Jerusalem

Last weekend for my birthday, Jeff surprised me with a trip to Israel! The kids stayed home with a friend, and we were able to explore on our own. We had a fabulous trip; I only wish I had just one or two more days! Jeff was there for an entire week, and I joined him for the weekend. We explored Tel Aviv, Jaffa, Jerusalem, and the Dead Sea. I'll post my pictures from Tel Aviv once we get all of them downloaded (still waiting on a work camera). Our trip to Jerusalem was incredible. We had a fantastic tour guide and really got to see all important sites in one day. We also took a trip to the Dead Sea which was pretty cool! Our trip was on a Saturday (the Sabbath), so it was very neat to see certain parts of the city during the special day. We started on the Mount of Olives, walked the path that Jesus took into the city, went to the Garden of Gethsemane, walked toward the Tomb of David into Old City Jerusalem, visited the Western Wall, the Old City market, and ended at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. I would love to go back one day and spend an entire week in Jerusalem. There was so much to see and I felt like we barely scratched the surface. Nonetheless, it was an unforgettable trip and one we will always treasure!

View into the Old City from the Mount of Olives

Mount of Olives is now used as a large cemetery:

Olive Trees in the Garden of Gethsemane:

 Garden of Gethsemane:

Western Wall. Because it was the Sabbath, we couldn't take pictures close to it:

Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where Jesus had his Last Supper, was crucified, and resurrected.

The Dead Sea: You really do float. This mud was amazing, made our skin feel so soft!!

Seligenstadt Easter Market

We ventured out to a little town that we'd never been too (about 30 mins away), to go to our first Easter Market of the Season! Easter Markets are not quite as good as the Christmas Markets, but we still enjoy them. This one in Seligenstadt was really neat because it was inside a beautiful Monastery. The gardens  were fun for the kids and the weather couldn't have been more perfect! We had a great afternoon relaxing in the sunshine after the market, and enjoyed our first ice cream shop trip of the year. As you'll see in the last picture, everyone in town had the same idea. The line was crazy!

Fasching

After returning from a 3 week trip to the US and recovering from knee surgery, we were ready to join right back into our German festivities! Fasching is basically Mardi Gras for Europe. Germany especially goes all out for this holiday. For about a week, people dress up in costumes, drink a lot, and watch or participate in parades. Addy's Girl Scout Troop was part of the Children's Parade, so we really got to enjoy it even more. The Girl Scouts dressed up as a theme and the theme this year was Dr. Seuss. Addy dressed up as a bird girl, and Luke as the Cat in the Hat. Although he looks less than thrilled in these pictures, he actually had a lot of fun. Especially because he collected so much candy throughout the parade!