Pumpkin Carving

In the spirit of Halloween, I hosted a little pumpkin carving gathering today for some friends and their kids. We had far too much food, but it was all wonderful: cider, spider web guacamole, jack-o-lantern tapenade, pumpkin empanadas, hummingbird cake, peanut butter cookies, apples and gingersnaps with pumpkin cream cheese dip, egg and chicken salad sandwiches, and the most delicious pumpkin scones.

Aubrey, Carrie, Kristi and Melanie getting down to it...carving pumpkins was harder work than some of us remembered!

And the littlest carver, Ella, arm deep in an oooey gooey pumpkin.

Calvin (in his pirate costume) and the ladies...Ella, Kate, and Emma

Here are some of the finished products...gotta love a jack-o-lantern!

Living in a country that doesn't really celebrate Halloween, this was a much needed reminder of home. And the best is yet to come...the pumpkin seeds were collected, rinsed, and are ready for baking!

Cannstatter Volksfest

What would three years in Germany be without experiencing Oktoberfest, some may ask? Well, we haven't made it to the granddaddy of all Oktoberfests in Munich, but we did travel to Stuttgart this weekend for the Cannstatter Volksfest, a fine second, in our opinion. We stayed with our friends Kyle and Tiffany, who live in Stuttgart, and had tickets to the Klaus & Klaus beer tent with our friends Jonathan, Danielle, Alan, Elizabeth and others. These "tents", which are more like big buildings, are torn down and reconstructed on the festival grounds each year.

We happily consumed our 1 Liter "mosses" of Dinkel Acker Festbier, a half chicken and roll, and kase spaetzle (cheesy potato noodles topped with friend onions) and took part in the German tradition of dancing on benches to the music of a band playing a combination of German drinking songs and many American hits. Crowd favorites included "Sweet Home Alabama" and "Highway to Hell"...they know every word.

Alan and Elizabeth

Jonathan and Danielle sporting their German Liederhosen and Dirndl...

Seemed like a good idea at the time...

Happy Birthday, Matt!

Two hands required...

In addition to several beer tents, the grounds are filled with tons of rides and food vendors- much like a mini state fair.

This was a really fun weekend and a great way to celebrate Matt's 27th birthday with friends!

Local stuff

A few weekends ago we planned to go to lunch at the Pfungstadter Brewery. It was lunchtime on a Saturday, but unfortunately the ole brewery was closed! Such is the Germany way. So plan B was Indian food in Bensheim...yum. Here is a recent pics of our friends' kids from that afternoon...they're getting so big!

Emma and Calvin

Then last weekend, we went to the Griesheimer Zwiebelmarkt (our third and final year to experience the wonder of the 'Onion Market'). I had potato pancakes with apple sauce, one of two common vegetarian options at German fests (the other being flammkuchen, if you can find it without speck or 'ham') and Matt was able to eat BBQ RIBS, a rare culinary treat here in Deutschland.

The men- Adam, Calvin, and Matt- waiting for their Ribs

 












In some ways, the passing of our time in Germany is marked by annual festivals, so we're starting to feel a bit nostalgic as we take part in the "last" of everything. We have 26 months down, 10 months to go...and have loved every minute- onion fests and all.