Phil in St Petersburg

We had a regional meeting in St Petersburg which was supposed to be -30 Celsius. It never got that low (only -5 to -10). I packed extra warm clothes that I didn't wear, as my winter clothes for Berlin were fine - in fact it was much colder in Berlin (about -15 to -20 Celsius all week). We had a really good meeting, which kept me busy all through the week. 

We had some social activities and a little free time, so I took the opportunity to have a look around - it is an amazing and incredibly beautiful city. So much colour, history and architectural beauty.

 I think a visit in June would be even better! I expected a city more like Moscow, but the strong European influence (Italian, French, German) really came through. The city has so much history to see, from Peter and Catherine the great, Rasputin, the siege of Leningrad and the cruise ship Aurora, which fired the signal shot to start the 1917 revolution which led to the 'Soviet Era' of Russia. 

We went to the ballet and saw Swan Lake. I was expecting it to be good, but it was nothing short of magnificent. Both the show itself, and the athleticism of the dancers was really amazing. We also visited Catherine Palace and saw the amber room, and then for 'team building', had an afternoon of outdoor activities (drinking vodka and playing team games in the snow). Quite a bit of fun! In the end it was a long and busy week, but I would recommend a visit to anyone.

Phil was given a fuzzy hat, the thickest coat we have ever seen, and a pair of enormous felt boots. The boys think these boots will be great for next St Nicklaus Day (December 6th). 

On December 6th you leave your clean boots on your doorstep , and St Nicklaus puts lollies and chocolates in your boots if you have been good. If you have been bad, he will put a stick in your boots instead. So the boys have claimed one boot each for St Nicklaus Day this year, in the hope it will be full to the top with chocolate!

Skiing kit for Austria

We went shopping today to get some ski clothing for our holiday. 

Not long to go now, and we are very excited.

Lots of sales on at the moment, and got the boys kitted out at a reasonable price. 

Phil and I will get ours when we are child free, sometime next week! 

Outdoor Ice Skating

We all got ice skates for Christmas. We really want to learn how to skate, without holding on to the rail. There are some great outside ice skating rinks, and they look like so much fun over the winter.

When the kids go back to school, some of the mums have organised some lessons with an instructor, so I am going to do this as well! 

We have been going one morning each weekend with Sonia and Alan, Bradley. 

The boys are really getting the hang of the skating, and after a couple of weeks, they spend more time on the skates than on their bottoms! (Phil and I too!)

"It's -4 out there, can we have Ice Cream?"

We had Emily and Charlie over today. A great day, we went to Spandau to the Ice Cream shop. 

Then we went to the park for a quick play before the kids got too cold. They love this round about, and even more when an adult makes it go really fast! (Phil's job). 

Then it was home to make a warm batch of Anzac Cookies, and make "Bunny Town" out of Lego.

Ten Pin Bowling

Before the kids went back to school. Perhaps  something indoors, not so slippy. 

"Let's go Bowling" someone says! Great idea! 2 lanes are booked.  

I put a notice on the BB mum yahoo group "Turn up if you want to" 

21 kids arrive......we book another 3 lanes! 

The man behind the counter is very stressed there are so many children there! We were the only customers in the whole bowling alley! 

Maureen managed to get the kids sorted out into age groups, we found all the light balls we could. 

The kids had a great time. The older kids managed to sort it out themselves. We needed someone to supervise the younger kids, but we took it in turns, while others had coffee. What a great morning, and cheap too, 2 games including shoe hire, about 5 euros each! 

Note about the yahoo group. 

A few of the mums meet at the Wiener Cafe in Neu Westend after school drop off a few times a week. The conversation on Monday morning usually started with  "Hubby was on a conference, so it was just the kids and I" I suggested setting up a yahoo group, and post things like "We are going to the zoo, if you are interested, meet us at the gates @10am" Then we can go if we want to, it also meant the kid can play together, and the mums could have some adult company as well.  

This is working really well, and I am finding we are getting out a little bit more when it is just the kids and I on weekends.  The group is also helpful when trying to find a plumber who speaks a little bit of English if you get stuck.

Icy Walk at Schlachtensee

The kids were getting a bit bored, time to get them to out and see some friends. 

A walk sounded like a good idea, a bit of fresh air, and a restaurant at the end for lunch!got

We got a few parents together and met at Schlachtensee. The Lake was frozen! 

The walking path was hard packed with ice. There were lots of falls and slips, but we managed to walk around the lake without needing an ambulance! 

The kids really enjoyed the walk, they liked trying to slide along the path! It was cold, and by time the circuit had ended it was good to warm up in the restaurant and order some hot chocolates for the kids, and some warm spicy red wine and cappuccinos for the adults! 

After lunch, I rang Nicola to see if they were home, and they were just down the road sledding. Sonia and I took the kids to the hill, and the kids had lots of fun sliding down the hill. Cameron and Bradley got sick of waiting for a turn of the sledge, so they decided to go down penguin style. Heads up, arms by their sides and down they went! Hilarious!!!

England to Berlin

Mum and Dad were up early and got to the hotel where their tour departed from. So they didn't stay up to see the Fireworks last night. They arrived at White Cliffs of Dover to head off to France.

We got up at a reasonable time and had a lazy morning. Rob drove us to the airport, saying the public transport would have been awful on a public holiday. We were very grateful. Phil sat in the front with Rob, while Alexander, Cameron and I snoozed in the back seat. 

We hope Kylie, Rob and Oliver will come over for a visit to Berlin. 

We had arranged to meet my penfriend, Charlotte and her family at the airport for a few hours before we left. Charlotte and Declan brought champagne, and trifle to eat! So we sat in the food court and looked very posh! It was a lot of fun! I forgot to take a photo. Their children Dan, and Sophie are gorgeous!  

We hope we have some visitors this year! We arrived back in Berlin to a mass of snow everywhere, and we hope it will be good for snowmen and sledding!