Note: some pictures from today are posted in a nearby post.
Morning
We got up and had piles of oranges with breakfast (we bought a big bag of oranges and need to eat them up!) then set out on the town.
Our walk lead us to a playground. A wonderful place loaded with things to play on, bathrooms, a field, and other happy kids. Some play grounds have mulch as a base (which makes the kids covered with cruddy dark residue) and this play ground had tiny rocks as a base, which makes a fun sound when walking on it, and is much cleaner!
Sara climbed everything and also pushed Julia on a swing - while Julia smiled wide at the fun swing ride! They make a great pair. I climbed up on everything too, and even did a balance beam that was 5 feet in the air!
After that we went to the botanical garden to tour the green house (to warm up Julia's red hands) and then we toured the rock garden. It must be Sara's favorite thing here - she just loves wandering her chosen path in the rock garden with Julia by her side. She said, "it is just for me and Julia" so Dan and I didn't try to walk the path with them - Sara just loved her "adventure" with Julia. On the steep parts, Sara reached up open arms to Julia, who would reach out to Sara-- with an embrace, Sara transported Julia to the ground below -- and they did it with grace each time.
After that we went to lunch. Our chosen place was the Co-op restaurant for its ease. No waiter/waitress, just food in a friendly environment surrounded by local Swiss people. The food is self-service, where you can grab a plate and then pay based on the size of the plate (not per pound). I chose a 14 CF plate and piled enough food on it to feed all of us (shrimp curry with rice) and also a white cup of soup. It was "vegetable soup" which just means it is some sort of vegetable (not our vegetable soup we think of in the US that is tomato based with chunks of vegetables in it) - it was butternut squash today I think. (I had it yesterday too, but it was different yesterday.) Julia got too close to nap time and stood up in her high chair - so Dan took her for a walk so Sara and I could finish up. We splurged on a piece of layered chocolate cake that was light and sweet. Very good. That was our Valentine's day treat.
After lunch
After lunch we all walked back here, stopping at the store for milk and bananas (Sara/Julia eat a banana a day, it is nearly a requirement). Sara and I walked hand in hand through town to get back here, while Dan pushed sleepy Julia in the stroller. She normally likes to "walk" (that is one of her favorite words) but will begrudenly ride when she is sleepy.
Julia napped in her crib when we got back here and then after dinner (of leftovers - pasta and brocoli) I decided to take Sara and Julia out for a "night walk."
A "night walk" is our term for a walk we take when it is close to bedtime, when they really should be getting ready for bed, but we splurge on a walk. Evening is such a nice time for a walk - it makes sense to do a 'night walk' once in a while. Plus the fresh air makes them drowsy. ;)
We didn't have a goal in mind, we just set out on our 3 pairs of feet (Dan was working) to see where we'd end up. Julia chose our direction - down hill, so SAra and I followed. We took a side "street" that was nearly straight down hill, so steep that you have to watch every step.
Sara and I saw the river, and decided it would be fun to go down to the river bank. There are no cars there (of course) so it would be an easy, fun, safe way to end up our day. We were joined by ducks, 2 swans, and one cat. The girls *loved* it. They dug in the mud, they tossed rocks into the water (digging them up first), and Julia even mistakenly got her foot wet getting too close to the water's edge and slipping in. "Whao!" was her response, as she tugged on my hand (I was holding on to her) to get back to safety.
It was such a great time down by the water. It was peaceful and serene. Julia tried to take her coat off - it was such a nice night, but I made her keep it on.
Julia's words of the day: "car!" "cat!" "stop" "cheese!" "Sara!" "walk" "poo poo" "milk!" -- I don't know if she means to say everything with an exclamation point - but it sounds like she does!
It was a great way to end the day. I soon realized it was getting dark and we still had to get back. Julia took her two sticks and headed up the hill. She soon gave one to Sara, and thankfully they decided to whack the sticks on things as they walked. It made them walk (and not dilly-dally) so it only took 20 minutes to walk back and not an hour. (They can walk fast, but it sure can take a long time to get anywhere sometimes!) They banged their sticks on everything and delighted in the sounds they made. I stopped them from banging them on cars, and they stuck to raw materials around the walk - like stone, metal, and wood.
Back here we did shower/bath and Julia went right to sleep. Sara is headed that way too.
We leave tomorrow. Off to a new adventure!
Quote of the day:
(in the morning) Me: "it is Valentine's day, a day to celebrate the people we love."
Sara: "I really love Julia."
END
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