June 2021

The end of school

Tessa is obsessed with Alan Grant from Jurassic Park.  She loves watching Jurassic Park and cheering for the dinosaurs.  She says, "Oh no! The person got away from the velociraptor.  He was hungry."

I think that seeing the poppy flowers come up from the tilled ground. 

 They are like little miracles for me and always make me think of Poppy.  

We got together with Hailey, Jack, Finn and Ashton and Mia and took them to the trampoline place.  This was our last hurrah with the Ortons before they moved to Ohio.  

We took a trip to Belgium.

Here we are at Ypres, the site of three major battles during WWI.

There were 850,000 German and Allied casualties. 

We were fortunate to come during poppy season.  

The fields on the highway were covered.

This is the Menin Gate into the city.  It is a memorial to the missing in war and a ceremony is held daily at 8 p.m. We missed the ceremony as we went earlier in the day.  We went to the Flanders Field War Museum which was the best WWI museum to which we have gone.

On the menu was the "Bicky Burger" and the "Poppy Burger".

We then went to Dunkirk. The site of the miraculous evacuation of more than 338,000 French and British soldiers between May 26 and June 4 1940.  

eating Asian food on the floor of our hotel

Preston was stationed as a commander at Spangdahlem Air Force Base.  I went to his changing of command ceremony and later he and his girlfriend, Danielle, met up with me at Burg Lichtenburg and then had Doner kababs and ice cream at Kusel. 

We are overcome everyday by the beauty that surrounds us. 

Our last visits with the Christensens

Jayne and I surprised Ashley with charcuterie boards of treats and to take home.

We are so grateful to her for leading our exercise group everyday. 

We have had so many good memories together and the kids mostly always get along.

Eifelpark with Mathew, Hailey, Sarah 

and Isaiah and Erin

The best part was the log ride that the kids went on over and over. Luke refused and so I forced him.  He was screaming in line and tried to jump out when the ride started.  I had to hold him in the log. 

Afterward, he said that he overreacted but prefers to not go on the rides.  From now on, I won't force him. 

Brady, Elizabeth, Gus, Bridget, Sydney and Mom & Dad flew out for a visit

Annweiler am Trifels 

Lukey's bench and beautiful sites around

Checking out Burg Lichtenberg with Gus