Velib Paris

As one last hoorah before we left Paris, Chris and I decided to take a morning date while Oliver was at school. We dropped him off and then walked down the street to the velib station, the place where you can use your metro pass to get a bike to ride. I've always wanted to do it, but since I was either pregnant or carrying a baby the entire time I've lived there, I never had the opportunity. So we headed off towards the river. We took a beautiful ride past Les Invalides, along the river by Pont d'Alexandra III, and crossed over the Seine at the Place de la Concorde. The feeling of the cold November wind on our faces as we raced down the quai was ironically a balm on the wound of our coming departure from the city of lights.

While crossing the river, we brought out the camera to document our little outing, and Chris promptly asked to take a picture of me with the river behind. I foolishly thought he was taking a picture of me and the city... alas, I was wrong:

Oh well, we remedied that as we took more pictures crossing the bridge:

With the Place de la Concorde:

And the Assemble Nationale:

We then continued on the other side of the river...

Past the Musee d'Orsay:

And other beautiful views:

We finally turned when we reached the Louvre where we attempted a shot together:

And then parked the bikes and headed for some incredible hot chocolate at Angelina's. Such a fabulous morning!

After our "day date," I returned to pick up Oliver from school and finally took those pictures I've been promising of the charming alley where his school is located. Could this place be any cuter?

Despite the yucky, cloudy morning, it was one of my favorite memories of our time there... So glad we had the chance before we left!

Gabriel's Birthday Party

Just a couple of weeks before we left Paris, we had the privilege of celebrating our friend Gabriel's second birthday. Is this little man cute or what?

I was too slow on the cake, but you can still see his mom Mila's adorable work:

And Oliver's dirty face asking for more... I guess he liked his first taste of chocolate:

We enjoyed visiting with our friends Isa and baby Louis:

And Isa and Mila take fabulous pictures, as always:

Baby Louis was just too cute to pass up:

Aubrey and the balloons were a favorite with all the kids:

And Gabriel, of course, loved opening and playing with his new presents:

Joe, Louis' daddy, was kind enough to entertain my little one with his excellent guitar skills:

And Gabriel decided he wanted to play along:

Best of all, Gabriel and Oli did what they always do best: run, play, and laugh until the cry...

We will miss you guys!

Play Group Brunch

My fabulous Paris play group (which was formed from our parenting/birthing class) had the privilege of getting together one last time for brunch before we left Paris. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me, and as you know if you've read my blog for long, I am TERRIBLE at taking photos with my iphone. But it had to suffice...

The restaurant was great. They even had two high chairs (not enough for our group, of course, but that's two more than most Paris restaurants have!), a fish tank, some stairs, an almost-empty room for us, and a courtyard. How could a toddler not have a blast?

We started with some attempts at a group photo on the stairs:

But Oliver quickly found the fish tank more fascinating:

So the others decided to join us (he's such a trend setter!):

And we finished with a group stroller photo in the courtyard:

Yay for this precious group and all it's been for us over the last two years... I will miss them greatly!

Au revoir, Paris!

As I sit on the airplane to Houston, I confess that I’m a little numb emotionally. My toddler is thoroughly enjoying Baby Einstein on the ipad (thank you David, Tracie, and Elisa!!), and I am finally finding a moment to answer emails and process our move. Sad? Definitely. Excited? I will be when I have a little more energy. Feeling abundantly blessed beyond all I could imagine or deserve? Undoubtedly.

I have quite a few posts to catch up on, but I am going to break my usual m.o. and post my thoughts today. Now. At this moment. Or I guess they won’t actually post until I connect to the internet this evening, but still… almost real-time coverage. Though I could share a million sentimental or profound thoughts (or so I’d like to imagine), I think a more fun closure to our two years in Paris would be some top 10 lists… So here I go in my sleep-deprived, nausea-laden, toddler-distracted, hormone-imbalanced state.

10 things I will NOT miss about Paris (in no particular order):

1. Required swim caps at the public pools. Need I say more?
2. Being bombarded by but not being able to consume salads, or French wine, or coffee, or cheese, or most of the spectacular French delicacies because I’m pregnant.
3. Having to carry home anything we buy.Note: In order to do this, I had to transfer the contents of the stroller (i.e. my son) to my hip, tie him there using a sheet which happened to be under the stroller, and walk home in a zig-zag line as I pushed the two-handled stroller with only one hand.
4. Having to process and translate mentally (and often research manually) EVERYTHING before I can do it: what are peanuts called? How do you pronounce them? What do I plan to use them for? And any other imaginable question someone might ask me when I’m trying to find them at the store.
5. Going into a situation feeling confident that I am ready for any and all said questions concerning the topic at hand, only to have my morale crushed by a mumbler whom I can’t undestand to save my life or a nosy busybody who insists on asking questions outside my scope of preparation and comprehension, forcing me to be the stupid American who has lived in Paris for two years and still can’t buy a package of peanuts for a summer salad.
6. The lack of decent Mexican food.
7. The way they look at me like I’m crazy when I ask for ice in my drink.
8. The difficult task of finding clean, accessible restrooms with space to change a baby’s diaper.
9. The Frenchies’ incessant need for paper work. Despite incredible advances in some areas, the French want multiple hard copies of everything. Twice. And then they want it translated into French. Twice. And you still have to appear in person.
10. Metro stairs. While pregnant. While nauseated. While carrying a 30-pound (yes, I said it, 30-pound) 17-month-old. And my purse. And the diaper bag. And sometimes the stroller, too.

10 things I can’t wait to do in Houston (also in no particular order):

1. Hug my family.
2. Eat Mexican food. Lots of it. Daily.
3. Sit on a comfy couch.
4. Let Oliver play in the backyard.
5. Wear flip flops outside the house and not have someone look at me like I walked out in my underwear.
6. Throw all my necessary junk (PLUS a whole bunch I don’t even need) into the back of my SUV and drive around with it just in case we might need it later that day.
7. Eat LOTS and LOTS of Sonic ice.
8. Grill out on our screened porch in December while wearing sweat pants and a t-shirt.
9. Visit the big HEB and listen to the hosts of angels that sings each time I enter.
10. Take Oliver with me to the gym where a bunch of nice ladies and cool toys are waiting to play with him.

10 things I will miss terribly about living in Paris (again, no particular order… though I’m sorry to be breaking my previous promise not to get sentimental. Sue me.):

1. Trinity International Church: the incredible mixture of age, ethnicity, background, interest, occupation… a little taste of “every tribe, tongue, and nation.”
2. Being a mere 10 minute walk from the Eiffel tower, with a fabulous playground, lots of dogs to entertain Oliver, running paths, and (of course) the view.
3. Tartes citrons (lemon tarts).
4. Tartes framboises (raspberry tarts).
5. The fresh produce at the outdoor market.
6. Being a mere 2 minute walk from said outdoor market.
7. Our friends (i.e. my regular vendors who adore Oliver) at the outdoor market.
8. Fresh, cheap bread available on every corner. And the pain au chocolat at the same place. And the pastries. And did I mention I like boulangeries?
9. The beauty of the city, the ease of the public transportation (when you aren’t toting a toddler), the numerous public parks, the eclectic mix of people and languages, the museums, the obsession with good food. In a word, the culture.
10. The gorgeous, precious, fascinating, loving people I met. My friends from the US, France, Brazil, Australia, Singapore, Thailand, Tonga, China, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Egypt, UK, Ireland, Belgium, Nepal, Cambodia, Uganda, Kenya, Bolivia, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, South Africa, Columbia, and whatever country I’m sure I’m forgetting at this moment. Thank you for enriching my life over these past 2 years.

A bientot, Paris!

Boys, Boys, Boys!

After four generations of only boys born to the Paxton line, we were awaiting with bated breath the news of our ultrasound on Friday. I decided to try a new location that was closer to my home (rather than the American hospital where I had done all my previous scans), and was running over the list of French anatomy words that morning to be sure I could understand the doctor. I figured that at worst, "fille" (girl) or "garcon" (boy) were hard to miss. Luckily for me, though, the doctor spoke English, and there was therefore no confusion when she informed me that we were having a...............

BOY!! So no surprises here. But that's ok. After growing up with three brothers, mostly boy cousins, and a ton of guy friends, I almost feel more prepared for a boy than a girl anyway. Plus, Oliver and Mr. Baby (as he will be dubbed until we choose a more suitable name... or maybe permanently if we do not find a more suitable one... what do you all think of it?) can be best of friends. At 22 months apart (my new due date is March 31, by the way), I'm sure they will have their fair share of conflicts, but we are thrilled to meet Oliver's little brother. We can't wait for you all to meet him, too!

Thank you for your continued prayers and encouragement as we work to survive another pregnancy, parenting a one-year-old, and preparing to move overseas. Are we really ready for two kids?

Probably not... but we're ready to try. :)

Oliver: 16 Months

I can't believe my little boy is almost a year and a half old! On Monday, he turned a whopping 17 months old... incredible. 16 months was a really exciting time for us. We left the US just before he turned 16 months (and yes, I failed to do a post for 15 months), but I thought you'd like to see this. While we were in Houston, my parents moved down the street, and Oliver decided he would drive the moving truck:

When we came back to Paris, poor Oliver faced the perfect storm: jet lag, seven new teeth (including 4 molars), starting school, a cold, and a stomach bug... Yet he was a doll through it all. In fact, we ran into a friend on the street about a week after we got back, and she snapped these faces on her iphone:

Precious boy is growing every day. Most exciting is his increase in understanding. In fact, last Wednesday I went to pick him up from school, and he had a block in his hand when he ran up to hug me as I arrived. I asked him where the block went and if he could put it away, and he completely ignored me... He turned and waved goodbye and blew kisses to his friends. So I asked him again if he could put the block away, and again, he ignored me. I then said, "Peut-tu le ranger?" ("Can you put it away?"). Immediately, he walked across the room to the drawer where it belongs, put it in, and closed the drawer. Incredible. I've been trying to teach him to put things away at home for a long time, and clearly something that I was doing at home wasn't working... But he obviously got the concept at school!

Last week, we went to Champs de Mars with some friends, and I had to soak in the gorgeous fall weather (I am SO going to miss being able to walk a mere 10 minutes to the Eiffel Tower, sit on the grass outside without sweating, and watch the people walk by!!). Oliver, the oldest of the group there that day, decided to wander and play, which was great as long as he stayed by us:

He then decided he wanted to leave the grassy area and head of towards the Eiffel Tower... we had to put a stop to his wandering at that point... But the independence is amazing to see!

This morning, I went to get him from his bed, and he was pointed at the little animals and flowers on the wall above his crib and I swear he said, "What's that?" I answered. Then he repeated on the next one. We went through each one before he was ready to be lifted out of the crib. He wants to "help" me around the house, too, imitating all my household chores. I let him carry around the dustpan the other night, and he proceeded to carry it to the trashcan, open the lid, and bang the dustpan into the trashcan a few times (like I do to knock of the dirt after I sweep). I couldn't stop laughing.

I know these are all mommy ramblings, and that most of you probably don't care. But I want to remember these things, and I actually have a few minutes to write them down while he is at school, so here they are. I can't wait to see what today and tomorrow will bring!

Explore Paris: 8th Arrondissement

As Chris and I skimmed our Paris guide books, making sure we didn't forget to see something we would regret, we came across a little walk through the 8th arrondissement. If you veer off the Champs Elysees to the North, you come into a quieter, mostly residential, rather posh area. We decided last Sunday to give it a try... and thoroughly enjoyed it.

We began early Sunday morning on an almost empty Champs Elysees:

And discovered a lovely park and fountain just after we turned off the main drag:

We walked past the ritzy Hotel Bristol, complete with earpiece-wearing drivers lining the walk out front:

Oliver sported Daddy's gloves for entertainment:

And we eventually ended up at Parc Monceau, an absolutely gorgeous and creative Park, full of Sunday-morning runners and families. The leaves were starting to change (I am SO going to miss living in a place that has a real fall!):

But the flowers were still spectacular:

There was even a little hill with a waterfall:

I found the carousel particularly charming and mentioned to Chris that it looked like something out of Jules Verne:

And was then pleasantly surprised to discover that my impressions were spot on:

Oliver wanted to walk in the park, so he looped the lake with Daddy:

Watched the ducks with utter fascination:

Walked down the main path with a little trepidation:

Until he spotted a dog, which he vigorously pointed out to us:

The exit from the park offered a fabulous view of the Arc de Triomphe:

And the neighboring streets provided a darling two-story home. You don't see many like this in the city:

Finally, our walk ended with a view of the Russian Orthodox cathedral in Paris. I don't think I even knew this was here! It certainly stood out amidst the Parisian architecture.

Best of all, we enjoyed a lovely Sunday morning as a family, took Oliver home for a nap, then enjoyed church in the afternoon. I will miss days like this the most.