Spaetzle, Lederhosen, and Squirrel Underpants
Tuesday, April 27, 2010 at 9:55PM After a night of laughing our fool heads off (and a little bit of sharing and crying, too, as it goes with really close friends) we got up and took our time getting ready in order to take in some of the sights of the area.
We drove to a little town called Leavenworth, where many years ago folks set about to save a dying town by turning it into a small Bavarian village in the middle of the state of Washington. Apparently, it worked, and we joined many other tourists in order to sample a bit of German culture without the major jetlag.
Of course there were the shops, some of which were filled with trinkets and lovely things that conjure up images from The Sound of Music (yes I know that's Austria, but it's close, isn't it?). (There was also plenty of stuff that was made in China and could be found in any souvenir shop in any tourist attraction anywhere-very generic.)
And there was food. I ordered a beef roll for lunch, thinking it would be some kind of beef on a roll. But...it was indeed a beef roll, filled with pickles, carrots, and bacon. There were also red cabbage and Spaetzle.
I can't say that it was my favorite thing I ever ate...but it was an experience. Right? It was all quite tangy.
So, obviously when you are in mini-Bavaria you must do as the Germans do...these two were raising their beer mugs, minus the beer, offering a toast and a,"Cheers," and since I am a supernerd I wanted to take a picture of everything...
and because of my stellar photography skills I captured many a special moment...
as they humored me and clinked their glasses over and over and over...
until I finally got it!
Yes, we are dorks. But only in a certain sense.
We look normal enough.
But you should not allow yourself to be fooled.
And this little one? We hardly knew she was there! She was content just to hang around and be cute as a button. She was such a doll.
Mostly, we had fun being together and enjoying one another and our little outing...
the just plain funny...
the backdrop for all of our shenanigans...
the bear wearing Lederhosen...
the find of the day (yes, they are squirrel underpants)...
After laughing more than normal 35-ish year olds should in public, eating large custard-filled desserts, and flitting in and out of quaint shops, we left Leavenworth and headed back to our lovely cabin in the mountains for the night.
And these are the wonderful women who made the food that we ate.
I helped out so much. I diced a very fine onion and took a lot of pictures.
I tried to get a picture of us before we left. The wind made us freeze our booties off. Well, I wish it had made us freeze our booties off...I think we all would have appreciated that. It was pretty cold, though! I didn't know it would be quite that chilly.
One of the last things we saw there was a bald eagle soaring back and forth outside of our cabin.
It was a lovely sight...what freedom.
We were granted this treasure of a time, to have a break from, well, I'm having trouble finding the right words...Everyone knows that being a mom is fulfilling, satisfying, and demanding. Working is fulfilling, satisfying, and demanding. We wouldn't give up our roles for anything. Yet, to be able to get together and talk, watch movies, have chocolate whenever we want, and laugh and laugh and laugh...was so refreshing.
We had to head back to Laurie's house for the remainder of the weekend, and for more adventures...so if you can stand it, stay tuned! And don't forget...I brought a little something back to share. So, you'll have to join me tomorrow to see what it is and have a chance to win it!
Reader Comments (8)
What fun! I'm so jealous!
Man, that sounds like an awesome trip - and I have to say, I doubt I'd have been able to resist the lure of squirrel underpants.
I want to take a girls trip! Looks like so much fun!
yeah! I've been checking and checking again for this post and these pictures. love you!
Too much fun! I am so happy you were able to have it! Thank you for sharing!
Looks like a neat town and a fun weekend! We were just in Seattle last week too. No Spaetzle or lederhosen on our trip, but the mountains were out and we did see Mt. Rainier!
You are the most amazing blogger. I think that you should write books. I love your perspective on life and you take incredible pics. Please, please, please load the pics on Snapfish or some such website. I love them!!!!
Also, I love that I'm giving E a bottle in almost every photo. :-)