Jenni Austria Germany

in honor of the oscars.

2012-02-24T09:00:00.000-06:00

some of my favorite red carpet looks (because why not?):

it would appear that we can deduce one thing and one thing only:

a high-waisted ensemble is, as kim kardashian would say, “everything to me”.

happy oscar watching!

i’ll be rooting for midnight in paris (though it won’t win by a long shot),

boycotting the ryan gosling snub,

celebrating the fact that anne hathaway isn’t hosting this year’s show,

and eating cookies, probably.

see you monday!

all images via here and here

highlight of my day

2012-02-23T09:00:00.000-06:00

i was oh so delighted

to find a box of german chocolate bars in my mailbox today!

that’s right – emily sent me an assortment of milka bars and ritter sports (my favorites)

and solidified her spot as the person i miss most in germany.

although i loved the sweet treats (and inhaled the white chocolate ritter sport in 3 minutes flat),

i decided my favorite part of the box’s contents

was the 3D ‘gute besserung’ (‘get well soon’ in german) postcard

with a funny note written on the back.

she also sent me this

after i tweeted that i was really wishing my copy of you’ve got mail wasn’t still in europe,

(along with the majority of my other earthly possessions, dang it).

but did i mention she’s my favorite?

***

this makes me all the more excited to get on a plane and head back to germany.

when exactly that will be, i’m not yet sure….

but i want it to be soon!

in related news, making .gifs is kinda fun!

if laughter is the best medicine, then puppy breath ranks a close second.

2012-02-22T08:30:00.001-06:00

top left: my best friend, maddie, and scout, the most precious puppy alive.

top right: babysitting maddie’s freckle-faced nephew (he’s one of the billion, remember?).

mid left: many people have asked me what kind of dog this little scout is. well, i’ll tell you! she’s a dark chocolate golden doodle. and i think she’s pretty perfect. plus, puppy breath! ….too heavenly for words.

mid right: never have i ever needed a haircut so badly. it’s unhealthy and gross and the ends are atrocious. i’m still intending on going through with this, but i’ve gotten a little sidetracked...

bottom left: puppy or teddy bear? you be the judge.

bottom right: is there anything better than a sleeping pup on your belly? i hear babies are nice…but i’ve yet to be won over.

the best medicine…

2012-02-20T16:00:00.000-06:00

…is laughter, we know this.

sometimes that comes from movies/tv shows, sometimes it comes from books, sometimes it comes from conversations via skype. with this girl:

(eva & me at a party during our summer in vienna)

eva, my austrian bff, studied abroad in the US during her teen years and speaks perfect english with absolutely no accent whatsoever. can i just say for the 100th time how extremely rare this is?! what’s even more impressive to us americans who know/love her is that her sense of humor is so american; we never have to stop and explain a beat of our sarcasm because she never misses one. i can’t say this about any other euro friend i have…and i have a lot of ‘em! while i firmly believe that cultural differences make the world go ‘round, sometimes it’s just so nice to have someone who understands you that well. i feel like i grew up with this girl (when, in reality, where i grew up is a far cry from the alps).

eva had been emailing me these past few weeks, inquiring when we could see each other next. rather than emailing her back, i decided to set up a skype date with her, in order to explain, uh…some things….i.e. why i’m not in europe anymore, what i’ve been doing (or not doing, rather) since i left europe, my plans to return to europe, etc. i decided during our convo that my doctors should have prescribed me ‘conversations with eva’ as opposed to pain killers. i was laughing so hard – harder than i’ve laughed in a long, long time.

even without the context of our conversation, i think the excerpts below stand alone as pretty darn funny. and if you don’t find them amusing in the slightest, you can at least admire her american-sounding-ness, can’t you?

“i mean, he’s kind of a psycho, but a really sweet psycho, don’t you think?”

“when all this is over and you can come back to europe, you’ll to come to vienna, right? i mean, it’s not even a question. you don’t even have a choice. because my apartment is huge and i only take up 1/4 of my bed, so the other 3/4s are just calling your name.”

“skyping with you makes me realize how much i miss your hair.”

“and then, as we girls do, i broke up with him because i liked another boy who, turns out, didn’t like me back! whaaaat?!”

“oh, one more thing! when your crazy life calms down, would you maybe want to move back to vienna and be my maid? i could probably pay you sometimes.”

she’s the greatest. end of story.

gender reveal

2012-02-20T11:50:00.000-06:00

guess what? i’m really a guy!

just kidding. i’m not talking about that kind of gender reveal.

i mentioned here that a benefit of being home is the opportunity to spend time with friends i don’t get to see very often (on account of my normally living 5,000 miles away from oklahoma).

another benefit? spending lots and lots of time with a family i’ve never appreciated more than now,

including one of my pregnant sisters!

{blurry iphone photo taken this past august, during her pre-pregnancy days, when i came home for a month}

we recently had a little family dinner,

which doubled as a “baby gender reveal party” for her and her husband.

they brought over a box of cupcakes which would reveal the baby’s sex with either pink icing or blue.

the following 2-minute video documents the lifting of the lid (i.e. the revealing of the gender):

fast cars and scorpion jackets (a jumble of thoughts).

2012-02-19T21:30:00.000-06:00

where do i begin?

well, i can start by saying… maybe i spoke too soon

when i announced my top ten favorite movies of all time….

i hadn’t even seen the trailer for drive before watching it a couple of weeks ago

(which is rare for someone who checks the apple trailer website compulsively).

all i knew was that it was a movie about someone who drives cars

on what i only assumed was a semi-regular to regular basis

and that it starred ryan gosling as the lead.

that’s all i needed to know.

only after i finished the movie did i watch the trailer,

and i was surprised by how much it revealed.

thus, i’m glad i went into the viewing blindly unaware.

it made each twist and turn that much more intense

and the big scenes all the more shocking.

it made me think about one of my favorite film classes,

during which we spent a better part of the semester studying heist films,

or better yet, “heist gone wrong” films.

drive is one of those films,

and i really want to say it’s my favorite neo-noir film to date.

plus, the soundtrack is phenomenal – driven (no pun intended) by ethereal, electro beats

that leave the viewer wondering if this is 2012, 1980, or somewhere in between.

in closing, i will add just a few more notes, the first being: if you’re hoping to start this movie around bedtime (like i was), don’t plan on falling asleep while watching (like i was). you won’t be able to take your eyes off the screen, let alone drift off to dreamland. although let’s face it, drive is pretty much a dreamland in its own special way (thank you, ryan gosling).

secondly, i couldn’t watch a few of the scenes (too gory for my liking) and the sounds i heard while averting my eyes were pretty cringe-worthy, too, which clinches it: noah calhoun has gone far, far away and is most likely never coming back. i repeat, if you’re looking for a character birthed from the mind of nicholas sparks, you will not find him here (nor will you find him in the movie all good things, but that’s a whole ‘nother blog post).

thirdly, i tweeted my way through this movie (gave me something to do during the gory moments) and the responses i got were priceless: “the scorpion jacket!!!”, “he is so hot in that movie. and in all movies.”, “so obsessed with the scorpion jacket”, “don’t even get me started on the elevator scene”, and, you know, a dozen or so other tweets referencing the infamous scorpion jacket.

and yeah, the elevator scene. …………….i have no words.

if you’re in need of a laugh this sunday afternoon…

2012-02-19T14:30:00.000-06:00

my twitter feed has been all aflutter over this clip, and for good reason, too. in case you’re one of the 14 people in the U.S. who haven’t seen this yet, here it is!

maya’s voice sounds nothing like bey’s, but nobody makes a better ‘HOV than jay pharoah; they may as well have dubbed the real jay’z voice/laugh. it’s uncanny. nasim’s minaj impression is appropriately terrifying, and k. wiig as t. swift? it doesn’t get much funnier than that. i also appreciated “white butler”.

speaking of maya, i’m confused by her seemingly permanent baby bump (while alex suspects “she’s just in a constant state of gestation”). this clip showcases (no pun intended) that beautifully. i dare you to watch it without laughing out loud, or at least cracking a smile.

favorite part: “you’ll be the talk of baggage claim!” and, you know, every time kristen wiig breaks character, as well as bill hader’s struggle to maintain composure (he’s from oklahoma, holla!).

this sketch might have been my favorite. fred arimsen (the most underrated SNL cast member, in my opinion) and maya rudolph are dead-on as my favorite tv couple of all time.

that’s not the sketch in its entirety, but it’s all that was available on hulu, unfortunately.

is it too soon to start obsessing over this sketch again?

it would appear that zooey d. has never seen or heard MK olsen speak, but the SNL hair and make-up team made up for the difference and then some. abby elliott as zooey herself was perfect, taran killam as a mickey mouse-michael cera hybrid was painfully hilarious and, once again, kristen wiig steals the show.

this isn’t SNL-related, but pretty funny nonetheless. what is she wearing?!

the end!

Travel tips from an Expert Expat.

2012-02-18T12:00:00.001-06:00

No, that ‘expert expat’ is not me. It’s this girl:

When it comes to life abroad and how to live it, Megan (the aforementioned expert expat who is pictured above) is a far better advisor than I am. For those who have any questions or qualms about living/traveling abroad, I encourage you to view the following links or check out her blog here.

She’s the best! You won’t regret it.

1. HOW TO TRAVEL SOLO… independent women, check this out.

2. WHEN TO LEARN A FOREIGN LANGUAGE… it’s tricky, but you’ve gotta do it! this will help you out.

3. SHOULD YOU FIND YOURSELF IN NORWAY, HUNGRY… you might want to familiarize yourself with this post.

this post is awesome. and i can say that because i didn’t write it.

2012-02-17T12:00:00.003-06:00

earlier this evening, i mentioned to my parents that my german students thought it was so strange when i listed ‘biscuits and gravy’ as one of my favorite foods growing up. i explained that, to my students, ‘biscuits’ means ‘cookie’, as they’ve learned british english and not american english. my sister chimed in and said, “yeah, and ‘gravy’ means ‘sauce’ to italians”. i’d never heard this before, in part because i don’t know many italians and in part because….well, i just don’t know many italians. then i opened my inbox and found an email from erica, containing the following post on the topic of heritage. she’s 100% italian and – thank goodness – she’s going to educate me on what it means to be just that. join me in this cultural enlightenment, won’t you?

***

her-it-age: [noun] something that comes or belongs to one by reason of birth.

when jenni asked me to write about my 'heritage' and what it means to me, so many emotions ran through my head. i guess you can say i have a strong sense of heritage. i'm proud of who i am and where i came from. i'm 100% italian. i come from a large, loud, and always hungry clan. we call 'sauce' gravy, we eat the feast of the seven fishes on christmas eve, we talk with our hands. a lot. and we eat dinner at 1:00 pm on sunday afternoons.

but it's not all about the food (well, sometimes it is - let's face it). to me, my heritage means a lot of different things. but if i had to pick something it would be the 'american dream'...and everlasting love.

my grandpa, enrico, was an interesting man. his english was choppy, he was rather quiet, but had so much depth to him. he grew up in castleforte, italy - a small town about an hour north of naples - and came to america in 1938 when he was 30 years old. with only a 4th grade education and a few bags, he was determined to make something of himself in the bustling city of new york.

my grandpa, bottom right, with his family in Italy

my grandpa (on the horse) at 25 years old , serving in the Italian army

my grandpa settled in harlem and was quickly set for an arranged marriage...only it was not to my grandma. my grandpa's family had arranged for him to marry my grandma's sister! but when my grandpa went to meet his soon-to-be bride and her family, he took one look at my beautiful grandma and changed his mind. he instead wanted to marry my grandma. now if that's not the most romantic thing you've ever heard, then i don't know what is. my grandparents married the next year.

in 1940 my grandparents bought a hourse. her name was trixie. this is how their business started. my grandpa sold fresh fruits and vegetables on the back of the horse. he would wake up every morning and ride trixie down to the pier to stock up on produce. he would then take trixie and his wagon full of plentiful fruits and veggies and sell them on the streets of new york city. seriously, i'm not making this up.

he did this for about 11 years. in 1951 my grandparents took their family of three boys (including my dad!), and moved to newark, new jersey where they were able to afford a rowhouse. my family settled in on the second floor and decided to open up their very own Italian American Grocery store below. This was HUGE. my dad would always tell me stories about working in the store with his brothers and how they would goof around with the customers. he would always tell me how my grandpa would work long hours to make sure the shelves were stocked with fresh produce and meat. and my dad would always tell me that no matter how busy my grandparents were, they would always take the time to talk to every single person who came in the store. they were a lovely team.

a picture of the Store and their home on the second floor.
*it's very old so we had to tape pictures together, that's why it looks like this

throughout the years my grandparents put three kids through college, had 9 grandchildren and got to hold 5 great grandchildren. my grandpa lived to be 98 years old. he was not sick, but rather heartbroken. he had been married to my grandma for 68 wonderful years. when it was her time to leave this world he could no longer continue on. he fought for 1.5 years but in the end he was taken from us so he could be with her again. the love he had for my grandma and for his family was beautiful. my grandpa was a great man who worked extremely hard to make a better life for himself and for the ones he loved. he taught my dad how to persevere in hard times and how to work hard for the things you want in life...which in turn, my dad was able to teach me. and for that, i am grateful.

there is seriously no better feeling when somebody asks me "what are you?", and i get to answer "i am italian. 100%."

***

did anyone else get chills during the love-at-first-sight moment between erica’s grandfather and her grandmother? i certainly did. and those photos are incredible; i especially love the one of the store. i wanted to briefly mention something else, though, before i close. throughout my time in europe, i’ve come across many, many cynical naysayers who love to mock the notion of the american dream – telling me it’s just not true, not even remotely possible, completely unrealistic, so on and so forth. of course not every person living in the united states lives the american dream, i tell them. of course not. but it is possible. and it does happen. it is not a fairytale, and does not exist solely in the imaginations of pie-in-the-sky romantics. maybe you just have to be an insanely hard worker to attain it. maybe you just have to be lucky. maybe it’s a dream reserved for the borderline-absurd visionaries because they’re the only ones crazy enough to chase it. maybe i should just stop talking about the american dream and wrap things up by saying that i found erica’s account of her grandpa’s success so inspiring, that’s all.

now run along to her blog right now! what are you waiting for?

{comments disabled, as per usual.}

let’s be happy, shall we?

2012-02-16T12:00:00.001-06:00

it’s been a little bit of a struggle for me (understatement of the year) – all this “being in america” instead of “being in europe”. don’t get me wrong, there’s nowhere else i’d rather be, given the circumstances. i know i need to be here & i know i have no choice but to be here. however, the fact remains that i’m not here on my own terms. and that’s something that’s kept me up at night a time or two (understatement of the year, the sequel). i struggle a lot with knowing that by my being in oklahoma as opposed to germany, a lot of people have been let down; my colleagues at school, my students, my roommate, my friends abroad. and my blamelessness in the matter should relieve me of this stress, but most of the time, it doesn’t.

do you want to hear the good news, though? tonight, in the midst of harping on all the things that i’m missing out on in dresden – and the fact that so much of my life seems far beyond my control – i had one of those a-ha! moments that oprah loves to talk about so much. i decided to make a mental list of all the little things for which i’m thankful. turns out, there are a lot of them! and what’s better is: the more you focus on the positive, the happier you feel! who knew?! with that said…

brown sugar cinnamon pop-tarts. the family members and friends who got on a plane/in a car the moment they got a phone call from my parents. hot water & long showers. two healthy grandparents who live just two hours away. knowing there is a reason i am alive – that jeremiah 29:11 is true, after all. the most comfortable, cloud-like bed that ever existed. the belief that there are still good people in my life and in this world. ‘hanging with friends’ and other iphone-related joys. two sisters who are adding two babies to our ever-growing family later on this year. pedicures and foot massages. a roof over my head. cupcakes and cookies and any kind of sweet treat, really. friends who tell me they’re there for me, and mean it. fun packages arriving in the mail. a mother who provides amazing meal after amazing meal and whose laugh is the most infectious thing on the planet. a father who protects me and fights for me and really, really, really lives up to his reputation as liam neeson in the movie taken. a future that has never looked brighter.

oh, and thin crust cheese pizza with extra marinara.

from the top of the untersberg (otherwise known as “maria’s mountain”)

2012-02-15T09:00:00.000-06:00

in the sound of music’s famous opening sequence, maria runs down from the mountain, bursts into the abbey in a frenzy, and apologizes for her tardiness, excusing herself by blurting out to her fellow nuns, “i was on my mountain!” (or something to that effect; my copy of the dvd is in europe and, alas, i am not!).

fun fact: i’ve been to nonnberg abbey (the nonfictional convent, home to maria and her sisters) and the distance between its location and the untersberg mountain is…..very far. in reality, it would have taken, like, days for maria to run from ‘her mountain’ to the abbey.

i got a couple of new emails last week, asking for salzburg travel tips (seriously, that city should be paying me by now…or at least naming a street after me?!) and i thought of yet another salzburg must-see (in addition to all of these recently listed to-dos).

the untersberg mountain is accessible by bus (bus 25 is the one i’ve always taken, but i’m sure there are others). you can pay a small fee (19 euros, i want to say?) to ride a cable car to the mountain top and back down again. once you reach the mountain’s peak (the height of which is just shy of 7,000 ft), you can drink a beer, eat a schnitzel, or just stand there looking toward the edge, trembling in fear, which is exactly what i did. heights are not my friend.

when my parents and i visited, it looked nothing like maria’s mountain. it was covered in snow and a little bit freezing, but wonderfully majestic nonetheless.

[photos: me, the untersberg in all its glory, my mom, my dad, a woman i do not know on skis]

my heart aches for this place. but what else is new?

also, can you believe some people bring their own skis and poles and cruise around the mountaintop with them? such an austrian thing. as for my parents and i, we were content standing around taking photos until it was time to eat again. it was great!

Valentine’s Day Giveaway! {–biggest giveaway yet!–}

2012-02-14T11:11:00.000-06:00

So excited to present today’s giveaway. There are a total of 7 prizes up for grabs!

Thanks to all the lovely sponsors of this here little blog who are giving away the following items.

Item #1 : $15 Forever 21 Gift Card from Besos, by Bri

{bri’s blog} {bri’s twitter}

Item #2: Any Piece from A New Jewel’s Valentine’s Collection

{etsy} {facebook}

Item #3: A Custom Headband from La Plus Belle

{etsy} {blog} {twitter}

Item # 3: William-Sonoma Chocolate Chip Pancake & Waffle Mix +

a copy of The Skinnygirl Dish cookbook from Pocket Full of Chuckles

{erica’s blog} {erica’s twitter}

Item #4: One Month free Ad Space on ‘Teatime Thoughts’ & a copy of Captivating

{candice’s blog} {candice’s twitter}

Item #5: Custom Blog Header & Button made by Alex

{blog} {twitter} {facebook}

Item #6: One Month free Ad Space (size Large) on Yes, Teacher!

{blog} {etsy} {twitter}

Item #7: Custom Illustration from Debbiecuteface

{blog} {twitter}

all you have to do to enter is leave me a comment verifying that you’re a follower of this blog.

for additional entries, leave a comment for every blog followed, twitter followed, etsy shop hearted or facebook page liked (^^ using the links provided beneath each prize ^^).

you can also tweet about it using this link http://bit.ly/xg9WOf and tag me (@jenni_AT_DE) for yet another extra entry.

giveaway will be open until midnight CST february 29.

best of luck to you all!

a giveaway winner! but first, indulge me just once more as i say thank you to…

2012-02-14T10:00:00.001-06:00

(me and kaitlyn – and my sleeping cousin in the middle – during our days as college roommates)

i talk a lot about my best friend kaitlyn.

kaitlyn has always been the kind of friend i can call at any hour of the day/night, knowing she will stop whatever she is doing (even if it’s sleeping) to listen to my troubles, triumphs, bad news, good news, etc. kaitlyn’s love for me has always been unconditional; i can tell her anything with full confidence that she will not only continue to accept me after the fact, but think nothing less of me whatsoever – never responding with judgment.

i’ve always known this about her but it wasn’t until recently that she proved her loyalty to me all over again, in more genuine ways than ever before. that’s something i’ve learned about dealing with tragedy or trauma or whatever you want to call it; you gain a whole new perspective of who/what really matters in your life and who doesn’t. there are those who can’t find the time to be a friend and those whose world stops turning just because yours has.

the thing is, kaitlyn is a married woman with a business to run, yet she has come through time and time again during has been a really trying time for me. in fact, not a single day goes by without her calling or texting me to make sure i’m doing alright. i’ve been so humbled by her friendship and i only hope i’m as faithful of a friend to her as she is to me…... i just wanted to post this as a very small token of my gratitude.

ps – i decided that she’s my valentine this year. so, happy valentine’s day, kaitlyn! hope it’s better than the valentine’s day we spent in the toilet swamp.

***

winner of this awesome giveaway:

no, i did not plan this. it really happened that way.

the proof is in the random. org pudding.

check back later today for the next giveaway! it’s the biggest one yet.

i was not a fan of sunday night’s chris brown lovefest

2012-02-13T22:00:00.001-06:00

and apparently i wasn’t the only one.

dramatic musings warrant a black&white photo.

2012-02-13T16:00:00.000-06:00

i alluded here to my being home for awhile but didn’t provide any specifics. after mentioning that i had been in the hospital, i received many emails – some curiously inquiring what had happened, some politely offering warm wishes. i truly appreciated the sentiment, but there’s a little something i’d like to clarify.

what happened to me is intensely personal and i’m just not comfortable posting it on the world wide web or discussing it via email, twitter, etc. i will say, though, that my plans for the future are very much up in the air and i’m not sure how soon i’ll be making my return to europe. my current situation is completely out of my hands and it’s been a tough adjustment relinquishing all control.

but… you know what, maybe it’s okay to not live in europe right this second. maybe it’s okay to not live in europe ever again( <—that right there is hard for me to say). my life in europe was great; i had friends there and a job there and the world at my feet. but i have a life in america, too, and that life, while very different than my european one, is no less valuable.

so until further notice… yay, america!

i hope i look this good 4 weeks after giving birth.

2012-02-12T19:00:00.000-06:00

heck, i’d love to look this good tomorrow.

it’s no secret that i love beyonce and have even pretended to be her a time or two

(though i would never name a child ‘blue ivy’…sorry, bey).

speaking of baby blue, i nearly died when jay-z posted these precious photos of her

on his blog this weekend.

she could not be more beautiful.

could she?

no.

would it be too obsessive if i made those images my desktop background?

kidding.

…but i am working on my ‘carter family nanny’ application as we speak.

anyway, when an opportunity to post a little something about sasha fierce arises, i seize it.

so what better time than the present to list my favorite beyonce moments?

there’s also no better time than the present to enter this giveaway. free chocolate?

you know you want to win. i’ll be choosing a winner in 24 hours, so enter, enter!

The Pros and Cons of living in Germany.

2012-02-11T12:00:00.000-06:00

When I first came across Alyx’s blog, I said to myself, “She’s just like me! But with a husband!”

To be more clear, she’s an American girl with Fulbright grant, teaching English in Germany, which, by my standards, means we’re one and the same. She got to bring her husband along for the ride, though (having a built-in travel partner – how much fun would that be?!).

Anyway, she’s here today, breaking down the German lifestyle for us. Take it away, Alyx.

***

~~Hola~~! I mean... Guten Tag, readers of Jenni Austria Germany. My name is Alyx and I blog over at Every Day is a New Adventure. I'm in pretty much the exact same situation Jennifer was before she went back to the good ole U S of A (hope your recovery is going swell, Jenni!) - I'm a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant at a Gymnasium in a small town in Germany.

Jenni and I thought it would be fun if I shared a list of pros and cons of life abroad. Mostly because even though I'm here for the same reasons as her, I have a totally different perspective. So without further ado, I bring you The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly - Germany Style.

Let's start this thing off on a positive note, why don't we?

The Good.

1. Schnitzel. Bratwurst. Bratkartoffeln. Cheese. Bakeries. Okay, let's be real here, people. My belly needs food, and those Germans know how to fill it up with lots of deliciousness. My arteries might start to hate me (as will my favorite skinny jeans), but I say, "While in Germany, eat as the Germans do (or 20 times more, because it's just that amazing)."

2. Spaghetti Eis. Yeah, it's food, but it's so good it deserves its own category.

3. Having the world at your fingertips. I love to travel. It's like crack to me (except I don't think I'll die from it). I love having the option of just driving/flying/training (just made that a word) to another country on a whim.

4. The language. Dude. I know German sounds evil and mean and awful and crazy and Nazi-like, but I think it's a beautiful language. I know, I'm a freak. Maybe it's just all the time and energy that I've put into learning how to speak it.

5. Having a crapload of free time to spend with my hubby. This job really doesn't require a lot of time. At all. I have seriously gotten to spend more time with my husband in the past 6 months than I had the entire year before that. I'm not even kidding.

The Bad.

1. Being po. Fo' shizzle. We're so po, we can't even afford the "o-r." This Fulbright shin-dig only pays 800 EUR a month. Our apartment is 465 EUR a month. Do the math, yo. It's a good thing we ~~are semi-responsible adults~~ have figured out how to live on garlic pasta and water (totally kidding, we eat other food, too - see above).

2. Home Sickness. Yeah, sometimes I miss having family and friends around. If sometimes is about 5 times a week. Oh, you know what else I miss? Cupcakes, donuts, and sausage, egg, and cheese mcmuffins from McDonald's (trust me, the video below is worth clicking "play").

3. No car. Sometimes the lazy bums that drive the trains decide to go on strike. This results in being stranded, without a ride, without food, and without a cell phone in the middle of nowhere. Other times, it's -5 degrees fahrenheit outside while I'm walking 1.5 miles from the train station to my school, and I curse in my mind while my face is falling off and wish I had my car.

4. Clear doors. Ummm. Our apartment has glass doors. Yes, even the bathroom. Don't worry, we always make our guests feel super ~~awkward~~ welcome.

5. Tiny beds. My husband is 6'7" and I'm 6'1". At home in America, you better believe we have a king size bed. Here, on the other hand, we have a bed that is slightly smaller than a double. Sometimes we kick each other in the face.

The Ugly

1. Nothing. I love Germany. It has my heart, and even though I live in a tiny, boring town with nothing to do, I can't think of anything ugly about this place. Oh, wait... I'm in Germany, and I'm making this ugly face.

So there you have it - The Good, The bad, and The Ugly of Germany.

***

Thanks, Alyx! Before I close out the post, I have a few things to say, the first being: I’ve never eaten spaghetti eis because I think it looks like a brain. I might have to try it now, though. Secondly, I don’t think you’re a freak for liking the German language; I got my undergrad. in foreign languages and German was my very favorite. Also, I use ‘train’ as a verb all the time! I told you we were alike… And lastly, I know just what you mean about being poor…the biggest downside of being a Fulbrighter by far.

Comments for this post have been disabled, so head on over to Alyx’s blog right now, if you don’t mind!

conversations with…

2012-02-10T09:00:00.000-06:00

but first! quick question. blogger malfunctioned last night and i lost yesterday’s post (but it’s okay, because you got to meet julie one day sooner!), which means i need to re-issue this invitation: if you’re interested in getting 35 children’s books mailed to you, contact me here for details. and now, onward!

***

while babysitting twins recently, the following conversations took place.

[while watching the princess and the frog]

movie character: i’m sweating like a sinner in church!

twin boy: what’s a cinnamon church?!

twin girl: i don’t know, but it sounds silly.

[while discussing “what we want to be when we grow up”]

twin boy: i want to be like my dad.

me: what does your dad do?

twin boy: he works.

me: where does he work?

twin boy: at work.

me: what does he do there?

twin boy: he works.

[after a fight broke out between the two]

twin girl: bubba!! we are not playing mean! if you keep that up, you will go night-night.

twin boy: sissy, you always make me go night-night.

[while discussing the villain in the princess and the frog]

twin girl: he’s bad.

twin boy: so bad.

twin girl: very bad.

twin boy: really bad.

twin girl: so bad.

twin boy: ….he’s bad.

[while looking out the window]

twin girl: miss jennifer, where is your car?

me: i didn’t drive here. my friend eric is picking me up at the end of the day.

twin boy: who’s eric?

me: he’s a friend from college.

twin girl: what does he look like?

me: well, when he was little, he looked just like russell from the movie up!.

twin boy: he looked like russell?

me: yes, when he was small.

twin boy: will we get to see him when he picks you up?

me: um, if you want!

twin boy: …..is he still small?

[while eating a snack]

twin girl: miss jennifer, can we sing a song?

me: sure. what song do you want to sing?

twin boy: we know two songs.

me: okay, which songs do you know?

twin girl: we know ‘YMCA’ and ‘you’re a mean one mr. grinch’.

[while doing an art project]

twin boy: you color really good, miss jennifer. just like our aunt.

twin girl: yeah. you remind me of aunt gogo.

me: who’s aunt gogo?

twin boy: oh, she’s our aunt named gogo.

in which a baby dances to ‘super bass’.

2012-02-09T18:45:00.002-06:00

When I wrote this post about missing my college roommates, I was referring to two girls, one of whom was Julie. And when I came home in October for this wedding, Julie was there; her sister was the bride! {Fun fact: her other sister is my co-star in these terribly bizarre videos.} So, in some ways, Julie is not so new to this blog. But let’s get properly acquainted with her anyway, shall we?
***

^Julie and her now - husband, Caleb, during their engagement at Oklahoma State Univ.^
So, Julie. I know how much you loved college. Now that you've almost been graduated for 2 years, is there anything you miss about it? What do you miss the least?

Oh my. Is there anything I miss? I miss walking through my quiet neighborhood to get to class and watching the seasons change with each passing day. I miss feeling like Harry Potter while studying. I miss running into Caleb on campus, living with my sisters, and having laughing fits with housemates and/or sisters. I DON'T miss mindless professors who think that theirs is the one and only class you're taking, unrealistic amounts of ugly textbook pages assigned, math, the smell of food in the Student Union, and watching someone walk past you at 8am with a bag of Little Debbie donuts and a Monster drink (because the sight practically made me vomit). I also don't miss that awful feeling in my stomach when I woke up, knowing I had to force myself into a class that would benefit me in no way. I don't miss tests. At all. In fact, sometimes when something is bothering me, I just think, "But, Julie, you never have to take a test again." It works like true magic. I am smiling right now.

I wish that technique worked for me…but I actually did love college and even liked tests! Although I will admit I, too, despised the sight of people drinking soda in 8AM classes, usually paired with a dessert-type snack that I can only assume was purchased at a gas station. What was that, by the way? Why was that such a common sight? Is that just how the world works these days? I shudder to think……but, moving on.

^Julie and Caleb’s wedding, Julie while pregnant, Julie with her adorable daughter Alice.^
In the past 2 years, you've graduated college, gotten married, gotten pregnant and delivered a healthy baby girl. This time last year, you were just a couple months along in your pregnancy. What is one thing you would tell yourself, if you could go back in time and offer your 2011 Julie-self one piece of advice?

I love my baby, she is a dream come true! As for advice, it is hard to choose just one bit. I think, in the end, the advice I would give myself seems obvious, but it was somehow very hard to catch onto. I would tell myself, "Julie, when Alice is here, your entire life is going to have a makeover. Your house will feel and BE new, your body will be new, your mind will be different, your husband will change, your priorities will change. So, you know what all that means, right? You're going to be clueless. Cluelessness will be part of the game for awhile. You're in Adult Preschool now, and it's going to be weird. So when you have no idea what to cook for dinner because WHAT DID I EVEN COOK BEFORE???... just remember you're clueless and you're supposed to be clueless. Start from square one and be happy with square one until you learn to move onto square two. Calm down and enjoy being an absolute idiot."

^Julie and Alice, dancing to Nicki Minaj’s summer hit, Super Bass. ^

How has motherhood changed you in ways that were completely unforeseen?

Motherhood is wonderful and trying and wonderful. It has changed me, in that it is forcing me to become more selfless. I knew that motherhood required giving your life to someone (or someone...s), but I didn't realize what an undying sacrifice it would be. A helpless, adorable baby is completely dependent on me. She can't make it through the night without crying for help due to an empty stomach. She feeds off of me, relies on me, and I have a growing suspicion that she loves me. At any moment, I must be available to drop whatever I'm doing in order to make her comfortable, safe, and happy. Before Alice, I didn't think that time spent in front of your plate at the dinner table was a complete privilege -- it's just a part of life, right? Wrong. Now when I eat, I'm usually holding a baby. At any second she could fuss, and I have to get up from the table, tend to her, and return to a cold plate of food. If there's company, I'll likely return to a conversation I'm no longer a part of, and every plate empty except mine. I let the craved adult conversation at the table drift out of earshot, as I walk myself and baby into another room to nurse. It's a complete sacrifice, and it makes you grow up. I don't loath having to learn it, but it's a hard lesson to learn... the lesson that you're really not all that important, and that there are others out there who are much, much more important than yourself. Before Alice was here, my car was strewn with a DVD, an extra purse, and maybe a to-go cup. Now it's covered with stray socks, a burp cloth, teethers, and a Bumbo. I love it. Sometimes, when I'm strapping Alice into her seat, I look around the car and smile as I think about my seventeen year old self, driving through Sonic to get a drink and thinking I was IT... that THIS was as good as it got. I had the freedom to be, to some degree, quite self-absorbed. But now I get to be baby-absorbed and husband-absorbed. I could never have foreseen how the outward changes of my life would make such an impacting inward change, and I'm increasingly grateful for it. Here's to more babies! Here's to life! Here's to music, song, and laughter! Also! Here's to Jennifer! Thank you for giving me the opportunity to do this, and thank you so much for the wonderful questions that I had much too good of a time answering.

***

I hope everyone who read this enjoyed getting to know Julie. She’s worth getting to know, trust me. Also, how precious is her doll of a child, Alice? Can you believe she’s a real baby? I’ve met her in real life, and held her, and talked to her…so I can fully attest to her realness. Anyway, comments for this post have been disabled, which means you’ll need to direct yourselves to Julie’s blog right now and tell her hello. Thanks!

just call me pippa.

2012-02-08T09:00:00.000-06:00

these are the kinds of conversations that you have with your best friend after she gets engaged:

what we’ve learned here:

1. my phone is never charged.

2. weddings are all about weight loss, clearly.

3. so are honeymoons (jillian edwards would be proud).

4. autocorrect isn’t very well-acquainted with the royal family.

5. someone is really into the emoji-con app…and that someone is both of us.

6. i have ~~blatant~~ subconscious ambitions to upstage her at her own wedding (pippa style).

7. it’s very normal to insert kanye west lyrics into any convo.; he transcends all conversational barriers.

a thank you note, overdue.

2012-02-07T10:50:00.000-06:00

before i had ever mentioned anything on this blog, a few friends caught word of my hospitalization and sent little gifts my way.

i just wanted to take a minute to say thank you to each of them for making such an effort to lift my spirits during a difficult time. it’s amazing what just a little tiny something in the mail can do to brighten someone’s day. it makes me want to be more diligent about sending care packages, letters and cards in a day and age when next to nothing is handwritten anymore.

….says the girl who types out mass thank you notes and publishes them to her blog.

{flowers from sarah}

{a 4 page feel-better-soon letter from caroline}

{500 pages of laugh-out-loudness, courtesy of lauren}

{a funny note & cute necklace from megan}

{this little bit of sunshine from sarah}

{another sweet note/necklace combo from ahn}

(and a salzburg memory, courtesy of kayla)

oh my gorgeous.

2012-02-06T11:15:00.000-06:00

you can imagine my delight when i came across this photo yesterday.

christopher plummer! what a stud.

yesterday was february 5th, and february 5th will always mean a little something to me. on february 5th, 2009, i hopped on a plane and moved to salzburg, austria – to the very alps seen in the above photo.

i used to cry a lot, and reminisce (publicly) about my life in the alps and how i missed it so. then one day last summer, i was speaking to one of my sisters on the phone and she really gave me the bop on the head that i deserved. she said to me, “jennifer, i feel like you spend so much time focusing on the past and wishing you could turn back time…and i just feel like the present time should always be your favorite time. the things that are happening right now should be your focus, not the things that happened years ago”.

and i’m getting pretty good at that, i must say!

but that doesn’t mean i can’t look back on certain phases of my life and smile and think, “what. an amazing. time.” and the alps were an amazing time, i tell ya.

but 2012 has some pretty good things in store for me….. just you wait. and maybe it’s just my pain meds talking, but i' think i’m quite excited about that!

p.s. yes, this post is similar to this one. it’s fine!

p.p.s. i was talking about this last year, too. whoops!

i’m alive (and feeling the need to share my movie opinions, evidently).

2012-02-05T20:45:00.000-06:00

first of all, i just wanted to say a little ‘thank you’ for the thoughtful emails and sweet comments i received after this post. i had a surgery a couple of days ago and guess what? i survived! that was my objective, of course. my recovery isn’t going as well as i had planned… but that statement should be taken with a grain of salt, because part of me was convinced i could recover in less than a day.

but…. at least i have my parents taking caring of me and at least i have boxes of saltines with which i can combat the never-ending nausea and at least i’m in america, home of redbox and the bachelor.

speaking of movies…. here’s a post i had scheduled in advance, to be posted during my recovery. enjoy!

***

TOP TEN FAVORITE MOVIES (and why).

10. The Dark Knight

when the dark knight trailer first premiered on the apple trailer website (aka my homepage), my roommate kaitlyn and i were obsessed. we called it right then and there as we watched it 4 times in a row, “oscar nom. he’s unreal.” i don’t know if it was a week or a month later when the news broke that he’d died but i still remember where i was when i looked at my blackberry and read this text message from kaitlyn: ummmm…heath ledger died. i drove to meet her at our favorite coffee shop downtown, where all the customers were crowded around one person’s laptop, reading the reports. even if he hadn’t died, i would still find his portrayal of ‘the joker’ absolutely chilling, but the fact that he wasn’t here to see how well-received his performance was makes this movie-watching experience all the more haunting. just one question: why the voice, christian bale? why?!

favorite quote: “six?!”

9. Memento

i’ve written a paper on it for one of my film classes, i’ve discussed it in depth with friends, i’ve replayed scenes over and over in my mind….no matter how many times i watch it, though, memento will never fail to a) confuse me and b) blow my mind.

favorite quote: “we all need mirrors to remind ourselves who we are. i'm no different.”

8. The Town

i was fascinated when i read that ben affleck consulted a group of convicted charlestown bank robbers before directing this movie and even based several scenes on true events. and is there anything creepier than nuns robbing banks? no. especially nuns that look like….well, this:

favorite quote: “….whose car are we gonna take?”

7. Fight Club

when it comes to this classic, i’m ‘team edward’ for sure. everyone raves about brad pitt in fight club but i’m not convinced. actually, no – i’m not ‘team edward’, i’m ‘team helena’. she’s a riot. also, this movie has one of the most memorable last scenes of all time…. chills, just thinking about it.

favorite quote: “you met me at a very strange time in my life…”

6. The Departed

martin scorsese directs with such originality that his work could be presented anonymously and cinephiles would still leave the theater saying, “well, scorsese’s done it again”. i’m reminded of that most while watching the departed more so than any other scorsese film (the matt damon shower scene comes to mind in particular). and how can you not love that it’s inspired by one of the most famous mob bosses of all time? i normally find jack nicholson annoying, but his portrayal of frank costello (the character based on whitey bulger) is pretty legendary.

favorite quote: “When you decide to be something, you can be it. That's what they don't tell you in the church. When I was your age they would say we can become cops, or criminals. Today, what I'm saying to you is this: when you're facing a loaded gun, what's the difference?”

5. The Social Network

i’m hesitant to advertise that a movie starring justin timberlake is in my ‘top 10 favorite movies’ (let alone ‘top 5’), but it’s not my fault; this screenplay is like candy to me. also, i just love those winklevoss twins (obligatory disclaimer: but ONLY when played by arnie hammer and NOT in real life…ew).

favorite quote: “i’m 6’5”, 220 and there’s two of me.”

4. Goodfellas

this movie. does it get any better than this movie? well, according to me, there are at least 3 movies that get better than this one… but i don’t know. goodfellas is so phenomenal, i’m starting to wonder why i’ve ranked it at #4. it’s a widely held belief that martin scorsese’s knowledge of music, and how to use it in film, is paralleled by no other. goodfellas demonstrates that beautifully. it’s just a masterpiece. (and deniro at his best, in my opinion.) there are so many famous shots in this movie, one of which is below.

favorite quote: “as far back as i can remember, i always knew i wanted to be a gangster.”

3. The Darjeeling Limited

i know, i know – i’m crazy for thinking that this is wes anderson’s gem, and that most people would argue it’s rushmore, bottlerocket or maybe even the fantastic mr. fox. but i don’t care. this movie is my wes anderson movie. maybe it’s because the soundtrack is awesome, maybe it’s because i love jason schwartzman, maybe it’s because i’ve ridden quite a few overnight trains (albeit never through india). maybe it’s because i’m one of 3 girls and the 3 brothers’ dynamic strikes a chord with me. maybe it’s simply because i’ve broken my nose to the point that it almost looks as crooked as owen wilson’s. beats me. the darjeeling limited makes me cry, and i love it.

favorite quote: “i wonder if the 3 of us would have been friends in real life; not as brothers, but as people.”

2. Inglorious Basterds

speaking of pretentious hipsters, i know most of them deem quentin tarantino too mainstream and irrelavant in this post - pulp fiction era, but i think he’s brilliant. combine his artistic vision and absurdity, brad pitt’s southern accent, the german languauge, hottie til schweiger and the amazing christoph waltz (who puts the fear of GOD in me) with david bowie’s ‘cat people’ and what do you get? my #2 favorite movie: inglorious basterds.

favorite quote: “Now, I'm the di-rect descendant of the mountain man Jim Bridger. That means I got a little Injun in me”

1. You’ve Got Mail

enough with the mafia, boston accents, guns and violence. you may have forgotten somewhere between movies #10 and two, but i am a girl, thank you very much. and my favorite movie of all time is a girly one. you’ve got mail came out before tom hanks looked a man nearing 60 and before meg ryan looked like joan rivers. i’ve watched it more than any other movie i own and i know it backwards and forwards, line for line (so does this girl, by the way). i’ll never tire of this movie. and i’ll never hear the phrase “it’s not personal, it’s business” without inwardly shedding a tear in bereavement over kathleen kelly’s charming shop around the corner. and to this day, when i see a man walking a golden retriever down the street, i hear tom hanks’ voice in my head saying, “brinkley is my dog.”

favorite quote: “it’s like those people who brag because they’re tall.”

***

discussing movies is one of my greatest pleasures in life. feel free to put the comment section to good use on this one!

On heritage (the Mexican version).

2012-02-04T13:15:00.000-06:00

Due to the fact that years of Spanish and German classes were required for my undergraduate degrees, I've always been a little envious of those who have spoken Spanish (or German) from birth (or, ya know, toddler-hood). Bri, having grown up in a Mexican - American environment, has been speaking both Spanish and English from the get-go. Normally, I'd be quite jealous of her natural bi-linguistics, but today, I'm just happy to have her here sharing her take on heritage (....okay, maybe I'm still, like, 3% jealous). Regardless, here she is. Hope you enjoy!

***

Hi There! I'm Bri (like the cheese) and I blog over at Besos, by Bri - Chronicles of My Spanglish Life. I'm so excited to be blogging over at Jenni's blog today, but I'll have to admit, when she asked me to write about heritage and culture, I was a bit overwhelmed.

There are so many things I wish I could share with y'all about growing up in a multicultural family, because it's truly shaped who I am. First of all, I grew up in a multicultural household, my mom is a true Southern gal and my dad is Mexican (from Mexico City).

We lived in Mexico City when I was very young (I spent my elementary school years there), so I learned to read, write, and speak Spanish at the same time I learned English.

Growing up in Mexico City has been one of the most amazing experiences of my life, and after we moved to the United States I realized that many of the habits, or traits I picked up there, would stick with me the rest of my life.

At first I tried to hide them, but I've learned to embrace my heritage and culture, and below are some of the ways it has stuck with me...

My Entertainment

I love music in Spanish, it consumes most of my iPod, and the Spanish Pop station on Pandora gets me through my day. Here I am with Chino y Nacho, one of my career highlights thus far because I'm such a music fan!

My Pride

I've realized that I'm just as much a proud American as I am a proud Mexican. I'm a loyal supporter of both my countries and am proud that my little brother is as well. Here he is cheering for Mexico in a recent soccer match...

My Strong Family Values

I appreciate the Mexican culture because of how close we are to family. I love family dinners, gatherings, and holidays, and I always believe that the more family that's there, the merrier!

My Eating Habits

I grew up putting lime and chile on everything, and it's an addiction I still have to this day. Some of my favorite snacks are jicama and papaya (both hard to find in the US) and I love to smother them with lime and chile, which has caused quite a few strange looks over the years!

I love the fact that I have parents from different backgrounds, because it's allowed me to embrace the best of both cultures, as well as see others with an open mind. I would encourage anyone to not be embarrassed of their background, but to embrace it, because it's what makes us all special!

***

Comments for this post have been disabled, so stop by Bri's blog, where you can find recipes, travel stories, music recommendations and more. You can also find her on twitter!

on addiction.

2012-02-03T08:00:00.001-06:00

drug addiction. alcohol dependency. gambling obsessions. overeating. compulsive shopping.

these problems are all relatively common in today’s society – unfortunate, but true.

but there’s one addiction you might notice is missing from the list.

it’s one i struggle with.

lisa, of L!$@’s life, was gracious enough to address it here today.

***

Hi, my name is Lisa and I am A Hunger Games-aholic…

Now that I have that off my chest, let’s take a walk down District 12 lane…

If you haven’t read the books…GO READ THEM NOW!! Not because I will be
having spoilers but because you don’t know what you are missing out on!

Firstly, for those who have read The Hunger Games Trilogy take a moment to
reflect on the first time you read these wonderful books. Mine was earlier this
month and I literally spent all night reading the first book…I’m talking I went to
bed (for a few hours) as the birds were welcoming in the new day after finishing
it! I know I am really hooked on a book or series when I literally can’t sleep
because I need to keep reading. As I kept reading I couldn’t believe it had taken
me so long to finally read them. People had been suggesting them for ages, but
something about a storyline focusing on 24 kids trying to kill each other hadn’t
appealed to me. (Don’t worry…I am truly reformed now!)

I borrowed them from a friend who lives a couple apartments away…but for
my birthday last week I got the series! Proud moment!! Happy 21st Birthday to
me!! (Thanks Mum) I may have gotten the ‘adult’ covers so they would all match
properly. I have a love/hate relationship with Mockingjay’s ending but that is for
another post.

Secondly, can we please just take a moment to anticipate the upcoming movie!!!!
*FAN GIRL SCREAM!!!* Ok, adult self back. I have watched the trailer too many
times…is that even possible??...and am so antsy to go and see it! I am thinking
that I will even go to Gold Class. I haven’t been to gold class before but you get
fancy chairs, can get meals brought right to you and drinks and a blanket and
apparently it is amazing.

But seriously, I can’t wait to see this fella up on the big screen to fall in love with
him outside of my imagination.

And lastly, how perfect is Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss!! The casting crew did an
awesome job and from what I have seen so far, she is going to make fans of the
books very proud!

Until March 23rd when we can finally see the movie…May the odds be ever in
your favour! (What’s a Hunger Games post without a little cheesy overuse of a
quote :D)

***

Thanks so much, Lisa! I loved your post and am always happy to know a fellow Hunger Games-aholic. Two things I want to comment on real quick: 1) Maybe this is nerdy, but I always love seeing different countries’ versions of book covers, so I’m glad you shared that and 2) I’m in complete agreement – Jennifer Lawrence really is a perfect Katniss. I loved her in Winter’s Bone and suspect she’ll be even better in this.

Comments for this post have been disabled so be sure to stop by Lisa’s blog and leave her some Hunger Games love! You can also find her here on Twitter.

guess what?

2012-02-02T09:00:00.000-06:00

A little announcement for you: I’m in the good ol’ US of A – surprise!

I’ll be here in Oklahoma for awhile having a surgery or two and spending a lot of time with family.

One benefit of being in the US? Getting to attend my best friend Maddie’s engagement party. Her fiancée flew her to snowy Rhode Island for the proposal and they returned to a house full of family and friends for congratulatory dinner and drinks.

I love her ring (I’ve always been a fan of gold over silver).

Maddie has a million sisters and a billion nieces and nephews, many of whom I hadn’t seen in months. It was great visiting with them and catching up with the family that feels a little like my own. Can’t wait to be a part of the Oklahoma wedding of the year, coming Dec. 2012 ;)

German chocolate giveaway! {& a giveaway winner}

2012-02-01T09:45:00.001-06:00

Just the other day, when I posted about these chocolates, a bunch of people commented that they wanted some…

Well, I am nothing if not perceptive.

So today I have a little treat for you.

***

Jenny (of Jeneric Generation – you might have seen her here or here) is offering one lucky winner all of the following treats!

If you’d like to be entered to win these chocolate treasures, please check out Jenny’s blog and then leave a comment here below. {US residents only, please!}

For an extra entry, tweet about the giveaway (provide this link http://bit.ly/xyUYK0 and tag me @Jenni_AT_DE).

A winner will be chosen at random and announced here on Valentine’s Day!

***

The winner of the January giveaway is:

Congrats, Sara! You’ve won the item of your choice from A New Jewel.

Contact me here and I’ll set you up with your prize.

Thanks so much to all who entered! If you didn’t win… maybe you’ll win the chocolate. ;)

london. (a few of my favorite things, pt. 5)

2012-01-31T08:50:00.000-06:00

any time i fly from europe –> to usa or vice versa, i try to arrange a stopover in london. and each time i go, i find that i love it more and more. here’s why:

1. it’s the birthplace of my friend andy, who has an english accent so awesome many of my american friends suspect it’s fake; it’s just too charming to be real. plus, he wears velvet blazers with mickey mouse t-shirts, so…..

2. the tube. touristy, i know. but i love it. i love swiping that yellow oyster card through the turnstile and feeling like a brit. until i open my mouth to say “truck” instead of “lorry” or spell “colour” without a ‘u’.

3. platform 9 3/4. enough said.

for other trips to london see here

the czech republic.

2012-01-30T14:30:00.001-06:00

but first: a reminder! i’m drawing a winner for this giveaway tomorrow.

make sure you’ve entered. someone’s gotta win it!

moving on….

i was asked to participate in a travel series over on fest – a travel/food/style blog.

when asked to elaborate on lessons learned in a specific country, i chose the czech republic.

you can read my post here.

and check back here tomorrow (or the next day) to see if you won the giveaway!

hotel stein.

2012-01-30T08:50:00.000-06:00

when i get emails from people asking, “i’m making a trip to austria soon – what should i do in salzburg?”, it’s hard for me to answer because there are 100 thoughts bouncing around in my head. you’ve gotta go to linzergasse and be sure to stroll down getreidegasse and then stop by o’malley’s and don’t forget mirabell gardens and augustiner’s super fun and the salzach is just gorgeous and the fortress is magnificent and cafe mozart’s nice and reyna is my favorite and, whatever you do, don’t stay here!, i want to scream.

well, the other day it occurred to me that i’ve failed to mention one of salzburg’s best kept secrets: hotel stein.

lounging on the hotel stein roof while sipping tea and watching the sunset is one of my happy places.

fun fact: in the cooler months, they provide cozy fleece blankets to bundle up with, whereas in the 90 degree summer heat, you can bask in the glory of the fortress beneath an umbrella (while eating huge bowls of ice cream).

{check out the hotel stein website here and prepared to be amazed.}

the best part of germany and/or austria*.

2012-01-29T20:00:00.000-06:00

as crazy as it may sound, i don’t love chocolate. reese’s hearts, reese’s pumpkins, reese’s eggs – yes, i love those and can eat them by the dozen, simply because the peanut butter: chocolate ratio is juuuust right.

but chocolate itself has never been my thing.

…until i moved to the alps and realized what chocolate is.

i’ve listed my favorite german/austrian chocolate products below, in order of preference.

***

it takes me about five minutes to finish a box of these (and this girl can attest to that):

you can find kinder bueno bars at any german/austrian train station vending machine, which means i’ve eaten hundreds of them by now:

milka bars come in loads of different flavors and i think i tried every flavor twice during my semester in salzburg (which probably explains the 20 lbs. i gained during those 6 months):

these ritter bars come in a variety of flavors as well and some are seasonal, which obviously means you have to eat as many as you can as often as you can lest they disappear off the shelves too soon.

this kinder bar is the most generic in taste and therefore the most reminiscent of american chocolate. that being said, if you’re looking for a gateway german-chocolate-drug, this is the one i’d recommend. but do be careful, because before you know it, you’ll be eating these things by the boxful at lunch. especially if they’re sold within walking distance of your school…..

* i know some of these products are available in the united states, but unless it’s a store specializing in international delicacies, i guarantee you the selection just won’t compare.

a wedding and a honeymoon.

2012-01-28T12:00:00.000-06:00

a little treat for your saturday....

featuring these two (remember them?).

if these videos don't make you fall in love with kelli and jared, i'm not sure what will.

visit their blog and/or tweet them a little somethin'.

and have a great weekend while you're at it!

cute hair, cute clothes, cute girl….all around cuteness.

2012-01-27T22:00:00.001-06:00

Q - I know you love to read. What's your current favorite book and what's next on your list?

A - Yes I do! To be honest, the amount of books I own is sort of becoming ridiculous..I should really invest in a Kindle and consolidate things... Currently I'm loving Uprising by Erwin McManus, and I'm super excited to read Relentless by John Bevere, and yes, I'm probably like the only human left on the planet that hasn't read The Hunger Games..but that's definitely next on my list too.

Q - If you could go back in time, which decade would you choose (based on fashion and fashion alone)?

A - I would definitely pick the 1950's...those cute dresses= major love/get in my closet pronto.

Q - If you could go to any European country tomorrow, which one would it be and why?

A - France. I've dreamed of visiting since I was a little girl, and my grandmother would tell me stories about what it was like visiting the City of Lights. So, I'd meander down the streets of Paris, take the train to Giverny and sit in Monet's garden with my sketchbook and camera, visit the old villages and lavender fields of Provence, and then since I'm already in Europe, I'd then promptly take a flight to visit you in Dresden.

Q - What are your 3 wardrobe essentials that you just can't live without?

A - I'd have to say a dress (I live in those things), earrings, and a fun pair of heels.

Q - What's your favorite US state?

A - I really love Michigan. Many of my summers have been spent up there, enjoying time with friends and the cooler weather.

Q - Would you rather live in the mountains or by the sea?

A - Well...if it was possible to have both, I'd be a happy camper. Currently I live by the sea, so maybe some time in the mountains would be nice for a change!

Q - What's your fav. month of the year?

A - July. It's my birthday month, yay! It also brings fireworks, days at the beach, time with friends and hopefully a bit of travel :)

***

I’m normally not a huge fashion-blog-reader, but I always love seeing all the fun outfits that Candice puts together. She’s the exception to my rule. She’s just so adorable, is she not?

P.S. Comments for this post have been disabled, so stop by her blog, Teatime Thoughts, and follow along. You can also find her on Twitter.

Thanks again, Candice! :)

you can find me on cbs, mondays at 8pm EST.

2012-01-26T17:30:00.000-06:00

my friend emily and i have a lot in common; both fulbrighters sent to germany, we both (unintentionally) speak a hybrid language of english+german, both diehard fans of himym. oh, and we’re both in love with jason segel. don’t worry, though – we’re not as crazy as this girl (well, i actually can’t speak for emily on this one…).

here’s a skype convo we recently had, after j.s. addressed the rumor that he was secretly married:

i’ll tell NPH hi for everyone.

***

want more sarcasm from emily? try this post on political correctness (or lack thereof) in germany.

and for german langauge-y nerds, may i recommend: german handwriting vs. american handwriting.

and speaking of austria…

2012-01-25T11:20:00.000-06:00

i don’t know if it’s the time of year or what, but i’ve been getting some emails lately from people who want to move abroad, specifically to austria or germany. a frequently asked question: “should i move to germany or austria?”

while i’m a fan of both countries…..one of them has always had my heart.

consider this my public response:

^^ a view of the altstadt (and neustadt, across the river) from above ^^

^^ i promise we weren’t trying to jump off the mountain. ^^

^^ a snowy view of the fortress ^^

^^okay, so all of these photos were taken in salzburg…. but then again, what did you expect? ^^

i love it through the winter, summer, spring and fall… but those snowy days are my favorite.

what NOT to do when skiing in austria.

2012-01-24T10:10:00.001-06:00

{skiing in Mühlbach am Hochkönig, 44 miles south of Salzburg}

1. You probably shouldn’t wear a black leotard beneath your ski apparel. I can understand the appeal in creating a Beyonce-inspired winter look, but trust me, it’s not very practical. Not that I would know from experience.

2. When you ride the bus from the city to the mountain, don’t get distracted and exit the bus one stop too soon. Running after the bus while carrying your ski equipment and shouting, “Halt, Halt!” while trying to pull up the pants that are too big around your waist isn’t as fun as one might think. Also, it puts you at risk for leotard-exposure. Not that that’s ever happened to me.

3. Some chairlifts in Austria look like this. Others resemble an apple-shaped cage, into which you awkwardly climb after detaching your skis and storing them in the outer compartment of the cage along with your poles. When the chairlift stops ascending and you’ve reached the top of the mountain, don’t expect to find a downward-sloping ramp awaiting you upon exiting this cage-like contraption. There is no downward-sloping ramp! This isn’t Crested Butte, Monarch, Loveland or Taos! There’s just a flat ramp – which isn’t very rampy at all – meaning you’ll have to use your poles to gain momentum, as the flat platform you step out onto provides none. So when it comes time to exit that little cage, you should open the cage door, reach outside of the cage, grab your skis, throw them onto the non-slope, step into them, grab your poles and use them to ski away. Do not stand there awkwardly, confused by the lack of slope, because the ever-moving chairlift will hit your backside, you will fall to the ground, you will have to roll away stop-drop-and-roll style so as to prevent bumping your head on the chairlift (which is nearly impossible to do with skis on your feet and poles in your hands) and you will feel very embarrassed. Not that I’ve ever done such a thing.

{but do arrive after noon, if possible. many ski resorts offer a half-price discount later on in the day!}

this is very exciting news for me.

2012-01-23T14:35:00.000-06:00

the devil in the white city is a must-read; it has the power to make long train rides and layovers seem short and sweet, which is the sure sign of a great book, in my humble opinion. while i found the beginning a little ‘blah’, i realized several chapters in that i was hooked (maybe not hunger games hooked….but hooked nonetheless). and, fun fact – i (unknowingly) met the author’s daughter at a party in bologna. small world, huh?

several months ago, i read that the devil in the white city was being made into a major motion picture, which made me very happy. but more importantly, it was recently announced that leonardo dicaprio is said to have been cast as the killer. can it be 2013 already?

actually, 2012 will be a good year, i think, for 2 reasons. number one being this (obviously) and number two being the summer olympics in london (it’s a little known fact that i am the world’s biggest olymipcs fanatic).

but, those things aside, i can’t wait for this movie. maybe i’ll even re-read the book.

did you know there are some people in this world who refuse to read a book more than once? i can’t imagine it.

On heritage (the Swedish version).

2012-01-22T13:30:00.001-06:00

I found the following story very touching and am so happy to share it on my blog today.

I hope you enjoy reading about Karin (the sweetest Swedish-American girl, born in America and currently living in Sweden) and her heritage as much as I did!

***

It is one thing to study abroad in Europe. I’ve done that and loved it. It is a whole ‘nother ball of wax to move to a country where you have personal connection and attempt to make your life there. I am currently trying to do this and am not ready to declare my feelings on this experience quite yet. Upon moving to Sweden a few months ago, I didn’t have many expectations. Though I have Swedish roots on one side of my family, I was more focused on my upcoming classes, settling into my room, etc. Slowly things began to fall in line; class began, I made friends, found a church, planned a holiday and by the time I knew it, it was the end of October. I have distant relatives here in Sweden and one of them, a girl my age, celebrated her birthday and thoughtfully invited me along. That evening’s festivities brought back memories of my life back home…my Swedish – American story.

Meet my grandmother, Anna Linnea. She was born in Sweden, in the same province where I am currently studying, in 1920. A few years later she and her mother moved to the US to rejoin her father who had relocated years prior. She was the last generation of my family to be born in Sweden. She would go back to visit sporadically but lived the rest of her life in Massachusetts. She married, raised three children, worked in a bakery, was part of a bowling league (pretty good from what I hear) and was an active member of a Swedish lodge. Fast forward a few years and I enter the picture; the first grandchild, christened with a Swedish name to boot.

Throughout my childhood, my sister and I attended various activities put on by the Swedish (VASA) lodge which my grandmother, and later my aunt, belonged to. I grew up thinking that everyone had a smorgasbord on Christmas Eve. We also attended a church with deep Swedish roots which didn’t help to shatter the illusions. I did however catch on that not everyone went to tree plundering parties or dressed up with candles wreathed around their heads. Still I liked our traditions and while some faded away as we grew up, others remained just as strong. And for a while they did. Every Christmas Eve was spent crammed into her house feasting on dishes with very Swedish names, listening to Swedish music and opening gifts from relatives back in the homeland. Then in the blink of an eye, everything stopped.

During the fall of my senior year of college, my grandmother fell and was hospitalized. Over the next ten months, her health deteriorated rapidly. My other grandmother had died when I was much younger. Linnea was one of only two grandparents who had lived to see me grow up. Saying goodbye was especially difficulty knowing that she was already gone in some ways as a result of late-diagnosed Alzheimer’s. She passed away months before I even applied to study in Sweden.

When I began my blog, I couldn’t help but think of her and how I would want to share my journey with her. Therefore my blog is dedicated in part to her; the stories of my struggles to adapt to a foreign culture, my impressions at seeing our family traditions come to life all around me, my food adventures and what I would tell her if she could read it today.

***

Comments for this post have been disabled, so be sure to stop by Karin’s blog. And if you want another way to keep up with her adventures in Sweden, you can always find her on twitter.

Thanks!

Beyonce, Lt. Aldo Raine, and me.

2012-01-20T10:50:00.000-06:00

For whatever reason, I’ve always longed to feel as though my roots could be traced back to deeper than just Oklahoma. Growing up, I asked my maternal grandparents and my mother on more than one occasion if they knew from where in Europe our ancestors immigrated…all to no avail. Because my paternal great-grandmother was Native American*, I at least knew that, as Lieutenant Aldo Raine would say, “I [had] a little ‘Injun in me”. And I liked knowing that, but I always yearned to know more.

On a side note, it’s worth mentioning that Beyonce is 1/4 Choctaw Indian. Let’s appreciate that for a moment.

Moving on….

Once I moved abroad, that curiosity only grew deeper. One of the most frequent questions asked by my students in Germany, for example? “Besides America, where are you from?”

I recently lamented to my dad how annoying it was to me that no one in our family seemed to know anything about anyone born before the 20th century. He said to me, “What are you talking about? Our family can be traced back to Germany….Berlin, to be exact.” When I asked him why he has withheld this information from me for so long (I mean, I kind of feel like my moving to Germany would have been a good time to divulge this), he simply said, “You never asked me.”

To me, this is fascinating. If I had the resources to research my heritage all day long, I would. Until then, I’ll settle for seeing Berlin in a whole new light the next time I visit.

cherokee source, berlin source

*Pet peeve: People who refer to Native Americans as ‘Indians’ – not because it is, by definition, politically incorrect, but because how am I supposed to know if you are referring to our country’s indigenous people as opposed to someone from Mumbai?!? And, for that reason, you will never hear me say that my great-grandmother was Indian. Because, as far as I know, she was not born in South Asia.

19 years in the making.

2012-01-19T09:00:00.000-06:00

1. we’ve been bff since august of 1992 when we started kindergarten together – that’s 19 years! – and for the first 5 grades of elementary school, we were in the same class.

2. a classmate of ours once threw an m&m at maddie’s head. it enraged me so much that i raised my hand and interrupted the teacher’s lesson, asking that the classmate be punished. we were 17 and juniors in high school when this happened.

3. we can quote any/every line of the parent trap (lindsay lohan version) and in 2009 when natasha richardson (aka elizabeth james) died, i was sincerely concerned for madeline’s well-being.

4. we grew up within a mile of each other and her parent’s house – which feels like my 2nd home– is the setting of precisely 29% of my childhood memories.

5. speaking of which, one of my favorite childhood memories involves eating maddie’s mom’s oreo brownies in their kitchen, fresh from the oven. to this day, maddie maintains that her mom never once made oreo brownies and that i’ve completely fabricated this so-called memory. i don’t think we’ll ever know the truth.

6. two of her ex-boyfriends can be seen in this photo and, for that reason, she hates it! i like to publicize it as much as possible, naturally.

7. we know this song word for word and have performed it live, together (don’t ask).

8. thanks to her, i have this puppy in my life.

9. we watched every episode of the OC together in high school (you know, until it got stupid).

10. speaking of the OC, she was in love with sandy cohen to such a degree that it bordered on unhealthy.

11. we went to senior prom in the same group, with dates we were totally convinced would be our future husbands.

12. we now cannot possibly imagine being married to our prom dates.

13. our senior year of high school, we took an advanced placement geography course that started at 7:30 am (when the normal school day didn’t begin ‘til 8:45). neither of us needed the course; we just wanted to have a class together. and i think it was plenty obvious to every classmate (and to the teacher) that our motives for taking the class had nothing to do with learning geography.

14. one time in college, maddie was driving across oklahoma with two guy friends and her car broke down in a small town called ‘big cabin’. when she texted me that she was stuck there, i misunderstood and thought she was being held hostage in a large cabin with two guys. i was horrified.

15. i have been extremely jealous of her ever since she had to get her jaw wired shut one summer because a) she lost, like, 20 pounds in a week and b) now she has that in common with kanye west.

16. we were once so in love with zac efron, that when the vanessa hudgens nude photo scandal broke, we emailed disney demanding that they fire her from the high school musical cast (because, obviously, we’d be her replacement?). what we didn’t realize was that instead of emailing the disney channel, we had emailed the disney cruise line by mistake.

17. shortly after maddie got her driver’s license, we were driving in her range rover and she pulled out in front of an oncoming car. had the other car not immediately slammed on its brakes, it would’ve crashed into my side of the rover. since then, i’ve reminded her of this any time i’ve needed a favor, simply by asking, “remember the time you almost killed me?”.

18. she studied abroad in the netherlands (maastricht) the semester before i studied in salzburg. she played a big role in my wanting to move abroad (if only we had gotten the timing right and could’ve been there together!).

19. my parents think of her as a daughter and have even hung out with her when i’ve been out of the country.

20. in high school, we used to drive to border’s on weekly basis to study, which generally consisted of us reading people magazine and ‘us weekly’ and leaving our textbooks in the car.

21. i decided to surprise her one spring break in college (i went to oklahoma state, she went to baylor). after driving to waco and arriving at her dorm, i stepped out of the car and spotted her 50 yards away. instead of just walking toward her like a normal person, i started laughing so hard that i couldn’t breathe, and when i yelled, “MADDIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”, it came out like the sound of a banshee being strangled. it ended up being less of a surprise and more of a major scare.

22. my cousin had a mini crush on her in college and only referred to her as ‘freckles’. i always secretly wanted them to get married, but the truth is she could do way better.

23. no matter how old we are, we will never grow out of this.

24. i think she’d want me to inform every one that since the filming of that video, her braces have been removed. the end!

a personal post (whatever that means).

2012-01-18T09:00:00.000-06:00

at one point in time, a big part of this blog was focused on a cross-cultural relationship and the funny conversations that resulted from it.

over the past few months, i’ve received many emails, tweets and comments inquiring about this so i thought i should clarify that yes, that relationship has, indeed, ended (as of 5 months ago, to be precise). perhaps i should have mentioned it before now, but….better late than never?

p.s. don’t freak out! or be sad or worried or concerned. because, while i will always look back on my experiences in poland with fondness, i’m certain that this decision was 100% for the best and am quite content with it – contrary to what that photo may suggest. ;)

January giveaway!

2012-01-17T09:00:00.000-06:00

Today, Aly of A New Jewel is offering up any piece of jewelry from her shop!

Here are my favorites:

All followers of this blog are eligible to win! To enter, visit A New Jewel and leave a comment below, telling me your favorite item in the shop.

Extra entries (leave a comment for each):

Tweet about the giveaway (tagging @Jenni_AT_DE).

Add A New Jewel to your etsy favorites.

Like A New Jewel on Facebook.

And (this one counts as six extra entries) purchase something from A New Jewel and let me know*.

That’s 10 chances to win! Winner will be chosen at random and announced 2 weeks from today on Jan. 31.

*Aly is offering a 15% discount if you enter the code ‘JENNI’ upon check-out!

the greatest idea.

2012-01-16T09:00:00.000-06:00

am i really slow on the uptake for just now hearing about this website?

i had a borderline emotional reaction when i discovered “i found your camera”, because i sympathize very much with those whose cameras have yet to be found.

during what my friend lindsay and i affectionately refer to has the W.T.E. (worst trip ever), we celebrated new year’s eve in salzburg and had a fabulous time. we were dressed to the nines, laughed ‘til our sides hurt with hilarious friends at our austrian home away from home and counted down to midnight while standing on the snow-covered riverbank, a bottle of champagne in hand, yelling “Prost!” and “ein gutes neues Jahr!”. in addition to our magical new year’s eve (and it really was magical, too – we got a free cheese pizza*!), we spent a few more nights of merriment in our favorite city on earth and had plenty of lovely photos and hilarious video footage to prove it.

and then on january 3rd (which shall henceforth be known as ‘the beginning of the end’ or ‘the day we just shouldn’t have gotten out of bed’), we flew from munich to barcelona and then took an overnight train to the south of spain to visit a friend. our train compartment was great – a little claustrophobic, but in a cozy sort of way. lindsay and i chose 2 of the 4 beds provided in the compartment and went to sleep.

and somewhere between barcelona and granada, the camera was gone.

it should be known that we spent the majority of the next 48 hours pleading with renfe (the spanish rail company) to get our camera back, all to no avail. we were told the camera was either a) in the grubby hands of a thief, b) being sold on ebay, c) a combination of both a + b, or d) or at the bottom of the renfe washing machine, had it been mistakenly collected with the bed sheets. somehow, option ‘d’ was the most depressing.

if i sat down right now to construct a pie chart of the unforeseen catastrophes that made up our W.T.E., losing the camera would take up only 11% of said pie chart– there were that many other contributing factors, unfortunately. maybe someday i’ll describe them in detail but i’ll have to wait ‘til the emotional scarring fades a little…which could take years. i mean, this trip really debunked the whole “i’m the princess of european travel and i can go anywhere i want and isn’t it fun?!” myth for me, because sometimes – a lot of times, actually – traveling is an exhaustingly wretched nightmare (i told you this trip was emotionally scarring).

and that is why i recently spent a half hour relentlessly clicking through picture after picture on this site, expecting to see my face or lindsay’s. and while my hopes were in vain, i do think the concept behind “i found your camera” is a fine one. give it a look for yourself, if you have time. it would be such a great feeling to identify a friend or acquaintance and spare them the turmoil of losing valuable memories, would it not?!

can you imagine how priceless this photo is?

and of course i love this one of salzburg’s mirabell gardens.

*which we later discovered was not even the slightest bit free.

it’s another ‘stitch’ giveaway!

2012-01-15T17:00:00.002-06:00

enter giveaway here

shop stitch online here

giveaway alert.

2012-01-14T12:00:00.001-06:00

Attention, attention! You have 36 hours to enter this giveaway hosted by Kaity.

^^ That’s Kaity. ^^

^^These are just a few of the items available in her etsy shop, up for grabs in the giveaway. ^^

Fun fact: When Kaity was younger, she liked to think of her American Girl doll, Samantha, as her ‘mini-me’.

That being said, when you buy something from her shop, entering the code ‘americangirl’ upon checkout can save you 15%!

Today’s version of my von Trapp-inspired series is brought to you by….

2012-01-13T09:00:00.001-06:00

***

I'm Alex (or, as many call me Butts, Buttsy, Boots... the list goes on) - proud alum of The University of Texas at Austin and Texas Pi Phi. I just completed my second Eurotrip and am in the midst of a year abroad, living in Germany as an au pair for four children.

And these are a few of my favorite things:

1. Cooking. I love entertaining. If I ever get to build my dream home, it will be built solely around entertainment spaces - whether it's a cocktail hour or Super Bowl party. For Thanksgiving, we set out to show the Germans all about one of the best American holidays. This was no easy feat. The butcher offered us sliced turkey breast when we asked for a whole turkey. The sweet potatoes at the local market were the size of kiwis and don't even think about finding canned pumpkin or pre made pie crusts anywhere. Yet we managed it all: an oven roasted turkey, sweet potato casserole and even a pumpkin pie completely from scratch.

2. Buffalo Sauce. One of the great things about being abroad is trying new foods, of course - but even better is sharing your favorite dishes with the new people you meet. Come to think of it, I need to introduce buffalo sauce in all its greatness (although I already know most Germans won't be able to handle the heat). People always ask me which is better, American food or German food? And while I would not say American food as a particular category is better, the variety of cuisines available in the United States is better. So yes, I think eating is better in the U.S. I asked my German family, who frequent the U.S., what things they miss while they are in the United States and the answers range from nothing to, well, only the German bread. Yes, the German bread is good but since I seriously need to lay off the carbs it's not up for discussion.

3. Traveling. Lastly, let's not get my one true love. I only discovered it less than 2 years ago and I feel like I've done some pretty good damage since then. If money were no object, you can bet I'd be on a RTW plane ticket come summer when I leave here (don't even want to talk about it, already depressed). I love the food, the history, the train trips, the architecture, capturing each moment through photography, and even the mishaps along the way (after all, they make the best memories). My most favorite part, however, is the people: adventurous, open-minded and everyone has THE BEST stories. And everyone is actually pretty dang good at keeping in touch (yay Facebook). My most important revelation so far: is that no matter where you are from or how you grow up, we want the same basic things: happiness and acceptance. This, for some reason, has been my favorite part of traveling thus far. People are amazing.

***

Thanks, Alex! I am amazed that you were able to create a Thanksgiving meal in Germany that was even remotely “American”, as I myself have tried that and failed. And while we’re on the ‘living in Germany’ subject, I have to say that I completely identify with you on the carb front….I have a love/hate relationship with the bakeries on every corner . And I think it’s pretty obvious that I’m a travel-crazed human being as well, so…. we’re kindred spirits. ; )

Comments for this post have been disabled so head on over to Alex’s blog or send her a little tweet!

a few of my favorite things, part 3.

2012-01-12T09:00:00.000-06:00

1. serendipitously running into old salzburg friends and realizing it really is a small world after all!

2. thrifted dresses for $5 a piece, especially after they’ve been revamped from floor-length to knee-length (thanks, mom!).

3. this puppy i can’t quit talking about. she really, really is the cutest thing on the planet. i’m sorry if you think your puppy or kitten or hamster or human baby is cuter. because i beg to differ.

{pt. 2 can be found here}

is anyone else obsessed with this show?

2012-01-11T09:00:00.000-06:00

when i first moved to dresden and didn’t have a ton of friends, i watched a lot of television (online, of course). and i should mention that “a lot” might be a bit of an understatement, because it was basically all i did for the first couple of days as i unpacked, decorated, settled in and unpacked some more.

‘up all night’ was one of my go-to shows, as it premiered shortly after my relocation. suffice it to say, it only took 2 episodes before i was hooked.

top & bottom

will arnett has always been a comedic genius, in my opinion, but i’ve been pleasantly surprised by the hilarity christina applegate adds to the mix. the scene where she comes to the breakfast table dressed in an evening gown, for example, is a classic. and the episode where they try to fit in with the cool neighbors?? another favorite of mine. or the one where they accidentally order the a-team van?!?! okay, i’m stopping now…. anyway, if you don’t watch it, do. or don’t. it’s kind of all the same to me, anyway.

p.s. - i secretly don’t see the need to keep maya rudolph’s character around…. i’m ready for her to be written out of the show (you know, in case the writers were wondering or something). is that just me?

another one of my favorite december days

2012-01-10T09:00:00.000-06:00

true to form, i’m posting about my recent adventures 2-3 weeks after they originally took place….thereby rendering them not so ‘recent’ at all. however, i justify this with the disclaimer that i schedule all my posts weeks or months (no, i’m not that organized, i’ve just had to endure some very boring train/plane rides) in advance, so at least when i’m writing the posts, the happenings i’m reporting are current. also, does any one really care? no.

right then, i’d just like to take a moment now to endorse a little product called the twinkie making kit. i’m not being paid to endorse this, but if someone wants to send me money or free twinkies or even a free trip to the hostess factory, i won’t necessarily object.

each year, when our birthday rolls around, my mom lets us choose a “birthday meal!” followed by a “birthday dessert!”. well, my birthday’s in september, but that didn't stop me from discovering this charming little kit on amazon one day in december, ordering it for my mom and subsequently deciding it would play a role in my next birthday celebration (and no, we won’t talk about the fact that my next birthday celebration will involve me celebrating my 25th birthday because my, my, my that seems too old to be true). anyway, you heard it here first – for my next birthday, i’d like the dessert to be: pink strawberry twinkies with cream filling because strawberry’s my favorite and i love cream filling as much as the next girl and who says twinkies have to be yellow, anyway?

and that is how part of my ‘holiday festivities in oklahoma’ included a practice run with the twinkie kit (as it’s very important that my mom perfect the art of homemade twinkie baking before september 30, 2012 rolls around).

we made the mistake of using angel food cake in our trial run, though. we thought such a consistency would give off a really convincing ‘twinkie vibe’, but then came to the following realizations: 1) twinkie vibes are unnecessary when the homemade version of the twinkie is shaped like a twinkie and 2) angel food cake isn’t that delicious.

i offer you a twinkie-making tutorial (brought to you by instagram), nonetheless.

{you inject the cream filling into the bottom of the twinkie so as to keep the twinkie top in tact. cute, huh?}

can i get an amen?

2012-01-09T10:35:00.001-06:00

dear justin timberlake,

if you’re reading this (and i suspect you are; i know you read my blog all the time), would you mind moving your career in the music industry from the back burner to the front? i recently watched bad teacher on a plane ride; it was one of the worst movies i’ve ever had the displeasure of watching. and even though i loved the social network, i sort of thought you were the worst part.

i just don’t think acting is your thing. but music, on the other hand….do you remember in 2006 when you brought sexy back? i think you should try that again! it’s been 6 years now. come on.

sincerely,

the planet earth (or, well….me)

p.s. i love when you host snl, though. and it really doesn’t get any better than this, in my book (or this!).

one of my favorite december days.

2012-01-08T17:00:00.000-06:00

back in december, just before all the holiday celebrations took place, my family and i road-tripped one day to the minco honey festival. just so ya know, minco is a tiny town in oklahoma (we’re talking population: 2,000) named after a chickasaw chief. as much as i love traveling europe and seeing the world (the european world, that is), i really do love all things oklahoman – small towns included. and since i didn’t grow up in a small town, it feels a little bit like i’m visiting a movie set when we take trips like these. this one in particular reminded me of the town in sweet home alabama.

***

we started the day by visiting the honey plant, where the resident bee-keepers were selling honey gift baskets & giving hive-robbing tutorials, the latter of which was of little interest to us since my dad is a recreational bee-keeper himself, so…nothin’ new. we did buy some of the local honey, though. gotta support those minco bee-keepers.

following the honey plant visit, we made our way downtown and spent a good amount of time browsing around this adorable antique store, where they were selling apple cider for only 50 cents a cup and handing out peanut brittle samples for free (i was in heaven and understandably so).

following the antique store? a quilt show.

i think i ate more on this day than the past 24 thanksgivings combined. food was being offered everywhere; if it wasn’t for sale, it was free. funnel cakes, corn dogs, brisket, bbq and kettle corn – you name it, minco had it.

we stopped by a local flower/gift shop, the owners of which were participating in the festival by hosting a raffle of holiday prizes. of course my mom won the grand prize (the magnetic wreath seen below); this should be no surprise to anyone who knows my mom, since she loves festive decor so much she may as well be mrs. claus.

after a few more hours of other festival-related activities, we attended a bluegrass concert and headed home. it was a long, cold day and, in case you were wondering, yes, i did wear my cowboy boots and yes, i did fit right in.

we loved ya, minco! see ya next time.

***

do your thoughts need provoking? are you in need of a laugh?

2012-01-07T12:00:00.001-06:00

jenny can help you with the former:

see here and here.

whereas alivia can help you with the latter:

see here.

i love both of these girls and i enjoy their blogs very much. and i think you might, too!

happy weekend! i’m spending the day watching felicity season 2. :)

if you think i travel a lot, you should see this girl.

2012-01-06T13:00:00.001-06:00

i am constantly amazed by the frequency at which megan travels. she’s always in a different european country – i swear.

i am amazed by these photos she took of gorgeous, snowy norway:

i will visit norway one day... i just know it! in the meantime, however, i’ll just settle living vicariously through megan. you should too! follow her and her euro adventures here.

{comments for this blog post have been disabled so after you visit her blog, send her a little tweet!}

this is, just, the biggest news ever.

2012-01-05T18:35:00.000-06:00

{but first, i am selling the 3 weirdest, most random items ever on ebay. wanna see?.}

{{and also, i recently guest posted over here and i think it’s pretty fun! you might, too.}}

anyway, i am considering cutting off 8 inches of my hair for beautiful lengths.

i did locks of love a few years back (and kinda hated it), but that was over 10 inches.

beautiful lengths is 8.

i measured, and if i cut off 8 inches of hair, it will be this length:

i will keep everyone updated as this unfolds.

i suspect it will make the cnn news ticker pretty soon….

so you can check there as well.

it’s true, i was on ‘the hills’. (the clearly-someone-has-a-little-too-much-time-on-her-hands post…)

2012-01-05T11:30:00.000-06:00

although i’m told that my personality/demeanor/face+bangs scream ‘april from parks & rec’, i also get ‘audrina from the hills’ on occasion. and while the former leads me to believe i’m probably too sarcastic (as if that’s possible) and the latter makes me wonder if people think i have dysfunctional eyeballs (there’s a reason she was dubbed ‘ceiling eyes’, alright?), i think i’m okay with both.

but while we’re on the topic, you should know something about the weird way in which my brain functions. everyone looks like someone else to me. as in: you remind me of this actress, while he looks just like this singer and she is the spitting image of this girl i used to know. my mind is always contrasting and comparing faces and mannerisms and one of these days i’m going to find a job that requires me to do this all day long and get loads of money for it. just you wait!

in the meantime, would you like to see who i think some blogger folk look like?

^^the resemblance between ashley and luna lovegood is uncanny. ^^

^^ i’ve always thought jenny looks like an olsen twin. ^^

^^sarah doesn’t believe me but i think she’s a non-latina version of jessica alba. ^^

^^i’m fairly certain that ilana is really zooey deschanel, she’s just not telling us. ^^

^^ if someone were making a movie about ahnika, i’d cast amber heard to play the leading role. ^^

^this one’s a long shot, but jenni strikes me as a modern day, slimmer version of liesl in the sound of music.

and speaking of ‘the hills’, i called this one (kate middleton || lauren conrad) ages ago:

one of my favorite Salzburg sights: Augustiner Bräu

2012-01-04T09:00:00.000-06:00

I get a lot of emails with questions about Salzburg; where to stay (where not to stay), what to do/see, etc.

Here’s a recommendation for those of you who care: Augustiner Bräu. {Interesting Fact #1: It was founded by Monks in 1621.} {Interesting Fact #2: When you pronounce “Bräu” correctly, it sounds like “broy”, not “brow”.}

Year round, Augustiner is the place to be in Salzburg. You can either lounge outside in the biergarten or cozy up to one another at a booth inside in one of the massive bier halls. Yes, it’s a brewery so nearly everyone has a beer in hand but it’s a beautiful enough place to enjoy even if you choose not to partake in the drinking. Also, they serve food (and lots of it) in many varieties (though all Bavarian-esque).

Back when I lived in Salzburg, my friends went to Augustiner all the time; it was the place to celebrate birthdays, holidays, Tuesdays, etc. Kayla even knew it so well, she once identified that a Facebook friend of hers was sitting in the Augustiner biergarten… just by seeing the thumbnail version of his profile picture.

***

(last spring…)

When selecting your beer, you choose between a half liter (what us girls usually choose) and a liter, which you then rinse out at a communal fountain before selecting your beer. Kayla and I always opted for Radlers instead of beer (half lemonade-half beer). Anytime I ordered this in front of local friends, though, they made fun of me. Personally, beer is not my drink of choice but I’m told the beer here is as good as it gets.

(…summer …)

Just walking around the beer hall/biergarten, you’ll see plenty of people sporting traditional Bavarian dress (lederhosen/ dirndls). Come to think of it, though, you’ll see that anywhere you go in Salzburg. Note: this guy is my friend Robert. From Ohio. He’s an Austrian-imposter, don’t be fooled.

(…fall…)

The only downside? It’s located very much outside the city center; either a 30 minute walk or a 15 minute bus ride. We rode the bus there when we celebrated my 24th birthday in Salzburg just a few months ago!

(…and winter.)

You never know what kind of people you’ll encounter at Augustiner. When Pierce and Brett visited me in Salzburg, I brought them here, where we witnessed a family giving their 5-year-old son a little cup of beer. To Bavarians, it probably seems weird that we even took note of this. But, to Oklahomans, a beer-drinking child is a sight to behold!

***

official augustiner website

madewell, stitch, a baby golden-doodle puppy, felicity boxed sets and a self-designed credit card: 5 things i’m loving right now.

2012-01-03T11:17:00.000-06:00

1. these pants, brought to you by madewell, are the most comfortable pants in the world... the world, i tell you! i can’t get enough of madewell these days… it is my version of everybody else’s anthro.

2. stitch vintage and handmade just got even more lovable. kaitlyn (the shop owner, duh) found the most striking model to wear her clothes around and look so gorgeous doing so. isn’t she stunning? {browse the online shop here.}

3. i don’t know that i’ve ever been more obsessed with a puppy than this little dark chocolate golden-doodle here, scout, who doesn’t belong to me but gets to come see me as often as she likes. it’s a pretty neat joint-custody situation. her owner doesn’t know any such custodial set-up exists, but it’s only a matter of time (don’t think i’m above dognapping her) (just kidding) (maybe).

4. my friend emily lent me the boxed set of felicity, season 1, and it changed my life. i watched this show quite a bit when it aired over a decade ago, but re-watching it has been so enjoyable. i mean, ben? what a cutie – especially in all that flannel (so ahead of his time, that ben). julie? kind of annoying in a why-is-her-hair-always-in-pigtails sort of way. noel? i can take him or leave him, to be honest (i was always a ‘team ben’ kind of girl). felicity herself? well, once she realized how to tame that wild mess of hair and start wearing sweaters that weren’t size XXL, she turned out to be pretty charming, i’d say! and meghan? my favorite. {ps – the whole series is on netflix-on-demandable!}

5. when given the opportunity to design my own credit card, using my very own images, this is what i created (see below). and does this surprise anyone? no.

?

2012-01-03T09:00:00.001-06:00

~~contact me~~ ~~here~~

~~if you’d like to sponsor this month~~

~~for the reduced rate of just $5.~~

sold out.

thanks!

and here it is.

thank you!!!!

so long, 2011. i loved you and i hated you and i loved you some more.

2012-01-02T09:00:00.000-06:00

{january}

After dramatically dubbing a flight from the US to Europe as “the worst thing that ever happened to me", I celebrated New Year’s in Poland but secretly missed my friends back home (or maybe just the Thai food). I posted some fisheye shots from Wels, Austria…Berlin, Germany….and Rome, Italy and got a teensy bit nostalgic about my college life. A conversation with a random girl on a Polish train blossomed into a new friendship and my oldest friend back home turned 23.

{february}

I made my official debut as a professional accordion player and became well acquainted with ‘anonymous’ after posting an open letter to gyms in Germany. I dined at Mozart Cafe in Salzburg with Kayla, wished a happy 2nd birthday to my European life and laughed hysterically at this text message. I became completely obsessed with HIMYM and returned to Vienna only to realize I missed it so. I ate Sacher Torte for breakfast and attended church at this famous cathedral. I visited an old friend in Mannheim and ate a lot of crap. I wore this outfit (or something to the effect of it) almost every day. I ate this marvelous breakfast in Heidelberg and posted about the best weekend plans I’d had in a long, long time. I also started this little series that turned out to be a great big hit.

{march}

I embarrassed myself by doing this and then we learned about the difference between Veruca Salt and Angelina Jolie. I flattered myself by thinking this was cool and then began endorsing the Swiss army knife as the perfect bangs-cutting tool. I reminisced about my best friend and liked the way this book smelled. I ate McDonald’s for breakfast, followed by Burger King for lunch. I wished my mom a happy birthday by posting these gorgeous pictures of her. I had mixed feelings about living in Europe and found solace in a Polish grocery store. I had a hellish experience on a German train and then my students fell in love with my sisters.

{april}

I took a 5 hour road trip to Berlin and I missed America some more. I finally got a bus pass and it was a huge deal. I declared my love for my new living situation as well as these heavenly creations. I had a euphoric experience at Ikea and then ranted out a plea to Europeans. I professed my love for Marie Antoinette (the movie) and I wrote a letter to the city of Salzburg. I remembered my favorite Easter – spent in Germany and Austria (imagine that!). I deemed this weekend the best of the year and I provided live(ish) commentary on the Royal Wedding.

{may}

I smuggled french fries into an Irish pub and then took a page out of Maria von Trapp’s book. I experienced a bout of travel-induced delirium and wrote about how special it was introducing my parents to Salzburg. I wished my mom a happy Mother’s Day and then ended up in a German hospital. I realized I have a bathroom-related addiction and then missed my sister’s birthday. I wore a giant blue cast and took Caroline to Poland. I ate my weight in these and proved myself to be somebody’s favorite daughter. I accidentally dressed up as Waldo and then nearly scared my mom silly with this post right here.

{june}

I continued to horrify my mother by posting this, this and this. Caroline and I flew to Spain and ate plates upon plates of tapas. I posted my first work-out tutorial and climbed to the top of Alhambra. Caroline and I forgot how to speak English and I almost injured an old woman on a train. I posted my favorite photo of all time and confessed a deep, dark secret.

{july}

I boycotted the 4th of July and spontaneously met up with an Italian friend in Salzburg. I took another trip to Berlin and made my affinity for the Berliner Dom very clear. I visited Rothenburg ob der Tauber and dramatized my history with Harry Potter. I introduced everyone to my Franconian family and then took a day trip to Munich. I explained why I was hospitalized and the chaotic aftermath that followed. And I wrote about the Nazi rallies in Nuremberg as well as a beer festival in Erlangen.

{august}

I became an au-pair (for all of one day) and took a trip to Stuttgart. I posted about an unexpected trip to France, followed by a blogger meet-up in Salzburg. After another trip to the Berlin wall, I ate the best meal of my life in Berlin’s Turkish district. ‘Anonymous’ yelled at me again and I went to Krakow! I posted about two of my favorite Bavarian towns: Salzburg and Rosenheim. I shared deep thoughts after my trip to Auschwitz-Birkenau, followed by even deeper musings on McDonald’s milkshakes. I said good-bye to two American girls and wanted to strangle an Austrian man.

{september}

I posted some lovely instax photos of Munich and Salzburg and then documented my flight home to the US (including a 6 hour layer at JFK). I summarized my time in Oklahoma, which included indulging in Mexican food and non-Mexican food. I awarded this town the title of one of my favorite places on Earth and then provided a fisheye illustration. I read The Help and posted this strange, yet amazing, video. Jetlag plagued me for what felt like months and I moved to Dresden! I posted about my commute to school and found new ways to identify with the Kardashians. Oh, and I turned 24.

{october}

I posted about friends in Dresden and my favorite restaurant. My students asked me hilarious questions and I documented my day at Oktoberfest (and my night there, too). I decided this day in Salzburg was perfect and this day in Cologne wasn’t so bad itself. I realized living in Europe is really quite humbling. These fisheye shots of a summer trip to Cinque Terre finally made their debut and I shared my favorite Halloween costumes with the world.

{november}

I decided I have a few bones to pick with the Frankfurt airport and shared photos and a video of the wedding I flew home for. I discussed my occasional struggle with being content and received a lot of nice feedback (thanks!). I posted a second work-out tutorial of sorts, a fisheye tour of London and a glimpse of Dresden at Christmastime. And I closed out Novemeber’s posts with a “Thankgsiving in Alaska” series.

{december}

I found a way to incorporate Andy Warhol into a post about Ireland (which isn’t easy). I complained about early morning train rides and channeled Maria von Trapp once again. I shared both my dilemma of cake-baking in Germany and a hilarious conversation with one of my students. I wrote about a cloudy day in Munich, a trip to the baths in Budapest and a sleigh ride in the Alps. I posed a serious question and wasn’t even being sarcastic, either. I expressed my gratitude to be celebrating Christmas with family and reviewed the holidays here, here and here.

***

…and a happy New Year.

Let’s hope it’s a good one

without any fear.

-- John Lennon

a very special post….written by one of my favorite people on this earth.

2012-01-01T20:00:00.001-06:00

This girl needs no introduction. You already know her from here, here and here.

And maybe here, too.

***

Hello, readers of Jenni-Austria-Germany! I am Jenny with a ‘y’! And I am happy to be here.

I am so tempted to rub it in your faces that I am personal friends with such am amazing person, but that would be rude, childish, and off-putting. But really, I love Jennifer. I am so glad we are friends, and I am so honored that she asked me to start off the New Year on her blog! Can I just say right now that I may or may not be her blog's biggest fan.

Jennifer asked me to write about resolutions, reflections on the past year, and most of all, to make it meet the standard of hilarity you all have grown accustomed to on this blog. She made that very clear.

She didn’t actually say that, but I feel the pressure nonetheless. I am going to say right now that that is impossible. And I offer my sincerest apologies up front. So here I go….

I am sitting here sipping my warm cappuccino, thinking about the past year(s) and the one to come. And I am not sure where to begin.

First, in a nutshell, I moved from Oklahoma to Washington, D.C. in the fall of 2009. I met this guy named Eric in the fall of 2010, and I married Eric in the fall of 2011. Whirlwind? Yes. I went from my never having a boyfriend-independent self, to moving across the country with no place to live (yet), to getting my first real job, my first heartbreak, then meeting the greatest guy ever one month later, and marrying that guy. That’s 2009-2011 for you.

It is easy to look back on the past two years of living away from family and point to specific things that changed me. In my mind's eye, I can see my life in a timeline with great big dots marking important events. But they have not fooled me into thinking those are the things that changed me, or the things that really caused me to grow. Yes, they mark important steps in my life, but they aren’t my life.

In this day and age, and for our generation especially, I think, it is so easy to look back on our lives as one big resume. People measure their success by those big dots that stand out on a timeline.

Big deal.

I think of all the people who paved the way for me to be where I am today....my great grandpa who sailed across the Atlantic Ocean from Germany to give a better life to his family, my family. My parents who sacrificed so much to give us the best education they could, and taught us to love the truth and to love our neighbor. If they don't think they have accomplished much in life, that would be a tragedy.

Those things never get a round of applause or even an honorable mention in the hall of fame of human greatness. But those are the things that are important to me. And this year, as Eric and I learn how to be our own family, and set the stage for future family traditions, my plans include:

1) Not getting caught up in the future. It doesn't exist. I can easily get caught up entirely in the things I WILL do--and in doing so, forget the present and how special, and fleeting, it is.

2) Pushing myself out of my comfort zone. I am not talking about skydiving (Although, I would do that. Maybe. If someone literally pushed me out of the plane.) I am talking about wearing a floral jumpsuit (no, please no) and not caring what other people think. Or inviting someone over to dinner before I have the menu picked out (my hands get cold and clammy just thinking about that one), sitting down to write when I think I am completely out of creativity, or mailing a package to a friend for no reason at all other than I don’t want them to forget that they mean a lot to me.

3) Basically, making little, beneficial things, more of a habit instead of special occasions.

And that's it: three resolutions. Now I need some champagne to follow my coffee. Please, everyone, have a wonderful 2012, and maybe stop by and introduce yourself. I would love to meet you.

***

Thanks, Jenny. :) I especially love, and identify with, resolution #1. An on-the-past-dweller/ about-the-future-worrier myself, I forget how special and fleeting the present is all too often. So maybe I should adopt that resolution, too. Hmmm….

And to anyone and everyone reading, comments on this post have been disabled, so stop by her blog right here to send her your regards/fall in love with her (which you, no doubt, will).

“my biggest highlight of 2011”

2011-12-31T11:33:00.002-06:00

***

the highlight of 2011 for me, by far, was getting married to jared anderson. i still say it like a teenage girl who couldn't possibly fathom that such a dream would come true. i'm super giddy over my husband, we're best friends and i think that's the best part. our wedding day was nothing short of dreamy. it was the second saturday in june, with beaming sunshine, best friends, amazing food, pretty music, and lots of pictures (too many for some people, sorry jared!). it was the prettiest, most relaxed and happy day.

the best way i can describe what it's like to be married to jared is like having a sleepover with your best friend every night. jared is the front desk supervisor at a hotel, so he doesn't leave work until pretty late at night. and since we share a car i always pick him up. depending on the day we may or may not do some late-night grocery shopping, either way, by the time we get home it already feels way late and we start getting a little goofy. i never thought being a newlywed would include so much jumping on the bed, jared pretending to be a velociraptor (me shouting "oh no, not again..!") turning off all the lights and chasing me around the house until i'm scared silly, playing straight up hide-and-go-seek (we got real serious about the rules one time), popcorn/pizza/ice cream frenzies while watching all the seasons of the office, arrested development, glee, simpsons, movie marathons..yep and i've never been much of a tv person, but what else do you do when you're allowed to stay up as late as you want with your best friend?

2012, i hope you take some cues from 2011, it could be another perfect year.

xo, kelli anderson

ps. he'll kill me if he knows i'm telling you this, but half the wedding decorations were handmade by mr. anderson himself!

***

is it just me, or is that the most beautiful backdrop for wedding photos? and i think those braids added the perfect touch to her laidback bridal look…

comments for this post have been disabled, so stop by kelli’s blog to send her your regards/ congratulate her on having such a cute, colorful wedding! or you can always tweet her a little something if you feel so inclined.

happy new year’s eve!

A trip to Basel with Karin

2011-12-30T10:35:00.001-06:00

When I first moved to Dresden, I noticed on easyjet.com (a more appealing airline alternative to ryanair in that it doesn’t have that makes-you-wanna-shoot-yourself-in-the-foot kind of effect) that there was a direct flight from Dresden to Basel, Switzerland. I told myself right then and there that Basel would be my next destination! Well, 4 months have gone by and have I been to Basel? No. But Karin has! And today, she’s sharing her photos/stories with us, so get excited.

***

Hi! My name is Karin and I write about my adventures as a grad student in Sweden over at Putting on My Clogs. I love following Jenni’s escapades and share her affinity for the yummy foods that are found on this side of the pond. However there are some areas where Europe needs to step it up (yes Sweden, I’m talking to you).

As an American living abroad, I find myself with a constant craving for Mexican food. Very rarely can
this craving be satisfied without the steep price of a plane ticket back home. So you can only imagine
my excitement when my friends and I found this coveted prize on our weekend escape to Basel,
Switzerland. Chips, guac and the ultimate, a huge (as in the size of my arm) beef burrito with sour
cream. This pretty much sealed the deal on my love for Switzerland… Chocolate, my new favorite pastry
– the Berliner donut and Mexican food, you can bet I’ll be back.

(Even though food was a priority on our trip, we did manage to squeeze in a few other activities
like visiting the Basel Zoo, wandering through the autumn fair and admiring the antique toys at the
Puppenhausmuseum. I definitely recommend checking out this adorable city at the corner of three
countries!)

***

Thanks, Karin! I can fully attest to the fact that Mexican food in Europe is darn near impossible to find. And even when you think you’ve found Mexican food, you realize it’s actually “Mexican food”. So I would have been just as ecstatic to find a burrito the size of a small dog. And you know those Berliner donuts you love? I’m obsessed with them as well! See here, here and here, if you don’t believe me.

Comments for this post have been disabled so be sure to stop by Karin’s blog to send your regards (here are the rest of her posts on Basel).

What Christmas looks like in Oklahoma.

2011-12-29T09:50:00.000-06:00

(at my household at least).

{my grandpa, papaw, in his signature plaid + twinkly neighborhood trees}

{heaven on a plate x2: my mom’s homemade stuffing + my mom’s homemade cherry pie}

{me and scout, the chocolate baby golden-doodle…aka my new obsession}

{my daily winter uniform: flannel, skinnies, circle scarf, boots}

{puzzletime!}

{crabcakes with eggs benedict, potatoes, mangoes, strawberries…so yummers}

{pretty pretty presents!}

you requested, i delivered.

2011-12-28T15:20:00.000-06:00

when i posted this post last week, my friend jenny commented, saying she wanted a closer look at my family’s ornaments.

assuming that this picture would not suffice..…

….i took a few instagrams of my favorites.

here they are, up-close and personal. my top 10, just for you, jenny:

{eskimo boots from alaska + anthro owl}

{bavarian king ludwig, painted on an egg + george bailey}

{kayla and me in salzburg + arthur and d.w.}

{up! + osu & ou snowmen}

{misfit elephant from rudolph + lucy ricardo of i love lucy}

and now comes the time to take down the tree and pack away the ornaments, aka the most depressing day of the year. agreed?