FAMILY AND FUN - PART FOUR (AND THE END!!!)

The week the kids were here we packed a lot into each day.  Buses were taken, metros were ridden and miles (or maybe I should say "steps") were amassed.  Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of their last week was no different.  This post has already been so lengthy, I'm going to try and have just minimal script and more pictures to show you what we did and what a fun time we had.

Monday we had a tour of Opera Garnier planned for the morning for Nikki, Scott, Sam and I and David and Levi went to find the Thomas Jefferson statue (a favorite of Levi's) and go back to the trampolines!  I love this opera house and was happy to tour it again with the kids.  Our guide was very good,  and it's a visit I'd recommend to anyone.

In front of "The Phantom's" box

While we were visiting "The Phantom", Levi and David were discovering some history...

Levi and Tom!!

Jumping releases lots of stored up energy!!

Then we all met up and found a place for a light lunch before our afternoon Chocolate Tour (yummy!!).

Walking from our opera tour to meet David and Levi

Paris Walks is a fabulous walking tour company in Paris.  Peter and Oriel Caine own the company,  and Peter has been a speaker at Bloom for many years.  David and I have been on several of their tours,  and all were wonderful.  The Chocolate Tour was no different.  Brigette took us to three different chocolatiers and one patisserie,  and we got samples everywhere.  Seriously, by the end, we were all stuffed!!  She was a wealth of information while being warm and friendly.  This was a private tour (which we paid more for) and that was especially nice, I think.

Jean Paul Hevin Chocolatier

What a busy, fun day we had!

Tuesday we had tickets to the Atelier des Lumieres that was doing a Van Gogh exposition.  I think we all enjoyed this outing, and it wasn't as crowded as I remember it being when David and I went to see a Gustav Klimt exposition.

Sam was interested in Pere Lachaise Cemetery to see where Chopin was buried.  We did a little research ahead of time (so we wouldn't be wondering all over to find the grave) and headed out to the cemetery after Van Gogh.  While there,  we also saw the graves of Colette and Jim Morrison.  I think the boys thought it wouldn't be very fun, but, actually, it's a very interesting place to stroll.  Who knew???!!!

Lunch was followed by some miscellaneous shopping: Happy Socks (for Sam), MAC (for me), E Dehillerin (for Nikki - she bought a really nice crepe pan-this is the kitchen store where Julia Child shopped and I love it), and a little yarn store (for Nikki).  We ended the day at Les Deux Magots because our chocolate tour guide, Brigette, said they probably have the best hot chocolate.  We sat outside, all tired and appreciating the opportunity to sit.  The hot chocolate???  It was very thick and very sweet.  Too much for me.  I prefer others I've had.  However, Nikki got a Les Deux Magots cup and saucer so she was happy!

A little "sit" break while Nikki checks out a yarn store (see Scott in the background!!)

Wednesday, their last day in Paris, the others went on a walking tour of Montmartre and Levi and I stayed home.   I'd had a migraine the night before and allergy problems so I knew I wasn't up to a day of walking and standing.  We gave Levi the option of going or staying,  and he decided to stay home too.  He and I just relaxed (he watched TV and I did some little things around the house and took it easy) while the others spent literally all day touring, lunch and getting back and forth.

The Wall of Love in Montmartre-"I love you" repeated 311 times in 250 languages

A typical site on a square in Montmartre

Le Passe-Muraille is a story about a man who discovers he can walk through walls-this statue is located in Montmartre

Once everyone was back home, Levi and I were ready to get out for a while so the guys walked over to Champ de Mars to see the Eiffel Tower and Nikki and I went to a little yarn store near us.

All the guys!

We met up at, you guessed it, Amorino, for ice cream cones!!

I love this place!!!

For their last dinner in Paris, they wanted to experience a real French meal so Nikki chose a little restaurant near us (their treat!!), Le P'tit Troquet,  and we all dressed up (a little) and acted like we were real Parisians!  The restaurant was a lovely, little place.  It was quiet, the food was good and the service impeccable.  I would certainly go back.

Le P'tit Troquet

After dinner we walked over to watch the Eiffel Tower twinkle...

Au revoir Paris!

...it was the perfect ending for their Paris trip.  The next morning they were on their way home...and we got back to our normal Paris life.

Ready for the trip home!!

FAMILY AND FUN - PART THREE

Even with guests, we still have a routine that needs to be followed (at least if we want to feed them!!).  Saturday is Market Day, so we bundled up (another clear but cold day) and went to the market.  Sam's taking French in school this year so was excited to practice what he's learning.  Unlike me, he wasn't afraid at all of practicing when purchasing something or selecting a hot chocolate.  His French teacher would be proud.

After getting things put away, we boarded a commuter train to Meudon, a small town in the southwestern suburbs of Paris where Rodin had a home.   It's a cute little city housing about 45,000 people.  The signs to the site were initially well marked...until they weren't!  So up, down and around til, voila, there it was!!

A tree-lined street in Meudon

The grounds were pretty and included, not only Rodin's home, but his atelier housing many of his sculptures.

A moment of quiet and solitude in this pretty place

I love when there's something to make it real for children

This was an area where you could touch some reproductions of Rodin's pieces.  It was kind of fun and something the boys enjoyed.  And it was also interesting just to see how the work looked and felt close up.

I was so disappointed in the residence.  We couldn't go upstairs where, evidently, the kitchen (which I always love seeing) and bedrooms were.  It didn't take long to browse through the eating areas and a small living room.

A little rest for the weary and...where is a Starbucks??!!!!

I'm not sure where the boys (or husbands!) were but I imagine Nikki and I were more concerned with "wish we had a Starbucks" as we sit in this pretty garden!!!!

Alas, no Starbucks, but once we got back in our neighborhood, ice cream and crepes were on the menu....

Levi is serious about those crepes!

Seriously, doesn't that look delicious!!!

Levi opted for a Nutella crepe and Sam and I shared a delicious banana split (we admitted later we each could have eaten our own!!!!) and we had, of course, hot chocolates!!!  A perfect ending to our day!!

The next day was Sunday and after church and a cafe lunch across the street from the Jardins des Tuileries, located between the Louvre and the the Place de la Concorde, we split up and Nikki, Scott and Sam visited the Musee de l"Orangerie, where Sam wanted to see Monet's "Water Lilies".  While they did that (David and I had already seen it), we took Levi to the Jardins where we found the perfect place...

...trampoline cages!!!  He loved it!  And afterwards, a treat was definitely in order....

I'm dressed more for February than April!

...chocolate/vanilla swirl ice cream cone!!!  Hard to believe, I know, but it was a little too cold for me!!

We strolled the gardens before meeting up with the rest of our gang and catching a bus to another area of the city.  Once off the bus we went through Passage Jouffroy and walked through Pain d'Epice, a really unique toy store where Levi made a purchase, a stop at Hard Rock Cafe so Sam could pick up a t-shirt and, finally, Galeries Lafayette.  Sam had really wanted to see one of our large department stores and the domed ceiling of Galeries is fantastic.  A few euros were spent (!!!) and then it was home, sweet home!!!

We packed a lot into the day,  but there was a little for everyone and that makes a good day!

FAMILY AND FUN - PART TWO

Our first full day together was an out-of-Paris day.  Nikki has always wanted to go to Chartres,  about 50 miles southwest of Paris,  and walk the labyrinth in the Chartres cathedral.  So we were up and out for a 10:00 train.  The day was sunny and clear but cold...brrrrrr!!!

The cathedral was mostly constructed between 1194 and 1220.  It became a popular pilgrimage during the end of the 12th century when people came to view the tunic that it was believed Mary wore at the time of Christ's birth.  The labyrinth, a representation of the spiritual quest of the pilgrim traveling to the holy land, was most likely constructed early in the 13th century.  For thousands of years pilgrims have come to walk the labryrinth and, while it is partially obscured by chairs, it is traditionally uncovered every Friday from the end of February to the first of November.

Entrance to the city square

I never tire of the sight of these old churches

Sorry for the blurry pic-this is a pensive walk-I found myself humming some old hymns

We didn't realize there was an outdoor labyrinth as well so we set out to find it.  It took a little walking and some stairs to find it, but we did and walked it too.

This was easy!

Levi walked alone!!!!

Sam, Levi and me

Chartres is a nice, quaint little town, and we enjoyed walking around it stopping into various little shops (santons were purchased!) until finally we all were ready for lunch.  After a great lunch at Le Serpentine (where David and I had lunch when were in Chartres in 2017), we searched out a stained glass museum Nikki had read about.  It was a quiet, out-of-the-way little museum where we got a close-up look at some beautiful stained glass.  It was a nice respite from the crowds at the Cathedral.

Not a bench in sight, but the edge of a large planter works fine for a brief rest!  It had been a long day, and we were all ready for the train back to Paris.

And we've just begun.....

FAMILY AND FUN - PART ONE

It's been a sad week in Paris with the fire at Notre Dame Cathedral early in the week.  Many articles have been written, many posts have been blogged and many photos have been taken.  There is nothing I can add to any of what has already been said.  It is immensely sad to see this beautiful structure on fire, but in the outpouring of blessings, prayers and well wishes, Parisians (and French in all the country) are encouraged and hopeful.  Certainly, it was an historic moment we will never forget when we remember our adventure here.

Taken the day after the fire when we  went over..us and everybody else!

Nor will Sam and Levi as they return to school from the Spring Break they spent with us last week.  Nikki and her family arrived Thursday early afternoon, and we hit the road.  We joked Nikki had a "schedule" for the week for us, which she did, but it only served as a guide so we never spent time "discussing" what we were going to do today.  Amendments were made when necessary and activities were added when desired.

We boarded the Batobus (a hop-on-hop-off boat) on the Seine and went to Eglise  St. Germain des Pres to show the kids "my star", the star in the renovated ceiling David purchased whose proceeds go toward the renovation of the church.  This is also one of our favorite churches.   Bexley was next on our walk.  It's a men's store David likes that Sam wanted to visit.  He walked out with a scarf that he wore the rest of the trip (and really needed as the temps were pretty cold some days)!!  By then we were needing a little treat so we walked to Odette's (our favorite mini cream puff cafe) for a treat and a hot chocolate and browsed Shakespeare and Company.  Over to Notre Dame (pre-fire) but, as usual, lines were huge so we just walked around then back on the Batobus.

Waiting to board

The next stop was Jardin des Tuilleries that looks beautiful right now with all the blooming trees and spring flowers.

And after all that walking and riding, a little boy needs a great hill to roll down...

These jeans needed washing after this!!!

...with permission, of course!!  A walk to WHSmith where Sam could look for a book he's been wanting and we were all done!!!  We packed our first afternoon with lots of Parisian life - walking, public transportation and cafe-ing (not for coffee for us!!!).  I think we had a good first afternoon and now needed a good night's sleep to get our week rolling.

RETREAT AND RELAXATION

The last few days have been busy ones and out of our normal weekly routine.  For quite a few months,  I've been on the Planning Committee for the Ladies Retreat at church.  Evidently, this is an annual event (perhaps a twice-a-year event), and this year I was asked to help out on the committee.

The theme was  "Listening to Love and Living Blessed",  and our speaker was a Lutheran pastor, Emily Rova-Hegener, who is from Minnesota but is currently living in Oslo.  Through our life stories, we were reminded we've been created and blessed by God to be a blessing for others.  Emily was serious but fun, thoughtful but light-hearted.  It's been many years since I've been to a ladies event, and this was definitely a blessing for me as I am in this new stage of my life.  We didn't just sit and listen (which can be a little too much for me!!!), we had a song leader (she was wonderful too!), and Emily used some small group activities, reflection time (you could go for a walk outside, sit in the sanctuary etc.) and even little craft projects to illustrate the things we were hearing.

We served breakfast pastries, fruit and yogurt in the morning with coffee, tea and juices as ladies arrived.  Each participant was asked to bring a treat,  and I took care of purchasing the other items.  We had a table overloaded with all kinds of breads, baguettes, muffins....everything you can imagine.

Our decorating team did a great job of making the room where we spent the day pretty and cheerful.

Everything was cheerful and spring-like

In this picture, the table is ready for lunch with the napkins and placemats.  For the morning session, those, of course, were absent!  Our lunch was catered by my friend, Janine Springall, who catered Bloom's lunch last year (and will be doing it again this year) and also did my birthday party.  The food was delicious and was served to us by some of our men...including, of course, David!!

There were some choices given if necessary

We had spent Friday afternoon and evening setting up then the retreat was all day Saturday, so by Saturday evening I was tired!  And soooooo.......

Sunday we skipped (oh, noooooo!!!!!!) church!!!!!  Let me tell you.  David and I were talking about it and we rarely skip church.  The whole time our kids were growing up I think we only missed if one of them (or us) was sick which didn't happen very often.  Even without the kids, we rarely miss.  It's just what we've always done and what we always do on Sundays.  Anyway....

There was a book signing at The Red Wheelbarrow (the bookstore at last year's Bloom and coming back this year) by an author we didn't know, David Downie.  We checked out the book, and it sounded like one we would both like so we decided to spend our Sunday quietly...

On the way....

...to the Red Wheelbarrow!!  Our temps have gotten a little cooler (what happened to spring???) but we're prepared because, while we're over that way, we're going to stroll through Jardin de Luxembourg!

The bookstore is a little shop and, we were glad to see, was full of people.  We met David Downie and chatted a while while he signed my book then visited with Adrian Leeds, our realtor, who was also there (we knew about this event from her newsletter).  I've already begun reading the book and am enjoying it.  I'll be interested in checking out others by him...I know our library has some.

I do love "real" books!!

It was a little early for lunch so we strolled through the garden and watched the children with the sailboats in the fountain.  The flowers were beautiful and everyone seemed to be having a nice, relaxing time in the mild weather.

The flowers were prettier in person than in this picture..sun would have helped!

I can't wait to do this with some of our "littles" (who aren't so little anymore!!)

By then we were getting hungry but the cafe we had planned to go to was full (must be the Sunday place to be!), so we decided to head home.  As we got to the bus stop (one we seem to frequent), we decided to have lunch at a little cafe right there that we pass each time we're in that area.  So we both had a nice lunch and I ended mine with a cafe creme to warm my hands!!

Wish I had one of these right now!!

I don't advocate skipping church, but,  just this once,  it was a wonderful respite from the busy week and a time to relax and, yes, maybe even reflect....on how blessed we are to live, for now, in this beautiful city.