Thursday, December 25, 2008
Christmas Quiz
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
I hope this letter finds each and every one of you healthy, happy and enjoying the holiday season. We’re enjoying a bonus assignment here in Germany -- after moving two hours north to Ramstein where we’ll be for three more years. I was excited about our assignment to Stuttgart, and am even more excited about our bonus time here. Plus, we’re back on an Air Force base, so I can get “re-blued” after three years at an Army post (it made me really appreciate the Air Force)! However, Stuttgart had a small military community, so we knew quite a few people there, whereas Ramstein is MUCH larger so I’m not feeling quite as in-the-know as I did there. Oh well. It gives us more time in Europe to travel, explore and enjoy...and host any visitors who’d like to trek across the Atlantic. Once again, it’s time for our annual holiday quiz. As a reminder, there is more than one answer for each person...but not every answer is necessarily true (I think I stumped several folks who actually thought I had run a marathon after reading last year’s quiz).
Benjamin is a 5½-year-old Kindergartener at Ramstein Elementary School, is a very smart young man, and:
a. is on the verge of reading, sounding out words in books, on signs, in movie credits...and anywhere else
b. climbed 700 steps to the second level on the Eiffel Tower and running around to see all of Paris from there
c. was bound and determined to climb past the warning sign so he could climb to the TIP-TOP of the Zugspitze (at 9,718 feet above sea level is the highest peak in Germany)...I have no doubt he could have made the climb, I just didn’t like the possibility of falling more than 5,700 feet!
d. played t-ball and was invited to join the next-older league because of his natural running and sliding abilities
e. loved seeing and touring inside the “pinwheel houses” (windmills) in Zaanse Schans, Holland
MacKenzie is a 10½-year-old Junior Girl Scout, a 5th-grader at Ramstein Intermediate School, and:
a. had her hair stand straight-up when visiting the Kehlsteinhaus (aka the Eagle’s Nest, Hitler’s mountain-top retreat) as a lightening storm began rolling in...we made a quick dash for the building!
b. earned her Girl Scout Bronze Award after working on a “Brownie Stress-Busting Roundup” for younger scouts
c. enjoyed playing soccer another year, especially while playing offense (her preferred position) and goalie
d. was on the edge of her seat at the Blue Man Group performance, especially when one man walked across our armrests and stopped above her to stare at her for a few moments before continuing on his high-altitude trek
e. made her acting debut in the Youth Center-sponsored production of “Jingle Bells Jury” performing as the Innkeeper’s Wife during Young Jim Dandy’s trial to determine whether his Christmas Spirit is still alive
Zachary, is now a teenager(!), a 7th-grader at Ramstein Middle School, a First Class Boy Scout, and:
a. became an unofficial junior tour guide when we visited the Anne Frank house in Amsterdam, explaining what he’d learned in school about the Frank family...I was very impressed with his level of knowledge and interest!
b. is doing well with his swimming lessons and progressing nicely through the various skill levels
c. is an avid bicyclist, logging 30 miles a day after school twice a week, and 50 miles a day on the weekends
d. after a tremendous growth spurt is now looking Pam in the eye, much to her dismay ... guess it’s in the genes!
e. still enjoys camping, including excursions this year to Garmisch, Heidelberg, Normandy (with 3,000 campers!) and Bastogne...including significant historical hikes at Normandy and Bastogne
Pam is now an Air Force lieutenant colonel, working in the Public Affairs office of U.S. Air Forces in Europe, and:
a. is still on the go, with trips slated to Georgia, Poland, Romania, Lithuania, and the Czech Republic in 2009
b. enjoyed tagging along on Zachary’s Normandy camping trip, adding a few extra days to visit St. Meré-Eglise, Utah Beach, Point du Hoc, Mont Saint-Michel, Omaha Beach, Arromanches, the Bayeux Tapestry, and the Omaha-Normandy American Cemetery
c. worked hard and played hard on a 2-week trip to Israel, working long hours but making full use of her time off to tour Jerusalem, float in the Dead Sea, visit Masada, walk through Nazareth, circle the Sea of Galilee, visit the Golan Heights and stroll on the hillside where Jesus gave his Sermon on the Mount (a very MOVING experience!)
d. started tutoring others in journalism and photography, and showing them the basics of sharing their talents via the internet
e. is learning how to recycle in Germany -- separating among biodegradable, paper/cardboard, light refraction and “restmüll” (residual waste)...anyone living on the economy needs a PhD in recycling to figure it all out!
Our travels this year took us to Italy (again, we just can’t seem to stay away), Holland, France and Austria, as well as Garmisch, Oberammergau, Berchtesgaden, Lake Eibsee, Ulm, Bad Wimpfen and Stuttgart in Germany. And yes, we met our travel goals for 2008: Keukenhof Gardens, Paris and Normandy. Other than exploring the local sights around Ramstein, we’ll have to start traveling by air to tour more of Europe since we’ve done just about as much as we reasonably can within a day’s drive from home.
This year we’re sticking close to home again for the holidays, looking forward to spending some down time together as a family. After our hectic post-move schedules juggling school, after-school classes, homework (yes, even for Benjamin!), Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, play practices, swim lessons (times three) and other odds-and-ends activities, we really need to relax and rejuvenate at home with each other before diving into 2009.
As always, remember that you are all welcome in our home if you decide to make a trek this way. We even have a guest bedroom in our house that is just waiting to be used. Our 2009 travel calendar is wide open, but I’m looking forward to filling it up...and welcoming any and all travel companions.
We hope you’re all doing well and looking forward to 2009. Take care, and please keep in touch!!
I’ll post the answer key in a few days so you can see how well you kept up with the Cook Clan in 2008. :-)
I hope this letter finds each and every one of you healthy, happy and enjoying the holiday season. We’re enjoying a bonus assignment here in Germany -- after moving two hours north to Ramstein where we’ll be for three more years. I was excited about our assignment to Stuttgart, and am even more excited about our bonus time here. Plus, we’re back on an Air Force base, so I can get “re-blued” after three years at an Army post (it made me really appreciate the Air Force)! However, Stuttgart had a small military community, so we knew quite a few people there, whereas Ramstein is MUCH larger so I’m not feeling quite as in-the-know as I did there. Oh well. It gives us more time in Europe to travel, explore and enjoy...and host any visitors who’d like to trek across the Atlantic. Once again, it’s time for our annual holiday quiz. As a reminder, there is more than one answer for each person...but not every answer is necessarily true (I think I stumped several folks who actually thought I had run a marathon after reading last year’s quiz).
Benjamin is a 5½-year-old Kindergartener at Ramstein Elementary School, is a very smart young man, and:
a. is on the verge of reading, sounding out words in books, on signs, in movie credits...and anywhere else
b. climbed 700 steps to the second level on the Eiffel Tower and running around to see all of Paris from there
c. was bound and determined to climb past the warning sign so he could climb to the TIP-TOP of the Zugspitze (at 9,718 feet above sea level is the highest peak in Germany)...I have no doubt he could have made the climb, I just didn’t like the possibility of falling more than 5,700 feet!
d. played t-ball and was invited to join the next-older league because of his natural running and sliding abilities
e. loved seeing and touring inside the “pinwheel houses” (windmills) in Zaanse Schans, Holland
MacKenzie is a 10½-year-old Junior Girl Scout, a 5th-grader at Ramstein Intermediate School, and:
a. had her hair stand straight-up when visiting the Kehlsteinhaus (aka the Eagle’s Nest, Hitler’s mountain-top retreat) as a lightening storm began rolling in...we made a quick dash for the building!
b. earned her Girl Scout Bronze Award after working on a “Brownie Stress-Busting Roundup” for younger scouts
c. enjoyed playing soccer another year, especially while playing offense (her preferred position) and goalie
d. was on the edge of her seat at the Blue Man Group performance, especially when one man walked across our armrests and stopped above her to stare at her for a few moments before continuing on his high-altitude trek
e. made her acting debut in the Youth Center-sponsored production of “Jingle Bells Jury” performing as the Innkeeper’s Wife during Young Jim Dandy’s trial to determine whether his Christmas Spirit is still alive
Zachary, is now a teenager(!), a 7th-grader at Ramstein Middle School, a First Class Boy Scout, and:
a. became an unofficial junior tour guide when we visited the Anne Frank house in Amsterdam, explaining what he’d learned in school about the Frank family...I was very impressed with his level of knowledge and interest!
b. is doing well with his swimming lessons and progressing nicely through the various skill levels
c. is an avid bicyclist, logging 30 miles a day after school twice a week, and 50 miles a day on the weekends
d. after a tremendous growth spurt is now looking Pam in the eye, much to her dismay ... guess it’s in the genes!
e. still enjoys camping, including excursions this year to Garmisch, Heidelberg, Normandy (with 3,000 campers!) and Bastogne...including significant historical hikes at Normandy and Bastogne
Pam is now an Air Force lieutenant colonel, working in the Public Affairs office of U.S. Air Forces in Europe, and:
a. is still on the go, with trips slated to Georgia, Poland, Romania, Lithuania, and the Czech Republic in 2009
b. enjoyed tagging along on Zachary’s Normandy camping trip, adding a few extra days to visit St. Meré-Eglise, Utah Beach, Point du Hoc, Mont Saint-Michel, Omaha Beach, Arromanches, the Bayeux Tapestry, and the Omaha-Normandy American Cemetery
c. worked hard and played hard on a 2-week trip to Israel, working long hours but making full use of her time off to tour Jerusalem, float in the Dead Sea, visit Masada, walk through Nazareth, circle the Sea of Galilee, visit the Golan Heights and stroll on the hillside where Jesus gave his Sermon on the Mount (a very MOVING experience!)
d. started tutoring others in journalism and photography, and showing them the basics of sharing their talents via the internet
e. is learning how to recycle in Germany -- separating among biodegradable, paper/cardboard, light refraction and “restmüll” (residual waste)...anyone living on the economy needs a PhD in recycling to figure it all out!
Our travels this year took us to Italy (again, we just can’t seem to stay away), Holland, France and Austria, as well as Garmisch, Oberammergau, Berchtesgaden, Lake Eibsee, Ulm, Bad Wimpfen and Stuttgart in Germany. And yes, we met our travel goals for 2008: Keukenhof Gardens, Paris and Normandy. Other than exploring the local sights around Ramstein, we’ll have to start traveling by air to tour more of Europe since we’ve done just about as much as we reasonably can within a day’s drive from home.
This year we’re sticking close to home again for the holidays, looking forward to spending some down time together as a family. After our hectic post-move schedules juggling school, after-school classes, homework (yes, even for Benjamin!), Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, play practices, swim lessons (times three) and other odds-and-ends activities, we really need to relax and rejuvenate at home with each other before diving into 2009.
As always, remember that you are all welcome in our home if you decide to make a trek this way. We even have a guest bedroom in our house that is just waiting to be used. Our 2009 travel calendar is wide open, but I’m looking forward to filling it up...and welcoming any and all travel companions.
We hope you’re all doing well and looking forward to 2009. Take care, and please keep in touch!!
I’ll post the answer key in a few days so you can see how well you kept up with the Cook Clan in 2008. :-)
Labels: Benjamin, Christmas, MacKenzie, Zachary
