First Day of School!

It seemed like summer went by in a blink and, all of a sudden, it was time for school again!

Kiddo acted like he wasn't excited or nervous, but he still wanted me to walk him all the way to the playground.  He was ok once he saw people he knew.

BG couldn't wait to start kindergarten!  When it was time to go into class, she sat down and got busy like a pro.

G2 was thrilled to go to school with the kids, but then was super confused why we left them there.  Making some first day of school cookies seemed to cheer her up.

Gorky Park

Gorky Park is a massive park in the center of Moscow and we finally got to visit it.  The kids--and Brandon--brought their scooters and we buzzed around the park and played on the playground for hours and still didn't see everything.  We can't wait to go back!

First Annual Kids' Day

The decorations were meager, but we had them!

Kids' Day is a new tradition I started this year: an entire day planned by the kids.  No chores, no summer homework, no one had to get dressed if they didn't want to, whatever they wanted to eat, whatever they wanted to do.  I told them about it a week beforehand and suggested that they figure out the food and activities early so that we could plan accordingly.  Luckily, we have one child with a Type A personality who got the other two together and went right to work.  Within an hour the day's schedule was made--hour by hour--as well as plans for snacks and meals.  (Pancakes and bacon for breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, an assortment of chips and fruit for snacks, and Papa Johns Pizza and juice for dinner.)  Then the kids made a grocery list, and we all went to the store to buy the things we needed.

After much anticipation, the big day arrived!  Kiddo didn't get dressed all day, BG didn't fuss about what there was to eat, and Kiddo kept everyone on schedule.  The kids watched their favorite shows and movies, and we played all the games they chose.  We had big plans to visit all three playgrounds within walking distance, too, but G2's nap lasted nearly twice as long as usual.  The older two opted to keep watching their favorite shows over waking her up.  All in all, it was one of the laziest days we've had in a long time.  The kids loved it!

This is what much of Kid Day consisted of--watching TV.

Vienna: Schonbrunn Zoo and Prater

We don't typically go to zoos when we're travelling abroad, but Vienna has the oldest zoo in the world!  How can you pass that up?

Our last adventure in Vienna was to visit the Prater.  We only had an hour or so before we had to go to the airport, but we made the most of it.  Ferris wheel, a train, bumper cars, and a couple of roller coasters.  The kids loved it!

Overall it was a great trip!  We can't wait to visit both cities again!

Vienna: Schonbrunn Palace, Ring Tram, and Tichy's

After saying good-bye to Budapest, we said hello to Vienna!  Our first stop was to Schonbrunn Palace.  We took a tour inside and then a walk around the grounds.

Then we wandered around the palace maze and labyrinth.  The kids loved it!  (Apparently it was too much fun to take pictures.)

After spending most of the day at the palace, we went to the Vienna Ring.  This is the central part of Vienna that has many of the oldest historic buildings.  We had attempted to see it when we first got off the train from Budapest, but quickly learned that the kids were not up for walking around.  And since we had wandered all over the palace most of the day, we chose to take the Ring Tram--a tram with a built-in audio tour discussing the buildings we passed.  Of course, we had to walk around some of the buildings, as well, to get a closer look.

Vienna Opera House

We had tried to meet up with some of our friends from when we lived in Arlington, but we could never quite get in touch with each other (luckily we got together for dinner the next day, albeit without any pictorial proof.  Thanks Ortons!).  So we ended up getting ice cream without them--to Tichy!  Ice cream sundaes as big as our faces!  It was one of the best dinners of our trip, and a great way to end the day!

Two of my favorite things: Brandon and ice cream

Budapest: Vajdahunyad Castle, Heroes' Square, St. Stephen's Church, and Liberty Statue

The next morning we took the (super cute!) metro to Vajdahunyad Castle.

The kids had mixed feelings about wandering around another castle in more heat (again, we're not used to these warm temperatures), which accounts for the less-than-thrilled faces in some of the pictures, but they cheered up eventually.

Wandering around inside the castle we found the "kid section," complete with a galloping horse they could ride.  BG was thrilled; Kiddo, not so much.

From the castle it was a just a short walk to Heroes' Square!  BG's first comment was, "Where are all the women?"  Preach.

After Heroes' Square we had an excellent Hungarian lunch and dessert and then headed to St. Stephen's Church.  We're all about seeing old churches, but the main reason we went is because our tour guide, Kate, told us that Stephen's preserved hand was on display.  Talk about a kid-pleaser!  Who doesn't want to see a 1000-year old Holy Hand?

  

The Hand! Ok, it was kind of a let-down.

Since seeing The Hand took way less time than we thought it would so we decided to hike up Gellért Hill to see the Liberty Statue.  It was no easy feat with three tired kids (and that hill was nothing but up!), but we did it and were rewarded with some amazing views.