Weekly highlights

This week has been a good one.   Last weekend Peter had a four day weekend and we enjoyed every single restful minute of it.    And this weekend has already been fun-filled with date night for Peter and me last night and a family trip to the zoo today.   Here are some
photos of the week....

The sunrise outside our kitchen window was so beautiful one morning this week, I had to snap a photo.   The white building behind the trees is Susannah's new kindergarten.   That means this crazy mama will have a hawk's eye view of all playground activities.   ;)

Last weekend we climbed the hill south of our neighborhood to check out the view of the city and try out the playground over there.   Susannah and I enjoyed the merry-go-round.

Fun, fun.

And a mini-workout for mommy.

The view was so beautiful.    We will definitely be returning in the spring when the biergarten up there re-opens.

There is a small vineyard up here too and it was such a beautiful fall color.

The picture doesn't do it justice......these leaves were such a vibrant mix of orange, yellow, and pink.

This face is a pretty accurate description of our behavior pattern last week.    We felt so lucky to never really experience much "terrible two" behavior, but if this week is any indication, three may not be quite so easy.    More than a couple of times this week I have asked Peter, "What happened to our sweet Susannah?"  

Which leads me to this picture......a much needed  Date night!    And our first "gluhwein" of the season.   

While the official Christmas markets won't open until after Thanksgiving, this is a little pre-Christmas market, complete with the signiture hot spiced wine, twinkle lights, and an ice skating rink.

This morning we decided to try the Stuttgart zoo, so my little navigators took out the public transport map to figure out the best way to get there.

All bundled up and ready to go see the animals.

I was expecting to be pretty disappointed with this zoo experience after coming from San Diego, but we were all pleasantly surprised.   It has lots of great animals and tons of beautiful green space.   Aren't those yellow trees so beautiful?

After checking out the penguins, we headed over to the seals where we were thoroughly entertained by these adorable characters. 

Laughing at the barking seal.

We also checked out the aquarium and saw all kinds of fish, turtles, and snakes.

Susannah's favorite part was the ape house where we watched the two baby apes play.   They were so funny.   Susannah loved that they had a blankie like hers.

Of course we had to make a pit-stop at the playground.

The polar bears were awake and moving and so HUGE.

We stayed and watched this guy for a long while.

Now we are back in our warm, cozy apartment where we will probably stay until time for church tomorrow.   Hope all of you are well.   We miss and love you all!