December Happenings

Only half of December has come and gone, but the Gourley family has been busy!

Alex's class was in charge of an assembly. Alex was a shepherd in the story of Jesus' birth. He was so cute!


Clara was my little helper with decorating the tree!



I just love Christmas markets. This is the Christmas market in Thalwil. Such a fun night. Of course we can't pass by a merry-go-round without hopping on.



Happy birthday George! Another year older and wiser too.


Off to another Christmas market...this time in Einsiedeln. It was freezing and poor Alex was sick, so we didn't stay long. Next year we are heading here first because it was beautiful.



Sammy had a choir performance at school. She has such a beautiful voice and loves performing.

Can't forget to make gingerbread men. Thanks to our good friends, the Dublins. We had a wonderful time. The kids of course didn't eat the actually cookie, but devoured the frosting.

Allison and I went to one last Christmas market. This time in Zurich. We rode the train in, walked around, grabbed lunch, & then headed home. It was very nice. These Christmas markets are a great way to get into the Christmas spirit.

Clara's 4th Birthday!

Hard to believe my Miss Clara is 4! She has been waiting to turn 4 since she turned 3. Clara has had an interesting year! She was uprooted from her beloved Florida and moved to a place where no one can understand her. And for a girl who loves to talk and make friends that is really hard. But she has stuck it out and is fitting in well here in Switzerland. I am so proud of her and love her to pieces!

For breakfast Clara requested pink pancakes...perfect!

This is Clara's first time being able to celebrate her birthday at school. She was the leader for the day. We brought in cupcakes, which were a hit because you can't get them here. They put 4 candles on them and even a sparkler. She felt very special!





For dinner we served her favorites...tacos. These days it is hard to find something Clara likes to eat, so we are happy she chose tacos.

We celebrated as a family with delicious cupcakes as well and then she opened her presents that she has been dying to see. I had to keep them hidden or else she would have unwrapped them early.

Her last gift was hidden in the elevator. She opened the door and took right off on her new bike all around the house.


Clara had a wonderful princess birthday party the next day. She invited some of her friends, Vivi, Natalie, Annie, Caroline, & Chloe. They made tiaras, played princesses, dance to music, ate lunch, & cake.

Clara's princess cake. Thank goodness for frosting because underneath the dress the cake was falling apart.

Zurich Santa Claus Parade

We started off the Holiday season with a festive Santa Claus parade in Zurich. We rode the train into the city and found it all lit up with lights & full of festivities.

There were gigantic presents to look into to see how toys were made years ago. The kids loved it.



Such a beautiful & huge Christmas tree.

They were selling roasted chestnuts...we just had to try them after all the years singing "chestnuts roasting on an open fire". Alex was the only ones who really liked them. The kinda taste like chicken.

It was pretty cold, so we brought along some hot chocolate to keep warm.

Our little bundle was as warm as can be.

The parade was full of Swiss Santas (hooded, skinny & not very jolly either). Each Santa has a Schmutzli-the black Santa who takes the children who are bad & puts them in his sack. He either beats them with a stick or throws them into the river. Not such a happy tradition. So glad we only give our naughty kids cole.

November Fun

We had a lot of F-U-N in November...have a look!

The kids school, ISZL, celebrated Thanksgiving and Guy Fawkes Day (British holiday). We had a wonderful Thanksgiving feast, the boys played american football, the girls did crafts & painted faces, we had a bonfire (to burn the Guy Fawkes that were made...kinda weird), ate carmel apples & watched a fabulous fireworks display. It was an amazing event!





Clara started at an English preschool-HAPPY SNAIL! She loves her new school and I love that she loves it! We tried a German speaking one, but poor Clara didn't like that she couldn't talk to everyone. She really loves to talk!




George went to London on a business trip...looks like he is working hard don't you think? :)




George Sr./Grandpa came to visit! We had a great time with him. He was our first visitor so we had a few mishaps...we learned that everything closes in the winter time, it is very foggy, and some places only trains can take you. But we did get to see Lucern & eat some yummy food. Clara loved every minute she got to spend with him.







We had a delicious Thanksgiving dinner at the Jeppsons with the Bergs & the Reeves! There were definitely more kids than adults. Nice to spend the Holiday with friends!




We ended November celebrating my birthday (sorry no pictures). It was a great day spent shopping in France. Who knows what next month will hold.