Ben and I had been debating about what to do this weekend for the last few days. We hadn't been anywhere in a few weeks and wanted to get out of the house, but the weather was making it very difficult for us. The temperature has been a freezing 5 degrees in the morning and didn't seem to be going up anytime soon. In between the constant flow of cartoons, I was able to catch a glimpse of the news a few nights ago. Apparently pressure builds in the arctic circle during winter time as the cold air is bottled up in there. Every once in a while the bubble bursts and an Arctic chill streams down over Europe for a few days. Well, this one has lasted over a week and there is no end in sight.

I had been wanting to go shopping for Alsace pottery in the little town of Soufflenheim, France, which is only about 20 minutes north of Strasbourg. I've seen pictures of the pink Strasbourg Cathedral and also heard that you can get some great pictures on the one hour river cruise. The plan was to leave early, buy some pottery, head to Strasbourg and be home by early evening to get the boys in bed....if it was warm enough.

Unfortunately, the military never seems to care about what my plans are. Honestly, I think it gets a kick out of seeing me flip out and try to get around whatever curve ball they decide to throw at me each time. It's like they are saying "You made plans? Really? Come on, Lady, don't make me laugh.   Haven't you learned your lesson yet? Let me remind you who's in charge here." 

Ben was called in around 2am that night and didn't get home until 6am. I debated about just waking everyone up and leaving the house at that point, but since Ben was the one who had to actually drive us to France I figured that wasn't such a good idea. He climbed into bed and fell asleep. So much for leaving early. About 45 minutes after that, the kids were up.

I let Ben sleep until around 11, at which point I opened the bedroom door and let the kids loose on him. After being used as a human jungle-gym for a few minutes, he decided he was awake. We checked the temperature....11 degrees...not very warm. Definitely too cold to put Carson in the new Kelty backpack that I bought. We debated over going or just staying home, but I couldn't sit in the house and waste another weekend. I needed to recharge my battery and get away from this post.

We doubled up the boys clothes, two pairs of pants, two shirts, two pairs of socks, threw the stroller and two blankets in the car, and hit the road. We got to Soufflenhiem around 1pm and searched for my pottery store. I spent the entire night before researching the different potters and looking at pictures of their work. I knew exactly which one was my favorite and where we would stop. It's important to be prepared with toddlers in tow. Unfortunately, the gps couldn't find the address, but my husband, the determined genius that he is, found it! Ben Reed - don't leave home without him.

He parked and I ran to the door, leaving all the boys in the car. They were closed for lunch from 12-2!   I've heard about this European lunch/nap time, but haven't ran into it here in Germany. It didn't even cross my mind that they would be closed. Who gets a two hour lunch break??! The French.

We decided to go to Strasbourg, see the Cathedral, and then come back. It was too cold to walk around the city anyway. We found a parking garage that was underground near the cathedral. After we got in line to enter (a line which you couldn't pull away from) we realized it was all full. Once a car would exit the garage the gate would open and let in one car. Then we would pull up a little and wait for another car to leave. That took a while to say the least, but we eventually got in, bundled the boys up in coats, hats, gloves, and blankets, and headed to see Strasbourg's Notre Dame Cathedral.

It is a Gothic style (reminded me a bit of the Cologne Cathedral) and started being built in 1015 on the site of a roman temple. The bishop started building it with his funds. After he was defeated the municipal government financed it. At one point they ran out of money, so the citizens made donations to finish the job.  It was built out of red stone that was carried from the Vosges Mountains, which is why it has a pink appearance. After they finished building its tower (it only has one, which is very uncommon - maybe they ran out of money), it was the tallest building in the modern world for four centuries.   The tower was once almost completely destroyed during the French Revolution, inspired by anti-religious believes. Some revolutionary leaders ordered its demolition, but a local locksmith conceived a brilliant scheme of making a huge Phrygian cap made of metal to cover the tower.

The inside was beautiful with its stained glass windows and sculptures. The one thing that stood out as unique about this cathedral was the Astronomical Clock, put together by artists, mathematicians, and Swiss watch makers. The first clock was build in 1352, but stopped working in the 16th century. The one that is currently in the cathedral dates from 1842.

According to a legend, the local authorities of Strasbourg said that the constructor of the Astronomic Clock should be blinded so that he could not try to build something like it ever again. This first clock was equipped with various mechanical details that were very rare in that time, such as calendar and astrolabe, as well as very interesting miniature statues. The main statue of the clock was representing Virgin Mary holding baby Jesus in her arms. In front of her, every hour, the three Kings would step out of their chambers and the music announces the time.

When we walked out of the cathedral, the sun had dropped below the building. We were in the shadows and boy was it cold. We grabbed a few souvenirs and raced back to the car. Ben had gotten a text message from work by that time (of course) and couldn't check it because we were not in Germany, so we decided to head home. I'll have to take trip back to the Alsace region to get my pottery some other time.