Forest and Freedom

Friday was one of our very first chill (chill as in temperature and relaxed in terms of attitude and activities) days so far.  We woke up and decided to try to get Benjamin's bike fixed at the local bike shop.  We all head down there on our bikes but the bike store is backed up in their repair orders because last week when it rained so hard and some of Zehlendorf was flooded, the bike shop was also flooded.  The guy working there tells us that maybe we should bring Benjamin's bike back on Monday.  So we head toward one of the parks near our house. We've seen this huge green patch/park on maps but haven't gone yet.  WOW!!  What an amazing area.

As we entered it started to mist and it felt just like a scene out of the book Twilight.  The pictures are terrible because I was biking but there were trails heading everywhere.  The trees were huge and gorgeous. I'm certain we will be back to this park/forest very soon.

Last night Bridget, my one and only friend here aside from Julie, invited me to a coffee get together with the American Women's Club of Berlin.  Since I haven't done much by myself since arriving I jump at the chance.  And quite honestly, the kids are driving me a bit bonkers - it's been a constant source of chatter and bickering and happily playing (more of this here than at home) but still it is constant input from the moment I wake up until the moment I go to bed.  Benjamin has been going through a question asking phase that is rather intense. Josie never did this but he quite literally wakes up with a question and doesn't stop asking questions until he goes to bed.
"Mom, mom what would happen if I rode my bike so fast that the pedals fall off" (see Day 7)
"Mom, what is the fiercest sea animal?"
"Would you like to die by flames or hypothermia"
"Mom, What if an earthquake caused a Tsunami then cause a hurricane then caused a mountain to erupt. What would happen then?"
"Mom, would you be electrocuted if you jumped in the air while sticking your finger in a socket?"
"Mom, who is the fastest runner in the world?"
"Mom, mom, mom"   You get the idea.  Often I just say "That is a great question, you should probably go ask dad"  Delegation at its finest ;-)
I used to be an all out extrovert but since having kids I have craved a bit more solitude... well, truth be told, I'm still fine being around other people just not my kids 24/7 for nearly 2 months straight.  I just needed to be away from someone needing me for a couple of hours!  So, I jumped at the opportunity to meet other English speakers but also to try my hand at navigating the city by myself.  I catch the bus at the end of the street then transfer to the Ubahn and I'm able to find the cafe with no problems.  Yay! The women there are great.  I mostly talk to Bridget but also meet a few other very nice women.  It was very good for my soul to be out and about by myself for a couple of hours.

Marty finished his first full week of live broadcasts with no problems.  We are all beyond thrilled that this is working... but a bit scared that this good connection and problem free (technology wise) days won't last.  He never thought he would get to this level of comfort, let alone at the end of the first week.  But for now we are happy to be enjoying the end of our first normal work week in Berlin.