Ahh, Paris! Day 1

The flight this morning to Paris was only about 2 hours, so much easier for the kids than yesterday. We arrived to sunny weather and about 17 degrees c. Very nice.

Leah took to this photo!

Riding horses!

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The hotel is swanky and our room is shoe-box sized. About what I expected. Dave ran off to his meetings and, once we had settled in our room, I dropped the kids in our stroller and headed out. Way too excited to see the city.

We stopped at an Italian cafe for lunch immediately. If I'm starved, I know the kids will be, too. Pizza and spaghetti. We all shared. I'm getting more bold about using my French. Merci!

I saw the Arc de Triomphe from the taxi to the hotel, so I headed in that direction. It wasn't far until we reached it and it's just as cool as it is in all the movies. Tourists were everywhere taking pictures at all angles. And I couldn't believe all the cars circling it. And with no lines to follow!
(And yes, I did mumble the movie quote: "I will triumph!" as I walked by.)

We headed down the Champs-Elysees for several blocks, though being in SoHo every day, this wasn't that big a deal. I had heard it was all "chain stores" but I didn't recognize that many. I had expected to see a Gap on every corner, like NYC, but saw none.

I spotted the Eiffel Tower in the distance, so that was my next destination. Pushing the kids was a good workout. And the Eiffel wasn't close. But we made it there. This was a pretty big deal to me. (It's bigger than I imagined!) The kids were semi-impressed but spotted the carousel in its shadow almost right away.

After going around in circles for a while, I found a playground they could run around in. There was a little girl making the kids on the slide pay her a "high 5" (however they say it in French) before they could go down. Leah and Alice were fascinated they couldn't understand her. But they eventually paid the toll.

Then it was a looong walk back to the hotel. Alice fell asleep with her face down on the tray. That got a lot of chuckles and comments from those who passed her. Yeah, I think she was impressed with her first day in Paris.

Put My Money Where My Mouth Is

Which reminds me ... holy cow was I scared getting into the car and leaving the house with 5 suitcases, three carry-ons and the two most precious things I have -- Leah and Alice. (And David, too!)

It has always been a dream of mine to live in Europe. It's was an ambition Dave and I shared but never thought we'd do.

And now, here I was dragging my kids away from their routines, cousins, beloved grandparents, toys (!) and taking them on this adventure that they might not want. Might not even enjoy. Not to mention the worries over safety. Comfort. Natural disasters! Oye!

But now it was time. The opportunity was there. And we jumped. Put my money where my mouth is. I've always wanted this, so suck it up, right?

Then, as we were pulling out of the driveway and I felt near vomiting, I looked at this incredibly huge smile on Leah's face. "I'm so excited, Mommy!"

Yeah, she's my kid alright!

We've Landed!

I have to pinch myself, because I can't believe I'm here! After so many months of planning...

The journey wasn't a total nightmare, but it did have plenty of tantrums and challenges. We left at 5:55pm, and arrived at around 1:30am -- 7:30am local time. So we were hoping to sleep on the flight. Leah struggled but fell asleep pretty quickly. Alice circled around her seat for almost an hour. She was desperate for sleep, so it was almost painful to watch her many attempts to get comfortable. And then, when she did fall asleep, it was a restless sleep.  I was constantly catching her before she fell off the front of seat, or slid under the armrest to the aisle. So, it wasn't the relaxing flight I had hoped for. On the brightside, no one cried and woke up half the plan.

View from the Living Room window

Our apartment on the top floor of the building - 9th! Five rooms off a main hallway. The kitchen is adorable - very European-like. And tall wardrobes in all the rooms. Everything is clean and new-looking. Very functional.

We all took long naps once we were unpacked and comfortable. Then, we loaded up the stroller and took a walk around the neighborhood. We're in a very residential part of the city. And there are several embassys nearby. Lots of grocery stores that we checked out. And a gigantic park we'll be sure to return to.

We got sandwiches for dinner, chicken and eggs. And some kind of sausage on a roll. I practiced my German! Danku!

The weather is fall-like. Warm sun and cool breeze. It was a bit rainy today -- just like home.

I better get back to packing for Paris. And get the kids to bed -- even though it's 1:51pm their time!

Remembering I'll Leave Them Again

On my walk to work each morning -- after dropping off my kids at day care and my car at the train station -- I pass several schools and parks in Greenwhich Village. And because of this, I also pass parents and caretakers walking with cherubic little kids ... and I instantly miss my own.

I assume my girls will spend the rest of the day together, discovering new things, creating art and inside jokes, and laughing with friends and teachers. While I'm taking care of my to-do list for the day, interacting with adults and my active inbox at work - far away from them. And while I understand I choose to be a working mom, and I generally love it. And they're happy at day care. I still miss them.

This is the feeling I have to hold on to when I'm in a Berlin subway, with a screaming 2-year-old and a sobbing 4-year-old, holding desperately to my last wisp of sanity. Someday, very soon, we'll be spending our days apart again.

Wedding, Check!

It seems that half of the drama of this trip has been the weeks leading up to it.

Work is crazy (back to school time usually is), day care is closed for three days before Labor Day weekend, Dave's Sports Weekend trip (the weekend we leave - and he's still going!), Alice's 2nd birthday party, Alessandra's 1st birthday party ... and, the biggest event, Liza's wedding.

And for a family that is scattered around the country, there's nothing like a good wedding to get us all together for a fun time. We were mostly drama-free and well-organized. The wedding itself was beautiful and was the picture of Liza's style. We all had a fantastic time.

(And sorry this isn't a blog about weddings, but about our trip....) I have to say now that it's over, I'm pleased to have a little more head-space to think about our European adventure -- my packing lists that includes clothes, toys, books, electronics, kitchen supplies and anything else that's been buzzing around my head. As much as I will treasure my memories of that wedding, I'm glad to have another event crossed off the list of craziness that is the last few weeks. Phew.
Two more weeks and counting.

We're So "Continental"!

After asking around, Dave got a recommendation for a babysitter from a coworker in Berlin that spans the world.

One of Dave's German colleagues works with a woman who is Italian. She's married to a Danish man and they're raising their daughter bi-lingual. So they have a Mexican nanny who speaks English. She would be available for babysitting, when Dave and I want an evening out.

This may be normal in Europe, but I find it completely exciting!

Suitcase City

Suitcases are starting to assemble themselves in various rooms. Like little soldiers, they're standing at attention and awaiting use.

A toy bucket has been emptied and tucked into a corner, to hold items I don't want to forget. One less thing to add to a list.

Of course, I've mentally packed clothing dozens of times for myself and the children. Though, there are a few pieces of apparel I'm unsure about. One item I've decided worth the limited space is our wellies -- as I'm betting on soggy weather this fall and refuse to let it trap me indoors. Swimsuits are another must, though they take up substantially less space. (Hmm, does that mean I need sandals, too?)

My packing mantra so far is "What I forget, I can always buy there." It's not like we're traveling to the moon. There will be a plethora of stores and lots of time to track forgotten/needed things down.

Lastly, we've bought a few travel space bags -- the kind you can roll all of the air out of, and supposedly save a boat-load of room. We figure these will come in handy for the more wintery wear that we'll need at the end of October.

It's all about strategy when it comes to packing, right?