Exploring Denver

A few weeks ago I traveled over to our soon-to-be home, Denver, Colorado. I was there to explore the city; learn about the school systems; discover the mountains; and get to know the style of life. The trip was definitely worth it; I left excited, overwhelmed, and happy that we are diving into a new adventure.

I landed to this. That is a blue sky, a rare sight in Germany.

 

I spent the week with my brother and my sister-in-law. Both were incredibly generous with their home, their groceries, and their contacts. My sister-in-law was also remarkably generous with her project management & crazy-lady management skills. She kept me on time and focused on what was really important and that wasn't always an easy task.

Together we drove around the city; drank a staggering range of craft beers; and laughed. There was a lot of laughter.

Even my sister flew in for less than two days. Together we drove up into the mountains and explored. The Mr. is a certified snowboard instructor and may want to work up in the mountains...or just play in them...so we had to confirm the commute.

 

Its a pretty fabulous commute with incredible views. Around Breckenridge we got out and walked around. The kids are going to love it. 

 

My sister-in-law cooked a number of great meals, including fabulous crab legs. We all ate too many of them. It was worth it.

 

 

I also got to see the rest of the family that live in Colorado. Together we ate excellent Mexican and drank fabulous wine & beer.

In a wonderful twist of fate, a friend that has also lived in our small German town now lives just north of Denver. We met up and she introduce me to an awesome tea place in Boulder.

 

 



Throughout the week, we slowly shopped and then ordered a bedroom set for the kids. Did I mention how generous my brother and sister-in-law are? They've set aside a complete room for our kids. Our kids are really looking forward to their new bunk beds, fancy covers, & resting chairs.

Meanwhile, back in Germany, the kids were doing surprisingly well. The one exception was a phone call when little Jelly Bean held the phone to her ear, walked from room to room in our home, and then sadly stated, "mommy nicht find you."

Otherwise, PJ enjoyed his first sleep over with his long-time buddy Super Soph. He also stepped up his drawing and coloring game.

Sadly, oh so sadly, the Mr. was corrupting our poor, poor children in my absence. Poor, poor kiddos. (Video below)

Thankfully I had these views to comfort me.

XO

 

Kinderwagon, Kinderwagon

During summer break, PJ, Bean, and I did some errands. The kids were awesome and a baby doll stroller was on sale, so picked it up.

Little did I know that it would become the Toy #1 for the Steinbach Clan on the way home and for the rest of the summer.

We weren't more than 5 feet outside of the store when this happened:

After ten minutes PJ declared Bean has been "eating good" and was "just too heavy, you know?". He jumped into the actual kinderwagon and Bean took over pushing her own. 

That lasted for about another 10 minutes before Bean managed to explain to PJ that she wanted him to push again.

Like the big brother gentlemen that he can be, he obliged. All the way home.

Sibling love. It sure is something special. 

XO

Star Wars, Learning Early

I don't want to brag. But....

While my four year old hasn't been exposed to the Star Wars movies, he sure knows how to handle a lightsaber.

"Like a REAL Jedi!"

Not to brag even more. But...

My not-yet-two-year-old can turn a fish net into a lightsaber and handle it almost like a real Jedi.

Not to brag even more. But...

They can have (almost) no-contact lightsaber battles, including self-made sounds like "Woosh!" and "Bam!" and "Aargh!".

Okay, yeah, I am totally bragging.

XO

Playground Moments of the Heart

Last week the kids and I explored a new playground close to our home. Everything is new and sparkly and includes ropes course elements. The largest one was quite challenging so of course PJ bee-lined right for it. He conquered it like a pro, showing again his excellent balance and timing and showing off his instinctive feel for how to use the rope and his weight to be successful.

On his first attempt he managed one full loop on this course. Check this out: 

He even managed the balance ropes on his first try.



Awesome, right? I was one very proud momma, especially when he popped off the course and lit up with his thrilled, proud smile.

Naturally, what Big Brother can do, so can our little Bean. It took her a little while to warm up (like two minutes) and then she also started attacking a smaller rope ladder somewhat more her size.

This part led up to a short, metal slide. She needed a little bit of help at the start but by the third time she was racing up with confidence.

All was well. Between the sandbox and the swings and the ropes elements, the kids were happy and challenged. I was even able to exchange a few sentences with another mom friend.

Then it happened: both kids were climbing on the netting towards the slide (pictured above). Little Bean got to the top and then stood up between the netting and the slide a little too quickly. Suddenly, and silently, she was toppling backwards. Someone else at the playground let out a little screech and I was racing towards my falling baby.

Then suddenly she wasn't falling anymore.

In that awful moment, PJ leaned his body against the ropes and grasped her arm, yanking her towards him. Both of them draped over the ropes in precarious safety. Bean stared into her Big Brother's face; PJ yelled, "I have her!"

I was already there. I thanked PJ for being quick and helping his sister while I gathered Little Bean into my arms and comforted her past her fear. No injury, just fear. Because of her brother. Her Big Brother.

Faster than my heart could return to its normal resting pace, it was all over. Bean demanded "down!" and off they ran together. Watching them climbing again, my heart flipped only every other minute. 

The rest of the afternoon remained uneventful. The kids climbed and played and fought and tripped and were kids. 

I couldn't help but reflect on that moment. Now, a week later, I know I will carry that moment with me forever. The first time I ever saw my little ones reach out to each other for safety and security, knowing it was already there in each other.

XO

Bedtime Silliness

"It is of critical importance that the family bedtime ritual is a stable, soothing set of steps to guide the childrens' transition from play to rest." - sleep experts

My kids totally disagree. They usually rile themselves and each other up right before bed. It is as if they held onto a slice of fuel throughout the day 'just in case', and now they have to burn it off as loudly and as quickly as possible.

These days, they usually do this by pretending to put themselves both to sleep in PJ's bed. They bounce and flop all over the bed, yanking on the blankets, and tossing around the pillows, all while loudly calling out "night, night" and booming with laughter.

It gets really loud and really wild. And they love it. 

Sometimes bedtime can be fun. 

XO

The Temperatures Are Rising (sick)

Ugh. The past two weeks haven't been too much fun around the Steinbach clan. We've been passing around a virus from one person to the next. It started with PJ and his request to sleep while on the way home from kindergarten...cause little man isn't one to sleep.



The next day we were off to the doctors; PJ got to stay home two days with Jelly Bean and I while fighting off a light virus, or maybe just really strong allergies.

The kiddos watching Frozen together. 

Right when PJ returned to "work" (his word), Jelly Bean started showing signs of a viral infection. But she was still pretty content, slept a little bit more but nothing serious, so I stuck to more natural remedies and lots of fresh warm, bundled up tight.

A walk, all bundled up on a cooler day.

Another walk on a much warmer day this week.

Little lady feel asleep on the floor.

But then last night she started to have a rattle or a wheeze or a - man, I really need to practice descriptive language for doctors - something in her chest. She was still happy and still eating, so I decided to wait until the morning to return to the doctors. 

Jelly Bean at the doctor's office.

Turns out that my still laughing, still smiling, still easy-going little girl has a double ear infection, a 'medium' bronchitis, and a "raw" throat.

Poor, poor, poor thing. 

XO