Off to the US

About to board my flight to LA to see Stacy for her bachelorette weekend. So excited that we will be on the same leg of the trip from DC to LA :)

It will be a whirlwind two weeks back in the States.

DC-CA to Chi to DC- Friends, family, wedding!

On y va!! 

Some days

Are good. Others bad. Some you take constant hits or rejections. You can't do anything right. Then on some rare, special days, the light just shines and shines on you.

Today was one of those days. Nothing earth-shattering, explosive or exceptional. Just those little things that make you smile from the inside.

**An uplifting email from one of my best friends.**

**A message on one of my posts.** 

**A lengthy "how-to" guide on a new industry from someone who went above and beyond.** 

**An email from my older brother entitled:

 "The Best Sister in the World." (whaa...? who? me! :) )**

The domino effect of it all. I put a couple notes on FB thanking people and then I got another email from one of my besties- sending a love bomb email.

Then another, and another.

Not sure what I did to make the world smile on me today, but World, thank you. It sure feels good!

Live and Love

My mom normally sends me early morning (her time) emails a few times a week with little updates or a chipper "good morning!" message.

This week my mom lost a very good friend in an accident. Her friend was young and full of life and everyone that knew her is shocked and saddened by their loss.

When my mom sent me one of her regular emails this week, instead of signing off with "Love, Mom." It said, "Live, Mom." I knew it was a typo on the iphone, but it made me smile. I wrote her that I thought that was a great reminder at the end of a message to not take any day for granted. LIVE.

She copyrighted that one quickly. Her emails now are signed with "Live and Love, Mom."

Build Yourself a Great Story

We are what we choose was the title of Jeff Bezos baccalaureate address to last year's Princeton's graduating class. The gist is that our life story is based on the choices we make. In turn, we are our choices. He asks many questions at the end of the address:

• Will inertia be your guide, or will you follow your passions?
• Will you follow dogma, or will you be original?
• Will you choose a life of ease, or a life of service and adventure?
• Will you wilt under criticism, or will you follow your convictions?
• When it's tough, will you give up, or will you be relentless?

I have always had an unquenchable thirst for adventure, change, and travel. I am not the one that follows the typical, clear path. I was told once that "I walk to the beat of a different drum." True story.

I can say that when I look back at my life in 50 years, I may not have taken the most obvious path, but I have taken one that is true to my core and it sure will be interesting :) When given a chance to try something new, I almost always jump at the chance. Perhaps it is my eagerness and excitement at the unknown that propels me in these situations. My strength is trusting my gut and my desire. My strength is working hard and being positive. My strength is being kind and being a friend.

I am following my due north. Ditto for Nicholas. To see how he thrives in his new environment, in a job that would qualify as his calling, is incredible. We have made sacrifices to be where we are and to be together; and together we are happier than ever. Life sure would be easy if it were easy, but as the old saying goes, nothing worthwhile ever is!

First Visitors!

Last week, my Little and her boyfriend were traveling through Switzerland and made a stop in Lausanne! When she originally told me about her planned trip, I think I was in Cleveland with my family and I had no idea where we would end up, but certainly did not expect to be in Switzerland for her visit! I feel so lucky that I was here and that she was our first official visitor :)

We had a great day. Once they finally found our very well hidden apartment, we took a walk to the Palais Justice for a great view of the lake and mountains. Afterwards, we stopped in a cool space in the Center for a drink. After, we headed to Vinorama to do some wine tasting and learn about the Swiss winemakers. Finally, with local wines purchased, they came over for a home-cooked meal in our new place.

It was a fantastic evening and it is so great to spend time with someone that you haven't seen in years and for things to feel exactly how they were. Like not one day has passed. Thanks for visiting Cheryl!

(pics to follow)

Wonderful Weekend

This weekend we had our first overnight house guests! I think I can speak for AP when I say we both still cannot believe that I am back and that we get another chance to live SO close!

We had a fantastic weekend with Mike, Ashley and Simona. It started a little shaky as no one can find our hidden oasis including but not limited to:

•  the DHL delivery man, 
• the post man, 
• and I am pretty sure the reason we have not received Nicholas' bank card yet is because that poor delivery guy is still walking in circles scratching his head.
•  Fact: It is almost impossible to find our place. If we wanted to run away, all we would have to do is just stay home. We would never be discovered- even though we are about a 2 min walk to the absolute center of town.

Soo... after we decided to go meet them then drive them to our place, the weekend was off to an excellent start. In fact, Ashley didn't even make it to the apartment before she bought her first summer dress. Like I said, we are smack dab in the center of town where all the shops are :)

We headed to the lake for an ice cream and a nice view to catch up,

the samurai ice cream boat :) 

Simona with her ginger and "iced coffee" which turned out to be coffee flavored ice cream ! 

then us ladies spent a little more time catching up before it was time for dinner with friends.

The night ended with music, dancing and bumper cars -- it is Carnival in Lausanne!

Sunday we biked to Vevey and had a picnic along the lake. I was so sad to see them leave, but sooo happy they all (I'm looking at you, Simona!) were able to come!

The beautiful roses Simona brought!

First official day of job search

Last week I spent a lot of time searching opportunities.
This week, I am putting the rubber to the road.
I have applications ready to be sent out to various organizations.
Linkedin has been updated (more so than it has ever been).
Emails have been sent to contacts for support and suggestions.
Research has been done on organizations; articles read, terms looked up.
Coffee has been drunk.
About to get suited up and have my first meeting.
Happy Monday!

Happy Mother's Day!!

And to the newest mother in the family! 

Miss you both and hope you are celebrating your special day! 

xo

Cover Letters

I am writing working on my cover letters for some interesting jobs. However, I am not getting very far and thought maybe it would be best to take a quick break to update my blog and do some writing that I enjoy before I go back to putting together letters for applications.

In general, I am not a fan of cover letters, but today, with a few jobs, I am glad I have the chance to add something extra. It may not be clear to the reader when they see my resume that I am a perfect fit for the position, so having the chance to write a little extra will allow me to demonstrate why they should hire me immediately.

After a year and a half out of work, I feel like an over-caffeinated, uber-eager, fresh college grad ready to sink her teeth into her first real job. I have set my expectations as I would for a marathon, and I look at this job search much like my training for a 26.2 race.

You must put in effort everyday. You must have a plan. You must reach out to others to help you when you are feeling like you just cannot do it. You have to do all of the training, even things you do not like, such as hill or sprint training (cover letters, anyone?) because that is the only way you will succeed. Finally, you have to set three goals for yourself for race day: your dream time, a good time, and to finish. That way you are covered no matter what the day turns out to be like.

I am still working on my three goals for this job search and will share when I have thought it out more. One thing I know for sure, it is probably going to take more time than I will like and I have to be OK with that.

Hiking

Wore my new hiking boots Sunday when we went with our old neighbors Yann and Maxime to Romainmotier for a walk and a late lunch. This town had a nice path by a stream and waterfall and also an old Abbey.

I was reunited with my old friends

The mountain air is making me strong

Life is good when Nicholas is with me! 

I gave grace that we are able to be back in this beautiful country, surrounded by many wonderful friends. 

art exhibit in the garage of abbey

OBL Dead

Way to go, USA!