July 1st started with a bang. The kids' school carnival was that evening.
Noah and one of his school friends, Ariadna, performed a dance with the rest of their class for the talent show. Too cute, these two!
Carnivals are a dime a dozen in Luxembourg, maybe in Europe; I feel like we stumble upon at least one a month. So, I kind of figured this one would be the same: greasy bratwurst with ill-fitting bun, over-priced, creaky rides assembled the morning of, rain .... you know. But this was a lot more innocent, the fun more basic (yet the bratwurst in full force). Exhibit A: nail, hammer, stump. Fun as old as time. Safety gear as novel as the act.
Face painting!
The pirate I had not seen before .... Noah wore it well.
July 4th was Noah's "evening in the manner of Pablo Picasso," as translated from the fancy invitation from his teacher. She has a flair for the dramatic, so this evening didn't disappoint. She even offered delicate flutes of champagne! (There's alcohol served at all school events.... that's weird right? I don't think we do that in America.....) Noah was pleased as punch to show off what he'd been working on all year. This is only a small portion of it, too! And in Lux, it's pronounced "Pabloo Picassoo." Important distinction, if you are Noah.
My friend, Megan, hosted a July 4th BBQ that evening at her home. We came early and late, with Noah's event in the middle. It was a busy night and we all went to bed late, but there's no place I'd rather be on Independence Day than with fellow Americans at a BBQ! The missionaries joined us. They are from Maryland & Las Vegas. And they are dressed in patriotic colors.
Star, Becky, baby Lincoln, me, Megan. We were all laughing as Adam took the picture and said, "Smile! It only took 150 years to get the vote!" Stinker.
Sticky babes.
Our neighborhood friend, Merienna, came over one day.
Our first camping trip of the year! We were all very excited.
The weather was perfect all weekend. Ahhhhhh. Summer, is it really you? Where on earth have you been?
I failed on the briquettes front. Even though I translated the bag from French to English, I'm still not sure what I was supposed to do....I have a wild guess they meant something along the lines of lighter fluid. THAT I did not pack. So we cooked hot dogs and roasted mallows over our propane stove. Here's Nobes with the line-up of s'mores combinations just waiting to be tried.
These two slept like child-size rocks both nights.
Happy campers .... har har.
I was proud of myself for translating a bulletin that said a bakery truck would roll through the campground at 9 am. It came true!
Sienna was eating Adam's leftovers the next day and said, "That bakery man sure has some good stuff." I laughed and laughed. She doesn't know how funny she is. And then she gets mad at me for laughing at her.
We tried big bubbles with the help of some of Megan's American supplies, but I was still missing the correct brand of dish soap, so they didn't really fly.
Off the camp site, there were some hiking trails. And I actually wasn't lying this time when I told the kids it'd just be a short one.
It's views of adorable villages below that remind me where I live ... pinch me.
The hike was short but the stairs were steep.
Lunch at the top.
Later that evening, when Adam was slaving away at the cook stove, preparing our second night of hot dog dinner, a gelato truck pulled up. Ding ding! Ice cream before dinner? Yes, please.
This couple walked around all day everyday just like this. I aspire to be them someday.
A couple spots down were these Hobbit Houses that sleep two. How cute!
The second night was a campground dance party/BBQ. We went for awhile, then put the kids to bed. But since the music was still pumping well into darkness, they couldn't fall asleep. So at 9 pm (yes, it was still this light at 9 pm), when this hot air balloon happened over our camp site, I got them out of bed to come see it.
The very next weekend we went camping in Germany next to the picturesque Moselle River.
This campground felt like a retirement community and I think we were the loudest group around. Old people sat on their camper "porches" and just .... sat. And since everyone was in such close proximity, I felt like I was always being watched.
There is really no sense of seclusion at all the places we've camped so far. Euro-camping is not only a nature retreat ... it's a cheap, social summer vacation. I don't like that about it, but I just have to accept it. At least the very few of us with tents got the spots down by the river. Gorgeous! My favorite moment of the trip was one evening when Noah dragged his little camp chair over to the river front and asked, "Does anybody want to come watch the water with me?" Yes, please!
We took a day trip to Burg Eltz castle.
Waiting to get in on the English tour....
Two thumbs up for Burg Eltz: With its short hike, short wait, English tour, and ice cream just outside the exit, we were all pretty pleased. Some American tourists took this picture for us, a couple traveling with their two teenage girls all over Europe for a month. They said their girls were over it! Haha. Little kids and teenagers...maybe there is no difference at all.
After the kids went to bed one night, I stole a walk to the cute town nearby with the loud church bells. Gotta get my regular dose of architecture... I loved this climbing ivy and the bursting flower boxes on all that brick.
The noisy culprit:
A lot of pictures of Jesus on this back road I took.
Black roofs all around. By the way, I looked it up: it's roofs and not rooves. Take note.
The foliage! The doorway! The window details! The lace curtains! The brick! The peach and pink and mauve! I imagine a fastidious old woman named Matilda lives here. But when it comes to the entryway plant life, she's got a surprising devil-may-care attitude. A wild streak, she has.
Butter yellow window frames ... cobalt blue planters. LOVE this one!
On our way home we stopped for a moment to look around Cochem, one of the more well-known cute towns on the Moselle.
Um, cute is just a beginner descriptor. Adorable, quaint, sweet .... all the way to sexy. Did I take it too far?
It was a lovely, lovely place!
This life-size chess game was a huge hit with the kids ...especially when they realized they could smack each other's pieces over again and again and again. That was the game!
