Die Kaffeestube - German and Austrian cyber Kaffee und Kuchen

[admylin]

Kaffeeklatsch for anyone in a German speaking country or interested in German, Kommt herein und setz euch!

Jenny forgot to say, camping sounds fun! Why do you think you'll be moving house? Hope the organising and packing goes smoothly and you have a great trip back.

Oh no, that's not good news admylin. Hopefully the owner can be persuaded to part with some money; it's very frustrating to have to rely on someone else before you can get things fixed, especially if they're known for their stinginess.

No, I haven't done much translating recently. I was offered a job at the end of July but we'll be in Italy then so I had to turn it down. I also had an e-mail today about translating a couple of books about crafts and am waiting to hear further details, but it's very difficult to fit work in during the summer holidays. I've just signed the DC up for the Sport- und Spielwoche they went to last summer for the first week of the holidays and am hoping they'll want to go in the second week too so will be able to work my usual hours then, but I'm not too hopeful about the remaining seven weeks. I do turn work down if I really can't fit it in, but I don't like doing so.

Jenny Glad you enjoyed the camping and hope the preparations for your trip back are going OK. How long will you be over for?

I've calmed down a bit about the cake now; I think everything was just getting on top of me a bit. As well as baking the two cakes, I also need to organise/buy a present for DS's Kindergärtnerin and Helferin by Friday, buy a present for DD1's dyslexia tutor, get DD1's and DS's birthday party invitations written, and plan and teach three English lessons. Oh, and tidy up the chaos. All quite manageable really as long as no translation work arrives, but I'll be really thrown if it does.

Thanks for the Playmobile Land info Linzer and Ploom . No rides certainly sounds preferable for 1 adult to 3 children - DH pointed out Legoland is a bit nearer, but it's a lot more expensive and more ride focussed, so can wait for another time.

Enjoy your trip Ploom - the extra luggage costs would bump the flight back up to "regular" airline prices!

Linzer so glad to hear you were thanked this time!

Jenny glad the camping trip went well, are you expecting to return to the UK in the medium term then?

admylin how frustrating about the plumber, hope your landlady unexpectedly does decide to pay to get the pipes sorted. How is your shoulder now?

Gator glad you enjoyed your UK trip. How did DS handle the travel part?

Hupa your Barcelona catch up trip sounds lovely.

Yes it was me who did the Ratterdam-Hull ferry, but I forgot who asked, only that Gator said it was me! The ferry itself is pleasant and vastly preferable to driving further, nice to have all the facilities plus a comfortable cabin. The cabin was clean and had a fridge and a bathroom with shower, and a window :) (you can't book without a cabin so its included in the price, and you have to have a berth for every passenger even though of course a 1 year old can't sleep alone in a ferry berth... It was ?480 for the crossing including cabin I think). The only downside we had was it was hugely hard to settle DC3 in the cabin, even when DH took the other 2 back out to watch a band in the bar (!!! :o) Also we could have enjoyed the facilities more if DC3 hadn't been at exactly the least compliant age - he just wanted to be wandering/ running ab out all the time, so deck was a nightmare and sitting anywhere for longer than it took to eat a meal was no fun. It would be easier with DC who were all aged 4+ I think (or with a very tiny baby, just not a small toddler).

Don't know whether any of you are interested, but Lidl have cheddar in this week and it's good stuff!! Only ?2.49 for a 400g block. I usually stock up when they have it in

Bavarianlass I usually stock up on the lidl cheddar too, it's good and the price is definately good! Wonder if they've got baked beans again.

TheEnglishWomanInTheAttic it was me asking about ferry crossings. Just dreaming about a shop trip with the whole car available to fill! The Rotterdam-Hull one would be good for us if we were going to visit family in Newcastle and Lake District although Newcastle-Amsterdam is meant to be good too. We're about 4 hours from Amsterdam by car too.

Hupa it has poured down all day over my corner of Hannover so I hope your dd isn't too soaked through after her day trip.

Linzer you've got a busy week ahead of you. I would have no idea what to get the dyslexia teacher or any teacher really. Do you have some sort of idea what to buy them? Hope the cake making goes smoothly. I have stopped making cakes here as they never get eaten (except by me) and end up throwing half away. I need some new recipes maybe!

Well, maths tutoring for dd is done (colleague of dh came to help with Lineare Gleichungen or something like that), she is now learning for a history test tomorrow, ds is meant to be learning for politics but I can hear he is chatting to his friends online so better go and be strict. Dd sometimes says honestly mum you're not strict enough! You'd think she'd be happy about it but she reckons she's going to be much stricter than me when she has dc!

Hi, All

Yet more tech issues meant I was offline for a week or so, but hopefully I am back now! :)

Yikes, all that homework sounds dreadful. You can work a child too hard. Though I am all for raising standards, and think many children in the UK are failed by our education system, unable to spell some very basic words. I am still keen to homeschool, really excited about it.

hupa, glad you enjoyed playing aunt to the twins, how lovely!

admylin, sorry to hear about the dishwasher dramas. Hope you and dishwashers have a nice relationship from now on!

linzer, you are right, we need very little. Certainly I feel as an adult, I need very little. I am still dejunking! :) Am feeling happier about my new reduced possessions lifestyle. We still have a ton of stuff for DS, but I really feel I manage fine with a small wardrobe, and more space.

Ploom, we are enjoying Germany very much. I am enjoying stretching my brain a bit with the language, and have a bit of vocabulary, and things feel like they are making more sense, so hopefully I won't be an ignoramus for too much longer. Really though, it all feels much the same as the UK. I guess for me I don't see as much of a difference as I am a SAHM, and we do similar things to when we were in England.
I think there are less options for furniture though, I have been looking for a nice table and chairs for DS for when we move, and the nice stuff is crazy expensive, or it's cheap boring flatpack, whereas when I look online on British stores, there are soooo many more options.

tadj, hope you have a lovely time in the UK!

The PIL came over for a weekend recently, brought loads of goodies from Sainsburys for us, but mainly we have adapted to what's available here, and all's well. Are they better about pesticides here than in the UK - I have found more bugs in my fresh produce here in the last few weeks than in the last many years in the UK. A bit gross, but I'd rather bugs than pesticides, I guess. And I do think the fruit and veg taste better, like I remember them tasting in the seventies. The tomatoes smell fresh off the vine, I don't remember store-bought toms having this lovely smell in the UK.

Enjoyed the downpour earlier - got DS into his new waterproof trousers that they all favour over here - I felt like a proper local! :) I rather like them, these waterproof trouser things that are a bit like dungarees! We were actually home, but DS was looking out the window excited at the rain, so we decided we'd go out and play in the puddles. Lovely!

We move in a week, yippee! I sooooo cannot wait! Am frustrated about the lack of washing machine, no oven, the stupid elevator (sorry, lift!). Will be great to be settled. We got lucky with some furniture too - a colleague of DH's is leaving Frankfurt and wanted to sell some stuff - I'd been struggling to find anything I liked elsewhere for a decent price, but the colleague had some nice things, so we did a deal, and all is sorted.

Off to a wedding this weekend of a German couple we know from vegan circles, well, they are already married, but had a tiny wedding, and now want a big party and a blessing. Looking forward to it, and they have a son four months older than ours, so am looking forward to DS meeting a new little playmate. Shame we don't live closer, really.

Bavarianlass, sorry if I have missed it, are your new or a namechanger? Hi anyway! And hello to anyone I didn't namecheck - this post is looking crazy long so I will end it here!

NoHunIntended I don't post on here very often - usually when I want help finding a substitute for something in the UK

Admylin I like Edeka's own brand beans better than Heinz. Do you have Edeka near you?

Bavarianlass I thought your name sounded familiar - were you the one asking about a double cream substitute?

We haven't had a British week at Lidl here for ages (must be a good year since the last one), although I'm sure we've had three American weeks this year alone. There are a few US foods that I miss, but nothing that Lidl has during its American week (considering the variety of baked beans they have in the USA, you'd think they could have baked beans during American week as well as British week).

NoHun It sounds like you're settling in really well; hope the move goes well and that you can really start to settle down properly then. The shops are one thing I miss about the UK - you don't get the variety here and things are much more expensive and/or they never seem to have any decent offers like they do in Britain (you'd get 10 cents off here rather than BOGOF, for example).

admylin I've decided on a tin of M&S biscuits for DD1's dyslexia teacher as she's quite an Anglophile (I'm not sure if the tin is a special Jubilee edition, but it's got a really nice design with lots of typical British things on it) and we're getting vouchers for DS's kindergarten teachers - a friend is buying some sports shop vouchers for the teacher as she's quite sporty and I'm getting some DM vouchers for the helper. We're hoping that the parents of the other Vorschulkind will chip in too (there was one more, but he's already left to go on holiday).

EnglishWoman Friends of ours usually do the Rotterdam-Hull crossing and only have a couple of hours' drive at either end. It would take us days to get back to my parents' , so I really don't think it would be worth the hassle and expensive for us. Flying takes long enough; my parents live out in the sticks so it takes hours on the train from Birmingham airport, but you'd think we'd be able to at least get a direct flight from Vienna.

A friend of ours is annoying me a bit with her total lack of understanding about us sending DS to the Vorschulklasse. Her latest idea is that DS can skip a year in a year or two's time; she's also suggested that her DS brings home all the school work that he's doing in the 1. Klasse for DS to do so that he can catch up and join his class. I keep trying to explain that there's no way we'd want him to miss out a year - maybe it would be an option for an exceptionally bright child, but not for one that's already struggling and one of the youngest in the class - but I'm not sure she's listening.

LinzerTorte yes, that was me! You have a good memory

admylin It apparently rained msot of the day, but dd still had a great time. She was really tired when she got back and in a foul mood when she got up this morning.
Have you heard from your landlady about letting the wotk go ahead. it must be very frustrating having a new dishwasher just sitting there, not being used.

NoHun It sounds like you feeling very at home here in Germany. I bet you can´t wait to be in the new place at last.
I think Germans are much more aware about pesticides and green issues in general compared to lots of people in the UK.

Linzer I´m glad you got a thank you this year. I hate being asked to bake cakes for school, but if I know it´s likely I try to get in first with an offer of muffins.

BavarianLass Thanks for the info - I´ll check Lidl out at the weekend.

Jenny I´m glad the camping went well. I have to say, I´m still traumatised from too many tenting holidays in my childhood to give it another go as an adult. I remember waking up in the middle of the night with a wet sleeping bag because I´d brushed against the side of the tent. Hopefully waterproofing technology has moved on a bit since then. We´re off to Eurocamp this year, but in a static caravan not a tent.

It´s still raining here today. The dc have still got another week of school and then I´m hoping it will brighten up, so we can go to the Freibad every day.

Hupa yes it was a really wet day yesterday here. Hope it brightens up abit soon. Do you break up for summer after the next week? We've got to hold out until the last week of July this year. They change the dates every year by the look of it.

Linzer I would have thought the Austrians would be like the Germans and think staying back a year to be normal. They are never in a hurry to put their dc in school earlier than needed so your friend is abit of an exception - or is she wanting her ds and your ds to stay together?

NoHun have you had a look at this place Danish bedshop. Quite good prices and worth a look around if you can find a shop near you. Some of their dc stuff is OK and we bought our mattresses there. They have the whole range from cheapest rolled up ones to high tech mega expensive ones!

Just had the hinges on my oven door replaced as it wasn't closing properly. that's 100? gone in the 5 minutes that it took the electrician to change them. No news from the land lady about the water. I'd say she won't bother. I think we could reduce the rent because we now have less standard than before but we'd need to ask a lawyer and that'd cost a fortune too. Whiel we're at it we could reduce it for the broken bathtub and ancient kitchen taps too.

admylin I was going to say that surely the oven door should be your landlady's responsibility, but then realised that the kitchen is probably yours. It sounds like you have all the disadvantages of renting without any of the disadvantages (not having to pay to get things fixed, etc.)

Yes, my friend is definitely an exception; everyone else has been very positive about the Vorschulklasse. She does want our DSs to stay together - and even went to see the headteacher about it (not quite sure what she was hoping to gain) - but I think it's more than that; she seems to see the Vorschule as a kind of failure, i.e. that the children aren't quite "good" enough for school.

hupa Just one week of school left here too and we also have rain today, although the sun is supposed to be putting in an appearance in time for the school Sportfest this afternoon.

I taught DD1's class for the last time ever yesterday (and DD2's class for the last time this year) and got a lovely bunch of flowers and a ?30 Libro voucher from the two classes. Am teaching the Friday group for the last time a bit later, and then just one more group to teach next Tuesday. And then I shall heave a huge sigh of relief.

Someone I know has just posted the certificate confirming that their DS has been accepted into Gymnasium along with a comment about how proud she's feeling and how she's done something good in her life. It remains me of the post by another Einser-Mama last year about how both her DC had got lauter Einser and she was obviously doing something right. We are obviously doing something wrong for DD1 to get low grades and I am a failure as a mother. I should probably stay off Facebook at this time of year!

Hello!
Trawling the depths of Mumsnet today and look what I find!
Also, ich konnte es am Anfang gar nicht Glauben! Kaffee und Kuchen! Toll!

I live in Hannover and am currently 13+4 with first surprise, (we were thinking perhaps another year or two yet, whoops) baby. :o

I've been in Germany about 20 months now, first 5 months in Nürnberg and in Hannover since April 2011. So happy to have found you all, I've been reading through the thread but I haven't read all of it.
All tips, advice, moans, pitfalls, warnings about anything German or baby related would be very welcomed!!

Hope you've all had lovely weekends. :)

Hi and welcome Nutella, and congratulations on your pregnancy. I don't have much experience of pregnancy and birth in Germany as DD1 was born in the USA (although I was in Germany for the first 14 weeks of the pregnancy) and DD2 and DS here in Austria, but most of the others should be able to help if you have any questions. What brought you to Germany? And how are you finding life there?

We had a hectic weekend, or rather a hectic day yesterday, with the Stadtlauf in the morning and DD2's ballet show in the afternoon. I ran at 9 am, when it was already too hot for me; I beat last year's time but was a bit disappointed by my placing - there were just too many women in my age group this year. The girls ran at 11.30 in the Kinderlauf and then DS, who decided at the last minute that he wanted to run too, did the Knirpsenlauf at midday. They all did really well considering they hadn't done much training, although I think DD2 was a bit upset that two of her friends were much faster than her.

Now need to go and pick up my bike, which I left in town after the race as we drove to the ballet show, but it's pouring with rain at the moment. Am just keeping my fingers crossed it's still there after being left overnight.

Morning!
Linzer well done on beating your time and hope the bike was still there.

Nutella I am in Hanover too - well sort of right as far out on the outskirts as you can get. I had both dc in Germany in the south west but it was 14 years ago so things could have changed. Ask away if you have any questions though and congratulations on your pregnancy.

I'm debating what to do with our water/dish washer problems. Dh said we should go to a lawyer but as we don't have a Rechtschutzversicherung like most Germans, it would cost a fortune. Moving house would also cost us but I don't know if having to fight over every little repair job is worth staying for even if we win a dispute with a lawyer. Also, flats with 3 bedrooms are rare in Hanover so it seems.

Hello Everyone

Well done on the running Linzer !

I think I would be tempted to move if I were you admylin but it's a big hassle when you're not actually changing city isn't it? Still the repairs are going to mount up if the landlady just won't do them/ pay for them.

Playmobile land was a great success yesterday, so thanks for the advice and info on that - because you said it would be fine on my own I took one of DD's friends, so 4 kids in total :o Was fine, they are all well behaved (well my 1 year old not so much but he is still a bit young to be properly voice controlled - reigns and a buggy do the trick, even though he thought the numerous flights of stairs were the most interesting attraction in the whole place. He did like the dinasaurs though - "Dog, rah, rah! Dog! Dog! RAH!" Erm, not really...). The older 3 all had a good time and as it was a hot day we had the indoor part almost to ourselves in the morning. Cafe part in the indoor play area is awkward when trying to buy lunch for 5 with only one adult though... You have to walk miles (well it seems like it when trying to carry a tray in one hand and an 11kg toddler in the other) and then return your crockerly for pfand!

DS2 had vaccinations first thing this morning and is very grumpy, I am having less sucess than ever at getting anything done, ah well...

Hello!

DP has been in Karlsruhe for one week now and I'm enthusiastically throwing myself into the German CD audio course he accidentally left behind

So far I have learned how to order drinks. Very useful, I'm sure. He's panicking slightly as it's his first day of his new job today and he has been told that unless he can get up to a fluent level of German within the first year of his contract they will be looking for someone else, and his new boss has also been fairly negative about the idea of him finding somewhere small and cheap to rent until we come over to join him, he reckons a shared house would be better. However DP is finding that in the shared houses they all seem to smoke weed (well not smoke, more using a little inhalator thing) and he doesn't want to get into that because of DS. So we'll see. We're hoping to go out after Christmas but a part of me wants to come earlier!

Bertie is your dh going to join an intensive langauge course? A year isn't that long to master German unless you've really got time to sit through a few courses. There might be some evening classes if your dh is working full time.

Karlsruhe is great but I have no idea about housing. Some places have shortages on family flats and houses although it depends how much you're prepared to pay of course. Finding a small 1 or 2 room flat should be easy for your dh if he doesn't like where he's staying.

TheEnglishWomanInTheAttic sounds like playmobile land was a good day out! Hope your ds recovers from his vaccinations quickly.

I agree moving house would be better for my sanity. I've just been down and placed an ad in Wohnungsuche in the local paper and I might put one in the Hannover Zeitung at the weekend. Might have to go abit further from where we are now but as long as there's a bus connection, the dc can bus it to school.

I know, it doesn't seem long at all - that's why it's a bit worrying and has come as a bit of a shock. Hopefully they're just trying to be upfront and in the event he'll dazzle them in other ways. I know he's getting language lessons through his job but no idea how intense they are - they've hired people from abroad before, so it must have come up, but perhaps other applicants had some German first?

He's currently staying in shared accommodation which the company leases out to their new employees who have had to move from elsewhere but he's only allowed to stay there for 3 months max.

Hi Bertie. Agree that a year isn't that long to learn German (although at least he'll be exposed to far more German by actually living in the country so it should be much easier than if he was in the UK), but surely his boss knew what his level of German was when he took him on? I would also think that it's hardly worth investing in a new employee if you're going to get rid of them after a year; maybe it's meant to motivate him. How old is your DS?

admylin Hope you manage to find something through the ads. I can imagine that lining your landlady's pocket is not something you want to do for any longer than necessary; she sounds awful. Is there anywhere you can go for free advice? We went to the Mieterschutzverband when our landlord went bankrupt, although there was nothing they could do to help us as we were living in a terraced house.

EnglishWoman Glad you enjoyed your trip to Playmobil land. Hope your DS is feeling better soon.

I still haven't been to pick up my bike as it was pouring with rain all morning. It's stopped now, but I have to pick up the girls from their piano lesson in half an hour - plus I don't think it's likely to be stolen during the day (I'd locked it). I'll just have to continue keeping my fingers crossed and get DH to give me a lift this evening.

Some work has just arrived so I'd better make the most of my free half hour. Why does it never come in the morning when I have plenty of time for it?

Hallo zusammen.

Making the most of DS' nap to check emails, catch up with the thread etc. He is napping for maximum of 20 mins a day at the moment (split into 2 naps) and is constantly on the go, crawling, climbing, pulling himself up to standing in the most inappropriate places so I can't take my eye off him for a second. Both his top teeth are through now though, so hopefully that's the teething pain over with for a while. He looks like a little rabbit vampire with his two big bottom teeth and his little spikes at the top, bless him :)

Ploom How was your trip? Did the weather improve while you were over?

admylin What a nightmare! I really hope you find somewhere nice, reasonably-priced, provisionsfrei and with working appliances. I have my fingers crossed for you.

Hello Bertie and Nutella!

TheEnglishWoman I'm glad Playmobil Land worked out well. I keep meaning to mention it to BIL and SIL as DN is Playmobil-mad at the moment. We're seeing them this weekend actually, let's see if my memory holds out until then.
DS seems to be going through the same phase your DS2 went through a little while ago - just wanting me to sit on the floor the whole time so he can pull himself up on me. I hope DS2 feels better soon.

Hi everyone. Still no internet here, so short post.

admylin that sounds a nightmare. Do you have a German friend who could write a threatening-sounding letter to your landlady? Agree that lawyers are too expensive - we engaged one when we had to sack an electrician and just got a bill for over €600 for him doing not much more than sending one letter .

Linzer well done on beating your time in the Stadlauf. I've been feeling a bit of a Bewegungsmüffel lately, pity the weather isn't warmer or I could go to the Freibad.

gator when dd was at that stage she always used the coffee table to pull herself up. It has an overhanging rim, so she bumped her head, oh, about every hour on average . Enjoy!

Nutella welcome and congratulations on your pregnancy. You just need to know that babies in Germany must be wrapped up warmly at all times and never sat up.

Hi, Bertie. Your DP could try the Goethe Institut for language lessons or an intensive course during a holiday. It's not easy becoming fluent in one year, but doable if he works hard at it, I guess.

Hoping to catch up with ploom in rl next weekend!

Hello to everyone I've missed!

Ok, not that short!

Linzer Sorry, I completely missed that you'd done the run. Congrats on beating last year's time!

Silken Oh yes, lots of bumped heads, noses etc here at the moment. Unfortunately DS doesn't use sensible things like tables to pull himself up on; he prefers things like plant pots, oven doors and anything that looks a bit wobbly and could tip over.
How is the new house?

Forgot to say hello to Nutella - 2 of my 3 DC were born in Germany, the youngest is 13 months, so if you have anything specific to ask I may be able to answer. As Silken said the "Oma Police" will think themselves totally entitled to tell you off if you don't have a hat on your baby at all times, and gloves and other conspicuously warm clothing if there is even a hint of a chill in the air. Other than that I have found Germany very family and child friendly, despite dire moaning about it on some other ex-pats in Germany sites I used to browse when we were first thinking of moving here! Only thing I'd pre ward you of is that your Frauenartz may try to sell you lots of "extras" to add on to your prenatal care, which you probably won't need - in fact if it costs extra you almost certainly don't need it, as the antenatal care is very comprehensive (nobody needs 5 extra scans on top of the regular 3 for a bargain ?120 for example, though no harm paying for them if you want them obviously). Other people on here have not universally had that though and have in fact had extra scans etc. free, just something to be aware of I think.