Laowai

What’s that sitting above my sink on the window sil? 

It’s the little chocolate bars that Swiss Airlines gives out. The ones that Brian always tucks in his bag and brings home to the girls and I. I keep glancing at them. Thinking about how Switzerland is so good at these little details that make day to day life pleasant. Brian got these on a recent trip back to Zurich. In theory there will be an end to these little gems. In other words one day Brian won’t be going back to Zurich so often. I won’t be sad to see the end of Brian’s long trips, but I will be sad not to have that little pop of chocolate.

Today Bea lost a tooth at school. She had to go down to the school nurse and the nurse put the tooth in this cool little necklace pendant.

She was very proud of the fact that kids that lose their tooth at home only get a sticker, but she got the necklace. OK, so this is a nice little detail that makes life nice – so I’m contradicting myself. Or I just have rosey glasses on whenever I think about Switzerland.

Brian had to work at his company’s Chicago office one day this week. This is his view.

This was my view during my “work day”. I have three tall shallow cupboards that I really like. Since we moved in I’d just been throwing food in there all willy nilly. The canned tomatoes were next to the marshmallows were next to the rice were next to the oatmeal were next to the bay leaves were next to the peanut butter… It felt good to get them organized. 

I felt like this was finally the first week where we had a normal schedule. It was a better week. Claire is liking her preschool – they have a fish named Sunny Rainbow. She is so good at letting me say good-bye when I drop her off. She gives me a big tight hug and then she just lets me go. And when I pick her up she struts out of there with a confident little stride. So nice and easy.