A simple Sunday is all we want. 

This morning we hang out at home awhile. Yesterday was exhausting, and we want to have an easy family day today. When we go check on the car, parked in a spot we hope is free, I let the kids pick some treasure. We started the trip with a reward system of stars that added up to picking treasure from a box. I found it too complicated for Oly, so we moved to granting treasure as a reward whenever we wanted to. It’s hasn’t been consistent because it’s often left in the car, and the car is not always near us. So today I let them pick something for being super good this morning. They are beside themselves with joy. They pick bubbles and car stickers. Awesome fun stuff for the day. 

We head for the playground near our house. Stefan discovered it the other night while walking Oliver. It’s super close and big. The kids climb and play, then I blow bubbles for them. It was chilly yesterday, but we’re getting really hot in the sun now. We can’t stay here too long.

We walk to Milja & Schaefer for Sunday brunch. It’s always a treat having breakfast for lunch. The service is crazy slow, but the place is so cool it’s okay. We have really good french toast, ricotta pancakes, avocado and egg toast and a veggie spaghetti. There are so many families with young children here. Not just this restaurant but this whole neighborhood. It’s crazy.

After lunch we play at the playground across the street. We didn’t see any kids on it when walking to the restaurant, and there still aren’t any now. It’s strange given it’s a Sunday. As soon as Lillian and Oly start playing, though, other 3 other families walk over and join. Stefan grabs a beer from a corner store. He makes use of the bottle opener by the cash register. It seems everyone buys a beer and opens it for the road!

We walk back toward to house to drop off Oliver and pass another small playground on the way. This one has only a couple little animals to ride, so we only stay a few minutes.

While Stefan drops off Oliver, I blow bubbles and watch the kids chase them down the sidewalk. We play like this for at least 10 minutes! What simple fun!

We head toward the East Side Gallery along the river. Only blocks from our apartment, we pass the large park where we played the first afternoon. Now it’s filled with vendors, like a giant flea market. We walk through a bit, then we go to the playground here.

The kids didn’t play on it last time because of all the special equipment set up. Now they go crazy. Lillian isn’t a fan of the sand at all the playgrounds, but she doesn’t let that keep her from playing.

We finally get in some distance, maybe 10 minutes of walking, before we reach another cool-looking playground. This one has a snake half-hidden in the sand that winds throughout the whole space. The kids have fun walking and sliding off of it. Stefan grabs another local Pilsner from a corner store. It’s like a pub/playground crawl! This makes 5 playgrounds for the day. I think that’s a record for us.

On our walk to the wall, we pass some really cool venues by the train tracks. I am certain I’m not cool enough to hang out at these places. They’re probably really something to see at night.

We finally arrive at the East Side Gallery, a portion of the Berlin Wall still standing for over a kilometer that has paintings by artists from all over the world, painted in 1989/1990. Before we walk it, we sit for a beer (and bathroom break) at the bar on a boat hostel. Lillian colors and chats. Oly is getting tired and so is obnoxious.

As soon as we leave, he falls asleep on Pappa. We won’t be able to walk the wall very long. We walk for at least 15 minutes and see a lot of it. It’s fun to see art outside, but it’s really incredible to try to get a sense for how people felt when the two sides were united again. Really crazy.

We take an Uber back to our hood. It’s 6pm. We walk one block from the apartment to a Mexican food place Stefan discovered last night.

We’re the first ones there, so we get a choice table on the sidewalk. Who knew the best Mexican food I’ve had in months would be in Germany?! This taqueria serves delicious mexican fare, especially guacamole and margaritas. Such a treat!

After our amazing meal, we head home for our family movie night the kids have been asking for. We watch Inside Out, really Stefan’s choice for which he heavily lobbied the kids. We go to bed pretty late, around 9:30, but it’s totally worth it for the family time. We needed it.