Mirja and Thomas Visit

Ok, ok...I know I've been delinquent with the blog posts. It's not because we haven't been busy...hopefully, I'll catch up these next few days, so keep checking.

A few weeks ago, Mirja and Thomas came to visit us and to see Quinn for the first time. We had a great weekend of hiking, relaxing, and catching up.

Here we are below visiting the wild pigs in the forest near our house.
Since we all know that you are all online reading our blog so that you can see Quinn...here's a few of him doing his favorite activity: doing pushups...
Ok...maybe he isn't doing pushups, but he is trying to turn onto his back. He has done it once that we've seen, but it was a bit aided by the blanket that he was on.
On his left arm is his new favorite toy. It's got these five little 'fingers' that make different sounds. They are just the right size to put in his mouth...I guess, regardless of the object, he loves to put it in his mouth. Thanks Aunt Joyce!
This year, I planted corn and pole beans...below is my first harvest! Since we were both heading out of town the next day, we gave have to our neighbor and froze the other half. Since then, we've picked some more, and they taste great!
Eva can't believe that stuff like this would grow in our garden...It is a really good feeling planting something and seeing it grow. It is even more rewarding when it is something that you can eat or a flower that you can put in a vase to brighten up the house...

Babyswimm

Tuesday was Quinn's last babyswimm class. Five classes total. He seemed to enjoy himself, but a few times he 'breathed' in some water, which caused some issues.

It was super convenient that the pool was only about 30 meters from our house (in one of the nearby schools). He still needs to get used to the 'pre and post swimming shower'.
Sittin' cool by the poolside with daddy.
Quinn had some issues with focusing on the task at hand. Instead of 'swimming', he would focus on the other babies. I still find it amazing how babies are totally fascinated with other babies. I guess since they spend so much time with adults like mom and dad, they are a bit amazed that there are people their size when they encounter other babies.
He really liked trying to grab the ball with his mouth. Despite trying, it doesn't fit.
His favorite activity: turning on his belly and getting stuck under the chair. He can't turn on his back yet, so we have to 'save him' before he either starts crying or pukes up his food.

Deep in Thought

We have two 'Sommerflieder' bushes in the garden. The smell really great and they attract tons of butterflies. They grow like weeds (they are about 4 feet tall now) and bloom almost all summer. They add a nice touch to our yard.
Just a quick shot of Quinn...deep in thought.
He's growing a lot - like all babies, I guess. It is still hard for me to believe that he was so much smaller 4 months ago. He's outgrowing lots of clothes, and his stroller is almost too small for him (and is getting harder to push).

Outside of the 'normal' fits, he is a very happy baby. It is great when I come home from work, and he just smiles, laughs, and coos when he sees me. That makes coming home that much better.

First Time Jogger

Just a quick note...no pictures.

On Monday, Quinn experienced another 'First': he went jogging with Daddy.

...ok, I pushed him in his stroller while I ran. He seemed to enjoy himself...and spent a lot of time looking at the trees (we were running in the forest near our place).

Summerfest: All good things come in 3's

As we were planning this year's Summerfest, it didn't take us long to find a theme: All good things come in 3's. Eva turned 30 in December, I turned 33 in May, Quinn was born in the 3rd month, and our family now has 3 members.

To add more cool to the coincidences, we had our Summerfest on the 7th of July of 2007: 07.07.07. Pretty cool...at least for a bunch of 30-somethings.

Let's just say it took us a while to do the shopping for all of our guests. We had almost 40 friends and family over...and I got to grill for all of them. I made my 'almost famous' burgers - from scratch - with almost 20 pounds of meat. Just in case that wasn't enough, we added another 10 or so pounds of sausage.
It started out tame enough around 5pm. We had a nice mix of friends and family that travelled the 4+ hours (or more...due to some pretty bad traffic jams) as well as our local friends.
Kaya and Henrik looking at our lavender shrubs.
Britta, Christian, and his cousin Lars.
The gang from the Ruhrgebeit (the area of Eva's hometown), decided that beer and wine wasn't enough...let the schnapps drinking begin. All in all, we killed over 2 liters of Jägermeister and Sambucca.

Robin, Anna, and Christian: for those Pi Kapps that are reading, this pic reminds me of the thousands of similar looking party pics at the House.

As midnight turned, Babsi celebrated her 30-something birthday...Eva was prepared with a cake (that was really, really good...I hope she makes it again).

We really don't know how Quinn got in this position. He can turn really well onto his stomach, but he can't really get back on his back. Eva and I both missed this one, but it seems that he did the full turn...and somehow avoided banging his head on our hardwood floors.

The family and friends from the Ruhrgebeit meeting for breakfast in our yard. No grilling...just rolls and coffee.

...ok, and Quinn has milk for breakfast...

I really love this baseball hat, but his head is now too big for it. Quinn's fully rested and woke up at 7am. I went to bed after 3am and looked the part the next morning.

All in all, it was a great time. I was a bit worried that the neighbors would complain a bit, but Babsi emparted some great wisdom on me: everyone is allowed to be loud at least twice a year...

Osh Kosh B'gosh

I guess every parent has their favorite outfit for their child. Well, this one is mine. I bough these overalls in January before Quinn was born. After he was born, even though the tag said 3-6 months, I tried them on him anyway...way to big.
Before you know it, he is practically too big for them.

Universal Truth

As you can imagine, the 4th of July is not really big over here in Germany. It is like any other day, but many of my colleagues are aware of the day and ask thoughtful questions about Independence Day.

So what does the 4th of July mean to me? Of course, one looks back and thinks of those days before the independence over 200 years ago (practically yesterday by European standards) - mostly through the pages of those history texts that we learned in grade school.

However, for me, like many Americans (I think), the 4th is a day not only to reflect on our country's history but also to reflect on the value of our friends and family. I don't want to get too deep here...but this tends to translate into a BBQ. Yes, for me, the 4th of July means grilling with friends and family. I'm not too sure if this means that I've lost my stripes, but I cannot imagine a 4th without my grill.

After talking to Eva, we decided to grill some hot dogs. Nothing fancy. Just hot dogs. And buns as well. So what is the universal truth: hot dogs come in packages with a different quantity than that of the buns. Yep...we had 6 dogs and 4 buns. In the States, you get 8 dogs and 6 buns.

Why does it work this way? Is it marketing or is it some cruel joke?

So, as you celebrate the 4th in your special way - whether via parades, going to firework shows, grilling, or just sitting on the couch all day - take a few moments to remind yourselves of our country's roots, its rise during the industrial revolution, and its current place on the world stage.

While the future might be in the hands of 'The Mighty Quinn' that is sitting beside me in his PJ's, it is our duty to prepare him for this challenge...

...maybe he can convince the hot dog people to put fewer dogs in a package or convince the bun people to stuff a few more buns in the bag...

Mountains...

A friend of ours, Robin, celebrated his 30th birthday last Saturday. Since he lives south of Munich, we took the opportunity to play tourist and to visit a good friend.

We ended getting up around 6am on Saturday. After Quinn's feeding, we hit the road and were on Chiemsee (one of the larger lakes south of Munich) in time for breakfast...on the lake.

After breakfast, we headed a bit deeper into the Alps to go for a hike. We found a nice trailhead and took the gondola up and planned to hike down. I was wanting to hike up and down, but (in hindsight), I think the 1200 vertical meter climb would have been a bit tough carrying Quinn. Maybe next time when we have a bit more time.

Quinn was a bit skeptical of the gondola ride - his first ride on a gondola.

At the top, we found the first overlook and the first mountain refuge, or hut. There are literally thousands of miles of trails, and these huts are all over the place.
...and with a moutain peak, comes a Berggipfel (cross at the peak)...also very common for the Alps.
...to the right of this mountain face, you see Chiemsee.
During our hike down, we ran across this small chapel next to another mountain hut. We had some great weather (a bit cool and windy though) and even better views. Every time we do these sorts of trips, we say that we need to do them more often. After all, we can get in the Alps - traffic pending - in 2 - 2 1/2 hours.

After we were most of the way down the mountain, we stopped at this refuge...similar to the huts that are in the mountains (Berghütte), this is a hut in the fields in the mountains (Almhütte). These are especially cool, because the owners tend to have cattle (with bells around their necks) that are walking all over the place.

We had a great, yet simple lunch...and I splurged and had a beer...you can almost do no wrong ordering soup and beer at these places. The food is almost always great, it is not too expensive, it is usually homemade, and the people are almost always very friendly...

...but hard to understand. The deep Bavarian dialect is not easy to follow and can cause difficulties for those native Germans that were raised outside of Bavaria.
After the hike, we headed to the hotel...we were close to Robin's place, but still pretty much in the sticks. Here's the view from our hotel room (above) to the main hotel.On Sunday, we headed back home, but we headed to a nearby lake - Simsee for Quinn's feeding. Unlike Chiemsee, Simsee seems to be much lower key and has less tourists. You still have the Alps as the backdrop. All in all, it was a great two day break from our reality of 'home'.

This crib cannot contain me!!!

Today, Quinn is 4 months old. Below are a few before and after pics of Quinn in his crib. He's been sleeping in his bed for a while...
...and the crib is just too small for him now. So we took it apart to make more room for him in his room. Thanks again to Opa Göttgens for putting in all of the work renovating the crib for us. It is now ready for the next round of children. At 4 months, he's 64 cm long. A relatively long baby for his age.
Here's Quinn playing...looking a bit mischievous.

Smart Kid

Of course every parent thinks that their child is smart and cute...but Quinn has been showing signs of creativity in getting his way. Quinn also had a number of 'Firsts' this week.

First #1: Monday: Quinn really likes it when his mobile over his crib moves, but he can't move it himself. Since the mobile is hanging from the net that surrounds his bed, he found out that if he moves to the side of the bed against the wall, he can rub his feet against the net and move the mobile, making the animals move (you can see the bumblebee in the pic below). Pretty smart!

First #2: yesterday: At our baby swim class, we went underwater for the first time. Surprisingly, he took it really well and didn't cry. I'm not too sure he liked it, but he at least didn't puke on me and cry.

First #3: today: he turned from his belly to his back. I was there for this one (Eva was at her Spanish class). Unfortunately, the triumph was interupted by him hitting his head on the floor after the turn (he rolled off his blanket).

Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Texas for the new PJ's. He really seemed to like having his legs in pants rather than the sleeping bag. Eva gives me neverending grief, because I thought the animal on the PJ's was a snake. I've got to have my eyes checked.

Celebrating 4 Years in Germany

How time flies. Yesterday was my 4 year anniversary of my arrival in Germany. I can't believe it has been four years already. Looking back, it has been a wild and very exciting ride with Eva and now Quinn. We've seen and done a lot...and it just keeps getting better.

But, you don't want to hear me ramble about my last 4 years here in Germany. I know you're here to see pictures of Quinn.

This is his 'thinking man' pose.
...trying to turn...or maybe trying to do push ups.

Of course, Quinn has to put everything in his mouth...including the rags we use to clean him up when he spits or blows bubbles.
We ordered another shelf for Quinn's room, and I was putting it together on Wednesday evening. Quinn was trying to help out, but I had to take the screwdriver from his hand when he tried to put it in his mouth, and the point almost hit his eye.

I don't think Eva would have been amused if he poked his eye out...

...it's all fun and games until someone pokes his eye out...

Baby Swim

Yesterday, Quinn had his first swimming lesson. OK...that is a bit of an exaggeration, but we enrolled in swimming classes that are for newborns.

I was petrified that he would poop in the pool, but Eva said that babies cannot poop in water. While I believe almost everything that my wife says, I was a bit scared when I saw little gas bubbles coming from Quinn's diapers through the water...thankfully, no poo...

Quinn did a great job and seemed to really enjoy the event. Next week, we go under water!

Vacation on the North Sea

Ahhh...vacation. Since we were going to be in or around Eva's folk's place on the 2nd and the 9th of June, we thought we'd just take off on vacation in between. Since the North Sea is close and favorite of the Göttgens family, we packed our bags and took our first vacation as a family!After a 3 hour drive from Hattingen and a 40 minute ferry, we found ourselves on the North See island of Langeoog - one of the many German islands that dot the North Sea coast.

With any vacation on the North See, the weather can be tricky and ever-changing. Thankfully, we had great weather (and no rain!) all week long. While the weather can be less than optimal on the North Sea, the beaches are awesome - with powder sand beaches that go for miles.
The traditional building material for roofs is reeds from the natural grasses that grow wild on the island. These reed roofs can last for centuries, but present quite a fire hazard.

Quinn experienced sand for the first time. He didn't seem to like the sand between his toes, but I'm sure he'll grow into it - especially when we can build sandcastles together.
The North Sea is a particularly good vacation for families. The kids can play for hours on the beach doing everything from sandcastle building to flying kites. It is especially cool on the North See during the low tide because the ebb is so BIG. The difference between the high and low tides can be kilometers, and it is very cool to walk so far from shore during the low tide.
Thankfully, Eva's parents were with us as well. It allowed us some time to ourselves when they would take Quinn for a walk, and their company is always appreciated. We played cards quite a bit during the evening together, and Eva's dad is teaching Quinn the basics.

...these are the pics that kids hate their parents for...

Andre and Jenny get Hitched

Before leaving for vacation on the North Sea, we had a short stay-over in Hattingen to see Andre and Jenny get married (2nd of June). The whole timing worked out well for vacation since we had events on both Saturdays - the wedding and a Herbert Grönemeyer concert.

Unfortunately, there aren't many pictures because I was stupid and deleted all of our pics from the wedding and our vacation. Thankfully Eva's parents had a few pics (and I had a few thumbnails that I could save) so that we could recognize the events on the blog.The reception was very cool as well - it was in a converted barn. The food was great and very, very plentiful. This was our first night without Quinn, and I think we both took it pretty well. We had a great time with our friends and danced the night away.