We survived the first month!

 

Well we survived our first month as parents! Did we have some diaper blowouts, major spit up episodes, and long spells of crying during her "witching hour"? Of course. But we also had many hours of cuddling, sleeping on our chests, and more and more time of content gazing along with a few real smiles! And as we already knew Emma's doctor continues to call her a "super" baby (the Swiss love to use the word 'super' and I am beginning to use it quite frequently too, especially wtih reference to Emma)!

After being fortunate enough to have Steve home for the first two weeks after Emma's birth he headed back to work and some out of town time, but Emma and I did surprisingly well and were lucky to have some additional visitors and helpers during Steve's time away. On the weekends we've been enjoying our time as a family and especially enjoy taking long walks together. In fact this past weekend Emma got to go on her first hike and she did wonderfully! We explored the Uetliberg area, which is just on the outskirts of Zurich and can basically be described as a really large hill with wonderful views of the entire valley that the city of Zurich sits in along with Lake Zurich. We are already looking forward to going on another hike this weekend. It looks like hiking will be our new weekend activity when the weather is nice now that it's a little easier and more encouraged for me than when I was pregnant!

Look at my cute socks!



Beautiful views of Zurich and the lake from the top of Uetliberg

 

This doesn't look real does it? I want to go back for a picnic under this tree!



Dad's good at giving baths and Emma's
head is a little stronger each time

We are also looking forward to enjoying our first night out without Emma this weekend as we celebrate our 5th anniversary! We already have such wonderful friends here that have offered to be some of Emma's first baby sitters and Emma absolutely loves them. We celebrated on the actual day of our anniversary a couple of weeks ago as a family though and it couldn't have been more perfect. Beautiful weather got us outside for a good walk followed by a visit to Zurich's first Fro-Yo shop (definitely not the same as the ones in the U.S., but a good substitute until we can get home), and Steve even cooked a wonderful dinner that Emma allowed us to eat while it was still hot and without one of us holding her!

All in all it's been a wonderful first month. We are so happy to have a healthy little girl that seems relatively content and I am lucky to be able to spend so much time with her. Although we feel like we have already done pretty good getting out and going places, we anticipate many other big firsts in the coming month as we head out of town for our first overnight away from home and Emma hosts her first overnight house guests. We look forward to the fun times, the challenging ones, and watching Emma grow and develop everyday! Our first five years of marriage have been such a blessing, but we know it is only going to get better with Emma along for the ride!



2 weeks old

3 weeks old

4 weeks old

I think you know how old she is here...

Always a helper nearby...

Emma's first play date with her friend Sienna (one week her senior)
I don't think she liked sharing her pillow as she kept hitting Sienna in the head!

Are the Swiss getting friendlier?

One week old, still unsure of the monkey!

Ok, I doubt that the Swiss are really getting friendlier, but as Emma is now a whopping 2 weeks old I can attest to the fact that they actually do smile on occasion and even offer a friendly word or two when passing on the street or on public transportation, which is more than I can say for my first six months here. I held out little hope that this would be the case since even as a 9 month pregnant lady there were very few times when I was offered any extra help or a seat on the tram when it was full. And regardless of whether or not I was pregnant there have been many times when I would have appreciated someone at least saying "excuse me" ("entschuldigung" in german) as they pushed their way through an aisle at the grocery store or suddenly stopped right in front of me while getting off the tram. But as I have come to find out this is just not common practice here as people really say very little to one another while out in public and do their very best to keep to themselves. As a result I am convinced there is a good possibility when we move back to the U.S. that we will be slightly more rude when out in public, I apologize in advance...

Now I wouldn't go as far as to say that anyone has gone above and beyond my expectations (especially not the time when we had to carry Emma and her stroller up a flight of stairs at a train station and the people coming down the stairs would not move out of the way for us) but it has been a welcome surprise to have someone smile at us when they see little Emma, ask us how old she is, or make a cute comment at her (well I think they are saying something nice as I can only understand part of the time). And luckily despite a few meltdowns in public I have yet to receive any dirty stares, and I guess Emma hasn't cried too much at our apartment yet as we have not received any post-it notes on our door from our neighbors. As a result I would conclude that her first two weeks have been a relative success, especially because it seems like Swiss babies are always absolutely perfect and never cry or I must just have yet to actually hear one.



Little pink bunny after her first bath at home

However, I'll make sure not to celebrate too much quite yet, after all she is only two weeks old and this is my first week on my own with Steve now back to work with a real test to come as he heads out of town soon as well. But I think we've done pretty good getting ourselves and Emma out and about (could any of you really expect me to stay cooped up at home for very long?). In her second week we succeeded in running a few errands with her, taking public transportation, going to an expat 4th of July celebration, getting her passport photos taken (which was an especially big challenge), and taking newborn photos (take a look at the sneak peek here: http://www.clarebrehenyphotography.com/london-and-zurich-photographer/emma-grace-newborn-photography-zurich-sneak-preview/). Yet, we've also been very fortunate to have several friends come visit and help out as well!

I'm sure the month of July will come with many challenges and new experiences and they will be far from easy, but if we've survived the first two weeks with Emma and the Swiss surely we can tackle what lies ahead right?

Dad sleeps - Emma just pretends!

Emma Grace has arrived!

After 41 weeks and 2 days of waiting little miss Emma Grace finally made her grand entrance into the world at 7:44 am on Monday, June 25, 2012. We feel so very blessed and are in complete awe that she is actually ours! For those of you keeping tabs, here are her stats (we will be nice enough to convert them from the metric system for you):

6 lbs, 14 oz (3.115 kg)

20 inches (51 cm)

Blue eyes

Light brown hair

  

After spending five nights in the hospital we are happy that the entire family is now at home and getting adjusted to what is our new "normal." We feel that so far (in all of her 8 days of life) she has been a relatively easy baby. Don't get me wrong, we've already had our fun times including a diaper blow out on daddy and getting sick on mommy on the first day home! We have also concluded that we are jinxing ourselves if the clothing we put on her is more than half white as it is bound to mean a messy clean up later in the day!

We can't wait to see what Emma has in store for us in the coming weeks, months, and years ahead, but it is without a doubt that we will always remember our experience having a baby in a foreign country and how it differed from any experience back home (aside from the heaps of additional paperwork). Here's a look back at the past week.

  

Since Emma was being more than a little stubborn and had no intention of coming out on her own will in the near future the doctor decided that it was best to induce one week after our due date. We were told to head to the hospital at 10 pm on Saturday night to be induced with the first set of drugs with the idea that it was going to still take awhile for them to kick in and we would be able to sleep most of the night (I laughed when the doctor told me that). It was clear from the moment we arrived at the hospital that our experience with Swiss healthcare was going to be like nothing else (we admittedly went to a small hospital, even by Swiss standards, as so far I know of no Swiss hospitals that come close to rivaling U.S. hospitals in size. Just to give you an idea of the size, when we arrived there were 7 or 8 new babies there and the day we left there was only 1 other remaining baby there). We had been given no directions other than go to the main entrance which was the same as the emergency entrance. At 10 pm on a Saturday night the doors were locked and we didn't know what to do. Luckily there was an employee outside that let us in without really asking any questions (I'm guessing he took one look at me and figured out we weren't trying to break into the hospital just for fun), but once we got inside there was no one in sight! So we decided to just head up to the maternity wing.

There's Emma's ID band!

After feeling like we had snuck into the hospital we finally found a midwife and she looked very surprised to see us. Evidently there was a bell we were supposed to ring for her to come meet us at the entrance, but we had completely missed it! Even though we had done some paperwork ahead of time, I was still surprised that we didn't fill out anything upon our arrival. There was no formal admissions process, no hospital ID bands, no hospital gowns, and she simply whisked us away to a room to get started. Another main difference at the hospitals here is that midwives instead of nurses work in the maternity departments, and although I don't have a U.S. hospital experience to compare it to, I think it was significantly better as a result. The midwives were very attentive and there to help in anyway possible with suggestions and advice. Although by the end of the week I was a bit tired of feeling like someone was always checking in on me, overall I am thankful for the experience and feel that we walked home with much more knowledge and confidence than we would have in the U.S.. And luckily the majority of the midwives spoke very good english, except in the normal Swiss way they said they spoke "a little english" only to go on and speak it almost perfectly. However, it was quite comical that the one midwife that spoke limited english was the one that was on duty the majority of the time I was in labor. Yet her actions made up for it as she did a great job seeing us through the labor and if there was ever a significant communication barrier she would track someone down to help translate.

Not sure I understood everything the midwives had us do - it was 75 degrees and the hospital had no air conditioning, yet they still put about four layers on Emma. Here she is with an additional sleepsack for bed!

If you didn't notice I went into the hospital Saturday night, but Emma wasn't born until Monday morning, so it was a bit of a slow process to say the least! So much so, that another surprising moment that I don't think would have occurred in the U.S. happened - the doctor told us just to go out for a walk or go home for a few hours around lunch time on Sunday. Now, we do only live two blocks from the hospital but we still didn't expect that they would just tell us to do what we wanted for a few hours. No need to sign out, tell them exactly when we would be back, or anything. Just walked out with an IV in my arm and went home for a couple hours before labor really kicked into high gear!

First family photo shortly after Emma was born

By the time Emma arrived on Monday morning it had been a long 36 hours that didn't pass without a few surprises, like finding out I was allergic to penicillin about 24 hours into it, but as I had been told several times before nothing else could have possibly been more worth it. We were pretty much madly in love as soon as we saw her. I'm convinced she already has her dad wrapped around her pinky. And I am already relating the experience to a marathon (and not in the normal way of referring to how long of a process it is), but in the way that you feel afterwards and how surprisingly easy it is to forget the pain involved that got you to that incredible moment. But don't get too excited, unlike my normal marathon routine of signing up for another one right after I finish one I think we'll take a little time off before we have another one of these little ones! 

So happy that Emma is finally here!

One of the last major differences between Swiss healthcare and U.S. healthcare is the amount of time that you stay in the hospital when you have a baby. For a regular birth in Switzerland it is usually at least four nights and closer to seven or eight nights if you have a c-section! I spent "only" three nights in the hospital after Emma was born (after all we had already been there two nights before) and was definitely ready to go home by the time we got the go ahead on Thursday. But I was surprised at how quickly the time passed as it seemed that everyday the midwives had several different things planned that they wanted to teach us or discuss. And when we were told on Wednesday night that we could go home the next day the midwives had to rush to go through everything else that was still on our "agenda" as they hadn't expected us to leave until Friday! Then by the time we finally got everything done on Thursday our exit from the hospital was just as nonchalent as our entrance. We simply called the midwife when we thought we were ready to go. We asked if there was something we were supposed to sign or do and she said "No, you are good to go. Do you need any help on your way out?" And as simple as that we walked out the door and walked the two blocks back to our home.

Emma's ready for the long walk home!

 All in all, our first week with Emma has been nothing short of incredible. It's amazing to look back at what we were thinking and feeling last weekend in anticipation of her arrival, to the moment of her arrival, and now to how we feel after a few days of being at home. Although I have no doubt that we will continue to be nervous and worried about something most everyday, it is much different from the anxiousness and apprehension we felt as we waited to be induced. And what I do know for sure is that it's true that these little ones truly are an incredible gift from God, and Emma is one that we will continue to be thankful for the rest of our lives.

What an amazing blessing - is it really possible that we get to take her home with us?

A few other photos from Emma's first week!

Emma's favorite peek-a-boo pose, just like we saw in the ultrasound pictures!

One of Emma's favorite spots, on dad's shoulder

  

Practicing her wave

Blowing kisses

Can't wait to see how much she grows each month!

Proud daddy

Proud mommy

Supervising the newest member of the family!

In case you didn't notice, we're expecting...

Just thought we would catch all of you up that aren't a part of the facebook community with photos from the last six months or so. Good news is that after 41 weeks we know it won't be much longer now and the photos will be much more exciting!

20 weeks - it's a girl!

25 weeks

 

Our daughter knows how to play peek-a-boo at only 28 weeks!

33 weeks

36 weeks

Baby shower in Zurich!

39 weeks

Steve practicing for future bath times while showing his lack of belly



41 weeks - it won't be much longer now!



The month of May...

Vaduz Castle in Liechtenstein

For some reason life has slowed down a little the last month or so, it may have to due with that little detail in our lives that we are expecting one very special little lady to make her debut anyday now. Although it was difficult convincing us to stay close to home (after all over the past six months it has been a rare occasion that we have been in Switzerland's borders for more than a month at a time), we figured our reasoning was well justified. We did contemplate going to the French Open, as Paris is only a 4 hour train ride away, but we decided to hold off until next year so our little one can see her first grand slam.

Anyways, don't think that the month of May was boring and all we did was lounge around the house (although we did some of that as well because as rumor has it we won't be doing that for a long time again), we made two day trips and Steve made a very quick trip back to the U.S. to see his brother, Andy, get married to our wonderful new sister-in-law Rachele!

Steve with the bride & groom!

I lied when I said earlier that we didn't get outside of Switzerland's borders in the month of May, as we actually made our way to the tiny country of Liechtenstein for our first day trip. However, it's funny to think we went to an entirely different country when it only took us 1.5 hours to get there by train and bus and they use the same currency, which is the Swiss franc! Liechtenstein is home to only 35,000 citizens and is 60 square miles, making it the sixth smallest nation in the world. For the most part I can't really claim that I felt like I was outside of Switzerland, but it was still fun to know that we were exploring another country. We spent our day exploring the capital city of Vaduz and saw several beautiful castles that are still inhabited as the country is operated under a monarchy.

Views of the Castle of Gutenberg also in Liechtenstein

In Liechtenstein they drive cars smaller than a Smart Car - big enough for only one person!

Our second day trip was within Switzerland's borders, but it left me feeling more like I had left the country than going to Liechtenstein did. We made the 3+ hour train ride to the city of Lugano, which is in the far southeastern part of the country, and it was our first venture into the Italian region of Switzerland (although Switzerland is dominated by the German speaking region there are 3 national languages as a significant amount of the country is actually French and Italian speaking). It is amazing to know that you are in the same country but feel like you are somewhere completely different. From the moment we stepped out of the train station it felt like we were in Italy and not Switzerland. The trees and plants were different, the mountains were no longer snow covered, and the gorgeous lake that Lugano is positioned on felt more like a tropical oasis.

Beautiful walk along Lake Lugano

Unfortunately for us the day did not end up with the sunshine we had hoped for, but between meandering through the city, eating amazing pizza, and securing a seat on the inside of a boat ride around the lake we managed to escape the worse of the downpouring rain!

Lake Lugano shortly before it started raining

Needless to say it hasn't been a boring month and a half but it has been a very relaxing one. One that I'm very grateful to have had, but one that also leaves me excited for life to get a little busier very soon as well!

 

My parents visit Switzerland!

The month of April flew by after spending the first week in Spain and Portugal and then the last two weeks of the month we were excited to have my parents make the trip across the pond! We certainly made the most of the two weeks as we ventured to nearly every corner of the country. Needless to say by the end of their time here I think all of us needed a vacation from our vacation!

After my parents first flight across the Atlantic we spent the first few days just relaxing and catching up and sorting through the two extra suitcases that were brought solely for their granddaughter. She certainly is lucky to have such wonderful grandparents that were willing to haul all that extra luggage before she is even born! Then after feeling a little more rested and getting an introduction around Zurich it was time to set off on our first adventure.

Lake St. Moritz

We made the 3+ hour train ride to St. Moritz and lucky for us that was really one of the very few days with less than ideal weather, and all we were doing was riding in a train! We were able to explore the small ski village that evening (and spend our first real time with Steve as well since he was out of town for work most of the time they were here unfortunately), but our real purpose of venturing to St. Moritz was the next morning we were heading out on the Glacier Express scenic train.

The Glacier Express is an 8 hour train ride across eastern and southern Switzerland and through some of the most scenic stretches of the Alps. I would highly recommend it as a great way to see some incredible scenery without having to get out of your seat (and if you live in Switzerland and have a GA pass or are visiting and have already purchased a Swiss Pass it is nearly free). It was truly a spectacular ride through hundreds of tunnels, over hundreds of bridges and making several treks up and down mountainsides to as high as 6,000 or 7,000 feet at times.

Mom & dad on the Glacier Express

Beautiful scenery from the train

The Glacier Express ended in perhaps my favorite Swiss town, Zermatt. We had planned a two night stay in this quaint car-free ski community (see previous post about our January stay here), and almost ended up staying a third night as we enjoyed it so much and found this great condo to rent at an extremely reasonable price (by Swiss standards reasonable) and the property manager offered to let us stay another night for free if we wanted! If we hadn't already made other plans we probably would have taken her up on the offer, but it once again went to show us that the Swiss are often not very concerned with making extra money - when was the last time you had something like that happen when you were on vacation in the states?

One of the reasons we had trouble leaving Zermatt was the absolutely beautiful weather we had, and to my delight my third trip to this town proved to be the charm as I finally saw the Matterhorn in completely clear skies! It truly was mesmerizing and hard not to take a photo from every angle throughout the town as it was difficult to let our gaze stray from this amazing peak in the Alps.

The Matterhorn from the far end of Zermatt

We finally convinced ourselves we couldn't stay in Zermatt forever and so on Monday morning we headed out to Lausanne as that was where Steve was working for the week. Lausanne is situated perfectly on Lake Geneva with views of the French Alps across the lake and in the middle of the Lavaux Vineyard Terraces, which are a UNESCO world heritage site that stretch for over 20 miles along the lakeside. While there we explored the Chillon Castle. The castle physically sits right on the lake. We also took a boat ride that allowed us to get a full view of the amazing vineyards. Here's a quick look from the boat ride that shows just how large and impressive these terraced vineyards are: http://youtu.be/9w67_wUea4c

Chillon Castle

Views of the vineyards last summer when they were closer to harvest

After these several days of traveling we were ready to head back to Zurich for a few nights and the rest of our travels during their time here were day trips. We once again got lucky and had beautiful weather for our day in Luzern. Like most everyone else we know my parents loved the charm of this town, and it has proved that it will be a regular destination for most all of our friends and family that come to visit. We were also able to venture via cable car and gondola to the top of Mt. Pilatus, which is just outside of Luzern with one of a kind views of the lakes and mountains throughout central Switzerland.

In front of the historic wooden bridge in the center of Luzern

At the top of Mt. Pilatus

Views of the lakes and mountains surrounding Luzern on the cable car ride to the top of Mt. Pilatus

 On another day we made our way to Interlaken, also a place that is hard not to love as we explored the Lauterbrunnen Valley and took in views of the Alps from another car-free village, Murren. Although we were there during the slow season (between winter skiing and summer outdoor adventure seasons) we found ourselves on some of the busiest gondolas I've ever seen. We literally felt like cattle as they kept stuffing more people in the doors! There were many American tourists on the gondola with us who were extremely fearful that it was even going to break. I'm still not sure I felt safe, but I'm also convinced that the Swiss build things to last and don't cut corners. Luckily, they proved me correct. Regardless, it's still pretty impressive that one cable can support a gondola with well over 100 people inside!

Views of Eiger, Monch, and Jungfrau mountains from Murren

Back in Zurich for my parents last few days in town and we made our way to the Zurich Zoo for the first time. It is supposed to be one of the best in Europe and it didn't disappoint. We live very close and I have no doubt that come next year we will have season passes so one very important little girl can learn all of her animals!

This elephant wanted to greet us up close!

All in all it was a great two weeks and the time absolutely flew by! My parents learned first hand about many of the Swiss tendencies and quirks about everyday life in this country. And I was very lucky to have extra hands every time I had to go to the store (which when you have four people around it seems like you have to go almost everyday!). We are definitely already looking forward to their next visit!