Grandma is Here! or Here Comes Santa Claus

My mom flew in to Stuttgart on July 19th, Sunday morning, and the kids were so excited they had a hard time sleeping the entire week before. We were so excited to see my mom. She is so wonderful. If we had stayed in our house the entire time she would have been as happy as can be, just to be with us. Her only request on coming here was that she could see a concentration camp. Don't worry, I've harrassed her plenty about the psychological implications of someone who only wants to see concentration camps when coming to Europe. Luckily, she sat by a psychologist on the plane and got to work a few of these issues out, free of charge I might add. Grandma stuffed her suitcase with surprises for all of us and it felt like Christmas. One of our favorites was the gum she brought. When Grandma used to visit in Iowa the first thing my kids would ask as she got off the plane was "Do you have any gum?" Apparently they've led a deprived childhood. The pictures here show some wood puzzles my mom bought for each of the boys to put together. Each piece edge was numbered up to about a kabillion, there was one small picture with numbers showing how each piece interlocked. We spent a few futile hours attempting to piece the puzzles together and finally came up with a better idea. The second picture is us burning the puzzles to make s'mores--a much more satisfying project. After a mere 24 hours in Europe, Garrett and I abandoned my mom with 4 kids and took off to Switzerland. Thanks mom!

First Things First--Happy B-day Mason!

Yes, I know you've all been on pins and needles for the past few months, waiting for my next blog and it's finally arrived. Mason had his birthday on July 13th, his very first one he had to be in school (German school got out on July 30th). If you think his cake looks disgusting, you're right. He wanted space legos fighting on the top and 1 chocolate, 1 ice cream and 1 strawberry layer with chocolate bars cut up on the top. I decided to add the strawberries, which actually made it taste worse. Mason made bank in the Bionicle department for his birthday. Sam gave Mason a turtle he had sewn in school and a Twix candybar (I'm so jealous--I think the turtle is adorable.) and Jacob bought him 2 lego sets--what good buddies.

Now I'm going to gush about Mason, so if you're not a grandma you can skip to the next post. When Mason was born I was so excited because I got to hold him. Sam and Jacob were immediately whisked away and I didn't get to see them again until the next day and holding them was also restricted. It was so wonderful to have a baby that I could hold and cuddle and I wasn't afraid to break. He's always been very easy going and my little social child. From the time he was a Sunbeam, he knew everyone's names in primary and would say "hi" to each person, by name, as they entered the primary room. Now in German school, he has made many friends because he's so good at reaching out to other people. When we lived in Logan his best friend was our neighbor Bob; they shared a special connection. Mason has also made good friends of our German neighbors here--Rose and Klaus, Oma and Opa. He has worked hard to learn German and does very well. Sometimes I wonder if Sam, Jacob and Mason were really supposed to be triplets because Mason is determined to do everything that his big brothers do. I decided to start my boys with piano when they turned 8, but Mason was begging to take lessons and I knew he was ready, so I started him when he was barely 7 and he is doing really well. Sometimes I forget Mason isn't as old as his twin brothers and I expect the same things from him, but he is determined he can do whatever they can. One of my favorite things about Mason is his loving heart. I can count of multiple hugs from him throughout the day and he will look up at me with his twinkley eyes and big smile and say "I love you mom. You are so beautiful". When music is playing he'll come up to me and ask me to dance in the kitchen. We make a great dance couple--Mason says we're like Hagrid and Madame Maxine, a truly stunning couple! We are so blessed to have Mason in our family. We love you Mason!

Just Another Day--Banantarific!

Tonight was a slow Friday night at the Wood house. We started out with a gig that our band, "The Oneders" played.

I had to take this picture of Mason in his Hawkeye sweatshirt before it magically disappears. He's worn it nearly every day for an entire year and it shows--the cuffs are frayed, the yellow is perma-dirty, two bleached streaks run over the pocket; between that and his patched jeans and holey socks (where do all the holes come from?), he is looking like the poster child for some sort of relief organization. Look how tall he is getting. He looks alot like his Grandpa Bohman, to me. We're so excited that they are going to come visit us for Mason's baptism in less than one month! Can we fast forward up to then? This is Joe with his characteristic photo"smile". He is sporting his monkey jammies which he wears day or night. If he finds out we're going to be home for a few hours, he considers it worth his time to put on his monkey jammies or Superman jammies, complete with cape.

Jacob made dessert for us tonight, his own creation entitled "Bananta." If, by some unforeseen miracle, others out there acquire a taste for Bananta, Jacob made it first and we'll sue you for the rights. The recipe is:
6 or 7 cups of vanilla icecream

1 1/2 cups orange Fanta soda

1 chocolate bar, diced in small pieces

1 banana

*secret ingredient

blend above ingredients and eat. I haven't "acquired" a taste for bananta yet, but I don't like mushrooms either. Periodically I try mushrooms because they seem like such a fancy, distinguished food, but, alas, they taste nasty. The secret ingredient for this batch of bananta was 2 very, very old once hard but now soft with age, butterscotch candies. Jacob loves adding secret ingredients. I really have to be careful if I'm not watching when I'm cooking because Jacob will climb up into my spice cupboard and start adding whatever strikes his fancy with some disastrous results. Jacob is my experimental cook. Mason is my little chef--he loves to cook with me and does really well.

The other day I was walking Joseph to school and we saw a European Marten. It casually walked across the street and up into the forest behind our house. Joe and I both thought about Gwin in "Inkheart".

If you look closely at the picture of Sam, he is using a fork attachment on his pocketknife to eat his eggs. These days this newly acquired pocketknife with spoon and fork attachments accompanies Sam to every meal--I can't complain since he washes it everytime.

A few nights ago Jacob got out of bed to discuss a pressing question he couldn't get off his mind: "If dad was twice the size he is now, would it be far if he threw a boulder, like Fezzik in the Princess Bride, an eighth of a football field?" Who can sleep with important thoughts like that buzzing around in your head? I think Jacob should write story problems for math books when he grows up.

Whenever we get a chance we eat outside--fancy meals, like koolaid and hot dogs.

I just re-read what I wrote. What a bunch of random thoughts, one banantarific day.

Happy Father's Day!

Yesterday, Garrett returned from his one week "patient safety" conference in Virginia and we're so glad! Jacob said "I forgot how funny dad was until he got back. He's really funny." Apparently it had been a long humorless week with mom. Yesterday Sam asked what language they speak in Virginia--it made perfect sense when you live here in Stuttgart and are a few hours away from a completely different language in nearly every direction. We played Monopoly today, which truly showed Garrett's love for his kids. He hates Monopoly with a passion and he bought the game as well as some other fun American toys for the kids while he was in Virginia and actually played the game with them--to the very end--4 hours later. Of course, he won. I had the kids answer some questions all about dad that I thought the grandmas would love, so if you're not a grandma, you might get bored with this next part.

You make a great dad because:

Sam--because you earn money for the family and you take us mountain climbing so we can take pictures.

Jacob--because you take us camping, you take us to take pictures, you take us to the movies, and you give us chocolate cake (i.e. Bill Cosby)

Mason--because you buy us cool rocks and knights on vacation and you let us stay up until midnight when we go camping sometimes.

Joseph--because you tickle me

My favorite thing to do with dad is...

Sam--go camping

Jacob--go to the movies

Mason--go camping and to the movies

Joseph--play Candyland

Dad's favorite food is...

Sam--chocolate fondue

Jacob--tacos

Mason--supreme pizza, no anchovies

Joseph--hamburgers

If dad could go anywhere in the world it would be...

Sam--Switzerland

Jacob--England

Mason--hiking

Joseph--taco bell

Dad's favorite movie to watch with me is...

Sam, Jacob, Mason--Lord of the Rings

Joseph--Star Wars

Dad's favorite color is...

Sam and Jacob--red

Mason--green

Joseph--black

Dad says I'm really good at:

Sam--building with legos

Jacob--being creative

Mason--playing basketball and drawing

Joseph--watching Star Wars

Dad's favorite time of the year is...

Sam and Jacob--his birthday, because at Christmas he has to buy stuff for other people, but on his birthday he just gets stuff and on Father's day he doesn't get as much stuff.

Mason--Christmas, because it's a time of the year where everyone gets along

Joseph--Father's day because we give him presents and stuff like that

Dad's favorite vacation was:

Sam--going to Italy with just mom

Jacob--going to France and taking pictures of "that" bridge (when we asked Jacob which bridge it was he said, "You know, the one with water running under it." We asked him to give some more details because we were still confused and he said "It was also the one with cars driving over the top of it."--clear as mud!)

Mason--Six Flags (he really digs Wonder Woman)

Joseph--Germany

When I grow up I want to beat dad at...

Sam--chess

Jacob--community service (yes, he really said that!) and lifting weights

Mason--bowling

Joseph--Guitar Hero

I love dad because...

Sam--he helps us with our German and takes us hiking and he decided to go to the Father and Son campout instead of camping in Switzerland

Jacob--he tells us good jokes, he cares for us, he takes us to the movies and takes us hiking

Mason--he takes us to places to take pictures and he does what's best for us

Joseph--he's a good Candyland player and he took us to France

One Great Day

I was lucky enough to get to go to the Frankfurt temple today. Our young men and women attended this afternoon and the adults did an earlier session. Garrett was on call, so he couldn't go, instead he stayed home with our boys and 2 extras that we have on loan right now. I can't say how much I appreciated him watching 6 boys all day so I could go. It's been over a year since I've been able to go and I can't express the feeling of peace and comfort I felt as I sat down. My friend Leah and I were rushed, of course, to make it on time and a kind older man temple worker said as we entered, "We were waiting for you". As we hurried to get to the first room he said "It's o.k. , we've got all the time in the world." and gave us a big smile. I hope that's the kind of person that I turn out to be like when I grow up. I knew I needed the spiritual recharge, but I was overwhelmed by the feelings of just being there. Thanks for the great day, Leah. What a blessing to have a temple two and a half hours away and a husband who will help me get there!

You're in the Army Now...or What the Government is Doing with Your Tax Dollars...

Have you heard that song "Woah, you're in the army, now!"? We seem to hear it all the time here, in Germany. Being in the army we get to view, firsthand the actual usage of your tax dollars, which is particularly troublesome at times. Garrett brought a microwave to work to use in his office for lunch. The first time he pressed start it flipped the breaker in his office (or should I say the closet which he shares with two other dentists). Now, normal people would just go down and flip the switch, however, when you're in the army, you, as a dentist, are not qualified to deal with the delicate technical issues of breaker switches. Therefore, Heidelberg, the dental military headquarters in Germany, was called and informed of the situation. A technical wizard from Heidelberg (a base an hour and a half away) was informed that the electricity had been compromised in his office. The said technical wizard was given leave to drive from Heidelberg and stay over night (how can one be expected to drive the three hour round trip to Stuttgart and back and flip a switch in one day?), receive additional "away from home" pay and finally restore power to a dark and microwaveless office. "Woah, we're in the army, now."

Memorial Day Camping...in Provence, France!

We wouldn't be real Americans if we didn't go camping for Memorial Day Weekend, even if we did drive to France to do it! This was our first trip to France and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. For years I've heard about the rude French and how they hate Americans, but the people were kind and the the landscape reminded me alot of Utah--a perfect combination. Our time at the campground proved once again that boys are content with rocks and sticks. Joe and Mason played with wooden "light sabers" and Sam and Jacob played a game of baseball. Everywhere we looked we saw beautiful bridges and aquaducts, like the one Garrett and the boys are standing in front of. We went swimming at a lake, hiked and swam in waterfalls, swam at the campground pool and played fussball with a new French friend.

We were a little disappointed to find that the famous fields of lavendar hadn't bloomed yet, but the red poppies were absolutely gorgeous. It reminded us of a more well kept Italy--quite the Mediterranean feel. We read that the French spend more of their income on food than anything else and I can't say we blame them, after trying some delicious French pastries. Each of us thought our own pastry was the best (Of course,mine actually was the best!).

What Wood family trip would be complete without a short trip to Switzerland on the way home? In Switzerland we did some hiking and enjoyed the fairy tale scenery. Garrett is wondering how he can get a permanent job in Switzerland. It's definitely our favorite place to be in Europe.