First Day of Kindergarten

Today was Ellie's first day of Kindergarten! Luckily her expression in this picture does not reflect how well it went; she loved it!!

Kindergarten is a German word - Kinder means children. She's going to the Kindergarten in Kienberg, which is the town two miles from Gaming. She takes a bus to get there. 

The other faculty and staff with pre-school children send their kids there too. So Ellie got on the bus with her three good friends. 

The Kindergarten is nestled in the beautiful valley of the foothills. 

The kids have their own locker areas, hers is the one with all the pink belongings! Upon arriving, the kids change out of their street shoes and put on their house shoes - a pair of indoor shoes that stay at school. 

It is Montessori style so she is in a class with twenty-some other 3 to 6 year olds. Everything is in German. Her teachers don't speak English (at least on a regular basis), but her neighbor/classmates are bi- and quad-lingual so that gives me great peace of mind knowing they can translate for her if need be until she's speaking German herself!

Brian and I drove over to see how her first morning was going (while a ministry for moms helper watched Francis). I was thrilled to see that she was LOVING it!! There were a few other moms (holding their other young children) trying to encourage their children - but Ellie barely had time to talk to us as she zipped around the room with her new toys and friends!  As Brian and I left her happily playing inside, seeing the horses roam in the field outside the school, we praised God for the community and blessings He has given us!

Happy start to the school year!!

The Hills are Alive!

Saturday we went to Salzburg - home of The Sound of Music - with the students!

We visited the tunnel at Mirabell Gardens...you may remember it from this scene in the movie:

We spent the afternoon at Hohensalzburg Castle...which you may remember from this scene:

It was our first time going up to the castle and we loved it!  The views were absolutely amazing!

Construction of the castle began in 1077.  According to Rick Steves, it is the largest and best preserved Medieval Fortress in Europe. 

Our day trip to Salzburg ended with ice cream on the river!  

We've really got to teach Francis which end of the cone to start with ;)

Dirndls & Lederhosen

The first weekend with the students here was 'picture perfect'!  Here are a few of the pictures - featuring Ellie and her friends in their dirndls and Francis' debut in his lederhosen!

Today we joined the students for their excursion to the monastery in Melk (about an hour away)...

And then up the river to Durnstein. 

We are excited for this Fall Semester and all God has in store!

Exploring Gesäuse National Park

Yesterday we took a family trip to Gesäuse National Park!

The center of the Park is a little over an hour away, which is the perfect amount of time for Francis' morning nap. So after 8am Mass, we packed a picnic lunch and headed out. 

The Gesäuse is a rugged mountain landscape of limestone - very similar in appearance to Yosemite National Park in California. It's famous for its breathtaking beauty and remoteness. The Enns River has carved deeply into the mountains creating a steep valley. Brian and I hope to return sometime soon to go white-water rafting. 

On this trip we visited the Weidendom (Willow Dome) and then hiked the "Wild John" Discovery Trail with little activities along the way for the kids. 

We loved being down by the pristine water of Johnsbach stream, even though it was a little tricky making sure the kids didn't get swept up in the current!

We timed our departure perfectly so that both kids slept while Brian and I took in the beauty of the drive home!

Upon arriving home, we had the RAs over for dessert and now we are preparing for all of the other students to arrive at the end of the week!

Have a blessed Feast of the Assumption!

Day on the Danube

Two weeks after arriving back in Austria, we're readjusted to the time change and ready for a little travel.

We took a short trip to the beautiful Danube River about 45 minutes from Gaming.

We started in the town of Emmersdorf where we got on a boat.

We got off the boat in the town of Spitz - where we saw a castle!

We enjoyed lovely views of the Danube as we hiked up to the castle.

We made it to the very top of the tower!

Then back down we went to the train station.

We all loved the train ride back along the Danube - especially Francis :)

It's good to be back in Austria! :)