Birthday in Heidelberg

For my birthday this year, we were planning to go to Paris France for the weekend. Besides seeing the amazing Eiffel Tower, we had hoped to also see the Louvre, Notre Dame, the Seine River, Arc de Triomphe and whatever else we could squeeze in on a weekend's time! I don't normally go see something extravagant for my birthday but I do enjoy being outdoors somewhere.  I wasn't going to be silly and refuse to take up the offer to go to Paris. The only kicker was that we waited too long to book the Marriott hotel we were hoping to get that was big enough for our family of 6 and it was gone...just like that! And everything else was just too ridiculously expensive.

{photo used from Marriott website}

I was pretty bummed over it but then I got excited again that we could drive four hours and go to Holland instead and see all the amazing and beautiful tulips at Keukenhof, the Anne Frank museum and the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam. But then we quickly found out that the hotels there (and just about anywhere in Europe!) won't allow more than 3 children with 2 adults in 1 room. Okay. Come on! I'm honest about everything but THIS is just not going to fly by me. One more child? It's going to happen next time. Next Spring...we're going! Aren't these tulips amazing?

{photo used from Keukenhof website}

Now I was out of ideas. John knew I was pretty bummed that things weren't going as planned and as I would have hoped for a weekend getaway so he reserved a room for the weekend in Stuttgart - where he was stationed before. There's a nice zoo there from what I hear and a ton of cool parks...I got my hopes up once again. But not for long! Rain was in the whole week and weekend's forecast. And it was cold! So, I opted for us to cancel those plans too and just keep it simple and close to home. The kids would be miserable in the cold and rain anyways and I didn't want to pay for a hotel room just to have us sit inside the entire weekend. I was rather tired of the ups and downs of planning this weekend. I got to the point that I was perfectly okay with staying home. :)

{photo used from the Stuttgart Zoo website}

John asked me if there was another place I wanted to go and see. Maybe a day trip somewhere? I then thought of Heidelberg! I've been wanting to go down to Heidelberg since we stepped foot into Deutschland and it's about an hour south of Frankfurt - definitely fit the day trip criteria! We checked the weather for the day down there: 10% chance for rain. And just like Oregon's weather, that 10% chance gifted us with rain! Thankfully more like a drizzle and not a downpour! But we still made the most of it and had a fun 2 hours there.

Let me first back up to the beginning of the day to an amazing breakfast I was treated to. John made me the most delicious omelet and fixings. I could only eat half of it because it was so filling but it definitely didn't disappoint!

After breakfast, John and the kids made me a cake and then we were off to Heidelberg! I drove so John could get some studying in but I couldn't even begin to wedge our van into the small empty space on the hill so we did a quick switcheroo and then we were there! I really loved all of the brick and the old feel to the city. We walked from the car up this uneven brick street that lead us to the castle. It was anything but an easy walk. With us both pushing strollers, this was a workout in and of itself. 

But once we got up there....WOW! The views are amazing! The castle is located on a great hillside overlooking it all. Despite being in ruins, it was nice walking around it picturing what it looked like before it was destroyed by war and age. Nothing can quite top the feeling of being at one of the highest point in the city overlooking the red roof tops, the rolling river, the unique steps that go from one side of the castle all the way down to the city center, the old stone bridge, the trees in the distance...it really took my breath away! Being outdoors with nature and beauty is one of my favorite feelings in the world! Especially being with the ones I love and cherish the most! Such a reminder that life is precious and how thankful I am that I get to be here at this time in my life, to raise such sweet children and have the most loving man and best friend by my side. To have family and friends that love and know me. I truly am blessed!

Enjoy the photos!

I LOVE my children SO much!

I feel like the luckiest Mom on Earth!

And then we got hungry!!! :) 

Glad I had remembered to shove some Euro into my pocket. These pretzels were SO good!

Goodbye Heidelberg. 

It's time to go home...

But we'll be back!

When we got home, it was cake and open presents time. Back to the cake...they were trying to make me a white cake with mango frosting and strawberries on top. They had to alter their plans due to one of the cakes not cooking right and the mango frosting they made ended up being really runny. So it turned out being a wonderful one layer white cake with lemon and strawberry on top. It was messy but really really tasty!

John and the kids weren't sure what to get me for my birthday this year so with some helpful suggestions of what I'd like...

I got this cute purple Coach purse! Love it!

While those other destinations would have been a blast without a doubt, we'll have a chance to go there another time. But this day ended up being perfect! It was simple and lovely. More so because of who I was with and not where I was at! It was a really fun family outing and I look forward to going back again. Next time though, I'd like to walk down those steps to the city center as well as cross over the bridge and take in the view of the castle from that angle. I can't help but hope it's not raining the next time we go out there either. I love the rain, but not every time. :)