TIIIIMMMMBBBEEEERRR!!

Wednesday was like any other day we’ve had lately. Hot and sticky. I came home from the gym after work and in the time it took me to get cleaned up and start dinner, a monster of a storm rolled into town. The sky went from bright and sunny to black in a matter of minutes. Before we knew it, the wind was howling and the massive trees surrounding our place were pushed to their limits.

Some didn’t make it.

The tree that once provided a little relief from the blinding morning sun was no more. We’re talking roots and all came up out of the ground. It pulled our parking area up by several feet, including Brad’s car.

It also missed The Audi by a mere 5 feet. My first thought was “Oh. My. Gosh. That would have totaled my car.” My second thought was…

Stella enjoyed playing on her new playground.

She did her part helping clean up.

After two days all that was left was the stump. We all appreciated the rush due to the fact that that massive tree fell on all of the big trash bins and you know that was going to start to stink soon.

Well tree, you will be missed. Birds that sat in the tree, you will NOT be missed.

World Cup Fever

I’ve never watched a single game of the World Cup…...ever. It’s just never appealed to me. Grown men running up and down a field occasionally rolling around claiming their opponent just caused them to break their ankle/knee/leg only to get up and walk away as soon as they get the call they want – this is just silly. Not to mention the whole shebang can end in a tie. Ridiculous. Ooh! AND what about the fact that if you touch the ball with any part of your arm/hand twice, EVEN if it’s an accident, you’re out for the entire next match? Absurd.

HOWEVER…

Things have changed. The Bingham’s have been sucked in to the madness. Sure it was exciting in the beginning that the US was doing well but let’s be honest – soccer in the US will never have the following that it does pretty much everywhere else in the world. Germans love them some fußball! And living here, you just can’t help but get wrapped up in it, too. Driving around you’ll see German flags flying from every car and every house, every day. Picture being in a college town on game day in the fall except that this is an everyday thing since day one of the World Cup.

Saturday was a big day for Deutschland as they were playing Argentina in the quarter finals. Sporting our cool new German fußball jerseys (I will no longer be using the word “soccer” for fear that I’ll be kicked out of the country) we met a group of friends in Frankfurt at Waxy’s Irish Pub. The city was just buzzing; 28,000 people showed up for the big public viewing in the main square. Absolute madness!

Fortunately, our group had a big table reserved AND Waxy’s is air-conditioned…..on every other day but this one. I think I forgot to mention that it was a humid 96 degrees outside which made it, I don’t know, 105 degrees inside? Maybe not – but it was ridiculously hot and there was zero breeze. Basically we had a boat load of people filling this bar, sweating like crazy.

And it was AWESOME!

Germany scored their first goal in the 1st two minutes of the match. They went on to win 4 – 0. And this is when the bar/town/country erupted.

Next match is tomorrow, Wednesday, July 7th at 8:30 pm. That’s 1:30 pm for all of my CST friends. So find something black, red and yellow and root for Germany, folks. I’m sure it’ll be an exciting match…especially if you’re lucky enough to be surrounded by thousands of diehard fans while watching it.

DEUTSCHLAND! DEUTSCHLAND! DEUTSCHLAND!

BIG News: A Bittersweet Tale

Within the first month of marriage, Brad and I found out we’d be moving to Germany. The timing was a bit of a surprise but we had been praying he’d get transferred for several months. So, we sold our house (that we hadn’t even owned a year and I lived in all of three months), I quit my job, and we shipped everything we owned to Deutschland. We said goodbye to Dallas knowing we wouldn’t be back for good until 2012 (if not later)….or so we thought.

Here’s where the bad news comes in: The Bingham’s are moving back to Dallas in about a month. Talk about being blindsided. Hearing the news was like being punched in the gut then adding that the move date is practically tomorrow, well that’s just kicking us while we’re down. We’ve been here just long enough to fall in love with it, get truly settled and make some friends and now it’s time to leave.

Here's why we're most disappointed about leaving:

1. There are still soooo many places we still want to see throughout Europe.

2. We sold our really great house in Valley Ranch and now we have to start all over, which may mean apartment living for a little while.

3. I have to quit my awesome new job.

4. I have to find a new job and quickly.

5. Very few people were able to come for a visit in the time we were here (shout out to Kristin, Bethany, Stephanie, and Jack who did visit).

6. OktoberFest in Munich will be missed, once again.

7. Stella is going to HATE the Texas heat and humidity….just like her Mama. Putting my sweet pup in the cargo area of a plane terrifies me.

8. I don't know that we'll find schnitzel that's as good as it is here. Not to mention the beer.

9. We’ll be living in a hotel for Lord knows how long and there’s a good chance it’ll be at Zum Schnackel while we’re still in Germany (we all know how well that went the first time around).

10. We’re really going to miss it here.

That’s enough negativity.

Ready for the good news?

The Bingham’s are moving back to Dallas in about a month!! And do you want to know why? Because Brad is brilliant and amazing and he’s being promoted to a Senior Project Manager (which is at the Executive Level) which is a big deal. If you can’t tell, I’m a little proud of my husband…and I have no doubt he’ll be 100% embarrassed when he reads this.

Now then, let’s discuss all of the good things, shall we?

1. Hands down, the most exciting thing is that we’ll be closer to our family and friends. This deserves sub-bullets:

a. I don’t know if my MIL could handle going another year without seeing her boy. I don’t know how she did it.

b. I’m already beyond attached to our little nephew, Liam, and now we’ll get to see him grow. Not to mention, I’ve missed my sister like crazy.

c. My sister-in-law is about the coolest chick there is and while she’s studying and working like a mad woman, there will always be time for mini-vacays to Dallas.

d. As soon as Brad recovers from his broken collar bone, he’ll be playing golf with our dads in no time.

e. My Mom and Riley just moved to Keller (close but not too close, as she’ll tell you) and I’m seeing a lot of shopping weekends in my future.

f. We’ll be around to watch as the Gonzales’ boys turn into young men…and maybe catch a band performance/football/baseball/soccer/lacrosse game along the way…and just maybe enjoy a glass of wine here and there with Traci and Michael.

g. Grandparents! A visit only once or twice in a year simply won’t do.

h. And of course our friends. We’ve made some wonderful friends here but I’d be lying if I said we didn’t miss our nights/weekends with those who know us best. You all know who you are.

2. No more waking up at 3:00 am to watch college football. No, sir! It’s back to spending our weekends throughout the fall tailgating in Stillwater, OK (or wherever the Cowboys are playing that weekend). I think for Brad this is reason enough to move back.

3. We may have missed out on OktoberFest in Munich, but I hear downtown McKinney throws a pretty mean OktoberFest themselves and it’s bound to be just as cool. Wipe that smirk off your face.

4. While the idea of house hunting / buying a house from another continent can be a little daunting, it’s also really exciting (and borderline addicting). We just need to work out that pesky little issue of me not having a job when we return and everything will be fine. I’m sure I’ll have updates on how the house hunt is going in the coming weeks.

5. Air conditioning everywhere you go – enough said.

6. Weekends at the lake.

7. Stella gets to meet her dog family – Charlie, Buddy, Lilly, and Mischi

8. DSW, Nordstroms, Target, Crate & Barrel, Sonic, Glorias/Anamias…actually ALL Mexican food, 24 hour Walgreens (nothing is 24 hour here), etc.

9. DVR and Cable television (I’ve missed you HGTV).

10. Turning right on red.

Now I’m just being silly. But obviously there are many GREAT reasons to move back to the Big D.

Until then we are going to soak up everything we possibly can. Our time may be fleeting but our memories here certainly aren’t. The Bingham Adventures are just getting started…

Wedding Bells

I remember waking up the morning of my wedding. I wrapped up in one of the Four Seasons big, fluffy white robes and sat on the patio overlooking the golf course. Just me. It was the most perfect start to one of the biggest days in my life. I was relaxed and calm the whole rest of the day. The morning spent in the spa with my girls probably didn't hurt either.

Good memories.

Well they don’t call it a “B&B” for nothing; if we just slept there it would only be a “B&” and that’s just silly. So promptly at 9 am (because we all know I’m never late especially when breakfast is involved) the bride and her bridesmaids enjoyed a lovely meal that kicked off the day right.

Micah had gotten a little apprehensive about the alter that was set during rehearsal. If they didn’t add a couple of steps at the front, we would be attempting to step up on to a platform that was a good two feet off the ground. This was sure to end in disaster as the three of us would be wearing shoes we could barely walk in under normal circumstances. So off the bride went to fix the situation.

Meanwhile, Amy and I lounged around watching America’s Funniest Home Videos. Now I don’t want to steer away from Micah’s big day as this was all about her BUT it turned out to be a big day for Miss Amy, too. Midway through a fantastic musical montage of people falling off trampolines, Amy disappeared for several minutes. When she returned there were several loud squeals immediately followed by the happy dance. She’d had an interview in Dallas earlier in the week and the company had just called to give her an offer. Talk about excitement!!! Waaaahoooo for Amy!! Good bye Stillwater, Oklahoma and a big HELLO Big D!

Ok, back to the bride. Hair and makeup was scheduled for 1:00 pm. Again, Micah spoiled us and booked our appointments at this fancy salon that gives you hand/arm massages while you get your hair done. Oooh la la. The three of us walked out of there looking like a million bucks.

Then it was time to get the bride in her gown. It had started to sprinkle so we opted to move things to The Cotton Mill (the venue for the wedding). The place looked amazing. Tulle and lights hanging from the rafters, white chairs all in a row, candles lit…it was perfect. Simple yet beautiful.

The bride and groom met for a bit before everyone arrived to have some time just the two of them before the official wedding chaos ensued. All of the formal pictures with family, wedding party, etc. were taken prior to the ceremony which worked out perfectly. And then we waited patiently for our cue that it was time.

The ceremony was short and sweet and then it was time to party. Actually, first it was time to eat (I was famished and I’m pretty sure everyone around me all day was aware of this), then I was time to kick off my awesome shoes that lasted all of twenty minutes on my feet, THEN it was time to party!

Side story with a cheap plug: So the lady with the cake never showed up. I’ll pause while you pick your jaw up off the floor.

**PAUSE**

Phone messages went unanswered. No one could get in touch with her. And the bride and groom were left without cake to shove in each others faces. Not on my watch! Brad and Amy’s beau, Kevin, bolted to the nearest grocery store and picked up a sheet cake and a little chocolate “grooms” cake. But it doesn’t stop there! The greatest DJ ever, Glenn Roush, called a friend who just happened to be a cake designer and who also just happened to live about five minutes away. She was able to get a gorgeous dummy cake delivered in no time. And all was right with the world again.

So two things: (1) Call all vendors a day or two before the wedding to confirm everything is a go (let’s not forget the videographer no-showed at Hailey’s wedding). (2) If you are getting married or have some other event in the Dallas area, you absolutely have to use Glenn! Hands down, best DJ ever…and I’m not just saying that because he was my DJ, too.

The cake was cut, the bride and groom were toasted and we danced the rest of the night away before seeing the happy couple off to their honeymoon.

I’m going to skip the whole wedding clean up part and the hour long drive back to Keller at 2 in the morning because it’s exhausting just thinking about it. Flash forward about 12 hours and Brad and I were on a plane back to Germany. Back to our pup and back to work. But for Micah and Aaron, I hope you’re enjoying every minute of your honeymoon in Jamaica!! Love you both!