Cookout!

Malu and I have been dying to barbecue.  Okay, maybe it's just me.  And it's not so much the barbecue I've been wanting, but rather just wanting to find some friends around here.  I have some great friends at work, but haven't quite found a group of "regulars" to hang out with like we've had at previous duty stations.  Today, we finally had the opportunity!  We met up with some new friends of ours.  Well, actually, the person that invited me is an old friend from high school.  Meet the Fargo's!

This is Adam and his wife, Nichole, who's such a sweetie.  I really love how small the Army is.  You just never know who you're going to run into and when.  By way of Facebook, Adam found out that I was heading to Stuttgart and that I'd be working in the building right across from his (he actually works in the EUCOM headquarters).  Not only that, we pretty much work hand-in-hand on a daily basis and I must say that it's been nice to have my go-to guy at the headquarters. I would never have imagined, almost 15 years ago (when I last saw him at our high school in Carthage, NY, right outside of Fort Drum, where my dad was stationed) that we'd link up--and in Europe of all places!  I must also add that the years have been great to Adam.  He's done well professionally and has a beautiful family.

The Fargos introduced us to their lovely group of friends and we had a great time, more food than we knew what to do with, drinks and tons of laughs.  Although Mother Nature couldn't quite decide how to feel today (sunny, rainy, sunny, cold & windy), we were happy with the company and it was a lovely afternoon.  Here are more pics from today...

Sina quickly made friends with Adam & Nichole

Having fun!

She was totally diggin' that hat!

Doing some walking around the gazebo

I definitely hope this get-together won't be our last!

Thanks to the Fargos for thinking of us!

I hope all of you are enjoying the weekend.

Don't forget...Monday is the last day to enter my giveaway!

The Royal Wedding

I'm gonna jump on the bandwagon and post this mainly for posterity's sake.  Man, was this truly a fairy tale wedding!

I honestly didn't even plan on watching it.  I mean, it was going on smack-dab in the middle of the work day.  Next thing you know, the boss heads out to a meeting for a couple of hours and Zinda (our secretary) and I are watching the darn thing on the 46" plasma TV in his office! Practically all the other peeps with TVs in their offices were tuning in too.  Finally, I caved in after going to the headquarters and seeing it live on CNN in the lobby of the deputy commanding general's office.  If his peeps are watching it, why not I?

I'm with tons of other people when they say that they couldn't help but think about Princess Diana while it was all going on.  I couldn't help but think about how happy she would have been if she were there and whether or not William was thinking the same thing as he stood beside his blushing bride at the altar.  Kate was gorgeous and poised and carried herself with grace.  I have the feeling that she will make as much as an impact on the world as Princess Diana did.  I wish them both a happy and fruitful marriage.

The rest of the time, I spent poking fun at the entire affair.  I mean, what's up with the "countdown to the royal kiss"?  Really?  And then, when the kiss actually happened...what a let down.  He should have at least dipped the girl and slapped a big wet one on her.  Finally....what was up with those hideous hats?  Don't get me wrong, some were cool.  But these???

Royalty or not....what were they thinking?

All in all...a beautiful affair.  I'm glad I got to witness it!

Happy Saturday everyone!

~Spring Swap~

I promised to share what I received during the Spring Swap hosted by Nicole at Flip Flops and Combat Boots (she always does these great link-ups!) and man, am I excited to do it!

I was partnered with Jackie of In the Life of the Lefevres--a coach's wife and mother of two adorable kiddos.  Jackie is from Jacksboro, Texas, which is (and she can correct me if I'm wrong) in northeast Texas and I'm guessing it's a zillion miles away from where I used to live before I moved here to Germany (El Paso).  Anyway, I went to pick up the package earlier this week while I was at work.  The consolidated mail room is near our office building, so I usually go to check our box in the afternoons when things die down at the office.  Well, I brought the package back to work and our secretary (and my friend), Zinda, sees the package.   I tell her it's from my swap partner in Jacksboro, TX, and she says, "I know where that is!!!"  And that's because she's a Texan--of the Houston-type, I believe.

Anyway, I start taking stuff out of the box, with her help, and as I start to unwrap an item, she says something about Dublin Dr. Peppers.  I guess it's big in that part of Texas (or maybe Texas in general; I never knew).
So take a look at this...

She got me a whole bunch of Dublin Dr. Pepper stuff.  Okay, so Dublin, Texas is about 90 miles away from where Jackie lives, but it's home to the oldest Dr. Pepper bottling company and the only one that stays true to the original Dr. Pepper formula (which originated in Waco, Texas) that features Imperial Pure Cane Sugar (which means it's hella sweet).  It's so much fun to read about the history of the Dublin Dr. Pepper.  You can read it too by clicking here. 

And what's also cool is that Zinda's brother currently lives in Dublin, Texas.  What a small world!

Anyway, I got a couple bottles of Dublin Dr. Pepper to use in the Dublin Dr. Pepper cake mix I also got.  Of course with Dublin Dr. Pepper cake, you must have Dublin Dr. Pepper chocolate frosting!  Jackie must have known that I LOVE chocolate and cake!  She also gave me two cans of Big Red Cream Soda, which I've read is the unofficial soda of Texas (also originating from Waco) and I LOVE cream soda.   I also got a silicone Texas-shaped ice cube tray as well as a kitchen towel for Easter. 

I am beyond thrilled.  And when I make that cake, I'll definitely post about it.

Thanks so much Jackie for being an awesome swap partner, for making this fun and for sending me such a unique gift. I hope we can keep in touch in the long term!

Oh, and if you're curious as to what I sent to Jackie, you can check out this post on her blog!

I told you, blog swaps are (as my sister-in-law would say) sooooo the business!  I can't wait for the next one!

{Thursday Five}

I'm linking up with Nicole at Flip Flops and Combat Boots again this week to bring you my five things about the week that were

Fantastic

Cool

Lovely

Special

&

Beautiful

{One} Blog Swaps are Fantastic!  I love them.  Nicole also hosted a Spring Blog Swap and I got my package from my swap partner, Jackie, over at In the Life of the Lefevres.  However, I'll be posting about this tomorrow because I got some really cool stuff with a lot of history behind it.  More to follow on that!  And thanks to Jackie!

{Two} Yesterday was Admin Professionals Day and our boss and his wife took the entire front office area, which consisted of me and our secretary (our NCO is on leave so she didn't get to go) to lunch.  Not only that...when we got to the restaurant, there were gorgeous floral arrangements and cards waiting for us.  Here is the picture of my bouquet!  Isn't it beautiful?  I can't thank the Godfreys and our deputy enough for making us feel so appeciated.

{Three} How cool is it that about 20 people have entered by Ritter Sport Chocolate Giveaway?  It's only the second giveaway I've done, but I didn't have a huge response the first time, so I'm excited.  Make sure you enter...I draw a name on Wednesday, 3 May!

{Four} It was a lovely day in Stuttgart today.  I hope the weather stays this way throughout the weekend!

{Five} This week was extra special...my parents celebrated their 36th anniversary this week. 

 I want my parents to know how inspirational they have been for Malu and I as as a young couple with many years ahead of us.  My mom and dad have triumphed through a myriad of challenges and obstacles and are still going strong.  I am moved by their love for each other, as well as their love for us and for their community.  They have hearts of gold and I don't know what I'd do without them.  They're not only the ones who gave me life, but my greatest friends.  I love you guys!

And to help them celebrate...Malu and I will be bringing them out to Germany for a visit!  We can't wait to see you guys.

And there's my five!  Thank goodness it's Friday (yup, it's past 2:00 a.m. here)!

And please keep all those affected by the tornadoes in your thoughts and prayers. 

Chocolate Giveaway!

Yes, CHOCOLATE , and yes, a GIVEAWAY!

We feel so lucky to have the Ritter Sport Chocolate Factory at our disposal.  In 25 minutes, you can be over at the schokolade (chocolate) store and filling a basket chock-full of those colorful squares of chocolate-y deliciousness.  So when I was in the town of Waldenbuch for their Easter market, the factory was just a hop, skip and jump away.  I went and picked up one of their grab bags and I'm going to give ALL of it to one lucky reader!  Take a look:

So here's what you're gonna get if you win:

(3) 2.3 oz Chocolate Squares

Flavors:

(2) Dark Chocolate

(1) Hazelnut & Milk Chocolate

(12) 3.5 oz Chocolate Squares

Flavors:

(1) Milk Chocolate w/Yogurt Filling

(1) Fine Extra Dark Chocolate

(1) Milk Chocolate w/Hazelnut Caramel Filling

(2) Milk Chocolate w/Whole Hazelnuts

(1) White Chocolate w/Whole Hazelnuts

(1) Milk Chocolate covered Neopolitan Waffle

(1) Dark Chocolate w/Marzipan Filling

(1) Milk Chocolate w/Whole Almonds

(1) Milk Chocolate w/Vanilla Bourbon Filling

(2) Milk Chocolate with Almond Filling (Mandelcreme)

(1) Packet with (9) Ritter Sport Minis (various flavors)

(1) Box of Creme Filled Mini Chocolates

(1) Packet with (9) Ritter Sport Minis-Eierlikor

(Eierlikor, which translates into eggnog)

&

(1) Ritter Sport Tote

All together, this is a little over 20 euro in value, which is an absolute steal in my book, because I know for a fact that each 3.5 oz. bar is almost $3 in the States.

Tell me you don't want to win this!  And even if you don't want it, enter and give it to someone as a gift!

To enter:

• be or become a follower (1 entry)
• tell me which flavor (of the above listed) sounds the best to you (1 entry)
• blog about this giveaway (5 entries) and leave me the URL to the blog

**Leave a separate comment per entry**

Yeah, I'm trying to keep it nice and simple.  I don't usually get a lot of participants, so this might be a pick-out-of-the-hat type thing rather than a random selection from random.org.  Depending on the number of entries I get on here by the weekend, I may open the giveaway up to my peeps on Facebook so stay tuned!

I will close this on Monday, 2 May, and will announce a winner on Tuesday, 3 May!

Good Luck!

***This Giveaway Has Ended***

Cutie Patootie

I figured I'd post this short clip from yesterday.  I can never get enough of our little cutie.

I spent most of the day at work feeling tired and, well, not wanting to be there.  The beautiful, sunny weather outside didn't help either. This is why I'm keeping this post short...I need to get to bed because I refuse to be lethargic all day tomorrow.  Who am I kidding? I just need it to be Friday already!

Hope everyone's week has gotten off to a great start.

Happy Easter!

I saw this picture on Stephanie's beautiful blog, Silly Precious Piggies, and had to borrow it.  I sure hope she doesn't mind.  It is just so appropriate and keeps us mindful of the reason we celebrated today...Jesus!  He is Risen!

After spending the morning receiving some much-needed spiritual nourishment, we went to my boss' house for Easter dinner.  I'm not sure if I mentioned this before, but my boss and I go back a few years to the days that we were stationed at Fort Bragg.  I had become one of his company commanders back in 2006.  Anyway, when I made the promotion list to Major last year, he found me while I was stationed at Fort Bliss and asked if I wanted to come to Germany to work for him.  Umm...go to Germany?  No-brainer.  So, since we've been here, he and his wife have been more than gracious to us.  Knowing how hard it is to be away from loved ones on special occasions like this (as they have three daughters who all live on their own now), they invited us and a few other friends over for dinner.

Talk about great times.  Not only was the company wonderful, but so was the food!  There was so much, including a most wonderful carrot cake that I'm hoping I'll have the recipe to soon.  Not sure if they'd read yesterday's post, but they made sure they had more than enough eggs for Sina to play with and had a cute little Easter basket for her.  Either way, it was really sweet of them and she had a field day with the eggs as well as the attention--she was the only kiddo there :)

Banging her eggs together.

Dig, dig, dig...and yup, another bad hair day.

They even let all of us dye eggs just for nostalgia's sake.  I tell you, I can't remember the last time I dyed eggs and I was surprised to find out that it was the first time Malu had actually dyed an egg.  He said he'd drawn on some before, just never dyed one.  Guess you learn something new everyday, huh?  So, Sina got a lesson on dyeing eggs too...only after she decided to stop trying to eat them.

These eggs are yummy!

First egg-dyeing eggs-perience!

It was truly a great day of fellowship and fun.  And we could not have asked for better weather too.  We sat out on the porch and enjoyed Spring at its best...birds, flowers, trees, a beautiful breeze..even the pollen!

My loves.

As always, thanks to the Godfrey's for being fantastic hosts and for always making us feel like family.

Well, I hope that everyone had a very blessed Easter too.  I also hope that our families back home know just how much they were missed today.  We love you.

Have a great week everyone!