Easter egg hunt

A bit different from last years, which was in France (without snow!), but we still had an Easter egg hunt in the Züriberg woods. All the better now that Bea loves chocolate.

Birthday party at a castle

Bea went out to the Lentzberg castle (see here) for his friend's sixth birthday party today. They walked up to the top of the castle (not far), crafted a cardboard shield, and had stories about the castle and it's dragons. Just a small crew of them went, and he obviously enjoyed himself. Ili and Papa went swimming, and then out for a pint and some and "pips"!

Not impressed

Not much of a good Friday here! We only ventured out of the house once as it poured and poured all day, so we became hermits with some movies instead.

Language

Ili is going through the phase that I recall Bea went through before starting Kindergarten (at 3 to 4 years), of being exposed to the local language, understanding it, but not yet having the need to speak it a great deal, so to help 'bring the language out' I've arranged for her to visit Bettina every week, the lady who takes her for the forest group. Bettina is also an artist, so Ili went to her studio and they painted together and made a little wooden "Osterhäsli" (easter bunny). I wished all German lessons could be that much fun! No Kindergarten for Bea today (holiday!!) so while we waited for Ili, we fed the nearby chucks.

Wald Wednesday

Check here for proof we had the first snow six months ago (and worth a laugh to revisit again), and it's been back again this week. Ili had snow in the woods this morning where they had an Easter egg hunt, but by the time we were out for Bea's piano class, it was melting in bucket loads. Here's a great pic of Bea lapping the melt water up!

One short of a hat-trick

No pics today, but Bea was most chuffed to announce he scored TWO goals in afternoon football!

Exhibition and arrivals

In the morning, we visited a very local museum (literally just down the road) where they currently have a fossil exhibition — there were a few interactive elements that interested the children but other than that it was not for them. But we did have a quick look at the permanent exhibition of beautiful crystals that Bea enjoyed. Papa arrived back from Indonesia after lunch, and we were able to meet him at arrivals. 

Party

It was the birthday party of a friend tonight with the children in tow. This time the party was for friends that have just decided to stay longer in Zurich (rather than leave). Bea knew one of the boys, so they had a whale of a time running a riot. Great apartment, and excellent food. Not a late night, and we walked the streets looking for urban foxes well before midnight (before 10!).

Woodland morning

Bea went to the woods this morning, and was so exhausted when he came back (apparently I'd dressed him too warmly) we just relaxed on the roof and had a nice lazy afternoon.

Lake Constance to meet a carpenter

Ili and I headed out of town to meet a carpenter this morning on the shores on Lake Constance (as you do). After balking at the prices for furniture Zurich, and some internet searching, I think we struck lucky with our find in Arbon today. Not so lucky on the return journey however, as our train collided with a car and we were stuck motionless for an hour. Even so, I still love train travel, and it reminded me of all the hours I spent with Bea on the train from here to London via Paris and back. Memories to treasure. Lake Constance was pretty (when the sun popped out), although when arriving on the shore, Ili was very disappointed: "Where has all the sand gone!" she said of the cobbled beach. Bea was with a friend for lunch, and they played footie and picnicked with pizza.

Gym day

Midweek is Ili's woodland playgroup, and it was Bettina's birthday (the lady who leads the group), and you can just see Ili helping to blow out the candles. She still seems to enjoy the group, and they've actually got a gardening project to start when the weather warms up. Ili will probably be growing potatoes before me this year! Then on to the final Kindergarten open day, for the day Bea enjoys best — gym! So in small groups, the young athletes worked their way around the activities in the hall and seemed totally tireless! Piano after lunch (Bea's still progressing, and is now on the "flats and sharps"), then we payed a visit to Gnome and kids, and for a brief moment of sunshine we could almost forget it was winter and spent time out in their garden. Oh yes, . . . and as a follow on from yesterday's post, I've fully considered the offer to join Bea in Kindergarten while he has his German support, and although I like to be involved in his education, I think this would be taking it a step too far.

Another visit to Kindergarten

For the second Open Day I was interested to see what was involved with Bea's regular Tuesday language support so I joined him on the walk to Kindergarten and into class. It's all in High German which is great, and this morning they played word and memory games together — no problem for Bea there. First he was on his own — apart from me sitting perched on a tiny stool like an over-sized kid — having one-to-one help, and then he was joined by a couple of other children who also have no German in the family (French-speakers), when it went a bit slower. But I'm sure it will help him a great deal when school starts in August, which is all in High German. He might even be ahead of those who only hear Swiss German at home. I was invited to join him every Tuesday if I like. Mmmm. I'm not sure if this was suggested in order to help me to help Bea at home, or just that she noticed my German was so embarrassingly shoddy that I was in need of some help myself. Either way, I'm not sure I'm ready for Kindergarten yet . . .  Other activities were as normal in the afternoon, and Ili had a great dancing session and was full of beans, and we've been asked to walk Bea's old friend Theodore back home after their dance session, so he was tickled pink with that.

Bea back to Kindergarten

After a week off Kindergarten "krank", it was back for Bea this morning. It was also a "Besuchstag" which is basically open doors for parents this week. I nipped in twice to see what he was up to. Again, it all seems very gentle and relaxed, with songs, stories and freeplay and the allocation of small responsibilities (tidying up, handing out everyone's snack bags, etc.). Depending on your perspective it can seem too relaxed (no reading, writing, sums, or desks to sit at), yet after speaking with someone whose child was brought up in Germany this week, they consider the Swiss Kindergarten system in comparison too formal and regimental ("children should be left to simply explore and be children")! But he seems happy there, and very popular. The pic at the top is Bea this morning with his woodwork. With papa away, we were let loose on his power tools yesterday (Bea showed me how to change a drill bit!).

Chris off to Sumatra (revisiting 10 years on)

Hmmm. There is a distinct correlation developing between snow in Zurich, and papa heading off to the tropics. Good planning perhaps! Some pics here, which are I think his stopover in Medan (the entry point to Sumatra, being just across the water from Peninsular Malaysia), and arriving at his final destination of Aceh, North Sumatra. Our first proper travelling trip to the tropics was also from Malaysia to Sumatra (after lazing on Tioman Island), except we took the slow, public boat from Melaka in Malaysia across to Dumai, Indonesia. I remember we had a rough plan in our head, but we were pretty much making our minds up from bus station to bus station, or boat terminal to boat terminal where our next destination was to be. Chris said Sumatra seems so much more developed now (first visit was over 10 years ago in 1999). We also went to Melan after Bukittingi, but no swimming pool or fancy hotel then (I would have run a marathon in the opposite direction!). Instead, we had a long distance bus trip, which literally took us over the Equator (I remember it was literally marked on the roadside!).

Tamina thermal baths

Bea was off Kindergarten again yesterday (Tuesday) as he hadn't completely recovered from his sickness, but had bounced back by the end of the day to his usual energy level. Today (Wednesday) was a school training day—school was out—and as papa is off to Indonesia again this weekend, he took the day off so we could go to the mountains. The mountain weather report was awful (-3 if you were lucky), so we had a Plan B which was to visit some newly renovated thermal baths near the Glarus Valley. They've quickly shot to the top of our list of nearby places to wallow. Pools from 32 up to 39 degrees, both inside and out, with plenty of space to swim (rather than just bob around in bubbles). Didn't take any pics inside (for obvious reasons), but this is the spot (see some pics taken from the web) . . . . and our scrubbed up little urchins afterward.

Bea off school

Poor Bea is not well, so was off Kindergarten today and slept for hours.

Back to Miyuko

Took the children (Bea, Ili and Zinnia) back to the Miyuko chocolate coffee shop this morning. I still find it funny that Bea LOVES chocolate now after five years without so much as a nibble. We spent the evening over at friends who are relocating back to the US in the summer to catch up on their plans. 

Stars at a sleepover

Bea had Zinnia over for dinner and a sleepover again tonight. They had a lovely time in the evening with their glowing stars and planets (often stuck on their heads), torches, and anything else that glowed.

Has spring sprung?

It really felt like spring had sprung this week. The last traces of snow have melted and snowdrops have popped up everywhere. We headed to the sandy park by Lake Zurich to meet some neighbours this afternoon and the kids spent a good few happy hours there. (The pic of Ili is in the Hof this morning).

Coffee shop stop

We're still on the hunt for a dining table, and on recommendation Ili and I headed to a local carpenter as it's supposed to work out cheaper than buying a new table. Nearby is a coffee shop 'Miyuko' that I've know about for a while, but never dared venture inside as it always looks a bit too decadent for kiddies and super-expensive — we normally just admire the beautifully colourful cake creations from outside. Today I was feeling brave and Ili and I nipped in for chocolate cake in the beautiful surroundings (wasn't quite so beautiful after we left!). 

In a nutshell . . .

Yikes, another birthday! But I was lucky to have a beautiful day, with lunch on roof, pressies and flowers, and an early dinner out to our local bar with micro brewery where the Spring beer has just arrived — yummy! Curry was on the menu which explains the pic of Bea below holding his nose!