It’s been a hot minute since I published an update. We’ve been busy!
Lily decided that she wanted to try horseback riding lessons. We managed to find a stable that gives lessons in English, and they also ride Western! She has had 3 lessons and loves it. Apparently they don’t have anyone as short as Lily – her little legs were too short for the stirrups. It didn’t change how she felt about the experience. Her smile says it all!Lily’s entire 5th grade class went to a camp 3 hours away for 3 nights! I made her pack her own suitcase (and I didn’t double check her work). They stayed in a youth hostel (“The youth hostel in Hermeskeil was the place with the worst food, well almost, the only good things there were breakfast and the sandwiches. And some people had the smallest rooms in the world.“) and did all sorts of typical camp activities – archery, make a boat that floats, construct a shelter, build a tall tower, bonfires, stick bread (“The bread on a stick was not good, it was so bad, it kept falling off the stick and was not done on the inside.“), roasting marshmallows (“I did get 2 marshmallows, those were great. Liam taught me the best marshmallow toasting method. The outside was toasted and the inside was gooey.“). Apparently there were some challenges that they had to work through. “A challenge I faced was dealing with all of the tears, it got really annoying and I just wanted to go home and never hear tears again. I overcame that by just plugging my ears. Another challenge was not having my phone. I overcame that by playing outside and with my friends.” When I picked her up, she was all smiles and said it was awesome. But reading her school summary makes me wonder… “In conclusion there§ was a lot of drama. If I were to go back in time I would have stayed away from the drama and not go back to the youth hostel.“I think it would have been awesome if they made them sleep in their “structures” one night. It floated!!Ty’s baseball teams continue to dominate. Teams 1 & 2 had to play a league game against each other and they made the local newspaper. (Thank goodness for Google Translate!)I love our rose wall! And I love when my husband surprises me by putting a rose on my nightstand. Hair appointment #2 was a MUCH better experience! I went to a lady in Königstein, she spoke English, and did a fine job. I still miss Brian, but I am relieved to have found someone here that can cover all my gray hairs. So I did a thing. I got permanent eyeliner. I don’t wear much makeup, and I don’t wear it often. Having just a little bit on my top eyelid is kind of nice. “Did it hurt?” is the first question I get from people. Well, it didn’t NOT hurt, but it wasn’t terrible. She put some numbing cream on the eyelids which helped a lot. The whole procedure took ~30 minutes. I was puffy for a couple days after (kind of like how your eyes look after a big cry). Lily says that my eyeliner slays. I kind of love it.Jay and Ty did a thing. The took public transportation (bus & train) to downtown Frankfurt to the public viewing areas of the Euros soccer tournament. It’s a HUGE deal here. Some of the games are played in Frankfurt, but getting tickets to the stadium is basically impossible. The city has put out ~20 giant screens along the Main River for people to be able to experience the game in a huge crowd. They made it!So. many. people.The town park in our backyard had a weekend evening wine festival. I snapped this photo while they were setting up, and forgot to get one when it was open. We met up with our neighbors for a glass of wine and chat. So nice to be able to walk a few steps out the back door. 🙂The softball team had a double header in Gammertingen, which is a 3+ hour drive away. Lily and I drove down the night before with another mom and 2 girls. GIRLS TRIP!! We stayed in a little town at the base of the Lichtenstein castle. It isn’t as old as some of the castles we have seen, but it was in an amazing location – right on the edge of the cliff. We didn’t have time to go inside, but we hiked around the grounds.Such a cheeseball.I mean, for real. According to Wikipedia: Lichtenstein Castle (Schloss Lichtenstein) is a privately owned Gothic Revivalcastle located in the Swabian Jura of southern Germany. It was designed by Carl Alexander Heideloff[1] and its name means “shining stone” or “bright stone”.[2] The castle overlooks the Echaz valley near Honau, Reutlingen in the state of Baden-Württemberg. The modern castle was inspired by Wilhelm Hauff‘s 1826 novel Lichtenstein and was built in 1840–1842. The ruins of an older medieval castle are a few hundred meters away. *Nicole’s note: We walked to the ruins, and there was hardly anything left. But the view was incredible. Here’s a link to the website: https://www.schloss-lichtenstein.de/en/# Count Wilhelm of Württemberg, Duke of Urach, had Lichtenstein Castle constructed on the historical foundation walls of a medieval knights’ castle. *Nicole’s note: This is like the ultimate show of wealth. Hey guy, you think you’re rich and powerful? Ha! That’s cute. Come visit me at my private CASTLE ON THE EDGE OF A CLIFF. Unfortunately I committed a crime. I parked in a space on the road for longer than the posted 30 minute allotment. Barely. It was like 40 minutes. I haven’t received the ticket in the mail yet – has to go through our rental car company first. To be continued…The 2023/24 school year is FINALLY over! The kids’ last day of school was June 21. They both grew so much – physically, mentally, and emotionally. I have been so proud to watch them adapt to all of the things we threw at them the past 6 months: new country, new home, new school, new language, new friends, new time zone, new sports teams. Hopefully I don’t need to start posting #yearroundschool updates this summer…. What are our summer plans? The kids are continuing with their German lessons, a few more baseball and softball games, Lily is going to a Filmmaking Experience camp, Hamborg weekend, Taylor Swift in Gelsenkirchen, then home to the US for a couple weeks at the end of July/early August. The Shearer’s will be at the Iowa State Fair Friday afternoon/evening (July 9) and Saturday morning. We went on a short hike from Rettershof to Fischbach. It wasn’t our favorite hike – only ~3 miles, not much elevation, and not really in the woods. The highlight of the hike – we discovered a Mexican restaurant and oh man, it was muy bueno!!
Speaking of favorite foods…remember when Lily wrote to Kraft Mac & Cheese about wanting to go to the German grocery story to buy mac & cheese? She went to the Rewe (grocery store) this week and THERE WAS KRAFT MAC & CHEESE ON THE SHELF!!!!! I don’t know if it was because of her letter, or purely a coincidence, but she is convinced that she is a change-maker. 🙂
Headed to Wally (Disney) World (Land Paris)!! This is my first time in France. Cross another country off the list.We stayed at the newly renovated Disneyland Hotel, which is as close as you can get to the park entrances. The location was perfect. The hotel was beautiful. It was definitely princess themed – with a bit of a focus on Belle from Beauty & The Beast.Living like royaltyWe went to Walt Disney Studios Park right away. They had an awesome Alice in Wonderland show, full of BMX riders, trampoline jumpers, dancers, fire, and fun music. I’m not much of an Alice in Wonderland fan, but the show was excellent.Lily, trying to figure out how this phone thing works. Literally when she was done, she asked what to do with the handset….The Toy Story area of the park was adorableLily wanted her picture taken everywhere. Yes, I also have a son, but he’s 14 and hates having his picture taken doing anything silly and fun.This one is for Brody!The Cars ride was more thrilling than I was expecting. :). Lily and I screamed. Ty insists that he never makes any noise on rides.Just when I think Ty won’t do anything fun, Jay sends me this. Lily was tuckered out so Jay and Ty went to the Disney Village for dinner. They walked through the Marvel hotel and found this fun room.The best part about our hotel is the Magic Hour, where hotel guests get into the park one hour before they open the normal gates. Ty and Jay have done all the big rides during the Magic hour, waiting no more than 15 minutes. (Lily and I say no thank you to the big rides).Princess photo bomb!! Ignore the wet hair, no makeup extreme closeup and focus on the princesses on the balcony. :). It rained every single day, so it made zero sense to do my hair and makeup…Mickey & Minnie photo bomb!!We found the boys. No family trip to Disney is complete without a castle selfie.Ratatouille is one of the main themes of the French park. I hated the ride, though. Very little actual motion but giant screens that make you think you are chasing a rat around a restaurant is enough to make my stomach want to explode. Ugh.RemyThe Alice in Wonderland maze even made me a little dizzy. Seriously. It’s annoying. 🙂The line for Its a Small World was 45 minutes. Call us horrible parents, but we skipped it. Ty and Lily will never know what it’s like. Just when I thought I knew all of Jay’s talents, he surprises me with another. Buzz Lightyear and Web Adventures Champion of the World. He’s all mine, ladies.Yes, a grown man captured photo evidence of destroying his kids in a roller coaster video game.Gorgeous flowers everywhere. This one made me think of mom.We had a 9:00 dinner reservation at La Table de Lumiére in the hotel. Lily got to say hi to all of the princesses and princes. Despite absolutely not wanting to have his picture taken with a princess, my well-mannered son knew better than to deny Belle when she asked to have her picture taken with him. 🙂Sneak peak of the Shearer Family Christmas card? 🙂I would say that I tend to be a “go easy on the butter” sort of gal. But that was before I ate this butter. OMG. Y’all. This is incredible. My ratio of butter to roll with this spread is about triple what I normally do – and that is me holding back.
The best part about dinner (the food was just OK, which was a pretty big disappointment given the fact that we are in a 5 Star hotel in France) was that we had a window seat and dessert was served just as the drone and fireworks show started above the castle.
Maybe someday, Lil. Swiss Family Robinson treehouse. Maybe someday, Nic.One thing I was really excited about was the Lion King show – my favorite at Disney World. It was different, but didn’t disappoint! I think the Disney costume and set designers have the best job in the world. I mean, just after being an accountant at Deere (obviously).Lily and I had a chill afternoon. We got massages then she jumped in the pool. Dad came down and swam with her a bit. She’s such a little fish.I am certain that I was not getting professional massages when I was 10 years old. Someday she will appreciate it. 🙂
We had dinner in the Disney Village at a Chicago Steakhouse. Jay liked his ribeye, Lily loved her cheeseburger because it tasted like McDonalds. Ty and I thought the surf & turf was mid. I’m thinking that when we come back to explore Paris we need to do some food research because so far my French food experience has fallen way short of expectations.
Ty wanted an ice cream cake for his birthday. Our search in Germany came up short. Leave it to Disney to make his wish come true!
I have wondered how Paris Disney would compare to Disneyland and Disney World. I haven’t been to Disneyland for 20 years, so I’m not a great critic for that park. I’m not a Disney fanatic, I don’t study and research for hours before I arrive. I want to be surprised, awed, and amazed. I want to escape reality. I want to wonder “how did they do that?” I want to be surrounded by happy people and giggling children. I don’t go to Disney for the thrill rides (no, thank you), yet in every Disney park (or cruise) I visit, the feelings are similar. Easy, happy, and magical. I will point out that it rained Every. Single. Day. The temperature didn’t get above 65 degrees Fahrenheit, and was mostly on the chilly side. And somehow it didn’t seem to matter – for almost everyone in the park. THAT is Magic.
We knew going into the long weekend that 3 nights at Disneyland Paris were probably too many. If we stayed outside the park, it for sure would have been too much. But with our hotel location it ended up being just right. We didn’t rush through the days, took midday breaks/naps, and enjoyed the Magic of Disney. The kids have new memorize that I think will stay with them for life.
Our wall of roses is starting to bloom!!!! I have always dreamed of having climbing roses. Who knows how old these are?! I love them.I went to Budapest, Hungary for a work conference for a couple days this week. I have to admit that the taxi ride from the airport into the city had me a little disappointed. My thoughts were old, neglected, and blah. But as we got closer to my hotel, I could tell where some of the refurbishment money was being allocated. This church was so beautiful- look at the colorful tiles on the roof. I stayed in the Castle Hill area.Beautiful castle wall. We had dinner at the base, inside the wall. The view from the Buda side overlooking the Danube River, over to Pest, was beautiful.This is me trying to be an artsy photographer Random sewer cover was cool.The currency in Hungary is HUF – Hungarian Forint. The exchange rate is 359 HUF to $1 USD. It was kind of crazy to see the prices of things. This charge was just for a Refresher.I grabbed lunch at this place.One thing that we have discovered around Germany at different festivals is Hungarian Fry Bread – Langos. I like it with cheese and sour cream. One of my favorite Memaw meals is Navajo Tacos, and this bread tastes just like it. So good.While I was hungry in Hungary, Lily and Jay ate at the Waldgeist restaurant near the Redwings baseball field while Ty had practice. This was the smallest cheeseburger they offered…..no, it is not an optical illusion. I was totally bummed to miss Lily’s big school project. Her topic was on global warming. She had been working on it for a couple of months. Jay was able to go and record her presentation. She nailed it!!
My conference was great. I am a little isolated in my home office, so it was nice to be able to talk with other people that have similar responsibilities as I do at other companies. I left rejuvenated, with some new contacts, and a few new ideas.
I flew home Wednesday night and we drove to Disneyland Paris on Thursday morning. I will share a separate blogpost with that adventure.
Shearer Adventure 