Boredom had settled in early this year. Hiding from the rain at home with all three kids and hubby.

What can we do around kiddies’ nap times and in between food and Christmas movie??? 🎥

On the first day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
A partridge in a pear tree

Well… it’s a good time to go through all the photos we took this year. Twelve days of Christmas means a month for each day. Let’s start with January.

…. 11 days later.

I am finally back at the keyboard BUT all the romantic ideas about posting each day of the 12 days of Christmas had passed. Here I am a day before Epiphany, contemplating if I should make one big post about 2025. Is it too late? Probably it is, but this is life and I am so ready to kick off 2026 on a high note. But first lets review 2025 :

January:

• Start of 1000 Hours Outside Challenge
• O turned one-year-old
• Poland Family Trip
• Friends visited us in Ticino – together we explored Sonogno, Maggia, Verzasca Dam
• Brissago family winter sun stroll
• and many local bicycle rides and walks in the nature
• and we scared the winter away at Bandi Gianee

February:

• endless arts and crafts, and cookie baking
• playground visits and nature walks
• exploring Ascona in the winter sun
• Friends visit us from the UK and we show them Versasca Valley (as we cannot get enough of it ourselves)
• M is attending some ergo-therapy sessions for the first time
• the sun returns to Golino and our garden has woken up from winter frost

March

• Carneval season & International Women Day
• O is practicing his first steps and M is on potty training
• our garden in receives a face lift with side flower strip
• swimming sessions continue
• we celebrate Father’s Day on Monte Generoso

April

• nature walks by the river bank of Melezza / Maggia
• visit to Monte Veritá
• exploring the river bank, sand play and tunner trip
• first ice creams in Ascona
• music lessons with grandparents
• Easter egg hunt and family visit from Italy
• visiting Versasca Valley one more time with family
• exploring Piano di Arbigo with grannies
• enjoying the sunshine as the temperature is slowly rising

May

• Mothers’ day trip to the La Froda waterfall with the family
• Cascata di Foroglio trip
• Double Birthday celebration: Daddy and M
• the first trip to Wonderwood (one of the many)
• O is on his feet more and more
• Lido opened the lake side: more outdoor time

June

• San Bernardino trip: escape from the heatwave
• end of the kindergarten area for B
• more trips to Wonderwood
• river fun at the pozzo in loco
• visit to the St. Gotthard Pass
• visiting friends in their mountain cassina – learning about traditional swiss lifestyle

July

• summer vacation mode
• swimming camps & play dates
• lido / river / garden time
• friends visit and spend a week with us
• Locarno train ride
• beads and other crafts
• marble run construction
• more music lessons
• lots and lots of ice creams and tree climbing
• trip to Italy – exploring lago di Tenno and the suspension bridge

August

• Happy Birthday Switzerland
• family visit from Poland
• Nonna & Nonno visit from Poland
• trip to A&E with O, who drink the oil from the diffuser
• playdates and more ice cream time
• B is learning to skate
• trip to the Dolomites – videos yet to be edited and posted

September

• trip to Viamala gorge
• B starts school
• M starts kindergarten
• PediBus initiative
• trip to Lake Orta
• my birthday
• trip to Lake Garda
• Budo
• great outdoor party at Palagnedra

October

• B turned seven and invited everyone to his party after school
• Lego expo
• Halloween Party at Palagnedra

November

• trip to Italy
• Night of Story Telling – Notte del Racconto (Swiss-wide initiative)
• another outdoor birthday party
• surprise friends’ visit at the end of November
• exploring the Winterland in Locarno – B’s class decorated a Christmas tree
• ice skating
• Advent brunch in Intragna

December

• winter craft for teacher’s gift
• San Nicolao
• Christmas concert, where B and M both participated and sang
• trip to look at the Lucini di Natale in Italy
• Christmas break for M
• New Years celevration in Palagnedra: disco on ice

The one and only plan for the year of 2025 was to spend at least 1000 hours outdoors with the kids. Aaaand… we smashed this goal. Totalling 1004 hours outdoors in temperatures between -5 and 40 degrees Celsius. I call this a success.

And to celebrate we kicked off 2026 with a trip to Monte Tamaro for some sledging and Fondue.

This year I ask for at least the same amount of hours outdoors, for less screen time and more laughter if that is even possible. It’s time to stick a fresh tracker on the wall to record our time in the nature. I look forward to more adventures with my loved ones.