Fasching Fest

Last week, Benjamin's German kindergarten class held their Fasching Party. Benjamin was looking forward to the party for weeks and was thrilled when the day finally arrived. After all, Halloween is Benjamin's favorite time of the year and Fasching is the closest thing to Halloween for Germans.

Fasching, also known as "the foolish season" is the period before the Lenten season. The official celebration is typically on Tuesday before Ash Wednesday (like "Fat Tuesday" at Mardi Gras) which is when many towns hold their parades and celebrations.

So, Benjamin's kindergarten had a magical theme this year and were instructed to dress along with that theme... elves, fairies, magicians, witches, etc. Benjamin decided to be a magician and his best buddy decided to be a witch. And Benjamin actually came up with the costume on his own. He said he could just wear Samuel's cape (from his Superman Halloween costume) but that he "needed a magical hat... like Frosty the Snowman's hat." Well, our dear ex-neighbor, Ms. Katie had give the boys a snowman building kit a couple of years ago complete with a black hat. So, we tried it on Benjamin and wa-la he had his Frosty the Snowman magical hat. He also happened to have a wand in his collection of odds and ends.

He was sooooo excited to dress up like a magician. He could hardly wait to get to school that day. Samuel was equally excited to dress up. Only he was going to a classroom that was NOT having a Fasching party! (I have been bringing him to hourly care on Fridays for over a month now for a few hours. It is much like a preschool setting open to the military community... only the kids can stay for as few as two hours at a time. He loves it and I think the socialization with kids his own age is great... and of course, it gives me a few hours to run some errands with only one child in tow). So, Don actually brought our cow (a former Halloween costume) to hourly care that morning. They didn't seem to mind and did eventually convince him that he didn't need to be dressed up.

It was really fun to see Benjamin and all his classmates dressed up for the occasion... even his teachers were in the spirit and all dressed up. He had a magical day full of special activities and treats.

Tomorrow is the official Fasching celebration, however, with Don having to work, it doesn't look like we'll be making the Heidelberg parade this year. Hopefully, next year... from what I've heard the parades are a crazy blast with lots of candy and treats for the kids... and the adults really get into the costumes and go crazy as well.

Happy Fasching Everyone!