Off to Germany

Here we are with all our luggage outside the airport in Paducah. Believe it or not it all made it despite a late flight and a 45 minute connection in Chicago.

Labelling the children

So we've been thinking about how to "label" the children while in Germany. Assuming one of them will get separated from us how should we best ensure their safety and our ability to reconnect? We have to admit we are vulnerable in this area. We've lost a kid in Walmart (twice) and on our last "big city" vacation we lost one in the Field Museum in Chicago. Poor parenting I know, but true. My usual Sharpie on the underarm method for Disney seems unrealistic for a three month time period. We found some ID bracelets that we can order from Amazon.de and that seems the easiest solution, we fill in our cell phone number and they wear them when we are out and about. These are designed for toddlers, but given our limited German I need something for all the kids. Its really scary to lose a kid, I can't imagine doing it in a foreign country. Yes, we did consider GPS. I wonder what they think of the "kid leash" in Europe??

Matthew's Birthday

Matthew is 8 years old!! It was the easiest cake prep thus far. He is easy to please. It was an ipod touch birthday as we both got refurbs for our birthday. He is enjoying it and looking forward to having it with him on the plane. I would enjoy mine if I ever got a turn. I have downloaded some books and am ready to read on the plane. It was our solution to the issue of books in Germany, I get books through various apps and the kids get games to play. Tim and I both have lost sleep this week playing solitaire!

Pics from Germany

A fellow faculty member and friend of Tim's visited our apartment in Germany last week and took pictures for us. This is where we will be staying this fall and we really appreciate him giving us the chance to see it before we leave. We think they will add a bed to the living area for Tim and me and swap out the crib for a bed for Katey. It is much more of a two floor arrangement than we'd understood so the kids will be able to sleep in the room upstairs while we are in the room downstairs. Best we can tell there is a half bath, living room/bedroom for us, full bathroom, kitchen, and kids bedroom/loft.

We are now on skype for video calling back to the US. So far that is the only phone setup we have going that we know will work. We'll email privately addresses and phone numbers so contact us if you'd like that info once we arrive.

Stairs up to the apartment



bathroom


washing machine


bedroom upstairs/loft


bedroom upstairs/loft - another angle


living room


fridge, yep, we'll shop everyday.


kitchen

washing coats

Step 1 in packing for Germany... washing and packing coats. We've begun the packing process. Saturday morning Katey and I went through the process of washing up the coats we bought for everyone to wear in Germany (Christmas 2009). I put them in a bag and discovered they take up nearly a full suitcase. We'll be wearing coats tied around our waist. Before this is over we may be wearing multiple layers of clothing. Yes, we want to avoid extra bag fees, but also we just don't have enough people capable of wagging 50lbs through customs.

I keep looking at the Kindle for book reading purposes for myself, school, and my avid young reader. The weight of books limits what we can take. Laurel found out she could have books in seconds and so now she is sold on the idea even using Kindle PC. Now if she only could pay for them....

Counting down...two months to go..

Today is July 1st. We depart Sept. 2 for Germany. I can say Guten Tag and a couple of other standard greetings and that is about it. Scary. Needless to say our focus around here is going to have to be on learning a little German-QUICK! After planning and pondering for a year and a half, two months doesn't sound like much time. The kids are excited and yes they still are looking more forward to getting a dog when we get home but hopefully they will enjoy life abroad nonetheless. We've started planning our itinerary. So get ready for more activity here on the blog in the coming months, get Skype loaded on your computer if you want to talk to us, and most importantly keep this crew in your prayers. The Johnstons are headed to Europe, who knows what might happen.

Overheard

Sometimes it is funny to listen to the conversation around here. Today it was the conversation between Tim and Katey. We have had to remind her to go to the bathroom to avoid her waiting until the last minute. I heard Tim ask her "Katey, when was the last time you went to the bathroom?" Her reply was "Hmmm, I think I went yesterday." It was 4:00 pm. Of course she had gone several times today, but perhaps not at home as we were at church and small groups. Further questioning was pointless however so Tim simply replied "That was a long time ago, go now."

Several weeks ago it was in the car when Katey said "My armpit really hurts." Moments later she said "Wait a second, where is my armpit?"

It keeps us laughing.