Saturday started out a little frustrating, but was nothing we couldn’t handle. We were all excited for Lily’s new bed and my chair & ottoman to arrive. I was getting a little nervous because when I ordered the furniture from Ikea, the Customer Service representative did not speak English. I was able to give her the order numbers, and I wrote down my address, email address, and phone number. Since I don’t have a German phone number, a colleague told me in basic English that the only way I would know when the delivery was coming was from an email – during a window from 7:00 AM – 2:00 PM.

Saturday morning arrived, and I got out of bed at 6:30, worried that the delivery would show up right away and catch me in my pajamas. I checked my email – nothing from Ikea. I started to get nervous, so I pulled out my order paperwork and noticed that they had the wrong email address…… I decided I better try calling. German Ikea answered quickly, but the transfer to English-speaking Ikea had me on hold for 50 minutes before I gave up and decided that if the stuff didn’t show, I would have to go to the store.

I was relieved when the doorbell rang around noon, only to find a very unhappy non-English speaking delivery guy. Sometimes the delivery trucks can drive up to our door – but the local politicians had booths set up on the Haupstraße, preventing him from getting close. And of course it was regnet – raining. He started chucking the boxes onto a little dolly, that he then had to haul over the cobblestones to get to our door. He wasn’t impressed, and I was not getting warm, happy vibes from him. Of course the language barrier probably frustrated him immensely, and I felt terrible that I couldn’t communicate in his language. I tried to say a few words, but I felt like my broken German was just pissing him off even more. In any case, he delivered as many boxes as I had on my order, so I signed and off he went.

First thing we unpacked was my chair. I have super short legs, that are rarely able to touch the floor in most chairs, so I need footstools. The couch we purchased from an expat is not very tall, but it’s deep and doesn’t have a high back. I am pretty excited to have a chair that was “juuuuuuuuust riiiiiiiiiiiiight”.

Jay and Lily got to work on her bed. We got her a double bed (will be the guest bed for all of you who book your flights and head over here). They started building the box frames. There are two of them. I only heard minor swearing coming from Lily’s room. And then we realized that the remaining big box was not the mattress for Lily’s bed. Ugh. The delivery guys brought me two chairs (I only ordered one), and zero mattresses. As much as I love the chair, I don’t need two. And Lily can’t really sleep on the wooden box frame. Back on English-Ikea hold I went, this time I talked to a real person in about 30 minutes. He was quite confused but we eventually got everything sorted. Next delivery date is on Thursday. One driver will drop off her mattress. Another driver will pick up the second chair. 

One of my favorite Amazon purchases (that Jay and the kids say is completely unnecessary) is my new puzzle table. Yes, I know. I am a nerd, and I’m also essentially an 80 year old woman. This is not news for most of you. Puzzles are a stress reliever for me. When I feel like things are out of control in my life, a good puzzle allows me to know that all the pieces are there and if I work hard enough I can put it in order. I did the unthinkable and left a half-finished puzzle at home in Iowa. As hard as I tried, I ran out of time and couldn’t finish it before we left. This new puzzle board has 4 trays that stow away inside the table, and it spins on a lazy Susan. And, I can move it on/off the dining table as needed. 

Fun fact. Hot dogs in Germany are served in glass jars of water. Actual fact. I will not be eating them.

One of my favorite luxuries in our German home are the towel drying racks. I’m trying to figure out where I can install one at home in Iowa. The racks also help heat up the bathroom, so before we get in the shower, we crank the towel heater up to high to make it toasty warm. This is the only source of electric heat in the home. The primary heat source is through floor heating, which makes the home feel cozy. And added bonus, hot water is constantly running through the house, so it only takes about 15 seconds for the shower to get to the right temperature. 

Update on the curtain situation. It is still a work in progress, but I have a plan. We received the first round of supplies on Saturday. Thanks to Hannah for the suggestion. It’s a wee bit redneck, but it works! We are using these plastic blackout blinds, cut to size, and velcroed onto the window. ”Oh look honey, when you remove a corner of the trash bag curtain, you can see a castle.”

On Saturday, Ty had a 3 hour baseball practice. Jay, Lily and I went shopping. We went to Globus first. I was wrong, it isn’t like a Sams Club, it’s more like a Walmart Supercenter. We found all sorts of random goodies – some pint glasses, wine glasses, and bowls that hold more than 5 grapes (the rental dishes are meh), and a bunch of pantry items. Lily was pumped to get some Ritz crackers. Next we went to Decathlon, which is a sporting goods store. It was an experience. They were taking the “touch and feel” shopping style to the next level. Dads were playing keep-away with their kids in the aisles, children were riding bikes and rollerblades throughout the store. Lily said “this is a very free store.” That’s about the best description for it. 

We watched the last 30 minutes or so of Ty’s baseball practice. The boys were doing yoga – Ty struggled, Lily laughed. Then they played a game. They use soft baseballs, soft-toss pitching, no catcher. The batter cannot hit the ceiling or it’s an out. Face first sliding is allowed. Balls can be caught off the walls. And there is only about 30 seconds between half innings. It was super fast paced and fun to watch. The boys have a tournament next weekend, I’m excited to see them play for real.