We had a little birthday party for Jenna, Bea and Jennifer before we left. It was all sweetness with pink and purple balloons and smiley, very excited girls. And the biggest cake failure I’ve ever made – the frosting didn’t set up and the cake was a little off. It looked like a large pink melting marshmallow. Makes your teeth hurt to look at it.
Here’s that same shipping container that left Evanston several weeks ago. Brian emailed this photo Friday and said our stuff has arrived safely. Amazing.
Here’s our bed – our bed that Brian finally got to sleep in last night.
We’ve been passing the days pleasantly here at Grandpa and Grandma J.’s.
Tying flies with Grandpa
Eating cream puffs that Jennifer made
Playing with the ever-patien Baxter
Taking some photos in the backyard
Getting a haircut
We are looking forward to having a little birthday party for Jenna, Bea and Jennifer on Saturday and then it’s off to Zurich on Sunday morning.
I’ve been here for more than a week now. Still sleeping on a blow up bed, still no furniture save a fold up chair borrowed from a work colleague. It echoes something fierce in this place.
But I think I see a routine forming. The ride on the train is more than 10 miles but it is only 19 minutes. I’ve figured out which grocery stores are open later and offer hope of nourishment after a day of work (but don’t count on anything being open on Sunday). I have internet now and cable, although no TV. I have a phone number but no actual phone yet. I’ve been to the Zurich Opera though, to see Nabucco. It is a small theatre which they have somehow figured out how to get big name singers with big voices for their relatively small space. I’ll probably go see Rigoletto on Sunday night (which is everyone’s idea of a romantic Valentine’s Day). Household stuff should arrive on Friday and then Kathy and Bea on Monday. Then we’ll begin the long task of settling in.
When I first arrived, it was snowy.
It hasn’t snowed since but been largely overcast. The clouds broke a bit last week in the morning and then again this morning so I could glimpse the big Alps just south of us. My bike and I might try to get a better look this weekend.
I have a “GA”, provided by my company that allows me to ride on any train, tram, bus or gondola in Switzerland. A pretty nice perk. So far, I’ve ridden it to work every day and to Basel on Friday. Basel was a for work with no time for sightseeing but looks like a pretty place worth future investigation. It’s great how the train stations are always in the center of town so riding the train gets you in the heart of the action. Contrast this with an airport that is always on the edge of a suburb. I might try a pleasure trip this weekend somewhere.
I also had a chance to go to Barcelona which sounds glamorous but was actually a fast day trip that was exhausting. The only sightseeing was out a cab window in the drizzle. I did, however, get a glimpse of the Camp Nou, the famous home of F. C. Barcelona.
Can’t wait to see K&B on Monday.
Here are two fight scenes from Mom and Dad’s backyard. Those girls really go at it. Bea’s about to kick Jenna while she’s down in the first photo. Then Jenna retaliates with a big stick in the second photo.
Just kidding – these photos just happened to look like they were going at it – we had a big laugh when we saw them. We actually had a nice time pulling the sled around the backyard.
I sometimes forget about the photo booth program on my computer. It counts down with a beep sound and then takes the shot – fascinating to a toddler. I entertained Bea by making goofy faces this morning. She refused to join in, but was happy to look at ridiculous photos of Mommy.
Wishing we were all together like in this shot.
Proof that I do in fact buy pink things sometimes. This itty bitty sweater is supposed to be a gift for a new friend in Switzerland. Her husband works with Brian and she is having a baby girl in a couple weeks. We’ll see if I can resist keeping it for our little girl baby.
Laowai 