Growing pains

About a week ago, Alex and Ruby pulled out the video camera and wanted to watch some home videos. I have to admit it's been a while since we've used our video camera, let alone watched any of the movies. Although the kids loved it, for me it was bittersweet.

Sometimes it's hard to extract myself from the present and remember that my kids have not always been at their current age/stage in life. Watching them as babies and toddlers reminded me of how much they've grown and how quickly it's gone by. It reminded me to really enjoy them now because this stage won't last and also to appreciate all of the fun they have brought into my life.



Alex is almost 7. He is outdoing me in French and I'm sure it won't be long until he adds other things to that list. He knows the words to more songs than my sister Charlene and I have to be careful what I promise him because he never forgets and always holds me to my word. Although he can be silly and does plenty of things to remind me he is 6, he is often serious and contemplative. My brother commented to me once when he was 3 months old that he was the most serious baby he had ever seen. I think his exact words were, "He's like an old man in a little body". While this may be true, I'm so glad he was the first one to come into our family.


Ruby is 4 1/2. She can out-talk anyone in English and I'm sure it won't be long until the same is true in French. The other day I asked my dad if he wanted to talk to her on the phone and he said, "I don't have that long". She is still in love with babies...real ones are preferred but she can be pacified with dolls. She constantly asks for a little sister. When I remind her that we don't get to choose and would she still want a baby if it's a boy, she says she needs time to think about that. Out of all our kids I think she has grown up the most since we moved. At 3 feet 3 inches, 30 pounds and a size 8 shoe, she is tiny but makes up for it with her big personality. Everyone at school, including all the teachers, know Ruby.


Henry is a few months shy of 2. He is happy and easy going. I know that we could not be having this adventure with any other baby. He is flexible and copes well with our hectic schedule and travels. Of late he is keeping me on my toes and he is pushing the limit of his physical abilities. He has no fear of dangerous things. This past week he has fallen down the stairs twice, fallen off a stool, a chair, his toy bins and the couch. At times he thinks he is the same age as Alex and can't figure out why he can't do things by himself. He's becoming easier to understand although if you aren't a member of our family I think you would still be confused. We all love hearing him sing the "Happy Birthday" song. I'm excited for this summer when he will get the chance to be reacquainted with everyone.

If bobsledding was done in tubes

We also used our winter break to try out a place that our friends Shane and Emma told us about. There is a place in the Swiss Alps in Leysin, where they have bobsled runs for the public. The catch is that you go down them with inner tubes. For those who are 6 and older, they have 8 different courses rated like ski runs (green, red, black diamond). For kids under 6 there is a separate section with 2 different runs. Pete and I took turns going with Alex and helping Ruby and Henry. We had a blast.

A view of our surrounding riding up my inner tube

You can either pull them up the hill with the rope, or...

...ride up via the cable

Unfortunately, on the little kid side there is only one way up.
Pete and I definitely got a work out pulling Henry and Ruby up the hill.

The inner tubes were smaller for Ruby and Henry

Alex getting a free ride from Pete

One of the fun things was that they would let you ride tandem.
Here Alex is holding onto Pete's legs.

Henry

Ruby

Alex

Alex

don't get sick watching this

Winter break

Alex and Ruby had a week off of school in February. Although most people use the week to go on a ski trip or beyond (we had friends that went to Munich, Madrid, Rome and Orlando), we decided to stay home. There was an endless supply of snow to play in and the kids took full advantage of it. Although Henry is missing from the following pictures, he was with us every step of the way.

Our vacation consisted of:

building a snowman,
(Alex made this one on his own)

making snow angels,

skiing,

sledding,

snow ball fights,

and utter silliness.

All in a day's work

WARNING:
THIS POST IS EXTREMELY LONG AND
MAY BORE YOU TO DEATH.
PROCEED WITH CAUTION!

Since we've been living here, people ask me what I do all day. I know from my posts about traveling that it seems like it is all fun and adventure. The reality is that although those trips are amazing, they are the exception. A few weeks ago while Pete was on a business trip to Monaco, I decided to take pictures of an average day in Switzerland. By bedtime I received a few funny looks, the kids were annoyed and I had taken A LOT of pictures.

Our days start early, sometime between 6 and 6:30 am. We spend our mornings like everyone else, eating breakfast and getting ready for school. The biggest difference with Pete out of town is that I have to be ready to go also. Normally Pete drops the kids off at school but with him gone, it is my job and the kids informed me that I can't do it in my pajamas.

8:10 am
It is time to go to school.
It is raining this morning and so we drive.
It is still dark out and if you look closely you can see the moon.

8:15 am
Today Alex gets dropped off at the bus stop.
He takes a bus to another village for an art class.

8:30 am
Henry and I return home and get to work.
Most of our morning is filled with chores...

Today we cleaned the downstairs
and did some laundry.
We take periodic breaks to play and have snacks.

10:45 am
Henry and I head out to pick up Ruby from school.

She has gym today so we walk to the center of town to pick her up.
We get to take a fun little short cut on this path.

Here's Henry waiting in front of the gym.

11 am
Ruby's finished with the morning round of school.

On our walk home we usually take a few minutes to check out the chickens.

11:30 am
Ruby and Henry eat lunch.

11:45 am
Alex walks home from school.

Alex usually eats lunch by himself but he's a good sport about it.

12 pm
Ruby and Henry lay down for naps.
Ruby fights me a lot on this but I can usually still get 3-4 naps a week out of her.

Henry cannot sleep without his blue bunny silky.

12:15 pm
While Henry and Ruby are sleeping it's usually a good time
for Alex and I to work on his homework or read together.

1:10 pm
It's time to walk back up to school.

Since it isn't raining, we walk up the hill.
Sometimes we meet friends along the way.
This is Alex's friend Elliot. He speak French and English.

In front of the school they put up a tent in the winter.
This way the kids/parents have something to stand under if it's raining or snowing.

1:30 pm
I meet with my French tutor Isabelle.

3 pm
The kids are out of school.
Some days I walk all the way up to get them
and sometimes we meet at the crosswalk.

The ground has been really icy this winter.
They haven't been great with the snow removal
so they put down wood chips instead.

You can see the yellow reflector that Ruby is wearing.
All of the kindergartners have to wear them.

3:10 pm
It's time for Henry to wake up.

You can tell by the evil eye that he wasn't quite ready.

3:30 pm
The kids watch shows on itunes or our slingbox
while I get a few last minute chores done.

Henry usually only watches for about 5 minutes.
Today he's decided to help me put away the laundry I was folding.

4:30 pm
We drop the trash off at the dump on our way to Alex's English class.

They are really big on recycling here and there is a separate bin for everything:
paper, cardboard, glass, aluminum, plastic,
(not to be confused with plastic bottles which are a separate bin)
biodegradable, electronics, metal, wood, styrofoam, batteries, light bulbs, bread....
You get the idea.

4:55 pm
We drop Alex off at English class.

Alex and Ruby both go to English class once a week.
It keeps them up to date with their US grade level in reading, writing and math.

5:05 pm
I buckle Ruby and Henry back in to go get gas and dinner.

Not every gas station here is pay at the pump.
I'd actually say the majority are not.
The other thing which is different here is that you pump first and pay after.

5:25 pm
Tonight with Pete out of town, we will be eating at McDonald's.
It is not cheap. Feeding the whole family usually costs around $45.

Of course I get to order in French which is always fun.
I've definitely improved and can usually get through it without confusing them.

5:40 pm
We arrive back at Alex's English class and
Ruby and Henry eat dinner in the car while we wait for class to end at 6 pm.

6:50 pm
We are home, the kids are bathed and have brushed their teeth.
We read books, tell stories, say prayers and sing songs.
At 7:15 pm they are all in bed and sometimes all asleep.
It is at this point that I unwind and get ready for bed.
With Pete out of town and another long day ahead of me,
I usually call it a night pretty early.