Paris Day 3

Paris has been an absolutely amazing city. Maybe it’s because I speak some French so I feel a little bit more comfortable. Maybe it is because I have dreamed of coming here for so long. But it is beautiful. And the French have been so nice. I think it’s a myth that the French are rude. We’ve been treated very hospitably.

Day 3 was every bit as eventful as Day 1 and Day 2. We started the day bright and early and jumped on the Metro. We’ve been riding these a LOT.



We headed out to Versailles and it was beautiful. The only down side was that someone had decided to host a modern art display in the palace so some of the rooms had these odd modern sculptures. It didn’t quite fit the baroque feel of the rooms. We toured the palace and would have loved to tour the gardens but it was so cold and windy and sprinkling rain so we decided to have lunch and head back into town. Do I look cold in this picture?



We did take a few minutes to wander around the streets near Versailles. LOVED this too. Quaint beautiful little shops. We found a “chocolat” shop and oh, my goodness! Janette took a picture of me in this shop that I will have to get from her later and post here. I was in heaven.

Back in town we went to the Musee d’Orsay. I LOVED this museum. I could have spent a lot more time than we had there. I saw Van Gogh’s, Renoir’s, Whistler’s Mother, Monet and so many more beautiful paintings. I have to admit, because of time we skipped over the really modern stuff by Picasso and other artists. But I hope to come back to this museum someday to spend more time.

This is the Chaumes a Cordeville by Vincent Van Gogh.



And this is a view of the Musee D'Orsay on the banks of the Seine River.




We walked along the Seine River and visited the Place de la Concorde. Here are Lit and Tracy Liu at the Place de la Concorde. A lot of people lost their heads here in the French Revolution.



We then walked down the Champs Elysees. There was an aviation exhibition here by EADS Defense and Security (Blake and Dad, maybe you recognize this company). We walked two miles to the Arc d’Triomphe. We were running short on time and a storm was coming in so we didn’t climb to the top of the Arc. We’ll have to save that for another trip.



Our hotel was right by Disneyland Paris. It about killed me not to have time to go inside. But we did walk through the Downtown Disney shops and got our picture taken by the gates. I’ll have to save this for another trip someday. Here are Janette Jones and I just drooling to go inside.



Dean and I have put Paris on our “return here someday" list. It really has been an amazing trip!

More from France...

Read the previous post for day one. I guess I've taken too many pictures that are too big. But I can't help it. I'm in Paris for goodness sakes.

My favorite part of day two was Notre Dame. Here we are at the top of the cathedral. Look at that view behind us!


And, while at the top, here's the bell. This BIG one, the one that I'm sure Quasimoto rang.


And while we really didn't see Quasimoto and he didn't really say hi, this guy did.


We also visited Sainte Chappelle (sorry, no good pictures) and then of course the Eiffel Tower. We were there from just before dusk to dark so we got to see it in the daytime and at night. Here is one shot.


This is from the top of the Eiffel Tower This picture is dark of Dean and I but look at that rainbow in the background. How amazing is that?


We are all really tired and have to leave for the airport for Barcelona Spain at 4:30 am tomorrow so I'll post on Day 3 (today) later. So from France, Bonne Nuit!

Quasimoto Says Hello!

Bonjour from Paris! Oui, Oui, mesdames et monsieurs, Dean and I are here in Paris, France with our friends, Tracy and Lit Liu, Janette and Kelly Jones. Other than stepping on Ratatouille in a Paris street (I won't expound), we have had an amazing time. I highly recommend Paris to everyone! And as far as the Frenchmen go, I haven't met a rude one yet, and that is after spending three days riding the metro. We have seen so many sights! Here are just a few.

We visited the Sacre Coeur. And watched the sun go down from the top of these steps.


We ate crepes here (and I had a run in with Ratatouille in the street nearby--story for another day). So yummy!


Tracy and I bought scarfs. When in France...oh, I guess that's Rome (we'll be there next week!). Not only were we fashionable, we were warm. It's in the 50's, windy and rainy here.


We saw Mona Lisa...
...here at the Louvre. Da Vinci code anyone?



My picture limit is full for this post so I'll have to start a new one because I'm barely on day two and I haven't even gotten to Quasimoto yet.

The Epic Rag Doll Scene

Last Friday, Christian's band, The Epic Rag Doll Scene, had their first gig together. It was at That Music Store in Highland so it wasn't a huge venue but they had quite a few people hanging out to hear them. Let me paint the scene, high schoolers coming and going, dancing, hanging out in the front. Moms and Dads lining the chairs along the back wall. The two support systems--friends and parents. Heaven forbid the two should mingle ;-). But it was a lot of fun. Christian really is an impressive drummer and his bandmates, Trevor and Skyler, did a great job as well. Below is a picture. The quality stinks because it was taken with a camera phone. I considered taking the video camera or my digital camera along but somehow, that didn't say subtle. That said, "Somebody's mom is here" and Christian probably wouldn't have appreciated the humiliation. So we'll settle for this grainy photo. And did I say, Christian is a really good drummer? Well, he is.

Sunday Night and a Sleepover

I really don't like Sunday nights. It's not that the weekend isn't great, it's just that Sunday night means the end of the weekend. It means that tomorrow, the rat race of the week starts over again. I admit, I don't loathe Sunday nights like I did when I worked full time. But I still can't quite convince myself that they are something to look forward to either. So here I sit, late at night when I should be asleep, working on this blog. This is also a typical Sunday night for me--staying up late because somehow, it prolongs the weekend a little longer. And makes me tired and grumpy the next morning.

Kristina had her first sleepover this weekend. I have to say, she has made some darling new friends and I am so grateful to them and their moms for their patience with her. I know that everyone worries when their children go to school, especially at a new school in a new place. Will they make friends? Will they adjust well? But when you add in the fact that the new school is in a whole new country with a different language and a different culture, the worry is a bit stronger. But as I listen to Kristina and her friends laugh and giggle and communicate to each other in a mixture of English, sign language and just plain silliness, it warms my heart. This little Russian girl is going to be okay.

Here are Kaylee, Madison and Kristina.



Funny story--Madison and Kaylee are both tiny little sticks. We all went to Carl's Jr for dinner. All three girls downed quite a bit of food for such tiny things. On the way home, they were laughing in the car and Madison said, "Oh, it hurts to laugh when your stomach is so full." When your waist is as big as my wrist, of course it does. Okay, maybe you had to be there but I laughed out loud when I heard this.

These three even tagged along (in their pajamas) to hear Christian play this weekend. His band, Epic Rag Doll Scene, had their first gig on Friday night. But I'll post more on that tomorrow when I actually have a picture to share with all of you.

For now, I'm off to bed. Monday has to come sometime.

My husband's guitar obsession

Recently, I was reading my friend, Becky's, blog. She had bought a guitar for her 16 year old son, Skyler's, birthday. I was showing Dean the post and as I should have expected, he enlarged the photo to closely examine the guitar.

Yes, my husband loves guitars, sometimes more than me I think. He loves to play them, buy them and build them. It truly is an obsession.

A few years ago, when Sidney was about the same age as this little girl, this commercial came out. I remember laughing at the time because it struck so close to home. It still does. Enjoy and think of Dean.

Lots of Random Photos.

Happy Labor Day!

It's been a lazy day here at our house. It stormed so there wasn't too much we could do outside but it was nice to kind of kick back and just enjoy a day home as a family. I thought I would take the time to update my blog and post some pictures.

Dean is our expert milkshake maker. He hasn't made them for us in a while so were were excited when he offered to tonight. Peach and Raspberry were the flavors of the night.




"Nummy" as Kristina says.



I finally cut my hair. I've always wished for long thick blond beautiful hair but I finally realized that this was a pipe dream that was better put to rest. So I did it and thus far don't regret it. It takes me about 5 minutes to do my hair in the morning and that I absolutely love.





Okay, you are all going to look at this picture and say, "It's a toilet. Why on earth...?" We got all new toilets this week, industrial, "I dare you to clog me" toilets. Ever since we bought this house in 2000, we have fought the battle of clogged toilets. The tiniest bit of toilet paper required a plunger. After eight years, we finally decided it was time to give up the battle and go for heavy duty stuff. So, this, we are happy about.



You have to laugh at this shot. Spencer went camping and 4 wheeling with his friend Preston this weekend. And this is what he looked like when he got home. Gotta love this kid!



Here's some fun shots from Idaho two weekends ago when we were there for the Twin Falls Temple dedication. It was Masen's baptism so lots of family was in town. It's so great to have cousins.





I love this next picture of my mom and Spencer. It's not the best picture ever taken but I love it.



And since I'm posting random photos, including photos of my kids with their cousins, I thought I would post this photo of my cousins and I as little kids. You know, there is nothing better than cousins growing up. Cousins really are a blessing. You are thick as thieves, closer than friends, bound by blood.