leise rieselt der Schnee - for all those lovely people in Germany and Austria or whoever wants to join us!

[Canella]

a new wintery thread in honour of Hupa's first snow of the season!

Wellies, no idea for Christmas songs but this made me look up the song that my 2 dc loved whne they were small, they used to dance to it! Now they'd just say mother switch that off, they're in their too cool to be true phase!

Linzer, hope you get all your doctor visits sorted and the translating is nearly done. Is school still on with the snow? They don't have Schulfrei for a few cm of snow like in UK do they!

Stickylittlefingers, not sure what you need to bring apart from very warm clothes for all of you, it's very cold in Berlin. Get thermals and hats and gloves, warm boots then you should be OK. If you start missing home food I think there is even a shop in Potsdam for British food which looks quite good here. How long will your dh take to get to Berlin?

Forgot to add, steady snow and getting deeper here in Hannover! Dc were up early to listen to radio in case school was closed but no such luck.

admysteltoe - I think it's half an hour from the Hbf in Potsdam to where he'll be working. It won't be every day or 9-5, so he should be OK.

Fortunately we've had a bit of a headstart with the warm clothes - I'm not allowed to complain about the weather in Newcastle without 50 people telling me "it'll be a lot worse in Berlin you know"!

Hi Admylin - I think they'll only close the schools if it's very icy like last year. I actually persuaded mine to wear their boots this morning! And yes, ds17's boots fit, thank goodness. He's not sure if he likes them yet, but I think they look fine and at least I know his feet won't be freezing. I guess I need to get out there and clear our walkway and the street in front of the house. I can hear our neighbour scraping away already.

What time would be good for you next Wedneday? Shall we meet under the horses tail like last time?

Bananas - yes, I seem to be in remission and am not feeling that bad now, thanks. Haven't taken cortisone for the past two weeks and things have stayed the same so I'm crossing my fingers. Docs appt next week is just a 'Verlaufskontrolle'.

The snow has finally stopped here, thank goodness - we still have a good 5 or 6 inches, but at least most of the roads are clear now. I'm not sure when, if ever, schools would be closed here due to snow, but certainly not when there are just a few inches, let alone cm!

Sticky, I would second what admylin said about bringing warm clothes as Berlin can be very cold in the winter. If you are like me and don't insist on at least 20 layers, you may get accosted by a stranger and be told that your child is not warmly dressed enough and will catch a cold.

I am very fed up with Christmas recipes now and would like my life back. Oh well, only another 6 days to go... I am keeping myself going with coffee, chocolate and by thinking of the money!

LinzerChristkindlmarkt - keep going! You can do it1

Just been out in the snow to the post office. As feared, our drive has not been cleared (yet) so I hope if this snow sets in that I will be able to get my car out of the garage. Dh manage dto get it out this morning and sliding down to get back in should be OK but after that who knows! I think I'm going to try and get a bag of that grit or sand to put down the slope maybe.

Westvan, depending on the weather if I have to come in by train or bus (have to look up the connections) or if I can get the car out we could meet at the same place. Should we go for 9:30? How are you getting to MHH next week?

Sticky, I think for once in the North East you've got a taste of what a normal winter can be like in Berlin! Is it still chaos everywhere? My uncle in Newcastle asked his dd to get him a snow shovel, which she did, but she can't get it to him as she's on the other side somewhere blocked in!

9:30 sounds good, Admylin, if it fits your schedule.

To get to the MHH I take the bus downtown and then the #4 Roderbruch tram right to the MHH stop.

Snowing like crazy now. Still haven't been out there to clear anything, bad me. Better do it now so the mail man doesn't fall down. Our neighbours have hired a small snow plow to do the job on their part of the street.

sticky- bring every document you have! Birth certificates, marriage etc etc. Good luck with the last few weeks of organising stuff....

wellies...your question made me realise that we don´t have any German Christmas songs either. Just 3 loudspeakers (aka children) who are slowly teaching me these songs. I should get a CD actually.

linzer- hope the translating is going well! And it will soon be over! And then you can cook all those wonderful recipes. Or not!!!

ad - that slope of yours sounds dangerous. There was an article in the freebie newspaper here which said that they are testing a mixture of sugar and salt on some Austrian roads, sounds a bit strange.

canella. great to hear you had a good time with your friend. I think there is a problem with these required levels really....I could now go to Uni (cos I did a B2 language course there) but I would not be able write a paper in German! Same with my professional life, I need to have perfect German to be able to do what I used to do in the Uk. So, I am taking the long-term view of language learning. Any more talk from your Dh about you taking a job?!?

I have now got one, only one, Christmas present. I must get my act together for the other ones. The present it The Third Man DVD for DH, he´s been saying he wanted it as we have not watched it for ages, and what with being in Vienna and all. I was tempted to get The Sound of Music too, but chickened out in the end as I have the feeling he would hate it.

Must go and write up my CV for my AMS course. It´s a bit of a bore, just sit around for 3 hours every day chatting. The course is meant to help us search for a job, motivate us etc. But we end up listening to one woman´s stories about the job market. She´s lovely but mad as a hatter and had so many bad experiences, it´s a real eye opener. So, I guess I am learning something

Hi Bananas, that AMS course sounds good even if it's just for hearng other people talking German! You learn a new word every day if you are out and about. Yesterday my new word was zanken as in fighting, I like the sound of it and told my dc I'll be saying you two stop zanking from now on when they start bothering each other!

Excellent advice for stickey too - having every official document with you will be handy including birth certificates.

Westvan, get yourself out there and start shovelling or someone will sue you!! Honestly, I find the paths that aren't cleared much less slippery than the cleared ones. Do you have to go out several times a day by law? Our caretaker obviously doesn't care. I'm expecting the dc home abit later than usual today as it is quite slow going on the paths and they'll probably be snowballing outside school. What doesn't your ds like about the boots? My ds is so fussy, he turns his nose up at all the boots I've offered him. If only he would wear wellies!

Snow shoveling done! Only really took 5 minutes. The snow is so dry that it's not slippery at all and there's no ice underneath. I think if it snows steadily you're not expected to clear it more than a couple of times a day if you're home, but they expect you to make an effort. If your landlady does nothing about your snow you should get in touch with her and ask her what's what since she's actually responsible for it unless it says otherwise in your rental contract.

Ds17 wanted either some expensive (EUR 179!) leather boots from Timberland or suede desert boots with a slippy crepe sole and we vetoed both of those. We got these ones which are sort of water proof and breathable and have a wooly lining and zippers on the sides to get them on and off easily while still retaining that laced up look. He didn't want the sole to be too thick and wanted a lighter colour but he says they're all right. Any kind of real winter boots or wellies seem to be completely out at this age. The goal is to look as cool as possible even if you're wet and freezing. I kind of long for the days when I could dress them in anything and they didn't care!

You should definitely use zanking, admylin - maybe you could introduce it into English as well?

I've just been reading a list of Austrianisms, which is quite interesting. Apparently you need to be on du terms with someone to say tschüss to them here (which I'd sort of realised, and always do a double take when our elderly German neighbours say hallo or tschüss to us). I'd never seen sekkieren (to tease) written down before; I'd always assumed it was spelt seggieren (the Austrians don't seem to distinguish between g and k, or between p and b for that matter). I hadn't realised Bankomat was an "Austriazismus" either; I've obviously been here too long.

I went to the baker's at lunchtime, and the woman there said she'd been meaning to tell me for ages how bewundernswert it is that I switch between the two languages so easily (I had DD2 with me so was speaking English to her). I don't really have much choice (well, not unless I start speaking German to the DC), but I still thought it was nice of her to say so!

Hello again Linzer - you're a translator, I take it? How are the recipes coming along? Are you nearly done?! I'm a graphic/web designer, which is an easy job to do at home. Works well at the moment, though one day I'd like to make it back into an office environment if only to meet a few more adult human beings on a daily basis.

I also end up doing a lot of work in the evenings, even despite the babysitter - there's so much to do during the day, it's hard to fit it all in. I love the idea of putting the boys to bed in the evening and then just doing nothing apart from have a glass of wine, but I can't see it ever happening.

I don't do any english-language activities here, mainly because I'm too lazy to get involved with any. I have some english friends here and otherwise my friends are kindergarten mums.

Bananas - you're in Vienna too? What do you make of it? Don't hold back if you have questions!

I am indeed whatever - for my sins. I'm about halfway through the recipes now; it's nice easy work on the whole, although I do have the added challenge of having to translate them into American English. I suddenly keep remembering that the Americans don't use words like icing sugar, coriander, etc. and having to go back and change things. At least my translation is being proofread by an American, who will hopefully pick up on any Britishisms!

I can't imagine going back to work for a company again; I'm too used to being my own boss now. I couldn't do it 9-5 (or longer), but working in the mornings and then getting out in the afternoons to meet up with friends etc. provides me with enough adult interaction to keep me sane!

So what takes you to Vienna? Is your DH Austrian? How do you like living here? That's enough questions from me, I think.

No - I don't think I'd really like to be employed either, unless it was a cushy and fantastically well-paid 2-day a week job, which I would do like a shot! Unlikely though, let's face it. But I wouldn't mind having a desk in some sort of creative office-share environment. For now this is the best solution though.

Yes, dh is Austrian, we moved here together 11 years ago and have just stayed. Can't see us going anywhere else for the forseeable future tbh. I like Vienna but I do find it a bit small and provincial at times - and the shopping is AWFUL - and I miss my friends. But generally I think Austria has a lot to offer and a great quality of life, especially for a family.

How about you?!

thank you very much!

Completely agree about the shopping here - I did virtually all my Christmas shopping at M&S in Bratislava as there are virtually no Austrian shops that I like. Shopping in Austria is a chore more than anything (good for my bank account, though!).

I don't think we'll be going anywhere in the near future either; for a start, we've bought a house here and would probably lose money if we sold it. Not that I could face the hassle of another move for several decades. Actually, we feel very settled here and I know we could never enjoy the quality of life we have now if we moved back to the UK; Austria definitely has a lot of advantages. It's also home for the DC and I can't imagine uprooting them. Like you, I think the only thing I really miss about the UK is my friends - most other things I can stock up on when I go back for visits!

Linzer - Yes, it really is family and friends that one misses most. I've been here for over 20 years and have never gotten too fussed up about not being able to get certain foods or this and that. You just adapt and make do. I do find shopping in Germany tedious, though. It seems to be so difficult to actually find what you're looking for at a reasonable price and it's always rush, rush, rush and get it before it's all gone.

I must get something done today. The house is still a tip and only getting worse. No energy. We're going to IKEA this afternoon to look for some new bedroom furniture for ds14. Wish us luck. I'm sure we'll come back with all sorts of stuff we don't need.

Good luck, westvan! I haven't been to Ikea for ages, although we used to be there almost every weekend when we bought our house. I do like their furniture etc. (and it's much more affordable than anywhere else) but find shopping there quite a stressful experience and it's the last place I'd want to venture at this time of year - the SCS (shopping centre) is just a nightmare in the run-up to Christmas.

It's snowing steadily here at the moment, with up to 30 cm forecast for today so DH is having a "home office day" (which sounds suspiciously like one of those terms that is only used in German). He was supposed to be driving to Bruck (about half an hour away), but has cancelled his appointment there and decided it wasn't worth going into Vienna just for the morning either.

DD2 had her appointment at the paediatrician's yesterday; we tried out a new practice and I was quite impressed as we only had to wait about 2 minutes (an hour wasn't uncommon at our old paed). We also had to take our shoes off at the door and put on slippers - very Austrian! Anyway, the doctor doesn't think there's anything to worry about but she has to go back for an ECG next week just to be on the safe side, and is having an abdominal ultrasound done at the same time as she's complaining of tummy ache almost every day at the moment.

Wow, it all sounds so efficient doesn't it Linzer. I'm sure all that would have taken weeks to get done in UK. When I see how much we pay in health insurance, it is quite expensive but worth it.

I like Ikea stuff too, it fits to our nomadic style of living so it's easy to just buy cheap practical stuff that we can get rid of after a couple of years when we yet again pack up and move! Must admit the last time I got stuff in Berlin I decided the 70 euro delivery charge was worth it and just ordered online and had it all brought to up to my 3rd floor flat! This time I got desks for the dc the flat pack was so heavy in the shop that I could hardly get it off the shelf so I had it delivered too for a few euro. Another good shop for price and quality is Dänische Bettenlager. I got the dc's beds there. Otherwise, totally agree, shopping in Germany is tedious!

I may complain that life seems to be one endless round of doctor's appointments at the moment (DD2 at Kinderarzt again next week, DS to Lungenfacharzt and HNO-Arzt the week after, and it probably won't be long before my round of Frauenarzt, Hautarzt (every 6 months), etc. starts up again), but at least we rarely have to wait more than a week or two to get an appointment and they do seem very efficient everywhere.

I asked DH whether schools ever close here due to snow and he said hardly ever. He couldn't remember it happening; he said that if the worst comes to the worst, you just get to school an hour late.

Dänisches Bettenlager is good too (and much easier for us to get to than Ikea), but they only have a very limited range. I think the only furniture we have that's not from Ikea is the DC's Flexa beds. The slide for DS's new bed (supposed to be a birthday present in July) finally arrived on Monday; I'm not impressed with Kika's service!

you have just reminded me I need to get to Ikea... Like yous (now that is a Scottishism) all, I like it, but find it stressful. Plus I have PTSD from going there on a weekly basis last year. We were, or rather I was, furnishing our flat as we had no furniture. I fly through that "market" bit, to avoid spending lots! Blinkers on, wings on and good luck westvan!

sticky, just remembered one document. When we moved to Berlin (about 10 yrs ago)we were asked for proof of last residence in Uk. We had an old council bill which they accepted. Maybe the rules have changed now but maybe pack something like that too?

Linzer- that is interesting about the Austrian words. I just learn them as German words! Good luck with the rest of the translation. Great to get a compliment from your baker...

whatever - your job sounds great, but can imagine it is hard to juggle with the care of two children. I moved here about 16 months ago, and really like it. As Linzer said the quality of life is so much better here for us. It works for us and I don´t think we are going anywhere else for a long time, if at all. And I don´t yet think of it as provinicial because we can get to Czech Rep, Slovakia and Hungary within an hour´s drive. I find the shopping for household stuff a real chore...we live in the centre so don´t have one big shop to get it all from so have to go to Billa for this, Zielpunkt for that, Bipa for something else....argh. I want tesco online shopping please!

I am at my AMS course, on a break so had better get back to doing what I am meant to be doing....

Have a good weekend all!

We've got bookshelves and a sort of long sideboard thingie in the living room made up of a bunch of low cabinet elements from Dänisches Bettlenlager and I love them. Also have our 20 yr old waterbed frame from them since it was the only one long enough for dh. He's really tall and hates it when his feet stick out over the edge of the bed!

We figured today would be better than tomorrow for IKEA but I'm sure it's going to be crowded anyway. I still need to get a little something for the kids for Nikolaus so I'll make them turn their heads while I'm buying it.

Great that the doctor was so efficient, Linzer. Hopefully the school doc made a mistake and your daughter won't be facing anything serious. Second and even third opinions are always good. Our younger son used to get stomachaches quite often when he was stressed about something, which was usually all the time. He's a bit calmer now but still the stomachache/headache type.

Ho hum - off to shovel snow again.

Well, the paediatrician yesterday said he could hear the Herzgeräusche but they're apparently fairly common in young children and as long as she doesn't have any other symptoms, there shouldn't be anything to worry about. He tested the oxygen levels in her blood with a nifty little device as well.

Interesting to hear that your DS often had stomach aches too, westvan. I hadn't been too worried, but DD2 is complaining about them more and more often so thought I'd better mention it as we were at the doctor's anyway. He said it could be something to do with the Bewegungsapparat, but stress could also be a factor as she said she doesn't often get them on a Friday as it's the last day of school!

bananas - I want tesco online shopping too! I'd even be happy with a decent sized supermarket; like you said, we usually end up having to go to two or even three for our weekly shop. But what I really want is a Boots; I'd be happy to drive to Bratislava for one!

Another headache/tummy ache dd here. She is very sensitive. Had to take her for loads of check ups in Berlin, think she was at every different specialist possible. She's alot better now though as she seems to be settled at school.

Now when she complains of tummy ache I think oh no she's going to start the dreaded monthly curse and I haven't had the proper 'talk' with her yet...must do it soon.

Ds and dd are both telling me that their friends get this and that for Nikolaus, one boy got a play station last year and another got such-and-such. I refuse to give in though! I told them this morning at the breakfast table (just after hearing a list of other gifts their friends were expecting) that they were probably from a different country where the main gifts are on Nikolaus and they get nothing at Christmas. Told them to decide, on eor the other but not both!