She made it!

As many of you now know, I am safe and sound in Bordesholm. The flights went well, however the sun set and began to rise again shortly before midnight, Kansas time. Just as I finally felt I might be able to sleep we were landing in Hamburg at 7:30 a.m. Torsten and Claudia picked me up, and we hit it off well immediately. I met the children when we arrived at the house, and after about 30 seconds of general shyness, they warmed up and gave me presents they had made for me that morning. Emma Sophie was already climbing onto my lap before breakfast. :) We ate a large breakfast of rolls, assortment of cheeses, meats, and marmalades, and hard boiled eggs. I had almost forgotten how much I love German breakfasts... They then brought me over to my place in the garden house. It is just perfect! The lower level contains my bathroom, kitchen, and workroom. Upstairs is one large room with my bed, computer, television, wardrobe cabinets and boxes, and balcony. They said I could have a few hours to rest and unpack before Claudia´s mother had her birthday party in the afternoon. I had good intentions to unpack, but the second I hit the bed I knew it was hopeless. I slept for a couple hours, then got ready for the party. We drove across town to the grandmother and step-grandfather´s house. The town is beautiful, and I saw the lake on the way there. I can´t wait to explore some more when it stops raining! Claudia´s brother, his girlfriend, sister, her husband, and aunt and uncle were there for the birthday. We started with teas, cakes, and treats (all homemade) in the afternoon, took a break while Claudia and her sister played a birthday song on their guitar and recorder (a tradition, I guess) while the rest of the family sang along. This was followed by a magic trick by Paul Luis that he had been preparing for, and a large dinner of lamb and potatoes. After supper Emma provided us with ballet routines to her great-uncle´s strumming on the guitar, which evolved into her interpretive dances at our request ("the swan", "tiger", etc.). To finish the evening, we lit some candles and Claudia and her sister brought our the guitar and recorder again. They played some traditional German songs and Irish reels. The children came in and took origami requests, and we spent a couple hours in a sea of paper planes, frogs, cranes, and Celtic ballads. Then to make me feel more included, they got out their songbooks with English songs, and made me sing songs like "House of the Rising Sun", "Ob-la-di, Ob-la da", and "Killing me Softly"! While a bit embarrassing, we had so much fun! I adore this family. It is good for me, because while they all speak a bit of English, they don´t spoil me with it. They converse all in German, and only occasionally translate for me if they think I might find something interesting. As we finished singing, Emmi climbed on my lap and told me she likes me more than the world! It won´t be long until I am completely wrapped around that finger. :) Soon she fell asleep, and we decided to go home. The family let me sleep in later this morning (as I´m sure they did too - it was a very late night!). It was wonderful to catch up on much needed rest. I went to the house for a late breakfast, as did their brother (also neighbor), Harald. I spent a couple hours playing and drawing with the children, and Claudia took me shopping at the super market. It felt so good to stock up my own kitchen! We came back for tea and cake, and now I have a short break before going to Harald´s for pizza. I should spend some more time unpacking now. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers! While my nerves aren´t completely dissolved yet, I am having a fantastic time and am confident that this year will be very good for me. I could not have been placed under the care of a more doting and comfortable family. I found out today that I will start language classes on the 8th of September, and will take the Bordesholm train (an 8 minute walk from our house) to the University of Kiel every Monday and Wednesday. I also might start attending au pair meetings once a month in Kiel, where they do day trips and have workshops. We´ll soon see. Everybody take care, and send me an email if you get a chance! You´ll hear more from me soon. Tschüss!