Sleep Eating

Lots of Random Things to blog about today!

Michael discovered bubbles today at the park! A father was blowing bubbles for his kids so Michael wandered over there to try to catch one. He's so cute and timid. The 2 other kids are right next to the bubble blower and Michael hangs out in the back hoping some blow his way.

Michael drew his first drawing today with crayons. It's hanging on the fridge.

Yesterday, I was folding laundry in the living room with all the clothes on the couch. Michael was standing next to me, playing with something on the coffee table. I turn to put a shirt on the arm of the couch, turn back around, and MICHAEL IS STANDING ON TOP OF THE COFFEE TABLE.

Yesterday, Michael was super sleepy at lunch, but was still able to grab a strawberry in his sleep. Which leads me to my pictures today.

Michael was literally sleep eating. These pictures are not long blinks. He was sleeping and chewing at the same time. I tried to pull his plate away and put him to bed, but he'd wake up, yank his plate back, pick up some more food, and continue to chew with his eyes closed.

The Donation Box

A week after the Delivery Guy fiasco, my neighbor stopped me to tell me thanks for the sweater that her son pulled from the "donation box." The stripes suited him quite well apparently.

This time, it was Brian's sweater that fit the guy well so I thankfully dodged a bullet there.

Phuong

Puddle Play

Yesterday at Square Rene Legall

The Delivery Guy

I have a Delivery Guy. He delivers my groceries from Champion! It's actually quite normal here. You go grocery shopping, pay for your things, and the grocery store delivers it right to your door. What's not to like?

So the Delivery Guy was dropping off my groceries when he notices a box of things I had left outside my door labelled "Pour Donation." He asks me if he can take it and put it outside of Champion for people to take things if they'd like. Of course! One less thing to do right?

About a month later, Delivery Guy shows up...wearing a jacket I had put in that donation box. I have to admit, it looked much better on him than it did on me so I was glad it went to a person that needed it more than I did. And yes, it was a men's jacket that I had purchased a long time ago when I believed function was much more important than form. It had a fleece lining and was REALLY warm.

Anyways, it was surprising and funny to see he had gone through the box first and to see my old jacket. And a bit uncomfortable for me because I also put in there some green/purple lingerie that I wanted to get rid of. Here's to hoping he didn't remember THAT...

Enjoy your May 1st! Rabbit!

Love,
Phuong

Stats

17.5 month check

Weight, 10.3 kg
Length: 82 cm
Head circumference: 47 cm

Dip Tet vaccination today. I *think* these are the right numbers as I had to read them myself or hear my doctor mumbling under his breath.

Spoon Practice

Today, Michael attempted to eat oatmeal with his spoon by himself. Eventually, he gave up:


Good thing it was a bit thick:

Get it IN THERE!

We gave up. He got a croissant for breakfast. Better luck tomorrow, son!

Michael's friend Oliver has started making this HILARIOUS face. He breathes REALLY hard in and out when he does it. It's so cute:
Happy Saturday!

P

Catch Up, Part 3 - Provence, France

Brian and I came back from Italy, and after a one night layover in paris, we hopped on a train and headed to explore Provence and the Cotes du Rhone area of France with Brian's Mom and Michael.

The first day, we arrived in Avignon, picked up our car, and did a wine tasting in Chateuneuf du Pape. There, we tasted 2 really good red wines, an incredible muscat, and 2 good white wines. They will deliver to Paris if you buy 3 cases (12 bottles each at 24 euro per bottle). Umm...no thank you.

We then, by chance, stumbled upon our bed and breakfast we were staying at. Luckily too because I doubt we would have seen their small sign at the end of a fence! We loved it there as it was a small farm and Michael discovered all sorts of animals. He wasn't too impressed with the chickens there:



On Saturday, we set out to Arles to explore its booming Saturday morning market. We bought loads of Herbes de Provence, table linens, and bed linens there! Now, I can see where Pottery Barn/Williams Sonoma get their inspirations from! We paused to check out the exterior of the Roman Arena and didn't quite make it to the Roman Forum. I think we had shopping on the brain.

After this, we drove around some more and did Rick Steve's Cotes du Rhone drive backwards and as inefficiently as possible. We checked out another place for a wine tasting, saw Les Baux, Saint Remy, and loads of other places and views I don't remember because I was doing my best to entertain Michael in the backseat. He's not so fun in the car.

In Les Baux, Michael took his first audiotour ever:



On Sunday, we jumped back in the car and headed to....PONT DU GARD! I have been wanting to see this structure for MONTHS. It is a HUGE roman aqueduct and is the 2nd highest Roman ruin still standing (the highest is the Colisseum). It was a fascinating to see/learn about this engineering marvel. And of course to take pictures in front of it:

After this, we headed over to Avignon to experience dinner/dusk there. Here is Brian and Michael at the Palace des Papes:

And here is our happy family in Avignon. Well, at least Mommy and Daddy are happy!

So we concluded our trip with quite a delightful dinner in Avignon. The next day, we played on the farm and explored the animals before heading back to noisy, stressful Paris. We sure enjoyed Provence with its sunny weather, relaxing atmosphere, and GREAT shopping!

We will most certainly be back there! Especially since we lost an entire memory card of pictures so we are missing TONS of family pictures. This just means we HAVE to go back. Awww...shucks!

Whew...I think that's it. I am tired. And now off to do 40 mini loads of laundry...

Love,

P

Catch Up, Part 2 - Cinque Terra, Italy

Brian's Mom came to Paris on March 15th! After a 3 hour delay in Dallas due to mechanical issues, Brian almost nearly missed his online Fantasy baseball draft! That dreaded Daylight Savings Time too didn't help!!!

After getting all settled in and relaxing a bit, Brian's mom generously took care of Michael for 4 days and 3 nights while Brian and I took off for our first vacation WITHOUT Michael!

On March 17th, we got the hell-outta-dodge and flew to Italy where we visited Pisa, hiked the Cinque Terra coast, and then shopped in Florence. It was amazing! Brian impressed me by holding up the Leaning Tower with his nose:




The 2nd day, we began what was to be a 7 hour hike through all 5 coastal towns along the Cinque Terra. We started in Riomaggiore, went through Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and ended up in Monterosso al Mare. We had an amazing time exploring these quiet villages and hiking in the semi-wilderness. Some of the trail was QUITE difficult and I thought I wasn't going to make it. But we finished in a nowhere-near-a-record time of 7 hours. Along the way, we had fun conversations, great food, and amazing pictures.

One lady even asked us if we were newlyweds! CHA-CHING! Five going on 6 years of marriage thank you very much! Here is us being in L-O-V-E! And no, I haven't been body building. It's just my ruffly shirt shoved into my sweater that makes me look beefy on top:

Here's proof of my Ruffly shirt with Vernazza in the background:

The last city in the hike was Monterosso al Mare, where we stayed. It was quiet, tranquil, and relaxing. Everything we needed! There were frogs that croaked and went to bed at 11:00pm, every night. It was so nice to hear nature instead of the constant moan of cars/buses in the background! Here we are at the end of the hike, still happy: And the view from the balcony of our hotel room:

Our dinners were filled with super fresh seafood! One night, we had something we ended up naming the Sea Rat or Sea Worm. It had the body of a shrimp and the head of a sting ray. It was weird and awful. NEVER eat anything that fits that description.

Other than that, we feasted on fresh anchovies, freshly caught sea bass, and delicious fruits of the sea! I have never had fish so fresh!

The day after this, we headed over to Florence where Brian found some black shoes that he liked. He's been searching for MONTHS! Rick was right when he said Florence deserved a well planned day. We went to the Uffizi and Accademia and conceeded defeat after seeing the lines.

Ah well! All in all, we had a great vacation alone and were ready to be parents again when we returned to Paris! We missed our little guy!

Next: Catch Up, Part 3: Provence!

Love,

P

Catch Up, Part 1: The Dickersons Visit!

March has been a busy month with the Dickersons coming at the beginning and then Brian's mom came a week later! So after all of our fun with our family and friends, we now have time to sit down and blog it all.

Our Pinochle friends from Austin, Tom and Gina Dickerson, came to visit us at the beginning of the month. We took them to our favorite French restaurant, right around the corner from our house. We enjoyed wine with our French cuisine which included Foie gras, magret de canard, coq au vin, pigeon with truffles, and veal. It was DELECTABLE and a fun night out with NO KIDS! We are pretty happy about that:


Earlier in the day, we ran around with them to the Rodin Museum (2 pictures below) and also to Rue Cler (a market street) where we introduced them to the fine art of moldy French cheeses. Here we are in a fromagerie:

Gina, Michael and I at the Rodin Museum gardens.

After that, they went off to enjoy Paris which included a dinner night cruise, the standard museums and attractions, and even stayed at the hotel Brian and I stayed at for our honeymoon. Even more impressive, is that they were able to fit in a visit to the Normandy beaches while they were here!

We thoroughly enjoyed their company and loved to see them! When they showed up at our door, it was like "home" had just walked in.

Next up: Catch up, Part 2: Cinque Terra, Italy - Our First Vacation away from Michael.

Michael - The Hobbit

Michael has been eating like a hobbit lately. Here is his eating schedule for the past 2 days:

8:00am - Breakfast - Oatmeal
8:30am - 2nd Breakfast - Cheesy scrambled eggs, 1/4 slice of bacon, 1/4 slice of bread with butter and honey
10:30am - Snack - piece of cheese and one slice of cardboard tasting toast
12:30am - Lunch - Green beans, ground pork (tomato farci stuffing), rice, 1 strawberry, 1/4 apple, 1 slice of cheese
2:00pm - Snack - yogurt and fruit compote
4:oopm - 2nd Snack - 5 apple slices
6:30pm - Dinner - Green beans, 1/4 apple, 1 slice of cheese, 1 meat, starch, 1 cup of milk

Thank GOD. He's making up for not eating for about 10 days! Last night, his stomach was so big that it was hard when you touched it. Very similarly to his Uncle John's stomach.

Just had to share that.

Love,
P

Dickersons Devour France

Our friends Tom and Gina Dickerson came to visit on March 1st and stayed until March 6th! We had a great time with them and congratulated them on their 7th anniversary! Their itinerary was chock full of French food, French museums, and the Normandy beaches. It is always great fun to hear about Paris from a first time visitor and also to hear about places we have never been (Normandy beaches).

I am patiently awaiting Gina's pictures that she took! I will post once she does.

And for those who are wondering...the Dickersons have 2 kids (3.5 and 1.5 years old). SO all of you have no excuse to not visit. :o)

Just kidding. Kind of. :o)

Love,
P

More Molars

Well, Michael has been waking up every 3 hours for the past 2 nights. We attributed it at first to the antibiotics upsetting his stomach, but now he is in a much better mood. Lo-and-behold after peering in his mouth, I discover that he's getting his upper 2 molars in. They are JUST breaking through the gums.

Michael is back to eating like a ravenous animal. He eats something practically every hour in addition to his 3 main meals. After not eating for 2 weeks, we are relieved! With the sickness, antibiotics, and teething, it is no wonder he has not been in the best of moods!

We are glad he is getting through with this now before Grammy comes! Now, if he can only stay well for 2 more weeks!!!! Everyone...think (and pray!)..."No chicken pox...no cough...no sickness!"

Michael did something cute that we have been meaning to blog about.

About 2 sundays ago, Brian was getting ready to go to the market. Michael saw Brian getting ready and immediately went to get his sweater. He tried his hardest to get his left arm in and finally gave up. He went and grabbed his hat next and brought it to Brian, only to find out (quite sadly) that he was not going to be going with Brian. 10 minutes after a round of tears, Michael settled down for his nap, which was the reason he couldn't go but he didn't know that.

Right now, it is a really fun age for us. Michael is understanding so much and picking up on things all the time. And the best part about it is, Michael really loves us and loves hanging out with us. We know it won't last forever, so we are enjoying it as much as we possibly can.

Love,
P

Sick Kid = YUCK!

Well, we had the head injury, went skiing, and since then no posts? What's up?

Well, we came back from skiing and then I got sick. And then Michael got sick. And then we had to go to the doctor to get antibiotics. And then there was the diarrhea/vomiting/bad diaper rash reaction from the antibiotics. Michael, not me. And then there was the returning back to the doctor for a new antibiotic. And now...there is the getting better.

So now...nearly 3 weeks later, I have time to post. Having a really sick kid is new territory for me! Michael was really whiny on the antibiotics for the first 2-3 days and all he wanted was to be held and he didn't want to eat. Now, things are looking up...finally!

How long will it last? I don't know! I am trying to keep him healthy until his Grammy comes and we come back from Avignon. So i am doing my best to keep him away from sick kids/etc!

Well...today, we had playgroup and sure enough, one kid has a cough. Then come to find out the same kid might be carrying around the chicken pox because her mom has been trying to get her infected with it to get it over with.

GREAT...Michael's got the vaccine, but who knows if he'll be ok. SIGH. NO KIDS NEXT WEEK!

Love,
P

Bourg Saint Maurice

Skiing...the only time when, as an adult, you are allowed to wear a slippery nylon onesie (with our without suspenders) in public. Or pants that come up way above your belly button. In fact, it is expected and makes you look like you are totally cool.

This weekend, we went skiing in a little town called Bourg Saint Maurice in the French Alps. We stayed at Brian's co-worker's (Mathieu) chalet. It was what you might call, country rustic! But charming nonetheless.

Friday
I went to ski school for 2 hours and after almost killing my instructor on a blue slope (at one point, he was yelling "Jesus Christ!" while catching me), he advised that I needed 4 more hours of ski school and then just to play a little bit on the protected area. In other words, I failed ski school. So we took a family picture at Les Arcs 1600 (height) to make myself fell better:


While I was at ski school, Brian watched Michael and introduced him to snow as well as sliding down a snow hill on your butt. Both of them liked that. However, it was hard work on Brian.
Saturday
We dropped Michael off at a family friend's of Mathieu's and went off to Sainte-Foy, which we liked much better! They had a great mini slope for beginners which had a little motorized walkway next to it to get you back to the top once you skiied to the bottom. Plus they had a green slope!

It was beautiful there, not very crowded and had lots of Brits eating hotdogs. Here's a view of one of the ski trails in the station:

And here's a picture of Mathieu before he took Brian on a red slope. This resulted in Brian banging up his thumb a little bit, taking a tumble, and losing his skis. Apparently, there was a fork in the trail and as Brian was veering right quite quickly, Mathieu yelled "GO LEFT!". And voila, after a bit too much momentum later, Brian is still alive.

Sunday
We attempted to take Michael back to the same station because it had a fun luge and lots of kiddie things. But as luck would have it, he was extremely cranky and not at all in the mood for the luge or snow. I am not going to go into details about how it was the lowpoint of our trip...but it convinced us that next time we go skiing, we are getting him into the day care at the resort ASAP.

Monday
Departure day. We are sad to go, but a little happy as Michael has not been the most agreeable this trip. All our friends warned us that travelling with a toddler was much harder than travelling with a baby and we didn't understand. Now, we are getting a taste of why!

Anyways, we took pictures on the deck of Mathieu's chalet:
And then had lunch in town and then left to go back to Paris!

We stuffed ourselves FULL of the specialties of Savoie (the region). They are known for their amazing cheese. 3 nights in a row, we ate raclette cheese. This is where you buy a huge half wheel of cheese, place it under a heat lamp and melt the top layer of the cheese. You take a knife and scrape off this top layer onto some boiled potatoes. Repeat. Eat it with a charcuterie (cold meat cuts like prosciuitto and smoked ham), salad, and mini pickles. DIVINE. Who doesn't like potatoes smothered in hot cheese??? WHO???

Another specialty was something called tartiflette. Which involves...you guessed it...cheese and potatoes! It is potatoes baked with lardon (bacon), sour cream, onions, and a regional cheese called reblochon. Cholesterol heaven.

So...the couple we went with spent the entire week in bed sleeping because they were sick with the flu. While they were losing weight, we were putting it on with our melted cheese, potatoes, and bread.

Mmm....I think it was a succesful vacation.

Love,

P

Head Injury

Michael was running, tripped, and ran his head into the foot of my bed. I picked him up and there was blood. Not a lot, but enough to freak me out. So my friend helped me get an ambulance, and I went to the hospital. They said it looked like a superficial wound and to keep an eye on him. If he vomits or cries a lot or has a headache or change in behavior to bring him back to check for bleeding in brain. EEK. But so far, he is acting normally. Keep your fingers crossed! Only 40 more hours of monitoring to go!
He has some adhesive strips on his forehead and over that, a Bob the Builder bandaid.
P

What's it like to have the best husband? It's like waking up and seeing sunlight shine through flower petals. Warm and loved. Here's to you, B.

Too much hair

Phuong didn't tell you that Michael had to get his hair cut because he looked like this:

First Haircut!

Michael had his first haircut today at Sergio Bossi:


Dad came too! Thanks to Dad's "straight across the forehead" haircut, it still looks like Michael had a bowl haircut. Thank goodness today was FREE! ;o)

Michael started picking his nose about 4-5 days ago. Today, he stuck his finger too far up his nose and started to wince, but he kept doing it a couple more times to make sure it didn't feel good. Probably didn't help that he probably shoved some banana bits up there as well.

Michael has added "uh-oh" to his vocabulary too!

I think Bors is gonna be upset when he grows up and realizes we didn't keep a blog for him.

Love,
P

Michael has had a semi interesting month. He started talking! Duck came, then next Dad. But he loves Dad. When Brian comes home, as soon as he hears the lock turn, he runs to the door yelling DaDa Daddada REALLY loudly. He's basically screaming it around the house.

Michael helps out around the house A LOT. I would possibly venture even to say more so than Brian! ;o) Examples:

• He spilled some water in our room, went into the kitchen, grabbed a towel off the hanger, came back and cleaned it up.
• He helps load/unload the washer/dryer.
• He brings me shoes left in the foyer to be put away in the closet (this includes Brian's HUGE shoes).
• He helps to push the vacuum.
• When he sees me mopping, he grabs his washcloth and gets on the floor to help.
• When we come home, he knows the stroller needs to be put away. I found out when I turned around one day and saw the stroller coming right at me towards the closet. But since Michael is smaller, I didn't see him so it just looked like a magical moving stroller.

For an instant today, Michael was QUIET. Like so quiet you gotta go look and make sure he's still alive. So I went to find him and discovered him at the window in our living room watching the rain. He saw the drops falling onto the puddles in our balcony and spent 5-10 minutes just watching. He went from window to window just staring. And when I tried to bend down to look with him, he just pushed me away because he wanted to watch for himself.

THAT was worth a picture, but by the time I grabbed my camera/new lens it was over.

Love,
P

Brian is in the Kitchen

I was at Starbucks about a week ago getting a giant american-sized cup of coffee. I placed my order, and they asked for my name, so I said Brian. And the girl behind the counter, about 20, says, "Where's Brian? Brian is in the kitchen." I gave her a quizzical look so she explained to me that in the English textbooks the French use, when they learn about rooms of the house, Brian is in the kitchen.

I thought that was pretty funny. When I learned German, Elke was drinking erdbeerboule, Jens was playing chess and other assorted, oddly-named Germans were doing their daily activities. So I guess I have a weird English name that French people find amusing.

So I went to work the Monday after and was recounting this story to Augustin, the dude who works in my office. I told him the background of the story and then said how the girl asked me, "Where's Brian?" And without missing a beat, he replies "Brian is in the kitchen!"

Then I was down in Grenoble today for a meeting. During lunch, one of the French guys, about 35, was telling me how had expected me to be French because my name is Besancon (a very French name and name of a city)but was surprised to find out I was american. I said, well my name's Brian, that should be a clue that I'm not French, I mean, I'm in the kitchen. And he shoots back immediately, "and sometimes you open the windows."

Apparently I walk around the house doing normal day to day stuff. I wonder what other kind of stuff I do around the house. I know it doesn't have anything to do with being a handyman.

Ice Skating

We woke up early this morning to find Michael had vomited in his crib. Go over to his blog to see what happened throughout the day. At first, we thought it was a one time kind of deal so we went ahead and went ice skating at Hotel De Ville

They have a little section where you can get a seat for the baby and skate around with him in this separate kids section. But that section was set aside for skate school so they weren't offering that until the afternoon. At which point, the wait in line would probably be around 2 hours. Nope, not doing that.

They gave us these little like crampons to put on michael's shoes so he could go on the ice. But they were too large so we gave up! Brian and I took turns holding Michael so we could skate.

I didn't fall down!!! But then again, I didn't venture very far away from the wall very often. I did however do 3 complete loops without holding onto the wall!

Afterwards, we went to the International mass at Notre Dame, which means they read one of the readings in English and then do one set of prayers in English. It was, sadly, a little bit of a let down.

Notre Dame is this great, beautiful, famous church...but because it is so famous, experiencing Mass there is interrupted by tourists circulating along the outer ring, tourists standing in front of you and taking a picture while you are reading one of the readings, etc. So instead of enjoying church, listening to the homily, enjoying the choir sing, you are being constantly distracted. It's great that the church is so celebrated and holds so much interest and people come from all over to see it. But it makes worshipping there a little bit of a different experience than can be expected.

Afterwards, we got a crepe on the way to lunch. Had lunch, Michael got sick, so we then headed straight home.

P

Throw Up

Well, Michael isn't feeling well. We woke up to find that he threw up all in his crib. :o( After I fed him breakfast, he threw up a little bit more. Just a little though...not his whole breakfast and he threw up right after he pushed his finger too far into his mouth.

So we chalked it up to 1)dinner not settleing well and 2) Michael gagging himself.

But then we were at lunch. I gave him a banana and some Gerber stars...then some water. And he threw up. And then he didn't want to eat anything anymore. And he really hasn't wanted to eat anything all day.

I am giving him the French equivalent of Pedialyte and keeping him hydrated. We gave him 3 bites of banana for dinner and that's it. Will start with rice cereal again tomorrow. Calling Dr. Cohen in the afternoon when he gets to work.

So he's not feeling well. Any advice?

Food

For people who LOVE food and cooking:

http://chocolateandzucchini.com/

Happy tasting,
P

A Little Smatch

We found the French equivalent of Kit Kat.

It's called SMATCH.

Sounds a little dirty doesn't it?
P

Babysitting Exchange

Gotta love this babysitting exchange! Michael has played with his friend George for the last 2 afternoons! George is about 20 months old and they get along great. They chase each other around the house, share snacks, and steal toys from one another! Today, George fed Michael some Cheerios!

Well, yesterday, we dropped Michael off with George's parents and they watched the two boys while we went out. Today, we watched the boys while THEY went out! It was great! The boys have fun playing and run themselves ragged/hungry/thirsty. And we each get some free time! Gotta love the co-op.

Gonna do it in January too on the weekends with our British family friends and with George's family too!
WHOOP!
P

So Michael is getting 4 new teeth now. 2 on the top next to his current 4 and 2 on the bottom next to his current 4.

Which means that Michael was cutting his new teeth when we were Ferberizing him to sleep in his crib.

Parents of the Year award goes to....The Besancons!


NOT.

P

Barbarian Night

Michael had spaghetti tonight. Miam miam.

Squatter

Michael squats really well. I think he's going to grow up to be a catcher. Plus, he uses his left hand really well so maybe he'll be left-handed. Do you know how rare a left handed catcher is? They play for years. He'll make millions. Happy New Year. I made it.
Brian!

Nic Wooden Toys

While we were in Germany, Michael LOVED this toy called the "Multi Race" model Medi-S from the toy museum. Click on this link:
http://www.nictoys.com/htm/neu.htm

I am trying to find out how to buy them! We went to a toy store in Germany and they didn't have it. Still googling all over trying to find a retailer...America/Germany/France and I asked for a catalogue via the e-mail.

Just a random thought.
P

Guilt

So we had to get Michael to get used to sleeping in his crib again after sleeping with his parents for like 3 weeks (travelling/etc). It was a nightmare.

He cried for 45 minutes, threw up, then cried for another 10 more minutes. Slept for about 2 hours. Woke up, cried for an hour. And then just little cries here or there for another hour. Slept until 7:00 and then Brian slept with him on the couch until 8:30am.

*sigh*

And today...today is the day that Michael said "Mom" for real. He did it about 10-12 times today and at different points throughout the day. While he was walking towards me. While he was looking at me. While he was hugging me. It was so wonderful to hear his TRUE first word be "Mom."

And then the guilt set in. After such a horrible night, he rewards me with this. And this wonderful moment was so bittersweet.

The only thing that makes me feel better is that he HAS to sleep in his crib. No ifs ands or buts about it. We're just not a huge co-sleeping kind of family. It's just not us.

And tonight? He went down like a champ. Cried for about one minute and then went to sleep. He is such a good boy. We just don't deserve him! Why God gave us such a sweet and wonderful blessing...I'll never know!

Love,
P

Clue...

One clue that you have lived in Paris too long:

I went to the Pottery Barn website today and thought the prices were CHEAP.

For the same price as an entire Pottery barn living room, I could buy ONE couch. And maybe one accent pillow.

P

Nurnberg

If you like Christmas decorations, you HAVE to go to Nuremberg one day! It's like Christmas Handmade Hobby Lobby Mecca! Here I am at just ONE of the stalls of Christmas goods:

We ate EVERY meal (except for breakfast which was free at the hotel) at the Christmas market. Total food consumption for all 3 of us a day at the Christmas market included:

• 15-20 mini bratwursts
• 2-3 hamburgers
• 1 steak burger
• 1 curry wurst
• 2 cups of gluhwein
• LOTS of bread.
• 1 lebkochen (soft doughy gingerbread cookie)

It was the anti-diet HEAVEN. I think the whole month of December was the ANTI-diet.

Friday, December 21st
Arrived and checked into our hotel. Went immediately to the market, stopped at the first wurst-stand and bought a sandwich stuffed with 3 mini bratwursts. Delicious. Shopped a ton at the market and then shopped at the stores around Nurnberg.

Saturday, December 22nd
More shopping and eating. We took Michael to a Toy Museum in the morning! It was amazing! Nuremberg is known for its wooden toys so we checked it out. We skipped most of the museum and ended up on the Kid's activity floor. Michael LOVED it there! He played for an hour easily. He played with all of their wooden puzzles, this cool ramp thing that we tried to find to buy him for Christmas, and with the drawer full of pots and pans. He loves pots and pans and watching me cook. I wonder if we have a chef on our hands! Brian and I at one point pulled out a cool wooden memory game and played that with one another. It was hilarious seeing how much we DIDN'T remember and that just cracked us up to bits as you can imagine our stilly reactions. John would have WHOOOOped us for sure.

Afterwards, we went to a toy store to try to find the wooden toy Michael liked. No luck.

In the afternoon, we wandered up to the Imperial Castle and poked around. Not too impressive I must say compared to Versailles or Neuschwanstein, but we got a family picture for the scrapbook:

Sunday, December 23rd
After a tip from THE MOM, we found the children's double decker old AWESOME carrousel. It was amazing! It had 2 floors and the top and these little look out points. So cute. Upon finding the carrousel, we also found the KINDER christmas market! A market JUST for little kids!!! It was amazing! There were rides, food, and a little toy house FULL of playmobil stuff. It was packed and we couldn't go, but we rode the rides instead! Here's Brian and Michael on the carrousel:

Waiting to get on the Mini ferris wheel! We finished the afternoon there, eating stand food, and the free gingerbread cookies. Michael liked those! Then, we headed to the airport, super early. Super Phuongster style! Before we got on the U, I saw a sign at the bank that read -4 degrees Celsius. No wonder I spent most of the time like this:
Love,

P

P.S. My favorite picture so far of Michael and I!!!!!

Michael looked at me today and said "Mom." I think. Not sure. He did it twice. Said, "Mom" and waited for me to answer. But that's it. I am going to see if he does it again tomorrow at all because it just seems to good to be true.

Today, he climbed in his Dad's lap and said "Da Da". "Da" But not quite sure if that was babbling or not either.

*sigh* One day, he WILL talk!

Love,
P

Conversations

Brian's latest funny moment:

Me: Ok, when we move to Delaware or Pennsylvania, I would like a sprawling one story house that is pretty old but renovated beautifully with columns in the front and a house in the back for my parents to live.

Brian: So what you are saying to me is that you want me to buy Monticello.

Parents' Blitzkreig

Brian's parents came to Paris for a short but very fun visit! They found $440 RT tickets from DALLAS. Crazy, but true. Here is a recap of our days!

Saturday, December 1st
The Parents arrived 30 minutes early and we almost missed them walking in the terminal! After passing out at the apt and unpacking, we headed over to the playground in front of the Eiffel Tower (Champs des Mars) for Michael to play in his favorite playground. However, when we arrived, we found Michael asleep. So we enjoyed our sandwiches, watched other kids play, and then had some nice warm drinks at a nearby cafe. Afterwards, Michael finally woke up and played in the dark on this fun little train set thingy they have:

Sunday, December 2nd
It rained ALL DAY. We went to church where Brian understood the entire homily and I understand probably half of it. The priest was speaking VERY slowly. And since it rained all day, we stayed home, took naps, ate chicken pot pie (thanks AK for the recipe!) and played Pinochle (as we were apt to do every night they were here!)

Monday, December 3rd
This day started out perfectly for me!! The grandparents took Michael to his favorite park near our house, Saint Medard while I had a leisurely morning in at my own apartment. It was a HUGE treat for me. I got to curl my hair, put on makeup, get dressed, enjoy a cup of tea, wrap presents, and watch a movie...all by myself in the comfort of my own home with no one else around. You see, this is a treat b/c whenever the nanny comes, I usually leave the house. To run errands, or stay away otherwise Michael will want to be with me. So I NEVER get time alone in my own home. It was a HUGE deal for me.
Anyways, here is one of my favorite shots at the park while the grandparents played with him until he passed out!

That afternoon, Brian's mom and I went shopping and ran errands and found Michael asleep with Grandpa ALL AFTERNOON. There goes BEDTIME! For dinner, we met Brian over by Montparnasse and had Crepes! Mmmmm!!!

Tuesday, busy day December 4th
Michael and I went to our first storytime lapsit! There were tons of cookies/etc for treats so Michael was pretty happy! It was funny because the kids are just going crazy and only playing attention to the parts of the story that had funny noises. It was basically mayhem with food. At the end of the story time, there were about 3 kids in a row pushing around chairs into the corner.

Afterwards, we had lunch at a place called Biuollon's by Galeries Lafayette which had standard French food. It was pretty good and Michael took a nap! When he woke, we visited the window displays at Galeries Lafayette. This department store sets up these elaborate window displays for the kids and provides a ramp for them to see better. Here's Michael not quite getting it. Look AT the window Michael!
Then, we went to see Santa and had pictures taken! That takes us up to only 3:00pm...only the beginning of the day for Brian's mom! ;o) So then we went over to the Tuilleries and Michael went on his first Carrousel ride!
It was SO fun. I hadn't been on one in ages so I had a great time too...TOO good of a time! I totally let Grandpa take all the pics of Michael b/c he had a better angle and I was having too good of a time. Then...we walked over to the Orsay and afterwards went to the Champs Elysees to see the lights. Whew....finally done. ;o) Met Brian at home for dinner!

Wednesday, December 5th
Parents went home early in the morning. Life resembles normal again until December 10th when we headed to ROME!

Next, Nurnberg recap!

Love,
P

Has it Really Been a MONTH?

I. am. embarrased. It's really been a MONTH since we've posted? Well, a lot can change in a month and it has!

Michael makes more noises now and goes around practicing his intonations. Uhhh...ohhhh...ahhhh..uhhh...but not in a montonous sound. With his voice rising up and then down. I guess he's practicing to be Vietnamese.

No words yet though...*sigh*

He gestures:

• When he wants to be picked up, he holds his arms up and closes his fingers to tell you to come here.
• He puts all his fingers together to a point to indicate that he wants more of something.

I guess that's only 2.

He recognizes Vietnamese words! I can say Vo Thay (which means clap) and he starts to clap.

On MOnday, he figured out how to put the rings back ON his stackable ring thing and he'll put one on and clap for himself! Same with his little pull toy with the stackable things! I taught him how to do it before we left for Rome and he would cry in frustration b/c he couldn't do it. We came back and on Monday, he did it. First shot. I'm so proud. That's really all it takes. Wonder what I'll think when he graduates High School..."My boy is a GENIUS!!!"

Thursday before we left for Rome (so that would make it Dec.6), he started looking at and playing with his penis when he would get naked before getting in the bath tub.

Yesterday, he had his first cheese soft taco.

I think that's it for special observations of Michael. Can't believe I am SO behind!

Love,
P

Roma: Le Fin

Sunday, December 9th: My amazing husband gave me breakfast in bed!!!! Michael was a bit interested as well...but what a treat it was for me! I didn't HAVE to share! But I did...


Here are some of my fav pics in Rome. To be honest, it was too cold and I was sick and so my shots are a bit uninspired I feel. Ahhh...c'est la vie!

Michael Playing at the Roman Ruins on Palatine Hill

Brian and Michael at St. Peter's Square

Michael at the Colliseum

Family Picture at the Colliseum!

Friday, Michael and I went to a park near Termini train station and met Brian there after his conference. Michael played in a swing for his first time! Infant swings (and swings in general) are NOT very common in Paris at all. So it was a BIG treat! Afterwards, we had lunch at this CRAZY eatery that we hit RIGHT at the lunch hour rush. It was one of those where you can order pizzas/pastas to go and stand there and eat. I met something called Lasagna Genovese (which is like a lasagna with pesto and cheese) and I fell in love.

Afterwards, we went to the Borghese Gallery, which was beautiful and set in the Borghese Gardens. Go figure. The Borghese gallery has awesome sculptures of Bernini and had an exhibition of Canova going on which was pretty cool. But it's the STUFFIEST museum I have EVER been to and the most expensive. I was not too impressed with all their rules:

• You must make a reservation to go because they only allow 300 people in at a time to limit crowding
• No strollers
• You must go DOWNSTAIRS to check your stroller...and only after you have purchased their overpriced ticket of 13 euro. I think the Louvre is less...and it's like 60 times bigger and more famous.
• No diaper bag or anything like that allowed.
• You must be out of the museum within a 2 hour time frame.

I understand these rules are to protect their collection but COME ON. Ok...done ranting now.

Michael liked the rooms there! He wandered all around and tried to touch things...but of course he's not allowed. I was holding him and standing near a bust of a nude woman. He smiled at her really coyly, looked at her breasts, and then tried to touch them. Uh. Oh.

After that, we strolled through the Borghese Gardens and went shopping near the Spanish Steps! There were roasting chestnuts everywhere and now I can understand that song "Chestnuts roasting on an Open fire." And I know the smell now! I never understood why that song came to be but now I see...

On Saturday, we shopped...pretty much all day. And since we got a late start, that was fine! I was sick and it was the coldest day of our trip so I got a whole lotta nothing! But Brian made away like a bandit! We wandered over to Campo de Fiori, the Pantheon, and went home.

Sunday, we woke up and should have shopped b/c I felt better, it was warmer, and there were STORES OPEN AT 9:30! We didn't know...and so we missed the boat. I got a pair of boot socks. oo...la...la...

Then we went home. VOILA. Le Fin.

Next entry will be The Parent's Visit, and then our party last night at Pierre Dufours' (Air Liquide's 3rd in command or somewhere pretty high up there). As you can see, this blog is my virtual scrapbook so when I do my actual scrapbook, I have everything I need right here! So you must suffer through the rather uninteresting details.

Love,

P

Roma: Part Deux

I.Love.Italian.Food.From.Italy.

It is amazing! So different than Italian food in the states. No more Olive Garden or Carinos for me! The only place I can think of that comes close...is a place called Vespaio in Austin. And that's fusion of some sort! But if I have any readers from the ATX, head over to Vespaio for a fancy dinner one night. It's worth it!

Here, they treat us like Royalty because we have a BAMBINO! At the Vatican Museum, the would let us take shortcuts, directing us to other places. Show us the elevators, let us to the front of lines/etc. IN restaurants, the wait staff act like we've done them this ENORMOUS favor by bringing in the baby! And they let him run rampant in the restaurant and think it's darling. SO different than in France. IN Paris, they let you into the mayhem that is the Louvre and say.. GO. See if you can find the elevator!

Anyways, Michael and I spent the rest of yesterday afternoon shopping around in the neighborhood we're staying in. Michael took a humungous 2 hour nap (WHOOP!). For dinner, we went around the corner to a place called Target, which delicious and trendy. Wish Rick Steves' would have mentioned that since we showed up in blue jeans and Michael just had a food stained track suit over his pajamas. EEK.

During the meal, MIchael hurt himself. There was a set of 3 steps and he was climbing up them. I wasn't watching closely enough b/c I was tired (although it is no excuse). He kind of did this weird fall back thing and got a little bitty cut on his chin and a small bruise about the size of a dime. :o( . It only takes a second for the kid to hurt himself and it's always the second where I am not watching.

Today, Michael and I went to the Colliseum, Palatine Hill, AND Roman Forum! I am amazed I made it home because I carried MIchael in the Ergo the entire way. I thought my legs were going to give out from under me after it! Wish I could post pictures. I had to take my Canon Point and Shoot and watch MIchael/carry him at the same time so I didn't get the kind of shots I wanted. But hey, better some than NONE.

The ruins were absolutely amazing. Talk about history coming to life. The Rick Steves' tours were absoultely essential and super informative. I had a bit of trouble at Palatine Hill, but eventually found most things. I missed 2 things but by then was so tired of hiking around that I just gave up.

I can't put into words how neat it is to see these kind of things in real life...the scale/magnitude of it all. EVERYTHING. I'll just have to post pics when I get home.

Michael was super funny today. He was in copy cat mode:

He saw me holding up my camera to take a picture today so he then held up his wagon wheel and tried to take a picture with it.

While sitting on the bus, he saw me reach over to grab onto the pole next to the window. So he in turn decided to help me with the pole as well and held on as long as I did. Then he flirted with a girl in another seat.

When we got back to the room, he brought me my camera, gave it to me...and then gave me this huge cheesy grin. I tried to give it back, but he just pushed the camera back at me. That was when I realized, he wanted me to take pictures of him! So I have these 3 super funny pictures of MIchael grinning and posing for the Camera. HOW PRECIOUS. Gotta love it.

Michael is in a MUCH better mood today b/c he slept much better last night and got almost 11 hours of sleep.

Well, I wanted to go shopping this afternoon, but I just am too tired. So we're gonna hang around until Brian gets home and eat dinner together. Tomorrow, I may go do the Travestere walk in the morning untiL Brian gets back after lunch. Then we're all heading over to the Borghese gallery and dinner on Campo de Feori.

LOVE THIS ROME PLACE!
P

ROMA!

Hi everyone!

We haven't posted in a while because:
1.) Thanksgiving for 16 people took the wind out of me
2.)Brian's parents came and took the wind out of me, but in a good way :o)

But here we are in Rome! We just arrived on Monday and are navigating our way around. Monday had some funny moments:

Michael went through the metal detector by himself for the first time at the airport. They asked if he could walk. I said yes...and they put him on the ground and made him walk through! In his PJ's nonetheless!

Brian went to register for his conference. He came back and said his registration day was Tuesday, the 11th. Which Monday, the 10th...was DEFINITELY not. Very funny...very BRIAN.

Michael is of course having trouble sleeping. During one of his wake up episodes, I was trying to pat him back to sleep...but then Michael woke up Brian. And Brian starts saying "Michael gets EVERYTHING." So then I find myself patting Brian adn Michael saying "Shh...shhh...trying to get them back to sleep." Finally, they were back to bed and I had to read Rick Steves' Italy to get MYSELF back to sleep.

Tuesday, we went to the Vatican Museum and saw St. Peter's. They were putting up a Christmas tree in the square! We are going to go back and check it out later this week.

Today, so far, I went to the Pantheon. It was very neat...but a little anticlimatic.

MIchael just took a slam so I have to go change him now. Not sure what the afternoon holds. May go to the Colliseum and see me some Roman ruins. Or I may just go shopping! Here's my very laid back itinerary while Brian's at his conference:

Wed (today): Pantheon (check)
Thursday: Colliseum/Forum/Palatine Hills
Friday: Shop

More later!

Love to all,
P

Michael, The Squirrel

Michael sometimes does resemble a squirrel.

His hair is chestnut brown...and for a while he had kind of long bushy hair that hung over his collar (now, it has been trimmed).

He's got lots of big front teeth, perfect for gnawing nuts (that he's not allowed to have until he is 3).

He's got the chubby cheeks to store nuts in if needed.

He takes his food, hides it around the house, and then finds it a couple of days later and eats it.

He chirps/barks sometimes just like a squirrel once did to Brian at tu.

He gets around on all fours but can balance on his legs if needed.

I think that's it. Luckily, Michael is a human despite all these similarities to the animal kingdom.

Love,
P

First Haircut

With Thanksgiving finally over, we can now have time to play with Michael instead of say, cleaning house or grocery shopping/etc. Yesterday, Brian gave Michael his first hair cut. He snipped off Michael's rat tail that hangs over the collars of his shirts. Nice!

I brushed his hair for the first time today b/c it was wild and wooly.

Love,
P

Lusting...After...Home...

Well, it's the holidays...and Brian and I are a bit homesick, although we probably wouldn't admit it outloud.

Just a couple of days ago...we google.mapped Austin. You know, with the really cool map that you can hybrid Satellite and street and actually SEE your house/car on it. No nerd jokes...please.

Anyways, we popped over to my friend Renee's house and stared at her roof, wondering why we couldn't see her tree house. We ran over to the Arboretum and said hi to our old Barnes and Noble. Then we popped over to Scofield Ridge, our old apartment. Thought we could see The Dart in the parking lot since the map was old, but we aren't too sure of that.

We'll probably never end up in Austin again...but it was a great 4-5 years for us there. I really miss it there...so much so that just looking at a google map and pretending to drive in the old Blueberry was enough. For today.

Don't know if you guys are aware of us schlepping goods home from the US (our family does!). Here's an article that hit a bit close to home!
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-oe-druckerman14nov14,1,1090368.story?coll=la-news-a_section&ctrack=1&cset=true

Love,
P

Who needs a pool when you can have a STRIKE!

During Michael's nap today, the French decided to further punctuate their transportation/government workers strike by holding a demonstration.

The march started at Place D'Italie, which is about 10 minutes south on our street. They marched up our street and all the way to Les Invalides. All 350,000 to 700,000 of them. Yup...no typo with the zeros there!

The strike lasted from about 2:30pm to 5:30pm. Here are some aspects of their strike that DID not wake Michael up from his nap:

• Guys with percussion equipment: snare drums, timpanis on their chests...etc
• Girls shrieking at the top of their lungs
• People singing/chanting
• Leaders on their bullhorns
• Loud....VERY loud music
• Air horns

The noise lasted all 3 hours and it was SO LOUD. I can't imagine what it was like on the street. At one point, I looked out my window and couldn't see anything but smoke from the flares. Yup, they had red flares too.

But Michael slept through it ALL and didn't wake up until he was done with his 2 hour nap at 3:30. But as you know...the strike still was going on.

Here is a link to a newspaper website if you are interested:

http://www.lemonde.fr/web/article/0,1-0@2-823448,36-980685@51-979908,0.html

This is FRANCE! Gotta love workers striking b/c they can't retire at age 50!

Love,

P

SHOPPING I SAY!

Today, I spent the day shopping at La Defense (A MALL) with a friend of mine to celebrate weaning Michael. I left with an empty carryon suitcase and came back with it PACKED and with a tube of tablecloth that was bigger than me.

The French are SERIOUS about setting their table. They have really gorgeous paper table linens that you can get anywhere! I got some nice ones for Thanksgiving at a hypermarket called Auchan. Although they did not have turkey ones...

I found Brian a pair of boxers at the Gap with turkeys all over them. Can you believe there were 30 of them there??? What were the French thinking passin' these beauties up??? I bought them in deep red.

Today, Michael walked the entire length of the couch (about 10-12 feet) WITHOUT falling down or holding on to anything!!! WAY TO GO MICHAEL!

Love,
P

Filthy Bug

I was waiting for the metro yesterday and decided to sit down on one of their nasty chairs. There are usually four chairs and they are spread about 18 apart from each other. So a bit later, some dude comes and sits down in the chair to my right. So I look at him to make sure he's not too weird and I see this cockroach looking bug leave from under his chair and come towards me. I wasn't having any of that so I started blowing at that bug just to you know scare him a bit and send him away from me. It worked! The bug did a 180 and started back towards the other guy who was giving me a 'what the hell are you doing, idiot?' look. Luckily the bug veered behind the other guy's chair and I made it home safe and sound.

Ok...so it's been almost a month since we posted...but it's not for lack of effort. It's for lack of anything really interesting to talk about. Now, if you are an avid reader of Michael's blog, you will see we have spent much time documenting Michael's monumental moments (like his 1st steps!). So it is no surprise that the rest of the things in our life pale in comparison to our baby's transition to toddlerhood! Toot for that little guy!

Monday, it was my birthday. A whoppin' 29 years old. And to be honest...it was about as exciting as that middle sentence there...but it was really great none-the-less. Brian and I are really low maintenance birthday people. We don't expect much! Brian got me some things that I needed (ear muffs while I run, mortar and pestle (don't ask)). Brian came home EARLY!!! And we got Thai takeout and watched Grey's Anatomy together. It was really PERFECT. Relaxing and getting to spend the evening with my favorite person was exactly what I needed.

And Michael gave me a great birthday present...and is still giving both Brian and I are birthday presents! He was SUPER GOOD on my birthday, even when I forced him to go shopping with me since it was my birthday. He didn't cry at all and even ate a croissant and danced for me in Zara. It was precious. This week, he has been his normal awesome self, playing, terrorizing, and climbing in our laps for hugs. This was QUITE different than his week last week where he was clingy and wanted to be carried all day. It was a welcome change!

And then today! Our babysitter came (despite the metro strike, GO HER!) and Brian and I went on a 4 hr date (kind of like the 3 hour tour on Gillian's Island, except we came home). Brian and I took off walking towards the 5th arrondisement, which is very nice and near us! We popped over to Starbucks and grabbed a Vanilla Latte and Creme brulee latte to go and went exploring near Place Contrescarpe and rue Mouffetard while on the way to the Cluny museum.

The Cluny Museum is a museum of middle age history. Due to the strike, they were closing early at 4pm and admission was FREE. SCORE, TEAM BESANCON PARIS! Highlights:

• Stained glass that you could see UP CLOSE from Sainte Chappelle...which as you all know you can only really admire stained glass from pretty far below so to see it less than 1 foot from your face is pretty neat.
• A carved statue of Mary holding baby Jesus....common you say right? Throw in the fact that Mary's right boob was hanging out and baby Jesus was breastfeeding from it while caressing it. GO NURSING MOMS!
• A modern photographer took some VERY UP CLOSE pictures of the stained glass and it was amazing. A small mistake/blip was as big as a football and was the focal point of this one picture with the brush streaks of red coming down it from the glass. VERY different.
• Tapestries with Lady and unicorns. Apparently very famous and in this very dark and light controlled room as to properly preserve them
• I bought a book about all the magnificent cathedrals in France. It's neat b/c it describes all the vocabulary for cathedrals/architecture in French, has pictures of ones that we should visit and ones we have visited, and also has cool cathedral photography which serves as inspriration for me when I go visit too. Cathedral shots are all the same so some of the angles are very cool.

Afterwards...we just wandered around...by the Luxembourg Gardens, to a cool toy store called Le Ciel Est Tout le Monde (http://www.lecielestatoutlemonde.com/us/page1.html), down around Claude Bernard...then to RUE SAINT JACQUES (VOILA BILLY!), another toy store over there, and then to Glaciere, then home. Totally relaxing, totally fun, and totally what we needed.

With Brian's 30th birthday nearing and my 29th birthday over...it was refreshing to take that leisurely stroll. To reflect on our life. To embrace and appreciate the beauty of our life here in Paris. Being among all these old buildings, gorgeous parks, lovely scenary everday makes us take it for granted. It is just a blur in our existence as we run from work, to the poste, groceries. Sometimes...it is necessary to not have plans...to just wander where we feel like...and to recognize as we gained one more year in our lives that ALL we could ever want...is what we have right now. In this moment. Always. Nothing more and nothing less.

Friends and family...thanks for always checking in, for your birthday wishes, for your birthday blessings, for your prayers, and for YOU including us in your lives. It is what makes OUR lives so whole.

Love,

B&P&M