Pretty much as soon as we woke up today, we were running out the door to go play in the snow. It is so pretty and white outside right now but so cold! Layla had a good time. I still need to get her a pair of gloves (which they don't have at the PX, go figure) so we spent most of the time just walking around with our hands in our pockets. Thanks to Grandma we'll have gloves by the next snow fall! :) 
Layla has inherited my love of water. Like me, she takes about 2-3 baths a day and would take more if I let her. Tonight I needed to take another shower so Layla decided to take one with me too. She hasn't taken a shower with me since she we were in Dexheim, so awhile ago. We sang a lot of songs and washed our hair and as soon as I asked her if she wanted to get out I heard Daddy running around the house trying to find our towels. He got there just in time to wrap me up in my towel when I got out. Layla decided she wanted to stay in the shower longer. Ed started messing with her hair and bugging her and she yelled at him "Daddy, stop it! I am trying to take a shower" and then sighed and rolled her eyes at him. She had a great time though! 
Then, while she was in the shower, what did she find? She looked up to the window and there a another ladybug crawling around. I seriously don't think I have ever seen that many ladybugs before, they are always in or trying to get in our house. It's crazy! As soon as she saw it she got so excited, she said "Ladybug, what are you doing? You looking for your Mommy and Daddy? Don't worry we'll find them. My Mommy and Daddy are right here. See?" 5 minutes later she had to get out of the shower and hold the ladybug. 
Snow is officially here! Last night it started snowing and now, 24 hours later, it is still coming down. As soon as Layla and I saw it snowing last night we threw on our jackets and beanies and ran outside to play in it. She had a blast! Then this morning when we woke up she immediately wanted to go out in it again, so we did. This time we took a walk in it, playing as we went, and she told me "I want to go find acorns now, mom. Acorns, where are you?" I told her that they were all gone and under the snow so we couldn't get them anymore. She asks me "Are they cold? Don't worry acorns, it'll be ok. I'll find you!" We never found any but we did find Daddy 20 minutes later when he started throwing snow balls at us! After we turned into ice cubes we went inside to warm up. Tonight Ed was BBQing on the balcony so Layla and I went out there with him and watched the snow fall some more. Snow is so beautiful when it falls and fun to play in but if I never saw any snow again, I would be a happy camper! I hate the cold, give me 125 degree heat any day!
And it was awesome! We had such a blast this weekend, I wish it would have lasted longer, I did not want to come home. We left Friday morning to Edelweiss which is in Garmisch, Germany and got there around 1pm. We checked in and then headed to Pizza Hut which was right around the corner. In Mainz we always ate at Pizza Hut because it was so close but since moving to Graf we haven't had it and it tasted so yummy! After that we decided to just go back to the hotel and relax. It was so nice to be in an American hotel for once! Right before dinner Ed and Layla went swimming in the pool and had a blast. He was dunking her head under and she would come up laughing. She even put her head in the water by herself so I know she is ready to swim. After that we headed to the other post where the CDC and PX were. We ate Subway and then dropped Layla off at daycare since we had a conference that night. I was so nervous to leave my baby there, I had a really hard time. When we got there I had to drop her off in the two year old room and all her friends were in the 3+ room. So was standing there looking sad all by herself. I started crying when we left her because I was so sad they just wouldn't put her with the other kids that she knew. Later when we went to pick her up and was with everyone else though, so I was happy about that. Our first conference was so much fun and we learned a lot, it was only an hour and a half though. We learned about ours and our spouses personalities and what love language they spoke. It really makes you think about things differently when you see it from a different perspective. I ended up being a lion and Ed ended up being an otter. We were laughing and said that Layla is growing up into a lion so poor Ed, the otter, is going to have to live with two lions his whole life. After the conference was over we raced to pick up Layla and headed to bed. Ed had a guys night that night and had a lot of fun too! 
The next day we had our conference bright and early at 9am and it was a three hour one. We ate breakfast and then dropped off Layla and daycare. Once again, the conference was a blast. We did lots of activities and just had a great time with everyone. It was totally worth it! After that we had about an hour or so before we had to pick up Layla so Ed and I went and had lunch alone. Wow, that was weird. We haven't eaten a meal alone in forever, it was really nice though. Layla had a blast with her friends at daycare but when we went to pick her up she was bawling. Apparently once the other parents started showing up and not us, she freaked out a bit. After we got her we got in the car and headed over to Neuschwanstein castle. The Disney castle was made after this castle so I really wanted to see it. It was beautiful! We took a horse carriage up the mountain to reach it because it was a far walk! While we were up there we did lots of exploring and then found some yummy doughnuts to eat on the way down. We didn't spend a ton of time there, I mostly just wanted to see the outside of it. The view from up there was breathtaking though, the mountains in that area are just gorgeous, especially the ones covered in snow. When we got back to the hotel Ed made reservations at a steak restaurant inside the hotel and then he and Layla went swimming some more right before dinner. The restaurant was so good, like amazingly good! It was pretty expensive but so worth it. Eating at an American restaurant after so long just made it even better. After that Ed and Layla dropped me off with the girls so I could have a girls night out and they went to bed. I had lots of fun just drinking wine by the fireplace and chatting with the girls. I was ready for bed by 11pm though! 
The next morning Layla woke us up about 9am and her and Ed went swimming while I stayed up stairs and packed and got ready. We left and got McDonald's for breakfast! We had such an amazing time, it was really nice to just relax and not rush around to try to see everything in the area. I would go back again in a heartbeat! 
Tomorrow the three of us are headed to Edelweiss in Garmisch, Germany for a pre-deployment marriage retreat. We are really excited to go, we've heard only good things about it, plus we get free childcare! This afternoon I was packing Layla's clothes and she went and grabbed her princess backpack. She was pouring her tubs of toys into the backpack so she could take it with us too. I put her suitcase by the door and she put her backpack by the door as well, along with her baby (and baby's car seat), pillow, blankets, slippers, another baby (with carrier), and Silky. So much for packing light, I guess we'll be bringing all of that with us tomorrow. 
So I was trying to think of semi-healthy snacks to give to Layla since all she ever wants to eat is candy. I thought, hey why not try some trail mix. There is some candy in it but there are also nuts and raisins too so I thought it would be a good idea. Anyway, I handed her the package and what does she do? She pours it all onto the table, eats only the candy, and then one by one throws all the nuts and raisins into the trash can. It made me laugh so hard, she definitely isn't dumb. Oh well, at least I tried.
I am so proud of my baby girl. She has been potty trained since the first part of June. It only took her 4 days in all to be potty trained both day and night and she has never put on a diaper since. Whenever I think about how fast it happened I just get a big smile on my face, she makes me so proud. She never used a little potty, she has always just used the regular toilet. Since June, I have had to help her climb up on the toilet each time she had to go. Starting yesterday though, she doesn't even want my help to do that anymore. She tells me "I'ma do it, I'ma big girl!" and climbs up on the toilet, scoots her little butt back, goes potty, wipes, and puts her panties back on all by herself. It's such a bitter sweet feeling, I am glad she is potty trained but she is getting so much more independent and doesn't need my help to do much anymore. Anyway, I just thought I would share how very proud she makes me.
