Christmas in Germany

I was REALLY late getting this year's edition of the Hepler Family Newsletter out. It has been an interesting Christmas for us! We still wish you and yours a blessed New Year and hope that your Christmas was blessed as well.

Herb celebrated his 60th birthday in September and was surprised by his sister, Vicki, and our son, David, who came to help celebrate. Nothing much has changed with me. I still play a lot on the computer, especially on Facebook. I also have been playing on the Wii Fit (and have lost about 17 lbs. as a result! Yeah!) We are both still working at the same places (Herb at American Eagle and me at Hurst Metallurgical).

Since David had come home for Herb's birthday, we decided to go to Germany for Christmas this year. After an interesting (to say the least) time getting there, we all arrived safely. Laura and Alisi spent one night in the Amsterdam airport. Herb and I missed one flight on Saturday, and then the next day I flew to Munich via Frankfurt, and Herb had to fly to Paris and take the train from Paris to Munich (dealing with 2 large suitcases!) Vicki also came, but she got there with no incidents!

We rented cars and got to see quite a few of the sites in and near Munich, including the Christkindl Markts (Christmas markets). It was Laura and Alisi's first time to go, and they want to go back (but maybe in the summer!)

David has taken after his dad in his love for cooking - and cooked a traditional German Christmas meal, with goose, knodel, red cabbage, and as a nod to our tradition, sweet potato casserole! Later in the week, he cooked steak, and only after we all tried it, did he tell us that it was ostrich steak! We also had traditional German food at several restaurants, and we all sampled what everyone else had ordered. It was great!

Christmas Day was spent with our friends' Sigrid and Volkor Ladig. Volkor and Herb had ridden down Highway 1 in California together several years ago.

On 2nd Christmas day, we traveled to Schloss Linderhof and Schloss Neuschwanstein and Alisi got to be in the mountains for the first time!

I am sure that this will be a Christmas that we will all remember!

If you haven't had a chance to, please check out the pictures I've posted on Facebook of our trip!