Professionally Shot

In the past 6 months, I have been photographed twice professionally. The first was for our wedding where we spent a good while doing my hair and make-up and wearing a beautiful gown. This last time was a bit different. The preparations included:

745am:   wake up and dress in my winter running gear
800am:   6 mile run in the rain/snow, cold and wind with my girls plus one
930am:   meet with my additional runner turned photographer
1000am:  snap a bunch of photos in the cold on the shore of Lake Geneva

Not only was there no make-up, no hair, no outfit. I actually ran in the cold and snow for over an hour before I posed for my photos. This was all the brain child of one of the student's partners who is a photographer and asked me randomly if she could photograph me. Once she learned that I was a runner she told me she was inspired and wanted to photograph me after one of my runs. And not only would she photograph me, she would first run with me. I have to tell you, I had my doubts before and during, but after I saw her work, I was convinced.

Here are a couple of the shots. Pretty amazing.

Nicholas's Birthday Eve Terrace Party

Last night we hosted a party to celebrate into Nicholas's double 3 birthday. We were lucky enough to have a beautiful, sunny evening, a live Salsa band playing across the street, and a great group of friends that were ready to have some fun after too many nights of studying.

There was a countdown to his birthday at midnight, as if we were all anticipating the new year. Which I suppose we were, but not all of ours, just his :) He was then serenaded with "Happy Birthday to You" in 5 different languages.

Followed by the Germans who hoisted him in a chair and sang some sort of birthday chant while tossing Nicholas a la the Hora in a Jewish wedding.

He received many thoughtful gifts including a bouquet of flowers from the park near IMD, a belt decorated with the swiss flag multiple times and adorned with a belt buckle with the swiss flag, cigars, a ice cream cake in the shape of a champagne bottle, Johnny Walker Red, the list goes on...

The best gift, though, was certainly the company that we shared. The night was filled with so much fun and laughter, I think that the students escaped from their reality for just one night and forgot that they still have one more exam to go tomorrow. It was truly a magical evening and entrance into his birthday, I just know this year is going to continue to have many more wonderful surprises for him.

Happy Birthday to My Husband :)

Happy Birthday to you. To the smartest and kindest man that I know.

I am grateful each day that I have you by my side. I cannot imagine what my life would be like without sharing it with you. You lighten all of my worries and triple all of my joys.

I adore you. Te amo.

Preparations for the World Cup

before with fountain

In front of our apartment, the city is preparing for the World Cup. They have covered our fountain and will put up a huge screen to display the games. They will have space for 8,000 people! The city has already sent us a letter apologizing for any inconvenience, as this will be directly in front of our house. Nicholas responded by sending a Thank You note ;)

"I love Switzerland!!" - Nicholas

For some time now, there has been a stage set up with a variety of musicians playing each evening. Tonight it is Latin music! We just leave our windows open and there is no need to play the itunes. Spring and Summer here are shaping up to be quite wonderful!

after without fountain

Exam and Birthday Week

Today through Monday, Nicholas will be taking his exams and in doing so, he will be completing the first half of the IMD year. It is crazy to think that we have already been here for almost 6 months and that we have less than that to go. IMD is so thoughtful, for Nicholas's birthday on Sunday, there will be no exams. What a nice birthday gift!

While Nicholas studies away for the finals, I will be starting to book his only vacation of the year. We will be spending part of it in Spain and then Nicholas will head to South Africa early to swim with the sharks :) and then to spend two weeks working on a consulting project for companies in Johannesburg.

Despite the long hours in and out of class for Nicholas and the moments of loneliness and doubt that I have, this is a once in a lifetime experience and we both remind each other often how lucky we are. Congrats to completing your first exam today, mi vida!

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!

"A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, 

always with the same person."

Mignon McLaughlin

Congratulations on loving each other for a lot of years!

:) 

Low-End Wine Degustation

Our BBQ and my homemade sign welcoming everyone to the fete des voisins 

Last week, Yann and I opened our terrace to some of the partners and held our own wine tasting evening. We chose to have it on May 25, because here in Switzerland, it is the day of neighbors- a day where you are encouraged to have parties, dinners, drinks, etc. We encouraged everyone to bring an inexpensive bottle of wine, either from their country or region, if they could find it, or a favorite they discovered here.

The wine and food before the guests arrived... with more wine and food :) 

My favorite wine that we tasted was the Portuguese "green" wine. Yum! It is really light and is slightly sparkling. It is a perfect spring/summer drink. We also had a fruity and fresh Zinfandel/Rose from California and a really decent Swiss wine, along with a crowd-pleasing Prosecco and a Spanish Red. All in all, the degustation was a mini-success and we look forward to hosting more in the future.

View from the terrace of the lake and mountains. 

If you look closely, there are palm trees in front of our house! 

Nothing like living in the Swiss Riviera.