We decided to spend Easter at home doing stuff around the house and just relax… well we didn’t really spend that much time at home but we did have some good times with friends and enjoyed the warm and sunny weather as much as possible. 

    Ella and I did some Easter decorations around the house, here she is standing in front of a traditional Swedish Paskris with feathers in different colors.

    We got invited to Sam and Becky’s house on Saturday for brunch and an ester egg hunt for the kids and as always it was a nice some what crowed event with old and new friends it was so much fun and the food was terrific. The egg hunt was of course the main event for all the small and big kids, like we needed more candy

    Easter Sunday morning Ella discovered that the Easter bunny had been in our garden and left lots and lots of eggs and goodies all around our yard and after she had to sample moste of the good stuff and play with some of her gifts.

    Sunday we went to brunch again! This time it was at the PHV mess hall and with our good friends Sean, Lori and their daughter Claire, the brunch was so so but the company was great.

Tina Posted: The Hemsbacher Faschings Fest for children begins and yes it started precisely at 14.11 this is not a joke, at the end of the document you can read more of why all fasching fest’s start at a time xx.11.   This was Ella’s first Fasching fest, we dressed Ella up in her Pippi Långstrump costume but decided not color her hair orange since it is raining outside and having we colored hair is n that much fun in the rain, we did however give her some freckles, and boy did she look cute in them if I may so myself.   

   We went to the fest with our neighbor Carmen and her daughter Alina, (Ella and Alina are the best of buddies and they also attend the same Kindergarten.) We danced, played a couple of games and won some candy. It was a fun kid’s fest but I’m sure that Ella will enjoy it more next year when she is a little bit older and not so intimidated by all the older children… but oh well she had a great time and fell asleep in her Pippi costume at 18:30 that evening. J  

   Fasching is essentially the same holiday as the people of New Orleans celebrate (Mardi Gras) and is the time of year in Germany when Germans get dressed up in costumes (like Halloween) have Fasching parties and parades/carnivals in the cities, where they throw candy and paper confetti and since we are in Germany they also hand out samples of beer for the grown ups! J

    Officially it starts am elften elften elf Uhr elf (11th November at 11:11am) and continues in a fairly low-key way for about three months before the Tolle Tage (Crazy Days) which climax on Rosenmontag, the 42nd day before Easter. Carnival season is traditionally seen as a chance for people to go wild and let their hair down before Lent starts on Ash Wednesday. In the Christian church Lent is a serious time before Easter for fasting and atoning for your sins and mistakes.

Source: http://www.mckinnonsc.vic.edu.au/la/lote/german/…

   There are many regional differences concerning the name, duration, and activities of the carnival It is known as Fasching in Bavaria and Austria, Fosnat in Franconia, Fasnet in Swabia, Fastnacht in Mainz and its environs, and Karneval in Cologne and the Rhineland.

Source: http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9033790/…

   Historically, in Catholic Bavaria and Austria people celebrate Fasching. The word “Fasching” is assumed to be a derivation of the Middle High German vaschanc or vastschang (Fastschank), the last drink served before the Fast. Historically, during Fasching the lower classes were allowed to wear costumes and masks and to mimic aristocracy and heads of church and state without fear of retribution for mockery. When things got out of hand, the custom was forbidden, for a while anyway.

Source: http://www.serve.com/shea/germusa/fasching.htm

   Holy crap!!!  We have already passed the 27 week mark of Tina’s pregnancy.  So here it is by popular request, a picture of Tina’s belly. Of course no picture is complete without the soon to be big sister Ella.

   Day two of our little blogs existence and we are posting yet again.  I hope that when the newness wears off that we remain diligent at posting and updating the site; time will tell…      

   I would also like to pass on many thanks to all of you who have stopped by to check it out and post comments.  I do apologize for the fact that my friend Art is not all that funny; we humor him by laughing, but what can I say?     

   I would also like to give some props to my little sister’s web business Simply Savvy.  Things are just getting underway, but they look to be off to a good start.  Sorry guys, but the articles are mostly for girls.  On the other hand, it might be a good place to pick up something for that special someone.    

   Today we took our first step into the “blogosphere.”  We decided it was time to consider putting our old website to rest and move forward into a more interactive venue.  Hopefully this will also force us to be more diligent with regards to providing updates.  J

   So, what to expect – pretty much the same type of things that you see in many other kinds of blogs.  We plan to regularly post pictures with comments as well as share the events, thoughts, and news of our daily lives.  We might get off to a slow start since we are both new to this, but we do promise to continuously improve.  Really!!!