Sunday, May 25, 2008

Auf Wiedersehen die Schweiz


Yes it's true people. Our time has come to leave beautiful Switzerland. Josh was offered a job in the Salt Lake office. And after a lot of thought, we both feel it's the right move for now. Josh just received his contract. So now we're in crunch mode, seeing as we're leaving at the end of June. And in the mist of moving details, we're trying to get in any last minute adventures we can.

Neighboring Town

Rappersville is on the other side of Lake Zurich. It's a darling little town that is a half hour away from us. So we met up with some friends for an afternoon of shopping and exploring. One area we went to had a castle/church. And we saw a number of weddings throughout the day. The kids were all mesmerized by the beautiful brides. We had a blast just goofing off on in the city. We ended the evening by doing one of my favorite things in Europe, eating at a restaurant on the cobblestone streets.
 

 
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Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Road Trip

We had another holiday here which gave us an opportunity to escape the city. We went on a road trip to Italy and France through the French Riviera. We went with Jackson's, & Mascaro's on this adventure. We stayed in Ventimiglia, Italy the first night. Our hotel was right next to the ocean. So we spent that night cruising the board walk and eating gelato. The next day with pictures we went to Monaco again. It was great to be there and see all the amazing yachts.

 

After we had lunch we went to Menton France to the beach. The beach was pretty rocky, but it was still fun to lay in the sun. The boys all jumped in the ocean. All of us girls put our toes in and decided it was still pretty cold. The kids had a great time throwing lots of rocks into the water. They were really sad when it was time to go.

 
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Road Trip cont.

On Day 3 we packed up and left Italy and headed further down the coast to Cannes, France. Cannes is where they have the famous film festival. We got to see them setting up for it. Cannes has some amazing beaches. It was incredible to walk in the sand.
While we were at the beach some teenagers were running around harassing people. Janelle and Rachel even got soaked because they thought it was funny to splash them with sand and water (see pic in collage of Janelle & Rachel). So another lady on the beach noticed these kids were out of control and started to tell them to behave. So the kids started to turn all their attention on her. Eventually the lady got fed up with it and got really upset with them. The mom's of the teenagers instead of keeping control of their out of control kids starting picking a fight with the lady. So in my wisdom I started filming the fight for COPS. If anyone would like to see the footage we can e-mail it, but since this is a family sight we are not including the video. HA!! After we left the beach we were walking past the police station and the lady who was attacked came out. We spoke with her and were able to give the tape to the cops. Once they saw the tape they went to the beach and confronted her assailants. We felt good about being able to help her. All of us after watching this were so upset with the parents. It is sad how people do not control their kids and don't take responsibility for them.
Cannes though was our favorite city we visited on this trip. They had some amazing shops and markets. See the pic of the produce stand we saw. They also had awesome bakeries and meat markets. We really wish we could go back and spend a week there.

 

We weren't staying in Cannes but up deeper in France in a place called Gernoble. Along they way we stopped in a place called Avignon, France. Also known as the City of Popes. We found a huge fortress. For a while in the past all the Popes lived in this city. It was incredible to see the craftsmanship. Pretty much every castle I have ever thought of reminded me of this place. Unfortunately since it was nighttime our camera didn't take very good pics of the castle. Since it was France we went and got some yummy crepes, both dinner and desert. We got back on the road and went to Gernoble.

 

On our last day we stopped in a city called Annecy, France. It is about an hour outside of Geneva, Switzerland. They have a beautiful lake there and a huge grassy park area. We rented some boats and went out on the lake. These motor boats were the least powerful boat I have ever been in. We all laughed as we got outside the wakeless zone and floored it, and the boat still didn't have a wake. After we had a great lunch we headed back home to Zurich.
On a more personal note, you see a number of pictures with both Janelle and I holding a little girl. Her name is Rachel. We both have a special place in our hearts for her. She was born the same month as Kaleb. Every time we are around her we can't help but think how this is how old he would be or this is the size Kaleb would be. Or the fact that they would probably be good friends with one another. Rachel is a little sweetheart and we are grateful we have gotten to know her.

 
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Monday, May 12, 2008

Mothers Day

First I would just like to give a tribute to my mother. She has been so helpful to me. During the last few years through all we have been through she still takes the time to call me consistently and check in. She has been a great listening board to bounce ideas off & supportive for everything I am doing. She is awesome at knowing my needs at any given time. Many a care package or phone call has been sent just because she is in tune with her daughter.

Second I want to thank my mother-in-law for raising such a tremendous son. He always attributes the way he is with me from his mother’s teachings.

Mother's Day was definitely a hard day for me this year. As much as I've loved the opportunity to travel these last couple of years, I would give it up in a heart beat to be able to experience the joys of motherhood. The heart ache of not having a child at times can be unbearable. I enjoy admiring other mothers and how they are with their children. I see certain characteristics in mothers, which make me so excited to be a mom. I hope when the time comes, these items can be incorporated in the way I raise my children. It makes me crazy to see moms over here sometimes who smoke with their kids, ignore them or don't appreciate their children. Infertility has taught me some valuable lessons. This is where my faith has kicked in and helped me truly realized I don't have control of my life. I have to make the best of situations no matter what comes my way. As much as I know mother hood will be an extremely difficult task. I can't wait to take it on. If I have learned anything from infertility I will appreciate the great honor to be a mother.

Over the last two years I have learned about what true strength really is. Through all the tears and heartache I have learned how to cope and move forward. Strength is something that is earned through work. I have changed from the person I once was. I now am better able to take on new challenges and face my fears. I appreciate how my marriage with Josh has grown. He has been an amazing rock for me, always supportive and loving. I am truly grateful for support I have received from friends and family.

On one final note, I would like to thank Josh for my wonderful Mother's Day present. He gave me a cooking class in Florence this weekend with the girls. And I can't wait. Once again, he knows the way to a women's heart. I love you sweetie!

Monday, May 5, 2008

Venice

The city of Venice, Italy is simply stunning and completely unique. Of course, who could think of Venice without picturing the well-known and much loved Italian gondolas. Our Gondala driver was hilarious. He said he didn't know how to sing. So instead, he whistled. We did get to listen to other drivers singing and ours whistled along with them. One thing we thought was funny was we would pass under bridges people would take our pictures. Which will makes for great slide shows, hey everybody come see the strangers in a boat.... Overall we would have to rate the ride as one of the highlights in Venice.

 

We went to the world famous Piazza San Marco. There were so many people there that we took our pictures and got out of there as fast as possible. We were trying to cross this bridge and it took 20 mins because so many people were crowded on it. After we left the Piazza it was a lot less crowded and we started exploring the back streets and area's of Venice. At first we started to go to some of the museums they have. We saw huge lines for many of them and opted to not go. Who needs a museum when the whole city is a work of art to be explored and seen. We had so much fun just getting lost in the city.

 

Welcome to isle of Murano. It is famous for its glass blowing. All of the work is still done by hand. We got to see a demonstration of how they do it. There was this funny guy who had a huge beer belly and was smoking while blowing glass. It was amazing how easy they made it look. We were so amazed with some of the things they made. From light fixtures, to bowls, anmials, vases, chairs, tables etc. One of the pictures shows a huge scuplture made entirley out of glass. These people are truly amazing artists.

 
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