currently.

Reading... The Shining. I have seen the movies (the Stanley Kubrick film, as well as the made for tv mini series) and have also read the book before. However, I don't do well with the horror genre so I'm reading very tentatively. When I first read it as a teenager, I'm fairly sure I kept the light on every night for about a month... Iris is reading letters, repeating the sounds they make, and learning to sound out words.

Watching... or rather, rewatching one of my favorite shows of all time, Battlestar Galactica. Iris is currently working her way though Pokémon. On a more serious note, I recently watched a documentary called Auschwitz: The Nazi Final Solution. It's an amazing production that shows in gross detail and description the horrors of the holocaust. Through interviews from both survivors and from former Nazi party members, the viewer gleans a well rounded perspective on how and why this travesty occured. For anyone who is interested in this particular history, this is a must see.

Learning... lots of new things with Iris in homeschool. I generally do an informal homeschooling session every day, Monday through Friday. Iris' most recent favorite lesson focused on coconuts - where they grow and how to open and eat them. We watched a few videos of people and even monkeys picking coconuts from the trees, looked at diagrams of the different layers of coconuts, and then we cracked one open ourselves! While I broke a fingernail trying to get the darn thing open, Iris drank the coconut water and then finally ate quite a large quantity of the meat. Now she wants bottled coconut water every time we go to the market!

Eating... lots of interesting things, speaking of coconuts. While Iris does ask for ketchup for dipping (a request which is most often denied), she also has a taste for flavors which are usually considered more mature. For example, she loves sushi, olives, a variety of aged cheeses, and caper berries.

Anticipating... getting the tattoo on my leg finished. I finally have a followup appointment with Sebastian Brade this Friday! Sebastian's work is based in Berlin, which is about nine hours away from us by car. He is guesting at a tattoo shop about two hours from us (which is how I got my outline done almost two years ago), so I am able to finish what was started! Definitely looking forward to this - though not so much the knee area - ouch! 

lately.

Marius and Iris at the Frankenstein Castle Halloween family day!

Enjoying - the cooler weather which has now fully settled into the bones of Germany. We're certainly missing our sunny days; autumn, winter and spring are known to be vastly occupied by unbroken cloud cover. However, there's something magical to me about this season. I love that first hot cloud of my own breath in the air as I step outside. The coziness of a mug of hot tea whilst cocooning myself in blankets and snuggling with my dearest ones will win over sweating in the sun any day!

Reading - rather, rereading the book 1-2-3 Magic. If you have children, this book is an absolute must in my opinion. When Iris was a baby, I thought I was above the idea of giving time-outs. For many years now, Marius and I have both been implementing the ideas found in the book P.E.T (which I also highly recommend as a form of learning how to better communicate.) While these methods have helped her grow into an enormously empathetic, intelligent and logical person, it just hasn't been enough to handle the often irrational toddler brain. 1-2-3 Magic really does work and I recommend it to all of those who give childcare!

Watching - a lot of Mulan, which is Iris' most favorite movie right now. I also just finished Season 2 of Once Upon a Time and Marius and I have just started watching Season 1 so he can catch up on the story too. I can hardly wait until the third season of Game of Thrones comes out on blu-ray! We've also been completely obsessed with The Big Bang Theory and Iris often asks, "are we going to watch Sheldon??"

Planning - for Christmas! I've already bought all of the presents for extended family and will be working on wrapping and packaging next week! It feels nice to get everything finished and not have to worry about rushing to get things shipped out at the last minute.

Anticipating - the Christmas Markets here in Europe! The larger markets typically begin running in mid to late November and go through Christmas. Most of the small towns here have weekend events during which entire town centers are shut down and dedicated to enjoying the Christmas spirit and shopping for locally made goods. The gluwein is boiling hot to stave off the freezing wind, the sugary scent of hot Belgian waffles and melty crepes fills the air, and that special Christmas warmth of everyone around is enough to make anyone smile (even if you are freezing half to death.)

I've missed blogging and I know many of you have missed the posts of photos and stories about Iris. Feel free to comment with what you have been up to lately and let's get back in touch!