Sunday FunFETTIday!

As I had said in a previous post, our friend Kevin came down for a visit this weekend. Friday night once he got in, we met a bunch of friends at Greifenklau, one of Bamberg's local breweries, for some good food and good beer. Everyone had a great time. Saturday was Jason's moment of glory - he had successfully planned a huge cookout at the park by the river for all our friends. (p.s. it was 88 degrees!!!) Everyone grilled out, played volleyball, threw the frisbee, and ate our now-famous (and thanks to Jamie), buffalo chicken dip. So how could we possibly have as much fun as that on Sunday? The answer lies below in these pictures. Kevin made us brunch...funfetti pancakes, and if that's not a good way to start a Sunday, I don't know what is.

Kevin cooking; Jason...supervising?

Halfway there...and mimosas to go with them!

FINISHED PRODUCT!

These pancakes are seriously amazing. And they are made completely from scratch! As soon as Jay can get the recipe from Kevin (who made them from memory!), I am definitely posting it. After waking from our sugar comas, Jason & Kevin finished out their visit by "crushing bad dudes" on MW3. They do not take it lightly. See below for proof.

All in all, it was a great visit. The boys got to play golf on Saturday as well...we have to take advantage of this amazing weather while we can! Here's to many more weekend visitors and adventures...

173rd Airborne Brigade Ball

Last weekend, Jason and I (and several of our friends) traveled down to the Alps to Edelweiss, a military vacation lodge. Jason had been last year for the same ball, but it was my first time staying there. It was so odd how much it felt like America! A big hotel with restaurants and a spa, and even the majority of the employees were American, or at least spoke flawless English. It was a little bit of a relief, if I'm being totally honest. Even though some people chose to make a weekend of it, we just went down for the night (it's only about a 3 hour drive), and then came back the following day. The weather was BEAUTIFUL, and in the background of our sunny pictures were the snow-capped Alps. It doesn't get much better than that.

Here's a pic of the actual Lodge, which I stole from a random person's blog:

Not the greatest first picture, but you can kind of get the idea! We didn't have a lot of time once we got there before we had to get ready for the ball, but we did manage to get a few pics of the view from our room's patio.

I was seriously in awe of the Alps (in case you couldn't tell by how hard I'm cheesing in that pic!) We got lunch at the little cafe downstairs, and then it was time to get fancy.

Not a bad backdrop! And here are a few more from the same official photo shoot:

Our good friends Nora & Mike.

I cannot get over this picture!!!

And now onto the actual ball...

Right before they played a video that made Jason want to make the Army his career, ha. It really was inspiring though!

My sweet German friends Nora & Freida.

The boys. Mike, Jeff, Jason, Abram.

Boring part over. People are ready to dance! After the lame music selection, we decided to go downtown for a drink instead. So on to Peaches we went...

All in all, it was a great little weekend trip! The views were amazing, the ball was a good time, and it was just nice to get out of Bamberg for a night. Trying to savor the last few weeks we have together!!

First day of Spring?

88 degrees. That was the high in Bamberg today. If I didn't feel it for myself, I never would've believed it! We've been so cold for SO long that I really forgot what Spring or Summer would even feel like. Our friend Kevin is in for the weekend, so after dropping him and Jason off on post this morning to golf, I couldn't help but take a little walk and snap a few sunny pics on my phone.

It's really all the same scenery, just in a different light. So here goes...

The boys before playing 9 this morning. I don't think they were feeling the picture too much, but I thought they looked so cute in their little golf gear!

Crossing the river to downtown.

It's finally warm enough to turn the fountains back on! This one is on the walk from our garage to our house.

Langestrasse...our street! :)

Halfway home...I love this one!

I know, I know. I've taken a million pictures here.

The always beautiful Rathaus!

The beauty of this one, right on the river, never translates in a picture. Still one of my favorite buildings!

Cute little plant store downtown. :)

Rathuas from the other side...

Walking back to the apartment!

3 pictures seemed like enough, ha.

A bunch of little stores and cafes.

It was crazy here today! It's basically one big farmer's market, and right behind where we live.

The Maxplatz...where a parade of boy scouts were uniting early this morning.

If I spoke German, I would have bought some of these gorgeous flowers!

This looks like a good place to live. :)

I want to write a few more entries hopefully tomorrow...there is a little bit to catch up that I just haven't had the time to really document! Hope you enjoy these pics for now.

Mr. & Mrs. Rodd!

This Saturday, Jason and I had the honor of celebrating one of his good friend's marriage! (They are seriously the cutest couple ever.) Abram & Nena know how to throw a party to say the least. Here are a few pics from the reception:

The happy couple!

Jason, Abram (the groom!), & Jeff

...and wearing their wedding favors!

The only picture of us from the whole night...

Abram & Nena m&m's! Adorable!

Congrats to the new Mr. & Mrs. Rodd!!!

p.s. see you in FOUR DAYS, Knoxville!! :)