A few weeks ago we had our first big dumping of snow. It was kind of exciting because it just so happened that some of our good friends from Marseille had come to visit us the weekend when it started. Although they weren't perfectly equiped, seeing as it only snows in Marseille every 18 years or so, they really seemed to enjoy it. And there is nothing like some hot Swiss fondue when it is snowy outside. Thomas really impressed us by how much fondue he was able to eat. It was so much fun having them over, even if it made me miss Marseille like crazy, and I loved that they were able to take advantage of the snow.
Of course Daniel could not resist the temptation to bring out the skis...
The skis were a hit. Jonas was surprisingly talented and we realized too late that we should have bought him some skis when we got them for the rest of us.
Oh Marseille...I miss it!
Going on a little sleigh ride in our winter wonderland
And then it kept snowing. They say that it doesn't usually snow this much in Geneva and the environs. I had a workshop at the World Health Organization this particular week that was all day everyday. I have to say, I was really shocked to see how poorly the city of Geneva deals with snow. It started snowing one of the afternoons and within an hour the streets were completely clogged with stopped cars and the buses no longer running. I finally bit the bullet and trekked the 40 minutes from WHO to the train station, in heels, I might add, only to find the trains all severely delayed or cancelled. Luckily Daniel was working at a client located near our village and had no problem getting home in time to pick up the kids, and he even took a couple days off work to be with them so I could participate in the training (He's so great!). It was really a mess the entire week. Needless to say, I quickly gave up the heels and opted for snow boots the rest of the week.
Daniel was nothing short of thrilled to see all the snow and we took advantage of it that weekend to make go on our first ski trip. It was kind of a hassle since we had to go by train (did I mention that we are out of a car because the garage that changed our oil destroyed it, then covered it up?), but at least we can get there by train, right? So it ended up being Daniel and Jaxon who skis while Jonas and I played in the snow. It was sunny and beautiful. We really thought that Jaxon would ski for about 15 minutes and then want to go sledding, but boy were we wrong. He loved it! He skied for three hours and would have kept on going if we had let him. I failed to get him going down the hill, but if everything goes as planned this was just the first of many ski trips to come.
PwC threw a crazy kids Christmas party so Jan and the kids made the trek from Gland, our village, to downtown Geneva to my office. Janet took the opportunity to visit some of the landmarks right across the street from the office - the United Nations with its huge three legged chair (one leg was symbollically blown off by a landmine) and the antiaircraft gun with the barrel tied in a knot. Jaxon was impressed by both and has decided he wants to stop all wars and tie knots in all guns. 
HR managed to convince a new hire to be Pere Noel - he handed out presents to all the kids. Jonas was scared of him so I had to take the present for him. Jaxon froze under pressure and took his present and ran without saying a word. He told Santa what he wanted in a letter. 
Jonas now is officially a big boy in my eyes as he goes sledding head first down the hill by himself. Anything he sees Jaxon do, he wants to do. Our region has been blessed with the most snow in a generation and as such we have a nice hill to go sledding on right outside of our apartment which I know very well having spent countless hours with the kids out there.
At the Christmas party for our Church, Jaxon had the role of the Roi Mage - the wise man - and he played the part well. Right when they opened the curtain to start the play we saw Jaxon run across the stage as he was on the wrong side. Later, he pushed his way through the shepherds who were crowding Jesus to give him his gift. Janet and I were beyond proud of our little wise man.
Jaxon had a Christmas party at school in which his class sang a bunch of Christmas songs. We were laughing because they are actually permitted to sing about Christmas here - Mary, wisemen, sheperds and even Jesus. 
Jaxon of course was the best of the class although we did not see his mouth move much. He just had a big smile most of the time. 
The kids made Christmas decorations which were all over the walls. Our favorite was this baby Jesus wrapped in swaddling clothes. 
Since Halloween was on Sunday this year we opted not to go trick-or-treating, especially in light of the fact that it is forbidden to vacuum on Sunday in Switzerland. However, we did get two groups that came to our apartment and, I have to say, they cleaned up. Looking in their bags I could see full-sized boxes of cookies sticking out, huge bars of chocolate. Obviously people were scrambling to find something to give them. One girl said that she got $50 one year. Some poor sucker ran out of change.We are definitely on that next year.
