Sommer, Strand und Sonne - life in Germany and Austria

[LinzerTorte]

A thread for all those living in Germany or Austria, and for anyone else who would like to chat.

Thanks for the new thread Linzer.

I like baked potatoes too. A few years ago you never saw baked pototoes on the menu in Germany but they seem to be more popular now. What else did you make at your BBQ? If invited, I used to always make myself some veggie kebabs for BBQs - marinated mushrooms, peppers, red onion and cerry tomatoes. Wish we had a garden as I can't really cook on the balcony.

Dh just applied for a job in Bonn - he's getting fed up as they're sitting on his manuscript and not giving it out to him to submit. They keep doing this to him. He prepares a manuscript to be published, the boss corrects it with loads of red pen and his own style of American English, then the next boss down shuffles the paragraphs around and then dh has to correct it and give it back to them for them to check and add more red pen and shuffling. This has gone on for a year with 1 paper now.

Well, off to make lunch then have to brave the maths.

Jacket potatoes with baked beans are always my treat at the M&S cafe in Bratislava! I wasn't very adventurous with the barbecue yesterday and just had vegetarian sausages, plus did the potatoes and a tomato sauce. I've had nice vegetarian kebabs at BBQs before but I know my ILs wouldn't eat anything they're not used to, so we stuck to the usual meat, potatoes and salad - it didn't seem worth me cooking anything different just for myself.

How frustrating about your DH's paper. I hope he has some luck with the job-hunting soon. Talking of work, some has just arrived so I'd better go and make a start while the DDs are at their piano lesson.

marking new thread; should be working on something but feel very lazy today; no ambition.

Pregnancy is going pretty good Linzer, thanks for asking. :)
This baby is a definite mover like my Moo was and so I know things are progressing/ and she's doing fine/is alive :) She's a pusher tho..pushes my belly and stretches the skin in painful 'Alien' style which Moo never did... The pelvic pain I've been experiencing is lessening again In part because I'm being very careful abt what I've been doing I think, but I've read that it can ease as the baby gets bigger and stronger and stops just 'settling' against the girdle all the time.
3 more calendar months and I'll have a 'little one' again :)

BBqs sound lovely. Haven't really had one yet here, but hoping to this week. Thursday supposed to be 29 here!! Must stock up on icecubes and cold drinks :)

Great to see a new thread.

My keyboard has been broken for the last 2 weeks, but dh´s finally managed to fix it. It was so frustrating - luckily I had mumsnet saved in favourites, so could read everything, but not post.

I´m not really a fan of BBQs, but dh loves them and grills at least twice a week in the summer. At least I don´t need to worry about what to cook on those days. I think grilled halloumi is a really good vegetarian option and I really liked grilled aubergine, but usually forget to buy it.

Linzer - both ds and dd say pussle for puzzle. The first syllable rhymes with how a German would say bus.

bebe - glad to hear the pregnancy is going well.

I´m hoping the good weather stays around. We´re off to München on Friday for my brother´s wedding.

Thanks for the new thread Linzer!

of all the BBQs going on. Cold and wet weather here so really looking forward to going to San Diego at the end of this week! Hoping the weather in Southern California is much better, though SD is supposed to have it's own micro-climate and not get too hot!

I always heard puzzle pronounced pazzle when I lived there except among older people. Perhaps the pronunciation is changing?

So glad the pregnancy is going well bebe! 3 months will fly by and you will have those snuggly newborn cuddles again!

I hope dd was ok Linzer. Sorry about dh's paper admylin. I hope the research is still up-to-date when they finally release it.

Sorry hupa, x-posted. Hope you have a lovely wedding. I love Munich! Why did your brother decide to get married there? Just being nosy, don't answer if you don't want to!

Jenny, how far is SanDiego from you? Still can't get over how big the US is! My nephew was driving down to meet us in Houston and we thought he'd be there the next day. It took him 3 days! Hope you have a nice time and some sunshine!

Hupa Munich is great and will probably also be nice and sunny! Is your dh marrying a German?

Jenny, yes that's the problem about dh's research and it being up to date. It's totally new stuff and it's already been presented in short form on posters at 3 different places - giving the idea to hundreds of other postdocs of course.

Good to hear all is well bebe. Did you find a midwife or some sort of medical care or have you just given up on that?

The maths revision is done. It hurt my brain but we managed it. They still aren't allowed to use calculators yet so she had to figure out -0.5², or 0.75³ they say 'minus null komma funf hoch zwei' and she had to do some 'hoch 5' ones that went on for ages and I'd blocked out the existance of such things since leaving school!

Ha, looks like I was right about pazzle then. I reckon it's only DH's family (or possibly village) that says pootsla. He told me afterwards that he didn't think the Germans pronounce it that way either, but I wish he could have supported me at the time!

Not long to go, then bebe - how exciting. Glad to hear it's all going well and that the pelvic pain is getting better.

hupa How frustrating about your keyboard. Mine stops working occasionally but is OK if I restart the computer. Mmm, grilled halloumi would definitely be a good option - must remember that for next time.

Jenny Very of you going to San Diego. My brother went there when he visited us in PA and it looked great from the photos.
DD2 was fine, thanks - she seemed quite unfazed by it all, but it was good that her friend's mother waited with her until I arrived. The other mother called round to check she'd got home OK and had driven back to look for her when her DD arrived at the KiGa alone (I'd tried phoning her but she didn't have her mobile on her; not only is she quite unreliable, she also never answers her phone - she's a lovely person, but I've given up relying on her).

Glad you survived the maths revision, admylin. I struggle to cope with the way that maths is taught at primary school, so goodness knows what it will be like when DD1 starts secondary school.

DH has just texted me to say he'll be late back this evening. I'd love to have a nice quiet evening pottering around, but really ought to get on with some work while I have the chance.

tadjennyp - my brother lives in München and he will be marrying a German. He´s just having a civil ceremony and then he´s booked a restaurant in the English Garden, which will be lovely if the weather stays good. We´ll have to take dd out of school for the day, but her teacher was fine when I explained the reason.
I hope you have a great time in San Diego.

admylin - I´m dreading the day when dd starts bringing home maths like that. Like you say, for most people there is never a need to do those types of sums once you leave school.

Linzer - I think you´re right that it´s best if you just don´t rely on her. It´s a shame, but some people just seem to be more disorganised/forgetful than others - not that I´m perfect by any stretch of the imagination.

I love the English Garden! When we were doing our work experience in Munich, my friends and I were at the Chinesischer Turm and we found a small child who had cycled off on his trike and was nearly trampled by one of the horse-drawn carriages. No-one else noticed him and the restaurant wouldn't put out an announcement on the tannoy . Eventually I picked him up and he started realising he wasn't with his Mum, but fortunately a police car carrying his Mum came round the corner at that moment. I've never seen anyone look so relieved. He was just one and had been gone over half an hour! The parents were really sweet and insisted we had a beer with them. They must have thought these English with their limited German were a little odd! Thinking about it, that little boy will be nearly 18 now!

I hope you have a fabulous time hupa. I have so many happy memories of that place!

It's around a 950 mile drive to San Diego so we are taking a couple of days to get down there!

hello all!! there's been no time for MN the last few days. Liking a new thread - definitely summer feeling here. Was so muggy warm at the weekend interspersed with really warm thunderstorms - it can stay this way tho! great to get the dc out and about all afternoon!

Hupa - hope the weather holds for you all on friday. Hope you all have a great day.

Jenny - have a fab time in San Diego. I've never been to America but always associate San Diego with a zoo?? think there must have been a tv programme about it when i was a child.

Admylin - i loved maths at school but i think i'm like you and i've forgotten it all. But glad you got it all done. Think it sounds like your dh needs to look for a new job - they dont sound like the best employers. I really liked Bonn when we went there - will keep my fingers crossed that it works out for you.

Bebe - glad baby and you are ok.

Linzer - sorry i wasnt a good running buddy last week (even if it is only virtually!!) but i'm back on track and have been out for W3R1 this morning. Found it ok altho ended up a bit too far away from home and had to walk longer than the cool down but i suppose thats still ok! How are you gettting on?
Cant believe its not long till you got to Playmobil land - we were there on Sunday and i could quite happily have stayed a whole other day there. there is so much to do!! your dc will love it. They also had a good deal on the toys - there was a police car reduced from 42 euros to 19!! That kept everyone happy.

Have you read in the news about this infectious disease thats caused 3 deaths? it seems like some kind of horrific diarrheoa bug - will be a bit mroe diligent with hand washing and fruit and veg washing. Scary.

Did anyone see Vermisst on RTL last night? Its a sad programme at the best of times but last night was so so sad. The tears were streaming down my face!

Afternoon all!

Thanks for setting up the new thread, Linzer

Bebe Glad the pregnancy is going well and that the pelvic pain is easing off a bit. I hope you manage to have your bbq.

Hupa I'm with you on the Halloumi! I wasn't keen on the idea at first - think it was the squeakiness that put me off, but once I tried it I was sold. My DH loves it too and has a habit of forcing it upon people. Have a lovely time at the wedding, fingers crossed the weather holds out.

Admylin Good luck to your DH with the Bonn application! It really sounds like his current employers are a bit of a nightmare. I've only ever heard good things about Bonn, although I've never been there myself.

Canella I associate San Diego with a zoo too! I vaguely remember Yogi Bear's girlfriend (Cindy Bear maybe?) being sent there and Yogi setting off to rescue her, or something along those lines. The bug does sound a little scary, doesn't it - I'm being extra vigilant too as apparently there have been quite a few cases in Hessen.

Linzer I think DH's family pronounce it pussle - with the U like in Hund and the S like at the beginning of a German word. According to my dictionary (I'm in the middle of some translation work) the correct pronunciation is ['pazl] or ['pasl].

Speaking of, best get back to work. I appear to have developed a serious case of lazyitis these past few weeks and really need to get back on track with my course before I fail miserably! :)

There is indeed a zoo in San Diego and we have booked a package that includes a kids' suite hotel (bunk beds in an adjoining room - dd is so excited!) and passes to the zoo, Sea World and the wild animal park. It's a pretty good deal as the passes to Sea World (Shamu the killer whale etc) are at least $60 an adult! We're hoping to go to Legoland too and I would like to 'pop round' to Santa Barbara to meet another MNer - PenguinArmy who Linzer also knows. I hope the dcs are great in the car!

Playmobil Land sounds great - where is that? It's sunny today but still frosty at night so dh can't plant his vegetables. He has however bought a pile of timber that is in the garage so he can build some planters for the ledge along the back fence. When he is going to get the chance to build it when he's working till midnight every night, I don't know!

Good luck with the Bonn application. I hope that is successful. Enjoy all the lovely weather!

Your trip sounds great, Jenny - am very . Hope the drive goes OK (your DC will probably grow up thinking that five or six hours in the car is a short trip, at least as long as you stay in the USA). How exciting that you might get to meet Penguin too. I'm seeing Cinders at the weekend, who pops onto this thread occasionally but I don't think she's been on for a while.

Banana How's your course going? Do you have long to go now? I always find it more difficult to motivate myself to work in the summer, especially as the computer is on the top floor where it gets really hot.

Canella Glad to hear you're back on track with the running; I think you're only one run behind me as I did W3R2 yesterday. I always end up misjudging exactly how far from home I am and having a cool-down walk of 10-15 minutes; the fact that the last walk is only three minutes this week threw me a bit too. A couple of friends of mine ran the DM Frauenlauf in Vienna at the weekend and are trying to persuade me to join them next year. I can't imagine being able to run that far at the moment - I can't even imagine being able to run 5k in seven weeks' time, in fact.

hupa Hope you all have a lovely day today.

I've just dropped DS off at KiGa and then the DDs and their bikes at school so that we can all cycle home together at lunchtime after the English lesson. We couldn't cycle this morning because we took the Gesunde Jause into KiGa; I staggered in with it as it was, and only had to walk a few metres from the car. Must go and print out some handouts for the English lesson now and then start work.

Jenny The Playmobil FunPark is near Nuremberg; it's just over four hours' drive from us.The DC have been saving up ever since we decided to go there, so it's good to hear there are some bargains to be had in the shop, Canella!

Jenny sounds like a great trip you have planned. Have you booked stop over hotels along the route or are you just stopping when you feel the need? I forgot - are you long term in the US or planning to return to UK at some time?

I've only ever been to Texas but I found driving there so much more civilized than here in Germany. I wouldn't mind going on a driving trip there but I worry about going a couple of hours down a German moterway.

BAnanamed, hope you are enjoying the course. I would love to start learning something new but I'd need to go to lessons as I am definately not motivated enough to study at home.

The Bonn job has already gone, someone else got it but it had been advertised for quite a while. Dh will just have to keep looking. I suggested he try going over to the industrial side and leaving academia but he wants to stay and try for assistant professorship somewhere.

Canella, I love vermisst, I can cry at it every week! This one with the mums was really sad especially the one who had died. Although it is emotional at the end I think the background music makes it even more so!

They still haven't found the source of infection for that sickness bug have they? I only heard it could be from bio gemuse as they use 'natural' fertilisers but as long as everything is washed it should be OK.

jenny - that trip sounds great!! enjoy!

linzer - good on you for keeping up with the running. I broke the C25K rule yesterday and ran 2 days in a row!! but i now feel back on track so will do W3R3 tomorrow. I also love cycling with the dc - seems good that you can cycle home from kiga - would take us 45 mins to get home!!!

admylin - glad you're a vermisst fan too. But this weeks episode has really troubled me - that poor girl was abandoned by everyone and then by the time Julia found her mother she was dead. Hoep she gets some love from the other new members of her family.
Gutted the Bonn job is gone already - but the scottish phrase is "whats for you, will not go by you".

So dh and ds1 are away till Sunday now - its amazing how easy life was this morning!! but i'm sue by sunday i'll be missing them!

I've volunteered again to look after my friends 16 month old this morning -he'll be here soon!! hope he falls asleep at some point because i'm not used to looking after 1 year olds! they require so much attention!!!!! doesnt give me much time to lurk on random MN threads

Canella, that's perfect though - to get a toddler for a few hours, exhausting but cute. I love toddlers and I'll be a terrible granny (in later life) and spoil my gdc. dd tells me she's going to be a strict mother and I won't be allowed to give her dc too many treats!

The last vermisst was so sad, even Julia had a good cry. I wonder if she really just goes and finds people all by herself or if infact a big team of private detectives are helping. Funny how she managed to find that mother who had just walked out when her dd was 11 - she was officially a missing person so how come the police didn't find her back then?

Anyway, ironing done and now off to search for t-shirts. dd is in an acrobatic group and they're putting on a show but the girls need the same t-shirt. They're in groups of 4. Hope it's not too much ????

By the way did you all hear - the Robert Koch Institute is advising not to eat raw tomatoes, cucumber and salad at the moment as they think the source of this illness could be there.

Typical I've got half a fridge drawer full of tomatoes so will have to think of something to do with them apart from salad. Dc have been on a tomato salad phase for Abendbrot the past couple of weeks so I bought loads.

How are you finding the Week 3 runs, Canella? I'm sure there's no way I could have run for three minutes without collapsing a couple of weeks ago, so am quite proud of myself ? I also really try to run rather than jog the last run. I saw an advert for the Stadtlauf yesterday and in a moment of madness (I'd had a glass of wine) signed up for it ? I'm only doing the shortest run, which is 3.5k, but I'm still worried that I'll be overstretching myself.

Hope you get on OK with the 16 month old. I looked after a friend's three children yesterday afternoon (aged 2, 3 and 5) and was utterly exhausted by the end of it! The main problem was that the little one has only just come out of nappies; her mum said that I might need to remind her to go to the toilet, but that she should be fine. Well, six changes of clothes later and I was running out of clothes to put her in (most of DD2's were far too big for her and I was having to resort to some of DS's old clothes). I took them all to the playground for an hour while DD2 was at ballet and ran out of clothes there too; I'd thought that two spare sets would be enough, but it wasn't. Hopefully you won't have that problem with a 16 month old, though!

admylin I haven't heard anything about this outbreak; I don't know whether that's because I generally avoid the news or because it hasn't reached Austria. Must investigate ? I don't think I could survive without tomatoes and cucumber!

Linzer, sounds like hard work - the mum should have given you some of those pull up nappies. 2 sounds young to be completely toilet trained isn't it? I know my 2 were very late learners in that area though.

The outbreak is mostly in the northern part of Germany but some cases are now in south too. I think 5 people have died. Think I'll do roast cherry tomatoes and feta cheese tonight, better not risk having salad.

I found t-shirts online for under 3 ? each but will have to ask dd if they're suitable!

DD1 actually suggested that we put the little one in pull-ups before we went to the playground (DS is still in them at night); I don't know why I didn't listen to her. I was also quite surprised that the mum didn't give me at least one change of clothes, but I think she was in a bit of a rush to get to work when we picked the children up and it was only decided at the last minute that the youngest child would come as well.

DD2 and DS were toilet trained at 2 but carried on having accidents for quite a while and I'm sure I used to send a change of clothes with them until they were about three or even older (not that they ever went to friends' on their own at that age, as far as I remember). DD1 never had accidents but wasn't out of nappies until she was almost 4.

Yes, sounds like a good idea not to risk salad. Must ask DH if he's heard anything.

Am now waiting impatiently for the milk to defrost so that I can have some coffee! The DC used up our last litre at breakfast, when I took some more out of the freezer, but it's taking ages (even though I've put it in the microwave now).

Thanks for the new thread, Linzer.

We all ate lettuce, cucumber and tomatoes yesterday, oops. The lettuce was even from north Germany. The infection is apparently E coli. I'd thought from reading German newspapers that it was something new. Anyway, DH is hoping the outbreak will fill his half-empty gastro wards up .

DD turned 2 yesterday. She's in a phase of wanting to do everything herself and gets very upset when anyone accidently "helps" her. Anyone had this with their kids? How long does it last?

Ds was nearly 4 aswell Linzer and dd just always copied what her big brother did so she stopped nappies at the same time when she was 3. I used to have to warm the potty with hot water before ds would even consider sitting on it though!

Do you freeze fresh milk Linzer? We buy long life as we don't use it that much (2 lactose intolerants in house). Think I'll have a cup of tea now. I can't find any coffee that I like at the moment or it could be the coffee machine, it's either too weak or too strong or bitter, I can't get it right.