That last time jeff will let me plan a trip.

My mom was to fly in to Frankfurt early sunday morning. Instead of waking up at 5 and leaving to get her, we decided to put on our tourist hats and spend the weekend in Frankfurt. I took responsibility of booking a hotel and planning our trip, which, in retrospect, was an entirely foolish decision. Without going into to many details (I'd rather not rehash the trauma), I booked 2 hotels for the same night. Both...you guessed it....UNREFUNDABLE. My new favorite word. Jeff's too. Wasn't our vacation off to a wonderful start? The stars were anything but aligned, but we packed our bags and hit the road anyways.

We drove into Frankfurt, and our eyes were darting all over the place, trying to soak in this unique city that is bursting with life! Dozens of skyscrapers lined the horizon and as we approached the bustling heart of the city, old churches and colorful buildings were all around,reminding us that we were, in fact, still in Europe. My favorite part was crossing the bridge across the river Main. People running, biking up and down the gravel trails on each side of the river. Big boats floating down the center. Did I get a picture? I don't even think I did because, we were driving and there wasn't a place to stop and park.

Just driving into the city was a memorable experience. But we kept on until we arrived at the Palmengarten. It is a big huge garden with all types of plants and flowers. Luckily this time I took pictures, and I will let them speak for themselves. My favorite part was watching Jane chase the ducks. Their wings were clipped so they could not fly away. Only run away. So she chased them for a solid 15 minutes, with absolutely no intention of actually catching them or touching them. Every time she found herself getting within inches of the ducks, she would discretely slow down to let them gain a bit more distance. She was running and giggling, her hair wind blown and a smile stretching all across her face.That day, I was grateful for ducks. :)

After the Palmengarten we went to the mall. Definitely the most awesome mall I've seen in Germany, and maybe ever. I may be partial to this particular mall, however, because it is the place that made it possible for us to devour, and I mean DEVOUR, our most beloved food. Chipolte, how we have missed you. It's embarrassing to admit that eating here was worth the trip to me. It was just as good as I remembered. Jeff even held Lyla while I ate so I could really be in the moment with that blessed burrito. It was amusing to watch him eat his salad while trying to not drop food onto Lyla's head. I chuckled to myself. :) The art of eating an entire meal with a crumb-free baby head is one I have nearly mastered.

Love ya, chipolte.


After that delicious dinner, we headed to the hotel that we deemed superior out of the two that I booked. HA. We really loved the little bread and breakfast we stayed in, although the bitterness of having another unused room a few miles away sort of tainted the experience. We tried our best to enjoy it anyways and we all slumbered peacefully.

We sprung up in the morning, excited for the day ahead. We found a local bakery. If you go into a bakery and ask "do you speak english" and they say "a little bit" - that's when you know you've found a real keeper. A true, authentic german bakery is what our dreams are made of, particularly our 2 year old's dreams. We gobbled up that goodness and headed to the airport. EEEK! We were all excited to have our first visitor, especially since it is my mom! :)

We went into the airport and had a happy reunion. Talked about how miserable long flights are, and were on our way out. Jane had a blowout, (literally her first one in over a year!) mere seconds before my mom picked her up. We didn't notice until it was too late. What a welcoming gift. And impeccable timing. Seriously.

We took my mom to the palmengarten again because ya know...when something is real good you want to share it with people. Another happy experience there. And we actually managed to get a few family pictures that weren't selfies. We got ourselves a photographer, thanks mom! :) Without further ado, Palemengarten, Part 2:

 ^^ my favorite picture of the day :) 

After that, we headed to Wurzburg. A little town that was on the way home. Get this....it was bombed at least 300,000 times during the war. It is so interesting to live in a country that has been through so much devastation. It makes me grateful for the history of the United States, and how, in comparison to most other countries, its history glistens with positivity and triumph. After all the bombings though, in Wurzburg, this building withstood it all. The architecture, at the time, was a completely new idea that was criticized by so many. The architect went along with his idea anyways, and look who is laughing now! HA. Just about the only building that is still standing after all of that bombing. Quite a miraculous feat! The rooms inside were absolutely breath-taking. As were the gardens on the outside of the building.

We weren't allowed to take pictures inside, but we didn't know that until this picture was already taken, so uhhh I'm going to post it since it wasnt a deliberate disobedience. (ha) As we toured this building, we loved seeing the rooms and hearing the history but we also decided that tours with a toddler and a baby is a joke and won't be happening again in the near future.

We drove home and after getting all unpacked, and a half-hearted tour of our house, we promptly fell asleep :) Now we have this week to recoup before our next Germany trip this weekend. I think I'm going to let Jeff  book the hotel this time. ;)