Barefoot Park

 

Yesterday I took the kiddos to the Barefoot Park in Bad Sobernheim, about an hour from our house.  It was a hot day, hopefully one of our last in what has been a very hot, dry Summer, and getting wet and muddy sounded like a solid plan.

 

We love this very German activity of spending time in nature barefoot and walking through and over obstacles of different textures.

 

There were very few complaints, and only one splinter, as we walked the 2.5 mile loop.

 

Fording the stream is always one of the kiddos' favorite parts.  Due to the drought, the water level was much, much lower than when we have visited here in the past.

 

We had nowhere else to be, so we took a few opportunities to get wet at different spots along the stream and watch the fish and try to catch minnows.

 

It's a really lovely spot for a walk with or without shoes.

 

Water babies.  

The water looks brown in this photo, but we could easily see clear to the bottom of the stream.

 

At the end of the trail there is a choice for crossing back over the stream.  The three big kids chose the rope bridge.

 

Amelie and I chose the hand pull ferry boat.

 

We celebrated completing the barefoot course with an ice cream or popsicle from the snack stand. The three big kids go back to school on Monday and the temperatures are finally supposed to drop out of the 90s, so this was a great last activity to close out a fun Summer.

Jacob turned 7 and we all tried something new!

 

Jake had some very specific requests for his seventh birthday celebration, starting with Chinese food for lunch.  He loves sushi, potstickers, dim sum, and pretty much all Asian food these days.  He had to make do with lunch at the Bamboo restaurant on base, which is just okay, but he was happy.

 

The main thing Jakey wanted to do was go to a Kletterwald.  These are very popular outdoor ropes course-type places in Germany and we had never tried one before, but we said we'd do it. We went to Kletterwald Neroberg which is at the top of the hill above Wiesbaden. I had read over the website, which was in German, but I was surprised when we got there to learn that we needed a reservation and that they were fully booked that day! I felt so bad telling Jake, and was sure we would have tears, but he just said, "that's okay, we can just go home and come another day." Rob and I gave him big hugs and thanked him for his maturity and understanding.  We decided to walk around the Neroberg area a little since we were there and saw this lovely spot.

 

From here you could look down over downtown Wiesbaden.

 

We also walked partway down the hill to the nearby Russian-Orthodox Church that I have often seen pictures of but had never visited.

 

It is pretty small, but really lovely looking.

 

After that we headed home and had Jake's requested birthday dinner: hot dogs, corn on the cob, and watermelon. And then we sang Happy Birthday and had cake that I made to his specifications; "chocolate bread with green frosting, and a tank that turns into a robot, and Army guys on it."  He also opened his gifts from us and got to play video games for extra time.  He was pretty happy with everything.

 

Because we were doing all of this on Saturday, we missed going to the Summer reading program at our library.  Apparently they pulled Jake's name in a drawing for this light saber set and emailed me that we could come pick it up at the library whenever.  We went and got it on Tuesday and everyone at the library told Jake "Happy Birthday!" as well. He loved that. 

 

 

Then FINALLY on Wednesday we made it back to Kletterwald Neroberg to do some climbing and zip-lining!  I tried to get at least a picture or two of everyone. There's Jake just starting out with no fear at all.  They do give you a quick training on your harness and how to shorten your rope, and all of that stuff, but this was our first time doing anything like this and I was very nervous.

 

Toby from twenty feet below.

 

This one is hard to see, but those are Charlotte's spider legs which are exceptionally good for climbing. If you can see above her, there are more platforms even higher up.  We were mainly on the Blue courses, then is Red, then Grey, and then a few extra difficult expert ones.

 

Rob was a trooper and started out with the big kids while Amelie and I took photos and then headed to the Kinder course for kids ages four and up.

 

Jake had no problem with looking down at me for a photo.

 

Over on the Kinder course, Amelie and I stayed a bit closer to the ground, though this one did get up to six or seven feet up. Amelie loved it!  She may have a mortal fear of port-a-potties, but she took to this like a fish to water.

 

"I am a Ninja, Mom!"

 

Our admission was good for three hours, which gave us lots of time to check out different courses and there weren't nearly as many people there on a Wednesday as there had been on Saturday. That's Rob on a zipline.

 

And that's my Bear on a zipline! He actually liked the ziplines the least as he got stuck in the middle of them a few times.  This one had a rope that you hung on and here Rob is pulling him back in to give him a bigger push across as he didn't make it the first time.

 

He never quit though, and he was the littlest kid I saw up there.

 

Here comes Charlotte! 

Charlotte and Toby were the only ones of us to try a Red course and they liked it but said it was much harder.  They said they had to zipline into a cargo net and then climb up and across it to get to the next platform.  They were really proud of themselves for making it on their own.

 

 

Meanwhile Rob took Amelie back to the Kinder course and Jake took me up on the Blue course.  I wanted to do it, but I also was super scared of doing it.  I don't like heights and I am not in good physical shape.  I was shaking and sweating from nerves, but Jake was a great encouraging coach and showed me the ropes.  Literally.  Rob snapped this photo at the end of my last obstacle.

 

Jacob is such a funny kid.  He keeps us smiling around here and is always challenging us to try new things, like sushi and ropes courses! He is cuddly and sensitive, but also strong, and if he says he is going to do something then he sees it through with determination.  We love him so very much.

Jacob's Birthday Interview

What makes you happy? "I actually really don't know."
What is your favorite toy? Legos
What is your favorite animal? Cheetah
What is your favorite fruit? Watermelon
What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Waffles
What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Mac and cheese
What is your favorite dessert? Brownies
What is your favorite thing to do? Play video games
What is your favorite movie? Lego Ninjago
What are you really good at? Video games (Mario) 
What is your favorite song? Up and Up (Coldplay)
What do you and your mom do together? Hug

What do you and your dad do together? Ride bikes
If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be? "China, I want to eat sushi there. I would eat sushi all day if I could."
What do you think your parents are too strict about? "Not having video games during the week!"
Who is your best friend? Alex
What are some of your favorite things to say?  "I say 'ain't' and it makes you crazy. That ain't gonna happen!"
What is your favorite thing to do outside? Hike up mountains
What is your favorite book? Lego Star Wars: The Empire Strikes In
What do you want to be when you grow up? A blacksmith 

Cub Scout Day Camp and we slept in the woods

This past week we took Toby to Cub Scout day camp. We do American Boy Scouts here through the military bases and, for those who are curious, we are in the Transatlantic Council. Camp was over an hour from our home and since the weather has been hot and dry, I decided to take the kids and camp out.  Rob stayed home to go to work and hold down the fort. 

 

We dropped off Toby and headed to the campground.  Some friends that were volunteering at camp sent me photos of Toby in action over the three days...

 

Shooting BB guns.

 

Having lunch with his friends from the Pack.

 

Making a robot that draws.

 

And slingshot practice. 

He also did archery, made a marble bag and learned marble games, played volleyball and basketball, and just generally had a great time.

 

Meanwhile, the rest of us went in search of Camp Kachina. We found this very sad sign at the edge of the forest about 5 minutes drive away. There were no other directions after that yellow arrow there, so we drove and walked around dirt trails for a while until we found two tents set up in a clearing.

 

We decided to set up our tent near those and hope for the best.  I could not have set up our massive family tent without Charlotte's help! She really stepped up on this trip and filled a more grown-up role.

 

We relaxed for just a few minutes to enjoy our set up campsite.  But it was about 100 degrees out and we were thirsty and hungry.

 

Lucky for us, a P.F. Chang's recently opened on Ramstein Air Base. (The only one in Germany!)  So we headed there for dinner and it was wonderful! Living in Germany for so long, there gets to be a list of home comforts that you miss, and one of those for me is definitely Chinese take-out. Even when we have gotten Chinese food here it is "Germanized" and I really crave the "Americanized" stuff.  P.F. Chang's delivered.  (Also, Jake loved it so much he asked to go there every day for the rest of the weekend. But we didn't do that. Once was enough.)

 

After we picked Toby up from his day at Camp, we headed back to the woods where the kiddos played some Pétanque and we got ready for bed.  We were in the right spot for camping after all, and before bed another tent joined our little group. The only facilities unfortunately were a single bathroom with toilet and sink.  It was a bit of a walk through the woods to get to the "Scout Hut" and we shared that bathroom between about 16-18 people. Good times.  (Stinky times, but the kids loved it.)

 

The next day while Toby did Cub Scout stuff, the rest of us explored the playgrounds of Ramstein.

 

We also went to the movies and saw Teen Titans Go to the Movies!  It was a pretty goofy movie but the kids laughed like crazy, and I loved the air conditioning. We also picked up some grocery items to do a proper campfire dinner with our friends that had joined us at the campsite for the last night.

 

The Cub Scouts got the fire going.

 

And we ate the traditional hot dogs and S'mores.

 

Ohhhh, we were dirty by this point.  

At 2 am Amelie woke up and apparently didn't know where she was. She ended up spending the rest of the night sprawled across me, which means I had about 4 hours of sleep.

In the morning, my friend made pancakes while I got all of our gear down and packed back into the car. Toby had one more day of Cub Scout fun while the rest of us figured out how to fill another day on Ramstein.  First we located the used book store and spent an hour there browsing, reading, and picking some new books for the ride home.

 

Then we headed to the park where there was a giant breastfeeding event going on.  We walked around to see the vendors and the kiddos were able to make some crafts and have a snack. It was a lucky find! 

 

Then we went to the Base Exchange to enjoy the air conditioning.  It was seriously so hot this week! They had a Nerf gun test range set up and Jake and Amelie both enjoyed that while Charlotte checked out the iPads. It's true what they say about the Air Force, ya know.  They have the nicest bases and facilities!

When it was time to pick up Toby we were all looking forward to going home.  We went to the closing of Day Camp, and I found a tick embedded in my arm.  (First time in my life!) Thankfully, the medic there removed it for me so I didn't have to deal with it myself.  We were hot, bug-bitten, tired, and dirty.  And the kids LOVED it.  The whole way home they kept thanking me for taking them camping and for all of the fun that they had.  So that made it worth it. And, ya know, P.F. Chang's.