Jakob's first day

Jakob finally arrived on Sunday! His flight from Newark got delayed twice, so he missed his connection in Chicago and ended up having to spend the night at O'Hare. Doesn't that sound like fun? Not. But, he arrived in Tulsa on Sunday afternoon, no worse for wear. I think the situation bothered us more than it did him. He also got to call his family and hearing his voice and knowing that he'd reached his destination made them feel better. I hope they know we will do our very best to care and provide for their son/brother while he is here.

Jakob arrived wearing a t-shirt, a sweatshirt and sweatpants. It was 106 outside. I told him he might want to take his sweatshirt off, so he did and he pulled his pantlegs up to his knees, but as soon as we went outside, a big "ooooohhhhh uuuuuggggghhhh" escaped his mouth, which made me laugh. In Berlin, their daily highs this week are in the low 70's. Needless to say, the Oklahoma heat and humidity were a little bit of a shock for him. He told D later that the air feels heavy. Yes, yes it sure does.

He sat in the back seat as we drove and he was really trying to take it all in, looking around at everything the Tulsa landscape has to offer and all of the big pickups on the road. Among his other initial culture shocks was a pitstop at Walmart. Then we stopped at Rib Crib to eat and he hadn't heard of some of the things on the menu. He opted for a chicken salad, but soon discovered that BBQ Ranch dressing was not his cup 'o tea. Next time, we'll try a different flavor. He also got to watch some football on tv while we ate. He said they don't have football on tv in Germany. Well, I couldn't live in Germany then. Gots to have me some fooooooooootbaaaaaaaaall! Just kidding. No, I'm not. Yes, I am. No, I'm not. Nevermind.

D took him up to the deer feeder and they rode the 4-wheeler, which Jakob said is called a quad in Germany, and he REALLY liked riding it! They also went to the gym to play basketball with some of the kids from the high school team. D said Jakob had fun and that he can shoot and handle the ball pretty well. AMEN!! We have a basketballer in the house!! And Jakob is tall! D said the boys kept trying to get him to dunk the ball and he came very close! He did tell us this afternoon that one of his goals while he's here is to gain some weight. Well, with our American diet, that may not be a problem! When some of the other parents showed up at the gym, D went over to talk to them and Jakob followed right along and introduced himself. Love that!!

I made waffles later and syrup was a new food to him. He tried a little on his finger and said it tasted good. We asked him what he normally eats on his waffles and he said bananas and chocolate. We had bananas and we had some chocolate syrup, so we hooked him up.

If today is any indication of how the rest of the school year will go for us, then I think we'll all be okay and have a blast! Jakob seems to be a good kid and he said he's been ready for a break from Berlin. Well, I think he's definitely got a change of pace here! :)