3rd Birthday Party - Pirates and Mermaids Style

Kellan's third birthday is coming up at the end of June.  I can't believe my little baby is turning into a little boy!  The time is flying by too fast...

We have made some great friends living here in Cologne and it just so happens that two of Kellan's friends also turn three this June.  It also just so happens that those kiddos' mommies are two of my favorite ladies here, so we decided to do a combined birthday party.  The theme?  Pirates and Mermaids!

Summertime is outdoor time in Germany and we spend many days at the beautiful urban forest in Cologne, called Stadtwald Park. We decided that if the weather permitted it, this would be a perfect venue for our party.  Fortunately, we lucked out and got a beautiful day!  Partly sunny with temps in the low 70's - doesn't get much better!

We encouraged all of our little guests to dress up as either mermaids or pirates and then offered some extra costume pieces to them when they arrived: pirate hats, fish headbands, eye patches, arm bands, bracelets, leis and his/hers swords.  Most of the swords had already been cleaned out by the time we took this picture!

We also set up a couple of seashell sandboxes with sand toys for the kids to play with at the beginning of the party.  Later, we used them as place for the kids to find buried treasure during the treasure hunt!

Another fun activity for the kids was face painting, which allowed our mermaids to be adorned with colorful hearts and fish and for our pirates to sport scruffy beards and eye patches.  I couldn't talk Kellan into it!  He was too busy!

It was great to get together with good friends...

And it was fun to dress up like a pirate - or in Matt's case a pirate/biker.

We had an awesome spread of food, which I think I forgot to take a picture of because I was too busy eating.  The guys grilled up some chicken skewers, shishkabobs and the ever-popular bacon-wrapped sausages.

After lunch it was cupcake time!  

And time for the birthday boys and girl to blow out their candles.

The cupcakes were delicious!  Thanks Allison E!

After cupcakes, it was piñata time!

The kids absolutely loved the piñata.  Kellan didn't really get it.  When candy would fall out and the kids would all come tearing over to pick up candy, Kellan thought everyone was just running around screaming with delight.  So that's what he did: ran around and screamed with delight, completely oblivious to the fact that there was candy all over the ground.

While the kids were distracted with the piñata, we set up a treasure hunt.  We scattered tons of candy, costume jewelry and pirate paraphernalia around trees, in the pop-up playhouse and even buried some in the sand boxes we brought.

We then lined everyone up to hand out their treasure bags, snapped a group shot and set them loose!

I think it's safe to say that the kids loved it!

We ended the party with opening presents, which of course the birthday kids loved.  

As things winded down, everyone pitched in to help clean up, then we loaded up and went home for a nap. 

I couldn't have asked for a better party for Kellan and was so grateful to have a shared celebration with such wonderful friends!  We are truly blessed!

Fun Facts About Pregnancy and Childbirth in Germany

And so begins a new chapter.

Since most of my blog readers are my family and friends, you probably already know that we will be welcoming a second Jones baby to our family on September 30, 2013!

To celebrate this new chapter and new addition, I will change the name of my blog for the duration of my pregnancy to: "Adventures in Mommyhood: Knocked Up Abroad."  Hopefully, the stories included will be less disturbing than those on the show that inspired this name: Discovery Channel's "Locked-Up Abroad."

Being pregnant and giving birth in a foreign country was something I thought I would never consider when we moved here.  We heard mixed reviews about childbirth in Germany, namely about the willingness and readiness of medical staff to provide epidurals.  While an epidural is an option here, it is one you must be proactive about and request well in advance.  Apparently you can't just waltz into the hospital and scream, "Give me meds!!!" the way you might in the U.S. and have a needle in your spine five minutes later.  If you take that route here, you may not get an epidural at all.  However, if you are adamant about having an epidural in the weeks prior to your child's birth, your request will be obliged (or so I have heard).

I can hear it now:  "Keine epidural!  Have a Kölsch [Cologne's specialty brew] instead."

Of course there was also the question of what it would be like to have a baby in a country with socialized medicine.  The system here offers both private and public health care, and we are fortunate enough to have private health care.  It is my understanding that the private hospitals here offer private rooms and suites that are not available at the public hospitals.  However, all the NICU's are located in the public hospitals.  I do not know enough people with public health care to make any kind of valid comparison, but I have heard both positive and negative views of the public system.  Nearly every experience I have had with a physician in the private realm has been excellent and the few appointments I have had with my obstetrician have met or exceeded my expectations.

As I have heard and seen so far, the pregnancy and childbirth process is different here; arguably better in some ways and worse in others, depending upon where you are standing.  One difference that I am particularly excited about is the fact that an ultrasound is done at every appointment.  During the first trimester, this was very nice because we heard the baby's heart beat multiple times and saw that he/she is developing properly.  In my pregnancy with Kellan, I had three ultrasounds throughout the entire pregnancy, so this situation is an improvement for me.  The additional ultrasounds will also enable us to know the gender at about 15 weeks, instead of waiting until the 20-week mark, which is exciting as well!

8-week ultrasound where our OB affectionately referred to Baby Jones, II as "Gummy Bear".  Pretty accurate.

In addition to frequent ultrasounds, you are also provided with a "Mutterpass" or a "Mother's Passport," as they call it in English.  You are supposed to carry this nifty little book with you wherever you go, so if, God forbid, something happened to you, all of the details of your pregnancy are right there for medical personnel to take into consideration before providing you with treatment.  A nice precaution, if you ask me.

Translation: Mother Pass, Joint Federal Committee, A Chance Their Choice,
Get Prepared for Baby.  (Not everything translates clearly, in my opinion!)

A few other fun facts about pregnancy and childbirth in Germany:

- It is commonly believed in the U.S. that most "Europeans" drink alcohol during pregnancy.  (The term European - that I was guilty of using at one point - I have found is an unfair over-generalization, lumping people from approximately 50 different countries with distinctly different cultures into one category.)  The policy in Germany is no alcohol - not even an occasional celebratory drink - while expecting.  They return to their alcohol-loving ways quickly after birth, however.  I have heard that, in some hospitals, you are brought champagne after you deliver your baby.

- In the U.S. many O.B.'s discourage riding a bicycle during pregnancy.  My O.B. here said, "Go for it," until I feel uncomfortable, in terms of leisurely rides on bike paths around the city.  My neighbor rode her bike to work every day throughout her pregnancy with her now two-year-old son.

- Caffeine in moderation = OK.  He actually mused that Italians, because of their love of espresso,  would never carry children to term if it was true that caffeine causes miscarriage.

- Sushi = OK.  He made a statement similar to the one above: the Japanese eat sushi throughout pregnancy.

- Raw milk and unpasteurized cheeses are a "no-no." And I was also told to refrain from carpaccio, which the mere mention of during my first trimester had me dry-heaving.

So, a bit more laid back in some ways and just what you would expect in other ways.  In comparing my experience now to the one I had in the United States, I would say "So far, so good."  Of course, I haven't given birth yet...so we still have a way to go.  ;-)

Schwimmen!

Since August of last year, Kellan has been attending swimming classes at a local community center here in Cologne.  When we first started going, he was a little apprehensive, but has quickly become one of the most adventurous kids in his class!

The teacher, Chrissy, does a wonderful job coming up with activities that are the perfect length of time and provide challenges that exactly match the ability level of her young students.  Below, Kellan is on foam mat floating in the water where he practices balancing skills as he walks (sometimes sits) and jumps off.

 Balls are integrated into almost every activity, allowing for throwing, kicking and a fun prize to swim or jump into the water after.

 If you would let him, K would jump of of the side of the pool the entire class.  We started out catching him without floaties.  Then he began to wear floaties and we would let him go under water and resurface with the help of the floaties.  Since this picture was taken, he jumps in without floaties and can get himself back up to the surface.  Once he surfaces, he needs an arm to grab onto.  It has been amazing to watch his progress!

 Chrissy also sets up colorful tunnels made out of noodles for the kids to practice swimming through, which K loves as well.

 We are so happy to have found this great class and recommend it to any families with toddler-aged children living in Cologne!  We hope we will be able to find something as great as this when we return to the U.S. later this year.

Eastbound Road Trip: Prague Castle and St. Charles Bridge

Our second day in Prague, we enjoyed a yummy breakfast at our hotel, The Hilton Old Town Prague, then headed via train and foot to the Prague Castle.  K had wanted to get on the trains since day one, so he was extremely excited when we rode on two different trains to get within walking distance of Prague Castle.

There were many stairs between the street and the castle grounds, but Kellan made it up all of them on his own!

The views from the castle grounds were outstanding, even though a light fog hung over city.

 The highlight for us of Prague Castle was the St. Vitus Cathedral, which now ranks among my top three favorite castles in Europe with Cologne's Dom and Paris' Notre Dame.

 The castle grounds were decorated for Christmas and Daddy and Kellan took advantage of a nice photo op.

 From every angle, St. Vitus' Cathedral was breathtaking.

 K was not particularly impressed, though he did find some cool places to drive his trains.

Kind of reminds me of the Kölner Dom, but not as tall!

 Gargoyles...

 The inside:

 The official entrance to the Prague Castle and New Royal Palace.

 Square in front of the New Royal Palace.

Views on the way back down to the main streets of Prague...

 Next stop, playground!  Even though K had done quite a bit of walking this morning, we figured it was time for some plain old fun.

After K worked off some energy and ate some lunch, we snuggled him into his stroller cocoon and headed to the St. Charles Bridge and some beautiful views of the city and the Vtlava River.

The St. Charles Bridge is 516 meters long, is protected by three bridge towers and is home to 30 different statues.  Each of the statues has a special significance and I snapped pictures of ones that I found most picturesque.

 Matt pulled out Fodors to read to me about the meaning behind the various statues.  Unfortunately, I retained very little of that information...

It was very, very busy on the bridge, so it was hard to get unobstructed photos, but the bridge and the views it offered were my favorite sights of the trip.  About halfway across the bridge, K began drifted to sleep...

It is good luck to touch one of the statues on the bridge - the statue of St. John Nepomuk.  Some say that it will grant you one wish and others say it will simply ensure a return to Prague.  I tried to snap a photo of Matt touching this statue, but you can barely see him in the sea of other tourists!

 A rare picture of ME!  I do actually exist and am not some faceless narrator!

 An 20's-sounding band playing on the bridge:

 Back on the streets of Prague...  K was still asleep and Matt and I had not eaten, so we went in search of street food.

 We found some, and in my estimation it was the best food we had on the trip!  Especially the Prague ham.  We also had a sausage, some mulled wine and more Pilsner Urquell.  A favorite food of Matt's that is popular in Budapest, Hungary is a rolled pastry/donut type snack sprinkled with sugar.  He said the ones in Prague were OK, but don't compare to those in Budapest...

After our lunch, K was still asleep and we hit Moser's - a crystal store, where we looked around and found a nice whiskey decanter with matching glasses to commemorate our visit.  Prague is known for it's crystal, so we thought this would be a fun way to remember our trip.

Here are some photos from their website of their beautiful gallery:

Kellan woke up during our selection process, so while Matt settled up, I took him downstairs in the mall that housed the store where we found an indoor toy train and track.  Riding this train may have been one of the most monumentous occasions of Kellan's life, he is so obsessed with trains.

We decided to head back to the hotel after this train ride to relax a bit.  Sadly, one of the happiest moments of Kellan's life - riding this train - was then followed by one of the most horrifying moments of Kellan's life.  When he realized that he would not be riding this train (which he rode for a solid 20 minutes - three different rides) all night, he fell into a pit of despair.  We carried him kicking and screaming out of the mall :-(.  It was one of those people stopping and staring tantrums, where his voice was echoing down the entire street.  He recovered eventually, after much comforting.

After some relaxation and playtime for K at the hotel, we stopped by a local pizza place for some dinner and then headed out to see Prague at night and the newly lit Christmas tree in Old Town Square.

We were especially excited to see St. Charles Bridge at night, and we were not disappointed.  Here is the main gate you walk under to enter the bridge.

And views looking towards Prague Castle.

Looking back at the gate:

Old Town Square at night:

Christmas markets and Christmas tree:

Even though we would have preferred walking around in warmer weather, we loved our time in Prague and were grateful to see the this beautiful city decorated for Christmas.  Another great trip!