Fewer postings but lots happening!

I guess it's a good sign that we are having fewer postings. We are having a more comfortable time, have more interactions with friends, and the kids are developing more activities with new friends. So here's a quick update - still lots happening!

Football / soccer. First of all - we have the fever. We watch many of the games and the kids are really into it. They have 'public viewing' all over Germany including most large parks, all stadiums, and many of the city squares. We have been invited over to a German family's house to watch their first game with 6 other families. It was quite an experience. The superbowl and Olympics in one. We needed to teach Brian that he couldn't root against Germany as a guest (his teasing skills are blooming).
Siemens got into the spirit. We built a "beer garden" in the square outside of my office with a huge HD tv. Here's my cell phone picture.
It sounds cool - every game, free viewing, food and beers. The problem is I have conference calls and meetings all day long while the party is literally going on outside of my window! I know some will say, "if you can't beat them, ..." but I need my job.

Celebrate. - This weekend was both Father's day and our 15th anniversary. Now.... I don't know what father's day is for you, but for us: Monster Trucks in Starnberg at the local grocery store. Believe it or not, at the last minute Julia and Daph wanted to back out. I even pulled the, "...blog worth pictures..." but to no avail. We had a big breakfast and a day at our local park.

Having our anniversary here was also nice. Daph wanted to surprise me. She saw that there were concerts at the palace by our house.
She went to the website and booked it. The problem was her German is not perfect and a single ticket arrived with assigned seating. Once we arranged to fix this over a couple of weeks, our night was set.

Here is Julia's picture. Take note: 1. We are sooooo late. 2. The frame is a bit skewed - Julia needs more practice. 3. Daph is trying out a more daring look. 4. I am celebrating the dutch soccer win with an orange tie.

Only two more Saturdays for Daph and the kids in Germany before the summer!