To School, To School, Jiggity, Jig!

As wonderful as our summer was, we were all ready for school to start again on September 5th.  Kenzie & Lexi anxiously counted down the days until they got to meet their new teachers and see their friends again (and I was looking forward to being able to go to the bathroom without being interrupted and to get back to the gym ;) )!

On the Thursday before classes started there was an open house at school where the girls found out which class they are in, checked out their classrooms and met their teachers.  They were so excited & both immediately declared that they have the best teacher!  I love their excitement about school.

On the Sunday before school started we had our annual back-to-school eve dinner celebration, complete with the German schultuete.  This evening is always a big hit with the girls!

And the next morning, was the big day!  The first day of First Grade (or Year 2 in Geneva).

When I picked the girls up and asked them how their day was, Lexi replied "Super!" and Kenzie replied "REALLY great!"  I would say that it was a successful first day!

We are now two weeks in and have settled into our new school year routine.  The girls both started piano lessons, and are taking painting class at school.  Lexi is doing gymnastics again, and Kenzie is trying out track & field this year.

They have a lot more homework this year; reading each night, a math worksheet once a week and daily spelling practice for a spelling test each Friday.  For now, they are enjoying school, their activities, play-dates & even the homework.  Let's hope this continues throughout the year!

Dream big, little ones!  

The Hills are Alive!

One of our favorite things about living in Geneva is the close proximity to the mountains, and the huge number of hiking trails at our doorstep.  I love that we are able to explore so many beautiful places together as a family!  Over the past few weeks we have seen some breathtaking sights together.

Three Saturdays ago we drove to Martigny, Switzerland to visit Foundation-Barry, the only museum in Switzerland devoted to Switzerland's national dog, the Saint Bernard.  Once we had visited the museum and the dogs there, we decided to continue the remaining 45km to the Great Saint Bernard pass & hospice.  Great Saint Bernard is the most ancient pass through the Western Alps, connecting Switzerland  & Italy.  At the highest point of the road, the Great Saint Bernard hospice was founded in 1049, and later became famous for its use of Saint Bernard dogs in rescue operations.

You can actually go for a 90 minute hike with the Saint Bernard dogs on the trails of the Great St. Bernard pass, but the minimum age is 8 years old.  So we visited the dogs and then went for a hike on our own.

The trail was pretty tough, but the view from the top was our reward.  Simply stunning!

We will have to return when the girls turn 8, so that we can hike with the beautiful Saint Bernards.

We had so much fun on Saturday that the girls requested to go for another hike on Sunday.  This time we went to Argentiere, which is just past Chamonix in France.

Again, the trail was pretty steep and got our heart rates going, but the views of Mont Blanc were worth it!

The next weekend we made our way to Les Houches.  We took a lift up to the top and went for an easy walk, enjoying the stunning views.

Last weekend we joined friends in Praz de Lyz, which is close to Les Gets.  Hiking with good friends is even more fun!

And running into cows while hiking, makes it even better.  

I am proud of Kenzie & Lexi for having become such good little hikers and look forward to exploring many more trails with them!

Summer in (& around) Geneva

Summer 2016 was filled with some amazing travels ... from Lake Garda and Venice with Omi K, to visiting family on Fehmarn, to a weekend in the Swiss Alps, to Tuscany with great friends from Cincinnati, to a week exploring the beautiful island of Mallorca.  But when we weren't traveling we were taking advantage of all that Geneva has to offer, because the summer in Geneva with kids is pretty awesome!

We spent lots of time enjoying the lake & my new paddle board ...

The relaxed beach of Hermance Plage is one of our favorite spots along Lake Geneva.

Unfortunately, the girls & one of their best friends had the unfortunate experience of getting duck fleas .... this put a bit of a damper on our love for Lake Geneva.

After this incident we spent more time checking out the various pools throughout the city, as well as swimming in friends' backyards...

We also discovered Lake Passy, which is about a 40 minute drive into France, and has amazing views of Mont Blanc.  It is thankfully duck free so this became our lake of choice for lake swimming the second half of the summer.

We spent lots of time wandering and exploring Old Town ...

And took almost daily trips to Park Bertrand, which is just a couple of blocks from our apartment...



We visited the gardens & carousel at Jardin Botanique ...

We went raspberry & blackberry picking ...

We were fortunate enough to get to see the Tour de France for the second year in a row, with a friend who was visiting from Cincinnati.  This time we watched is from the shores of Lake Annecy...

The girls had a great time at soccer camp with their friends ...

We enjoyed the beauty of the sunflower field in bloom ...

We were lucky enough to have one of our dearest friends from Cincinnati (now Denver) visit us with her oldest daughter, along with another friend & daughter, and we had a great time showing them around Geneva, Gruyere, Evian, Yvoire & Annecy!

The girls had their first sleepover which was a success!

Thankfully we didn't have too many rainy days, but when we did we took advantage of the Art History Museum being so close to our apartment.  Sketching our favorite pieces at the museum & then coming home to paint them was the perfect rainy day activity.

It was a beautiful summer & I am so grateful that we get to live in this beautiful city that has so much to offer right at our doorstep!