Room 214 at Bamberg Elementary

Here they are! A new year, new school, new 5th grade class!



Our class won 2nd place in a bulletin board contest: Most Original!

First snowfall. It came down hard for an hour or so and then, it just ended.

The classroom is still a work in progress, but at least it's a bit more colorful now.


The following pictures are students from my room at the Harvest Fest Night our school put on. Our principal, Mrs. Erdmann, is pictured here with Kiana.

Nicole and her mom.

Santima & Fam

Marc and his family.

Maria and her mom.

Jordan and her parents.

Jason

Zach & Jay

The boys are at it again

I love this song by Rich Mullins, Creed.
Mac Powell is a huge favorite of mine, so who better to rebirth it?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxEFqjH9G9Y#

German Perspectives

1. I am the slowest one on the Autobahn. I maintain between 70-75 mph. Cars go FLYING by me.
2. In Germany, the right lane is ONLY used for passing (Hallelujah!) and you better look behind you before you go to pass someone else.
3. Germans do not break the rules. So, when you are walking around town and you get to an intersection, you follow the lights. If it is red and no cars are coming, you wait. Patience and respect.
4. Parking is a definite concern here. Parking on the sidewalk is common.
5. Vehicles here are diesel with a raging majority of VW & BMW. All neutral colors. The loud green, blue and yellow cars are almost all American.
6. Taxis are Mercedes and Buses are made by Mercedes. Very nice!
7. Cobblestone will, eventually, one way or another, get ya in the end no matter what shoes you wear.
8. The entire country is connected by a bike bath.
9. I will have a bike storage room in the basement of my new apartment ☺
10. I now drink sparkling mineral water on a daily basis and I like it! I got it so many different times by mistake that it’s grown into an addiction.
11. U pay for H20 when u go out to eat or go without. And no, you can not get a glass of water at McDonald’s. They completely did not even understand what I was asking…..
12. It’s a lot easier just to pay to go to the bathroom vs. searching for a place that’s free or having to get the code to go into the bathroom.
13. If you ask for still or natural water at a restaurant, you will most likely get flat mineral water.
14. No to go containers. You don’t take the leftovers of your meal with you.
15. Yes, they have a Euro Store.
16. The country is not run by convenience, so you will not find another one of the same grocery stores on the other side of town. And they won’t be open past 5 or on Sundays.
17. They are Efficient Recyclers! I love, love, love this. Wish the USA would get on board with it. In my new apartment, there are 4 different containers where the trashcan goes.
18. Windows don't have screen & they don't seem to have a problem with bugs coming into the houses. I don't get it.
19. There are bees that crawl all over the pastries in bakeries. It's almost like people don't notice it. It's gross, but I have to admit, you do start to get used to it.
20. The water here is hard. Really hard. It leaves a calcium film all over everything. It’s weird. Lubriderm is barely cutting it.

The view from the Sutherland Home

Zurich

Had a really great weekend in Zurich with Megan & Tim!
What a great get-away!

vm for dummies

Ugh!
Just bought a cel phone for local calls in Germany.
Thankfully there's an English mode on the phone.
And how now to set up the voice mail??
Seeing as how, when you call to set it up,
they speak in German.
So lost...

Pretzel

So, I'm at the train station and I go to the Backeri (of course!).
My turn rolls around and I ask for a pretzel.
She thinks I want a bratwurst.
No, I say, "Pretzel", trying to enunciate a bit more clearly & point at what I'm asking for.
She asks if I want a baguette.
No.
Then she gets the other girl that speaks English and I say, "pretzel".
And the girl says pretzel to the other in German with a tone of voice that says I can't believe you didn't understand her, which made me feel slightly better. I really thought this was one word we had in common. However, I have since realized that they say "Breze" and roll that "r" and it really does sound different.
Ahh......all that for snack!

The vocabulary of a 2 yr old!

Today I celebrated the fact that I can now count to ten. Woo Hoo!

In one week, though, I have learned quite a lot of words though:
entrance, exit, volume, street, stop, yes, no, the, and, with, table, chair, hello, good-bye

Pharmacay, Bakery (pretzels!), and for that matter a lot of food items
"Guten Apetite!"
Do you speak English? (Crucial to survival!) My 1st few days, I would basically say, "Hallo!" and then proceed directly to, "Sprechen sie Englisch?"
I've also learned a lot of driving/ directional words.
And then some die-hard phrases:
Good Morning
Have a Nice Day
Excuse me

Progress!

Nurenburg

The story of this city is quite interesting...

"The Nazi Party chose the city to be the site of huge Nazi Party conventions–the Nuremberg rallies. The rallies were held annually from 1927 to 1938 in Nuremberg. After Hitler's rise to power in 1933 the Nuremberg rallies became huge state propaganda events, a center of Nazi ideals.
And Later.....
Between 1945 and 1946, German officials involved in the Holocaust and other war crimes were brought before an international tribunal in the Nuremberg Trials."

There's an Acronym and corresponding form for that....

OK. Reality Check.
Everything in the military has an acronym. People speak in code here.
"Go to the CAC and get the VAT forms."
Some friends & I went out for pizza last night & at least 4 came up in conversation where they don't even realize they're doing it.
Yesterday's staff meeting had so many I actually got mentally lost. Not even sure what they were talking about...."Login in to DoDEA, then click on the CEC form and fill out for the SRS team and then ask for a CMR review."
Seriously!

• Refer to form 1107 for TQSA line 10
• Check in with your local TMO for update re: your POV, which is located near the the PX, not the PXtra and the PO Boxes, not the post office

Bamberg, Germany

My Life in 135 boxes (or so)

It is the weirdest feeling to have movers come and pack your stuff while you sit by and watch the production happen. Is my life really summed up in all those boxes? OK, thankfully not. Even more bizarre, walking away from an empty house with a suitcase (well, OK, 2 suitcases) and a backpack....

Back in July

My friends threw me a little going away party which was good fun!

Revelation

There's a song by Third Day that I've made my mantra this past year.
The chorus goes:
***
Give me Revelation
Show me what to do
Cause I’ve been tryin to find my way,
I haven’t got a clue
Tell me should I stay here,
Or do I need to move?
Give me revelation
I’ve got nothing without You
***
Today I realize that I will be praying that prayer for the rest of my life.
The Lord has revealed my next steps,
yet I am still asking questions like,
"Now what?"
"Whats' next now?"
I'm realizing that Jesus has shown to me exactly
what He wanted me to know
each day for that day alone
and the He desires for me to continue to rely on Him
for each and every next step.
Live in peace and trust Him.
Simple,
Yet difficult...

Highlights of living in Michaywe

Triplet Fawns
If you click on this photo & enlarge it,
you'll see 3 little spotted rumps in the photoA mother's love
This little guy is laying down in the center of the pic
behind the log on the ground
Mamma kept a steady eye on me