Walking and the Wall

First of all, Mia Gianna is walking.  Okay, not full-time "officially" or anything but she is almost there. She is still wobbly, and only takes a few steps at a time before crashing to her knees.  She took more steps today than ever. This past Sunday, we were walking around the neighborhood, trying to locate a restaurant that was not Italian (per my request) for dinner.  Gianna would walk using my hands as a guide.  It made our walk twice as long, and painfully slow at times, but it was worth it to see her smile proudly as she strolled along. 

Bode says funny things, like, "I want to learn to walk, too!"

We found a restaurant that was not officially Italian, but we ordered lasagna!  Because I am all about the food, I will tell you about our meal. They had a special pumpkin soup, which I immediately ordered as soon as the lady came by our table. It was fabulous. It was creamy and had roasted pumpkin seeds in it.  Then we ordered pumpkin lasagna and a fish dish.  The pumpkin lasagna had a tomato sauce and mozzarella. That sounds gross with pumpkin, right?  It wasn't. It was perfect.  The fish was a big white fish (something "zander"), wrapped in cabbage, with a stew of French lentils and crispy sweet potato chips on the side. Everything was delicious, and I can't wait to go back there.  Nothing makes me happier than finding good food.  

Bode enjoying the bread.

While we waited for our meal, Gianna practiced walking around the courtyard. We sat outside because the interior was small and quiet, and we have loud, boisterous American children.  It was chilly, but the outdoor area was lovely with vines and plants all around us.  Gianna had a great time moving around.  In fact, she didn't want to stop walking for dinner, and I had to coax her with the pumpkin soup.

Tempting the new walker with food.

Doesn't my hair look fabulous?!!  I can only say, I am so glad that I don't know anyone here, because my hair is on vacation, too.  Oh, let's get real:  my entire self is on "hiatus" right now.

At one point on our walk, Bode stopped in front of Gianna, grabbed her in a big hug and said, "I love you, Gianna."  PING! went my heart strings. I nearly cried.  Bob was walking up ahead and I warbled, "Did you hear that? He said, I love you, Gianna. Get a picture!"  Bob whipped out his iPhone. Yes, I had to capture Bode's first "I love you, Gianna" on film. But by the time Bob got the camera ready, things were leaning back toward brother-sister feistiness. Bode continued to hold Gianna (perhaps a little too tightly),  and Gianna wanted to walk, so she began to squirm out of his reach. Bode started laughing at the "control" aspect of his hold. I was trying to keep Gianna from crawling on the ground...and things spiraled out from there. Emotional scene over, irritated controlling Mommy back on board.

Now he thinks it's funny.

Gianna is losing it and Bode is giggling like a loon. He is wearing Gianna's hat, too.

But enough about dinner.  And enough about Miss Wobbly Pants. We saw the Berlin Wall.  A fragment of the wall, about 1400 yards (I think). It is called the Eastside Gallery, and the grey wall has been painted by artists from around the world.  On the other side, graffiti from other "artists" around the city, I guess. Graffiti is all over this city. I find it disturbing and ugly.  But I guess the graffiti is a mark of what this city has been through.  I was young when the wall came down. I vaguely remember watching it on t.v.  Hey! High five for an "I was young when..." !!! Woot!
But seriously, I can not communicate intelligently about the Berlin Wall.  All I can say is, it was emotional being there, and it is hard for me to wrap my head around the whole thing. I just can't imagine living through that, and coming out...or coming over, to the other side.  Amazing.  

The other side of the wall. 

Tomorrow it is supposed to rain. I'm not sure what that means for us three.  Hopefully I can come up with something to do, besides sitting in a bakery and watching the rain fall!

xo