If you'd told me 6 months ago that I'd be blogging about my life, I would have laughed and thought perhaps you liked to partake in a little midday cocktail. My life hasn't been all that exciting up until recently. I've been your typical suburban housewife. Married, three kids, 2 cars, convenient little life in the suburbs of Chicago. I live 10 minutes from where I grew up and where my parents still live and 5 minutes across town from my older sister. My younger sister, who lives on the other side of Chicago, was considered radical for living SO FAR from the rest of us. I mean, an hour and 15 minutes away from grandpa and grandma, our go to babsitters? No, not for me.
Now, somehow my husband got me to agree to move across the ocean to Switzerland. I'm not exactly sure how it happened, but I think it involved him pouring me lots of Chardonnay. He told me we could go visit for a week after Thanksgiving and of course my bags were packed and grandpa and grandma vaguely remember seeing me fly past them towards the door while yelling "Good Luck" over my shoulder. I have 3 kids ages 5, 4, and 2. HELL YES, I would agree to a week long Swiss vacation! No diapers to change? No bribing children to ingest green beans? And best of all, a solid nights sleep? Say no more.
Needless to say, Switzerland is the most beautiful place I have ever been and it doesn't hurt that they have the best coffee and chocolate on the planet. So with a latte in one hand and swiss chocolate in the other, I agreed to make a go of it. Looking back, it really doesn't seem fair to ask me to uproot our lives while I'm vacationing without children and stuffing my face with my 2 favorite things. I was drunk with the splendors of Switzerland and should not have been considered fit to make any life changing decisions.
Now the reality of that weak moment has set in and the work has begun. The list of to-dos is endless. Packing, finding a home for our annoying cat, applying for visas, applying for international schools, and squeezing in as much time with our friends as possible, is a lot of work. We are looking at it as an adventure. I'm scared to death to move somewhere without a support system, but I also know this is an opportunity of a lifetime. When our 2 year adventure is over, I have no doubt we will be glad we took the plunge. The kids will become better people for the experience and Bryan and I will too. There was a time when I was adventurous and loved taking risks. I even jumped out of an airplane a couple times. But that person has been hiding behind 3 kids lately. Hopefully Switzerland will find her alive and well and ready for the unexpected!
