New Adventure, New Blog...

Now that we're officially back in the States and we're starting a new chapter in our lives, and we're no longer considered "Strangers in a Strange Land", it looks like it's time to close the book on our German Adventure... So, after three years and so many adventures, it's with a heavy heart that I will be making this my last post on this blog.

But, just because we're no longer living in Germany, doesn't mean that I've stopped blogging! Instead, I've decided to keep track of all of our new adventures, for your reading pleasure! :) I'm pleased to introduce my new blog... The Chaotic Ramblings of a Former Haus Frau!! I know that we're no longer "Strangers in a Strange Land" now that we're back in the States, but after being away for 3 years, it's quite a challenge to try to readapt to life back here.... So, in this new blog, I plan on sharing our challenges and misadventures when it comes to readjusting to life in the U.S. And, when it comes to Brian and I, there is never a dull moment... So, it should make for some very interesting reading!! :)

Now, go ahead and bookmark the new page so that you don't miss out on anything!! :) The new address is www.formerhausfrau.blogspot.com...

I hope to see you on the flip side!! :)

Auf Wiedersehen, Deutschland...

And just like that, it’s over… The time has come for us to leave Germany and head back home. All of our bags are packed, the apartment is empty, we've said our goodbyes, and we’re heading to the airport in just a few short hours. I can’t believe how quickly three years has flown by! I guess the saying is true after all… Time really does fly when you’re having fun! :)

I can still remember the day we left the U.S. and arrived in Germany just like it was yesterday. I was absolutely petrified at the thought of living in a foreign country for an extended period of time… I literally had to be dragged here kicking and screaming (well, not literally, but there were definitely a lot of tears! :)) But, somehow, over the past few years, I’ve grown to love this country. I mean, sure, we had our share of ups and downs and many trials and tribulations along the way… But, we always managed to persevere, and somewhere along the line, Germany started to feel like home to us. And, in the course of three short years, we managed to create a life for ourselves in this country. And, now, it’s hard to believe that it’s time to give that up.

I’m honestly having a hard time putting into words how difficult it is to say goodbye to this country that I’ve grown to love. I’ve sat down so many times over the past few months and tried to type up a post that could explain how I was feeling about leaving… But, every time I tried, I was never able to accurately describe my feelings.

So, I’ll just attempt to summarize it now… Basically, I feel that I’m coming back to the U.S. a different person from when I left. Living here has taught me a lot about myself… For instance, I’m now more interested in and I have a better understanding of the world around me, I’m more knowledgeable about different cultures, I’ve learned how to assimilate into a foreign culture, I’ve become more confident in myself and my abilities. I’m no longer scared to try new things… Now, I tend to seek out new and exciting adventures to embark upon. And, to top it all off, this experience has been a blessing for my and Brian’s relationship. We’ve had to depend on each other to get through all of the ups and downs of living in a different country, and in doing so, our relationship has strengthened because of it. We’ve found that we make a pretty darn good team. :) So, in the end, I’ve grown so much as a person throughout the past few years, and I guess I’m just a little nervous about going back to the U.S. and losing all that I’ve gained… I mean, I highly doubt that will happen, but it’s still something that is in the back of my mind. I mean, we’re leaving a life and a lifestyle that we both thoroughly enjoy over here, to return to the U.S. and start all over again. Don’t get me wrong, we are thrilled to be close to our family and friends again! But, at the end of the day, we’ve changed over the past few years, as has everyone else. And now, it’s just a little unnerving to think about the future, as neither of us knows what to expect… But, I guess we did the same thing three years ago when we came over to Germany, and look how well that turned out for us. :) So, seeing as how we’ve been there, done that, I guess going home and starting anew might not be all that bad after all… Needless to say, we’ll soon find out what the future has in store for us. :)

With that said, I guess it’s time to close the door on this chapter of our lives. It’s been an amazing three years! We’ve been blessed with so many wonderful new friends and memories that we’ll treasure forever… We are truly grateful to have been given this opportunity. And, like they always say, whenever one door closes, another one opens… Looks like we’ll wait and see what new adventures await us! :) So, with tears in my eyes and a heavy heart, it’s time to say Auf Wiedersehen, Deutschland… You will be missed! Thank you for the memories! We will treasure them forever! And, no matter how far away we are, you’ll always have a special place in our hearts…

Bis spaeter, Germany! :)

And, no worries dear readers, even though we’re no longer “Strangers in a Strange Land”, we’ll still be keeping the blog up and running… So keep checking back and see how life is treating us in the good ole USA. :)

These Are a Few of Our Favorite Things...

Being that we'll be heading back to the States in T-minus 1 day, Brian and I started thinking about all of the things we're going to miss once we leave Germany... So, without further ado, here's a few of our favorite things from Germany...

Der Bodensee (the lake that we live on)

The Alps (no more hiking, rock climbing, or simply just staring at them across the lake...)

Taking a bicycle everywhere

German festivals

Brezeln

German bread

German bier (and the fact that a half liter of beer is cheaper than a half liter of Coke here! :))

Kasespaetzle

Close proximity to all of our friends

Thursday morning Breakfast club

Half-timber houses

Ampelmann (the crosswalk symbol that is found in the eastern part of Germany... He's so cute! :))

Friday Farmer's Market

Oktoberfest

Dirndls and Lederhosen

Friendly people

The long and rich history

Beautiful cathedrals

Castles

Weihnachtsmarkts (Christmas markets)

Gluhwein

Being within a half hour drive from Austria and Switzerland

Being in the heart of Europe (We can easily fly and/or drive to so many European countries!)

The gorgeous flower displays that can be found virtually everywhere

Public transportation

Summertime at the Bodensee

Wonderful friends

Bier benches

Outdoor dining

Meeting friends for coffee at cute little cafes

Ritter Sport

Walks along the lake

Being able to walk everywhere

And the list could go on and on... :)

Leading up to the Final Goodbye...

The days have been flying by so quickly over the past couple of weeks... No matter how much I wish for them to slow down! We've been trying to cram in as much as humanly possible into our last days here in Germany... And, boy, have we covered alot of territory! :) Between packing, traveling around the area, saying goodbye to friends, enjoying Seehasenfest, meeting friends for goodbye dinners/drinks/coffee dates, etc., we truly haven't had a moment to really sit down and relax for quite some time... But, in the end, it's totally worth it, as we've been able to enjoy so many fun and memorable moments that we'll be able to treasure once we're back in the States. :)

Here's a little look into our crazy last couple of weeks in Germany...

Enjoyed one last visit to Lindau... Such a beautiful city!

My friend, Tanya, had never been to Lindau, so I wanted to show her around one of my favorite cities before I left! :)

Spending time with my fellow "Breakfast Club" ladies! :)

I headed to Kressbronn with my friend, Denise, and her daughters to wander around a Maislabrynth (Corn maze) one sunny afternoon! :) How fun!!

The four of us (and Tiffy!) getting lost in the corn! :)

I've been soaking up as many views of the beautiful Bodensee as I possibly can! :)

Strolling through the island of Mainau with Tanya... What a beautiful day it was!!

My friend, Eva, bought me a Lebkuchen Herz... So sweet! :)

The story behind this cookie is that someone has to buy it for you and you then have to wear it around your neck (like a necklace)... They're actually not meant for eating (I've actually tried one and they taste horrible!)... And you're not supposed to buy one for yourself... Someone has to give it to you. :) So, the one that Eva gave to me says "I'll miss you"... I'm going to miss this girl!

Enjoying my last English Stammtisch at La Perla with many of my favorite people! :)

Prosting to a very fun Seehasenfest with my friends, Maike and Cathy! :)

We watched the Seehasenfest fireworks on Saturday night! :)

Saying goodbye to my bosses at the language school I worked at... They are two of the sweetest people I have ever met! :)

Being silly at Seehasenfest! :)

The last night of Seehasenfest was spent having fun with friends and saying goodbye to fellow co-workers...

Brian and Hermann... One of his favorite co-workers. :)

We headed to Rothenburg (one of my favorite places here in Germany) to pick up a few little souvenirs from the Christmas stores... I love all of the handmade Christmas crafts they have in this city! :)

Such a cute city! It's like the quintessential German town! :)

A goodbye dinner with friends at Lukullum...

And, of course, I had to order the kasespaetzle...

I won't be able to enjoy this meal very often after this! :(

Auf Wiedersehen Feier...

Seeing as our stay in Germany is quickly coming to an end, we opted to host an "Auf Wiedersehen Feier" (Going Away Party) for our friends here as a way to say goodbye. The night turned into a huge success! The weather ended up making a turn for the better (at the beginning of the party, it started to rain, which made things quite interesting as we tried to pile 30 plus people into our little apartment! :)), the food was delicious, there were many smiles and lots of laughs (and, of course, the occasional tears!), and being able to spend the evening with so many wonderful (new) friends was fantastic! :)

As I watched our friends that evening, chatting and spending time with each other, I was aware of how extremely fortunate we are... In a matter of just 3 years, we have come to know so many wonderful people over here! And, even though we will now have thousands of miles between us, I am certain that many of these friendships we've made over here will last for many years to come... And, for that, I will be forever grateful! :)

So, with that said, here's a little look into our "Auf Wiedersehen Feier", as well as a small "meet and greet" with many of the people who have made our stay in Germany so much more memorable! :)

Anna and I...

On the night of the party, Anna was actually leaving for a three week trip to Norway, and she won't be getting back to Germany until the day that we leave... So, she took a few extra minutes to pop into our party so that we could officially say our goodbyes... I'm gonna miss this girl!! :(

Denise, Joerge, Savanna, and Finja...

What an adorable family they are, and what wonderful friends they've become!! They are going to be dearly missed!

Anna taking the time to sign our book...

As a way of remembering everyone, I took a picture of them as the arrived at the party, and then they had to sign this book before they left... Now, I plan on making copies of their pictures and placing them on their signed pages... I figured it would be a great keepsake after we get home. :)

Davinia and Steff...

These ladies are key players in the Bodensee Players theatre group I've been a part of... :)

Brian "slaving" over the grill...

I think this is where he spent most of his time that evening! :)

Eva and Alex enjoying themselves...

Katrina and Larra...

Angelika, Andy, and Tilda were enjoying the evening... :)

Kim and Conner...

She left the rest of her "boys" at home (one of them being her husband! :)) that evening, so that she could come hang out with us! :)

Finja being cute as always! :)

One of the reasons Brian enjoyed manning the grill was because everyone came out to visit him! :)

My girlfriends planned a little surprise for me...

They know how much I've grown to enjoy cooking/baking since living over here, so they all got together and wrote down their favorite recipes and then made a cookbook out of them... And, on the front page, they wrote that they gave it to me so that every time I cook, I'll remember them and all of the fun times we've had over the past few years... How sweet is that?! :) As you can tell by the picture, I was clearly excited! :) And then the excitement quickly turned into tears as I realized how thoughtful the gift... I'm going to really miss them!

Norbert and Maike...

These two have been our saviors over the past few years... They've been there for us through thick and thin, and I can only hope that they know how much we appreciate them!

Sean had a little buddy that evening! :)

Isabell and Walter...

They were very helpful during those moments of homesickness over the past few years... They lived in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan for 5 years, so it was always nice to be able to talk to them as they understood where we were from. :)

Eva and Dominik...

What would we have ever done without these two?! Words cannot describe what their friendship has meant to us during our time here!

Fran and Alex chatting away... :)

Eva and Martina...

Theresa and Erik...

Fellow Americans! :)

Looks like Erik and Sean are planning some type of road trip! :)

Michelle and Markus...

They literally a 5 minute walk from us... I'm going to miss being able to pop on over for a coffee and a chat every now and then.

Fran...

Our Spanish connection! :)

Angelika...

She was a super help with the food that day! :)

Guy talk! :)

Erik and Anna...

They played the butler and maid in the last theatre performance...

And, Anna, was our esteemed photographer that evening!! Without her help we would never have had so many great pictures to remember the evening!! Thank you, Anna! :)

Taking a break from our hostessing duties... Whew!

Throwing a party for a crowd that size proved to be quite a task! :)

Chillin' on the bier bench...

That's our brand new bier bench that we're bringing home with us... Isn't it pretty?! :)

Trying to get all the ladies together for a picture proved to be quite a daunting task! :) Needless to say, we soon gave up and made do with whoever was in the room at that particular time! :)

Lori and I...

The theatre crowd...

Even when they're supposed to be relaxing, they're still talking "business"... I'm pretty sure they were discussing ideas for the upcoming fall production! :)

Tiffy!!

This has got to be one of the best dogs I've ever met!! :)

Savanna was rockin' out that evening! :)

Brian's little buddy... :)

Savanna's nickname for Brian is "tomato", so now whenever they are together, all you hear is "tomato this... tomato that..." Too cute! :)

Sam and Steff...

Like mother, like daughter. :)

Benjamin and Katrina...

Ahh... The memories we have with these two over the years! :)

Towards the end of the evening, Brian and Lori realized just how "All-American" they looked with their American flag t-shirts! :)