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2 years later!



TWO YEARS in Germany!  

  •  It feels like a long time but also feels like not enough.  The expression “time flies” is so very true.
  • We originally came here for 2 years with the hope of staying 2 and a half since we didn’t want to move mid-school year again.  At this point we are hoping to stay at least until Andrei finishes 4th grade which is the end of Grundschule which will make it 4 years since he nearly started first grade here.  Other than that we have no long term plans :)
  • Since Anton was only 2 when we left, he has no memory of our home or his school and his friends. It’s weird to think about it that way.
  • Ilya and Andrei both remember things but it’s actually really funny.  For example, they miss Lucky Charms, Goldfish and corn dogs.  Chris brings Lucky Charms and Goldfish on VERY regular basis; corn dogs, however, are a little trickier.  A little bit ago we tried to make them at home and while they were ok, they were not the same as the frozen ones I used to buy.  When we visited during spring break last year, they got to enjoy their frozen corn dogs. 
  • The German school is the only one they really remember by now. Andrei used to mention his American school once in a while but no more.  It’s kind of ironic because we have spent SO much time getting to know and working with amazing teachers and staff there.  We are super lucky that we LOVE teachers here as well and they are all super helpful and work with us to get things done.


First day of school 2 years ago - such babies!

  • What do we like about living here?  I like that my kids are learning another language or 2, I like that we get to travel all over Europe, I actually like the fact that we are becoming a bit snobbish and we can now choose that we have seen so many castles and churches that we don’t want to see just ordinary ones, we want to see something spectacular.  I like the fact that my kids are learning Independence and Andrei is walking to and from school by himself, they are allowed to go to playground and nobody is calling Child Protective Services.

I really wanted to write what it feels like to be here for 2 years, but for some reason this was also very hard to write.  My thoughts are a bit all over the place, so making a short list seemed to be the best way to organize my thoughts.  I think this will be fun to read many years later :)
Right before we left Pittsburgh

Now
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