Lichtenberg Castle Family Photos

One of my best friend's, Melissa, is a very talented photographer. I asked her if she would take some family photos for our Christmas card when Rob returned home to Germany from the States. We met her early on Sunday morning at Lichtenberg Castle near Thallichtenberg. It is about 30 minutes from our house in the Ramstein area, near Kusel. Lichtenberg Castle was built in 1200 and is the biggest castle ruin in Germany. Parking and entrance is free. Kids (and adults) have a lot of fun exploring the grounds and climbing the walls of this old castle. They have a small museum, an amazing restaurant and a little playground. 

October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness month. A couple weeks ago I saw a very emotional photo of a couple with shadows of children representing the children they lost from miscarriage. It really touched me. I knew I wanted to create one and here it is. This photo shows our family of five, including my stillborn daughter, Addilyn and the baby I miscarried last month.  

Address of Lichtenberg Castle:

Burgstraße 12, 66871 Thallichtenberg

Edinburgh, Scotland

We spent most of our time in Isle of Skye but after a few nights in Perth, we moved on to Edinburgh before heading back to Germany.

I found an amazing place on AirBnB in Edinburgh. It was a 3bedroom and parking! It also had an indoor pool. 

We had a few days to explore Edinburgh. Our first stop was the Edinburgh Castle. On our walk there we passed this lovely cathedral.  

Edinburgh Castle

Our next stop was the Tartan Weaving Mill. This place was huge! It was 5 storeys and be sure to see every square inch of this place. The bottom floor has a bunch of the machines and it was fun seeing them make the fabrics.

After buying a few things at the Tartan Weaving Mill we continued on the Royal Mile.

I highly encourage hiking up to Arthur's Seat. It is a bit of a hike but the view is worth it. My parents stopped half way up to rest and enjoyed that view while Rob, Rand and I continued on to the top. 

On our way down from Arthur's Seat, we noticed a ton of people gathering around the. Palace of Holyroodhouse. The QUEEN was coming! We quickly got a spot and waited to get a glimpse of the Queen of England. 

The next day Rob and my dad went golfing and I went to the Edinburgh Zoo with Rand and my Mom. It was very easy to get to from our rental. We just hopped on a bus and the stop was right near the Zoo entrance. 

Rand really enjoyed the Dinosaur part of the zoo.

We enjoyed our time in Scotland and I would LOVE to go back. I would spend most of the time back in Isle of Skye and do more hiking. I loved that area. It was just so beautiful and serene. 

Perth & St Andrews, Scotland

On our drive from Isle of Skye to Perth, we took a bit of a detour to Lochness to see if we could get a glimpse of the famous Lochness Monster. We didn't have any luck but we did get to see a lot more of beautiful Scotland. 

 After grabbing lunch near Inverness, we headed to our B&B in Perth called Scotia B&B. We enjoyed our stay in Perth and our hosts at the B&B were so AMAZING! They even brought out some toys that were their grandson's for Rand to play with. They really went out of their way to make us feel welcome.

The next morning, after church, we headed out to St. Andrews to walk the Old Course. They were in the middle of preparing for the British Open that was taking place a couple weeks later. Here are some pictures of the course and St. Andrews.

 The next morning, the guys had plans to go golfing at Carnoustie so my Mom, Rand and I went to Scone Palace in Perth. Not only was the palace impressive but Rand had a blast with the cows surrounding the grounds. The grounds have tons to do. They had a playground, a maze, lots of trails that go through the palace's enchanting forest and lots more. 

Rand was in love with these cows! He kept trying to feed them cookies and juice. He had no fear and kept trying to touch them.

Rand was tuckered out from a day running 

around a palace and chasing cows.