Traffic stop in Holland today

On our way back from the Branch Christmas Party I was taken on a detour to a side road where several of the Holland Police were standing. After coming to a complete stop I was asked to take a alcohol breathing test. I had to blow into a tube. Since my three youngest kids were in the car and on the edge of their seats waiting for the results, its a good thing that it came back negative. Who would have thought I would have my first alcohol breathing test with my kids in the car and in another country besides the USA.  It seems we get to have exciting events like this on a weekly basis here. Last week it was animal control and now this. I wonder what next week will bring?

Thanksgiving 2011

Our first adventure in Europe since we arrived here in Holland. We went with some friends to the christmas market in Koln, Germany. One of the most exciting moments of this trip was on the autobon. A mini van going over 100mph! Who would have thought. We spent two days here shopping, eating, and freezing to death. Man it is cold in Germany and we were lucky there was no snow.

This is the "Kolner Don Catherdral" in Koln. In english it means "The high cathedral of Saints Peter and Maria". It was constructed in 1248 and wasn't finished until 1880. It is 516 ft. tall. This is a gothic looking church and it certainly has that look on the outside. It's a Roman Catholic Church and is Germany's most visited landmark and attracts 20,000 people a day.

 

Here we are inside the Cathedral. This is the first time the boys have been inside a Cathedral that is this old.

You can see the Cathedral in the back of the boys here. These are all the Christmas shops within the Market. The boys loved the crepes, this yummy rope licorice stuffed with white cream filling, toasted almonds, and the bitter hot chocolate. Collin was his typical self that day. A screaming lunatic being pushed down the aisle by a very quiet, yet "I've had it" father.

This was about the only attraction that brought Collins happy demeanor to a crashing holt. See the black statue holding the clock? If you drop a coin in the black can in front of him, he will start tap dancing and then straighten back up to his statue form.  We all really enjoyed watching this man perform his act.

This is another christmas market in Koln, but it's the Medieval Market. There was no electricity at this market and all the shop workers were dressed in this time period. They even had a merry-go-round that you had to hand crank yourself for it to work. The boys even got to do some gambling on mouse. You had to guess which house the mouse would run into. Needless to say, no one won. It was a lot of fun watching it though.