I really can't wait until it gets warm

Woo, I must be on some kind of roll! Updating twice in one week! This week was really good. The weather wasn't so nice earlier in the week, but it's been amazing since Thursday. I've gotten a lot of good walking and bike-riding done.

I had off on Monday and Tuesday, so I took the time to just relax. Monday I didn't really do anything all day, mostly because the weather was not that great. Tuesday the weather still wasn't nice, but at least it wasn't raining. I rode with Stephanie to her practice and she checked my teeth (since I hadn't been to the dentist in a year). Her office is so nice! I'd been there before so I already knew what it looked like, but it was different being a "patient". Everything is so new and modern. Since it was Fastnacht (the day before Lent starts, Fat/Shrove Tuesday as we say in America) Stephanie was having a little celebration in the practice. She and her helpers were all dressed up. She had a crazy orange wig that she was going to wear, but Dominik put it on and was running around with it on. Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture, but imagine a tiny little blond-haired German kid with huge crazy orange hair! He looked like Thing 1 or Thing 2 from the Cat in the Hat.

After getting my teeth sufficiently prodded and scraped (no cavities!) I took the train to Ulm to meet up with Dianny, an aupair I met through my German class. She's from the Dominican Republic, and she's hilarious! I don't think she means to be, but she still is. She speaks Spanish originally, so we speak in German since that's our common language. Of course she says that she doesn't speak any English, but she knows a good amount! I don't even want to try to talking in English with her though, because even her German isn't very good. Actually, that just contributes to her hilariousness. We wandered around for a little bit, and she told me all about the awful family that she works for, as well as her friends (and boyfriend!) in Stuttgart who she met when she worked for a family there earlier. She hates her family here so she constantly lies to them about what she's doing--even though it's just stupid stuff. She told them that the friend she goes to see in Stuttgart is her aunt; seriously, why even lie about that?? It got confusing later on though, because she said she had to buy a birthday present for her "aunt"--I'm still not sure if she meant a real one or her fake one.

Smile, Dianny!!

(Also, awesomely enough, she has a sister named Diana, hahah)

The kids were really good yesterday. Dominik had off from school and Johanna stayed home from kindy. I love it when they're good! We all have such a good time! Here they are playing outside:

Notice the awesome chalk drawings me and Johanna made on Thursday

Last night Eveline and Irene (both from Gegenwind) came over and we watched "Little Miss Sunshine". Eveline was hilarious--she kept saying things like, "I hate the father. I hate him!" and "Leave him. She should leave him." and her favorite, "Oh, nein." After the movie was over we talked for awhile and we laughed A LOT. This morning Stefan asked, "So, did you guys just laugh all last night, or did you actually watch a movie too?"

They discovered my Mardi Gras beads (courtesy of Jonathan) and Irene kept checking herself out in the mirror afterwards. Irene and Eveline, imitating hippies

Irene also told me that she never wants to go to America to live, and not even for a vacation. Her reason? Because of what she sees on TV. I tried to tell her that America is NOT like it seems on TV, but she didn't seem very convinced. She thinks all we do there is "party". Message to all Germans: Grey's Anatomy is not real life.