Annie-1 month!

Baby girl is a month old! It's hard to believe she's been here that long, yet she also kind of seems like she's always been a part of our family! Steven and I both agree that the transition from 1 child to 2 has been SO much easier than the transition was from 0 to 1!
Annie is doing great. She seems to be an overall easy, laid back little one. When she does get worked up, though, look out! She has lungs and knows how to use them!:) She doesn't really like the car, especially when we are sitting still, but with all of the going we do she's just going to have to get used to that. She has done well with tummy time. Gets upset after a bit, but will work and work at first to get that head up. She hates hiccups-they make her mad and cry. She sleeps a lot during the day still, but her awake time is fun, because we get to see her eyes and interact with her. Henry will say, "Annie is awake, Mommy. She's not sleeping. Annie's happy. I see her eyes!" She's given us some sweet smiles and loves to stare at the fan and the black frame/white mat picture above the sofa.
Annie is a paci girl during the day, but not really in the night. She will use it sometimes while going to bed, but usually refuses it in the night when I offer it to her. She uses that tongue a lot, and will poke that paci out quick! 
I worked really hard with Henry as an infant to stretch his feedings to at least 3 hours apart. Sometimes Annie does this, but I just haven't emphasized it like I did with him. With a 2 yr old running around, it just isn't as feasible, and I am OK with that. I have to feed her when I can, and sometimes her feedings just aren't as long as his were able to be. As for nights, she is eating at least twice in the night. I finish feeding her about 10, then she wakes up about 4 hours later and eats again. After this, she seems to go about 2 hours, so she eats again at about 4. Sometimes it is  more like 1 and 3. She doesn't really cry in the night, but I can hear her moving around since she is in the bassinet in our room currently. The early mornings are a little rough, because she seems to get out of that deeper sleep and is more restless and makes all kinds of "baby" noises...squeaks, yawns, grunts, moving her feet, sucking on her hands, etc. We say sometimes she sounds like a baby goat with some of the noises she makes! She is very strong and gets out of her swaddle pretty easily! I think she's stronger than Henry was at this age.
She's bigger, too! At Annie's 2 week appointment, she was doing super. Her stats were:
8 pounds, 11 ounces-75%
22 inches-90%
35 cm (head circumference)-50%
Annie has had a very busy first month. I have felt great, so we have been able to stay on the go. I just put her in the Ergo carrier, and she is happy! Having a summer baby has been a little trickier because of the heat, but I am learning! She conks right out in it, because she's so cozy, even if she is sweaty!
Annie has dimples like her brother. Her right one is stronger than her left, just like him. I can't wait to see what that little face will turn out like! We love you little girl, and we are having so much fun getting to know you!! We are looking forward to each day ahead with you!

Europe Trip, Day 7

The next day in Bavaria was a day of touring nearby attractions! We packed in 3 separate castle tours, plus visited a monastery all in one day! We had experienced such warm temperatures that this overcast, cooler day was very much enjoyed!

Linderhof Palace was the primary residence of Ludwig II. Above the palace Ludwig had a grotto built to emulate a scene from a Wagner opera, complete with a swan boat and man-made lake with waterfall that you see above. He was obsessed with Wagner and touches of his work could be seen in each of the castles we visited.

Linderhof's gardens were immaculate.

Linderhof was nestled in a "forest" type setting...very unassuming and private.

Near Linderhhof was Ettal Monastery, and active Abbey and school, which famously housed Detrich Bonhoeffer during WWII. Of course we had to stop by!

We ate and shopped while there. Above is the area's traditional "weisswurst". While it was fine, the pretzel that came with it was the best I'd had the whole trip! This was a neat, quiet little town.

The two larger castles we visited were Hohenshwangau and Neuschwanstein. These castles are within walking distance of one another and were both the residence of "Mad" King Ludwig. Hohenschwangau was where he spent his childhood, and Neuschwanstein was what he built when he became king himself. Neuschwanstein, built in gothic style, is what the Disney castle is modeled after (pictured above while standing on Mary's Bridge).

Neuschwanstein in the distance.

Hohenschwangau with beautiful mountains and lake as backdrop.

We walked to "Mary's Bridge" for a great view of both castles.

Up close at Neuschwanstein

More of Neuschwanstein

Up close of Hohenschwangau.

Europe Trip 2013, Day 6

The next few days on our trip were a whirlwind of touring. When you've made such a huge trip across the country, you don't want to miss a thing! Who knows if you'll ever have the opportunity again. Plus, there is just so much to see in such a history-rich country, that there is literally somewhere to stop at every corner. Soooo...here it goes!

We went to Berchtesgaden National Park to Lake Koenigsee. We took a boat ride on the gorgeous, crystal clear lake. This was another place where we did not hear much English being spoken. It felt more like a "local" vacationer's spot (so did Chiemsee, actually).

View from our boat of gorgeous mountains (Watzmann massif) and water.

We stopped at the "echo wall" to hear a trumpet tune echo to us after being played by our driver.

We also stopped at the chapel of St. Bartholomew, dating back to the 12th century, which is only accessible by water.

We wished we had our swimsuits-the water was so clear and inviting. Plus, it was hot out!

We needed to stay in a central location for all the touring we wanted to do in this Bavarian area, so Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Southern Germany was the perfect spot. Again our lodging was on the main street in Old Town and looked out onto the "Ludwigstrasse"  and restaurant below.

Our lodging had a restaurant below, so we ate there. Spargel, German white asparagus, was in season and being served everywhere. Here we tried it baked with ham and cheese. Tasty!

The outside of our lodging.

We got to see some traditional "slap-dancing", accompanied by an accordion in Gar-Par. This town had great atmosphere!

The pictures got out of order, but the rest of these are from earlier in the day. While in Berchtesgaden National Park, we toured the Nazi doc. center and bunker system below. Then we took a bus up the mtn to the golden elevator. The elevator took us to the Eagle's Nest complete with panoramic views and a  mountaintop restaurant (pic of restaurant below and the food we ate there above-the meal on the left is jagerschnitzel and spatzel).

The Eagle's Nest was suppose to be Hitler's respite-it was a gift to him for his 50th birthday. Evidently, though, he was afraid of heights and only visited there a handful of times. His mistress supposedly loved it and spent quite a bit of time there. What a pity!

Views from the top.

Surrounded by beauty!

Europe Trip 2013, Day 5

Our next stop was the tiny town of Hallstatt, Austria. Along the way, we stopped for a luge ride! We had such fun and the scenery was gorgeous, of course!

View from luge (and all along our drive to Hallstatt)

Top of the luge

Steven went first and I took pictures and rode behind at the same time! It was super fun-we got to control our own speed, so that was nice.

This is the guesthouse we stayed at in Hallstatt. Hallstatt was THE most beautiful place I've ever seen. The mountains and lake surrounding the mountainside guesthouse could not be surpassed. This place tops our list of favorites that we visited.


This is the view from our room. Beauty was everywhere!

Views of Hallstatt-can you believe this place??

Above Hallstatt (within walking distance) is the world's oldest known salt mine. We wore protective suits to ride down chutes to get from one level of the mine to the next (see our "pajamas" in pic above!). It had been SO hot on our trip, that the constant 65 degree temperature in the mine felt so good! Most of the mine pictures are not very good due to it being dark inside, but it really was a neat tour. The pic above is us hiking back down to the town of Hallstatt after the tour-more beautiful backdrops!

We took a hike above the town for even better views. The town had just experienced a rock slide (part of the danger of putting a town on the side of a mountain!), so we got to see some of the damage on our hike. I didn't want to leave Hallstatt! I can't believe places like this exist...I want to go back someday.

 

Europe trip 2013, Day 4

I failed to mention that we rented a car for our trip. While driving all over Europe was a daunting task, we wanted the liberty that comes with being "in charge" of our transportation. It gave us different experiences than we would have had otherwise!
En route to Austria, we stopped at lake Chiemsee and took a ferry to the middle of the lake. From there we took a 20 min walk to Herrenchiemsee, one of Ludwig II's (unfinished) castles modeled after Versailles. It was huge and impressive to say the least! The crazy part was that Ludwig never even intended to live there!

The ferry ride across beautiful lake Chiemsee

The ferry we took across

Picture of the castle from afar. The gardens and fountains were sprawling!

Proof we were there!

Next up, we drove to Salzburg, Austria. This city is famous for Mozart and The Sound of Music. Old Town Salzburg is BEAUTIFULLY situated beside a mountain with the Salzach River running alongside. Towering above the city is Hohensalzburg Fortress. We stayed on the Getridegasse (narrow, cobblestoned street in heart of Old Town). Our accommodations were perfect yet again, and our window looked right out onto the bustling, shop-lined street. We both LOVED Salzburg and would highly recommend a visit there . It was a wonderful blend of that old charming feel and beauty, yet there was plenty of modern represented as well. There was lots to do and see!

Getridegasse-our hotel is to the right-The Blue Goose!

Touring Mozart's home/birthplace

Out front of Mozart's home. Our hotel was just a few doors down!

The fortress above-view from Old Town

We rode the funicular up the mountain to tour the fortress. This was the first funicular we had ever ridden in, but it wouldn't be the last! These are all over Europe!

As if just touring the fortress weren't enough, just the views of Salzburg from up there made it worth it!

Taking it all in!

Another view of Salzburg from the fortress-mountains in the distance. The hills are alive!