knights, dragons and little boys

Birthday parties are a big deal here. Not in the American, spend a ton of money, over-the-top way, but rather that every kid has a birthday party and invites every kid in his class. Since we moved here, Alex has been invited to almost a dozen parties! I don't think I went to that many birthday parties in the first 12 years of my life.

Up to this point, I have gotten away with not having any formal birthday parties for the kids. We have had family parties and celebrations at park days with friends and cupcakes/doughnuts. But after attending all of his friends' parties, Alex had his heart set on having one of his own. It was a little bit ironic that the first birthday party thrown in our family would have to be in French. Nevertheless, with Pete on board to help and translate, I forged ahead with party plans.

I was a little nervous about inviting all of the boys in Alex's class. We were in luck though. The Saturday before Alex's birthday was the first day of Spring Break. According to one of the moms on my street, most people usually leave town on Friday as soon as the kids are out of school. She said we wouldn't get a very good turn out. This was fine by me. Alex passed out the invitations and I waited for the RSVPs, expecting only 4-5 boys. Wishful thinking.

Including Alex, we hosted 16 boys!

The boys on a scavenger hunt to find the dragon

Our fierce dragon pinata was a hit. It would have been great to get some action shots but I was protecting Ruby and Henry from wild, swinging 7 year-olds.

Alex's dragon cake
We didn't get any pictures blowing out the candles because the wind kept beating him to it.

The kids also made swords. You can imagine what it was like to have 16 boys running around with swords. I guess I didn't think that one through very well.

Although it was a success in that Alex and his friends had a great time, I'm not in any rush to have another one. I couldn't have done it without Pete. The language was a huge barrier. At one point when one of the boys was swinging (blindfolded) at the pinata, Henry decided to walk right in front of him. I started screaming at the top of my lungs to Alex's classmate, "STOP! STOP!", only to have Pete yelling at me, "He doesn't understand you! Arretes! Arretes!" Let's just say we were so lucky that Henry wasn't clobbered with the stick. But all's well that ends well and I expect that next year I will return to my simple birthday traditions.

**Random side note**Alex took cupcakes to school for his birthday. Afterward when I picked him up he said, "Everyone really liked them. They said they were the best they had ever had. In fact, they said they were better than cake!". HUH?

francoPHONE

As I began learning French, Pete told me one of the things that helped him learn the language on his mission was making phone calls. For the record, let me say that I hate talking to people on the phone in French. It is so much harder than speaking face to face. Although I have become an expert at making doctor's appointments and excusing the kids from school in French, all other phone conversations do not go over so well.

Me: Hello?
The other guy (TOG): Bonjour Madame! saldfjklds;adkfjsl;akdfj?
Me: Je suis desolee. Repetez s'il vous plait. (I'm sorry. Can you repeat that please?)
TOG: Vous etes Madame Coissons?
Me: Non. Je suis Madame Clayton.
TOG: klmkdapienvnfklaioae?
Me: Uuummmmm. Alex quick! I need you to talk to this person on the phone.
Alex: Oui, allo. Non. Ma maman ne parle pas bien le francais (My mom doesn't speak French very well). Oui. Non. Non. Non. Au revoir.
Me: What did he want?
Alex: He dialed the wrong number. I told him you weren't Madame Coissons.
Me: I told him that too. He just didn't understand me.
Alex: I don't even know why you have a phone, you can't talk to anyone on it.
Me: I can talk to people in English.
Alex: Well you definitely can't talk to people in French.

OUCH!

Chocolates for Easter

Thanks to some pressure from a friend in our village, I signed Alex and Ruby up for a class to make chocolates for Easter. All I really knew was that it was held at our local Boulangerie and it would be an hour long. On a snowy day the last week in March, I dropped them off. One hour later, two happy kids emerged with one enormous bunny and one giant duck. They chattered the whole way home about stirring the chocolate, choosing their animal and then pouring the chocolate into the mold. I was only left with one big question: how in the world could they eat that much chocolate?

FYI: Henry didn't get to go but of course he wanted to be included

Here they are with the baker and their finished products

Alex chose to make a bunny...

...while Ruby went for the smaller and more simple duck

Henry was so mad that he was left out and wouldn't settle down until his picture was taken with one of the chocolates. We had to make a trip to the store later to buy him his own. Funny enough he chose one with a bunny and a duck. Coincidence? I don't think so.

First Anniversary

One year ago today we arrived in Switzerland. Has it gone by quickly for you? The other day I was talking to my brother and he compared it to how people feel about the first year on their mission. He said, "Most people probably feel like you've only been gone a few months but to you it feels like an eternity." Exactly.

It has been a year of ups and downs for sure. Lots of adventures, lots of challenges. We have learned a lot, although I still find myself lost and confused at times ... but I guess that's just Switzerland. In fact, I think even the Swiss feel that way at times.

Lucky #7

Coming clean

It was too hard to pass up a good April Fool's Day prank. Being so far away (except for you Penny), how could any of you know for certain? Congrats to all of you who called my bluff(I believe you were first Marge). Good job to Tami who thought to look for a date on the ultrasound. I, of course, had deleted it, knowing that some of you would be so clever. If you look at the following picture (yes it's an old ultrasound Jenny) you will find the real date: October 31, 2006. This was the first of many ultrasounds I had when I was pregnant with Henry...and I was 9 weeks and 3 days along Carli. Good eye!


I'm sorry to dash the hopes of a few of you, but really want to thank you for your well wishes (especially the enthusiastic ones Kelly). It's fun to know that it was a topic of discussion at park day. Props to Audra who has a good memory about past statements made. After spending 8 weeks of my last pregnancy on bed rest, I'm a little hesitant and worried that history could repeat itself. Over here I'm living without the help of my mom, my MIL, my sister(Janet), and the 4th ward girls. I'm not quite ready to ask my Swiss neighbors to make me dinners and watch my kids. If I do get pregnant, I will be much like the "boy who cried wolf". I'm sure it will take a lot more than an ultrasound picture to convince you!

Four's a crowd

October 13, 2009