We're here

We're in Germany. Just thought I'd post here very quickly. We're tired, but Maren's family is here, the dogs are grateful to be out of the kennels, and we're wired.

We'll post pics of us in Germany (i.e., giant beer steins, lederhosen, and bratwursts) as soon as we can.

more pictures

ok, this might be overdoing it a little...but here is the last batch of pictures from today.

more pictures

Here are some more pictures of Eowyn playing on the mall playground and on grandpa's school bus.

Eowyn's first professional haircut

This is my first post so I'm sure Nate will edit if after I go to bed...
I won't try to be funny or witty but I do have something the masses are screaming for...new pictures.
We are staying with Nate's parents in Michigan and went to the mall today to get Eowyn her first professional haircut. She didn't want to sit in the chair by herself so mommy had to sit in the chair and Eowyn sat in mommy's lap. Then we had to bribe her with a sucker to sit still. The lady took about 2.5 inches off! I didn't know her hair had gotten that long. Of course we think she looks super cute with her new big girl hair cut. After her hair cut she got to play on the playground and climb around on some gigantic fruit and furniture. She loved it.
Once we got home grandpa stopped by to let Eowyn play on his school bus. The dogs were in the backyard but decided to jump the fence and hop on the school bus as well.
Enjoy the pictures of our girls. It will probably be a while till we post again since we are leaving for Germany next Wednesday.

"Bee-bah"

Eowyn is learning new things. For example, if she bangs on the windows after we tell her 'no', Mommy puts her in "time out." She doesn't care for that too much. And what's inside a Krispy Kreme box, or at a McDonald's drive-thru window (or, as Baylor refers to it, "The Magic Window of Smelly Goodness"). She loves those!

We've been trying to teach her to say "please", but "please" was seemingly too difficult to say. So, we decided to try the German variant, "bitte" (bit-tuh). She picked it up quickly, but it sounds like "bee-bah". Tonight, we ordered pizza. Maren ran to get it along with some allergy medicine (who knew Domino's carried Zyrtec?!..."Yeah, I'd like a pepperoni thin crust, some cheesy bread, a 2-liter, and throw in some parmesan...oh, and can I get a box of Dayquil?"). When she got back (I'm sure Eowyn recognized the box), Eowyn threw her toys down & ran to her chair shouting "bee-bah bee-bah bee-bah!"

We're also learning to throw a ball. Eowyn's aim seems to be improving steadily. In completely unrelated news, Daddy's reflexes are improving drastically out of sudden necessity.

Speaking of learning, we had someone look at our house yesterday, and while I was at rehearsal last night, they stopped by again. We learned that its Baylor, not Jetta, who about rips through her crate when people come into the house.

more Kaiserslautern

For anyone interested, here is the weblink to the theater where I'll be working.

http://www.mwrgermany.com/KL/theater/production_history.htm

They'll be performing "Lucky Stiff" opening May 28, so Maren and I will get to see a show that's up and meet the people who work hard and volunteer their time there.

And for my fussball-loving friends who are curious, no, we have no interest in adopting 1. FC Kaiserslautern as our new "home team." That'd be like moving to Texas and immediately becoming a Cowboys fan.

The end of Texas.

Dear family & friends.

God sees fit to bring a new chapter into our lives. In May, 2009, I will no longer be a professor at East Texas Baptist University. Instead, I will become the "Theatre Specialist", or artistic director, at the community theatre on the army instillation in Kaiserslautern, Germany. This will put us 1 1/2 hours from Maren's family.

There is no telling how long we will be there, though should I do a good job, I could have this job as long as I want. However, we are committing for 3 years at the minimum. To our friends in the US, we will miss you dearly, but we hope to have a large house for you to come and visit us. To our German friends & family, we can't wait to share our lives with you again.

To my students I leave behind: I love you all dearly, and these last two years have been some of the most memorable moments in my life, and I will cherish them forever.

Live big.

Finish.