Army life has its perks and we're about to receive a great one! We got orders to report to USAG, Schweinfurt in Bavaria, Germany and we're so excited!
We have to report in by early July but plan to let the girls finish school in June and then visit family before we head out on our new adventure. The girls are very excited and have even started to learn some German. Cali is now tri-lingual -- she can count to 10 in English, Spanish and German! And she loves to say her age -- fünf! Hannah is most excited that we're going to have snow to play in next winter; all winter, not just once a year!
We've already learned from Mapquest that Paris is 7.5 hours away and London 9.5 hours; both less than that by train. And that the famous New Swan Stone Castle (the model for the Disney Princess Castle) is 3 hours south. Additionally, Germany is bordered by Denmark, Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland, France, Luxembourg, Belgium and The Netherlands, making all of these countries (and others) less than a day trip away. 
Did you know that Germany is only 137,847 sq miles - slightly smaller than Montana? It includes 16 states and we will be living in the Lower Franconia region of the state of Bavaria. The Bavarian Alps and the Black Forest are in the state of Bavaria, as is Rothenburg, considered the epitome of German cities with its cobbled lanes lined with picturesque half-timbered houses.Does it make you want to visit? We hope so! We're going to try to rent a home with an extra bedroom so family and friends can come so let us know if you can. Give us a few months so we can get to know the area, and then fly into Frankfurt -- 70 miles from Schweinfurt -- and we can come get you! Audra has dibs on Holland in springtime for the tulip festival!
All the pictures I included, except the castle and Rothenburg, are of places in Schweinfurt. Schweinfurt itself was first documented in the year 790 so it has a lot of history and beautiful architecture, as you can see. It is located on the Main River and has many medieval buildings as well as an inner-city market square that German cities are so known for. I noticed in the downtown picture, though, that there's also a McDonalds so it obviously also contains modern-day amenities! We can't wait to see for ourselves so please pray for a smooth transition over these next few months!
Blessings to all!
