A Well-Traveled Toddler

Yesterday was the 2 year anniversary of our move to Switzerland.  While those 2 years have flown by, it seems like a lifetime ago that we started our life here and our baby looked like this:

This picture was taken the day we arrived, while we were having a picnic on the beach near the hotel in which we stayed the first night.  Thinking back on the flight from Chicago to London, then London to Switzerland, I absolutely can not believe how much stuff we brought with us on the flight!  What a nightmare it was, lugging all that stuff through the airports and onto and off of the airplanes!  We have learned so much since then.  

Over the past two years, this little girl has traveled throughout much of Europe, back and forth to the United States five times, and has managed to do some cross-country travel in the United States as well.  At three years old, she is quite the seasoned traveler!    

Having just returned from a fantastic week in Portugal and having begun preparing for an upcoming 2 week road trip through eastern Europe, I have decided to put some more effort into sharing our travels here as well as sharing tips and advice for traveling with children.  I know that a lot of people are daunted by the prospect of traveling with young children, but done right, I know that it can be a fun and rewarding experience for all.

Next up:  Our Trip to Portugal    

The Pumpkin Patch

The week before Halloween, Claire and I went with my friend and her daughter to a nearby pumpkin patch. We needed some pumpkins for carving, decorating, and eating (no canned pumpkin in Switzerland!), so a pumpkin patch was the way to go.

Up the mountain and into the fog we drove to the self-service pumpkin patch.

The pumpkins were all laid out in groups under a tent.

Each group of pumpkins had a sign next to it saying what kind of pumpkin it was and if it was to be used for cooking or for decoration.  If it was a pumpkin for cooking, the sign said what kinds of dishes that particular pumpkin would be good for.  I had no idea there were so many different varieties of pumpkins!  

Claire took her time inspecting the pumpkins.

She and her friend eventually found the perfect ones.  

No Swiss activity would be complete without a cow sighting.  

Because it was a self-service place, when it came time to pay for the pumpkins, we weighed the pumpkins ourselves, did the math, and deposited the correct amount of money into a box.  I was grateful that my friend had thought to bring change because if not, I would have had to leave a 50 franc bill for my 12 francs worth of pumpkins!    

After our fun day at the pumpkin patch, I am sure that my pumpkin pie will taste extra delicious this year, even if I will still wish for canned pumpkin!

School

Claire had her first day of (all French!) pre-school last week Friday.  The way they do it here is that the kids gradually stay longer and longer at school according to how they're doing.  So the first day, the teacher called about one hour after Gordon and I dropped her off and said that Claire had had enough.  When we dropped her off, she happily waved to us and said good-bye, but her teacher said she started crying 15 minutes later and did not stop until we came back to get her.  I was so nervous that she wouldn't ever want to go back!

On Tuesday of this week, I brought her back for her second day (she will go Tuesday and Friday mornings for 3 hours each) and again, she happily waved and said good-bye when I left.  Again, she started crying a few minutes after we left and then stopped crying about 40 minutes later, which was 10 minutes before I arrived to collect her.  I was happy that she had stopped crying this time before I got there.  

Claire's teacher said that I should bring her on Thursday, which is not a normally scheduled day for Claire, because the class is only 3 other kids and Claire might do better with a smaller group.  So I brought her again and she reluctantly said good-bye to me.  This time, the teacher said I should call in an hour and a half and see how Claire was doing and if she was doing fine, I should leave her for the full 3 hours.  I called as planned and got the good news that Claire had cried for 30 minutes, but then she calmed down and started to play and even began to smile and laugh with the teacher and the other kids.  When I arrived to pick her up, she was happy to see me, but did not want to leave the school!  It took me about 20 minutes to get her out of there.  

This morning, I took her to school again and I was a bit nervous because she would be in the bigger group of 8 kids, which might be overwhelming for her.  When I left her there this morning, it was the first time she cried as I was leaving, rather than crying after I had already left.  It broke my heart to walk away from her crying face, but I knew she would be okay.  I called the teacher about an hour later and she said that Claire had cried for less than 2 minutes and then enjoyed the rest of morning and participated in the activities.  The teacher even said that Claire said something in French today!  The teacher couldn't remember what it was, but when we left and the teacher said "Salut, Claire," Claire said "Salut, Anne" instead of saying "bye bye" like she had before.  She seems very willing to try to say French words now that she has started school, whereas before, she was very hesitant to say them.  I'm pretty sure she will be speaking more French than Gordon in a matter of months!  I am so happy today and so very proud of my big girl.

I took a bunch of pictures of Claire on the first day, outside the school, and this is the best of the pitiful bunch.  She was way too excited to pose for a decent picture.

Sunday

After what seemed like one of the longest weeks of my life, Gordon returned Saturday from a week-long trip to Indonesia.  One of the great things about Gordon being a local employee, rather than an expat, is that he does not have to travel as much as the expats do.  In the year and a half that we have been here in Switzerland, this was only the second time that he has been gone for a whole week.  He left for his trip last Saturday, exactly one week after Claire and I returned from Chicago.  The weekdays that he was gone were not terrible.  We were able to keep ourselves busy with the park and playdates and such.  The weekend, however, was rough!  It seemed that all of our friends were either out of town for the weekend or they had visitors from out of town.  Either way, they were unavailable to us, so we were on our own.  We got through it though, and by the time Sunday rolled around this week, we were ready to get out and have some fun with Gordon!  

In the morning, we drove up to Les Paccots, which is a ski resort in the winter and has a fabulous playground built into the side of a hill that we enjoy using in the non-snowy months.  

  

You can see one of the ski runs in the background of this photo.

Do you see the silver tube next to the stairs in the photo below?  It's a tube slide, built into the side of the hill.  It's a steep drop and the heavier one is, the faster they fly through the tube.  Gordon took Claire on his lap first and she loved it.  Shocking us all, she decided to go it alone the next time.  

Here is the result of the solo journey on the slide:

She was terrified while coming down, but started laughing and smiling and wanting to do it again as soon as it was over.  My brave girl!  

After a nap and dinner, we headed down to the lake, determined to enjoy what is probably one of the last warm Sundays of the year.  

Rather than playing at the park, Claire decided to play on the skateboard half-pipe.  After about six thousand times climbing up and sliding down, it was time to head back home.  

This week, we are supposed to have beautiful weather each day.  I intend to be outside enjoying it every day.  Winter will be here soon!

Parenting Advice

Are you in Switzerland and in need of parenting advice?  If so, you needn't worry.  There are parenting experts scattered throughout Switzerland and they're always ready to dole out the advice, whether they're asked or not.

Take today for example:  As Claire and I were making our way to her playgroup at ten this morning, there was a man sitting on a bench, enjoying his morning beer.  When he saw Claire in her stroller, he was apparently shocked that she was not wearing a hat or a scarf and he told me so in slightly slurred French.  He said that while it may be okay for me to be out without my hat and scarf (on a sunny 55 degree morning), it is not okay for her to be out like that.  He then continued to drink his beer.  Thank you, kind sir, for your words of wisdom.  Surely I will be a better parent henceforth.

The Zoo

Today, Claire and I met up with some friends at the Servion Zoo, which is about a 20 minute drive from our apartment.  The friends we met up with were some of the first friends that I made in Switzerland and I was excited to see them after having been in the United States for a month.  It blows my mind to think that I have known these women and their children for almost a year and a half already.  I don't know how I could have done this without them!

Claire had fun running with her friends and playing on the playgrounds at the zoo.  Minimal animal viewing was actually done.  I think they saw the wild boars, the lions, and the bears.  That's it.

Oh, look!  They actually stopped to look at an animal.  (And smile for a picture)

After a few fun and chilly hours at the zoo, it was time to go home.  Claire promptly fell asleep in the car on the drive home while I enjoyed the view.

The Circus

Today was a very cool and cloudy Sunday, which made it a perfect day to sit around the house in our pajamas and play.  However, after Claire's nap, she and I were both pretty antsy, so despite the brisk weather, we headed out to the lake.  Claire talked me into letting her ride the carousel, which usually does not end well.  This time, however, she happily stayed on her horse throughout the entire ride and did not insist that I hold her.  I consider that a victory for both of us!  When the carousel ride was over, we walked a bit farther down the lakeside path and happened upon the area where the circus is currently set up.  I had completely forgotten that the circus was in town and was therefore pleasantly surprised to see three elephants hanging out in the Place du Marche, where the Vevey farmers' market is usually held.  Claire was also delighted to see the elephants.  After checking them out for a couple minutes, she said "Mama, I smell like elephants," which is her way of saying that she smells elephants.  But, we'll stick with "I smell like elephants" because it's funnier her way.

Next to the elephants were the zebras and camels, hanging out together behind a makeshift enclosure.  Sometimes, it's very clear to see that we are not in the United States.  The zebras and camels were a perfect example of this in that they were behind a short, flimsy fence and people were feeding them popcorn from their hands and petting them!  No one from the circus was watching or regulating this, so Claire and I kept our distance.  Claire saw the big circus tent and asked if we could go in, but alas, we did not buy tickets, so we could not go in.  Maybe next year!


Here's the tent, which will probably be gone by tomorrow morning.

It's kind of hard to see in this picture, but if you look closely, you can see the camels on the right hand side of the picture, the elephants on the left, and Lake Geneva and the French Alps in the background.

The circus coming to town made for a very interesting Sunday afternoon, even if we didn't buy tickets!