a glimpse into paris.

oh man was it heaven! wish i could have stayed longer. we did miss the kiddos so much, though. we decided we would have to go back with them!!

highlights

1. eating unlimited crepes and macaroons and then walking it all off. we walked probably 100 miles.

2. meeting parisians and having a new french facebook friend!(modern day penpal!)

3. visiting all the beautiful churches.

4. drinking. morning-cafe au lait ( steamed milk). after breakfast- wine and our fav 1664 blond.

5. the farmers markets. fresh produce, meats etc. one of the perks of being up at 5am everyday- we got fresh croissants right out of the oven at the boulangeries! and mostly just the boulangeries!!!! bread. yum. more bread. and the cheese! so different from here!
6. almost dying when a dog jumped out of a trunk barking at us. it was very late and we were looking for st. catherine  at rue de bac. we never found her. bummer!

7. the view from our hotel. ooh la la.



8. all the pretty flowers....





9. listening to my new fav carla bruni, the first lady of france, although my new french friend, ameilie, tells me her reputation is questionable...


10. getting lost and not caring.
11. the amazing photo opps.
12. not understanding the hours of the metro and almost getting trapped in the station. we had to run and slide under the closing gate!

13. eating lunch under the eiffel tower.

14. learning the history of the city.

15. people watching.

16. finding the fabric district and antique flea markets. i bought a book of paintings and some old spoons. i love them. i wanted to buy... old newspapers to cover my bathroom walls, a set of 3 garden chairs, old dolls, a velvet chair, an old stool. ( couldn't fit them in my 1 backpack i brought)

17. this list could go on and on.....

i can't handle it!!!! my 2 most FAV singers singin' together!!!!

love this...

happy birthday to me!!!! gosh, i can't tell you how good it feels to be 28. again.
also.... happy anniversary to us! 11 years of marital bliss! (most of the time anyway:) thank you to all who have helped us, given us advice, put up with us, been friends with us and most of all who have loved us. we love you so much too and thank you for all you have done for us. especially childcare..... which leads me to..........

this year pdubs is taking me to paris!!!! i can't wait to sit around at the cafe, for as long as we want, sans les enfants!!! i will miss the little cherubs so much though. i can't wait to buy them lots of little french goodies and check out the little paris dresses! S was given the most adorable dress from paris when she was 2. all of the girls have worn it, now little S wears it around, rips and all! 

first communion and confirmation

S did a great job on saturday! we were so proud of her and she looked beautiful! she was a little nervous at first, can you tell?

her beautiful cake that her sponser/auntie made for her....


congrats baby!!!!

cinco de quatro and daisy tea party

L had to create a centerpiece for her daisy tea party. we decided to go with a floral theme. she worked very hard and it was truly a masterpiece!

most of our family had to work on cinco de mayo, so we decided to have a good old-fashioned front yard gathering. we came up with lots of names for the celebration, cinco de quatro, quatro de cinco, quatro de mayo...... point being, we had a great time. the neighbors came over with sombreros and home made lemoncello. soooooo good!



i think everyone had a turn singing and serenanding....
the three amigos. yikes.

catching up....

S is back from her big trip. one of the things i was most excited about is her own photo documentation. we entrusted her with the digital camera and told her to take as many pics as she wanted. she was very excited to do this.
this is what she came back with....



that's it folks. apparently the camera didn't come out again after the bus ride there.

oh well. hopefully some of the chaperones will be willing to share their pics.

she's back!!!!!!

safe and sound. and has a new wealth of knowledge.



YEAH!!!!!!!

mixed feelings

i put my 8 yr. old on a bus this morning. she is going to a camp in California for 3 days!!! i am so exctied for her, i want her to have this experience, but i can't ignore this feeling i have deep down inside. i miss her already. the camp is very structured and very informational. she will have so many hands on experiences. and i am all about that! this is just the first time she's gone off by herself. ( along with all the other 3rd graders) i put some little surprises in her backpack. she should be pretty pumped while digging thru her bags on the way there. i guess i'll just have to stay positive, not think about it too much, and look forward to her safe arrival home. i gave her a camera to document her trip. i can''t wait to see what she comes up with.

what makes you terribly happy?

oooh. i like this as well...... mindy-moo got this from rockstar diaries, and i got it from mindy-moo.... hmmmm.....

what makes me terribly happy?

hmmm.. so many things.... let's see.... (i want to see what makes you terribly happy as well!)

1. finding chocolate chip cookie dough, rolled into balls in the freezer, ready to put in the oven

2. strolling through antique stores

3. looking at pictures

4. winning my checkers game on my iphone

5. making banners

6. eating at cool restaurants

7. hearing my kids laugh

8. watching the kids play together in the backyard

9. finding REALLY good deals while shopping/ going to last chance

10. coffee in the morning ( i know, generic, but it does really make me happy. especially in one of my favorite cups)

i think i could go on and on, but i will stop at 10.

wait! i remembered one more.

11. riddles

what the?

guess who wanted to start her own blog????

now this is weird. this is the second time a turtle has shown up in our fountain. i don't think this is the same one that appeared last time. they must be coming from down the street, but that is a long way for the turtle to go and then to climb up and into the fountain? weird. S was thrilled, can't you tell by her expression?