he hid out in a barn to escape the people who were looking for him to appoint him Bishop. A flock of geese made noise and gave away his hiding place, so the goose has become the symbol of St. Martin and the traditional food served on his day. November 11th is also the beginning of Fasching, Karneval, and Fastnacht.

A couple months ago I was standing at the bus stop talking to a few other moms and this holiday came up. I hadn't heard of it before, but the moms who had been here last year had very nice things to say about St. Martin's Day. So, even before going to my first parade, I kind of knew what to expect.

St. Martin's Day is traditionally celebrated on November 11th by children all over Germany and the Netherlands. The children walk the streets after dark carrying their lanterns and singing songs. At the end they meet St. Martin, see his horse and the bonfire, and get a special treat. Because not all horses can handle being calm around kids and a bonfire, there are only a few in the area that are used and they are shared by all the local villages. So, not all St. Martin parades are on the same day.

Last night we drove into Teveren, the small town outside of the NATO base, and parked near the school where the parade was to begin. It was dark when we arrived at 5:30. As we walked by, I could see adults gathered in a lit room at the school surrounded by bottles of Gluwein, a hot spiced wine that is traditional around here. The square in front of the school was crowded with kids of all sizes with their families all with lit lanterns of all shapes and sizes. The youngest kids carried the cylindrical lanterns like Luci's decorated in different ways. Some kids had paper mache animal lanterns that looked like they were made around a balloon form. Then the older kids (4-6th grade ages) carried beautiful lanterns in the shapes of birds, dragons, ladybugs, and all sorts of things all brightly lit and beautiful. Some had feathers and legs. Some had glitter. All had some place with tissue paper where the light could shine through. We met Luci's teachers and classmates there, so among the German students in Teveren, there were Americans, Canadians, and Italians.

A booth was set up selling hot Gluwein and hot cocoa and as it was cold and windy, a lot of people were taking advantage of that. About 6:15 a man on a megaphone told us to go to the front of the school. There, the band was assembled and began to play. They played simple children's tunes and many of the kids started to sing along to the St. Martin's songs. The walk was long. We walked all through the village in a large loop with the band in front of us and St. Martin riding his horse about 30 feet behind us. The girls kept looking back to see him. Luci had been told the stories of St. Martin the weeks leading up to this parade, so seeing him was as great as seeing Santa Claus. All along the route the police stood on the sidewalks or walked along with the crowd carrying lit torches. Some gave torches to the older boys to carry as well. I walked along with my girls, participating in this German tradition, seeing the police bearing torches, and couldn't help but feel, even among the music and colorful lanterns, a bit unsettled. People stood out on their front porch watching the parade go by. I carried Elise half-way, but the other girls walked the entire time - even Luci, carrying her Nemo lantern.
When we arrived back at the school after about 45 minutes of walking, there was a large bonfire lit in the grassy area behind the school. It was roped off, so the crowd all gathered thickly around the ropes. A man, dressed in rags (with thick socks and Tevas), sat shivering by the fire. St. Martin rode up on his horse (led the entire time by another man, lessening the drama), pretended to tear his fancy red robe, and gave the man a scrap of red fabric that he covered himself with. Then St. Martin rode around in circles about 20 times waving to all the children and the "poor man" walked around as well. It was a slightly humorous reenactment that did a good job of impressing the children.

After that we got in line to pick up our treats. All the kids got a bag with a large St. Martin bread in it and a full sized Milka chocolate bar. St. Martin's Day breads are in the shape of a man holding a pipe. They can be found in all the bakeries here and are about 14" long. The girls got very excited about their bread and ate a lot of it when they got home. Arianna ate the inside out of hers and then stuffed the hollow bread cavity with cheerios. Luci and Elise both ate different body parts and poked holes in the belly. Luci was excited because the pipes are not bread - they are some sort of ceramic that is baked into the bread so that it looks like St. Martin is holding it. She loves her pipe and thinks it's very special and wants to keep it "forever."

Anyway... it was a nice evening and a new cultural experience. On Saturday night we'll participate in the Gillrath St. Martin's Day parade since it's the one in our own village. We only did Teveren's since the preschool was participating in that one.

Here's the song that Luci learned (with the translation)

Ich geh' mit meiner Lanterne (I'm coming with my lantern
Und meine Lanterne mit mir And my lantern with me
Dort oben leuchten die Sterne, There, over the light are the stars,
Hier unten, da leuchten wir. Here, under the light are we.
Mein Licht ist aus, My light it out
Wir gehn nach Haus, We're going home,
Rabimmel, rabammel, rabum. Rabimmel, rabammel, rabum.)

St. Martin's Day parades are coming up this week, so it's time for all the children to make lanterns. At the German schools, all the children make lanterns in their classes. Arianna made hers in art class at her school. Luci's class made lanterns on Friday and parents were invited to help, so we all went. Since Tiara and Elise didn't have an opportunity to make a lantern, we got kits for them to take home. The thin paper was already glued to the bottom when we got there, but Luci got to put glue on the bottom and glue sand to it. Then we put on the top and began to trace and cut out the fish, seaweed, and stripes. Tiara and Arianna helped Luci cut. Luci did one seaweed herself with the poker. Here, to learn to cut on the lines and hand/eye coordination, children are given a thick fabric pad and a sharp metal poker. They put the paper on the pad and poke holes along the traced lines as if perforating it. Then they tear it out leaving a nice ruffled edge as if they cut it with decorative scissors. It's great for them, but takes some time and is tiring, so after Luci, Arianna, and Tiara each had done one with the poker, they were all ready to switch to scissors. Luci enjoyed gluing the most and all in all, it was a fun family activity there at the school with other families.

Lanterns can be just about any shape. We saw kids coming home from our local school carrying little paper dragon lanterns. Arianna's has colored tissue "flags" glued to the sides of hers. They all look really pretty when they are lit up.

Our first parade is tomorrow... I'll fill you in on St. Martin's Day traditions then!

This morning was another beautiful Spanish morning.

A deep fog settled in all over Geilenkirchen making the trees fade into white in the distance. It was serenely beautiful. The leaves here are all golden and the cows are beginning to disappear from the pastures as it gets colder. Yesterday was our first morning frost of the season. Today the low was 32.

I went to Joana's house for our morning coffee and chocolate fix and she made Empanada Gallega - a thin dough stuffed inside (like a calzone, but bigger and flat) with tuna, onion, chopped hard-boiled eggs, and roasted red peppers. I have a very strong aversion to hard boiled eggs chopped in food, so that was hard to look at, but it smelled wonderful. Joana said that it can be stuffed with anything. Tiara agrees that shredded flank steak with onions and peppers might be tastier. It looked beautiful - a large flat oblong pastry with beautiful rolled edges that Joana did in seconds with just one hand. She said to serve it at room temperature, so I had a piece when I got home. It tasted really great (I picked out the egg chunks), so I'll make it for my family soon... with my own variations.

I was going to take a picture of it, but Kirk ate it when he got home and there was nothing left to photograph. This is another recipe to add to my regular repertoire. With the same crust and technique and slightly different fillings, it would be a sure hit with the kids too.

Here's the recipe (as I have it in hand)... I'll translate it here in the next couple days.

EMPANADA GALLEGA

iNGREDIENTES: 400 gramos harina,1/4 de vaso de aceite,1/2 vaso agua templada,20gramos levadura,1 huevo,un poco de sal.

RELLENO: 250 gramos de atún,tomate frito (un poco),1 pimiento rojo asado,2 cebollas,2 huevos duros,1 huevo,aceite y sal.

Disolver la levadura en el agua con un poco de sal,añadir el huevo batido y el aceite,añadir la harina y formar una masa dejar reposar 1/2 hora.

Rehogar la cebolla picada o cortada en pequeños trozos,añadir el tomate frito,poner sal y pimienta a gusto.Dejar unos minutos al fuego.

Añadir el pimiento cortado a tiras,los huevos picados y el atún.Mezclar todo.

Separar la masa en dos trozos,estirar una de ellas y forrar un molde, previamente untado con un poco de aceite para que no se pegue,dejando que la pasta sobresalga un poco por los bordes(para que luego podamos cerrar la empanada con la trenza).

I am still recovering from Halloween. Here I am in a country that is just beginning to learn what Halloween is, and we are celebrating it bigger than ever. May be it is a way for the Americans and Canadians to stick together and preserve a bit of our identity over here. We are a very small population and each day that goes by reminds me just how few we are here.

Europeans have learned about American culture and holidays like Halloween from American movies and television (frightening, isn't it?), so they're slowly picking up on Halloween too - another reason to have a party, and, for the businesses, more stuff to sell. There aren't costumes in all the stores like there are in the states, but the larger towns have Carnival shops - elaborate costume shops geared for the Carnival festivals, so they just get a bunch of creepy stuff in and call it Halloween. Pumpkins are sold everywhere (obvious from past posts) and Germans are buying them and decorating with them, but they don't yet carve the jack'o lanterns. The German idea of Halloween is the scary part of it. I don't like the scary stuff - my kids are always cute or pretty - or, at least, harmless. They are not witches or ghouls. Here, Halloween is only about being scared. The German kids came to my door last night only as witches, ghosts, and that "Scream" person. At the German kindergarten, they had the gym decorated like a graveyard and all the German kids dressed in black - no princesses or Disney characters there at all! Even German adults were dressed all in black with very graphic makeup on their faces. The Dutch and Spanish that I talked to didn't celebrate Halloween this year and have said that it is still starting very slowly in their countries. In Belgium it's also beginning very slowly. The Italians here had a huge party for their kids though - and they were mostly creepy things too -witches and bats.

My kids don't want to be creepy. They want to be pretty. Luci still thinks that she's going to grow up to be a princess. I had, initially, three princesses and a non-cow, meaning a potential cow who would not wear her cute little hat, her spotted poncho, or any sort of face-paint. In past years I've taken the kids trick-or-treating around the block and that has been about the extent of it. They always end up with much more candy than they need. I just enjoy seeing them in their costumes and taking pictures. The candy is the motivator for them to endure those costumes and keep smiling for the 50th photograph.
This year was different. I baked for all three older girl's classes. Luci's class had a party in the morning with a good amount of healthy food and twice as much junk food. I had to pick her up early. They had just finished painting pumpkins (so hers wasn't yet dry and got all over Elise's white sweater, so she was a Rastafarian cow), and were all in a group dancing. We walked over to Arianna's school to help her into her costume and walk with her class in the "Storybook Parade." That is the school's way of letting the kids trick-or-treat during class time. So, our costumed little ones with bags in hand walked over half of the base from office building to office building saying the well-reahearsed "Happy Halloween and thank you" to all who gave them candy. Most of the buildings just handed out candy at the front door, but several had decorated hallways that the children walked through and one in particular got quite elaborate with witches and scary music, so my tiny ones went in, but Arianna waited for me outside.
Since Elise didn't want to wear her poncho or cow hat, so she didn't look like anything other than a well-bundled toddler. I didn't give her a bag, so she was just along for the ride, but she did ok. Luci and Arianna both walked excited to go from building to building collecting treats. It was fun for them to be with friends. After the parade was the big party in Arianna's class that lasted until school's end. Then ballet for Luci and our first of three parties.

The Wilson's did a fantastic job with games and crafts for the kids, lots of creepy props, and tons of food. Elise was scared of the singing skull at first, but got over it quickly and spent 40 minutes standing next to him moving around to make him sing - again and again. The kids ate there and we hurried home to meet Kirk and Tiara and head out of neighborhood trick-or-treating. A group of about 35 American and Canadian kids came by just before we left, then we got a few German kids saying, "susses oder es gibt saures" meaning, "give sweet or give sour."

[I'd said that I began Halloween with 3 princesses and a non-cow... then half-way through I ended up with a 50's girl and a ballerina instead. Arianna remained "Cinderella," but Tiara, who'd worn my costume at school in the parade, became a 50's girl, and Luci decided to stay in the ballet clothes after class and just be a ballerina. My non-cow turned Rastafarian non-cow quickly transtioned to a chocolate-covered Rastafarian non-cow.]

A friend of mine made a map of all the houses that were participating (which were probably more than 30). We just walked a little. It was cold and we'd been heavily misted on earlier, so I wasn't up for a big trip - and we certainly didn't need the sweets. After a few houses we ended up at party #2 where we stayed for an hour or so visiting. That party was hilarious because a very young Superman that had run into Kirk earlier in the night, was there, and he believed, wholeheartedly just as a child might believe in Santa Clause, that Kirk was Captain Jack Sparrow from Pirates of The Caribbean. So most of the time we were at the party, little Superman followed Kirk around calling him Captain Jack and trying to convince him to go downstairs and hang out with all the other kids. At 8 we all went home to get the kids settled, then Kirk and I went to party #3 - the adults-only party.

It was hosted by some friends and held in an old farmhouse. The living quarters are only on one side of the large complex. They set up the party entrance over on the side of the building where the old milking sheds were. The room was long and narrow flanked on either side by old green stalls where the cows were milked. They had candles lined up along the sides to light the way and all sorts of cobwebs and creepy things hanging above. That room led into the huge courtyard - about 4 times the size of ours. It was decorated as well and all the party guests were outside - huddled around a large iron fire pit. It was nice to be out, but a bit cold to be sitting outside. That was the end of our Halloween. Sitting in the misty cold rain around a fire with friends.