The Summer Weather is back

September 11, 2018:

I joined a couple of groups and it is really helping me feel more connected (and more human) - and to have people to talk to, other than the dog!! (Although Murphy does enjoy our scintillating conversations, I feel they are sometimes a little one-sided.)

Tuesday, September 4: I joined a hiking group of Moms from the International School and we hiked a good 11km hike, starting from the school and going up into a forest with great views! There were about 40 people (including 3 dads) so it was a fairly big group. I had to dodge a few conversations so that I didn't walk beside people complaining or cranking about their kids' teachers...that is not going to fill my soul with positive energy! So I walked past the conversations until I found someone that was chatting in a way that was positive. How lovely!! I talked to the woman for at least an hour and a half of the walk and it was easy and wonderful, In fact,  I was going to leave the hike early, since it was going not far from our apartment, but I chose to keep hiking all the way to the school and added on the 5km walk home. It was well worth the effort since I enjoyed some chocolate when I got home!

Thursday, September 6: I joined a yoga class - again, with some Moms from the International School. It's a great way to stretch and build some strength and core muscles again, and it is going so much better in english than my Swiss German Pilates class!!! (I tried out a Pilates Class in downtown Zug last week, and I LOVED it!! The biggest problem was that it was in Swiss German, and so I had to torque my neck to look at the instructor, to see if I am doing it properly, which then basically negates the form that I tried to achieve in doing the exercise! Kind of counter-productive!! But I think it will be a great way to learn Swiss German in a fun atmosphere, so I think I will try to get my German better and then sign up for the class as a reward of sorts...)

It turns out that the class I am in has me with 3 other Moms from Sarah's grade 8 class! 1 girl and 2 boys! That is kind of neat!

Friday, September 7: I joined a knitting club that meets every few weeks. I was a little hesitant: is it going to be all old people? Are they going to be a serious knitting group - I cannot knit and talk!! Well, so far, these are cool knitters who are experienced through new knitters and it was a fabulous couple of hours sitting in a cafe by the train station right in Baar (our little town)!

It's amazing how those three activities made my week so much more enjoyable! I still had time to grocery shop every day, walk Murphy a few times a day and do the house keeping chores, but thankfully, cleaning drains was not the highlight of my week this week!!

Monday Pants

Monday, September 3, 2018

For my birthday, Sarah gave me "Monday Pants". These are actually Roots jogging pants but since I was often lonely on Mondays when the kids and Justin went out the door, Sarah thought it would be nice for me to have cozy jogging pants to wear on Mondays. I am loving them here too. And today, I need them. After fabulously fun weekends together, having adventures, laughing and being outside, I find Mondays very lonely. Like today. Yup... It's grey and cloudy out. Today, my highlights include doing 4 loads of laundry, 1 hour of Rosetta Stone German lessons, ironing some shirts, planning dinner and grocery shopping...oh, and maybe I'll clean a drain or two - wait, no point in doing that because I cleaned them last week!! haha!  Mondays are hard - back in Canada they were hard after I had to leave work because of the concussions. I felt I had no purpose, other than being a June Cleaver-esque housewife. And Mondays are hard here too. So I have come up with a plan of attack for fighting the Monday Blues:

• Walk with Murphy: we walk every morning, but Mondays seem to be a great morning for a destination walk to get fresh from the cow milk, some eggs from the farm and maybe some fruit or vegetables too. All on my 6/6:30 am walk. Purposeful and Productive.
• Steamed Milk for the girls: I fully realize that other people have the Monday morning blues too, so I have been steaming that fresh-from-the-cow milk for the girls on Monday mornings especially. Purposeful and Productive.
• Get dressed and do my hair. Why not Fake it Till You Make it? That's my thinking for Mondays! Today I am even sporting a dress! Purposeful and Productive.
• Plan dinner early in the day, and plan tomorrow's lunch for the girls. Go grocery shopping. Purposeful and Productive.
• Laundry and chores....well, those have to get done and have built up after a fun weekend, so they're good to set for today since they are Purposeful and Productive.

OK, wah wah wah is done. Now back to happy thoughts.

Friday, August 31, 2018

Shannon went to a party Friday night, meeting up with 3 friends at our place to get ready, and meeting others on the way to the party. The group of them slept over at one of the girls' houses and got very little sleep! We picked her up at 7am and she was able to get some sleep on the few hours of driving to Saas-Fee. 

Saturday, September 1, 2018

The weekend was amazing. We drove to Saas-Fee on Saturday and despite the rain and both girls having colds, and Shannon not being able to complete the hike because of her sinus headache and the altitude, it was still a super fun weekend! 

When we got there, we checked into our hotel (with Murphy!) and headed out for a hike to Hannig. About an hour and a half -2 hours up the mountain, with the reward being lunch at the top! https://www.hannig-saas-fee.ch/

Shannon made it 2/3 of the way and had to turn back because of the pain in her head from the congestion and the altitude air pressure. She and Justin and Murphy enjoyed a meal at the bottom, while Sarah and I pushed on to the top and had Rosti and french fries - perhaps the best Rosti EVER!!! With ham, onions, cheese and of course an egg of top!! Can you say Potato Overload?!

It was chilly - only 5-7C was the high on Saturday. And with the rain, we all got quite damp. Sarah and I chose to take the gondola back down. It was SOOO SMALL!!! And a little frightening for the both of us! We laughed so hard!

We enjoyed a little nap mid-afternoon and then, while Shannon slept, the 3 of us wandered the town of Saas-Fee, popping into stores along the way.

For dinner, we took Mike & Kelly's recommendation and went to Alphitta (Wildistrasse 72) at the end of the main strip and we had an amazing fondu dinner! 

Beef fondu and cheese fondu!! All so good!! I think it was one of my most favourite meals ever,  

but mostly due to the laughs we had with each other and the conversation. 

It was just a really special night.

Sunday, September 2, 2018

Today we gave the girls the choice: scootering in Saas-Grund or going up the gondolas to Längfluh. Everyone was indifferent, and Shannon made the choice: gondolas up!
The weather was so dark and cloudy in Saas-Fee, but we thought (and hoped and crossed fingers) that Langfluh would be above the clouds.

 I think the mountains are above the clouds...

And we were right!

Both Justin and I didn't expect to be so blown away by the views, but we were! We thought that since we've seen the Rockies and been moved by them, that we would appreciate and enjoy these mountains (without a doubt) but maybe not be in awe so much. The glaciers, the mountains, the views! WOW!!! We were in awe!! Check out @divebaar on Instagram to see more pictures, which don't even do it justice! We soaked up the views, dreamed and planned for our ski vacation, and then returned to the bottom to start our drive back to Baar.  

We joined Kelly, Mike and Amelie for a birthday dinner for Amelie of tacos back in Zug. It was delicious and a fun time! So nice to be together. I feel so lucky that Kelly & Mike & Amelie are on this adventure in Zug too! 

The Week of Meetings

August 30, 2018

The week has been filled with meetings...I started the week with learning how to use the school's website, parent portal, Virtual Learning Environment, etc...There are now dates that appear in my phone's calendar telling me more than I need to know about the high school and middle school activities! Thankfully, I learned how to turn these calendars OFF, but for now they make me feel as though I have things to do.

I went for a walk with a new-to-me-Mom and showed her and her dog where the river is, and we walked all the way up to the caves at Holgrotten. It was nice! Her dog ran off a few times, so the 1 hour walk turned into 3 hours!! A nice way to fill the day, but dinner was a little scattered without much time to grocery shop and prepare.

The girls' bank cards finally arrived. YAY! Now they can be that little bit more independent. I also picked them up a lovely little schoggigipfel (chocolate croissant) for an after school treat. It was tasty!!

My days always include some farm animals - this cow (that is among the cows that give me my fresh milk) is enjoying some plums! 

 Yet another meting this week was the Welcome Fair at the Middle School Campus. Actually, I was expecting it to be a complete waste of time (but I wasn't going to miss going) and it was quick helpful! I found some information about mountain guides that may help make a fun weekend some time, I got some chocolate, I met someone from the knitting club, I found that I already knew the woman with the hiking club, I saw 2 familiar faces and it passed a whole morning - a success in my books! Plus I met a yoga instructor, tried her yoga class on Thursday and LOVED it! So I'm signed up for Thursday Yoga classes in English, with some Moms from the school and I'm already looking forward to the next class!

From the Welcome Fair, I went straight to Zug and met up with some Canadian Moms for lunch. That was nice - so familiar to be talking about Canadian things and settling in here. It sounds lame, but I was exhausted by the end of the afternoon!! 

My final meeting of the week was the coffee morning on Friday morning at the school cafeteria. My Mom taught me that if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything. So, um..... 

crickets....

Well, Justin has suggested that I give it one more try to see if it is the same on another Friday. I am considering his suggestion....

I did notice that they make the kids speak German in the cafeteria, so I took pics of the basic phrases so that I can learn them too.

So begins week 2 of BTS (Back To School)

Monday, August 27, 2018

It's Monday morning, and the apartment is empty; the girls are off to school, Justin is off to work and I am starting week 2 of the school year. I kept myself busy last week with tasks to keep me from feeling lonely - I did some pretty exciting (sarcasm) things to keep myself busy: 

• I cleaned the shower drains (actually kind of cool the way the Swiss have the filters set up efficiently to catch the hair and debris that goes down the shower drain, but not really a thrilling task)
• I met up with a Mom from the school and showed her the river where we let our dogs run and play. The unfortunate part was that her dog kept running away to explore the forest and the river. The good part was that the hour I thought I was going to spend walking ended up taking 3 hours! That filled my morning!
• I tried a Pilates class in Zug and I loved it. I am going to sign up for a class that will go for 18 weeks! That will get me visiting Zug once a week and I can combine it with other shopping and exploring (actual or window shopping).
• I found an office supply store to get some school supplies for the girls. That is one of my weaknesses, but I stayed fully on task and only bought the folders that Shannon needed.
• I rode my bike to Hollegrotten to explore that bike route. It isn't that far away from the apartment, but it was a nice ride. Next time, maybe I'll stop and have coffee at the cafe that is tucked into the area! I love how cafes and restaurants can survive in Switzerland out in the middle of nowhere!
• I put together Sarah's IKEA set of drawers.
• I met Kelly for a swim in Zug at the badi and rode my bike through the crazy construction detours that have appeared. Luckily, the Swiss label everything quite well and the detours did not cause me to get lost.
• I went to the Okihof - the recycling centre - to drop off all our un-garbage that has accumulated. Then I came home and labeled some bags so that the recycling can be sorted ahead of time and save me having to do it at the Okihof.

Clearly, if these were my mid-week highlights, I have some improving to do!! More exercise this week, signing up for a fitness class, some new parent meetings are on the calendar and I have to dedicate some time to knitting Sarah's sweater so that I can hopefully get it done before October!

Here's hoping this week is a wee bit more exciting!!

Last Week of Summer Holidays

August 15, 2018

It's the last week of summer holidays and it's a relaxing one.
Shannon is enjoying 2 days at a horse camp in Lucerne, and Sarah is enjoying 2 training sessions at a gymnastics club in Lucerne. I am enjoying having my kids around before school starts back! Then it's off to Orientation for each of the girls before classes start next week. 

Some friendly cows on my morning walk. 

They are pretty interested in Murphy but he refuses to look at them.

I have to be honest and say that although things look happy on instagram and in my writing, it's been a rough day here with one child being homesick and nervous with school rapidly approaching...we'll get through...tears and deep breathing, and maybe a little chocolate...

Watch Out Italy, Here We Come!!

Friday, August 10

We drove this morning to Locarno, in the Italian speaking part of Switzerland. Justin found a fantastic Lido where we spent the afternoon swimming in the indoor pools, outdoor pools or lake, going down the water slides, reading and napping on our lounge chairs. It was pretty relaxing for everyone!! 

Not a bad view for the afternoon!

Then we headed out for Italy, aiming to get most of the way to La Spezia. We are meeting Lea and Maui Calcone tomorrow and staying with them until Monday. I am excited to see them as well as to show the girls the towns in Cinque Terre, which are special because that’s where Justin proposed to me!

We decided to take a side trip to Andermatt. The temperature was only 12C up in the mountains! IT was so beautiful and I cannot wait to see it again when we go there to ski.

On the roads in Italy, we learned that the speed limit is only a suggestion. “We’re not in Switzerland anymore!”

We stopped in a little town after passing a couple of potential (but sketchy) hotels along the way.  We settled at Hotel Salus; Piazza Ponci, 7, 43048 Sant'Andrea Bagni PR, Italy

Who doesn't love a pink accented bathroom?!

Pizza leftovers....still delicious cold the next day!

It is a small town - very small - and in true Italian fashion, the kids and people came out in great numbers after 10pm. Ristorante Piccadilly served us the best pizza - THE BEST crust I have ever eaten, for sure. Shannon even got hers with fries on top! Super delicious and not a foreigner other than us!  

Saturday, August 11

Off to La Spezia today!! We started the day with a delicious croissant, filled with a little peach jam. Mmmmm. And a cappuccino!

Keys to driving in Italy: 

• use more accelerator than brakes 
• proceed at least 50km/hr above the speed limit and ignore the cars that are passing you at alarmingly fast speeds. 
• Use lots of hand motions and minimal indicators 

We met up with the Calcone’s this afternoon! We drove a short distance from our hotel to La Spezia and arrived in the morning in La Spezia. 

Then we went to Monterosso (one of the villages in Cinque Terre) for the beach. We rented 2 beach chairs and an umbrella to lounge on and to escape the intense heat of the sun. We got pounded by the waves!! They were big and really hit just a few feet from the beach. It was a fabulous introduction to the beach. 

The beach was PACKED with people!! A sea of umbrellas and beach chairs.

Somehow, the girls are always hungry enough for some ice cream, and how can you blame them? They have done a good job at sampling gelato and ice cream wherever we go!

 After the beach, we headed to the Calcone's apartment and got caught up before dinner.

We waited for the train back from Monterosso and it was late - THUNDER DOME - chaos trying to pack onto the train. We were non-conformists and waited for the second train which came within 5 minutes and we got a seat no problem and rode it in comfort, rather than being squished like sardines! Still, the 20 minute ride took us over an hour and we were all excited to meet up with Lea, Maui, Maddy and Ben.

Dinner on Saturday night was delicious! A little restaurant where I had Trophie pasta with pesto (regional speciality) and tuna and shrimp (seafood is also a local speciality).  Trophie pasta with pesto is what I ate the night Justin proposed to me, so it was a bit of a trip down memory lane for me. 

Sunday, August 12

This was a heavenly indulgent beach day with the Calcone’s. We started the day with coffee and pastries, hearing about Lea’s travels from years before. Shannon, Maddy and I were in stitches laughing and enjoying her trip down memory lane. Here’s what I learned: Lea has a wealth of experience travelling and should never be underestimated!  She will go up against soldiers when needed, and dodge an international search in the name of travel.

We started with a short walk around Vernazza, to the pier for a re-creation of Justin’s proposal!! It was beautiful. The town has changed a lot and a landslide/big storm changed the pier in 2011. But it still has the quaint feel of a small village on the Italian Riviera, and the beautiful buildings are just as I remembered. We couldn’t find the exact alley where we spent a couple nights in an apartment, but it all looked familiar. 

Ben got in a little fishing, we got some photos, and then it was on to Monterosso for the beach day. Today the waves were much calmer, and even I spent a long time swimming. Sarah and Ben spent the longest in the water - maybe 6 hours at least! Shannon and Maddy spent the next longest, which was maybe 5.5 hrs! The kids bought inner tubes to float in and we made a flotilla in the water, catching perhaps a little too much sun, and a lot of fun.  2 for Euros 7!! Much better than renting them for  Euros 5/hr. 

The train back was delayed again... delayed and then delayed again.. Ah, the Italians…. the 20 minute train ride ended up taking us 1.5 hrs. And we have no idea why it was delayed. 

Dinner on Sunday night was pizza. Beautiful pizza since it was Maddy’s choice because we were celebrating her birthday a day early.  Lea even had candles put in Maddy’s pizza to celebrate her birthday and we sang at the restaurant. So much fun!

We drove back to Switzerland on Monday. We picked up Murphy on our way back. 

Murphy has been outstanding settling in. He had a real bout of jet lag for the first week, but luckily, so did I, so we were up often and outside often. He went to a kennel while we travelled to Italy - it seemed like a summer camp for dogs!! He came back dirty, and tired....just the perfect combination! Get this: they find the dogs adjust better if they have a friend, so he had another black lab as his roommate for the few days! ha! Totally a summer camp experience!

The Nesbitt Girls and the Chocolate Factory

August 7, 2018

Ah, chocolate!! It was on my list of things to do, and I dragged the girls with me. .. ok, maybe I didn’t have to drag them at all.  They came willingly. Especially when I told them we would do only a self guided tour... they were happier then but still not thrilled that there was a tour involved. This wasn’t just any tour we were doing: this was a tour of the Läderach chocolate factory. Our eyes lit up at the start of the tour when we were handed a small spoon and a box containing 3 chocolate samples. Our eyes lit up brighter and wider when we saw the 3 chocolate fountains waiting for us to sample them!!! HELLO!! GRÜETZI!!! YES!!

My favourite is still the dark chocolate, Shannon prefers the milk chocolate and Sarah prefers the white chocolate. We left the factory with a good, healthy supply of chocolate!