Baby, Baby, Baby Ohhhhhh!

Surprise! Surprise!

Nevena is pregnant! She is already into her second trimester and she is just glowing :) Three kids, three times as fun! Congratulations to the Vuksanovic Family!

When I originally came to Germany, I wasn't sure if I'd stay for 6 months or for a year. Well it didn't take me long to love living here so I have decided to stay until next June. There is so much more I have to see and do and learn. But I'll be back for that Texas summer heat. I know several of you already know this, but to those of you who didn't know I would be staying longer, it's not too late to plan a visit ;) I am so excited to be here for when the new little baby comes!

I hope all of you have a wonderful and happy new year! I am going skiing in France so look for my next blog update because it's going to be awesome!

Frohe Weihnachten

Merry Christmas everyone! So everyone asks me, "Oh, what's Christmas like in Germany?!" And the first thing I tell them about is the Christmas Markets! They sell all sorts of great things. The best booths being the ones with yummy gluhwein which is the traditional Christmas market hit every year.

The second thing everyone asks me is, "How will you get to celebrate my Christmas there?" So this year I celebrated a German Christmas. Sadly, it was not a white Christmas though. I did the normal family celebrations. In Germany, we celebrate Christmas (Weihnachten) on the 24th, then the 25th is the 1st day of Weihnachten and the 26th is the 2nd day of Weihnachten. They get 3 days of Christmas! I got to celebrate the normal family way and we went to church, ate a lovely meal of a Christmas goose, and opened gifts on the 24th. Then the past 2 days we've just stayed at the house (mostly in our PJs) watching movies and playing.  I think the biggest differences from the States is the hype of Santa. Of course, it is a little more commercialized and modern in the States. It is more traditional here and simple. There are still last minute crazy shoppers and the usualy hussle and bussle. Most families buy a real Christmas tree but not as many houses are decorated with lights either. But I still got to hear a lot of Christmas music :)

This is from last week... All the snow melted :(

The third thing everyone asks me is, "Won't you be sad missing Christmas in Texas?" And I say, "Of course I will, but, it's pretty great here too." This is the first Texas Christmas I've missed. Since my mom had just came for a visit and I got a few sweet packages from family, I have enough holiday cheer to not think about what I'm missing in Texas but to think about how wonderful it is to have to opportunity to be in Germany.

Merry Christmas

Munich with Mamma

Mamma also spent a few days with me here in Munich. She got to hang out with the family and get to know them which was so great for us all :) We took the train from Zurich to Munich and like always it was so nice to enjoy the sight of the countryside through the Alps. We came here last Saturday and Mom left on Thursday.

We went on a city tour while she was here, but we spent most of our free time just hanging out in Germering and then also at the wonderful Christmas markets in the city :)

Drinking our gluhwein

We also went to Dachau, the first Nazi concentration camp in Germany. It opened in 1933. This camp was mainly for political and religious leaders. There are only 2 original buildings still standing. And one of them is the cremetory. It's just outside the gates of the main camp and I cannot tell you what a horrible feeling I had just looking at it. Stepping foot inside there is one of the most upsetting things I've ever done in my life. With wide eyes I gazed at the ruins of true cruelty. Being in the grounds of the camp and reading through the information guide and museum plaques felt like walking through a nightmare. The terrible thoughts I had stole my breath away and filled my eyes with tears. That is the only way I can think to describe it. It seems so unimaginable the things that took place there and in many other places during WWII throughout Europe. This is the dark part of German history and is forever a scare in world history. As upsetting as it was to stand within the camp gates I realized how fortunate I was to leave whenever I wanted. It was hard to realize the words I was reading were not just a story but an event that happened not even 100 years ago. It was tough. But I think it is something we all should see and learn from so that it won't be repeated. I learned a lot that day.

Sorry that note was on a downer, but if you visit Germany you should go to one of the Concentration camp memorials.

I was so thankful to spend almost 2 weeks with my mom right before Christmas time. I'm glad she got to know the new family I'm living with and see what my life is like here. My mom was hoping there would be snow but it's not quite cold enough yet apparently. So after eating our way through pizza and pasta in Rome, cheese and chocolate in Switzerland, then beer and brautwurst in Germany, vacation with Mamma is over. Christmas time is so lovely here in Munich and I'm so glad you got to see it mom! Had a great time with you! Thanks for everything! Love you!

Jungfraujoch

The word of the day: die Aussicht - the view

What is your favorite setting in the world? A beach or the ocean? The forest? A meadow?... Mine is being in the mountains. The sight of them is such a testiment to God's might, in my opinion. So getting to take a 2 hour train ride up and through the Swiss Alps is an ideal way I would spend any day. And I was so excited to get to do this with my mother. The Jungfrau is a region of the Alps in the middle of Switzerland - an absolutely beautiful place. We stayed one night in Interlaken - a town inbetween two beautiful lakes surrounded by the Alps. At first I was kind of being a little grouch because we were in this little town - sorry mom, again (you know why moms are so great? Because they will put up with you when you are 22 years old and still behave like a little stinker sometimes).

We started the day early and hopped on the train. We had to change to 3 different trains along the way at these little itty bitty villages and the last one was just a train stop on the side of the mountain legde. Just looking out the window all the way up was the best entertainment.

The Jungfrau translates to young lady or maiden. It's called the Jungfraujoch because the place where the train takes you to is inbetween the Jungfrau and another mountain. It is at 3,571m and is just as cold as it sounds. That hat may look silly but it did it's job keeping me as warm as it could. There were mountains as far as the eye could see.

They market it as the being the Top of Europe. False. I was disappointed. The Jungfrau is not the tallest mountain in the Alps, but it does have the highest railway line. So it's the highest point normal people can go. Only those crazy extreme climber people have gone to the actual top of Europe (which would be the Mont Blanc on the border of Italy and France at 4,808m - Mount Everest is at 8,848m so don't get too excited). I do not have the skills or the emotional stability to do that so I was content with the comfy train ride.

Normally you can get off and ski and sled but there hasnt been enough snow yet. This year is aparently too warm. My mom has a picture from the 70s of the last time she was at the Jungfrau with her family when she was 13 years old. She was skiing in jeans and a Tshirt... crazy.

This place isn't a popular place for Americans to travel to when they are in Europe, but it is at the top of my list now. It's an incredible place. All of Switzerland is an incredible place. It has the most charm, I think.

And of course when you are a Tridelta sister you are one for life. So you have an eye out for those tripple triangles. What a coincidence the symbol for the Jungfraujoch is. I thought my days of throwing up the delta were over. But look what we found. I think this would make a great cover for the Trident magazine. Maybe we can try to photo shop you in too Aunt Kathy! And the barrel squared! (My mom was a Tridelta too, FYI.)

What do you think, Mom?

This part of the post-Rome blog is being written by Mom. WOW, what a trip it’s been! First of all, keeping up with a 22-year-old…..dart here, dart there, climb there, walk 14 hours a day….my knees will never recover. I whined a bit, but got over it since I got no sympathy from you-know-who.  Wine helped a lot! Incredible Rome was the perfect place to begin our trip. This has been the trip of a lifetime for me and I’ll never forget the wonderful time Sara Beth and I have spent together. After our four fun-filled days in Rome, we flew to Zurich. This was a very special part of the trip for me since both of my parents are Swiss natives and grew up in a town named Winterthur, about 30 miles from Zurich before emigrating to the USA when they were in their 20s. This was a place I had not visited since I was a teenager. The morning after we arrived, we met my cousin Eric (who I had not seen for 40 years) in Zurich and he spent the whole day showing us around.

The great thing about touring a town with a ‘local’ and not with a tour guide is that you get to know the city in a different way. Eric took us to this wonderful little fondue restaurant the locals eat at tucked away in a hard-to-find side street and we had the most perfect meal. Nothing says ‘I’m in Switzerland’ better than eating fondue! Later that evening, we met up with Eric’s wife Denise at the Bahnhof (central train station). We had a great time wandering and eating our way through the KristKindl Market (Christmas market) in the station.  Eric went home to watch an important soccer match, which as you know is as important as football is in Texas! Denise then took us up to a lounge bar on the top of a highrise and we got a wonderful nighttime view of the sparkling city below.

Some more about Winterthur….. We only had the morning to take the train over there from Zurich before leaving for Germany so we did not get to spend much time there. However, I found the street that my mother grew up on and at least got to get a sense of their early lives. I had been there before but only when I was a child/teenager and didn’t really appreciate the town for its importance in their lives.

After leaving Winterthur, we took the train from Zurich to Munich (four hours) and passed through Austria as well. This was a lot of fun because we really got to see the countryside. We had bought lunch and pastries from a local shop before boarding and bought some delicious coffee on the train. What a fun meal!

In between Zurich and leaving for Munich, we spent a night in Interlaken and took the train to the Top of Europe –  the Jungfraujoch mountain. Sara-Beth is going to write all about that; all I can say is WOW! It’s really pretty indescribable.

When in Rome

Mamma came to visit this week! We met at the airport in Rome, Italy and had a full packed 4 days of Italian fun!

And these are our top recommendations. So, when you're in Rome...

- The first stop on your list should be to see one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Go on a tour through the Colosseum. It's really incredible everything that this place has been through; from gladiators to fires.

- Make sure to climb the 551 steps to the top of the Cupola of the St. Peter's Bascilla in the Vatican City. You can enjoy the view of the entire city. (This is especially effective if you want to kill your mother - her words, not mine - the elevator had broken and how was I supposed to know those stairs were so harsh?) And if you're in the Vatican City, you have to visit the Vatican Museum and stand in awe of the world's most beautiful art filled building and chapel (I mean the Sistine Chapel. It felt like a maze getting there. Every corner I turned I looked up at the ceiling. I was only slightly disappointed not to see Michelangelo's Creation of Adam around each corner since everywhere you look in that place is gorgeous!) The Sistine Chapel is breathtaking and everything it is cracked up to be.

- Eat at least 2 pizzas a day.

- Drink wine with every meal.

- Don't skip dessert.

- Gelatto is good to eat while you walk.

- Get a table outside for the best people watching.

- Be aware of frisky friendly waiters. Don't accept any marriage proposals.



- Make a wish at the amazing and giant Trevi Fountain.

- Find your way to the Pantheon. It is tucked away inside the city but it is quite a sight to see. The architecture they somehow mastered back then (in the top dome of the temple) is something we could never recreate with our modern technology even. It is not even finished though. They left a big hole in the roof... on purpose though, so that when they worshipped their gods way back when, they could look down on them.

- Bring an umbrella.

- For the history arhceology people, you can see the remains of buildings from ancient Roman time at the Roman Forum.

- If you buy a book, make sure it's in English.

- Don't give up if you get lost in a museum. After climbing several flights of stairs that seem to go in circles, underground and into other buildings, don't give up! You might just come across the Michelangelo and Da'Vinci room of original works you were looking for.

Mom and I had a great time. I might have gained 15 pounds but Rome is the place to do it :)



The Luck of the Irish

I got to spend this week with some wonderful friends from home, Jessica and Brittany! Jessica was my roommate at TAMU last year and they are both fellow TriDelts. We really had such a good time! When Thanksgiving came around, I started getting a little homesick since this was my first Thanksgiving away from home. But I know what I am thankful for now :) Jessica and Brittany really brought my spirits up and inspired some more encouragement just when I needed it.

GPS Jess!

We spent the weekend in Dublin, Ireland! Boy, is this sure a fun city! We definitley got the Irish pub experience :) One of my highlights was visiting the Guinness factory! Even though Germany is well known for their beer and I've lived here for 5 months now, Guinness is my new favorite beer (even more than a Shiner).

Enjoying our Guinness.

Having dinner at a pub.

We enjoyed a night at this pub and met some fun characters!

This is a famous pub in Dublin and the area is named Temple Bar. All of the pubs were so cozy inside, all with some great live music and all decorated so sweet for Christmas :) So I didn't know this, but the Irish actually have their own language, Gaelic. I thought it was Enlgish (which it technically is, no one speaks Gaelic on the streets) but everyone learns this in schools and there are still a small percent that speak it as a main language in their home.

 We saw everything we wanted to in the city...

At the city castle.

At the world famous Trinity Univeristy where we also were able to see the Book of Kells.

An evening stroll through the streets.

In the city gardens. We got lucky with the weather.

At St. Patrick's Cathedral. A fun fact we learned on our city tour was why the Irish symbol is the 3 leaf clover. St. Patrick had a vision from God to convert Ireland to a Christian country (I cannot remember what century). So he went to the King to convert him first (I also cannot remember which King) and knew that the whole country would follow the King's decision. He explained the Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, using a 3 leaf clover. Ireland is well known for having deep historical religious roots (and Vikings). So, St. Patrick's Day is actually a celebration for this man. I guess its purpose nowadays has strayed a little from the history. They never told us what the Luck of the Irish actually was though... Nor did we see a Leprechaun carrying a pot of gold.

We all had so much fun in Dublin but we decided that you need at least 3 days (we had 2). You need 2 days in the city and 1 day for a trip out to the country. We were so sad not to get to see the world famous beautiful landscape in Ireland. But now we have our excuse to go back!

We spent the rest of the week in Munich. They got to meet a few of my friends here and we enjoyed Gluhwein altogether at the Christmasmarkts and sightseeing around town.

I literally just said good bye to them at the train station and I'm excited to say hello to my mom tomorrow in Italy! Thanks Jess and Britt for being such awesome friends! I'm so glad you came and I got to share my life here with you :) 

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

I hope you all enjoyed time home with your family :) I really hope you did, because, Thanksgiving and the Holidays are just not the same when you're not at home (no matter how crazy you think your family is and no matter how cool of a place you're in). I never valued the purpose of Thanksgiving so much - just taking a break from the normal hussle and bussle and spending time bonding with your family. Thanksgiving is more than just good food and football (tough loss Aggies, of a game and a great tradition).

I definitley was sad to miss Thanksgiving in Texas. But, I was so excited to get to celebrate Thanksgiving here at the Vuksanovic house! We had a great time! It was so special for me :) In case you didn't know, cooking and baking is COMPLETELY different here. So, it was quite a challenge to find and translate ingrediants. We made a bread stuffing, sweet potatoeos, green bean cassarole, a turkey of course, gravy, and pumpkin pie (from a real pumpkin!). Nevena and I somehow seemed to managed quite well, I think, and we had a wonderful meal together with a few of my friends.

Irina, Laura, and Anna joined us tonight :)

Our Bavarian Thanksgiving

We made pumpkin pie from a real pumpkin. Never done that before! It tasted really good too!

And tomorrow, I'll be in Ireland!

What does an AuPair do all day?

This is one of the frequently asked questions I get from everyone at home. So, let's start with some general helpful tips I've learned...

1) Always wear your tree climbing pants.
2) Bring water. Not only to drink but also to wash off mud.
3) Socks can double as a quick mop up.
4) Sleeves can also double for face wipes.
5) Be creative. Use vivid bed time story voices.
6) Expect to have the responsibility of holding the collection of rocks, sticks, leaves, or bugs where ever you go.
7) When I wake up in the morning and I am sore, it is either from playing Peter Pan and having the role of being the pixie dust so they can fly, or it's because I am a walking jungle gym. (it's my secret to keeping my arms tone)
8) Bring your game face because they bring their please puppy face.

But this is the play by play of my week...

Every school day morning we wake up and have breakfast at 6:15. Then the bus comes for the boys and they are off to school at 7. So on somedays I go back to bed for a bit (you would too, am I right?). On Monday and Thursday from 9-12 am I have my language course. It's going ok. But I'm mainly learning from the family. I have to be extremely attentive though!

On Monday, Tuesday, and Friday afternoons I watch the boys and try to sneak in some English lessons. But even just while we are playing around the house, the boys English improves. They come home from school at 1:30 and we eat lunch together. I managed to remember a few Graces from camp and teach them to the boys haha. The Superman Grace is favorite for these kids, too. My cooking knowledge has probably double since I got here... So have my karate moves. After lunch the boys do their homework and then we play for a while. I am always up for building forts, hide-and-go-seek, and Kapla blocks. And then later in the afternoon the boys have their gymnastics or piano and guitar lessons to go to. On Wednesdays I clean and go to the grocery store and the boys stay longer in school. So days get busy and go by fast.

And what do I do in my free time? Different nights I go into the city and meet up with friends most of the time. When I'm here at the house, mostly I read and keep up with friendly emails (there is so much to keep up with in Texas). I've been going to an international church on Sunday's and a small group bible study on Wednesday nights that I'm enjoying. Monday we have a movie night at a friends house. And then there are the traveling weekends :) these are my favorite! I haven't gotten to travel much this month but in two weeks I'll be in Ireland with Jessica and Brittany! I can't wait!

So, get the picture? My work is a lot of playing, but my playing is a lot of work.

Proverbs 2:1-12

My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding,
If you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.
For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth comes knowledge and understanding;
He stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
He is a shield to those who walk in integrity;
Guarding the paths of justice and watching over the way of his saints.
Then you will understand righteousness and justice and equity, every good path;
For wisdom will come into your heart
And knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
Discretion will watch over you,
Understanding will guard you,
Delivering you from the way of evil.

Falling into Winter

Autumn has fallen on Germany. It is beautiful. Truly. The trees and sidewalks have all been painted with new colors. Autumn is quickly becoming my new favorite season. Texas must skip this season in favor of the 100 degree weather which is not a fair trade in my opinion. Or maybe it's because Texas' favorite color is brown and not yellow or orange. It's only a few weeks it looks this lovely before the trees go bald and the snow comes. So for now I am very much enjoying my Autumn walks in the park.

I hope you all had a wonderful Halloween as well! Halloween, the whole trick or treating thing is not really that big of a deal here. They don't even sell candy corn (I was shocked and I don't even really like candy corn). I saw a few costumes but nothing like in the States where we will wear our costumes to school that day and go trick or treating through senior year of high school to at least a few houses just for some free candy. I was sad to not see any cute little kids in their creative costumes. There are no spooky Jack-o-Lanterns or haunted house decorations or smell-my-feet rhymes. However, Tuesday was a working holiday so all of the business and shops were closed for All Saints Day. Odd, hm? And, this week is the fall break from school so school are off all week. Trick or Treating in the States would take on a whole new meaning if everyone had holiday from work and school the day after.

What I Hate the Most

I HATE that I can never really catch the entirety of what I'm doing in a picture. I really like my camera, but the pictures don't do justice to what I can see with my own eyes. Now maybe if Jean Marie was standing next to me, she could give the experience of the sight proper justice with her awesome camera skills, but I just can't. The pictures I've previoulsy posted are only half of how beautiful the full scene is.

I HATE that it's already so cold! Hate Hate Hate! Double Hate! Loathe entirely! But I love how the trees turn colors.

I HATE that I'm missing football season. But it won't ever be the same now anyways since I wont be in the 12th man student section watching the Big 12 Teams.

I HATE so much when I miss the SBahn train into the city. It's so annoying to walking around the corner and see it leaving. So then I have to wait 20 min for the next one. And its embarrassing the many times I've had to chase after it. Maybe I should leave the house earlier... Good idea.

I HATE that I am a 12 hour plane ride, 7 hour jet lag, hundreds of Euros, across the Atlantic, over the moutain and through the woods, in another country, and then some, away from you all. But you are just a click away on Skype. Thank you technology.

I HATE that I'm missing out on so much... My heart physically hurts sometimes, but I'm gaining a lot by being here and God has been, will continue to be, and is always good to me.

Czech -ed out Prague this Weekend

We ventured to the Czech Republic last weekend to see its capital city, Prague. I was able to take the weekend trip with my friends, Irinia and Andrew. We had an incredible time! It was about a 6 hour train ride from Munich. The Czech Republic is the direct eastern neighbor of Germany. I had no idea the deep history of the city and was blow away to learn so much about it. It is a gorgeous place! One of my favorites so far! We only spent one day there but were able to see and do a lot. We arrived late Saturday afternoon and after checking in at our hostel, we went to see the castle! 

This is the St. Vitus Cathedral within the walls of the Prague Castle that sits perfectly ontop of a hill overlooking the city.

Andrew, Irina, and myself inside the Castle.

There was a beautiful view from the castle and luckily we caught it at sunset. Then we made our way down into the city to the Charles Bridge - another Prague landmark. We ate dinner at a really cool Czech style restaurant and had some original pilsner Czech beer. Then, after a nice nighttime stroll through the city, we went to a bar to hear live jazz music - a Prague favorite.

History Fact #1: This is the currency in the Czech Republic called crowns. This looks awesome because its 2000 crowns, but it's worth less than 100 Euro (about 24 crowns = 1 Euro) (about 17.5 crowns = 1 US dollar). So prices on menus and signs look silly at first - dinner cost us 500 crowns.

History Fact #2: They speak Czech, in case you didn't know. And it sounds nothing like German... or Englisch.

History Fact #3: The Old Jewish Ghetto of the town is now one of the nicest (and most expensive) places to live in the city.

Bonus Fun Fact: Almost all of Eurotip was filmed in Prague apparently - only some of you will think this is actually a fun fact.

On Sunday we went on a tour (Englisch speaking of course haha) and loved the unique stories of the city and its influencial people. So this was a stop in the Old Town Square. It was a beautiful day :)

Our tour guide had some great stories. The best one was what he told us about an elderly woman who had lived in the Czech Republic her entire life and never moved. But, she lived in 8 different countries.... What?  The Czech Republic was constantly being changed and conquered and divided and renamed. So, this woman never moved, but the government and territory issue was pretty complicated over this past century (and centuries). Every time there was a new set up, there was a different currency with different passports. Crazy right? Finally in 1989, the Czech Republic overcame Communism with the Velvet Revoluation (named this because no one died). Good story.

With the Castle behind us.

With the Castle behind me.

A Bohemian street show in the Old Town Square. Really cool.

Enjoying the company :)

What was your least favorite thing about Prague?

My least favorite was the Museum of Torture... I got the hebbie gebbies just walking by!

What were your top 3 favorite things about Prague?

Only 3?! I could go on and on!

My favorite was the tour we took on Sunday.

My favorite was the Jewish Ghetto area and the rememberance of WWII history.

My favorite was the interpretive light show that was projected onto the old town hall and the Astronomical Clock tower on Saturday night. It was such a cool way to incorporate such a modern technology with the extensive Czech history. Very cool.

These pictures aren't as cool as the city!