First Days in Suiza

After two years in Cairo and four years in (un-blogged) Caracas, we find ourselves in Zurich, Switzerland.  We keep saying, "It's the dream!" and I hope it is.  We really believe God has ordered our steps, and that we are where we are supposed to be.  The story of how we got here is a story for another day (will I ever get around to writing it?).  For today, a quick catalog of our first two days here will have to do.

Yesterday we arrived at about 8 AM and were picked up at the airport by my principal and another teacher at my school and driven to our hotel in our new village, Baden.  The weather was surprisingly hot and humid.  After we arrived at the hotel, we basically dropped our stuff and decided to take a nap.  I went to get out my ipod to listen to as I fell asleep only to realize I had lost it.  :(  Before going to sleep, I filled out a lost and found report online with Zurich airport just in case. Our hotel room was hot and stuffy, but we opened the one small window that opens and managed to sleep a while.  We slept until about 3:00.  When I woke up, I already had an email from the airport saying my ipod had been found!  Happily, we went outside to walk around Baden.

We made our way to the city center, ate lunch at Subway ($30!) saw my new school building from the outside (looks cool, big picture windows, supposedly my room has a view of the castle on the hill!), and then walked up the hill to check out our new apartment.

We went up the walking/biking route to our neighborhood, which was quite steep and gave us all a good little cardio workout.  Our neighborhood is quiet and quaint, with many older houses and forest on either side of the narrow pie-shaped neighborhood.  We easily found our apartment building.  It backs right up to the forest behind it.

Our apartment is the ground floor apartment, which turns out to be built sort-of into a hillside, so the views out the window are not great.  However, each room has light coming in through big windows, and our living room has a big picture window with a door out to the patio.

Yesterday we were really just spying...we didn't have keys yet and our appointment to get keys to the apartment was not until today.  So we settled for peeking in windows.  The door to the building was also propped open, so we were able to explore the area where we have a storage space (almost the size of the storage unit we've been using at home for the last 6 years), the laundry room, and the parking garage.  The apartment looked great through the windows, though we are (more like I am)  a little worried we won't be able to fit our bedroom furniture in our bedroom.  Outside, the construction on the patios and yard is not finished, so it looks rough.  The inside looked ready to go.

After peeking in our apartment, we walked up the path into the forest behind our house.  It's heavenly.  So, so quiet and peaceful.  There is a nice hill which will be good for me to walk up every day.  Luke spent the walk scouting out sites to build a fort (though I am pretty sure there are rules about not straying off the path) and leaving special sticks stuck in the ground to mark possible sites.

We left our neighborhood as thunder rolled in the distance and walked quickly down the hill (by the castle!  There's a CASTLE on my way to school!) and through town so we might beat the rain back to the hotel.

At the hotel, we got dinner from room service and got to bed by 11 or so.  It rained all night and cooled the weather off significantly.

This morning, we got up early and ate breakfast before walking to the train station.  We had planned to go in to the airport to get my ipod.  We got umbrellas from the hotel and walked in the rain to the station.  When we went to buy tickets, we realized it would cost us about $100 for the 3 of us to go rescue my ipod!  We decided to wait and pick it up when my mom comes later this week.  (My mom is coming later this week!!!!)

We walked back to the hotel and crashed for an hour before the teacher who met us at the airport picked us up to go take care of getting phones.  Back to the train station we went! Our new friend brought her son along, so Luke had some company while we got SIM cards and phone numbers.  While in the train station we went to the grocery store (which is more like a really expensive Super Kroger) and bought a few things (toothpaste, plug adapters, flat iron and hairdryer --that detail was for you, Tiffany).  We came back to the hotel, where we had lunch before being picked up again to go to our apartment to get keys.

 At our apartment, we met some other school people and the apartment official people. They showed us every room of the apartment and told us about all the special rules and cleaning/airing out the apartment guidelines. This took about an hour and a half. We are definitely going to have extra furniture and other stuff, but we really did get a great apartment. Brand new, simple but very nice. 

The kitchen is small but the storage space is nice, ceramic cook top, self-closing drawers. :) It's fun having everything be brand-new, too. Other fun stuff about the apartment--there are blinds OUTSIDE every window. Some open and close with a hand crank, but the ones over the picture window are motorized. We have a closet/storage room off the kitchen -- very unusual here. Our parking space is close to the stairway up to our house...nice, it could've been pretty far away. There is a drying room downstairs to hang clothes in, and it has a dehumidifying unit on the wall. You hang the clothes, turn on the wall unit, and leave. The unit senses when the moisture is out of the room and it turns itself off.

 After we saw the apartment, signed the papers and got the keys, we left with the lady from ZIS who is helping us get everything sorted. We went first to the town hall to register. While we did that, our ZIS lady called our shipping company to find out the deal on our shipment. (More soon on that.) Today we got 100 tons of information and our ZIS contact answered all our questions. There is so much to learn and so much to do. We sat in an open-air coffee shop for literally 3 hours and went through it all. Our new ZIS friend is a force to be reckoned with--efficient, businesslike, super knowledgable, strong and unique personality. (Think Mariolga and Carmen rolled into one, ECA friends.) Luke played with an umbrella in the street (no cars, don't worry, Mom) almost the whole time by himself. (We are so lucky with this kid...)

 We arrived back to the hotel at about 6:45, and here we are, me blogging, Jason on Facebook, Luke chilling with his iPad.

 The shipment update--it arrived in Rotterdam almost a week ago, where it sits in a backlog of containers they are waiting to get through and ship out. Our shipping person here in Zurich estimates we will have it no earlier than the 9th of August--a week into orientation, and 10 days before school starts. So when Mom gets here, we will have no beds, no chairs, no couches, no tables...nada. It will be an interesting camping experience.  Those of you who know me well know that this is stressing me out some, but I am trying to relax about it.

 The weather is supposed to heat up tomorrow and be in the high 90s the next week.

 We love our new town and are looking forward to our new life here. Baden is lovely and everyone we've dealt with so far has been very kind. Must. Learn. German... Stat. As Luke said, "It's an emergency."

Summer 2012 - Trip to Lake Grapevine

We always wait until the end of summer to get the boat out, and then we all wish we'd been going to the lake all summer long.  We went one afternoon late, around 5:30.  We took sandwiches, picnic blankets, drinks, and games. 

Summer 2012 - Back to Coppell

Once we returned to Coppell, we had 2 more weeks before leaving for Venezuela.  Luke's number one priority was to get a coonskin cap and to get Granddad to make him his own Old Betsy.  Luke and Granddad worked together to decide what it should look like, and Granddad got to work.  Luke helped where he could.

Mimi also took Luke to Bass Pro to get a Davy Crockett cap. 



It was so hard to decide which pictures to include!

Summer 2012 - More Houston Pics

 I. Love. These. Boys.

They had so much fun playing together this summer.  

Look at those eyes.

  I am so thankful for this family.  These people mean the world to me.

On our way (or out of our way) home from Houston, we detoured to San Antonio to visit our friends Clay and Jennifer.  We stopped first at the Alamo.  I LOVE Texas history, and Luke is growing to love it, too. 

Summer 2012 - Trip to NASA

I was really looking forward to taking Luke to NASA this summer.  He is so interested in anything science-related, and thanks to his science teacher, he is really interested in space. 

The rest of the family left Montgomery on Monday, and Jason went to Atlanta for a conference, so Luke and I were on our own.  We went to NASA on Tuesday.  It was about 2 hours from our condo, through yucky Houston traffic.  Luke was a really good sport in the car.

Luke recognized this space robot right away from one of his books about robots.

We went on a tram tour to Mission Control and Rocket Park.  Thankfully, I bought the $1 ponchos before the tour began.  When we came out of Mission Control, it was POURING.

We went into the building that houses the Saturn 5 rocket in pouring rain, and the rain did not let up.  We trudged through 5 inches of rain to get back to the tram, and it took several hours to dry out completely.

 After we got back from the tour, we rode in the flight simulator.  I was the pilot and Luke was the gunner, but Luke kept reaching across and taking the stick from me to make us do barrel rolls and go upside down!  I was nearly sick after that, but he laughed and laughed the entire time.

We left NASA around 4:00, drove home, and had pizza for dinner (for the 2nd night in a row!).  It was a great day, and I loved sharing it with Luke.

The next day, we were supposed to go to the pool...but it rained more!  We stayed in and played inside, made crafts, and watched movies.  Luke built a spaceship out of bottles, cans, cereal boxes, and anything he could find and use!  

Summer 2012 - Post 2

We were all excited to get to Coppell on June 21.  It was so good to get home!  The three of us pretty much stayed put at Mom and Dad's as much as we could for the first few weeks.  We celebrated July 4 together and then packed up and went to Montgomery, Texas, for some lake time.  Unfortunately, it started raining our first afternoon there and kept on for the entire week!  We were able to sneak in a little time out on the boat, though. 

Luke took his job of driving the boat very seriously.  

We got rained out on Sunday, just as we were picking up the jet ski we rented.  So, we packed it all in and went back to the condo to watch movies and rest.  The next morning, we got back out on the lake with the boat and the jet ski for about an hour and a half.  Luke loved the jet ski, especially going fast!

 Jackson waving to his mom and dad out on the jet ski:

Summer 2012

This year we went straight to Wisconsin from Caracas. Well, we went to Chicago, rented a car, drove to Wisconsin, bought camping stuff, camped for 3 days, stored the stuff with Jason's brother, drove back to Chicago for a wedding, flew to Minneapolis for the Aerosmith concert, flew back to Chicago the next day, visited Jason's aunt and uncle there, drove back to Wisconsin to visit Aunt Liz and Uncle Bob, and finally, flew to Texas!  Whew.  We loved our trip up north, but we were ready to light in one place and stay there a while!

Once in Texas, we were all three content to just hang at my parents' house for a while.  Luke went to a YMCA basketball camp, Mom and I shopped (a lot! We're redoing her craft room.), Jason took care of business and chilled.  More pictures to follow!

A Few Summer Notes

I don't have too many pictures from TX on this computer -
It was a good, but fast, summer, split into sections by trips to various places.

Jason and I went to the DC area with Mom and Dad so that Jason and Daddy could go to the US Open. Mom and I went to see Wicked at the Kennedy Center while they were at the tournament. During that trip, Luke stayed home with his aunts and uncle.

A few weeks after that, I went to NYC for a writing conference, where I got to see my Caracas teaching friends and also our friends Jill and Sascha.

Andy and me in Times Square:
I saw my first two Broadway shows - and I hope to see many more! I got to see Priscilla, Queen of the Desert and Book of Mormon. I loved them both, though here is what I told my mom about Book of Mormon: "It was wonderful. I hope you never see it." It was so fun, lighthearted, sweet, serious, touching, and over-the-top offensive, all at the same time.



The writing conference plum wore me out, though.

After I got back, we had just a few weeks before leaving again. We tried to cram in all we could! We never get to see as many people as we hope to, though.

Some highlights of the summer:

Luke learned to ride his bike (see previous post)
Luke learned to dive and flip off the diving board
We visited the planetarium in Dallas (Luke loved it!)
Luke read 100 books for the summer reading challenge
(I know I'm missing other stuff - Mom, remind me!)

We got to see cousins, friends, and family as much as possible - here are some of my favorite pictures (that I have access to on this computer!):

Dad and Luke watching Roy Rogers together

Luke and George swimming in the pool

Lots more great pictures from the summer - but maybe on a different memory card, which I will investigate at some point...probably next summer when I update the blog again. ;)

Watch Him Go

I wrote this story last week as a writing assignment at a writing institute I attended in New York. I felt lucky to have such a good story to tell.

“Just give him a little push and watch him go,” Jason instructed. I took hold of Luke’s bicycle seat, ran alongside him as he pedaled furiously, and watched, amazed, as my baby rode off down the street on his bicycle. My jaw dropped. My hands flew to my mouth, and I turned to look at my husband’s face. Tears glistened in his eyes, and I could see at once my own wistful happiness reflected on his face.

I turned back to Luke, who wobbled unsteadily for ten yards before gaining control and riding smoothly toward the cul-de-sac. You’ve heard the expression, “My life flashed before my eyes.” Personally, I have never had that experience and have always wondered if it really happens, or if people who say that are simply being dramatic. But as Luke’s bike helmet gleamed blue in the brightness of the late-afternoon Texas sun, scenes from his little life flashed before me.

I felt him in my arms, remembered trying to wake him from falling asleep while nursing. I saw him toddling home from an evening walk around the block with Jason, carrying the biggest rock he could find to present to me like a treasure. I saw his face change and mature as he blew out the candles on his birthday cakes – two, then three, four, five, and now, six. His face changed, but the light and joy in life has stayed true. He has grown so much, but he remains that precious baby I swaddled and rocked, and sang to sleep.

My eyes brimmed with tears as my heart swelled with joy and pride. Luke started to sail around the curve of the cul-de-sac to come toward us. The smile beaming from his face and the light in his eyes melted my heart.

“I’m so proud of you, my Lukie!” I squealed. Before he completed his curve, Jason began to shout, “Turn! Turn! Turn! Luke, turn wide, but turn hard!” The front wheel of his bike began to wobble, and the bike began to shudder. Worry flashed on his face to supplant the pride that lived there only seconds before. Suddenly, his bike tipped wildly to one side and he stumbled six steps before catching himself on the pavement. I squeezed my eyes shut and clenched my fists, listening for the all-too-familiar wail of pain.

Instead: “I’m fine, Mama. Daddy taught me how to fall.” I opened my eyes to see that face I love more than any other grinning up at me. I hugged his big little body tight to mine and squeezed.

“I’m proud of you, Luke. I can’t believe it! SO VERY PROUD!”

“Me too, Mama. I’m the proudest I’ve ever been in my LIFE!”

This has been a big year for Luke. He has grown so much, lost his first teeth, learned to write stories, gotten his first (and second) stitches. I am proud of him every day and know I am so fortunate he calls me “Mama.”

This latest achievement symbolizes, for me, something bigger than any of his others. The training wheels are off – he can go, almost, under his own steam. Sure, he needs a little push. He will wobble before he straightens out and settles into a smooth ride. There will be curves and bumps. Our job is to teach him how to fall, but more importantly, to get back up again. And, in the end, all we can really do is give him a little push and watch him go.

Shutterfly's Christmas Card Offer

Just when I'd pretty much decided against sending a Christmas card this year, I saw a friend's facebook post about Shutterfly's offer for free Christmas cards for bloggers.

I think I might have used Shutterfly one time back when Luke was first born, but it's not been my usual online photo printing service. However, after looking through lots of their products, I plan to give them a try.

I love the options for the different kinds of photo cards. There are different sizes, color schemes, editing options, choices for flat or folded, photo paper or stationery, some with room for a holiday letter, and one with a timeline inside! Over 805 choices. How to choose?

I think the photo books have nice options, too. As a scrapbooker, I really like the 12x12 size they offer. I've considered switching to digital albums for Luke's books, and the option of having the consistency of the 12x12 album (which is what his traditional albums are) really appeals to me. You can create your own custom photo book, or take the simpler route and let them auto-fill it for you.

You can make calendars on Shutterfly, too. I may need one of the desk calendars for work!

I will let you know how the Christmas cards turn out. I love free stuff, especially when it's useful, good quality free stuff! Thanks, Shutterfly!

I'll post the Christmas cards once I make them.