May - Amended

May was REALLY busy! We started off the month in the USA and flew back to Belgium on May 1 from our 2 week Spring Break in Chicago and Indy.

May 3 - The day after we arrived back home in Belgium, my mom and dad arrived for a 2 week visit.

May 5 - We all went to the Math Banquet for Leah and Jennifer

May 6 - My Mom and I took a cooking class at the Cordon Bleu in Paris! It was really fun and we learned a lot about asparagus, hollandaise sauce, fish and strawberries. Dad came along and strolled around Paris.

Mom and me at the Cordon Bleu. We really enjoyed ourselves!

Dad and me eating al fresco in Paris.

May 7 - The twins went camping and kayaking in Durbuy. There is another post about that activity.

May 8 - We celebrated Mother's Day.

May 9 - Maria arrived in Brussels for a month of vacation before heading back to Purdue for the summer.

May 10 - My mom and dad left us to visit Ireland. While they were gone, we took little trips with Maria. We shopped for chocolate, clothes and sports equipment.

May 15 - Mom and Dad returned from Ireland.

May 16 - Another trip to the chocolate factory. Leah and Jenn also left for their week trip in the Alsace region of France which includes Strassburg.

May 17 - Mom and Dad returned to the US. Bob, Maria and I went to Zurich, Switzerland.
This is the yummiest store in Zurich. They only sell macaroons.

One of the many shopping streets in Zurich.

May 18 - Maria and I spent a few days in Bad Zurzach at a spa. With many pools and saunas, we were almost too relaxed!

This is what the Alsace region looks like.

May 20- After the twins returned from there, we threw their stuff in the garage and headed to Disneyland Paris,

May 25- We hosted 3 high school track athletes from the American School of London. They were at ISB to compete in the ISST Track Tournament.
May 29- We found a new store that had something for all the girls. May 31 - We celebrated Thanksgiving because we missed that holiday together while Maria was at college. Yes, we had turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes and all the trimming!

And how will June ever compete with the excitement of May? Well, it will start our with a trip to San Sebastian on June 1!

Alsace, France - Zurich, Switzerland - Black Forest,Germany

Right now, our family is in three different countries but we are really not that far apart.

Leah and Jenn are on their week long school field trip to the Alsace region of France. 125 7th graders with a week of only speaking French.

Bob is in Zurich working. Poor guy. We will meet back up with him tonight in Switzerland.

Maria and I are at a Spa right between Germany and Switzerland. Thermal baths and saunas!

Today is a good day.

Better than an alarm clock...

For some reason, no one in this family would wake up this weekend. I found the perfect way to roll them out of bed. Bacon and pancakes!

A nice day in Durbuy

In the last post I wrote that the twins went camping in Durbuy. They talked so highly of it that Bob, Maria and I took the short drive there on Friday while Leah and Jennifer were at school. We weren't disappointed. It was the cutest town and claims to be the smallest in all of Europe. It was small but not that small! We had our choice of at least 15 restaurants all with outdoor seating to enjoy the Belgian sun. (We have had more sun than normal in Belgium!!)

The streets were small and filled with little shops selling very unique items.

There were also plenty of statues throughout the town.

Maria and Bob at lunch. The weather was cool but the sun was warm!

We had a very nice day. The water behind us is the river where the twins kayaked. We saw others doing the same. That water moved quickly!

Camping in Durbuy

Last weekend Leah and Jennifer went camping and kayaking in Durbuy, Belgium. They went with 22 other 7th and 8th graders and 3 teachers from ISB. They came home exhausted, dirty and full of exciting stories from their active weekend.

Jennifer is on the far left putting a marshmallow on her stick and Leah is in the back of the photo in a yellow shirt. They ended up roasting everything from apples to granola bars. After the campfire they slept in teepees!This is all 8 of the 7th grade girls. Doesn't it look fun? Bob, Maria and I were so curious about the area where they kayaked that we took a ride to the same town today. We had a nice lunch and saw this weekend's guests already paddling away. Durbuy is said to be the smallest town in Europe. It is also the prettiest, cleanest and quaintest!
Jenn and Leah are in the kayak on the left. They said it was hard to work together to paddle down the river. Eventually they got into a "grove" and it was easy.

Mom and Dad are visiting.

Every single person who visits us has to go to Grande Place. I know we have tons of pictures of us at this place but who can resist going to this beautiful square? My dad and Bob are readying themselves to drink a nice cold beer at an outdoor cafe.

The weather was beautiful today in Brussels. Right after this picture we had ice cream!

Easter in the US!

12 hours after we got home from Vienna, we left for Chicago and Indianapolis. We had a wonderful Easter in Chicago with Bob's mom and dad. The girls look so old in this picture!