Flower Island

Last Saturday I took the four youngest kids to Inseln Mainau in Germany to admire all the gorgeous flowers, and play on their awesome playground.  They were very excited to go.Although Alexandra got tired of the hat long before she actually needed it.

The plan was to meet some friends there for lunch, but that didn’t work out so well.  I left at a good time, and just needed to run into Migros for some bread for dinner that night.  And got stuck in a ridiculously long checkout line.  Yes, the express lane was longer than all the other lines!  But I stayed, figuring that it would still be faster since each person was paying for a smaller amount of goods.  Still took 20 minutes to get out of there.  Then Suzy (our gps lady) took me on the scenic route to the island.  We got to the German border okay, but instead of going directly to Mainau, she took me up the peninsula and then over.  Added another 25 minutes on to our drive. Grrr!

We finally get there, only to wait another 20 minutes to purchase our tickets.  By now, our friends have given up on us, left the meeting place I knew about and went to start their picnic.  But the last information I had, was that the tables were “just behind the playground”  so I was confident we could easily find them.  Yeah, that’s not what happened.  I finally got in contact with someone in the group, but by then I had been feeling abandoned, alone, and hungry 🙂 for about 30 minutes.

My first instinct was to actually NOT to try and find them anymore, and just enjoy the day with my kids.  I had packed sandwiches, apples, water and lots of cookies, so no one would have starved.  Which definitely would have been the better choice.  But for some reason I called Chris one last time, and he called them (my phone wasn’t programmed for calling in Germany) and then they got a hold of me.  So J. came over to get me and show me where they actually were.

I was frustrated at all the delays to our actual arrival. I was mad at myself for not remembering to find out the German calling code before I left the house.  And I could not figure out where these picnic tables were, as I walked all around the entire playground three times and there was nothing “just behind them”.  I was frustrated I had never been able to speak to an actual member of the party, but had only gotten messages from Chris.   Information always get lost and muddled in a situation like that.  So, when I finally found them, all that frustration came out because they’re my friends.  And if you can’t tell your friends your troubles, who can you tell, right?  Well, it sounded like I was blaming them, when I was just mad at the situation and myself.  (I am generally not coherent when upset,  so it isn’t their fault for being confused) But it definitely did not endear me to the group.  Yeah, really, really, really wish I had just gone off on my own.

Anyway, after much awkwardness it sort of got resolved/ignored/swept under the rug.  And we went off to look at the flowers.  I let Sarah and Sophie take all the pictures since I wasn’t in the right mind set for it. They did a pretty good job, and I even think the fingers in the corners are kind of charming. 🙂 Here is their documentation of the day.

There was a giant butterfly flying around our picnic area.  The kids were convinced that it was an escapee from the butterfly enclosure on the island.  They are probably right.

Obviously the kids had a great time and weren’t affected much at all by the hub bub.

Sarah was fascinated that these ponies were “fighting”.  I am not sure what was going, not being too versed in proper pony behavior, but they definitely looked mad at each other.  There was lots of kicking, biting, and hoof-slapping going on.

Sarah liked the animal lawnmowers.

Everyone’s favorite fountain.  It was seriously packed, wall to wall people, when we first arrived.  I have never seen it so full of blooming flowers before.

It’s pretty, and fun!

We have been to this island three times before, and never seen this fountain.  It was gorgeous and the perfect way for the kids to cool off.  Although Noah got carried away and jumped completely into it at one point.  And yes, those are his socks he’s wearing.  His shoes got soaked in the fountain, so we took them off, but left on the socks to provide some protection from the graveled walkways.  (They were starting to get holes already.)

Some lady had brought bubbles and was blowing them for her son.  All the kids ended up chasing them, and she very graciously just kept blowing.  They were beautiful in the sun.

Rocks in the shoes was a common complaint the whole day.  The only downside to sandal weather.

This tree was just so magical.  Everyone stopped to take photos underneath it.  The kids would gather up petals, throw them in the air, and let them rain down on their faces.

All the ladies together. Julie, Tanya, Terrian, me, Julie.  Megan had to leave early.

I would love Easter eggs like this in my garden.

I posted this mostly to show the grandmothers how well Sarah’s braces are working.  Look how straight those front teeth are now!

Last shot of the day.  The ride home was much quicker.  I followed the street signs rather than Suzy. 🙂