Enjoying Oktoberfest

Rowan so happy to be riding!

Elijah so proud!

So I thought when I sent the boys to kindergarten I would have all this free time. Well, I haven’t had any! We had our friends Bob and Mardi visit - they came for a couple days in mid-September, and then they went to Italy, then came back up here for a longer visit. It was so much fun to see them again. They make me miss Seattle and all of our great friends.

We got a babysitter and went to Oktoberfest together and it was a lot of fun. This is the first time that I actually drank because we found the wine tent and the vodka shot area. I don’t drink beer, I tried and it makes me almost vomit. But I like almost everything else. And boy, a drink really helps make the crowd and rides really fun. We first went to the PaulAner tent because the Käfer tent wasn’t open yet. We sat next to a non-fun Canadian couple. Then we went to the Käfer tent and it was waaaay too expensive and crowded, so we went to the regular wine tent. I had a wine but it wasn’t good. Then had a shot and then went to ride some rides. I can’t ride the spinny kind, I can ride roller coasters and other stuff though. We HAD to ride the traditional Toboggan ride, which is a conveyor belt that you need to step on to get part way up a tower, and then you take the stairs to the top and then a slide down. The conveyor belt thing was the spectacle - there is nothing funnier than watching drunk people try to stand up on a conveyor belt. Michael didn’t do it, since he had to stay back and take photos/movies. Mardi nearly fell down, but someone came to her rescue (there are guys designated for that), Bob did an athletic stance and did it perfectly, and I, of course, fell right on my butt. Here is a movie. We also went on a water log ride, which is the most Bob and Mardi would do. It was a lot of fun and we got only a little wet. After that, we went into the Löwenbräu tent, where we sat next to a bunch of British guys. They were a lot of fun and once they found out about Michael’s “man bag”, they made fun of it the whole time. It was so funny to watch 7 strangers chant “man bag” and point to Michael. We were all tipsy so we laughed and laughed. We all had a great time, and Bob was saying that they didn’t even plan to come to Oktoberfest, but that was one of the most memorable times they had on their trip.

I really wanted to take the boys to ride some of the kiddie rides, so we went last Friday, since Michael’s work went and I could meet up with him. Unfortunately, by the time I found Michael, he already downed two maß’s (2L of beer), and was very tipsy. But he came along anyway. Rowan rode everything, he couldn’t get enough. Each ride we had to keep buying more tickets and it was hard to get him off. Elijah was more cautious and only rode a couple. I don’t know why he was so scared. He usually will go anywhere Rowan goes because he doesn’t miss out. But I guess maybe because it was a big contraption, it was scary. For both of them, their very, very favorite was riding the ponies. They loved it and Rowan would cry whenever we took him off and kept pushing our hands away saying “no off! NOOOO OOOOOFFFF!” I am so glad that we took them and they had a lot of fun. I was kinda mad at the vendor people because they charged a 1 euro pfand (deposit) on the bottles because they knew you probably wouldn’t bring it back. And I brought one back but not the other. It bothered me so much.

So, after Bob and Mardi left, the boys started to go to kindergarten until 2:15. So now they go from about 9am - 2:15, and they eat and nap there. I was really shocked that they nap since at home if it’s not super quiet and dark, they run around and play. AND they have no bottle! Wow, that is new. I had to go out and buy them sheets and pillows and covers as well as a few school supplies. Man, everything is expensive! Well, it’s not really, but when you have to buy everything at once (x2) it is! But it’s going really well and we are both counting our lucky stars that we got in!

So, why don’t I have free time? Besides running around getting stuff for the boys, I have to do the shopping, cleaning, and also do some work for the shop I’m helping someone set up. I haven’t had a chance to really rest. And on top of that, I’ve been sick and got Michael sick and Rowan too. Elijah is staying mysteriously healthy. But he will get sick soon too I think.

Tomorrow I leave for London for my “vacation” and attend the Knitting and Stitching show. This will be my first big knitting convention. I am so excited I get to pet lots of imported yarns!!! It will hurt the pocketbook dearly though.