Diary: 1/13/2002

Dear friends and family:

Considering the activity from the last few weeks, this was a quiet and slow time for us. Not that the change from break-neck action was unwelcome. It was nice to have some space to breath and let things get back to normal. And it's not to say that the week was without any highlights at all!

On Monday, Allison and Michael left for home. We had an amazing couple of weeks with them, and got to explore some parts of Switzerland that we may not have chosen to do on our own. Everyone was very sad to see them leave, especially Joram. He has become very attached to Michael ("Ma" as Joram called him). For days afterward, Joram would eat very little, and wandered around the house calling "Ma! Ma!" - you could see that he really thought Michael would jump out any minute. It was heartbreaking to see, although he seems to be better now.

This week marked our return to "regular life" - work, school, laundry, groceries, etc. It also marked a chance to finish the cleaning and organizing that we've been putting off since the beginning of December. We are finally storing the last of those items we realize we don't need, pulling out those that we found out we need (when we thought at first we didn't), etc. The desks are getting straightened, bills are getting paid, and computers are finally getting sorted out.

Speaking of getting the computers set up, our DSL internet is FINALLY set up. What this means is that Debbie has her laptop back and can get onto her email whenever she wants! In the next few days I'll be setting up the girls with email accounts. For now, if you want to contact us via the internet, you can use the following:

Leon's email (duh): leon.adato@nestle.com
Leon's instant messenger screen name (AOL or Yahoo): adatole

Debbie's email: adatoda@yahoo.com
Debbie's instant messenger screen name: (AOL or Yahoo): adatoda

This also means that I can start updating the web site again. I've started by posting all the "Adato Diaries" and pictures will be coming soon. The site already has a good collection of things from before the move. You can take a gander at http://www.angelfire.com/home/adato .

On Wednesday, more US friends came to visit. Doug and Janis were helping Doug's Mom fulfill a lifelong dream of skiing the Alps, and they took a day off from the slopes to come over to our place. It was a very low-impact visit - just some food, drink, and conversation. But it was great to see familiar faces and hear about their experiences at Zermatt - the site of the Matterhorn and a really nice ski resort.

For those who are keeping track of the never-ending saga of our house and the problems in it, we finally got the cook top fixed (it had been shattered since the day before Christmass. The dryer is still not working right, even after they replaced it with a whole new model. While the repair guys were supposed to arrive Monday, it was a no-show. Tomorrow (Monday) the wallpaper folks will finally come to change 3 rooms. This had been planned since we moved in, but with the holidays they didn't have time before now. We are still waiting to hear when the people are coming to fix the tile, the window handles, the shutters, and the broken glass in the winter garden.

On Friday, Heather went off to her first day of skiing with school. Imagine *this* as your normal school experience: Starting in mid-winter, you get every Friday off - completely off - from lessons, and go to a ski resort instead to practice on the sloaps. Can you believe it? Heather started off in the most beginner group (I don't think the kid has ever been on a toboggan, let alone skis!). But by afternoon she had moved up a group. We are excited to track her meteoric rise and have visions of her eventually challenging Picabo Street.

Saturday was "toy" day for the grownups. Leon went out and bought a new flat-screen monitor that is to-die-for, plus a printer to replace the one damaged during the move. After seeing how nice and warm Heather's ski coat was, Debbie stopped at the sporting goods store and bought herself a similar one. Then we spent the day cleaning, organizing, and hanging out.

On Sunday we didn't even leave the house! After pancake brunch we had an informal Sunday school session, and then spent the rest of the day straightening up some more. The housework just never seems to end.

This week should be relatively easy. Leon has some new contractors starting at work so that should take up a lot of his time, plus his boss and project manager both return from vacations. On top of the "normal" work it should be a hopping time!

Isabelle is sharing a birthday party with another girl on Thursday, so that will be exciting. The other girl wanted a "purple" party. I'm assuming everyone here knows what Isabelle wanted for a theme. So they compromised on a Purple Pooh Party.

And of course, we have to get ready for Debbie and Joram's trip the following week.

Please take care, keep the cards and letters coming (especially to Debbie's email now that it's running!), and let us know if there is anything we can do for you!

Love
Debbie, Leon, Heather, Isabelle, and Joram