Restart?

So it's been a good while since my last post. Done some things, seen some people, drunk some Californian wine, flown half way around the world (twice). Hard to pick it back up again.

The cat is still alive, though just barely.  He had developed pneumonia a week before our trip, and we thought we had jammed enough pills down his throat (soooooo unpleasant) to clear him of it before we left.  We were wrong.  Daniela found him the day before our return sprawled out in the kids' room doing his death pant again.  She rushed him to the emergency vet in Spandau via UBahn on account of our neighborhood vet having left on vacation three hours prior.  We're 70 euro poorer, Daniela's arms are 4 inches longer from toting him all over Berlin, and the cat is back to having pills shoved down his throat twice a day.  Our vet is on vacation for another week, so I'm hoping these pills will do the trick.  

Happier news: Greta has begun to read!  We started yesterday with the kindergarden pre-decodable books that I had stashed away from Emery's first year.  I had had no idea what to do with them then, but I've got it now!  Luck of the second child, right?  She's really excited about it.  I've decided to only do English reading and writing.  If she learns German in Vorschule this year, fine.  If not, also OK.  Since our return from California, Emery has been showing interest in learning German for the first time.  He translated a bit of the Simpsons for Dan--guess we just had to properly motivate him!


The beer gardens are open!