A New Year Has Begun...

This past week I kept looking back to the many happenings of 2011 for the Webb family... We were excited to have Christian home for most of the year (he re-deployed in October 2011) and then excited his deployment ended early and he was back with us for the holidays! Erin finished out the second grade at Vogelweh Elementary School and is now full-swing into the third grade. It is amazing how much she has grown just over the last six months - it seems that each day she becomes more of a little lady and less of a little girl. It kind of makes this mommy's heart sad.

Then...after two "clean" biopsies in March/April, I went in to have the right lobe of my thyroid removed due to four large growths. Unfortunately, one week after my surgery, I received the call that the growths removed were cancerous and I was immediately sent back to the operating table. After nearly one week in ICU (did you know that you have your own private nurse sitting at your door in the ICU??!!) I went home to recuperate and wait on my treatment schedule. Needless to say, 2011 has been filled with clinic visits for me, taking LOTS of medications and very carefully watching my calcium levels, but I am so thankful that I had the "good cancer," and that my life was able to stay as normal as possible during treatment.

While we all tend to look back at the past year, the Webb family is anxiously looking forward to 2012! There are many exciting things going on in our home, including: moving back to the U.S. (this is a HUGE task!), me getting a new job, Erin starting a new school in a new town and finally...preparations will begin for a family addition! While leaving Europe will be bittersweet (I have to admit that the travel is marvelous!), we are looking forward to spending holidays in the U.S. - hopefully closer to our families. Christian is looking forward to going to a new base - you know that you are made for the military when you can't stay in one job/area for any length of time before getting the "itch!"

Christian, Erin and I wish you joy, peace of LOTS OF FUN in 2012 and we hope that our paths cross soon! We'd love to see you!

Keely

A Very Merry Christmas!

We have had a wonderful Christmas season so far! Christian's dad flew in on Friday, 23 December and it has been great having him in for a visit. Last night we carried on a tradition of having Erin go on a scavenger hunt for a gift, which ended up in one gift from mom and dad and another surprise gift from grandpa!

This morning Erin was soooo excited about the gifts under the tree that she woke up at 0100, 0300, 0500 and finally convinced the adults to get out of bed around 0630! Needless to say, I think we will all be down for a nap this afternoon. After we get some beauty sleep, we plan to sit down for a bowl (or two!) of my great grandmother's tasty spareribs spaghetti.

We plan on relaxing this afternoon, eating, watching Christmas movies and who knows what else! Of course, in German tradition, we will have to go on a walk through the village!

We wish each of you a very merry Christmas and hope our paths cross sometime in 2012!

With love,
Christian, Keely and Erin

St. Nicholas/Nikolaus Day 2011

Today is one of Erin's favorite German holidays - St. Nikolaus Day!

St. Nikolaus Day, or Eve, is celebrated on December 6. This is the favorite holiday of all children - it's a gift-giving day. When evening comes, St. Nikolaus, a reverend gray-haired figure with flowing beard, wearing gorgeous bishop's garments, gold embroidered cope, mitre and pastoral staff, knocks on doors and enquires about the behavior of the children. The custom of examining the children, where they will cite a verse, sing, or otherwise show their skills, is still widespread in German-speaking countries. Each little one gets a gift for his performance.



So...tonight, Erin put her slipper outside her door in hopes that St. Nikolaus will visit our house! I took the liberty of taking some pictures for your viewing pleasure. Naturally, this is a special treat for Erin because the gift-giving happens twice in one month.



Last week one of our German neighbors, Marion, gave Erin an advent calendar. Inside each box of the calendar is a special treat picked especially by Marion for Erin. Because these two are close (Erin and Libby spend spring, summer and fall evenings at Marion's house), each gift is perfect and fits Erin's personality. Well...this morning, Erin realized that this will be our last Christmas in Germany. She became quite sad as this truly is home for her - she doesn't remember living in the U.S. So, while this is an exciting time for Erin, she is also sad because she knows we will be moving next year:-(