Shannon Lubell

Traditional Healing

The boys started running fevers two days ago. While Isaac has recovered, Ben was still running a temperature this morning. Since his appetite was mostly gone as his throat really hurt, I decided to take him to the doctor. Long story short. He was diagnosed with having a virus. The prescribed medicine… The doctor toldContinueContinue reading “Traditional Healing”

We are moving…

When we came to Germany, we rented a fully furnished apartment for up to one year. Which made the move easier. We simply came with our 12 suitcases and settled in like with an extended AirBnB. However, we could not stay past 360 days (some German regulation). Since November, I have spent every day onlineContinueContinue reading “We are moving…”

Krank (Sick) in Berlin

Does living in a new country expose you to new things? Of course. Could exposure to new germs make a family more sick than normal? That’s what I’ve been wondering. What I do know, with the exception of Dave, our family has been more sick this year than any other year. In the past twoContinueContinue reading “Krank (Sick) in Berlin”

Frauentag in Budapest

Berlin celebrated International Women’s Day (March 8) for the first time as a public holiday this year. Which means that schools and businesses were closed. https://www.sbs.com.au/news/berlin-declares-international-women-s-day-a-public-holiday {View of the Parliament building from The Buda side of the Danube River, near where my hotel was} My friend, Sarah, had told me about the app Weekend.com. ItContinueContinue reading “Frauentag in Budapest”

Signs of Spring

During my morning walk today, I was encouraged by the flowers that were emerging from the winter. {Potentilla?} It’s still cold here, but we seem to be emerging from the snow and freezing temperatures of winter. Days are longer, Lighter coats are being worn. Could we be pushing into spring? {cherry blossoms}

Fasching in Deutschland

It’s Fasching time. So dress up. Be merry. Celebrate at school.{Our little Zombie celebrating Fasching at School} But what is Fasching you may wonder. That’s exactly what our family has been asking this week. In short, it’s Germany’s version of Carnival or Mardi Gras. And it’s apparently celebrated more here than anywhere else in Europe,ContinueContinue reading “Fasching in Deutschland”

Gärten der Welt

Last Saturday, Dave and I split up and each took one son on separate outings. Dave took Isaac to our neighborhood mall, Schönhauser Allee Arkaden, where Isaac got a stuffed animal polar bear and had lunch at Burger King (a new favorite of the boys). {Boy, Bear and Burger King} They then took the trainContinueContinue reading “Gärten der Welt”

Canary Islands

Last fall, when we started looking for a winter break destination, we discovered that the Canary Islands (Spanish Islands off the Western coast of Northern Africa) were “only” a five hours flight from Berlin. And would provide a respite from the dark, cold Berlin winter. What sealed the deal was that their government was inContinueContinue reading “Canary Islands”

Vacation Laughs

We just arrived in Tenerife, the Canary Islands, Spain yesterday afternoon. It’s our attempt to escape the Berlin winter and to get some sun and warmth. (A separate travel wrap up to follow.) This morning, Ben and I ventured out looking for kites to fly on the beach. We found the kites, which proved noContinueContinue reading “Vacation Laughs”

First Grade

In January, I took Isaac to the Gesundheithaus, public health center, in Pankow for his first grade health check up. All kids getting ready to start the first grade must go to the doctor in order to test their readiness. {Gesundheithaus in Pankow} We entered the Altbau, old building, which looked like it’d been thereContinueContinue reading “First Grade”