December in Germany

At the beginning of the kid's three week Christmas break we decided to check out Berlin, Dresden and Nurnberg with Brad's parents. Our first stop was a Tropical Islands water park near Berlin. Our five hour drive to Berlin turned into 12 hours because of snow, traffic and frozen windshield fluid lines. We had to stop about every 10-15 minutes to clean the windshield because we couldn't see. We finally made it to the hotel at 1:30 AM.

Thank goodness for Grandma and Grandpa who entertained the kids during the long drive!

The Tropical Islands Resort near Berlin. This use to hold planes but it is now an indoor tropical waterpark that is open 24 hours. The kids had a blast between waterslides and the kids area with go carts, trampolines, paddle boats and much more.

One of the pools in the resort.

The girls in little paddle boats.

After playing in the warmth, we had to venture out into the bitter cold to head to Berlin.

This is the gate where Pres. Reagan told Gorbachev to tear down the Berlin Wall.

A small part of the Wall still stands in Berlin today.

The Berlin Wall.

This is a church in Berlin that was bombed during the war and was never rebuilt as a reminder of the war.

This is the plaque where Pres. Monson dedicated the land in Eastern Germany behind the wall for the gospel to move forward in Germany. (Dresden, Germany)

The kids at the dedication site, Marshall is so happy to be out in the cold!

This is a church in Dresden that came down during bombings during WWII, but was rebuilt and was finally finished 4 years ago. The darker stones are from the original building.

Next we headed to Nurnberg where the largest Christmas market in Germany is. Kaycee and Marshall only made it about twenty minutes before they got too cold. Brad took them back to the car where they watched a movie. Lexi and I kept shopping with Grandma and Grandpa.

The only part Marshall liked about the Christmas market, cotton candy!

Outdoor stands at the Christmas market.


We finally made it home, and found snow at our place.

The first snowman of the year!

Kaycee and Marshall thought they would give Brad a new hair do!



RUDESHEIM CHRISTMAS MARKET!

One of the best parts of the markets is the food!!!