Streupflicht und Schneeschaufel

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Thanks Gabster for the inspiration for the thread!

Add your resolutions here & I can slip alongside and pretend I'll make some too.
Still too fragile - my sleep patterns go haywire when I'm home, stay up till 1 or 2am, then awake at 5am (6 here, usual flipping school time) then I come back & keep crashing on the sofa at 10pm and wake up at 4 bright & breezy.

We have snow, very pretty and h is off till Weds so am pushing him out for Streupflicht, bartered it for a fry-up with real English bacon, hmmmmmm.
Forecast is for -12C to -14C tonight - and when the children go back to school on Thursday. Yikes.

would love to meet up next week - as my social calendar is so full, I can be available to meet you any day, any time

We survived Ikea unscathed (aside from BloodySon, not DS, getting lost as usual).

Is anyone watching Fastnacht in Franken? We have to watch it as DH is from Würzburg, and it is from Veitschöchheim, the neighbouring town.

Just online for a while to translate the list of rooms on our fuse box. We needed it today for putting up new lamps and spent ages translating. I thought I should do it now rather than in an emergency. I am stuck on some words, so will ask the French speaking MN for assistance. I hope they don't get fed up translating for me, everything from rooms to recipes.

Admylin
Did your DD get a sleeping bag?

Dd was asking this morning if Fasching has started - is that Fastnacht mmelindt? When will the dc be doing Fasching then? I'm useless at this sort of thing as I just don't get it so I tend to block it out of my mind. Dd is the only one who seems to enjoy it (as long as she can dress as a vampire!)

I do not get Fasching at all but then I have bad memories of dragging the dc to a Faschingsumzug in the city on my own about 2 weeks after moving here and actually losing ds for about 10 very long minutes (he'd dashed over to the other side of the road to pick up a sweet). This year we'll go to the smaller procession in our town which is next Monday. Dc are celebrating at school (dressing up) on Friday.

Do they celebrate Fasching/Fastnacht/Karnival (or any other names for it) in Hannover? Unfortunately it's quite a big thing here!

Not sure if it's a big thing in Hannover but dd did mention it would be on at school. Must be some time this week then

I've just been researching our family tree - I kept my maiden name and the dc have the same as me. It's an old scottish clan and we have our own tartan and coat of arms/crest too which ds wants to take to his next history lesson as they are doing family trees. On my mums side we have a connection to Switzerland but I'm stuck as it seems my Swiss relative never went back there when he moved to UK in the 1879 and he never taught his children German.

My h can't remember any of his relatives or grandparents names from India but his older sister is looking into it for me as she might remember. I can see why some people get addicted to those genology and family tree websites.

My fil did loads of research into his and mil's family tree. He drew up a huge chart with all the connections on it. It's really fascinating and it'll be great to show the dc sometime. Perhaps they could continue with it. Fil did all the research without the internet. He used to go and shut himself in the cellar and busy himself with that or with his stamp, coin or stone collections!

Hi again. I've been lurking a bit lately. Yes, they do celebrate Fasching in Hannover and in the schools the kids dress up on Rosenmontag which is Feb 23 this year. Fastnacht (Shrove Tuesday) is on the 24 and Aschermittwoch (Ash Wednesday) on the 25. I can never keep all these holidays and festivities straight but I have a German calendar in my kitchen to remind me.

Hi westvan

I had an English calendar last year and kept losing track of all the Feiertage. This year I bought a German one

Have you ever been involved in any Fastnacht celebrations or is it just the dc who celebrate?

Hi westvan, how are you doing?

I've fallen for that too one year. I had a calendar from UK and none of the German Feiertage were on it. I was even caught out one weekend going to the shops to get bread and milk (essentials) and finding it very qiuet on the way. Got to the shop and it was closed, still took me a few minutes to realise it must be a bank holiday!

This year I have my German calendar too! When we lived in the south there seemed to be so many Feiertage and breaks from school. The dc never really got into the swing of things at school before they had another few days off. In Berlin it was the opposite, we hardly seemed to get our fair share of holidays.

how much snow have you lot got?
School not closed tho
Assume my babies will be delivered home in 1 piece - bus driver hurtling along, seemingly oblivious to the - erm snow.

I apologise again to gab - ds has discovered the fine art of sending abusive texts to dh. except he doesn't realise you have to select recipient - it defaults to the last contact, so she got an sms from my ds this mornig, I reckon she must've thought I was having some sort of funny turn

Not so much snow up in Hannover ernest. So have you found someone to take over your Streupflicht etc?

That thread 'what are the best things about living in UK' really made me double-triple-mega-homesick. Bet you can't wait to move after your successful trip back.

I asked countless people - literally stopping people in the street - bloke w. mini snow plough, teenage lads clearing snow at end of road, Haus dienst for flats round corner etc - they all said no! SO at weekend, I went over to old woman across road who was clearing her snow to ask if she knew a firm or something I could get in & she said she'd do it. really embarrassed - I'd never ask an elderly person, but she was insistant feel bad really, but also releived, these things are mega stressful. Really surprised how snowy it is. Hope my boys get home ok tonight, wish the school had been closed really

How far do they have to drive to school ernest? It's a worry isn't it. I hope dd gets into a school near us this August -if I'm still here - OMG I always say that. Must find a plan to try and get back home.

H is having stress at work, it's not going as planned and his big boss is the type who sacks you if you don't produce enough. Secretly been thinking if he got the sack it would be perfect, go home and get normal non mad scientist jobs and live peacefully for the rest of our lives.

Snowing in Geneva today. Bah. I am fed up of winter.

Admylin
We went to the big Faschingsumzug in Hannover, it was good fun. Never seen so many happy Hannoveraner

No Karneval or Fasching here, nothing at all. There is the Fastnacht in the German part of Switzerland but nothing in Suisse. Good for me, I am not a great Fasching fan anyway.

We are getting visitors at the weekend, must ask DH when they are arriving. I really am not in the mood for visitors.

Had an argument with DH this morning, or should that be BH. BloodyH. You would think that after 4 months of seeing me get up at 7am (at the latest), getting the kids ready for school, making them breakfast and their lunch boxes, having my shower then walking them to school at 8am. After months of observing this routine he would think to waken me. Not to let me sleep till 7.30am.

Came downstairs to find the DC still in their jammies, no breakfast, no lunchboxes.

And then he was miffed cause I snapped at him.

So I am having a relaxing morning. He can do his own bloody ironing.

Oh, I feel better now after that rant.

Ernest
Glad that you found someone to clear the snow.

Mmelindt, my bh (like that new way of writing it!) has done that before too. Let me sleep in until 7:45 once and when I jumped up he just said oh are they going to school today? So did you make it on time? The time I slept in we actually made it 1 minute before lessons started.

LOL at the question, "are you going to school today"

No. We thought we would just skive off school today, who needs school anyway?

MEN!

Actually, if ranting helps here goes: We have no printer at home, h always moans when I bring the subject up, he only wants to get a really expensive top grade one which isn't affordable at the moment. A cheap one won't do. Anyway I can still get stuff printed if I send them to his office via email but have to be in pdf so I have to convert everything. Last few weeks we've all needed quite alot of stuff printed and the other night he came home and said stop sending me so much stuff I haven't got time, I have to go to my colleagues office to print it and it's too far I'm online now looking at cheap printers...selfish Bh.

Bloody hell, Admylin. Get yourself a printer.

We have a HP 3180 I think it is. Works well and was not too dear.

Men are such nobs sometimes

mine is similar to this one

DH keeps going on about gettign the kindergeld sorted but wont speak to the woman in HR about where we have to apply for the form that the Germans need sayign that we are not getting Swiss kindergeld.

No printer serious that is madnes (and for the sake of sounding a bit hysterical mn, a bit controlling of d/bh to not let you get one. Having to go through him every time you want a copy of something! I got inexpensive HP combe printer/scanner/photocopier which is brilliant. v. useful to be able to make copies of stuff

Got dh an internet radio for our anniversary, and it is brilliant, been listening to Radio one for last 3 days could almost imagine was in old blighty.

Snow is real worry - really deep here now. boys school 33 km away, in village

thanks goodness got sturdy tank 3 wheeler pushchair

Thanks for that link, that one is cheaper than the ones i've been looking at. Could definately afford it now and by the look of it refill ink isn't that bad either.

Do you think if i was being a good wife I should send a link of the amazon.de printer and tell him by email (don't see him that often to tell him any other way) or just order it and set it up when it arrives? I can't even blame his attitude on mid life crisis anymore or does it go on for this long? He's really pushing his luck with his behaviour at the moment.

mmeL - been uploading loads of cool iPhone gagdets - got a baby monitor for 2 euros, and for free a torch, meditation timer, loads of games, translator and Shazom today. really cool. no wonder when boys come in they hijack my phone.

What's your favourite iPhone gadget or game? have I missed any top tricks?

Order it and set it up.

My DH and I have an agreement that any thing that one of us buys under a certain limit does not need to be ok-ed by the other. I would not order a TV for 800eu without discussing it with him, but anything under 100eu is my decision.

Make an executive decision.

And send your BH to see me and Ernest if he complains.

Ernest
Get your Nudelholz out!

OMG ernest 'a bit controlling of d/bh to not let you get one' I am trying to block out those sorts of signs but it's what I've been thinking for a while now.

Last thing that had me in tears was when he told me off on the phone because I wasn't answering my mobile and I wasn't such an important person to need a mobile and might as well throw it away if I don't hav eit with me all the time. I was in the house though, we have a functioning land line and he has both numbers saved in his own mobile.

Think I do need to go off to 'relationships' don't I?