Sarah recently joined a wall climbing course at GRIP, a bouldering and climbing gym near us. Along with five other kids, she attends weekly sessions to learn the basics of freestyle bouldering and rope climbing.
Her interest in climbing began at her physiotherapist’s clinic, where a small climbing wall caught her attention. As part of her therapy to correct her inward-pointing feet, her therapist has her climb the wall, and she seemed to enjoy it so much that I decided to book a trial session for her and Becca at GRIP. After the lesson, we asked if they wanted to continue taking lessons. Sarah was enthusiastic and said yes, while Becca chose not to, preferring to spend her free time after school playing with her neighborhood friends and working on arts and crafts. It worked out, as the lessons for Becca’s age group were fully booked anyway. Fortunately, we were able to enroll Sarah, and she now attends every Tuesday afternoon until December.
I feel like a true soccer mom now, even though my kids don’t play soccer—or football, as it’s called here in Europe. Three times a week, I am their chauffeur: I drive Sarah to wall climbing on Tuesdays, gymnastics on Wednesdays, and swimming on Fridays. While we don’t expect them to become professional athletes, we believe it’s important for them to participate in extracurricular activities that get them moving and interacting with other kids.
We’re also grateful that Biel, the city where we live in Switzerland, offers a sports program designed to introduce kids to various sports. Hundreds of courses are offered at discounted prices, enabling children to try different activities throughout their childhood. The courses are available for children aged 4 to 17, and parents can enroll their kids twice a year—for spring to summer courses (from April to September) and Autumn to Winter courses (from October to April). Enrollment for the autumn to winter courses is coming up, and we’ll need to discuss with the girls which ones they want to join for the next semester.
With all the driving around, bringing them to and from school, and balancing work, it’s important for me to find easy recipes that the whole family will enjoy.
One recent discovery is a one-pot chicken and rice dish. There are countless variations online, allowing you to tweak the flavors to your liking. Here’s the basic recipe I started with:
One-Pot Chicken and Rice
Ingredients:
• 6 chicken thighs
• 1 ½ tsp mixed dried herbs (I used oregano, thyme, and rosemary)
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• Salt and pepper
• Juice of half a lemon (optional)
• 1 ½ cups long-grain rice (I used basmati; jasmine rice works too)
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 cup minced onion
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 cups chicken stock
• Additional oil for frying
Notes:
• Chicken thighs: I removed the skin, but you can leave it on and broil it at the end for crispy skin.
• Rice: Basmati rice will give you separate grains, while jasmine rice will be a bit stickier.
Instructions:
1. Mix the herbs, onion powder, garlic powder, about half a teaspoon of fine sea salt, and as much black pepper as you like. Reserve about a teaspoon of this mixture, then rub the rest over the chicken. Add the lemon juice, if using. Set aside to marinate for a few minutes, or longer if you have the time.
2. Rinse the rice well in a sieve.
3. In a large pot, big enough to hold the chicken in a single layer, heat some oil and sear the chicken for about 3 minutes on each side until golden brown. Remove to a plate and set aside.
4. Add the butter to the pot and sauté the onions until soft, then add the garlic and cook for a couple more minutes. Stir in the rice and toast it for a minute or two. Pour in the chicken stock, add the reserved seasoning, and stir to combine, making sure to deglaze the bottom of the pot. Arrange the chicken on top, cover, and cook over medium-low heat until the rice is done and the stock is absorbed (about 15-20 minutes, depending on the type of rice).
5. Fluff the rice, and garnish with spring onions if desired.*
