New stroller

Posted on January 15, 2013 by admin

We went looking for a new stroller last night. Since we had success there last year, we decided to go back to the same shop. Unfortunately, there’s a laundromat there now, with no sign of the stroller store. (Their website is still up & running and still lists that address as their only location, so I’m thinking they went out of business, but their web address is still paid up.)

It is so much easier to get things done with a stroller, and with our ski trip coming up later this week, we really wanted to get one as soon as possible. (Certainly, we could do the ski trip without a stroller, but managing the trip to the train station, at least, would be so much simpler, so I’d rather have one.) So, we did a quick Internet search and stopped by another shop, Dohnal, Haus des Kindes, which is actually much closer to our house.

They had a surprisingly good stroller selection, although nearly all of them high end. Part of that is the store, but part of it is just Europe. People spend a lot of money on strollers here. The fanciest, most expensive strollers in the US are very commonplace here, and they just don’t have many less costly options. In this particular shop, there were only two strollers — not two types, two actual strollers — under 200 Euros. (Do the conversion to be truly horrified.) Most of the options are in the 300-600 Euro range, with quite a few in the 700-900 Euro range. Almost anything that isn’t an umbrella stroller will be over 300 Euro. (As a side note, the double strollers here are roughly the same price as they are in the US, meaning that you can get a double stroller here for only a little bit more than a single of the same variety.) Benjamin immediately fell in love with a Maclaren which was lovely (and one of the least expensive in the shop at 240 Euro) but being an umbrella stroller, it was a challenge to use one-handed. That’s something I do a lot (one child rides while the other walks and holds my hand, leaving only one hand for stroller pushing) so it wouldn’t work.

We looked at a few others, but we were ultimately stumped. Nothing seemed to quite fit our needs and price range, starting with the problem of needing the stroller to work for B — most strollers here go up to 15 kg only, and that’s just where B is now. (Which is another interesting thing about Europe — they spend a ton on strollers, but almost no stroller will hold a child over the age of 4, so they aren’t making a long-term investment.) I didn’t want to compromise and get something more frustrating than helpful, given that the stroller is the single piece of baby equipment that we use most (aside from the kids’ beds).

We decided to go home and check out the selection on Amazon.de to investigate our options. After an hour or so of looking and comparing, we had narrowed it down to 3 good options. Only one of those 3 was available at the local shop, and since we really wanted to get it before our trip this weekend, we went for that one. Interestingly, it’s the exact same stroller we have in double form, only as a single — a Baby Jogger City Mini (this time, in red, since that is B’s favorite color).

I’m happy with it. It’s a little bigger and heavier than the Chicco we had, but much sturdier. It still has a basket underneath for stuff, and I can use it easily with one hand. And, as a plus, it’s a real jogging stroller, so it should be very functional for walking and running. So far, both kids have been thrilled by it, but neither has actually gone for a ride in it yet. I can’t wait to take it out for a spin myself . . . and I hope this one lasts a little longer than its predecessor.

Snow day

Posted on January 14, 2013 by admin

I am a bad influence.

We woke up to a good bit of snow this morning — probably about 3 inches, and certainly the most we’ve gotten in a single shot so far this season. I love the snow, and I started imagining all the fun we were going to have today — building snowmen, throwing snowballs, taking a snowy walk, maybe even finding a good hill for sledding. And I started thinking that it was really a shame that we had to wait until this afternoon, after B got home from school, to start enjoying the snow. After all — who knows how long it would last? Many times I’ve promised B, “We’ll play in the snow after lunch/after nap/tomorrow”, and then, by the time it’s time to play, the snow is all gone. And, really, it seemed like such a bummer that Dan would have to miss out in all the fun . . .

So I decided we should have a family snow day.

I asked B if he would rather go to school and play in the snow with his friends or stay home and play in the snow with us — of course, he chose to stay home. Dan took a BIT more convincing. As always, I don’t think he thought I was serious at first. But I persisted, and I also reminded him that we have all been sick and an extra day for us to rest and get better really probably IS a good idea.

So, we all stayed home to play in the snow. I had fanciful visions of playing together, strolling through the snow-quiet, tree-lined paths of Vienna, and then coming home to warm up — drinking hot chocolate and all snuggling together. That is not at all how it went. B was excited to go out, but he only wanted to go out on the terrace. Liam refused to go out in the snow at all (I’m hoping this isn’t a foreshadowing of how enthusiastic he’ll be about skiing this weekend). So, I stayed in with Liam and we watched Dan and Benjamin build a snow dog and throw snowballs. When they were cold, they came in and we all played together. I wanted to go out and enjoy the snow, and, since no one wanted to join me, I went on my own.

So, Benjamin got to play in the snow, as did Dan. I got to walk on the peaceful, snowy sidewalks of Vienna. And Liam, who I think really needs a bit more recuperation time, mostly did that. We didn’t exactly do it all together, but we did have a nice day. I love snow days.

A marathon each week

Posted on January 13, 2013 by admin

Back in “the day” (i.e., over 10 years ago, when I was young and relatively slender) I ran a marathon. Seriously, I did — the Baltimore Marathon in 2001. I even finished. The whole thing. It was the hardest thing I have ever done. The training and preparation felt good. There was a lot of camaraderie amongst myself and the friends I made while training. I (usually) looked forward to my long weekly training runs and got through the shorter ones without a problem. I got myself all in shape and was ready for the big day.

And, then, the race came . . . and I hated it. I hated running the marathon. I hated everything except for the first few miles. It did not make me feel good. It took me 7 hours to finish, and there was a stretch in there where I didn’t think I was going to finish, and I wasn’t sure I was going to survive (that sounds overly dramatic, but unless you’ve actually gone out and run 26.2 miles on a 80 degree day in what is, secretly, the hilliest city in America, don’t judge).

I fell asleep in the car on the way home (Dan was driving), woke up later, ate most of a pizza and slept again for about 12 hours. When I woke up the next day, I swore to myself that I would NEVER do it again. And I never have.

But, although I hated it, it was certainly an accomplishment, and it’s kind of a cool thing to have done. And I know that I DID do it, and that conceivably, I COULD do it again (given proper motivation, which truly does not exist in the known universe). But, I know that I can go that far, and I know that it didn’t kill me (I wasn’t even injured). I will keep the promise to myself to never do that again — at least, not all in one day. But, I was thinking about my exercise routine (which I’ve been out of since before Christmas) and the number of miles I do every week, and something occurred to me. I could walk, jog, run . . . whatever . . . a marathon’s worth of miles every week without really adding THAT much to what I’m doing right now.

And that seems like it’d be kind of cool. So, I’m going to try it.

I don’t think it counts as a New Year’s resolution, because it’s January 13th. But I’m going to start, this week, and I’m going t o see how long I can keep it up. 26.2 miles, every week.

This week will be a challenge, because we’re going out of town later this week, and I have no idea if there will be reasonable walking/jogging areas in the town where we’re going. But, I started today (just 2 miles) and I’ll see what happens this week. (I’ll call this week a trial run.)

I’m going to let myself accomplish it in pieces (obviously) and I can do it by any means I choose. I can walk, chase the kids around the park, jog, walk to the store, walk instead of taking the bus, hike. Whatever. I’m not going to be picky, but I’m going to see if I can do it.

Bull in a stroller shop

Posted on January 12, 2013 by admin

Last November, our trusty stroller, which we had gotten before Benjamin was born, broke and had to be replaced. Taking on a task like selecting and purchasing a new stroller, in German, and with a nearly unrecognizable selection of styles and models, was a pretty massive challenge. Liam was just barely one, though, so we didn’t really have an option — we weren’t going to easily make it through the rest of our time here (especially without a car) without a convenient “single” stroller to complement our very functional, but also very bulky, double stroller.

Well, it’s happened again. Our “new” stroller broke today, and we’re suddenly in the market for a new one. Again.

I blame Dan (almost) entirely. He’s pretty rough on strollers. His mentality is, “if it won’t go, just push it harder”. He was rough on the first one, and then again on this second one. It lasted just over a year.

Granted, because we are without a car, and we walk everywhere, it had a year of very intense use. That stroller travelled with us to 6 different countries, on trains, busses, planes, trams and in the trunks/boots of various cars. It went to the top of a mountain in the Alps and to the top of the Eiffel Tower. It’s been busy. And, through all of it, the daily concussion of the cobblestones, as well as the all-too-often misjudged curb heights (which cause us to slam our entire moving weight onto the handle), were probably the most destructive.

But, whatever the cause, here we are again — a highly stroller-dependent family without an easy stroller to use. The stroller shops aren’t open again until Monday, so we’ll go shopping then. On the plus side, Liam, who is now over 2, is much more mobile without one (although we’re not quite yet to the point of not needing one at all). I’m sure we’ll find something good. In the meantime, it’s a lot of walking (and carrying of children) for everyone. Curses to Dan and his cavalier stroller attitude! (Actually, I’ll cancel the curses, and just make him carry the kids. That’ll work.)

Italia with a side of Mina

Posted on January 11, 2013 by admin

Italy is a place I’ve always dreamed of going. Even back when the thought of travelling outside of the US was scarier to me than it was exciting, Italy was on the (very short) list of places I knew I wanted to go . . . someday. I think my enthusiasm grew from my interest in the Renaissance and Reformation eras of history and a fascination with the art in and from Italy (even though I really know nothing about art). That, and pizza. It seemed like if all that good stuff came from one place, it would be worth checking out.

But, after spending our first summer here in Vienna, I was pretty certain I was not going to venture any further south in the summer months, unless it involved sitting on a beach somewhere. The European notions of handling summer heat, largely without air conditioning, don’t work very well for me, and I figured that if I couldn’t handle that at a northern latitude, venturing to Italy during warm weather didn’t make a lot of sense.

Our initial plan had been to see Italy this past December, so we could enjoy the festivity of Rome and the Vatican once everything was done up for Christmas. Though when I sat down to plan that trip, back in the fall, I realized that December is one of my favorite months of the whole year HERE, so why would I want to leave?

But now, we’re really going. The trip to Italy has been planned. We’re going in February (cool weather, few crowds). We started off (as we often do) with an overly ambitious wish list of destinations: Rome, Florence, Siena, the Cinque Terre, Venice. From experience, I’ve learned that trying to manage that in a week, with the kids, would be miserable for all of us. So, we narrowed it down to three, and then decided to limit ourselves to just two, so we can really enjoy them, slow down, relax and have a great time, with no pressure.

So, we’re going to Rome, and then to Venice. Because I can’t imagine a trip to Italy that didn’t include Rome, and Venice seems so beautiful, and so romantic that I didn’t want to miss it (not to mention we literally have to travel through it to get anywhere else in Italy). We’re taking the train the entire way — the overnight train (our first) from Vienna to Rome, a train from Rome to Venice and then the overnight home to Vienna. We have plans to see a lot of the sights in Rome, to ride on a gondola in Venice, and to eat a ton of Italian food. (Benjamin is overjoyed that we are going to the country that invented pizza. We’ve promised him pizza and gelato every day.) I am super excited.

And, we get to bring Jo along with us on this adventure. And then, to make it all even more exciting, my sister, Amanda (or “Mina”, to the kids) is coming over to join us for our trip. We are all so excited. The kids did a happy dance (quite literally) when I told them she was coming. Seeing Italy is a dream come true, and being able to do it with my family makes it even better. Looking forward to Italy!

Christmas lights in January

Posted on January 10, 2013 by admin

The Christmas lights in Vienna are still up. It’s the 10th of January. Advent, Christmas, New Year’s and even the Epiphany have come and gone. And yet, even the very orderly Austrians don’t seem to be in a hurry to take down the lights.

We had to take our tree down early this year. By “early”, I mean almost a week ago. And, in a house where Christmas trees typically threaten to be around for Valentine’s Day, it was a lot earlier than ever before. That, along with the fact that we get our tree later than I’d like here in Austria, means we didn’t get enough of a chance to enjoy it. We certainly didn’t have it around long enough to get tired of it. I was sad to see it go.

So I’m glad that the lights are still up in the city. I love them. It makes it still feel a little like Christmas, and they help to brighten the evening streets that get dark so early. They’ll be down soon, and we can carry on through the cold, dark winter until we can feel the difference of the lengthening days. But I’m so glad to enjoy them just a little bit longer. I’m in no hurry.

New Year’s Eve in Vienna

Posted on January 9, 2013 by admin

Last year, we went in to New Year’s Eve with no expectations, and we ended up having a surprisingly fantastic time (despite getting stuck remarkably close to where the fireworks were being launched with a child who was NOT amused by the tremendous amounts of sound and smoke).

This year, we had a much better idea of what to expect. New Year’s Eve in the center of Vienna means day-long concerts, lots of public intoxication (but it’s surprisingly orderly), food and drink for sale, stands selling stuffed pigs for good luck in the New Year, many people dressed in crazy hats and sporadic fireworks throughout, followed by a big fireworks display at midnight. It’s a good time. Much of the downtown area around the already large pedestrian zone is closed to traffic, creating a massive area in the center of the city closed to cars and available to revelers. Concerts featuring all kinds of music are set up throughout the city. It’s loud, and festive, and very, very fun.

And, since we enjoyed ourselves last year, we set out to try it again this year. Again, we wandered through the streets along with everyone else in Vienna. Everywhere was crowded. Each concert had a huge number of people (of all ages) dancing along. We started out with the kids in the stroller, but they got out to dance along the way. We walked through the center of town, stopped for a cookie at Starbucks, walked past the Hofburg Palace, around the Ringstrasse and around to the Rathaus (which was hosting the most raucous party of them all). We were cold, but we had fun. The celebration was so enthusiastic and lighthearted, and it was fun just to be out in it.

But, unlike last year, the kids had had enough after a few hours. Around 10:30, they wanted to go home, so we obliged. We came home, got everyone dressed in pajamas and started to get ready for bed . . . but, it turned out, they wanted to stay up and be festive for the new year, just not outside. So, we played Wii together until the big moment.

And, we were pleasantly surprised to find out, we could see some of the fireworks from our kitchen window. So we rang in the New Year, all together, bunched around the kitchen window. It was a great end to 2012 — Vienna throws a great New Year’s party. 032

Time to travel . . . again

Posted on January 8, 2013 by admin

In the past 12 months we’ve done a lot of travelling. We’ve gone sledding in the Alps, spent a long weekend in Paris and a short one in Normandy, took two separate trips to the US (one including a week at the beach), visited England, Scotland and Ireland, and saw Salzburg, Tirol and a little bit of Bavaria. It’s been quite a year.

However, the last trip we took (Bavaria, Salzburg and Tirol) was almost 3 months ago. It’s the longest break we’ve taken since we started this whirlwind of travel across Europe last year . . . and, I’m ready to go again. As much as it can be a ton of work and sometimes a fair bit of stress and inconvenience to undertake a major trip as a family, I can’t wait to do it again. I think I may have gotten myself addicted to the adventure of discovering new places.

Which is good, because we’ve got a lot more to come. Next week, we have our first ski trip planned, next month we’re going to Italy, and I have a few short weekend trips in mind (which, of course, I haven’t planned yet, because I always plan travel at the absolute last minute — in fact, having our Italy trip almost entirely planned over a month in advance feels unusually organized to me).

So much of this feels out of character to me. I’ve always been such a homebody — I’ve always liked snuggling up on the couch and watching a favorite movie, not venturing out somewhere new. But now that I’ve done it, I get so much satisfaction from these adventures that it completely overwhelms the inertia of being home, and almost silences my worries about the challenges. Our two upcoming trips, for example, have lots to be concerned about — we’re heading to the Alps, to ski, with a 2 year old and a 4 year old, even though none of us really ski. And then we’ll be heading to Rome, with all the stress and headache of worries about pickpocketing and scams, and Venice, where the entire time I’ll be obsessed about not losing one of the kids in a canal.

But even though I do think (obsess) about all of those things, I can’t wait to travel again. I love seeing new places and having new experiences. But I also LOVE having that dedicated time together as a family. I love sharing a too-small room, all together, listening to the boys sleep while Dan and I whisper and silently laugh as we recall our day’s adventure. I love seeing the boys throw themselves whole-heartedly into completely new surroundings. I even love the memories of holding a sick Liam in the middle of the night or laying on a couch in a strange hotel room with Benjamin as he rested. We have made SO MANY memories on our adventures so far. We have shared so many experiences and bonded as we laughed or growled about some unexpected challenge. Travel with my kids is like family-time-concentrate and each part, even the parts that drive us crazy when we are going through them (like being lost in Paris at midnight in the rain or horribly miscalculating the driving time on our first day in Ireland) — EVERY SINGLE PART — has been precious to me.

I can’t wait to go again.

The mystery of the missing ham

Posted on January 7, 2013 by admin

I was late shipping out our Christmas gifts for our family at home. Consequently, everything arrived after Christmas (bummer) and the final package just arrived a few days ago.

To my Dad’s house, we shipped a lot of food items — cookies, chocolate, jams, mustards, candy . . . and a hunk of ham. (Plus a toy for Margaret.)

I wrapped all of the gifts, bubble wrapped the fragile items and packaged them all up into two shipping boxes for their trip the US. I packed everything. I know I did. I had a list. (I always have a list.)

But, last week, when the package arrived, the ham was absent. Not there. Missing.

I don’t know what happened. The box didn’t seem particularly damaged, and it didn’t look to have been opened and resealed. There weren’t any notices or markings on it. It only took a few days longer to arrive than the other box we sent (not outside of typical for mailing to the States). Did Customs take it? (You see, I had read that vacuum-sealed, cured meat was ok to send from Europe to the US — although I’ve since done more detailed research and discovered that it isn’t.) It’s possible — probably even likely — but I imagine there would be some kind of notice or paperwork along with that. Was the box more damaged than it appeared, and maybe it fell out? (Seems unlikely.) Did someone steal it? (It was a nice piece of ham, but not so nice that I image anyone went after it.) Or maybe, in a holiday-induced bit of distraction, I failed to pack it and accidentally stuck it in a drawer or something? (In that case, I imagine we’ll figure it out very, very soon.)

My best guess is that it was found and confiscated by Customs or the Postal Service or whoever is in charge of confiscating ham from packages mailed to the US. (Which, honestly, is fine, because if I’d known I wasn’t supposed to send it, I wouldn’t have.) But, I wonder — is this normal? Something is sent through the mail that shouldn’t be, and someone opens the package and takes it, without any kind of notice? That seems really strange to me. But, if not that, then what did happen? So far, it’s a mystery.

The privilege of parenting

Posted on January 6, 2013 by admin

One day, my boys will be grown up — they will be men. They’ll have jobs, hobbies and friends. They’ll have neighbors and coworkers. They may also be fathers and/or husbands. Wherever life takes them, they’ll grow up, and be out in the world, and everyone will interact with them as the adults they will be.

But right now, they’re my little boys, and I have the privilege of seeing them as children. I get to celebrate their milestones and victories. I get to look at drawings, hear about their dreams, kiss their boo-boos and guide them through their first, tentative steps towards independence. There will be a time when snuggles and kisses from Mommy are embarrassing and unwelcome (at least in front of their friends), but, for now, I get to cuddle up with them every day.

No matter what the future holds for them, I will always have the honor of having witnessed these precious moments. I feel so lucky to be their mom.

A Mommy Abroad

Our big adventure, as a family of three.

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