Next to me is Bishop Vandam and his wife and then Lisa Widmann.
I really like this song (oratorium) by J.S. Bach
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Esslingen Middle Centuries Christmas Market
Christmas Markets are plentiful in Germany around this time of year. But this one is a bit special because it focuses on activities that would have at Christmas markets hundreds of years ago. Axe throwing, beer drinking, wooden ferris wheels, eating worst around a open hearth bonfire, etc,. I went with a work friend since my normal Christmas Market companions are currently in Boise.
Ferris wheel:
Me next to a huge Christmas Helicopter:
Criche exhibit (isn't it great that Germans aren't politically correct):
Ferris wheel:
Me next to a huge Christmas Helicopter:
Criche exhibit (isn't it great that Germans aren't politically correct):
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Italy
We had a fabulous week long stay in Italy. We stayed with my friend Nancy and her son Jaron there. They were so great to us!!! We saw Venice, Verona, the Soave castle and Cinquee Terra. What a whirlwind trip!
Here is our entertainment while we are waiting for the train in Cinque Terra. We've found the railway there is a little late. A nice lady came over the intercom ever 15 minutes and told us our train would be delayed another 15 minutes. After our train was over an hour late we decided to take our business elsewhere
Beautiful Beach at Cinque Terra. If you look closely there is a huge sculpture in the rocks behind us on the right.
Kyle at St. Marco Basillica in Venice
Elli in Venice. More lovely than any sculpture!
One of the highlights of our trip. An awesome castle in Soave. It was really old and really cool and really rainy. Wow! Inside they even had peices from dishes they found in the castle and original coats of arms and beds and tables and paintings. It was very neat.
We ended up getting stuck at a train station in the middle of nowhere for an hour in the dark. Luckily Elli's happy attitude was the glue that kept us together!
Here is our entertainment while we are waiting for the train in Cinque Terra. We've found the railway there is a little late. A nice lady came over the intercom ever 15 minutes and told us our train would be delayed another 15 minutes. After our train was over an hour late we decided to take our business elsewhere
Beautiful Beach at Cinque Terra. If you look closely there is a huge sculpture in the rocks behind us on the right.
Kyle at St. Marco Basillica in Venice
Elli in Venice. More lovely than any sculpture!
One of the highlights of our trip. An awesome castle in Soave. It was really old and really cool and really rainy. Wow! Inside they even had peices from dishes they found in the castle and original coats of arms and beds and tables and paintings. It was very neat.
We ended up getting stuck at a train station in the middle of nowhere for an hour in the dark. Luckily Elli's happy attitude was the glue that kept us together!
Airplanes
We have been working up the girls muscles for our long flight back to the states. I hope they make it!
Monday, November 3, 2008
Halloween!
Here are our princesses before our old ward's Halloween party
Here we are on Halloween night at our "Family Party"
This doesn't have to do with Halloween, just an every day activity for Abby, its pretty hard to keep her clothes on. You think winter would have discouraged her.
Here we are on Halloween night at our "Family Party"
This doesn't have to do with Halloween, just an every day activity for Abby, its pretty hard to keep her clothes on. You think winter would have discouraged her.
More Elli News
We had the results today of Elli's genetic testing. They found that she officially has a genetic mutation that is classified as Glut 1. So we are official. These results are what we expected. We are relieved to finally have a diagnosis, but it is also a hard thing to know as well. Interestingly the lab hadn't ever seen a mutation like hers. I guess we've always known she is special!
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Pumpkins and Beadwork
Elli has been busy with her hama beads. (lots of little plastic beads put on a form one by one and then ironed by dear ol' mom). Take a good look, some of you might see these again around Christmas time.
We had our friend/Kyle's coworker over again for carving pumpkins this year. Her name is Gemma. She is great!Rottweil
Because of our affection for Rottweilers we decided to head down to their stomping grounds last weekend. We didn't see any REAL rottweilers but we did see many other great things...
I'm not sure about the funny look on Elli's face. Maybe she doesn't like rotties, or maybe its how hight her pants are being hiked.
I always wanted to ride our dogs as a kid. It never seemed to work out like this.
Elli and mama "kissing" at the great park we found. It was perfect for Elli!
A tower leading into the marketplace. We were there for the Saturday market and had some great samples.
I'm not sure about the funny look on Elli's face. Maybe she doesn't like rotties, or maybe its how hight her pants are being hiked.
I always wanted to ride our dogs as a kid. It never seemed to work out like this.
Elli and mama "kissing" at the great park we found. It was perfect for Elli!
A tower leading into the marketplace. We were there for the Saturday market and had some great samples.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Elli's Latest Cuteness
We are hearing alot of fun phrases from Elli these days. We thought we would share a few of our favorites:
On the way home from church I see some goats and I say:
M:"Oh Look Elli, Billy Goats"
E: "Billy Goats? That is a funny word. But we can just call them goats also"
M:"Yes Elli"
E: "But we can call them billy goats too because they have belly buttons"
On the way to the toystore, Elli and Abby's seats are on opposite sides of the backseat:
E: "Mom, maybe we can put our seats together"
M: "Why Elli"
E: "Then we can do hugging and kissing in the back seat!"
On the way home from the temple. Kyle and I take turns going in and watching the girls:
E: "Mom, I can wear your skirt, then I can go in the temple too. Then when I am done I will come out and you can wear your skirt and go in!!!"
M: "Elli you are going to go into the temple someday and its going to be so wonderful!"
E: "Yeah, and you and Dad can stay outside and watch Abby"
Mom and Elli role playing introductions:
M: "Hello, what is your name?"
E: "Elli Holzer"
M: "Oh, nice to meet you Elli and where do you come from?"
E: "Daddy!"
M: "Oh and who is that (pointing to Dad and hoping to hear the word Kyle)
E: "Daddy Holzer"
E: "Mom, I am going to have children"
M: "Oh great! How many?"
E: "Four", "and they are going to be blue"
M: "Oh really?"
E: "Yes, and they are going to sleep in my bed. One on the top bunk and one on the bottom"
M: "Really? And wear will you sleep?"
E: "In mom and dad's bed"
After talking about our visit home to Grandpas house for the holidays"
E: "Mom I'm so cited to jump on the Grampoline!"
Coming home from Kindergarten
E: "Mom I learned to speak German today"
M: "You did?"
E: "Yeah, I can say 'sola' (spreading her arms wide)
[fyi: sola is not a german word]
M: "Wow! That's great!"
E: "Yeah, Elli can speak German and Daddy can speak German, but Mom, you can't speak German"
She's right!
On the way home from church I see some goats and I say:
M:"Oh Look Elli, Billy Goats"
E: "Billy Goats? That is a funny word. But we can just call them goats also"
M:"Yes Elli"
E: "But we can call them billy goats too because they have belly buttons"
On the way to the toystore, Elli and Abby's seats are on opposite sides of the backseat:
E: "Mom, maybe we can put our seats together"
M: "Why Elli"
E: "Then we can do hugging and kissing in the back seat!"
On the way home from the temple. Kyle and I take turns going in and watching the girls:
E: "Mom, I can wear your skirt, then I can go in the temple too. Then when I am done I will come out and you can wear your skirt and go in!!!"
M: "Elli you are going to go into the temple someday and its going to be so wonderful!"
E: "Yeah, and you and Dad can stay outside and watch Abby"
Mom and Elli role playing introductions:
M: "Hello, what is your name?"
E: "Elli Holzer"
M: "Oh, nice to meet you Elli and where do you come from?"
E: "Daddy!"
M: "Oh and who is that (pointing to Dad and hoping to hear the word Kyle)
E: "Daddy Holzer"
E: "Mom, I am going to have children"
M: "Oh great! How many?"
E: "Four", "and they are going to be blue"
M: "Oh really?"
E: "Yes, and they are going to sleep in my bed. One on the top bunk and one on the bottom"
M: "Really? And wear will you sleep?"
E: "In mom and dad's bed"
After talking about our visit home to Grandpas house for the holidays"
E: "Mom I'm so cited to jump on the Grampoline!"
Coming home from Kindergarten
E: "Mom I learned to speak German today"
M: "You did?"
E: "Yeah, I can say 'sola' (spreading her arms wide)
[fyi: sola is not a german word]
M: "Wow! That's great!"
E: "Yeah, Elli can speak German and Daddy can speak German, but Mom, you can't speak German"
She's right!
Monday, October 13, 2008
Schoenbuch
Last Saturday we went for a ride in the Schoenbuch which means 'beautiful book' It is a forest near our house and it was beautiful!
Mom by our local library on the way out of town
We are NOT lost!
We love the fall colors here in Germany! How lucky we are to be here and get to go on family bike rides!
Mom by our local library on the way out of town
We are NOT lost!
We love the fall colors here in Germany! How lucky we are to be here and get to go on family bike rides!
Keto Kid
Horray for Elli! She underwent a napping (20 min.)EEG last week and they couldn't find any seizures! Even though we are still finetuning the diet to get the most success, it is making a difference for Elli. Hats off to her for eating the food and not complaining. She goes through one of these bottles of oil every few weeks! It is not easy, but she has shown us she can do hard things.
Here is a link to a site about Glut 1 Elli's condition. It also has interesting links about the Ketogenic diet. Elli is currently on a ratio of 85% fat 6% protein and 9% carbs. www.glut1.de
Monday, October 6, 2008
FC Bayern Muenchin - Soccer Game!
Nelsen is in town for a few days for business. We went to a Bayern Muenchin soccer game on Saturday. One of my lifetime goals - score! There were actually 6 goals scored, quite an exciting game. We tied 3-3.
Here is some of the pre-game show. A remarkably different style than our marching band at the University of Utah. Any band that does polka in lederhosen has got to be cool.
I was coveting my neighbor's bratwurst. I don't think Moses listed that one in Deuteronomy so I must be ok.
Philip Lamm - one of the young soccer stars in Germany. He was on the national team too this last go around in the European cup.
The stadium. They announced it was a sellout crowd. I saw a few empty seat, but not many.
Here is some of the pre-game show. A remarkably different style than our marching band at the University of Utah. Any band that does polka in lederhosen has got to be cool.
I was coveting my neighbor's bratwurst. I don't think Moses listed that one in Deuteronomy so I must be ok.
Philip Lamm - one of the young soccer stars in Germany. He was on the national team too this last go around in the European cup.
The stadium. They announced it was a sellout crowd. I saw a few empty seat, but not many.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
German Kinder
Did you know the word Kindergarten is German? Well it is, and boy are they serious about it. Kids start here at 3 and go all day all week and everyone goes. We have a darling and very developed Kindergarten next to our house and decided we'd check it out. Elli has been going 2 weeks now and has been such a trouper about it. Although the teachers all have some English they speak in German as do all the kids. Elli goes for just an hour and a half in the morning and she is just doing great! Boy are we proud of our little Kindergartener!
A couple of her cute Kindergarten quotes were:
"None of the kids there know me, but I'm Elli Holzer"
"Will Mom and Dad be sleeping there too?" (During our initial tour they showed her the napping room and she thought she was going to be staying during the night too. What a trusting girl.)
A couple of her cute Kindergarten quotes were:
"None of the kids there know me, but I'm Elli Holzer"
"Will Mom and Dad be sleeping there too?" (During our initial tour they showed her the napping room and she thought she was going to be staying during the night too. What a trusting girl.)
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Trip to England
We spent Wed-Sat last week in London. The girls did great and we had a good time. It was a lot of work for Sally - preparing and packing Elli's food and scale, then weighing it all out. One of the most notable food preparation/weighing spots was the floor of Victoria Train Station in London.
Hyde Park - where Pres. Hinckley and many others have preached on their soap boxes. Sunday is the official soap box day here so we missed the hoopla. It was nap time - the girls slept for the next 2 hours on our laps while did a tour on the top deck of the red double decker bus.
Westminster Abbey - where all the royalty get sworn at - I mean in. This is the top of the bus and our tour guide.
King's Royal Palace.
One of the royal guards. He was kind of grumpy - I guess they have an image to uphold.
Two cute Americans we found in England. They followed us around the whole trip. This was our second hotel. It was an old school from a couple hundred years ago. We had the Presidential sweet (not very sweet), the room right about the entrance was with four windows. Dorm style (only updated as absolutely necessary along the way) rooms, one restroom per floor. A good experience though.
Big Ben (actually the bell inside was named after Sir Benjamin EnglishPolitician, not the tower) This is the English Parliament building - built around 1830.
Hyde Park - where Pres. Hinckley and many others have preached on their soap boxes. Sunday is the official soap box day here so we missed the hoopla. It was nap time - the girls slept for the next 2 hours on our laps while did a tour on the top deck of the red double decker bus.
Westminster Abbey - where all the royalty get sworn at - I mean in. This is the top of the bus and our tour guide.
King's Royal Palace.
One of the royal guards. He was kind of grumpy - I guess they have an image to uphold.
Two cute Americans we found in England. They followed us around the whole trip. This was our second hotel. It was an old school from a couple hundred years ago. We had the Presidential sweet (not very sweet), the room right about the entrance was with four windows. Dorm style (only updated as absolutely necessary along the way) rooms, one restroom per floor. A good experience though.
Big Ben (actually the bell inside was named after Sir Benjamin EnglishPolitician, not the tower) This is the English Parliament building - built around 1830.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Temple trip - Frankfurt
We went yesterday up to Friedrichsdorf. It was a good trip again.
Incidentally we heard from the doctor that we need to up Elli's Ketogenic diet to 85% fat. Sally and Elli have both been amazing is making this diet work so far. Once Elli's ketone levels reach the right percentage we can start working on the correct caloric intake and hopefully drop a few lbs for Elli.
Incidentally we heard from the doctor that we need to up Elli's Ketogenic diet to 85% fat. Sally and Elli have both been amazing is making this diet work so far. Once Elli's ketone levels reach the right percentage we can start working on the correct caloric intake and hopefully drop a few lbs for Elli.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Garmisch
Olympic Stadium
In the spirit of oppressive governments hosting the Olympic games we decided to visit Garmisch, the site of the 1936 winter games. There are a few original structures still here. These ski jumps have obviously been remade and enlarged. But the stadium at the base of the hill is original and really resembles the big Stadium Hitler built over in Nuernburg. This must have been the practice run.
We stayed at the cute little guest house with sheep grazing on the green slopes nearby.
This is right in front of the Zugspitze - Germany's highest peak. The gondola cables are behind us in the distance. We went up to the tip of the highest peak behind us.
This looking down from the gondola we rode. Quite the view - about 1/2 mile to the ground below the gondola. Abby was nervous for the second half of the trip on the way up. I even had a few butterflies especially as the gondola shakes a bit and jerks right as you get to the top getting into the lodge.
The views were amazing. We were lucky the fog burned off. Abby decided she wasn't afraid of heights any more and is leaning over the edge. They built this amazing three story restaurant/visitor's center/conference center right on top of the tallest peak. Very cool.
This is a little Protestant church in Garmisch. Wikipedia (a great source of info) told me it was home to one of the most well known works of one Johann Evangelist Holzer. Now it comes clear to me why the Holzers are so artistic.
Johann did the whole ceiling in a fresco style of painting. After finishing this work in the early 17 hundreds he was 31 years old (a young pup). He just got commissioned to do a huge mural for the archbishop of Cologne at the largest church in the area. He died before he could get started, isn't that always the way it is...
In the spirit of oppressive governments hosting the Olympic games we decided to visit Garmisch, the site of the 1936 winter games. There are a few original structures still here. These ski jumps have obviously been remade and enlarged. But the stadium at the base of the hill is original and really resembles the big Stadium Hitler built over in Nuernburg. This must have been the practice run.
We stayed at the cute little guest house with sheep grazing on the green slopes nearby.
This is right in front of the Zugspitze - Germany's highest peak. The gondola cables are behind us in the distance. We went up to the tip of the highest peak behind us.
This looking down from the gondola we rode. Quite the view - about 1/2 mile to the ground below the gondola. Abby was nervous for the second half of the trip on the way up. I even had a few butterflies especially as the gondola shakes a bit and jerks right as you get to the top getting into the lodge.
The views were amazing. We were lucky the fog burned off. Abby decided she wasn't afraid of heights any more and is leaning over the edge. They built this amazing three story restaurant/visitor's center/conference center right on top of the tallest peak. Very cool.
This is a little Protestant church in Garmisch. Wikipedia (a great source of info) told me it was home to one of the most well known works of one Johann Evangelist Holzer. Now it comes clear to me why the Holzers are so artistic.
Johann did the whole ceiling in a fresco style of painting. After finishing this work in the early 17 hundreds he was 31 years old (a young pup). He just got commissioned to do a huge mural for the archbishop of Cologne at the largest church in the area. He died before he could get started, isn't that always the way it is...
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