Hello to Heike

It's time to give a shout out to Heike, my sister-in-law, who is recovering from surgery in Germany. She is married to Chris, Andreas's youngest brother, and together they helped bring us Lenni, the foreign exchange student living with us now. Lenni is Heike's godson.

Well, first of all: we love Lenni – he is a joy! He's a senior in high school with Jack, a couple of years older than Savannah. The three of them became easy, compatible siblings almost immediately. Lenni is smart, kind, funny, and he plays the piano each day, often when I'm fixing dinner, or just before school. So, thank you, Heike, for thinking of this arrangement – it couldn't be better! The hard part will be saying good-bye to Lenni in February.

I'm including a couple of photos here, one of Heike coming home after work at her house in Germany, when we were guests there. She is walking up through the gorgeous garden she planted that includes some flowers from mother-in-law Marlies. And there is Christoph on the left, on the same path.

Hey Heike – we hope you are recovering at home with your feet up, a cup of tea, and time to relax. We miss you and hope you'll send some words to elenabella, visiting often. Here's a photo of the 3 teens.