Munich

The kids were off for 2 weeks for October break even though it seemed like they just started school.  The first week we stayed at home since Sydney had skating camp and then on Saturday we headed north to Munich, Germany for a week.  We rented an apartment and planned day trips to Legoland, Salzburg, as well as exploring Munich.  After arriving and getting keys and instructions we explored the local area and grabbed some dinner.  I should also mentioned we spent some time on the Autobahn where the kids got a kick how fast we were going and we were still being passed.  There was also an accident where they were very quick and efficient at closing the Autobahn and rerouting traffic.  We were very fortunate to be able to exit and not be stuck on the Autobahn.

Yikes - 100mph!  Aaron wanted Randy to go faster since we were still being passed.

The next day was Aaron's 5th birthday and what better way for him to celebrate his birthday then head to Legoland!  It was also a bonus that his entry was free : )  We all had a great time and it was perfect for the ages of our kids.  It is definitely geared towards younger kids and the kids had so much fun they convinced us to go back before we headed home.

Randy and the kids at Lego City in Legoland.  They had awesome displays of landmarks and cities.

Allianz football (aka soccer) field made out of Legos.

Kids have fun with R2D2.

Hailey having fun on their first ride.  I don't do well with spinning so I took pictures.

Sydney is all smiles.

Aaron getting up close and personal with sea creature, not sure exactly what it was.

Monday we headed into Munich to see some of the local sights such as the Glockenspiel, Hofbrauhaus, and get some shopping done.  Sydney was in need of some shoes and we have gotten into the habit of waiting until we are out of Switzerland to do our shopping.  Our first stop was the Glockenspiel, which while interesting and a must see, didn't really hold the kids attention.  I should mention it could have been due to the chilly weather and rain, but I think I am fairly certain good weather would not have made a difference.

The famous Glockenspiel.

The kids did enjoy the Hofbrauhaus, which is where we went for dinner.  They enjoyed the music and liked see the waitresses carry the large mugs full of beer.  The next day Randy took the kids to the Deutsches Museum while I stayed behind with a migraine.  They had a great time and could have spent much more time exploring all the different exhibits.

Randy and the kids outside Hofbräuhaus.

Enjoying some music inside.

On Wednesday we were off to Salzburg just after we we took a small detour to Hallein Salt Mines.  There we would put on white coveralls and take a small train into the mines.  After walking deep into the mines we took a couple long and fast slides as well a boat to learn about the mines and their history.  Randy went down the slides with the girls while I went with Aaron.  He was a little scared on the first one, but that quickly changed after we were down and he kept asking when we were going down another one.  It ended up being a great family outing as the kids seemed somewhat interested in the history but had a great time on the slides, boat, and little train.  We brought home some salt from the mines and it has much more flavor than the salt we are used to.

All suited up and ready for the salt mines.

Randy and the girls at the bottom of the long slide.

Taking in some of the all colors even if it is a little cloudy!

We grabbed some lunch at the kids favorite place when we are out and about.  I am sure you have guessed it, yup, we stopped at McDonald's.  We try to mix things up a little, but there are just times we need to play it safe for our sanity and financially.  We arrived in Salzburg and walked the streets taking the shops, including the Christmas shop, which I had visited more than 20 years ago with my Aunt Bette.  The girls and I had a great time picking out ornaments for us and as gifts.  We purchased traditional ornaments that are hand painted hallowed out eggs.  They are absolutely beautiful and will add them to the ornament collection.  The kids all have their own ornaments that they receive for Christmas every year and we have been trying to pick one up for them at every place we visit.  It is my hope that it will help them cherish the memories we have made while living in Switzerland.

Hailey and Aaron having fun with some hats in a store.

Statue of Mozart in Salzburg.

Fortress in Salzburg.  Didn't make it up due to tired kids.

At the end of the day we took a carriage ride to take in the sights and learn a little more about Salzburg. It was a great day out and by the end it was decided that tomorrows destination was Legoland.  The weather was great for our second day at Legoland.  While we were purchasing birthday and Christmas gifts, Aaron decided he was tired to walked himself outside to rest.  This was all on his own without mentioning anything to mom or dad.  After a few stressful minutes of us all looking for him he was found and didn't understand what the fuss was as he was just tired and wanted to rest.  I don't know what I am going to do with that boy!

Sydney and I at the end of our carriage ride.

Kids posing with Lego sculptures.

Looking down at Legoland and Amsterdam airport.

Randy and Hailey on the other side of the pirate ride which would be great on a warm day since you are squirting water at other people so watch where you stand!

Aaron and his race car that is finally ready for the races!

A part of Legoland was decorated for Halloween.

We ended up heading back a day early due to a potential snow storm that was suppose to move through on Saturday, which was our original return date.  We did stop over to see Neuschwanstein Castle on our way home.  It did add to our drive time, but needed to the the "Disney" castle while we were in the neighborhood.  This was also another stop I made with my Aunt Bette 20 years ago.  We went on a tour of the castle and took another carriage ride down the hillside before heading home.

Time to leave our fishbowl apartment : (

Randy and the kids on Mary's bridge overlooking Neuschwanstein Castle.

Not the brightest day for seeing the fall colors.

Looking down from the castle at the village and his father's castle in the middle.

Kids with Mary's bridge in the background.

Celebrating Aaron's birthday with cake.

It did start raining as we were driving home and it did turn into snow in some areas, so it was definitely a good decision to head home a day early.

Sydney 1st babysitter

It seems like just yesterday Randy and I were picking up Sydney's first babysitter when she was only 12 weeks old.  Alexis was a very responsible 11 or 12 year old at the time and a daughter to a dear friend.  Who would have every guessed that 10 years later she would be studying abroad and we would be living in Switzerland.  It was great to have her and her friend, Brittany, come visit for a long weekend.  While the weather wasn't the best, we managed to make the best of it and it did work out all things considered.  They arrived late Friday night and Saturday morning we headed toward Sion to check out another Parc Adventure.  The rain had fortunately stopped by then and we pretty much had the park to ourselves.

Aaron on his highest obstacle yet!

Alexis and Hailey getting ready for the zip line.

Looking back towards Sion and the castle.

and Sydney is off...

Alexis and Brittany waiting on one of the platforms.

Kids trying out the climbing wall on the way back to the car.

The sun was shining by the time we left and it ended up being a beautiful day even if it was a little chilly!  Things cleared up on the second day so we could head up for a close up view of Mont Blanc.  We packed another picnic and found a beautiful spot to eat lunch.

Alexis, Brittany, and the kids at our picnic spot.

Looking out over the Alps.  There were hikers on the snow ridge towards the bottom to the left.

Mont Blanc is the peak to the left.

Britanny, Alexis, and I with Mont Blanc in the background.

Zooming in on Mont Blanc, which we can actually see from our house on a clear day.

Kids getting a little silly trying to stay warm.

Looking back down the valley at Chamonix.

Mont Blanc was absolutely amazing and if the sky were clear we might have been able to see the Matterhorn.  Regardless, the views were breathtaking and absolutely amazing!!  It was great to catch up with Alexis and meet Brittany.  They were only part way through their studies and have some great destinations ahead of them and wish them all the best!  The kids had a blast hanging out with the "cool girls" rather than their "old mom".  Sydney and Alexis also swapped stories about figure skating since Alexis was also a figure skater when she was younger.  We all hope our paths cross again.

Lyon, France

The kids had a long weekend mid-September where we decided to head to Lyon for one night.  It was a short drive of approximately 3 hours with beautiful views of the French Alps and countryside.  Lyon is the third largest city in France.  At first I had no interest in packing again since I still hadn't recovered from our travels, but I decided to make the most of our trip and booked a hotel for one night.  Our hotel was across the street from a large park that included a free zoo and a short bus ride to an "American" sized mall.  We barely made a dent in the mall, but did find colored jeans for all the kids.  Yes, that includes Aaron who had to settle for turquoise and royal blue since they didn't have his size in red and yellow.  Hmm, will be interesting to see how this experience will influence the kids fashion : )

Picture in Old Town.

After spending our first day shopping and taking in the tastes of Lyon, we headed to Old Town before heading home.  Our first stop was to a miniature museum.  While very interesting to see all the different sets, it didn't hold the kids interest for long because they very few were from movies and if they were, they didn't know the movies.

One of the sets at the miniature museum.

Quick picture before leaving the museum.

Looking up at the Cathedral from the market.  We took the funicular up to get a closer look.

Looking down over Lyon.

Kiddos and Lyon in the background.

There was a huge meeting in front of the cathedral of their version of boy/girl scouts.  I am not sure what they are called in France, but I believe the troops are combined so there isn't boy and girls scouts.  Hailey is in Girls Scouts here.  It is actually American Girl Scouts and so far she seems to really enjoy all the fun and creative things they get to do.  There is also Swiss Scouts, but it is structured like France and also in French, which isn't a problem for her, but I didn't learn about it until shortly after I signed her up for Girls Scouts.  I guess I will stick to Circus in French for her and maybe add Hip Hop if she decides she wants to do it.

Kids on a side door of the cathedral with their purchases. 

As we were walking around we came across these storage containers where graffiti was being added.  Graffiti is viewed very differently here and is looked at as a form of artistic expression.  In fact, Sydney had a graffiti lesson in her art class at school last year.  To complete the lesson they all were able to graffiti their name on a retaining wall at school.  We were actually there recently and it is still there.  You see it everywhere when walking around and after awhile they may paint over it, but for the most part it is left alone as it is a form of expression.

One of the artists working.

As you may have noticed, I am a little behind on the blog since our trip to Lyon happened a few months ago, but I am going to get caught up in the next two weeks since I can put my other job of travel planner aside for the time being.  While I enjoy all the exploring we are able to do, it requires a lot of research and time, but we have school holidays planned and booked through April so can take a little break and get the blog caught up.  I may have mentioned before the kids have 2 weeks off in October, December, and April with another week off in February which is called "ski week".  Most everyone travels during those holidays so even if you decided to stay home, the kids would be bored silly since there isn't anyone around to play with.  So, like they say, "when in rome...".  We are truly blessed to have the opportunity to travel the rest of the world!

London sans enfants

Randy was back in the UK for work and was going to head to London for one night to meet up with his friend Tony, who was in London on business.  He threw out the idea of me joining him for the weekend and I most certainly couldn't pass up that opportunity assuming I could find someone to watch the kids!!  The kids were off for an extended sleepover with some friends and they were probably more excited for us to leave then we were.  I had a nice leisure train ride to the airport and before I knew it Randy and I were heading to our hotel in London.  The Paralympics were still going on while we were there so there was still a lot of activity and we were able to see many of the Olympic venues around our hotel.

London eye

Area outside our hotel, which was right next to the M&M store.

It just so happened that some friends of ours from Switzerland were in London without kids as well and we met up with them at a Thai restaurant at Churchill Arms.  The food and atmosphere was great and then we were off to Waxy O'Connors for a few drinks before a night cap at The W bar where we were staying.

We spent our full day shopping and riding the double decker hop on hop off bus taking in the sights of London.  It was a beautiful day and we finished it by heading to the play Billy Elliot.  It was a fantastic play with many characters being played by children, such amazing talent!!

Loved the red telephone booths everywhere!

London Bridge open for a boat going through.

Square outside our hotel that had Swiss decorations on the pole holding the clock.

Parliament and Big Ben

Changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace

Front of Buckingham Palace

Getting a US favorite at Chipotle - we would have gone back if we had more time : )

It was a short trip, but much needed and we truly enjoyed getting away and not having to worry about speaking a different language!!  We will definitely be getting back with the kids since Hailey has a couple friends from the UK.  Not too mention, we would like to actually take in the sights, such as the Big Eye, London bridge, and London Tower, rather than admire from the distance.

Dragonboat

The first weekend in September was spent in the same area of Switzerland as Sydney skating camp this past summer.  I had signed up for Dragonboat raises to raise funds for cancer prevention.  I had gone once before school was out last June to learn the basics, but fortunately we had a practice run on Saturday the day before the official race.  It was chilly and rainy on Saturday and while it was fun, it was very wet and cold.  We all hoped the weather would improve for the races on Sunday.  Sydney signed up for a mini-dragon boat with a team of 6.  It ended up being Sydney and the boys, which reminded me of my college days when it was usually Nic, Randy, and the guys.  It even ended up happening when we went to Australia.  The married couple Nic and Randy with 6-7 of his single friends.  I don't remember exactly how many, but let's just say it was rather entertaining!

Sydney was in the first heat and they would only continue if they won.  We figured it was a win-win.  If they win they get to move on, but if they lose they get to go home to be in a warm house.  The weather was better, but still chilly and wet at times.  Well, they "won" and were able to hang out, have some fun while cheering on the mom's before heading home to a warm and dry house.  Their boat was a row boat with a stuffed dragon attached to the front.

Sydney and her team paddling back to shore.

Our team the DiVine Paddlers started with a group that walk the vineyards every Monday and Wednesday.  This was the second year for this team and a majority of us had never paddled on a Dragon boat before.  We were just excited to get out for a day even if the weather wasn't the best and who would have ever guessed we would make it to the finals.  I rowed for our first race and it was exhausting and I used muscles I don't used much.  I am going to pay for this later.  After the first race, we worked through the logistics of who was going to sit where, who was going to be the drummer, and who do you watch to make sure you are in rhythm.  I did something I normally would not do and volunteered myself to be the drummer.  Time to stop taking a back seat in my comfort zone and dust off the cob webs from my loud softball voice when I was in high school.  I may not have a voice when all is said and done, but at least my body wouldn't ache!  In the below picture I am in the front sitting with a drum between my legs and two sticks to drum to the beat of our rows.

Heading back after our second race and our best time.

To our amazement we had a excellent second run and qualified for the final heat.  We ended up in 4th place and were very proud of what we had accomplished given how new our team was.  A few weeks later we all gathered for drinks and dinner.  Unfortunately I wasn't able to join since we had company.  I hope to participate next year as it was a great event and a great cause.  If the weather were better, Randy and the kids would have stayed since it was a very family friendly event, hopefully next year!

Casey and I before our first race.