Swiss Alps

With Grandpa and Grandma in town, Hardy and I decided it was the perfect time to begin further exploration of our new residence sans kiddos. As we are beginning to become semi-used to the French being spoken all around us, we decided to head to a German-speaking area, just to keep things interesting. However, we did find in our short visit, that most people spoke German, French and English as well. Hooray!

We stopped near Montreux, the famous site of the upcoming yearly Jazz Festival on our way out of town for lunch. I used the restroom before we left and as I was gathering my belongings I noticed something moving out of the corner of my eye. It was a self-cleaning toilet seat! After the toilet was flushed it rotated around and completely cleaned itself. Believe me, living with a 4-year-old boy my first thought was, where can I get one of those?! Very intelligent invention.

We then headed to the infamous Gstaad where we spent our first night. The road leading up to the mountains was barely built for one car, much less two, but everyone whizzed right on past us, even the trucks! The scenery was ridiculously beautiful though, as expected. Here is the view from our hotel room, and yes, that's a pool! In the morning it was even warm enough to swim for awhile.

The next day we headed further into the Alps and stayed in the Grindelwald area. This was a truly amazing portion of the Alps, home of the Wetterhorn Mountain, cousin to the Matterhorn (not the Disneyland version).

It is an area that is famous for amazing hiking trails, but since we weren't prepared, we had a drink instead.

All in all it was a fantastic trip with some of the most breathtaking scenery I've ever seen, plus we're beginning to narrow down our favorite spots to take back future visitors. I'll leave you with a few of my favorite pics.

Quaint living.....

Sam Rocks the International School of Neuchatel

As I've mentioned before Sam is really liking his new school here in Neuchatel, he hardly ever complains about going which is surprising especially as he is now attending school every morning for almost 4 hours. The Montessori system has been a great fit for him and even though most of the kids speak French, the language barrier has not been too much of a problem. In each classroom there is both an English-speaking and a French-speaking teacher and the lessons are taught in a 50/50 split.

The drop-off process is very interesting. The parents wait out in a "foyer" type room and the kids walk down a hallway, take off their shoes, put on their school slippers and then greet their teacher with a "Bonjour" and a handshake before entering the classroom. It is very calm and civilized and quiet. All of the parents wait patiently for their kids to complete this process and then they leave. Sometimes it can take up to 10 minutes or so for the kids to dawdle and get their act together and shoes on and it has been consistently amazing to me how patient the parents are. Just waiting, standing, and always quietly encouraging. I usually feel as if I'm the most impatient especially as I'm generally holding a squirming Baby Dean in my arms and just wishing he'd get his shoes on the right foot the first time for once. :-).

As a side note, I have to mention how amazing it is to see the men participate in not only this process but in the child rearing in general. I would say that for the drop-offs and note this is a huge school which goes all the way up to about the 6th grade, at least half of the parents are men. Even with multiple children! I have seen more men here wearing Ergo or baby type carriers than I have ever seen in my life. The egalitarian-ness of this is awesome!

In any case, it's been wonderful to see Sam grow and begin to assert his independence and even finally learn how to put on his own shoes! He was never interested in doing so before.

Last week I had the special opportunity to attend a Mother's Day Tea in Sam's class. It was very sweet to see the kids serving tea, coffee and cakes (which they mostly ate, especially my deprived Sam) to all of their mama's. :-)

Where all the action occurs: (chic mama's breaking rules and standing in hallway after tea). That's another thing about the drop-off, no workout gear or frumpy clothing allowed. I'm pretty sure this is an unwritten rule. They hardly even wear jeans here.

Such a big boy!

Mother's Day Tea Place Setting:

Serving Mama.

At tea together, he was so proud of himself!

When 1 treat isn't enough....

Today Sam and I baked seriously delicious carrot and zucchini bars, even though we had to improvise with the ingredients. Can't find baking powder over here or proper brown sugar among other items. I've included a link to the recipe below as it was so worth trying. In any case my little anti-zucchini but baking-loving boy ate them up!

My ambitious little baker!

Carrot & Zucchini Bars Recipe:

http://realmomkitchen.com/7878/carrot-and-zucchini-bars-with-lemon-cream-cheese-frosting/

Much Love,
Lilli & Boys

Beginning Month 2

We were so fortunate and excited to have our awesome college and NYC bud Riah stay with us for 10 days. The boys loved her and Auntie Ri was a great sport logging many hours playing "wildebeest gets eaten by crocodile" and other thrilling animal-type adventures. Riah also helped us continue to explore this vast country....We tried to convince her to stay and be our nanny but the Swiss aren't too keen on letting outsiders in, we seriously barely squeaked by. I think it was the last name that sealed the deal.

In the meantime our little family of 5 took a day trip to Lausanne where Sam and Hardy hit the zoo and Riah, Baby Dean and I did some exploring (AKA drinking coffee, having lunch & shopping).

The cobblestone streets were beautiful....and lulled our little pseudo-French boy right to sleep!

He even had the decency to sleep through lunch....that's him behind us.

Riah and Dean shared a special bond.

Sharing some special time with mama.

What's not to love about crepes?! Baby Dean especially appreciates them, we're loving the special "bounce" that he does when we've pleased his palate.

Hardy making Baby Dean laugh:

And last but not least, every mom out there will recognize how quickly playtime goes from fun to slightly out of control!

Thanks for coming to visit Ri! Much Love,
Lilli & boys

Paris in 24 Hours

Visited the "City of Light" or "La Ville-Lumière" for truly a speed trip! 24 hours spent in Paris for me (48 for Riah and Gabby) plus about 10 spent traveling wasn't nearly enough time but we still had a blast. The train ride was so peaceful and quiet. Talking on cell phones is not allowed so we were able to truly enjoy the breathtaking scenery in peace and quiet. Whatever gripes you may hear from me about this place, and I'm sure there will be many, it truly is beautiful. The greenery, the trees, and mountains which stretch for miles don't seem real as they are almost idyllic.


Paris was exactly as expected. Grey gloomy skies which add to the appeal, mystery and history of the city.  Staying in the picturesque and centrally located Le Marais district we rented bikes for a mere 2 Euros. There are numerous stations so you can return them all over the city. Not only convenient but by FAR the cheapest thing to buy in all of Europe I am finding. Here are photos of us in action or as I like to call it the tour de france 2012.


Gabby sporting for the tickets.

Riah looking oh-so-chic and sporty.

Me hoping to not fall off. It had been awhile since I'd ridden a bike, like maybe a decade or so. But riding a bike is like, well riding a bike! For the most part....

We biked down the Avenue des Champs-Élysées past many famous monuments such as the Arc de Triomphe and The Louvre. However I couldn't take in any of this as I was petrified of becoming Parisian road kill.  The bike lane on this famous street is loaded with competent bikers whizzing past but even worse it is also the bus lane. What should have been a leisurely ride in Paris with some old friends turned into a panicked moment in time where I didn't want to turn my head towards the buses coming behind me so as not to veer directly in their path. Thankfully it finally started to downpour so after initially waiting it out, we opted to turn in our bikes for lunch and a Kir Royal (champagne + creme de cassis = delish). Plan was to then head to the Louvre for the Marc Jacobs/Louis Vuitton exhibit but we ran out of time! Exhibit runs through September 16 though, if anyone wants to meet me there? Did a little shopping then headed to Kong for dinner. (Side Note: Sex & The City fans, this is where Carrie meets Alexandre's ex-wife in the final episode). We even made a new friend (see pink hair chick)!  

Food was awesome, company was even better and the people watching in Paris is ridiculous! They really are as stylish as I'd imagined and I don't know what kind of shampoo 
the men use, but they all seem to have SO much hair!


Headed home in the morning to the boys and they had an awesome "boys' night" complete with too many pork products and special dessert. Of course Hardy had everything under control and everyone was happy to see us. :-)


As usual, great tour directing by the infamous Gabby!


Much Love!
Lilli & boys

1st Month Photos

Here are a few photos from our first weeks here in Neuchatel.

Easter - Papa and Dean

Easter - Papa, Grammy & Dean

Easter - Hardy & Sam

Easter - Dean

Sam eating his favorite new food we didn't know existed....Yep that's french fries on pizza - just wait til this hits the states!

Our big boy so proud of himself - first time he pulled to a standing position!

The view from our kitchen deck. It's hazy but you can just make out the Alps past the lake. We live on the top floor of a building that looks exactly like that brown one.

Sam staring out the window. We've had a lot of rain since we've been here.

Sam & Dean Videos

Here is a video of Sam running around our new unpacked home on Easter and Dean having a meal in our kitchen and showing off his new skills. He is becoming quite the big eater!

Is Switzerland Ready for the Schmidbauers'?

Bonjour family and friends! Well we made it, as you all know, and we've been here a month. I wish I could say it has been smooth sailing but that's definitely not the Elmo-Schmidbauer way. The flight was long, the jet lag was interminable and the unpacking and settling in, well let's just say we're getting there. Without the help of my mom and dad the first two weeks, I don't know what we would have done, we barely made it with their help and truly wore them out. It was wonderful to have them here though while we tried to get settled, especially over Easter. We even had an egg hunt by Lake Neuchatel.

The language and cultural barriers are definitely more difficult to navigate than we had expected. Neuchatel is a smaller town (pop about 35,000) and people really don't speak much English. We are picking up French and hoping that Sam will learn from school and teach us. :-) He has started at the International Montessori school and is loving it, which is incredible. Back home he was always a little bit hesitant about going to school but here he is excited every day. We think it helps that in the Montessori program he gets to choose what he wants to do and anyone who knows Sam knows he always has an agenda. On the first day of school his English-speaking teacher told me that he talked a lot and I was like, “Seriously? MY Sam? On the first day? Are you sure?” She said he told her all about his cousin Albert, whose daddy was named “Uncle” and whose mom was “Auntie. “ J Sam being in school is also helping all of us settle into a routine which was much needed.

As far as Baby Dean is concerned, he still has the sweetest disposition and is just happy to be surrounded by people. He's crawling now in a straight-legged way but he does cover a lot of ground. Today he even pulled himself up to a standing position all by himself! Many of you know about his eye problems and we just saw an eye specialist yesterday. He has a disorder called Monocular Elevation Deficiency, which basically means he can't raise his right eye upwards. It also causes a droopy eyelid, which is mostly noticeable when he is tired or sick. They feel that there are no neurological causes and that as long as he is monitored it may even get a little better on its own. Worst case scenario is surgery but it's way too early to tell how severe it is. Overall it was a very promising appointment which leaves us relieved and hopeful! In the meantime we watch his development and continue to marvel at his verbal language and social skills. J

Hardy says he is quickly determining the pros and cons of the social services here. First, he blew out his knee, we’re not sure how and was on crutches for about 2 weeks. He still has no diagnosis but they finally drained it on Monday. It's still pretty painful though and he's hobbling around. Then he went to the recycling station, which is a very confusing process here but mandatory and while he was trying to figure out where to place his recyclables, someone hit our parked car. So now he's trying to get it fixed and figure out how that system works. It's gotten to the point where so many things have gone wrong, it's (almost) laughable. 

Our 3rd floor "loft" is spacious and very modern and the views are incredible. We are on the lake and can see the Alps from the many windows. The boys have been troopers and are slowly adjusting to their new Swiss lifestyle. We are all a little homesick though and welcome visitors with open arms! We're so fortunate to have many guests in the works. Our good college friend Auntie Riah is our current visitor from NYC and she has been having a blast entertaining the kids. She even won over Sam right away, which again is no small feat. He has been enjoying waking her every morning with a cold spoon, a trick Hardy taught him that he learned from his dad (or Sam’s Bah). J Next up is my dad and Cindy who arrive on May 9^th and will be here for almost a month! We love the company, it’s great for all of us.

Will post pictures and/or videos as soon as I figure out how to do so. In the meantime, off to Paris to meet Riah and our good friend Gabby who is currently living in London for a girls night! Let’s hope Hardy does ok by himself with the boys.

Much Love,

Lilli & Boys