Switzerland

One of our good friends served his mission in Switzerland and he wanted to revisit his missionary days. So we planned a fun trip together! We met at the Swiss Temple and traded places watching each others kids and attending a session.

The views in from the car as we were driving to our apartment were gorgeous. Kirk found an apartment that fit 9 people around Lake Brienz, and the price was right.

Here are the kids getting wrapped up in watching to Olympics on TV

We shared a tiny apartment. The Dahlke Family shared one room and the Hoggans crammed into the other. The first impression of the apartment was less than favorable, but this is the stuff that memories are made of!

frozen waterfall

We attended sacrament meeting on Sunday, then drove further up the mountain and found some sunshine! Then we all got into our snow stuff and had some fun.

The one thing the apartment had going for it was that it came with the use of some great sleds. The kids were ever grateful they didn't have to share.

We goofed around in the ski lift parking lot for awhile, then drove up further until we found the perfect hill.

Poor Addie after having a little bit too much fun in the cold

Allen's first fun down the groomed sledding hill ended up with a face plant and a lot of laughter!

Millie and Lincoln

Taylor and Lydia

Bruce and Allen getting ready for a run

Lincoln getting ready to take a run with Kirk

View at the top of the hill

Paige and Brienz

Kirk

The daring started going down on their bellies

Adie just chillin'

The tube became the biggest hit because it goes much faster than the sleds. Thanks to my hot winded honey for blowing it up for us!

It was great fun watching the para gliders!

This picture just looked like a quintessential Switzerland picture to me. What do you think?

After sledding, we took a little drive up the mountain, then headed back to the apartment to warm up. We had the kids watch a movie while the adults fixed dinner.

Spaghetti and Brauts. YUM!

Adie inhaled the spaghetti, but near the end she started fussing. Bruce discovered the reason just a little while after she got down from the table. Do you see what I see?

We headed into town to window shop after dinner. I found my boys some pins for their collection, but my ornament eluded me. Afterward we warmed ourselves with hot cocoa and popcorn before retiring to bed.

In the morning we packed up and headed to Lake Brienz in the town of Brienz. Paige found the lace she wanted and I found my ornament: a cow! WE then headed to Lucern, Switzerland where we stopped to observe the Fasching celebration. The costumes were so ornate! Unbelievable. We headed home after getting some snacks at the grocery store. We said thank you and goodbye to the Dahlkes and trusted the good old GPS to get us home....only, you can't trust a GPS. Our NaviGirl led us astray. We drove around for at least an hour, realized our fuse to the cigarette lighter was blown, and had to stop for gas before we were on the right autobahn headed for home. Even though it was later than we had planned, we made it and it always good to come home after a trip.