ER, Crushed Ice, and Ice show

We made it back from a week of skiing and now it was time for Sydney to focus on her last skating competition, or so we thought.  She came home from school limping and complaining her knee hurt.  When is was worse on Saturday, it was back to the ER to get it checked out before her last competition.  Fortunately it wasn't anything serious, but they did want her to rest her knee for one week missing her last competition.  Thanks to Sydney we are getting the whole Swiss ER thing down.  Not something I want to master, but at least it hasn't been for anything serious.  They put a brace on her knee to keep it stable and crutches to use until it didn't hurt anymore.  The worst part was she was going to Les Martinets with school for 3 nights.  This is a chalet in the mountains they go to and while she was able to go, she was not able to participate in any of the outdoor activities such as snow shoeing and sledding.

Pretty big smile for a bad knee.

There was a skating event in Lausanne called Red Bull Crushed Ice where men with hockey skates skate down an ice track with jumps and curves.  The one to cross with the quickest time finishes first.  They have events all over the world and we learned about it from someone who watched it in St. Paul.  It was a crazy track working it's way through the streets and hills of Lausanne, which you can watch by searching "red bull crushed ice" on You Tube.  

A group just taking off from the starting line.

Not a great start for the skater on the far left.

Sydney was all healed up for her skating test and end of season show.  She passed her skating test with flying colors and I think that means she will move up a level, but I am not exactly sure so guess we will find out next season.  While my French has improved it is still pretty basic so comprehending what is being said in a meeting is a challenge.  Her skating show was a cabaret theme and they had a prop you would never see in the US.  However, it is very acceptable here and you can even buy candy cigarettes they had when I was a kid.

Sydney in the middle waiting for their music to start.

Sydney front middle with everyone from her group.

Sydney and her friend posing with their props.

It is hard to believe the show wraps up Sydney's second season of skating in Switzerland.  She has made some great friends and it has really helped with her French.  She will take off a month or two before going to camp for 2 weeks this summer.  Hailey will either go to a dance camp or circus camp again while Aaron will try out a soccer camp this summer.  Although it will need to get warmer to feel like summer since it has been unusually cold and rainy in Switzerland.

Ski week in Nendaz

After making it through Sydney's skating competition we were off to Nendaz for a week of skiing.  We rented a chalet in Nendaz and have the kids signed up for ski lessons Monday through Friday from 9-4.  I even signed myself up for a couple lessons so I can try to keep up with the girls.  After finding the chalet in the dark, which was no easy feat as they seem to be lacking street signs as well as street lights when you are off the main roads, we got settled and all the ski gear ready for the slopes.

One of the black runs that Randy went down while I watched from the cable car.

One of our views (Verbier) while Randy and I enjoyed a morning cappuccino.

Quick pic of St Bernard, which you see everyone on the slopes.

Randy and I getting some lunch on another beautiful day!

While I was off taking my lessons, Randy would venture out on his own taking on the more challenging runs.  On the first day he ventured off the map and the only way back was taking a bus that ran every 30 minutes.  He was fortunate there were people there and the bus would be there shortly.  Otherwise, we would have been waiting for a long time for him to get back so we could head back to the chalet.

We had beautiful weather and took full advantage of the kids being in lessons!

Cheers - time for lunch.

Before my second lesson could start I received a phone call from Sydney and Hailey's instructor saying Hailey was hurt and they called the Dr who was coming to take a look at her.  Her loving older sister informed the instructor she is probably ok as she is quite dramatic so it is probably nothing.  The instructor wanted to be safe and make sure she was looked over and it wasn't serious.  After she was brought down on a sled and the Dr examined her, it was more bumps and bruises and she was fine.  Randy stayed with the kids for lunch to see how she was doing while I headed off for my lesson.  By the end of lunch she was off and running around so she headed off for her afternoon lesson.

Aaron and his medal for passing blue prince.

The girls with some of the buddies from their class.

Randy bringing lunch on our last day.

Sunrise from our chalet - sun kissing just the top of the mountains.

Sunset from our chalet - sun kissing the other side of the mountains.

Looking up the mountain from our chalet.

The rest of the week was uneventful and even after skiing everyday all day, the girls still wanted to go skiing on Saturday.  We all skied as a family in the morning so they could show us there skills.  The girls officially passed my abilities and Aaron tries his best to keep up with his sisters.  Aaron and I headed back to the chalet for lunch while Randy and the girls went skiing for the afternoon.  They didn't get back to the chalet until 4:30 making great use of their passes.  All of them are wanting to go back next year taking lessons for the entire day again.  I don't think mom and dad can argue since that gives us plenty of couple time.