Makin' Plans

Mary was exhausted tonight and was asleep before 9; Sarah didn't last much longer, and of course David was right out.

So I used the time tonight to research possibilities for our European trip this summer.  We know we land in Frankfurt on June 26, and that we go wheels-up from Paris on July 6.  Beyond that...nothing's set.

Part of the reason I wanted to go was because 2010 is 700 years since the first recorded mention of the Kleppinger family.  We go back to 1310 in Dortmund, at least 1447 in Soest, and in 1648 the bulk of the family moved to Pfungstadt.  And, in that order, I think we'll get to visit those places and see where we come from.

David wants to see the city of Ulm, where Albert Einstein was born.  I found out tonight his birthplace was destroyed in firebombings of World War II, so all that's left is a plaque...but we'll go!  Sarah wants to see castles, so I'm thinking we can swing down to Neuschwanstein and the famous Mad King Ludwig castle.

And then it's off to Paris, where we want at least a couple of days to show the kids around places that were meaningful to us on our two previous trips.  And to fit it all in...well, we'll be on the go a lot.

The kids generally travel well, but this will be an aggressive plan.  I'm sure the depth of its aggressiveness will be pointed out to me once everyone wakes up tomorrow.  But for the first time, we at least have a strawman to kick around--ideas about where to go, in what order, and how we'd get around. It's more than we had yesterday, and it's our first step in Makin' Plans for Europe.