Saturday, November 17, 2012
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Life Update
I wanted to give you an update on our life right now. So much has happened in these last couple months so I won't be able to hit on everything.
The school year started super well. It is definitely nice to not be the new teacher anymore. Our school finished up the building project so we now have a lot more space. I have my own classroom and things seem to be clicking well. I took the 8th and 9th graders on a field trip to Hamburg which was a lot of fun, but also very stressful since I was the teacher in charge (I did have two other teachers with me) and I did most of the planning.
Holly started Kindergarten in September and absolutely loves it. The circumstances around it were pretty amazing. Heather found that there was a language class at the Bauhaus University, but it started the second week of September and Holly was set to start Kindergarten the third week. Holly's teacher was able to get things switched around getting Holly in early! Holly took right to it, much better than Stanley and she never even shed a tear.
Speaking of pregnancy, we are currently less than 2 weeks away from the Due Date. Heather, as with most pregnant women at this point, is ready to be done and hold Baby Stuart. As for the middle name, we still haven't 100% settled on a middle name. It is between Paul and William. We've been telling people Stuart Paul, but every time we do, Stanley corrects us and says it is Stuart William. Paul is my Dad's middle name (Steven Paul) and William was my Great Grandpa's name (William Ehret) so both have a family significance. We are super excited, but also a little nervous. We got to see the hospital's birthing rooms in October which helped put a lot of anxieties at rest. But there are so many unknowns with labor and delivery, it will be interesting to see how things play out in the middle of it. Plus not necessarily being able to communicate with nurses and midwives makes things a little more difficult.
We do have a great support network for the whole process. Our plan is to have Susanne and Nadine at the birth. They are Heather's two closest friends who both have 3 little kids and speak very good English. Throughout the process they have helped us in so many ways, from scheduling to attending appointments, helping with paperwork and much more. Together they threw a baby shower for Heather which was an absolute blessing. At the birth I also plan on being there and also Heather's mom Cinda. Our only worry is that they won't let that many people attend the birth of Stuart.
After the birth the German Healthcare system takes great care of the Mommy and Baby, except that the Husband is not allowed to stay at the hospital with Mommy and Baby. :-( There are some family apartments that we could stay in after the 24 hour mark so we'll have to figure that one out. The apartment does cost about 30 Euros per night, which is a lot better than the $1000 per night at an American hospital. After we go home, the midwives come to us for post-natal appointments. That will make it really nice when we don't have to take Stuart out in sub freezing temperatures.
As for my work and the birth of Stuart we had another HUGE miracle happen. By German law if I was going to take time off I had to take a minimum of 2 months at 66% of my monthly income. (there is a cap to that, but I don't make that much) So we decided that it would be good to take advantage of the system and take the two months off. The problem was who was going to teach my classes? Teaching is not a job where it is easy to just take time off. The school wanted to bring someone in the beginning of November to help make a smooth transition and in case the Stuart was early. Two weeks before the start date we still had not found a qualified candidate! God showed up once again and a great, "more-qualified-than-I-am" teacher from New Zealand was hired. It has been a great transition and I am learning a lot from him. He's going to take over a few of my classes earlier since he is here, he has nothing else to do, and it will make it two less classes that we have to scramble on when that time comes.
To end this blog I asked Stanley what he thought we should tell our friends about our life recently. The first was Holly's finger nails. Back in October Holly got her fingers smashed in a door. We got the call from Susanne as I was walking in the door returning from dropping them off at kindergarten. It is only a 6-8 minute bike for me so it must have happened almost immediately after dropping them off because the Kindergarten called Susanne who then called us. Heather then had to go to Kindergarten to pick up Holly and take her to the emergency room because it happened at Kindergarten. It was only the tips so they weren't going to take x-rays and Holly was left with some really nice black and blue and purple fingernails. Recently, the nails have fallen off. But through it all, Holly has had a great attitude.
Another thing that Stanley wanted me to tell you was about Caillou. If you are not familiar with the show it is a children's cartoon about a 4 year old boy, his 2 year old sister Rosie and the adventures and challenges of being a kid. It is one of the few shows that the kids can watch without being scared. yesterday we found a brand new DVD for only 2 Euros at a Fleamarket. The kids always want me to tell them stories about Caillou and Rosie (and their Mommy and Daddy).
The last thing is about Stanley's German skills. He has now been in Kindergarten for just over a year and it is amazing of what he is able to communicate with others. We had a friend Babysit the kids last Friday and she was talking to them at dinner and asked Stanley, "So you speak a little bit of Deutsch?" "No," answered Stanley, "I speak a lot of Deutsch." Yes it is only 4 year old playground/Kindergarten Deutsch, but his pronunciation is great and he as already surpassed me, and Heather has or is about to too! Crazy that we came here with me being the best German speaker in the family, and now I am almost the worst. Holly already understands more than me.
Thank you for taking the time to catch up with us. By the next time I write a post, we'll probably be a family of 5! While you wait, here are some pictures from our daily life. Enjoy and take care.
Onion Market October 13th-15th
Holly started Kindergarten in September and absolutely loves it. The circumstances around it were pretty amazing. Heather found that there was a language class at the Bauhaus University, but it started the second week of September and Holly was set to start Kindergarten the third week. Holly's teacher was able to get things switched around getting Holly in early! Holly took right to it, much better than Stanley and she never even shed a tear.
Holly's first day of Kindergarten.
As far as Heather's German class went, it was absolutely wonderful. Extremely hard, but beneficial. However, getting Holly in Kindergarten was not the only obstacle that had to be over come to get Heather in that class. She was also not allowed to register for it. When she called the Bauhaus, Heather was told that the class was for University students first and guests second, and that the class was full. We prayed about it and decided that if God was going to get Holly in Kindergarten then He can get Heather in the class. On the first day of class Heather showed up to take the placement test. She showed up on time and was whisked into a classroom to take the test. The next day she showed up again and was on the roster for a class. The course was only 3 weeks long, but the whole time Heather felt as if they were going to say, "Wait! You're not supposed to be here!" and kick her out. That never happened and she was able to pay for and complete the course. Afterwards she was even put on the roster for a continuation of the course which she was not able to take due to the pregnancy. It was definitely a miracle that she was able to get in to that class.
Speaking of pregnancy, we are currently less than 2 weeks away from the Due Date. Heather, as with most pregnant women at this point, is ready to be done and hold Baby Stuart. As for the middle name, we still haven't 100% settled on a middle name. It is between Paul and William. We've been telling people Stuart Paul, but every time we do, Stanley corrects us and says it is Stuart William. Paul is my Dad's middle name (Steven Paul) and William was my Great Grandpa's name (William Ehret) so both have a family significance. We are super excited, but also a little nervous. We got to see the hospital's birthing rooms in October which helped put a lot of anxieties at rest. But there are so many unknowns with labor and delivery, it will be interesting to see how things play out in the middle of it. Plus not necessarily being able to communicate with nurses and midwives makes things a little more difficult.
A beautiful pregnant mommy.
We do have a great support network for the whole process. Our plan is to have Susanne and Nadine at the birth. They are Heather's two closest friends who both have 3 little kids and speak very good English. Throughout the process they have helped us in so many ways, from scheduling to attending appointments, helping with paperwork and much more. Together they threw a baby shower for Heather which was an absolute blessing. At the birth I also plan on being there and also Heather's mom Cinda. Our only worry is that they won't let that many people attend the birth of Stuart.
After the birth the German Healthcare system takes great care of the Mommy and Baby, except that the Husband is not allowed to stay at the hospital with Mommy and Baby. :-( There are some family apartments that we could stay in after the 24 hour mark so we'll have to figure that one out. The apartment does cost about 30 Euros per night, which is a lot better than the $1000 per night at an American hospital. After we go home, the midwives come to us for post-natal appointments. That will make it really nice when we don't have to take Stuart out in sub freezing temperatures.
An unexpected snow day in October
As for my work and the birth of Stuart we had another HUGE miracle happen. By German law if I was going to take time off I had to take a minimum of 2 months at 66% of my monthly income. (there is a cap to that, but I don't make that much) So we decided that it would be good to take advantage of the system and take the two months off. The problem was who was going to teach my classes? Teaching is not a job where it is easy to just take time off. The school wanted to bring someone in the beginning of November to help make a smooth transition and in case the Stuart was early. Two weeks before the start date we still had not found a qualified candidate! God showed up once again and a great, "more-qualified-than-I-am" teacher from New Zealand was hired. It has been a great transition and I am learning a lot from him. He's going to take over a few of my classes earlier since he is here, he has nothing else to do, and it will make it two less classes that we have to scramble on when that time comes.
To end this blog I asked Stanley what he thought we should tell our friends about our life recently. The first was Holly's finger nails. Back in October Holly got her fingers smashed in a door. We got the call from Susanne as I was walking in the door returning from dropping them off at kindergarten. It is only a 6-8 minute bike for me so it must have happened almost immediately after dropping them off because the Kindergarten called Susanne who then called us. Heather then had to go to Kindergarten to pick up Holly and take her to the emergency room because it happened at Kindergarten. It was only the tips so they weren't going to take x-rays and Holly was left with some really nice black and blue and purple fingernails. Recently, the nails have fallen off. But through it all, Holly has had a great attitude.
Holly's Black Nails
Another thing that Stanley wanted me to tell you was about Caillou. If you are not familiar with the show it is a children's cartoon about a 4 year old boy, his 2 year old sister Rosie and the adventures and challenges of being a kid. It is one of the few shows that the kids can watch without being scared. yesterday we found a brand new DVD for only 2 Euros at a Fleamarket. The kids always want me to tell them stories about Caillou and Rosie (and their Mommy and Daddy).
Thank you for taking the time to catch up with us. By the next time I write a post, we'll probably be a family of 5! While you wait, here are some pictures from our daily life. Enjoy and take care.
An amazing after Kindergarten snack made by Heather
A fun in the garten Saturday morning breakfast.
Best Friends.
Our precious girl
Stanley's fun "rest time" creations.
Making imaginary music together. Can you guess the instrument?
One of Heather's amazing dinners.
Tucking Mommy in.
Fun with Daddy.
Little Red Riding Hood. (Cape made by our dear friend Anna who also did Heather's henna belly.)
My normal evening routine. Lesson Planning.
Our daily routine now includes Heather making my lunch in the morning while I take the kids to Kindergarten. Let me just say that she makes better lunches than I do.
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