Auf Wiedersehen - Until I See You Again

Our precious three weeks with Phil have finally drawn to a close. We accept it, though. We're used to these goodbyes. First Phil was deployed to Afghanistan for 6 months in 2006, then he PCS'd to Korea for 8 months in 2008. Thankfully we're getting really good at "soldiering up" and dealing with missing each other. Separations force us to be our strongest selves, and help us to appreciate one another more than we otherwise would. There are so many lessons to be learned, and so much growth to experience, from these goodbyes. 

I attribute much of our family's closeness and team mentality to our extensive traveling and also to these lengthy separations. We're constantly in situations that call for us to think and act as one mind, to help one another, to depend on one another in critical ways. We're each a pillar of our family structure, and each of us knows it.

The Frankfurt airport never saw so much hugging. Surprisingly there were very few tears, because we all felt so loved and so close, and we knew that Phil would only be gone for another three months. Compared to eight months, three is a breeze.

Comic relief!

As Lvov used to say, "We love our-chothers!"

September Creations with my Two Sous Chefs

Voila! One lovingly hand-picked and home-cooked apple torte (created with apples hand-picked from a little orchard nearby). Every bite is filled with memories of tree climbing, laughter, and ripped jeans (mine, ripped while climbing). Even the executive chef does a little "sous" chef-ing from time to time. Who knew that serendipitously discovering apple trees along a Nordic Hiking trail in the Rheinland-Pfalz counts as dessert preparation?

Deep sweet chocolate and Kahlua brownies with bitter almond-cinnamon cream and toasted almonds.

Love Love Love

Just thinking about our little family today, and all of our happy memories together.

Lvov's Birthday Pillow

Phil and Jalina Going out to Dinner for their 14th Wedding Anniversary

Isn't this fantastic??? Lvov made it for us for our anniversary. I can't think of anything better to do on my anniversary than to embrace Phil with cardboard arms while being served miniature dinner at a milk carton table. Lovely!

And we really did go out for a nice dinner, but the place was a real dive - no milk carton tables, no wash cloth table covers...but we did our best to enjoy ourselves.


We dined at Club 21, a bar/restaurant that has a stunning view of Kaiserslautern. It felt as if we were looking out an airplane window - the fresh perspective revealed the city's secrets and every building, alley way, store, and park suddenly made more sense. I saw the interconnectedness of the city; I finally understood the dead ends, the roads I had always meant to take, and the confusing places that I can never quite "map" in my mind's eye.

That night, feasting on delicious food and looking back over the view of our lives together with different and older eyes, everything made sense: the dead ends, the confusing places, the roads we never took. Everything with my boy made sense.

I'm lucky, lucky lucky.

Our Cozy Christmas 2007