Aside from the influx of wounded men heading on trains towards hospitals safely behind enemy lines, the Reich was more or less operating similarly to how it had been during a time of peace. Or at least as far as everyday life was concerned for civilians.
The war was going smoothly so far for the Imperial Powers, and why wouldn't it be? They had prepared for many years for this conflict and had prepared in ways that were most appropriate. If there was one thing Bruno was most concerned about, it was the fact that he was not an active part of his children's lives at this point.
All he could do was send them letters from the front whenever he had the time to do so and the means to transport them back to the fatherland. And because of this, his older children, who were entering their teenage years, were, for the most part, left without a father to properly guide them through this critical period of their development.