Astrid got to go to a high-ropes course for her special birthday time with mom.
Hugo would like to sell you an affordable used car.
The kids have a fun new game where they "dress up" and "ask dad to take a picture of them."
Laura was getting ready to walk out when I complimented her fit, so she obliged when asked to model. She had seen a guide to posing for photos on TikTok the day prior.
The back of a station wagon is a better place to eat than the food court 90% of the time.
Hugo has reached the age where you can just hand him a camera and he goes to town.
I like how he is conveying the garishness of of consumer culture here.
Bisecting the frame diagonally with a construction crane to form an upward line is really a statement here.
Child photographers have a way of disarming their subjects.
They also tend to focus on mundane details.
I love how he made the lines of the bus work with the lines of construction in the background. He tied this one together nicely.
His playful composition here really brings out our feelings towards public transportation.
The problem with child photographers is people usually want to see pictures of the children so eventually you need to reclaim that camera. His plumage here is in full-fall splendor.
One thing we're consistent about is our enthusiasm for public transit.
The city brought out this ferris wheel and dropped it in the main square to celebrate some kind of sports thing.
She was feeling trés european that day.
More dressup, of course.
The look dad gives when you grab his camera again.
Had to leave for school but luckily they have a gas station up where it was too because economy prices are pretty steep.
Visited our favorite winery on the Rhein to pick up a few cases for when we have holiday guests.
https://www.google.de/maps/place/Weingut+Krone+Assmannshausen/@49.9871949,7.866621,18.47z/data=!3m1!5s0x47bde5c2de5970cb:0x9e8f8deeb5d2287e!4m5!3m4!1s0x47bde5c2de5258d5:0x3a5cc36f43356cde!8m2!3d49.9876299!4d7.8668778?hl=en
Rüdesheim seemed to be in full tourist mode.
Visited a castle on the way back because it was there, so no good reason not to.
https://www.google.de/maps/place/Falkenstein+Castle/@49.6093085,7.8739693,3a,75y,90t/data=!3m8!1e2!3m6!1sAF1QipPBMuOmEVDLf3m23kUJX1OJMh5VZq8xOBF65S6g!2e10!3e12!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipPBMuOmEVDLf3m23kUJX1OJMh5VZq8xOBF65S6g%3Dw86-h114-k-no!7i2736!8i3648!4m12!1m6!3m5!1s0x47961a3dd9a72c47:0xb282e28e1d7d448b!2sFalkenstein+Castle!8m2!3d49.6093085!4d7.8739693!3m4!1s0x47961a3dd9a72c47:0xb282e28e1d7d448b!8m2!3d49.6093085!4d7.8739693?hl=en
This manbun rocking a sony rig looked like he knew what he was doing so I asked him for a tourist dad shot.
The next day I picked up my old boss from Alaska and we proceeded towards the Nürburgring. We pulled over at a rest stop for a snack and there just happened to be a bunch of people having a car show so we pulled in and parked in the middle of it. Took this picture of this to see if it was a rebadged Maserati Ghibli but it was not. This was a 300-400-produced German sports car.
Meanwhile at home, pumpkins were being cut.
We drove to the Nürburgring to fulfill a childhood dream and were not disappointed.
Some of the more serious racers were irritated we were hindering their lap times but most were happy to see us.
I do not believe a W116 S Class was ever an option in Gran Turismo so we broke the mold.
The car culture at the ring is second to none. Just so many amazing cars of all makes and years.
On the last day of class we got out early so I went for a very long walk in Kaiserslautern.
They're tearing down these multi-family homes and putting in even more dense housing. Shame to lose the character but population density is important.
I would like to have a vineyard on my porch at some point in life.
Tearing down the building but saving this historic doorway. Neat.
The kids are always carspotting.
Oscar decided this was ok. It was not.
On the way home from class, got rerouted due to autobahn congestion. So this castle was right off the road.
Picked up Huey from school and he was happy to see dad after 2 weeks.
Went for a challenging hike 30 minutes from home. The kids are getting good at this.
Astrid found some old opera-glasses at the flea market the day prior, which she used to check on things.
We approached this castle from the back side due to paths being closed. We didn't see the "DON'T GO IN HERE, IT'S DANGEROUS" signs until after we crossed the rotting entry bridge on the way out.
Didn't seem any more dangerous than some of the other ones we've explored.
Hugo doesn't like the dentist.
Laura was doing very important work in her cavernous new office.
Hugo is getting good at being on tidy patrol.
The kids finally got their chance to go trick or treating after 2 years. Jeffrey couldn't decide so ended up getting a creeper costume from Minecraft. Lots of people knew who he was.
Astrid was Kiki from Kiki's Delivery Service. Only one person knew who she was.
Hugo was a homemade alligator.
Dad and mom were Guy Fieri and The Dude.
