A Georgia Girl in Germany

I know it’s well past Memorial Day, but I still want to share these photos from our visit to Lorraine American Cemetery and Memorial in St. Avold, France. It’s only about an hour from where we live and is the largest American World War II cemetery in Europe covering 113.5 acres and containing 10,489 graves.



The headstones are arranged in nine plots in a generally elliptical design extending over the beautiful rolling terrain of France’s eastern Lorraine region and culminating in a prominent overlook feature.



Most of the dead here were killed while driving the German forces from the fortress city of Metz toward the Siegfried Line and the Rhine River. Initially, there were over 16,000 Americans interred in the St. Avold region, mostly from the U.S. Seventh Army's Infantry and Armored Divisions and its Cavalry Groups. St. Avold served as a vital communications center for the vast network of enemy defenses guarding the western border of the Third Reich.









The memorial, which stands on a plateau to the west of the burial area, contains ceramic operations maps with narratives and service flags. High on its exterior front wall is the large figure of St. Nabor, the martyred Roman soldier overlooking the silent host. On each side of the memorial, and parallel to its front, stretch the Tablets of the Missing on which are inscribed 444 names. Rosettes mark the names of those since recovered and identified. The entire area is framed in woodland.

Zachary took a few minutes to write down the words on the inscriptions inside the memorial.

Whenever we visit cemeteries, we always try to find headstones bearing family names. This was the only Walker interred here, and it was a little surreal that his name was Ivey, since I have a cousin named Ivy Walker (granted, she goes by her middle name, but still).

Labels: Benjamin, Boy Scouts, France, Travel, Zachary

MacKenzie’s really enjoyed Girl Scouts during the past five years, and has really made some great friends and had wonderful experiences as part of scouting. She recently met another milestone, when she bridged up to Cadette rank. Wow! It was a nice ceremony at a park on base. The only hassle that evening was that President Obama was on base, so roads were closed and traffic was disrupted ... so we simply stayed put and enjoyed visiting with other scouts and their families.

Labels: Girl Scouts, MacKenzie

Hard to believe my “baby” is now 6! He really is growing up, and -- honestly -- I haven’t called him my baby in quite some time (although he’ll always be “my baby”). He was so excited about turning 6, and could hardly wait. Since his birthday was on a Tuesday (Boy Scout night), we couldn’t do much to celebrate. I took them out for pizza, then splurged at Baskin Robbins afterward. When we got home, Benjamin opened his gifts -- and loved all of them.



Benjamin really wanted a party, but couldn’t decide who he wanted to invite. He finally settled on having a party at the Kid Zone with me, Zachary and MacKenzie. I certainly didn’t object! We made strawberry cupcakes with strawberry frosting (his choice) and took them with us the Saturday after his birthday. Fortunately, the Kid Zone wasn’t crowded, so it didn’t take long to get our food and they had plenty of time to play (well, until the tokens ran out). Best of all, it was exactly how Benjamin wanted to celebrate turning 6!

Labels: Benjamin, Birthdays

I have two quick updates to share about Benjamin. First, he is really on the verge of reading. I caught him the other day with Shel Silverstein’s “A Light in the Attic.” When I asked him if he’d read some to me, he replied that he couldn’t read all the words so he was looking at the pictures. At least he’s honest ... although I’m sure it won’t be long before he’s devouring books!

Second update is that he lost his second tooth this weekend. I tried to convince him to let me pull it about a week ago, but after one tug he screamed his head off and refused to let me try again. So, Friday morning, he awoke me with a kiss (I love how the kids wake me up -- much more relaxing than hitting or staring!) and told me to look in his mouth. Apparently, he wiggled it out with his tongue. He wanted to get this one as loose as his first one was before he pulled it, but it wasn’t quite there. He pulled his first tooth after it could wiggle forward at a 90-degree angle. This one could only bend forward at about 75-degrees. I suppose that was loose enough though!

It’s funny to watch him now -- his bottom jaw is constantly in motion ... a side effect from wiggling his tongue through the extra-large gap in his mouth. He says he isn’t playing with the gap -- not sure why he’s denying it, unless he doesn’t realize he’s doing it. In either case, it’s very cute to watch!

Labels: Benjamin