Paris Day Two

Day two started off a little rough.  Our camera battery had died the night before and our extra battery that we brought (just in case) was actually dead.  So, Hyrum set off early Tuesday morning in search of a charger for our camera.  Two hours and €30 later he came back to the hotel with a charger...I was still in bed asleep.  I got in the shower to get ready for the day and when I came out Hyrum had set out the most wonderful birthday breakfast anyone could ever ask for.  He had bagettes with brie and mandarin oranges and chocolate croissants.  What a way to celebrate turning 34 years old.  In Paris with the man I love.  How did I get so lucky?

My birthday breakfast, did I forget to mention he brought me fresh flowers too?

We started our day at Notre-Dame Cathedral.  They broke ground for this Cathedral in 1163 AD and held it's dedicatory Mass in 1345 AD.  It must have been so hard for the early masons to spend so much time working on a Cathedral that they knew they would never see completed.  The gargoyles were fun to look at, it's interesting to imagine what the carvers were thinking as they made those strange looking creatures that were meant to adorn their Cathedral.

One of the rose windows inside Notre-Dame.  This particular window is the only remaining window in the church with original glass.

We were very lucky to have such beautiful weather.  It was also nice to have all the flowers and trees with new leaves in the gardens.  The whole city was fresh and green.

The windows of Sainte-Chapelle.  When you walk into Sainte-Chapelle you enter on the ground level into a small room.  You look around and think, well I guess this is an interesting Cathedral.  Then you notice a small sign directing you up some very narrow winding stairs.  When you come out at the top of the stairs...BOOM, this amazing room hits you.  The light coming through these windows is incredible.  Everywhere you look you see light and color and height.  You can't stop turning in circles to be sure you have seen all the windows.  This Cathedral was built to display the "crown of thorns" worn by Christ at his crucifixion.  An interesting bit of information, the relic that was to be displayed cost FOUR times as much as it cost to build the Cathedral.

Our next stop was the Conciergerie, the famous prison that housed those destined for the guillotine.  This was the "ladies courtyard" where female prisoners were allowed to get some fresh air.  Those are the same spikes that Marie-Antoinette would have looked up and seen.

 The Orsay museum was not originally on our list of "must sees" in Paris because neither Hyrum nor I particularly enjoy impressionist painting but, as Rick Steves puts it, "If you like Impressionism, visit this museum.  If you don't like Impressionism, visit this museum."  This museum is housed in what once was the train station for Paris, so just walking around in this building was worth our time, all though we ended up really enjoying the artwork as well.

Dance at the Moulin de la Galette by Renoir

My favorite piece at the museum was La Petite Danseuse de Quatorze Ans by Degas.  I remember learning of this sculpture in my Humanities class and I loved it for the simplicity of the pose and look on her face. 

Unfortunately the museum was under renovation and so we missed out on seeing Van Gogh but we did see Monet, Manet, Cézanne, Rousseau and Gauguin.  I highly recommend brushing up on your art history before a visit to Paris, it truly makes the entire experience more meaningful.

The weather turned rainy and made for a sloshy walk around rue Cler.  This pedestrian only street is lined with shops for everyday Parisian living.  The essentials: wine, cheese, chocolate and bread!  The mixture of smells as you walk down this street is truly an experience.

We got sidetracked on our walk through the Jewish quarter.  A man came up to us and told us we had to eat one of his falafels, that they are the best falafels in the whole world.  There were newspaper clippings on the outside of the restaurant claiming they were the best falafels, so we gave it a shot.  Mmmmm, I will agree with the New York Times, really the best falafels!

The Pompidou museum was closed when we got there but the outside architecture is almost as famous as the art inside the building, so we took a picture.

The altar of Notre-Dame at night.  Oma gave me some money for my birthday and told me to spend it on something I wouldn't normally get for myself.  As we walked around Notre-Dame that morning I noticed there would be an organ concert that night.  The tickets were kind of pricey but I couldn't think of a better way to spend my birthday money than sitting inside a 700 year old Cathedral listening to organ music.  What a treat!

A picture of the organ situated in front of a rose window.  Even at night the windows were beautiful.

It was pretty late when the concert was over but I just had to see the Eiffel Tower one more time at night.  

Day two of our trip was busy and full of memorable experiences.  I think 34 will be a pretty good age for me, it sure started off wonderful.

Paris Day One

Hyrum and I had the rare opportunity to spend a few days without the boys on a trip.   Many thanks goes to Hyrum's mom (Oma) for flying out to watch our kids so we could have a little break.  We hadn't been away by ourselves for over 5 years so this was a real treat.  We decided to head to Paris for our getaway.  I wasn't thrilled with the idea of spending time in Paris, I guess I just figured Paris would be full of rude French people who hated Americans.  I was completely wrong in this assumption, and I totally LOVED Paris.  Favorite things: fresh French baguettes, Camembert cheese, beautiful walks around the city with no children!!!

We flew out of Nuremberg on Sunday, March 27th.  We landed in Paris at 9:30 PM and headed for our hotel.  After a bus ride, train ride, bus ride and then another train ride we got to our apartment at 12:30 AM!  Maybe next time we'll pay for a taxi:)

Monday, Mach 28th.  We woke up and grabbed a few bakery treats for breakfast on our way to meet up with a friend of a friend who said she would show us around a bit on our first day in Paris.  Marianne was very nice, a New Zealander who has been living in Paris the last 2 years.  Warning: There are a lot of pictures here!

This is the first shot of Paris I got as I exited the Metro at 12:30 AM on Monday morning. 

We stayed in an apartment that was on the 5th floor of the building.  This is the view from our window as you looked out across the chimneys of the adjoining buildings.

Looking down from our apartment window you can see the courtyard for our building.

Marianne began our tour of Paris in the very modern business district of La Défense.  It was interesting to see how everyday Parisians live their lives, go to work, eat and relax.  This business complex has many fountains and cafes where you can relax on your lunch break.

Next stop, the Eiffel Tower!  I don't think you can adequately describe just how big this structure is, you really have to see it for yourself.  It was pretty amazing to stand right under the world's most recognizable monument.

The Arc de Triomphe.  Built by Napoleon to celebrate his many victories, now the best spot in Paris to get a great view of the city...from the top.

On our way up the 284 steps to the top of the Arc de Triomphe.  It really was neat to stand at the top and see Paris below and all around you.  

After lunch we decided to try one of these French specialty cookies, the macaron.  They are made from egg whites and have the consistency of a meringue with frosting in the middle.  I hate to say it but they were actually a little too sweet for my taste.

Napoleons tomb.  Don't ask me how Napoleon has become such a hero in the eyes of the French.  After the revolution he basically crowned himself Emperor and ruled over them as a monarch.  How was this better than the monarchy they just chopped the heads off of?  I don't know, you'll have to ask someone from France.  His tomb is located in this huge dome with carvings surrounding his tomb depicting his life as the ruler of most of Europe.  The whole time I was there I kept thinking, this man probably had the biggest Ego of anyone who ever lived!

The Louvre.  We didn't have much time, the museum was going to close in about an hour but we figured an hour in the Louvre was still worth it.  We weren't disappointed. 

Venus de Milo.  An ancient Greek statue sculpted around 100 BC, simply amazing to see in person this wonderful piece of history.

The Mona Lisa.  Once again, pretty incredible to see such a famous piece of art history.  The best part about going to the Louvre right before closing is the crowds are pretty scarce.  Remember this shot, you'll see it again on Day 3 of our trip, only this time we came in the middle of the afternoon, peak tourist hours.

Saint-Sulpice.  This was one of the many beautiful Cathedrals we had the opportunity to walk around.  After living in Europe for 3 years sometimes Cathedrals start all looking the same but I still get a sense of awe when I walk in and imagine the work it took and the sacrifice it took to build such a structure.

A funny side note: There is a note in this church that says, "Despite what Dan Brown wrote in his book The DaVinci Code this church has nothing to do with the Priory of Sion."  I just thought it was funny  they would have to publicly discount their relationship to a work of fiction.  I'm sure there were crazy fans out there that were trying to break away the stone tiles to find clues about the Priory.

The last thing we did on our first day in Paris was take a cruise down the Seine River.  We were told that this is a romantic thing to do in Paris so we thought we would give it a shot.  Unfortunately about five minutes before the boat departed a big bus load of rowdy teenagers on a school trip boarded the boat.  So much for a quiet, romantic trip down the river.  Despite the crowded boat it was still lovely to see Paris all lit up at night.

Day one in Paris was wonderful.  We got to enjoy seeing some major sights as well as discover some out of the way yummy cafes.  Most of all it was fantastic to be with Hyrum, just Hyrum.

Two Beautiful Bavarian Cities

This past weekend I convinced my sister Paige that she needed to take Friday (March 18th) off work and come out to play with me.  She got here Thursday night around 10:30 PM which was great because that gave us all day on Friday to play.  The really cool thing was that Hyrum had work off on Friday so we all headed up to Nuremberg.  Hyrum and I had wanted to visit the Nazi Documentation Center museum for a while but we never got the chance so we were excited to finally have a day without the boys to check out the museum.  I totally recommend this museum to anyone, but I think it is more enjoyable without small children.  They give you an English translating handset at the beginning of the tour and the museum itself is well laid out with great photos and well explained displays.  The museum basically explains how the Nazi party came into power and the main characters that were influential during the lead up to Nazi control.

Paige, Julian and I in front of the museum

Daddy and Julian standing on the platform at the Zeppelin Field Rally Grounds.  All the photos one knows of the party rallies with rows and rows and blocks and blocks of soldiers looking alive, listening enraptured to the Führer’s rantings and saluting were taken here. 200,000 people could stand in the square, which was larger than twelve soccer fields, in front of the monumental grandstand with the rostrum.

Another shot of the Rally Ground Grandstand.  The creepiest thing for me was to walk around on this huge structure and think about the people in the concentration camps that were forced to work night and day quarrying granite for these structures.

We ended our trip to Nuremberg with a delicious lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant in downtown Nuremberg...seriously the best Asian food I have had in Germany!  Friday evening Paige and I took the twins to see Rango at the movie theater.  I'm not sure if I would recommend this film to people taking their children, some of the language was really "colorful" and some of the themes were too adult for the boys to understand.

On Saturday Hyrum spoiled me by offering to watch the kids all day so Paige and I could visit Munich.  Paige had been to Oktoberfest in Munich but hadn't been to see all the other sights this beautiful city has to offer.

We started our sightseeing tour at the Marienplatz, the city square that is dominated by the Neues Rathaus (New Town Hall).  And, of course, we waited with anticipation for the glockenspiel to play at the top of the hour.  Just to warn anyone interested in visiting, the glockenspiel is fun to see but definitely nothing to hold your breathe for:)

From Marienplatz we headed toward the art museum...LOOK what we found in a shop window on our way!  Oh yeah, we stopped to sample some of these delicious cakes!  I totally think it's worth the 2 hour drive just to eat one of these confections from Heaven.

Paige on the steps of the Alte Pinakothek art museum.  I was so impressed with the collection of art we were able to see here.  Great artists from the 14th-19th centuries, including Dürer, Raphael, Titian, Rubens and da Vinci.  This museum is the perfect size.  You are able to get a sampling of great art without the saturation you experience in larger art museums.

Albrecht Dürer Self Portrait

 

Raphael's Holy Family at the Canigiani House

Munich is home to the original beer house, the Hofbräuhaus.  We stepped inside to find rows of wooden tables full of Germans enjoying their beer while listening to the oom-pa-pa music being played by the band.  We considered having a bite to eat but decided against it because it was just a bit too lively for our taste...we headed across the street to the Hard Rock Cafe instead:)

After dinner we headed to the Viktualien Markt to have a quick look around.  If you are looking for fresh fruits and vegetables or fresh butchered meat or fresh homemade cheese, this is the place to come.  We weren't hungry at all but it was still a lot of fun to walk around and see the people buying their evening groceries from these local producers.  Besides all the wonderful food stands there were also some stands selling handmade crafts, like these hand painted Easter eggs.

Even though we were both quite full from dinner we just HAD to have a gelato before we got back in the car for the two hour drive.  Gelato and German bread, probably the two things I will miss most when I move back to the States!

So there you have it, two beautiful Bavarian cities in two days.  Don't you want to come and visit?

St. Patricks Day

I am not one of those moms that goes all out for every holiday.  I'm not saying that it's a bad thing if you do that but I just don't have the creativity to come up with fun ideas for the holidays.  This St. Patricks Day I attempted a very limited celebration for the boys.  I hung rainbow streamers in their doorway so when they woke up they could walk through the rainbow, which they thought was so fun.  Hyrum made green crepes for breakfast and we also helped the boys make a trap for the leprechauns.  Nothing spectacular but I think they had fun.

The boys enjoying their crepes and green milk for breakfast.

The leprechaun trap.  The idea was that the leprechaun would see the gold on top of the box, climb the ladder to the top and walk across the box to the gold.  The surprise for the leprechaun was that the box wasn't solid all the way across, that's crepe paper with a big hole underneath.  Pretty tricky right?  The leprechaun broke through the crepe paper and fell into our box but then escaped...we'll have to try again next year:)

A Day on the "Romantic Road"

On Saturday, March 12, the sun was shining and we decided to get out and explore a bit.  We really needed to shake the winter dust off our walking shoes and hit some old towns.  The best preserved medieval city in all of Germany is Rothenberg, lucky for us it's only a two hour drive from our house!  Once in Rothenberg the main attraction, especially for 7 year old boys, is to walk around the entire city on the well preserved city wall.  There are also numerous shops to look into and a relaxing garden to run around.  We enjoyed the warm weather and the historic scenery.

A view of Rothenberg from the city wall.

Emerson and Townsend pose for a photo on the city wall.

Townsend "hanging out" on the city wall.  They can make even the most historic locations jungle gyms!

A vendor was selling fresh pressed apple cider.  We bought one glass for the boys to share but they all loved it so much we ended up buying two more glasses of the delicious juice!

We decided to take a drive on the "Romantic Road" between Rothenberg and Dinkelsbühl.  According to our favorite guide, Rick Steves, "The Romantic Road winds you past the most beautiful towns and scenery of Germany's medieval heartland...Wander through quaint hills and rolling villages, and stop wherever the cows look friendly or a town fountain beckons."  The drive was certainly beautiful.  I loved the sunshine on all the hills and driving through all the small towns where they have family run butcher shops and bakeries.  Our destination was Dinkelsbühl, a town we had heard of from other people but we had never visited ourselves.  Dinkelsbühl is another preserved medieval town with a moat and town wall circling the city.  Unfortunately you can't walk around on the wall but a stroll through the city was lots of fun.  We found a fun playground for the boys to run around and get some wiggles out before we headed home.

The cute town of Dinkelsbühl.

Mommy and Emerson pose on a bridge that crossed over the very deep moat.

Hyrum walked over to Townsend to take his photo and Townsend said, "Daddy, I just need some time by myself right now."  I think he was worn out from all the walking and just needed a little break.

Julian playing at the playground, he loves trying to run and climb like his big brothers.

We had a great day exploring old and new things and just spending time together outside in the sunshine!

Julian Turns Two!

My Little Man Jules

I honestly don't know who "Father Time" thinks he is sneaking through my days, weeks, months and now years with my little man Jules.  Julian is growing up a little too fast for my taste.  He is such a smart little guy.  He doesn't talk much yet but he is very adept at using his own version of sign language to get what he wants.  He LOVES to help me with anything I am doing, especially if it has anything to do with the dishwasher.  He loves to load and unload dishes.  He loves to load the washing machine with clothes.  He loves to "help" me vacuum by pushing the vacuum around the house behind me while I use the hose attachment.  He likes to play with his big brothers but most of the time he tries to stay out of their crazy games.  He loves to go for drives to the hardware store with Hyrum.  Now that the weather is getting a little nicer he loves to be outside.  Even when I start getting a little too cold and want to come into the house he still wants to be outside pushing his little toy giraffe around the yard.  He likes to chase the cat around and sometimes he tries to follow the cat into places only cats should go (ie: a bramble bush in our backyard that the cat likes to crawl under.  The other day I heard Julian calling "mama" from the back yard and I found him stuck amidst the prickers and thorns.  Poor guy, he couldn't go forward or backward...I'm hoping he won't try to follow the cat there in the future!)

What would I do without Julian?  He keeps me company all day while the boys are in school.  He smiles and runs to give me a hug when I have left him with daddy or a babysitter.  He likes to laugh.  He makes me laugh.  I love him from his cute little toes to his floppy blonde hair!


I have put together a little video of Julian from age one to two.  Pay special attention to how diligently he tries to blow out his birthday candles and how proud he looks when they finally blow out...too cute:)