wack/wonderful Wednesdays

wack 

1.  After nearly two years, Zack & I finally bit the bullet and bought a second car. It's an absolute junker like our other one, but it's made life a lot more convenient with our work schedules. The only thing is, I really miss riding with him. In the early morning drives to work, we would rarely speak but it was a soft silence that felt warm & comfortable. In the evening drives home, we would chatter about our days or give fabulous duet performances. It's kind of lonely now.
2.  Getting home so late. Yesterday I got home kind of early, but most days we leave the house before the sun is up and get home when the sun is going down. I honestly don't know how families with small children and both parents working full time manage. I get home, put away my stuff from the day (lunch box, gym bag, errands) start dinner (which, if I'm working, we usually don't eat until well after 8 PM), do some chores around the house, shower, & start getting things ready for the next day. It just feels so rushed & thoughtless. I can see why most people live for the weekends. 
3. The Walking Dead and its cliffhanger endings. I can't deal.

 wonderful

1.  Ordering a coffee drink without whipped cream to try to be a little bit healthy (I'm the person who gets a Diet Coke with their Big Mac meal) and the barrista accidentally puts whipped cream on it. Don't you just hate that? Yeah, me neither.
2.  Taking a walk with Zack through the streets of our town because it was junking day! Still not entirely sure what junking day is, but every few months, the Germans put a bunch of stuff they don't want out on the sidewalks for the trash to pick up. Most of it is pretty useless, but you can find some gems if you look. I've found many interesting things on junking excursions. Today I only scored a huge wicker basket & a small mug with the word "phor" written on the side.
3.  A wilted bouquet of hand-picked flowers from a 1st grade boy. When he gave them to me he said, "Sorry they aren't roses." I died.
4.  Flowers [daffodils!] from another sweet, a little bit older, boy.

you can get addicted to a certain kind of sadness

This weekend was wonderful. Jam-packed and busy, but wonderful.

Friday was date night! I had been looking forward to it all week. Mexican food, the Hunger Games {!}, and my sweet hubby? Yes, bitte. I obviously had to channel some Katniss and sport a braid for the occasion. 

Per usual, Zack & I filled up on chips & salsa at Cantina Mexicana, so we split our favorite- the Burrito Poblano. So. good.Well, as good as you're going to get in Germany anyway.

How did we like the movie? Well, when you anticipate something for so long, there's a 97% chance you're going to be let down in some way. I wasn't as let down as Zack was (don't even ask him about it, unless you're willing to sit for 45 minutes listening to him list off all of his grievances with the movie), but I definitely thought the movie lacked the same spark that the book had, which gained it so many devoted fans. I know the movie is never as good as the book, but I was really hoping it would be close. I didn't hate it, I just didn't love it like I did the books. (FYI, I read Catching Fire in the course of a day.) My favorite casting choices were Katniss, Cinna, & Caesar, I thought they were all brilliant. Everyone else, I was just sort of like,  "well huh." Regardless of the fact we didn't fall in love with the movie, we still had fun. The theater was packed to capacity, and we split some delicious popcorn (not kidding, best I've ever had) and got to drink German beer while watching it.

We were so excited to get to sleep in on Saturday. Unfortunately, my body thinks 'sleeping in' is waking up at 7:30 AM. Oh well. Zack made blueberry & banana pancakes and chocolate chip pancakes. I was a huge help by making the coffee, and introducing him to our newest obsession, Gotye's "Somebody That I Used to Know" We have listened to it probably 47 times now since Saturday. It does not get old. I also had to educate him on what 'dubstep' is. (I think he lives in his own little world sometimes.)

After breakfast, I decided it was time for spring cleaning in the Willey house. Our house is always neat, but not always clean, and I was ready for a thorough scrub down. Inspired by the movie the previous night, we put all of the rooms into a cup and took turns drawing to see who had to clean what. Totally normal.

Saturday evening was a goodbye party for sweet Gretchen & Josh, who PCS back to the States in a few days. The theme was "Bright & Tight" and everyone delivered. It was a great time- full of friends, delicious food, homemade Four Lokos (yeah) & hours upon hours of dance sessions. Surprisingly, there were no tears or sentimental moments, for me anyway. It didn't even seem like a "goodbye" party, I think because we're all sort of trying to pretend it's not happening. So if we keep laughing, drinking, and dancing, we won't be still long enough to remember what is quickly approaching.

Zack doing nothing to help the Germans with their already ridiculous staring problems.

Sunday morning we went to a birthday brunch for Jamie's mom at the Ramstein Officer's Club. It was $22 a person, and was almost worth it, perhaps if I had a stomach the size of a cow. The food was good, and incredibly varied. Fresh waffles, crab legs, stir fry, fried chicken, fish, mashed potatoes, eggs & bacon, french fries, omelettes, and a dessert table that stared me down the entire time. Happy birthday Lori!

On the way home from brunch, we stopped at the St. Wendel Ostermarkt (Easter market.) I was incredibly sad I had just finished stuffing myself to the point of delirium, because the food there looked awesome. The market was pretty much like the Christmas markets, just much warmer and with bunnies everywhere. (Also notably absent: glühwein.) 

The only bad part of having such a fun weekend is the reality of Monday morning that is going to smack us straight in the face at 5 AM tomorrow. Le sigh.

Riga, Latvia

We decided at 9:00 on a Monday evening that we needed to go to Latvia. Don't ask me why, other than we had never been to eastern Europe (I don't count Croatia) and flights were pretty cheap. I didn't even know Latvia was a country. (But please keep in mind this is coming from the girl who had zero grasp of world geography until I started traveling.)

Riga was sort of like that weird place on Youtube you find yourself in from time to time. (Y'all know the videos I am talking about.) You're really not sure how you got there, you're not sure what is going on, you can't put your finger on it but you feel slightly uncomfortable, and all you really know for certain is that you want to get back to where you came from. For me, Latvia was that weird place on Youtube. 

The people looked...harsh. (If that's what living on the Baltic Sea does to you, no thanks.) They were also incredibly rude. So rude, I would rather take 12 elderly Germans and 10 snooty French and throw an intimate cocktail party than have a brief conversation with one Latvian. But they did wear those really sweet, round fur hats in all seriousness, so they get some props for that. It was so cold  frigid that I was a few wind gusts away from buying one, and I think about that hat at least once every three days so I know I should have purchased it.

The food was nothing to write home about, sadly. (Not sure if this is a shocker for anyone, but food is hands down my most favorite part of visiting a new place.) There was this really cheap, open 'til 4 AM, weird place that Zack & I ate at twice. Apparently a popular dish there is a ravioli type thing, which personally I find insulting to the Italians. It was basically like a pasta shell with unidentifiable, flavorless meat inside of it. I can't explain it, and really don't care to stir up my memory of it. We did find a really great pizza restaurant called Charlies, and their food was wonderful. But, it was pizza. If you screw up pizza you have issues beyond anything I can comprehend. We tried kvass there, which I didn't hate, but didn't love either. It's supposed to be fermented, but only like 1%. Anything less than 5% is a genuine waste of my time and I have no patience for it. Speaking of fermented, Latvia is famous for their "Black Balsam" drink. It was repulsive. Repulsive, made me want to peel my toenails off, would rather lay naked on Riga's frozen ponds repulsive.

If you are a Latvian, and reading this post, I apologize. 

communism ftw

But only for the ravioli dig. Y'all step up your game.  

wack/wonderful Wednesdays

wack

1. Screaming Adele at the top of my lungs, (which to my ears sounds nothing short of magic, but to any other human being, it probably sounds like something dying a slow, torturous death) and realizing the windows were open, and that my German neighbors were outside staring up at me. Awkward.
2. I'm pretty sure I'm getting sick. I hate knowing it is coming, and not being able to do much to stop it. My body has an ever-so-slight ache, and my throat is scratchy. STAY AWAY FROM ME, ILLNESS. 
3. The Army threw us a curve ball today. Well, sort of. Zack's brigade is disbanding in October of this year. We weren't supposed to leave Germany until next February, but we had the feeling it probably would get bumped up to late this year. And bumped up, it has. As in, we're looking at a June-August time frame for having to move. I'm incredibly torn on this. On one hand, I feel we're getting cheated out of 6 months here because we still have so much more traveling we want to do. On the other, I think back on everything we have already gotten to see and do and it's mind-blowing. Plus, we have a few interesting options of where we can go next..
4. Getting full before I was even through making dinner. I don't know why I am such a fat kid, but I can't resist nibbling as I'm cooking. By the time I had set the plates down at the table, it occurred to me that I was not only not hungry, but I was full. Yet I proceeded to eat my fair share of dinner. Cool Liza. 

wonderful

1. I got to go the commissary. What a lame statement, I know, but I seriously love, love grocery shopping. From the list-making, to perusing the isles, to taking all of the tasty treasures home and organizing...I just love it.
2. Not a cloud in the soft blue sky today, riding home with the windows down & Jack's Mannequin on the radio. The kind of day you can feel your soul smiling. 
3. I opened up some of the windows in our house because it was just too nice not to. It was a little chilly at times when the wind would blow in, but having them open made me oh so happy. 
4. My February Birchbox came in the mail! Getting that cheerful pink box every month is such a treat, although I'm pretty sure Zack looks forward to it more than me. "OPEN IT LIZA! PLEASE! OPEN IT! I WANT TO SEE WHAT'S IN IT!" 
5. When I went to the commissary, I loaded up on fresh (okay, and frozen) fruit, so today I made my first smoothie of the season. I lived off of smoothies last summer, but during the cooler months smoothies do not sound appealing at all to me. So the first day in which I didn't have to grab for my parka, I grabbed the blender. Blackberries, blueberries, half a banana, water, & a handful of spinach. So much yum.

wack/wonderful Wednesdays

wack

1. Waking up at 0500. There is nothing good about that. Nothing. 
2. Only having one car between the two of us, especially when both of us work and have a lot of errands to do throughout the day. I think we switched back and forth at least six times today. It got slightly out of control. 
3.  I began to complain about having to pack for Malta this weekend. "The weather is weird. What do you pack for 58 degree highs? Should I do a checked bag & a carry on, or just a checked bag? I have nothing to wear." And then staring at my closet for 12 minutes. And then realizing how ludicrous I was, having the audacity to stress out over packing for Malta. Really Liza?

wonderful

1. The fact that I have a husband who can make me laugh at 0500 in the morning. I am probably the least morning person person you will ever meet. And yet somehow he gets me to laugh when my eyes are just little slits and I have a perma-scowl on my face until at least the sun is up.
2. Because I was up so early, I got to go to Jamie's spin class this morning. I love when she teaches, because it's actually fun (in my brain, the word 'fun' is on the opposite side of 'spin class'), the music is great, and the workout is intense. She must be doing something right when she can get a room full of soldiers to fist pump and laugh, yet still have PT shirts that have turned dark grey with sweat. 
3. I made brownies for Zack to take into work tomorrow. DO NOT MAKE THESE. They are stupid, stupid good. The bottom layer is normal brownie, the middle is vanilla frosting covered with crushed peanuts, and the top layer is rice crispy cereal mixed with chocolate & peanut butter. I cannot even deal. It's been a legitimate test of will power to not go into the kitchen every 5 minutes and snatch a bite. (I've only caved twice...so far. The night is young.)
4. Found out some really, really great news about my family. !!!

This past Saturday was the annual West Point Founders Day dinner. It was held in Heidelberg, a charming, quintessential German town, so any excuse to go there is gladly taken. We arrived to our hotel that afternoon, and much to my horror, I had forgotten my curling iron. After a few moments of sheer panic and pointlessly whining to Zack, I [wo]manned up, and got crafty. I wet a few sections of my hair and then put them into pin curls while I did my makeup. The result was soft, yet slightly hideous curls, so I put in some infallible braids, and pulled the rest back. Don't judge. 

My dress was also a near disaster inconvenience. I purchased the dress (Salvation Army, $3, hey girl hey.) last year, about 13 pounds heavier than my current weight. (Although after the past two weeks of basically binge living, I'm sure that number is creeping back up.) I didn't think to try it on until the day before the dinner, and I really didn't have many other options. Well, the dress hung on me like a rather unfortunate black sack. Thankfully, Zack has the hidden talent of tailor (did I hit the jackpot or what?) and spent a good 20 minutes pinning me in various places, until the end result was a socially acceptable little black dress. 

We took a cab to the hotel where the dinner was held, and caught the tail end of the cocktail hour. Zack didn't know many of the '09 grads there, but we made friends with the people at our table. The dinner was full of West Point traditions, many of which went clear over my head, largely due in part to the fact that I didn't date Zack his Cow or Firstie years. (Bitter Liza, go away. You can't come out to play today.) But Zack was a dear, and patiently explained all of what was happening to me. (Like that table being lifted up in the above picture...I just assumed they'd all had too much beer.) It felt nice to be a part of the evening, I felt proud to be in a room with so many incredibly talented, intelligent, and brave men and women of all ages. (And Dress Blues for days, y'all.) 

I got chills when they sang the Alma Mater. The room was eerily silent, with all the grads standing at attention, their voices ringing out strong and clear. I couldn't help but think of the men from the class of 2009 lost last year, and the fact that Zack was standing by my side, safely home from war. I had to blink my eyes quickly, to get rid of a tear threatening to spill out. My heart was, is, so full of gratitude.

Seeing 'Mrs. Eliza Willey' never seems to get old. Two years later, and I still get an excited little shiver down my spine when I see it on paper. 

After the dinner, we went out with some friends in downtown Heidelberg. Maybe it was the wine that had gone to my head, or just the buzzing energy I was still feeling from the dinner, but I was on top of the world that night. We had an absolute blast, just the four of us, and didn't get into bed until well past 4 AM. And let me just say...for two relatively low-key, married couples...we did a number on a certain Irish pub in Heidelberg that night. 

 

instagrams of the ordinary

lazy days // "but i really mustache" // mango pumpkin cream soup with smoked salmon. yeah.
out to dinner // waldmeister ("forest master") gelato // Zack's favorite candy...who knew?
H2O with limes & frozen M&M's, typical // medieval torture device Zack makes me do // cuddles