Endless Summer

I'm happy to admit I didn't have the guts a few months ago to BELIEVE that this summer wouldn't disappoint...but so far it has performed above and beyond my very modest expectations. We've been thoroughly enjoying every moment of it outdoors.

Here we are at the German Wakeboarding Championships - well, let's just say it's a developing sport here.Monchi donned a helmet for the first time this past week and is now part of the local biker gang.
On lazy Sunday afternoons we sometimes make our way to one or the other beach clubs in the city for a pretend getaway.

Pig training for Venice Beach.


Check out the palms

Jochen soon discovered Monchi is a babe magnet. Several girls under 20 (I have no idea how old they are, they're just still young and hot) came up to coo over Monchi as her father watched on, grinning like an idiot. The guys generally stood to the side and tried not to look bored as their girlfriends fussed over the baby....Girls, I can only say, take your time, cuz no amount of chill out music will give you your cool back once that bundle of joy arrives...

Love getting nekkid!

Les Cousins

Our extended family in Chicago includes my aunt and uncle and their daughter Jean's family. It now seems eons ago since our annual tradition as kids to visit Jean and John for the weekend at their grad student apartment in Hyde Park. I remember the yellow VW Beetle, Mollie the cat, the outings to the museums, and always one nice meal out at a restaurant we'd pick for its favorable review in the Chicago Magazine. Back in 1983 splashing out meant a restaurant bill of $35 for four people. I think I had my first green tea ice cream on such a memorable occasion - at that age I could not imagine anything more inventive...

Years and years and years later, the restaurants visits are now at places with a few more stars, and the outings include the next generation of cousins. Because Pig is completely besotted with Jean's younger boy, the switch finally flicked on and after 4 years of understanding English but hardly trying a word, he's now attempting a fluent pidgen (I want not milk. Give me no excooses).

The two of them are adorable together.

Waiting to start a "cooking course" on how to make guacamole.


Pretend play area in the Children's Museum at Navy Pier.


Dinosaur dig.


Real men hold hands.


Laurie save this pic for the montage. These guys are a dying breed: they have a more than a fair chance of going gold.

Best Sister

My one and only sibling:

• is five and a half years younger than me
• is about the same height but lucked out in the gene pool with the longer leg/shorter torso combination instead of my bizarre longer torso/squat leg build, and this is why she always looks taller (ok, ok, she's also skinnier than I am)
• is not a morning person. At all.
  
• did much better in school than I did
• is a prodigious saver but like me will prioritize travel above almost anything else
  
• HATES social obligations
  

This last point means she likes her own space, she's really not the chummy gushy type and she generally manages to keep what family drama/intrigue at arm's length. However, she has always been more than generous with her time and resources when it comes to doting on Pig, and now Monchi. For this last visit she selflessly gave up her valuable free time before starting her very first real job by hanging out with us 24/7, watched the two kids constantly (while the mom went awol), put up with countless meltdowns and temper tantrums (I won't say from which kid, but guess!) was our ride EVERYWHERE, and even got a Shedd membership in anticipation of our future visits.



So Hsin, congrats on starting what will be a fine surgical career - good luck on your first day tomorrow!! Make lots of dough so you can keep coming to visit us. Jochen is already looking forward to the next opportunity to dust off our hiking boots, or at least toast you with an elderberry aperitif this winter when we're back in Chicago (hopefully you'll have recovered from this last visit). Thanks so much for being so good to us....

Show Me an Incisor

After over a year's absence our 10 day trip in Chicago felt like nothing more than a whirlwind stop. I covered good ground but still didn't manage to see everyone on my wish list. There are enough impressions and pictures for a post or two, but it will all have to wait until we settle back into some semblance of a regular routine. Jetlag aside, Monchi has been spoiled rotten by both grandmothers in the past 3 weeks to the point where she no longer fancies sleeping by herself in her lone room upstairs. So far her insistent YELPING has bested us night after night: yesterday was Jochen's turn with her and this morning I found father and daughter sound asleep, back to back, oblivious to the morning sun.

Monchichi's bark is literally worse than her bite, given she has at the ripe old age of 9 months still no sign of teeth. Is this something to worry about? She gums everything and attacks bread and pastas heartily. I'm too sleep deprived to research properly - any old wives tales I should know about out there on this subject???!

Crafty!

Jochen's mom mentioned a few times in the past months that for Jochen's dad's birthday in July it would nice if Pig could make some felt napkin rings as a birthday present for him. She really really said that. At least 3 times. The first time I was like "wha??" The second time again "wha????!" And finally even I couldn't ignore it when it came up again the last time. I mean, we're not exactly a cloth napkin kind of family, so I wasn't quite sure how I would explain the concept of a napkin ring to the little piggy. Second, I've known H&H for almost 1o years now and to be honest, they've never offered me a cloth napkin in all the times I ate at their place. And yet somehow my mother-in-law is convinced this would be the perfect first kiddie craft for Pig to tackle.

The whole thing reminds me of when I went to school in Taiwan. I got as far as 2 months into the 3rd grade before I left for the US, but that short period of time remains indelible in my mind. Class size of 50 kids (imagine!), bringing a bento box to school for lunch (and having it warmed in the giant communal bento steamer), getting smacked in the palm HARD one time as punishment for losing my homework. Even today my sister cracks up when she hears me multiplying under my breath in Chinese - that's how I learned it! In any case, every few months we'd be given a craft assignment, and points would be given not for effort, or creativity, but for EXECUTION. Meaning, it had to be neat and complicated and pretty much completed by your mom. One time we had to make a Santa Claus, and I remember being so pissed that my mom was hogging everything - blowing out the egg, gluing the cotton beard onto the hollow shell, pasting the googly eyes on to the face. I took the damn thing to school and found most everyone else's parents also put their projects together. I got great points for mine (thanks mom) but it was pretty clear this was not an exercise for MY benefit.

So what did I choose to do in this case? Yep, now that I'm the mom I pretty much took over the project, too. Actually it turned out to be a group effort: Jochen was in charge of cutting the felt into strips, I sewed the buttons on, and Pig tied two knots for each napkin ring - a skill he just mastered in recent months. Ta da!!


Is this how etsy shops get started?

Saturday we go to drop off this and other presents as well as pick up Monchichi. On Sunday Pig, Monchi and Yours Truly will be on our way to Chi-Town for 10 days. We're looking forward this time to hanging out with A-Kong, A-Ma, Boh and the other A-Kong, Hsin, Beckermans, Leanne and Niki and their families, Hope and Rebecca. If you're free and in town give us a call or drop me an email. We'd love to meet up! Blog break until we return....

In our absence Jochen gets to scratch his belly, drink beer, go on another bike trip, and get some odd jobs done around the house. And I know he'll miss us terribly......(not!)

My Little Cossacks

My mom's friend Tina said from the start that Pig looked Turkish. I never saw the resemblance but it turns out she wasn't completely off. This spring when we were in Turkey one of the Kazakh waitresses asked to hold Monchi, and the picture of them together was a revelation - I think my kids need to learn how to ride a horse, pronto!




Since then my Kazakh radar has been switched ON. I spot Kazakh taxi drivers all over the place, I narrow in on Kazakh women walking down the street. When I get a chance to speak to them I am always confirmed right. What do you know, I still can't tell Asians apart but now I can spot Borat's countrymen at a drop of the hat.

What does this mean, not too much, except it allows me to ramble on about this only-to-me fascinating discovery, and to ask, is it worth it to invest emotionally in the Tour de France this year?? Astana Team was a @!#$%! mess before this year's tour even began, and while it's logical that Bruyneel signed Armstrong, can this come to anything positive?!? It's like watching a car crash in slo-mo...in the end I think I can't help but rubberneck.

At Oma Opa's

Today we drove Monchi down to spend a week at Oma and Opa's. The strike aside, the 3 week summer break has started at their kindergarten, so keeping with tradition one week is always spent at Oma's - this year Pig goes to the daycare at my work for the week and the priviledge goes to Monchi.

I can't say enough about how lucky I am to have gotten such great in-laws. Jochen's dad, whom I secretly call "The Amish Dude", is gentle and laid back and keeps me entertained with stories from the 30s and 40s. Jochen's mom is super sharp, generous, and, SPEAKS PERFECT ENGLISH, which contributed majorly to our bonding from the start. This is also her THIRD week this year getting Monchi -well above and beyond grandma duty.

I know Jochen's mom would love nothing more than to have Pig stay the week with them, as in years before, but she also understands particularly this year it's very important for him to feel older and have the chance to have time alone with the parents again. Still, he's the prince when he comes for a visit.
And summers in Oma Opa's garden are the best!

Manic Monday

One Monday morning a few weeks ago it was just a blur trying to get everything done before heading to work: change Pig's bedsheets, give Monchi her bottle, shower and throw something on for work. I somehow made it in time to catch my usual train and just as I was settling down to my magazine I caught sight of my right foot and thought, hmm, I could have sworn I decided to put on another pair of shoes.

I got to work and went straight into my usual morning routine of answering emails, eating breakfast and scanning the press clippings when again, I thought to myself, really, I forgot I chose this pair instead.

This strange feeling kept nagging me until I took a proper look at both my feet.


Panic call home. Jochen was just on his way to drop the kids off at the kindergarten so I asked him to bring either of the two black shoes that must be laying out somewhere. Jochen tried to convince me if I didn't notice until now probably no one will. It took a lot of grovelling before he agreed to swing by. The price was allowing him document my flakiness.

Aside from conceding to be a blind woman, I also had to swallow his crowing that probably one pair of black loafers will do me just fine. Grrr!

We are Fascinated

For the past half year Pig has been absolutely taken with big cats. He grasps their strength, speed and beauty and would magic himself into a tiger tomorrow, if he could. Today we got to view its fearful symmetry up close.


After the zoo (and 2 hrs in the rain) the sun finally came out and we proceeded to the nearby sculpture park. Although it's also within a mile of our place we haven't been there in ages, and loved the new installations on the grounds.


This shuddering piece is called "Reaktion". It reminds me of all near misses in my life...



Back on safe ground. This Anish Kapoor piece serves to show how ambitious the Bean is...and I can't wait to see the new Art Institute wing - the pictures I've seen so far are amazing.

aka Ponchi

I hate to complicate things, but this just won't go away: for the last few months Jochen has started calling Monchichi "Ponchi". I don't know why except it stuck, and now in addition to Monchi we also call her Ponchi Maus. I share this because we're heading home soon and I don't want the Chicago folks all confused by this unexpected new name. You can call her cutie.


In any case the hiking season has started and she is so wonderfully LIGHT in the backpack. My last memories of this thing was using it to hoist a 14kg Pig on my back - that was not fun.

Just for Hope

Hope will rue the day she ever sent any bath/hygiene products to this household. Yesterday night while brushing teeth Pig was pulling his usual stall routine when he idly asked, "Mommy, what do you like better? The lollypop flavor,"

"or the toilet flavor?"

Obviously the coconut custard scent the good folks at Avon were aiming for fell short! More importantly the graphics department may want to rework the coconuts...

Yucky Rainy Weekend

The weather this weekend was really the pits. The reason why I'm all worked up is this tends to be the way it goes in Cologne - gorgeous spring weather in April and May, lulling you into thinking, gee, so much nicer than in Chicago, and is that the Biergarten calling my name when SLAM, the rain starts nonstop in June, JUNE. One year I caught myself still thinking summer will be just around the corner - when it was already end of August. Pathetic! Jochen seriously objects to this view of life and he claims Cologne gets 950 hours of sun a year vs 1000 hours in Chicago...see how a man pulls do-doo out of his ears...

On Saturday we went on the bi-annual kindergarten woods outing. This was scheduled long before the municipal daycare employees went on strike, and surprisingly they decided to go ahead with it anyway (the strike is currently on hold for one week next week). Naturally in addition to the overcast weather the conversations were pretty much along the lines of "I had to ask my neighbor's dog to watch little Britta because I couldn't miss work on Tuesday." When will the strike end? Dunno, but the union is saying they can last until August. AUGUST. Who's the HR person in charge around here??!


Then again, bad weather never stopped this family from heading out. Today we went to a local community fest where Pig honed his circus skills.

Thank goodness part of the event was indoors, because twice this afternoon we had to duck inside to avoid the serious downpours.


It was still a lot of fun and Pig picked up a tip or two.


And if you don't believe how windy and shivery it was - just check out the most accurate weather forecasting instrument around.