C'est ma vie

Au Revoir

Can you believe we got this for 5 euros off of E-bay? We're going on a hiking trip this weekend and needed something for Louise as well as for when we go to Italy at Christmas. And, what's even more incredible- can you believe we are going on a trip! Yay!!!!!

Anyway, we aren't leaving until Friday morning but I didn't want to feel obligated to write tomorrow between the packing, party at the dacyare etc... So, this will be my last post until next Tues. or Wed. Our first stop is to celebrate Nathalie and Géraud's birthdays and wedding at their parents' vacation home in Aurillac (central France). I was their au pair almost 10 years ago (has it really been THAT long!) and we still keep in touch on a regular basis. We are looking forward to spending time with them, their kids and all of their friends, some of whom I met way back when I was an au pair! Then, Sunday night we are (GASP) actually staying in a hotel room, like on a real trip, and taking a hiking excursion all Monday, which will hopefully include a picnic and castle spotting if we don't get rained on. Heading back to Paris in the wee hours of Tuesday morning.  Just wait until you have kids, you'll never drive during the day. Ever. Again. When they are asleep in the back, it's SO much easier. (hey, when I'm asleep too, it's so much easier because Etienne does the driving and I don't have to!) Okay, outie- Au Revoir!

A Morning in the Kitchen

I didn't intend, when I woke up at 6:30 (yes, BOTH of them, 6 freaking 30) this morning, to spend until 3 doing kitchen stuff (I say 'stuff' because part of that time I was grocery shopping and whipping up lunch). But, then I had this bright idea to make bread. Then, Etienne had this bright idea to go to his mom's tonight and since I really wanted to make my squash curry, he told her we'd bring it. And, the daycare had their bright idea to have their party tomorrow and I have to bring something. So, all of these bright ideas meant a morning in the kitchen, but I loved it. Like I said, cooking has actually turned into something like knitting for me- a relaxing time to wind down. First up, a no-knead bread that took about 10 minutes to make and an hour of rising time. I don't know what possessed me- I just wanted to make some bread and it sounded good, then I had remembered a blog I read with a recipe. Go here if you want to give it a try. It truly is delicious and will be a perfect breakfast treat tomorrow morning (I can just taste it with that glass of coffee now!) Then, I moved onto the Squash curry. Not only do I love any type of squash, but I also love curry but never knew the two could mix. Well, they do and what a nice marriage it is! Even Gab eats this stuff. Add a little Lime Chutney for the brave of heart, and you have a truly delicious meal. Here it is all packed up to take tonight. Finally, I volunteered to bring something sweet to Gab's end of the year daycare party. What could be better and more truly American than Rice Krispie treats? I had always thought these things must have been difficul to make- they looked difficult at least. Until in high-school, my friend Sara
said 'All you do is melt butter and marshmellows and mix the cereal in'. Since that day of revelation, I always tend to make Rice Krispie treats as an easy out. Besides, kids usually go crazy for them.
My only challenge today was finding actual Rice Krispies. They exist in France, that's for sure, but our three very local corner grocery stores didn't have them! Finally, the only thing I could find without having to go far away to a huge grocery store, was a box of imitation Cocoa Krispies. I wasn't happy about it, but took them anyway. Added some peanut butter to the melted marshmellows, mixed and a very decadent and delicious result. I think I'll be making these for the big kids soon!

Home Sweet Home

When we go back to the US and people find out we live in Paris, France (as opposed to Paris, TX), I get a lot of 'Wow, you must be in heaven, or you are so lucky.'

I've been to a lot of cities, but Paris will always be the most beautiful and close to my heart. Every time I drive along the Seine or have a café overlooking the Notre Dame or take a walk through the winding village-like streets of the Latin Quarter, I am still in awe of the charm and authenticity this city has to offer. But, Paris is to me like any relationship of love and devotion- exciting and action packed in the beginning then slowly that relationship becomes one of adoration and devotion and you become comfortable and settled. And, now that I fill comfortable and settled here, I am starting to ask myself a lot of questions.

Etienne and I may technically live in Paris, but we don't live in the part in which we dream of living- the 5th arrondissment. The 5th, to me, would really encompass my dream of living in Paris- living in the city center just minutes away from everything she has to offer, but at a million euros for a decent apartment, I think we can always dream! We may technically live in Paris, but we live the life of those in the suburbs. We drive the car everywhere, we never actually enjoy the sights of Paris because we live rather far away and we tend to stick to our neighborhood and the suburb across the way, Boulogne. Etienne asked me the other day if I regretted not having a yard, and somewhere in me, the answer was yes. But, it's not fully yes because in a way, having a yard and a house intimidate me.

As I was walking to the pool the other day, I started thinking about where I would live to make me truly happy. Is it really worth it to live in a city in cramped space when we don't even take advantage of it and stay home all the time? I suppose somewhere in me, I'd like to live in a small town in a small little house with a small little yard where I could grow my own veggies and where we would know all our neighbors and where our kids would know all the kids and where we would belong. Both Etienne and I come from childhood experiences where we had so much routine and so many places we frequented that created a sense of belonging. In Paris, you never really belong- you are just a number added to the population. Even at the daycare, where Gab has been for almost two and a half years, there is no sense of unity among the parents, and I've maybe exchanged a total of 10 words with all of them. At that age, I was invited to all of my preschool classmates' birthday parties and I am still friends with some of my preschool buds! This is the type of thing I regret about Paris. But, this is a Paris I try not to think about because she is still, to me, full of adorable streetside cafés and flowing with eccentricity.

I also don't really believe that by moving somewhere you'll be happier. People often confuse location with their state of happiness, but to tell you the truth, looking back on it all, I was just as happy in Norman, OK that I am right now, today in Paris, France, as soon as that energy from the beginning of my stay wore off. It all comes down to how happy I am, as a person. And, after living here for almost 6 years, sure there are some regrets about how we live, but I try to make the most of my environment. Our apartment is small but I strive everyday to create a feeling of warmth in the apartment and something we can call home. I love our apartment and the wealth of opporutunity the space provides. When I cook in the kitchen, I feel at home, when I sit down on the couch to read or knit, I feel comforted. And, I absolutely adore sitting out on our balcony, drinking a glass of tea, and watching the world go by. Once our family grows and we see that 3 kids here was a little too optimistic, we may find that we need something else. But, for now, it's our space that we call home sweet home- whether we're in Paris, Texas, or Timbuktu.

13

We have Etienne's nephew, Quentin, here this week for a 'linguistic experience'. His mom wanted us to only speak in English with him and have him do the same. I don't know if you remember being 13, but at that age you don't want to speak to anyone in your own language let alone a foreign language!

He got here Sunday night and Etienne insisted that we only speak English and that Quentin should do the same (he's only had 2 years of the language at school and barely knows the past tense). I spoke very slowly to him, but Etienne was less considerate and spoke quickly with the attitude of 'he'll learn better that way'. The poor guy, couldn't say anything, didn't understand much and my only thought was that he was going to go home and never want to come back! The only person he could communicate with was Gab, who knows to speak French with Quentin.

Well, that English experience lasted exactly one night. We are now back to speaking French. Well, at least most of the time. We've made meal times an English experience and of course he hears me talking to Gab.

We're having a good time, well, he and Etienne are because they literally stayed up until 2 am playing Warcraft (I hope his mom isn't reading this!). Today, they are dropping the kids off at the daycare and then walking back! Quentin is used to hiking and loves walking so Etienne thought it would be fun to hike in the city and when they get tired, they can always take the metro.

I am having a peaceful day and since the apartment is shockingly clean and picked up and there is only a little laundry to do, I am going to throw in the requested Petit Lu yogurts (Etienne begged me to make some more!), knit some, take a run and just enjoy the peaceful calm of having a day to yourself.

At least it's not the Dora Theme Song

As we're cruising home tonight listening to some REM, all of the sudden, I hear my almost three year old sing at the top of his lungs (and on the right notes!) 'Daysleeper, Daysleeper' at the right time in the song.

When we got home and I turn off the car, he starts throwing a fit saying 'Daysleeper!'

So, you can guess what we are listening to right now in the apartment.

Hey, at least it's not the Dora theme song or Wee Sing American Anthems! But, something tells me that Daysleeper will be taking a long night-night very soon.

How to get your kid to sleep...

I thought I was dreaming tonight when Gab took me by the hand and led me to his room, flopped down on his bed and said, 'Read spider book please' (it's his book of the moment) and 'night, night'. This is when I dropped everything I was doing, grabbed Louise from her playpen and hurriedly got her ready for bed. Can't pass up that moment...But, looking back at all our afternoon activity as well as Gab's short nap, it's no wonder all that kid wanted was his nice bed.

The day started off in its usual Sunday way- just our normal Sunday market run, to which I now brave the wilds and take both kids systematically (I need the stroller for the goods and if Gab goes and we don't get out for the rest of the day, at least it was an outing). We had our brunch, got the kids down for a nap and I just as soon finished cleaning up the brunch mess when Gab woke up. So much for getting a few knitting rows in, although I did manage to launch a batch of tomato and basil yogurt. He was in a really good mood, though and played really nicely with his toys while we waited for Louise to wake up. She finally did at 4 pm and I quickly gave her a snack before we headed to this place.

Determined that the US wasn't the only place to experience a pumpkin patch when Halloween comes around this year, I got online a couple months ago and found this farm, where you can come and pick your own fruits and vegetables from April-November. I was a little skeptical but decided that strawberry season would be the perfect time to try it out.

If you can get past the Parisian women in their Fendi glasses and high-heeled boots right in the middle of the field picking cauliflowers (makes the authentic farm experience seem less authentic!), this place is actually quite impressive. It's huge, massive, and you could walk for hours picking your own stuff and you can even take a wheelbarrow they offer at the entrance. The setting is lovely, perfect, and it really doesn't feel that you are only 10 miles from Paris. When you are finished, you stand in line to get it weighed and pay for your weight. Prices are beyond reasonable. There is also a playground for kids as well as a petting zoo and tons of activities for the family. It was crowded today but since the place is endless, you could go awhile without running into anyone. Gab had a blast helping me pick (although he's a typical boy and instead of handing me the flowers would violently throw them on the ground!) and eat rasberries and gooseberries. I would have gotten more but made the mistake of taking Louise in the baby carrier, which was literal hell to even try and pick anything. So, by the time I went back to the car to get the stroller (the fields are stroller friendly), we were already wiped out and I about left just then but Gab wanted to stay. We only came home with a couple zucchini, a head of lettuce, a small carton of gooseberries and a bouquet of flowers, but I can attest to the fact that the lettuce was very tasty at dinner tonight and it was kind of neat eating something you picked yourself. Anyway, a great time was had by all and we will definitely be going back there (especially if it's enough to make Gab want to go to bed!) It does kind of seem superficial and like there are a bunch of Parisians there just trying to get a tast for the country, but after all, that's what we were there for!

Why are Guys Wimps?

We will not remember last summer as a summer of relaxation. We were supposed to have 2 weeks in the South of France poolside with the only worry being to put on sunscreen. Etienne ended up getting really sick and had a fever for the whole 2 weeks in the 100 degree weather as well as asthma attacks and huge problems breathing. His mom and I pushed him to go see a doctor, who gave him some really strong antibiotics that didn't work. Then, he went in for an X-ray of his lungs, but everything was normal. Finally, when we got back to Paris and his condition stabilized at best, I coaxed him into seeing a specialist. Blood tests showed that he had CMV- a virus with very similar symptoms as mono and as a result he was sick for months. Then of course I was hospitalized with a kidney stone while pregnant and we were moving all in the same week not to mention an active 2 year old to take care of.

Fast forward to this summer and Etienne's symtpoms are back. The same respiratory problems that keep him up the whole night. He feels weak and unenergetic. The other day I asked our general practioner (who, might I add, has been seeing the kids for 2 and a half years and knows us on a first name basis but has never once met Etienne!) if asthma could pop up during certain times of the year because it's uncanny how the exact same symptoms as last year are starting at the exact same time this year. He said yes and told me to have Etienne come and see him because he could at least relieve some of the problems with medication. Etienne's mom is begging him to go see the doctor. I am pushing him to go see the doctor. But, he just won't go.

Last night, he had a huge respiratory attack and couldn't get back to sleep. Today, he's been a zombie and just doesn't feel like doing much. If this goes on, I am going to make an appointment for him and drive him to the doctor!

On another note, I think it's interesting how, when I'm sick, us women are expected to have super powers and just magically heal ourselves and if we even mention once that we need to take a nap or feel dizzy, we are 'play acting'. And yet, here is Etienne, who has made it very well known to me that he is ill and needs taking care of. Guys are such wimps, I tell you!

I just hope we can get to the bottom of this before summer starts so that we can all enjoy our time off. At least I'm not pregnant this time so I'll have a little more energy to take care of the kids plus a sick husband!

YA

We officially need to join Yogurtholics Anonymous because we are officially addicted to homemade yogurt!

In the past week, we've slowly used up our store bought supply and are now full time homemade yogurt consumers. Even Louise isn't left out because I made a batch with her baby milk. So far I've made blueberry, cherry, plain, cinnamon, and Petit Lu (like vanilla wafers) yogurt. The latter sounds gross, but it is divine and Etienne ate 3 of them tonight! It's our favorite so far. Next up when we get through with these: vanilla, chocolate and spice and I am really curious as to what this recipe for tomato and basil yogurt tastes like...

Bundled Up

I don't know if it's a French thing or not, but what is it with bundling up your baby like we're in Siberia when it's 60 degrees outside?

Today during my short run, I passed a poor little baby in a stroller with a heavy winter bunting, a hat, a scarf, gloves and to top it off a polar fleece blanket. I understand it's a little chilly (well, chilly relatively speaking), but still, we're not in Siberia.

This is something I've noticed a lot around here- women dressing their babies like it's winter all year round. When Gab was born and it was 90 degrees, there were still babies in the maternity with wool sweaters.

Perhaps this is just one of those things I'll never understand!

New Shades

New Shades, originally uploaded by afoos.

Now Gab is ready for summer!