Lost, and found

Dennis and I spent another morning at the American consulate.  We’ve been trying to refinance our house for months, and our contact at the bank was slow getting the paperwork done, forgetting that we’d be leaving the country.  Unfortunately it came to the point when it was too close to our departure to look for another lender.  So we’re stuck with the monkey.

And he messed up again, necessitating another stack of loan papers signed and another trip to the Notary.  Who, by the by, charges 50 CHF per signature.  Have you hugged your Notary today? Or suggested that she set up shop in Switzerland?

The kids had been squabbling in the morning before school, so I decided to get them out of the house in the afternoon: everyone seems happier when we’re out of doors. How I miss being able to send them out into the yard. I was hoping to take them to the Franz Carl Weber Toy Museum, which looked warm and fun.

Except, as you well know, I’m hopeless at directions.  I stared at my smart phone, checked street view directions, but still I couldn’t figure out where it was.  Luckily the kids were so absorbed in their conversation that they didn’t notice we were crossing and recrossing streets.  At one point I was sure I found it, but instead I’d found the Franz Carl Weber toy store. But by the time I realized my mistake, the kids had already darted for the stuffed animals and airplanes and, most of all, the heating.  So I gave in: it was time for a change of plans.  (I’ve been studying the map since then, and I think the museum was just around the corner.  So close!

But it was a pretty amazing store.  Apparently it’s quite famous: we weren’t the only American with cameras there.  We spent an hour, playing with Brio and marble runs.  And eventually we realized we’d accidentally stumbled on the toy store we failed to find a couple of weeks ago, once we saw the fun slide leading to the reading area, pictured above.

Alex drooled over the racks and racks of board games and started to make a birthday wish list.

German board game heaven!

And Ella got to play her favorite game and mine, "I can't believe how much things cost here!" A single container of play do? $3. A matchbox car? $4. The wooden building set we found for $2 at the garage sale? $70.  So now Ella's mulling over her newest money-making scheme: "Mom, do people ever go to garage sales and buy things and then resell them for more money?" Forget lemonade stands: the child is jumping straight to ebay.

Best of all, marching around the streets of Zurich, the kids made their peace with one another. By the tram ride home, the three of them were sitting in the corner of the car, singing school songs.  Remembering how Swiss children should be seen and not heard, I started to shush them, but someone stopped me, saying “Oh no, they are perfect.”  Well, I knew the truth about that, but decided to keep it a secret and enjoy the moment. So they trilled all the way home to smiling strangers, one of whom couldn’t help himself and chucked Joey’s chin.

On retrospect, I should have passed a cap.  It would have helped pay for the Notary.  Oh, but shhh. Don’t tell Ella I said that.

Waiting for the tram home: as we were watching, all of the ice slid
off the fountain and fell into the water below.  You can see all the
icicles floating in the water, still.  Ella and Alex both got splashed
with ice water...to their pure delight.  Weirdos.

In other random news, Ella learned a new special skill today.