Zwischen den Jahren

These hazy days between Christmas and Epiphany (January 6) have a name here in Germany — “Zwischen den Jahren,” which literally means “between the years.” It’s the time to reflect on the best moments of the year that has passed while also looking ahead, with a bit of superstition and hoping for good luck, in the year to come.

We’ve been soaking it all up this last week — staying up late, sleeping in, playing games, watching movies and enjoying empty calendar days. There are no other days like this all year long. Matt has had to work some, but I am kind of glad he wasn’t able to take leave during this long holiday break which kept us home. Traveling all the time is a lot of work and expense, and honestly is exhausting most of the time.

Inspired by “Zwischen den Jahren,” I scrolled through our photos from the year and took the time to write down the important milestones and events for our family. Today was filled with, “hey, remember when we did this?” Surprisingly there is so much we have all forgotten in just one year! We’ve had a monumental year of shifts, changes, transitions and growth. I am proud of us.

This is peak “Zwischen den Jahren.”

This is peak “Zwischen den Jahren” too. Matt woke me up this morning so we could hurry out on a walk to see the sun rise over the misty hills this morning. Matt brought along some traditional almond and apricot herbal tea and it was perfect. I am so glad he seized this moment!

Here are some of our highlights of the year, month by month.

We started 2022 with a hike of Picacho Mountain in New Mexico, which we all affectionately called Pikachu mountain. We have taken a walk on New Year’s Day, rain or shine, every year since we lived in the U.K.

February was a whirlwind! We learned we would be moving to Germany and things got real, really fast. We immediately renewed all our passports and I started making endless lists of things we needed to accomplish to be prepared to move overseas again.

In March, we took Senior and Missionary pictures for Joel. Joel and Emme took the funnest trip to Portland, Oregon, to spend time with my parents who were seeing as missionaries. They had a great time seeing the sites and spending days with the missionaries in the office there. Matt and I spent spring break in New Mexico with Brian and Nola and found the BEST Mexican food in Hatch.

April was filled with an epic road trip to Utah and Idaho to spend time with family, see cousins, celebrate my brother’s graduation from UofU, and say some really hard goodbyes. Brian sobbed as we drove back home to New Mexico. We never get to live close to family, but the time difference with living overseas and the difficulty of traveling “home” make it feel extra far.

May meant Joel’s high school graduation and Senior parties. And Emme graduated from 8th grade! We organized all our belongings into three different moving shipments this month too. It wasn’t easy, but most things went as expected and without a hitch. At the end of the month we drove to Dallas, Texas, where we dropped off Mabel to friends who were so generous to take care of her until her flight to Germany finally came through. It was torture for me to leave her behind and trust that things would work out. We finally dropped off our last car to be shipped and then caught a red-eye flight to London before arriving in Germany after a missed connecting flight. We were so tired but so happy to have a great hotel to stay in that was all ready for us when we arrived about midnight.

June! We got right out and started exploring our new city and some amazing villages in the area. I was convinced the first town we saw was such an amazing spot, until I went to the next village, and the next village and realized that, in fact, all of Germany is a treasure of half-timbered houses and beauty.

We learned to embrace apartment living with borrowed furniture while we waited for our belongings to arrive. It was a little jarring at first to hear so much of the many other families living all around us, and we had to adjust to a non-stop flow of friends in and out of our house all the time. The latter is something I have always wanted, but it’s also been a lesson in setting the right boundaries for our family values and respecting that some family members need a quiet house sometimes.

July! Joel received his mission call! We were all so excited for him and had been checking his email for weeks waiting for it to come. He wanted to open it on his home and have a minute to have the news be just his own before sharing it with us and our extended family. He was called to the Utah St. George mission and immediately felt at home with the place and the work. We learned he would be leaving us the end of September so we made sure to decide what places we absolutely needed to see with him before he left. He is the best kid and we are so proud of him.

We spent the 4th of July in Strasbourg, France! It was so fun to take the kids to where I once lived as a missionary two decades ago. It was so hot and so crowded with tourists. I especially appreciated the monument in the cathedral to the brave American soldiers who gave their lives there in the Alsace region to protect and save the people of France. The kids loved the cold Coca Colas and trying Tarte Flambée for the first time…as well as Münster cheese.

In August, I went ziplining with Matt in the Black Forest which is an experience I will never forget! I was so sick, and I’m also afraid of heights, but I did it! It really was beautiful.

Just the kids and I took a long weekend trip to Brussels, Belgium, to see Le Tapis de Fleurs. This is where I started my time as a missionary and I was so excited to share it with them. The Tapis was beautiful and I absolutely love the Grand Place. I loved sharing real waffles with them. We also spent time in Waterloo and at the Tin Tin museum, and I had a sweet miracle happen as we went to church in Nivelle on the way home and ran into people I had known and loved in Brussels twenty years ago.

Another August highlight was Matt and I taking Brian and Nola to the storybook village Hallstatt, Austria. It was so charming and the drive through the Alps was even more beautiful than I had imagined. I’ve never seen such clear mountain rivers!

And Joel went to the temple for the first time for his own ordinances and covenants.

School was in full swing by the time September rolled around but we took some amazing trips to Denmark to see the Lego House and the Jelling Viking Monument, and Matt and I took Joel to Luxembourg. I lived in Luxembourg for five months at the end of my time as a missionary and it was so incredible to share this beautiful city with them. I was just so happy!

Emme turned 15!

And we sent Joel off with lots of hugs (and tears), excited for the next two years of his life that would be spent in service to others.

In October, we traveled to Triberg in the Black Forest to see the sites and buy our Cuckoo clock from a third generation maker there. It was so special to see all of his hand-made creations and choose one that we loved.

In October, we also spent a days in Paris, at Versailles, and at Disneyland. Magical all around!

Matt and I had a dream trip to Barcelona and the surrounding area in November. I loved reconnecting and being able to do and see whatever we wanted. I didn’t expect to love Spain as much as I do now and we are looking forward to future trips in the coming year.

And December. We went to so many German Christmas markets (here’s my first write up!), ate all the food and drank all the kinderpunsch. We all really loved seeing Der Nussknacker (The Nutcracker) here in Stuttgart too.

It’s been a dream. I’ve never been more tired, or stressed, or at peace, or deeply happy. There are a lot of tradeoffs to moving overseas. You give up so much of extended family time, conveniences, finances, settling down, etc. But the flip side is so very sweet. Every emotion and experience seems exponentially more intense, so with all the beautiful joy has come some pretty low lows too.

I love what writer Jeanette Winterson shared living and second chances:

I know now, after fifty years, that the finding/losing, forgetting/remembering, leaving/returning, never stops. The whole of life is about another chance, and while we are alive, till the very end, there is always another chance.

(Source: Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?​)

I haven’t considered goals for a new year. Last year I decided on projects and I am actually really proud of what I completed and what I consistently worked on. I keep coming back to the question I ask in my prayers, “Am I doing what You want me to do?”

I love what Elder Russell M. Ballard shared about what to make time for:

I have found that His light burns brighter in my soul when I make time for things of the Spirit during still, quiet moments…That is when spiritual impressions, guidance, and light come to us. that is when we come to understand how truly blessed we are to have a Savior…He lightens our hearts with hope and healing through His Atonement (Mormon 7:41). And He enlightens our minds with “the Spirit of Truth” (Doctrine and Covenants 6:15; see also 11:13).

I know this is true. I feel so much better, treat those around me better, and feel fulfilled when I make time for God.

We are ending 2022 happy and grateful, and beginning 2023 knowing what will bring the most purpose and joy. Happy New Year!