I think I need to create a new blog. It will be called "The Rantings of a Lunatic Woman Trying to Survive Single Parenthood in a Foreign Country." My first post will consist of the following:

AAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


There, that feels better.

Now I can get you caught up on our oh-so-exciting lives. Not. Last weekend we drove to Garmisch, Germany, with my friend Jill and her two children. Garmisch is in the south-eastern part of Germany, smack dab in the middle of the Alps and only 30 minutes from the Austrian border. There is a military lodge and resort in Garmisch called Edelweiss. We didn't stay at the lodge because we couldn't get a room, but we were able to take advantage of the recreational activities that Edelweiss has to offer. Translation, SKIING! The week prior to our trip, Garmisch got about 2 feet of snow, and it was just like powder. We hadn't planned on letting the kids ski (Troy and Stephen actually snowboarded), but when we found out what awesome programs they had, and how inexpensive they were, we succumbed to the constant whining of two 10-year-old boys who desperately wanted to hit the slopes. So, while Troy and Stephen conquered the world of snowboarding, Jill and I sat in the lodge with the girls, drinking hot chocolate (laced with Baileys) and enjoying the views. No, I'm not talking about the ski instructors; I'm talking about the mountains.......Oh, who am I kidding?? On a side note, somehow Jill had talked me in to a "no makeup" weekend. What was she smoking? And how dumb was I to agree to it? Has anyone ever seen me without makeup? "Scary" doesn't begin to describe it!

I'm getting way off the subject here. On day three of our trip, I decided to sign Grace up for the kids' ski school. She had watched those kids the day before, with longing in her eyes and the saddest puppy-dog face I've ever seen. I just couldn't say no. She had so much fun, and turns out, she's much better at skiing than her mother (see previous post). Jill and I wanted to take an adult class, too, but we couldn't find childcare for little Grace. One of the ski patrol guys told Jill she could just strap Grace to her chest and ski down the hill. Riiiiiiight.

Our weekend was fun and pretty uneventful, unless you count the GPS screwing up and taking us to Austria; or the car battery dying because one of the kids left the interior lights on overnight; or the fact that I forgot to take an ice/snow scraper with me on the trip. News flash: driving through the Alps in the middle of winter? You really need an ice scraper. Fortunately, I did remember the kitchen sink. And Jill and I packed about $200 worth of snacks and drinks for the trip. Scraper or not, we could have survived the next Ice Age with that much food.

Jill and her family are headed back to Garmisch next month. Not me; I'm ready for the coast of Spain. Give me the beach and a tall pina colada....I can die happy.