Fun Weekend with Friends

It has been another exciting week here in Switzerland. Last weekend we got our Christmas tree. I wouldn't say it is the biggest or best tree either of us has ever had but it was such a fun adventure.  The lot is right down the street from our house. While we were there, they gave us glasses of hot wine (vin chaud) and homemade soup.  With all of the snow, we were really in the season.

We are also happy to announce that we are the proud new owners of our first station wagon.  After 2 months of driving a front wheel drive rental car (and getting stuck in the snow on our way home the other night on a narrow road as the bus was coming down the hill towards us), we finally purchased a car. Negotiating and purchasing a car in a language you don't speak is a little challenging but Corinne, the lady we worked with, was very patient with us. She was amazing to work with and put a big bouquet of flowers in the car when we picked it up. We are very happy to have this chore of car shopping finished.



 We had our company Christmas party on Wednesday night.  It was a lot of fun and I danced my legs off while Scott mingled. Somehow we didn't get a picture together so this is all I have for you.

This weekend, we are very lucky to have 3 of our friends in town. Brian Applegate flew in from Texas for about a 36 hour trip.  Nick and Jessica (whose wedding we attended in November) were also here from Luxembourg. We had a fantastic time. We started with a short boat trip to Evian.  The weather was beautiful and we had a great lunch. We ended the short trip with me winning 120 Euros at the casino playing the 5 cent slot!

That night, we went to the Christmas market in Montreux and enjoyed some good food and drinks and ended up at "the restaurant/bar" in Mollie-Margot. On Saturday, we took a driving tour of the mountains, stopping is a couple small towns to check out their views and another Christmas market. We ended up in Les Diablerets.  It is a well known ski town and was amazing! The views were something just out of a story book. We took a ton of pictures but here are a couple to give you an idea.

Although it was a short weekend, it was so great to see friends and be able to explore with them. We are looking forward to planning a trip to Luxembourg to repay Nick and Jessica.  We do not have any other visitors scheduled so who wants to be next?

Team Building. . .in a Castle

Many people who work in the corporate world have been on some type of team building event in the past. They typically  involve a strategy meeting, ropes course and bonding. These are all great activities but how often do you do one in a castle?  A couple weeks ago, we took the day to get to know each other in a near by castle. 

The company was broken into team and of course there were competitions and many other exercises.  I was crushed that our team did not win but at least we had fun.

Throughout the day, each team participated in creating the, "Stryker, There for You" picture out of nature items. Just remember, wherever you are, Stryker is There for You.

Thanksgiving and More

What a fun and unique Thanksgiving we had.  Scott and I hosted 10 people from very diverse backgrounds (Australia, Switzerland, India, England and the US (TX, CA and MI)) at our home for the big night.  Despite the small turkey breasts, the meal was a hit! I found a recipe for pecan tarts that required only ingredients I had and they were a huge success. Scott cooked everything else (of course) and got rave reviews.  Although the food was good, the company was even better.

We are also lucky that we were able to get our shipment from the states the week before. It was a hustle to the end but we pulled the house together pretty darn well in those 5 days.  Izzie and Deacon tried to help us unpack but they were worn out. Once we get the rest of the pictures hung and such, we'll post pictures of the house.

In addition to a great Thanksgiving dinner with lots of new friends, Katy made it in safely to spend the weekend with us and we had a fabulous time. We went to the Christmas Market in Montreux, Evian, Lausanne, Geneve, the local (only) restaurant in Mollie-Margot and had lots of laughs. We also took tours of the cheese and chocolate factories. Nothing like some great samples :)

None of us were ready for the huge amount of snow we have been receiving!  The dogs are loving it and it's hard for us to get them to come inside. Deacon thinks the shovel is a game but Izzie thinks it's trying to attack me.  I was forced to drive in the snow for my first real time while Katy was here. Although it was scary, we did survive.  It is definitely making us anxious to get out of our front wheel drive rental car. We're hoping to pick up our new (used but new to us) 4 wheel drive on Tuesday.

In the mean time, here's a nice picture of the recent snow for you to look at while you drink some hot tea.  We hope that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving too and are enjoying the holiday season as we are heading into December.

Scott and Ashleigh