Dienstag, September 20, 2005
Long (happy!) Day!
Got up early this AM to make it to my appointment at the aüslanderamt--getting my visa and work permits in order. Ran some errands (dropping paperwork off at the Uni, etc.) then settled in at the big bookstore downtown to read a Nick Hornby book and enjoy a cafe latte. How peaceful! Made pizza with the kids then Kathi, Henrik, and I went on an adventure! I wanted to take them to the stadtbibliotek--the biggest library in Hannover. This involved biking, UBahn-ing, and walking. We zipped over to the U-Bahn station on our bikes, hopped on #7, and exited at Kröpke for the walk toward Aggie-Platz (yes, this has a long German name but I can't remember it at the moment). We get to the stadtbibliotek and ask a librarian where we can find the kinderbuchen. Alas! This library does *not* have childrens' books :(
Never fear! We press on toward the next nearest library, cramming onto an impossibly crowded Ubahn and meandering along the streets of Hannover before (finally!) arriving at the Südstadtbibliotek. It is slightly frustrating to explain to a child who does not speak your language why he must be quiet in the library and *no* he cannot borrow 20 comic books--how about 5? Because they behaved so well, I treated the kids to some brötchen for the journey home. We hop on the 2 and switch over to the 7. I let the exhausted kids squeeze into one seat and stand over them, praising them for their good behavior and showing them how to make bunny ears.
We are giggling and having a ball when I look over and see Lars--the kids dad is on the same tram as us! The four of us sit down together and I joke that *luckily* I was being nice to his kids today--it would have been so embarrassing if he had seen how I usually treat them ;-).
After a quick abendbröt I journey out for Day #2 of my 'spring training.' I am doing this marathon-prep program. By December I will be ready to begin my training for May's Hannover Marathon! The lazy summer coupled with the copious amounts of bröt und käse (bread & cheese) that I have consumed in Germany have helped Killer (my 'pet name' for my stomach... long story, ask if you are interested) round out quite nicely--so much so that I look like a Sneech (like the Dr. Seuss book) when I run. Every time I run past a store window I kind of giggle... then push harder. :)
Tonight, I had coffee with this British guy I met through an expat website online. He is totally cool and I will not comment further except to say (alas) he is too old for me :( (Or, at least that's what my parents would say, but hey... why not, right?) However, the evening did reveal how much of a Mom I have become--oh, the tales of Kathi & Henrik. I was kind of embarrassed, but he was really chill. It is so neat to love these kids so much already.
Never fear! We press on toward the next nearest library, cramming onto an impossibly crowded Ubahn and meandering along the streets of Hannover before (finally!) arriving at the Südstadtbibliotek. It is slightly frustrating to explain to a child who does not speak your language why he must be quiet in the library and *no* he cannot borrow 20 comic books--how about 5? Because they behaved so well, I treated the kids to some brötchen for the journey home. We hop on the 2 and switch over to the 7. I let the exhausted kids squeeze into one seat and stand over them, praising them for their good behavior and showing them how to make bunny ears.
We are giggling and having a ball when I look over and see Lars--the kids dad is on the same tram as us! The four of us sit down together and I joke that *luckily* I was being nice to his kids today--it would have been so embarrassing if he had seen how I usually treat them ;-).
After a quick abendbröt I journey out for Day #2 of my 'spring training.' I am doing this marathon-prep program. By December I will be ready to begin my training for May's Hannover Marathon! The lazy summer coupled with the copious amounts of bröt und käse (bread & cheese) that I have consumed in Germany have helped Killer (my 'pet name' for my stomach... long story, ask if you are interested) round out quite nicely--so much so that I look like a Sneech (like the Dr. Seuss book) when I run. Every time I run past a store window I kind of giggle... then push harder. :)
Tonight, I had coffee with this British guy I met through an expat website online. He is totally cool and I will not comment further except to say (alas) he is too old for me :( (Or, at least that's what my parents would say, but hey... why not, right?) However, the evening did reveal how much of a Mom I have become--oh, the tales of Kathi & Henrik. I was kind of embarrassed, but he was really chill. It is so neat to love these kids so much already.
# posted by Heather @ 11:52 PM 
