Whirlwind Weekend!

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This weekend was a busy, yet enjoyable weekend. Both of my parents flew in on Friday. My dad came from home and my mom came from her travels in Estonia and Latvia. It was good to see them and now I don't have to walk around with one eye closed. I got my contacts for my left eye!

Anyways, my dad flew in Friday morning at 10:10 am and my mom flew in Friday night around 6:00 pm. We had some good catching up time and then Denis came over around 9:45 pm. It was good to spend some more time with him. He left around midnight. Now, I am not normally a night person, so I have to admit that we went to bed early Saturday night.

Saturday, we decided that we would go with my parents to Champoussin for the night. This is where they will be staying for the next week. Champoussin is in the Alps, south of Montreux and south of Monthey. However, before we arrived at their place, we went to Bex and took a tour of the salt mines. On the one hand, I really enjoyed the salt mines. There were a lot of things for Isabelle to do and to try. She was able to try a little mining and we were able to take a small little train ride through the mine. On the other hand, the salt in this mine was mixed in with the rock, so there wasn't a lot of salt that we could see. I was more impressed with the salt mine that we went to just outside of Krakow in Poland. Nonetheless, I was happy that Isabelle finally got to ride on a train.

After our salt mine experience, we picked up some groceries and headed to the place where mom and dad were staying. We made some supper, put the kids to bed and then played sticks. Sunday, we went for a little hike and were able to enjoy some breathtaking views.

After our 2 hour drive back to Avully, I was glad to get back "home." I have developed a liking for our apartment and I am happy to come home every night to see Avery and the kids. Everyday I count my blessings and realize how blessed we are to be participating in this exchange. It is a great way to meet new people, try new things and to broaden our horizons. Most of all, I think that it has been good for Avery, the kids and I. It has fostered a strong bound among all of us.

Lastly, I have shared a quote from Maxime de la Confédération with my students. It goes like this, "Tous pour chacun et chacun pour tous." The English translation would be, "All for one and one for all." I like this quote and I found a song of Denis' to go with it. The song is, "Tout le monde," by the group Manau. The gist of the song is that we all need everyone. No one is an island.

Jarod

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Photos

Mines de sel.
This was in Bex in the salt mines. A few more pictures will follow about our salt mine experience.

Champoussin.
This is where mom and dad are staying. I took a picture of this because you could see the moon in the background.

Hiking in Val d'Illiez.
This was looking back at mom and dad's place.

Lunch time!
We found this log on our hike and had lunch. We hiked for over an hour and Isabelle did great. She hiked the whole way. On the drive home, she was out like a light!