Ridiculous Rainbows, A Like-Minded Friend, & The Winner Is....

Today's Yesterday's Excitement in General:

I am a huge fan of seeing rainbows before/after/during a rainstorm. There is a YouTube video about a guy who is freaking out over a double rainbow... that's me. minus the groaning. If you haven't seen this video it's hilarious. I've added it below this section. This guy has to be on crack. The Remix is my favorite. But you have to see the original to appreciate the Remix. Anyway, I digress... It's been raining an insane amount here lately, and D and I desperately miss the sunshine that lasts for longer than five minutes in between rainstorms.  The other day I looked out our window to see a very vivid rainbow... and I was so excited! D thought there was something wrong because he runs out and asks me if everything was okay... and I jumped up and down and pointed to the prism of color. He laughed. But I snapped pictures anyway.

Not an hour later, there is a completely different rainbow in the sky. A double rainbow, all the way!!!!

Then D had to play the video. and the Remix was stuck in my head for the rest of the day. A shout out to my fellow OPNers who first introduced me to the Remix series... i miss you all.

Double Rainbow Original

Double Rainbow Remix (hilarious!!)

A Like-Minded Friend...
Sometimes you meet people and it just clicks. You've barely been conversing for three minutes and you realize that the person you're talking to not only "gets it" but that you both think the same way. I was introduced to Jessica Aiduk at the christmas party forever and a day ago... but we recently started hanging out as I was helping her redesign her blog. (Seriously check it out!!!! There & Back Again: An Air Force Tale) Let me tell you.... Jess is my freaking hero. She's a hippy-gypsy-soul air force wife, rockstar mom of two beautiful girls (Lily & Sam), amazing photographer (she even has a book on photographing food!!!), and fellow foodie extraordinaire! I watch her with her girls and I can only hope that someday I'm as good with my kids as she is with hers.

I stole this one from her. Because I LOVE it!!!! 

This one I took of Sam when I was there. One of the few moments where I didn't have both kids in my lap!

She spoils me every time I would come over with an amazing lunch, like chicken tortilla soup & barbecue shrimp pizza, to name a few. She lives in a gorgeous house (designed by an architect!!!! and you can totally tell...) in Otterberg not too far from Landstuhl. They even have space for a garden and a grilling patio with a view! There was definitely some house envy going on. There's an entire wall of windows in their living room. The view is unreal.

I have had a blast teaching her Photoshop and in turn she's been teaching me about photography and the trials and tribulations of mommy-ing. We exchange food recipe's and I admire her in more ways than she'll ever know in her adventures with purely organic cooking. She's right up there with my dad. And of course, she's made the transition of AirForce Wife for me remarkably easy. It's an amazing thing to have a group of women that not only speak the lingo and know what the acronyms mean, but to also know that you have a support structure for whatever you're going through. Since Jess and I have the love of food photography in common, I've been making pretty desserts for her to capture on camera using her new lens!!

One of my cupcakes. Isn't she AWESOME?!

My blueberry rainbow cake. How convenient that she has blue carpet??

L.O.V.E.

So Jess... Thanks for being wonderful. For renewing my hope and faith in good friends so far away from home. (: Here's to hanging out again after we both get back from vacation!!!!

& The Winner Is....
A while back there were several posts on the play D & I were working on called "The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood". I believe I mentioned that this play was adjudicated and we received rave reviews from the judges! The Toppers Awards Tournament of Plays 2012 was this past weekend in Heidelberg. D and I as well as several members of the cast attended. I had no idea that this shindig was such a big to do! Think Tony Awards or Oscars. I haven't seen that many ball gowns since prom in 2003. It was so much fun! There were drinks and yummy snacks and an entire show put together for our awards entertainment. As it turns out, "The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood" was nominated for 23 awards and won 6! This is by FAR the most nominations & wins for Razz-Ma-Tazz Community theater! Way to go team!!! The show was nominated in every possible category we could have been nominated for. THAT in and of itself is extremely impressive. We had an amazing cast that truly bonded together to create an outstanding show with every performance.

The Nominations and Wins are as follows:
Best Make-Up & Hair in a Comedy: WINNER Kirsten Wollschlager & Edison Ruland
Best Costumes in a Comedy: Nomination - Amy Hopkins
Best Sound in a Comedy: WINNER - Kirsten Wollschlager
Best Lighting in a Comedy: WINNER - Cindy Krewson
Best Set Painting in a Comedy: Nomination - Kirsten Wollschlager
Best Set in a Comedy: Nomination - Kirsten Wollschlager
Best Props in a Comedy: Nomination - Kirsten Wollschlager
Best Stage Manager in a Comedy: WINNER - Will
Best Male Military Performer in a Comedy: Nomination - Chris McNeal (Prince John)
Best Female Military Performer in a Comedy: Nomination - Ashley Jenkins (Maid Marian)
Outstanding Male Youth in a Comedy: Nomination - Spencer Allen & Andrew Allen (Merry Men)
Best Debut in a Comedy: Nomination - Jordon Campbell (Friar Tuck)
Best Ensemble in a Comedy: Nomination - "The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood" Cast
Best Actress in a Feature Roll in a Comedy - Nomination: Erin Allen (Lady in Waiting)
Best Actor in a Feature Roll in a Comedy - Nomination: Michael (Sherriff of Nottingham)
Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy - Nomination: Danielle Pierce (The Towns Guy)
Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy - Nomination: Chol McCarthy (Little John)
Best Actor in a Comedy: WINNER - Nick Perez (Robin Hood)
Best Director in a Comedy: Nomination - Edison Ruland
Best Comedy: Nomination - "The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood"

And finally the photos... which is the best part!!!!

Miss Technical Directors Unite!!!

The End!

ALSO, we're gonna be on TV!!!
MANNHEIM, Germany -- AFN Europe is showcasing the top Installation Management Command theater productions during a special airing of the "Topper Awards," on the Pentagon Channel 7 p.m. Central European Time on May 5 and May 12. "We feel it's going to be a fun show," says AFN Europe Commander Bill Bigelow. "You'll see parts of some of the best theater in Europe, as well as the actual award presentations." This is the first time in the 17 years of the Toppers awards that AFN has televised the show. AFN Europe will record the program at the Village Pavilion in Heidelberg, then edit it for the May air dates. The show will also be on AFN Europe's Youtube channel May 6 at http://www.youtube.com/afneurope.

On the Way Home...
It was a really nice drive on the way back from Heidelberg on Sunday. So we took lots of random detours and got lost. Took some fun pics along the way!

This opening is meant for two cars. HA! Although the sign says that on coming traffic is supposed to yield to you...

i love the views that pop up when you reach a high point. it ends up looking like a bumpy patchwork quilt.

Coming Up Soon....
Leaving for Texas in "T" minus 14 days! crazy. luckily there's a wedding or else i wouldn't want to come home! lol This week I'm working on Sophia's flower girl dress, getting together with Jen for some photoshop fun, & Dana is up for the Tony Sturn award on Friday. Busy busy week. Poor husband came down with strep throat on monday... so he's home with me sick right now... but he went to the doctor and got meds and a shot (yikes!), so hopefully he'll be better soon! Wishing everyone a great week!!!

All my love....

iphones, a hiking we will go, & fairy godmothers

Today's Excitement:
Dana & I are now the proud owners of iphone 4's!!!!! I am still in shock. A HUGE thank you and shout out to Thorlund & Emily Darnell. They are the sole reason we were able to do this in the first place. I want to thank Thor for her generosity and Emily for her patience as we went back to the phone store THREE TIMES to get the contracts sorted out! I feel like my membership to the club has been accepted.... now i have become that person that is super psyched to hear any kinds of sounds emitted from my phone because it could mean any number of things (ie: not just a phone call) I even hooked up the VPN yesterday!!!!! Dana is tickled pink at my enthusiasm... he even let me set his phone up for him.... he's been so busy lately and i knew he didn't have the time. So that is a HUGE new development in the Wollschlager home. (: Face time anyone???

As the Days pass....
I was trying to figure out what to do with my morning... i'm headed over to Jess's in a little bit but i had some time after taking dana to work at 7:00.... so i read some of the happiness project (awesome book!) and then decided to update the blog. there are several projects i'm working on right now... and rather than spend a small amount of time on them.. i wanted to reach out to my friends and family.


A Hiking We Will Go...
The weather has been unbelieveable this past week. As such, Dana and i have taken the opportunity to head into town.... on foot. For those of you who don't remember. We live at the top of a ginormous hill. We had seen quite a few footpaths when we were driving and vowed when the weather got warmer we would walk our butts down. This has been added benefits... the exercise is fantastic (although the walk back up might kill you) and both of us were able to stop off at the Irish Pub for a drink. We rarely get to enjoy beverages together out here because the tolerances have no leeway. So it was nice to stop off at the Blarneystone for a pint. (: As we found out, there are quite a few ways to get into town. I think we've made a tradition to never go the same way twice. I love Dana because he always wants to take the backroads instead of always following the same road. His sense of direction is WAY better than mine, although we both are terrible... so i can rest assured that he knows where we are. Here are some images of our adventures this week.

Walking down the footpath of the hill into Landstuhl

Out of nowhere, we see this carved out of a tree stump. who knew?!?

An ordinary pile of wood?!? i don't think so..... amazing!

Further down the hill....

hotel in town.... i want this entire house. (:

i loved this garage/backhouse. 

spring is slowly blooming in full here in Landstuhl! The flowers are gorgeous!

The town square with a view of the castle above.

One of the chapels in town.

additional view of the chapel

three leaf clover design in D's Guinness foam at the Blarneystone. Love it!

Our banana split that we shared on date night of this past week. OMG delicious!

Fairy Godmothers

While working on the play, we were introduced to Amy Hopkins, who volunteered to make all the costumes for the show. She did a FANTASTIC job. She's an amazing mom and is one of those people who always seems to have things together. She and her husband James invited us over for dinner on Tuesday night and we had the best time! Amy lives in my dream house. It's architecturally fantastic and runs off of solar power and the water is recycled through the house. The floors have radiant heating and there is a ridiculous amount of natural light. I was also floored to find out that she furnished the entire house under $1000.00 through ramstein yardsales. I was glad to realize it is a possibility... you just have to have patience... Amy is also a HUGE fan of DIY projects. She and her three beautiful children are always hard at work creating something. I am looking to make Sophia's dress for our wedding in june... and they say "when the student is ready, the teacher appears." Amy was so excited about my idea.... she's already made a pattern for me and is taking me to the fabric store next week! She also has a massive garage full of woodworking powertools. and a mini van. which means...... She's going to help us fix the furniture that we bought and can't manage to get up the stairs!!!!!! i'm so excited!!!!! Amy also gave me this website for Ana White. A DIY superstar who does plenty of woodworking and posts patterns for all of her projects! (Seriously, a pinterest dream come true!) I hope to make this in the following weeks. We definitely need the storage!

 

She has definitely been dubbed my fairy Godmother at home.... I am in shock that people can be placed in your life at the exact time that you need them. She reminds me so much of my mother... there are definitely times where i have moments of choking back tears. So thank you Amy!!!!! You are a total Godsend!!!!!

Her husband James, owns a string base.... not to mention is extremely talented at plucking the banjo... he owns several guitars and banjos to boot. Every so often they have a jam session of bluegrass at the house. I happened to remember that D played the string base for a while... and mentioned it. Of course they asked him to play... so right then and there James hopped on the banjo... and dana picked up the base... before i knew it they were jamming. Ever since i knew D could play the string base i always wanted to hear him. I still can't believe i got the chance! I managed to snap a few photos of them as they were playing... did i mention how obsessed i am with the string base? (:

The Weekend Events:
Tonight we're headed to see "Foreigner" at KMCC. Tomorrow we're taking apart the wall shank... and possibly hitting the big bazaar on base. It's the first weekend since the play and i'm excited to have the time to get things done with Dana. I'm hoping that i remember to ask amy for her drill bit so that we can hang pictures!!! Well, that's all for today. Happy Friday everyone!

"Oh shock and disbelief!!!"

Today's Excitement:

Well, it was actually yesterdays... i went to the post office with a finished wedding invitation to check the postage. i wanted to make sure there was enough stamps to send the thick book. I asked the woman behind the counter, she weighed it and told me i had plenty of postage. I was so thrilled i grabbed my things to leave... and she tells me that unfortunately, i need a customs form to mail it. my eyes got huge and my heart sank. i proceeded to reply that these are my wedding invitations and i have around 94 to send out. (in case you're bad at putting two and two together... that's NINETY FOUR CUSTOMS FORMS.... dana, i love you, but your last name has entirely too many letters for me to write it NINETY FOUR times.) i asked her if she was serious and she told me that i could chance it and send them without, but if they came back it wasn't her fault. so. instead, i am preparing all of them with the appropriate stamps, putting them in a large box, and shipping them to my father so that he can mail them stateside. yet one more hoop to jump through when planning a wedding from another country while residing on a military base. *sigh*

i know i haven't written in a while... but the wedding has been taking up an enormous amount of time. hand making all of the envelopes and all the trimmings that come with a wedding invitation is way more time consuming than i would have imagined. it's a blast though. if i could ever have the buisness of my dreams it would be to create custom wedding invitations. complete with the envelopes, seals, and calligraphy. it's my happy place. and my mad scientist lab table (aka the dining room table) proves it. the image below reminds me of studio... those were the days!

D and i have also been busy helping out with the ramstein community theater production of "The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood" a hysterical comedy that's somewhere between monty python and men in tights. Check out their Facebook page that lists dates, times and ticket prices. I highly recommend the VIP seating, as there are couches and they're way more comfortable! it's fun for the WHOLE family. Your kids are going to love this. So come out and support your local Razz-MaTazz Community Theater!

So yesterday i made a trip to Otterbach to visit Jess at her AMAZINGLY fantastic home and i won't lie i was a bit nervous to drive out there by myself. German navigation is insane. tiny tiny roads that you wouldn't think two cars were supposed to fit on, more or less three... and i was leaving base after the post office debacle and i was supposed to get gas before i went home. for those of you who aren't familiar, if you get gas on base, you pay american prices. You can get gas at any Esso Station and pay with your prepaid card to get the amercian prices also, but i am NOT familiar with the locations of the Esso stations anywhere outside landstuhl. so i stupidly forgot to get gas because i was so frazzled by the invitation incident and left for Jess's on less than a fourth of a tank. Luckily i remembered before i left and jess kindly directed me to the nearest station close to Globus. I had less than two notches worth of gas and after running out on the highway in iowa, i am terrified of it happening again. so i prayed the whole way. as my luck would have it i made it. but i did take a pictures of the totals on the meter. because this is what we would pay if we bought gas on the German economy instead of using American rates. that's 83.97 EURO. which currently is $110.60. to fill up a 15 gallon tank on a honda accord. Crazy huh? you could go broke just trying to keep gas in your car!

well, that's all for now. i've got a million invitations to finish! Love you guys! i'll try to write more often even if it's sans pictures.