Autumn in the Swiss Alps

The hills are definitely alive in Switzerland in the fall.  There really is no better time to head to the mountains.  The girls had off the last week for fall break, so we decided to visit two mountain villages for two long weekends; Verbier and Zermatt. 

Last weekend, we headed to a well-known ski village, Verbier, in the southwestern part of Switzerland.  We stayed in a chalet in the town of Le Chable, which is a ten minute drive from Verbier.  We spent the first day exploring the village and ice skating. 

The second day, we took a cable car up and did a hike along the mountain.  It was a perfect hike with the kids, wide and flat.  In the afternoon, we did a scavenger hunt hike that the kids loved.  We were in the forest area reading clues and answering questions.

Sculptures along the trail-

View from the hike-

Hooray for hiking!! 

Scavenger hunt hike-

On our way home Sunday, we visited Barryland, the museum of St. Bernard dogs in Martigny.  Since the early 18th century, monks who lived along the St. Bernard Pass kept the dogs to help them rescue people after bad snowstorms.  The St. Bernard Pass was the only way for people to travel through the Alps between Italy and Switzerland.  Over a span of 200 years, it is estimated that about 2,000 people were rescued because of the dogs.  The dogs were able to find buried travelers, and provide them warmth while the other dog would go back to the hospice and alert the monks.  Fast forward to today, they now have 18 Bernard dogs, that spend their time either at the hospice on top of the mountain, or below in the town of Martigny.  As for rescues, those are now done with helicopters.  We were lucky to be able to see the dogs and the new puppies that were just born in August. 

This past weekend, we visited another well-known ski village, Zermatt.  We had visited Zermatt once two years ago, but only for a day and it was cloudy and we weren't able to really see the true beauty of the Matterhorn.  The forecast was showing mild temperatures and clear skies all weekend, so we booked a last minute weekend getaway.  We are so happy we did.

The highlight of our trip to Zermatt was taking the Gornergrat train which goes from Zermatt to Gornergrat (10,266 ft) which offers up close views of the Matterhorn. 

Loving the snow! 

Hot chocolate with a view-

Natural beauty-

Admiring the reflection of the Matterhorn in Riffelsee.  Unfortunately, the lake was partially frozen, but still pretty amazing.

We decided to hike down from Rotenboden to Riffelberg, which turned out to be a very icy descent, but the girls did great and we were able to spend time in the open mountain air. 

Adalyn excited she made it down the icy trek! 

A perfect ending to our weekend-

Grandpa and Grandma Schultz Trip Highlights

We were lucky to have just spent three weeks with my parents.  We had a wonderful time exploring new and old places with them.  Here are some highlights from their visit. 

One of their first days here, we took them to Parc Merlet and Chamonix.  It was a beautiful day in the mountains hanging out with the wildlife. 

Parc Merlet-

Chamonix

Shortly after arriving, Chris and I took a trip to Italy.  While we were gone, the girls were very excited because they built a balance beam with my dad.  They had been requesting it ever since my parents booked their trip, so they were very happy girls when the day finally arrived. 

Finished project! 

After Chris and I returned, my parents took a three day trip to London. They enjoyed seeing all of the sights and walking around the big city. 

My parents were also able to cook with Eliza's class, which was a lot of fun! Many of the kids don't speak English, so we had an added challenge, but it was a great morning spent with Eliza and her friends.

We also took a trip to Munich, which was a highlight from their three weeks.  We were able to explore the Old Town of Munich, visit many pubs, dine twice at the Hofbrauhaus, and visit Dachau.

Cheers!  Yes, my mom drank beer!!! 

Drinking beer with my dad at the Hofbrauhaus...priceless! 

Cheers!

Dressed for their German night out! Eliza danced all night long.

Last call!

We even found a bar with the Vikings game on! 

When the girls were not in school, we spent time playing at home and at various places around Geneva.

We spent an afternoon at a park in the mountains, Signal de Bougy. 

The girls had so much fun playing mini golf with grandpa and grandma.

Bowling

Time for a check-up! 

Baking pumpkin bars with grandma- yummy!

This past weekend, before they left, we spent the day in the Lavaux wine region of Switzerland.  It was a beautiful day enjoying the fall colors and Lake Geneva. 

On their last day, we headed to the mountains for one last adventure. 

Anyone that knows my dad, knows that he is super handy and can fix just about anything.  While here, he fixed our lawn mower, mowed the lawn twice, cleaned out all of our sink pipes, cleaned the garage, and fixed the shower.  It's a good thing he travels with tools and carries electrical tape in his toiletry bag! 

Hard at work...

Of course, they also brought along some American goodies for us!!   

The time went by so quickly and all of us were sad to say good-bye.  On the bright side, we will be home to visit in two months!! 

The week before my parents visited, my cousin Jenni and her husband, Mike, visited us.  Despite a very rainy weekend, we still had a great time.  We were able to show them some of our favorite places and enjoyed catching up.  We are so fortunate to be so close to our family and have them want to come visit us! 

Selfie stick!  

Magical Weekend at Paris Disney

Two weeks ago we visited Paris Disney with our good friends from Minnesota.  We arrived around noon on Friday and the kids were super excited!!  That afternoon, we spent some time in the Disney Village and swimming at the pool in the hotel. 

That evening, we had dinner with the Disney characters.  Back in the day, when I went to Disney, the characters were walking freely around the park.  Gone are those days.  Now, the characters have long lines for you to wait in just to get a picture or autograph.  The best way to avoid the lines, is to have meals with them.  There wasn't a lot of eating going on with all of the excitement as to what character was coming to the table next.  Adalyn was really into the characters, Eliza was a bit scared.  They were very sweet though and would come up and give her kisses on her cheek, which she thought was pretty cool.

So happy with Mickey!

Never too old for pictures with Mickey!

 Adalyn and Evelyn-

Happy with her cookie! 

Saturday, we spent the day at the park.  We arrived when it opened and headed straight to some of our favorite Disney rides.  They have many of the same rides as the Florida park, which made it fun for me to remember how I felt riding them when I was five.   

When I was five and went to Disney, my dad went on Dumbo with my sister and me. 

Unfortunately, our Dumbo did not fly like the others.  This picture shows Chris and the girls also riding low- eventually they did get their Dumbo to fly!

It's a Small World-

We had a very special lunch with princesses.  The girls were able to meet Cinderella, Prince Charming, Aurora, Ariel, and Cinderella's mice.  It was definitely the highlight of the trip.  The princesses even spoke English!! 

Is Cinderella really behind me??!

We found Prince Charming!! 

They were a bit confused when we asked for a picture- our first one was with Cinderella and the Prince, then Carli asked for a picture with just the Prince!! 

                Best dessert ever...

             a white chocolate glass slipper.                          Memorable lunch with great friends!! 

After lunch, we went on a few more rides and watched the parade.  After a busy day at the park, we headed back to the hotel where the girls had a "sleepover" watching Frozen. 

Disney is exhausting!

Great way to end a wonderful week together! 

People had said if you have been to Disney Florida, you may be disappointed with Disney Paris.  For us it was perfect.  We were so lucky to have been able to share this trip with our best friends and watch our girls bond.

Before we headed to Paris, we spent a few days in and around Geneva.  Here are some pictures of the different adventures we had together! 

Cable car ride in Chamonix-

                              Striking a pose in Yvoire, France.               Day trips are so much fun with your                                                                                                                          best friend-

Night out!!