Paris, Part I: Hmm...

Months ago, we booked a long weekend in Paris. As part of his Ironman training, David was going to run the Paris Marathon on the 15th April. Then, due to injury, he was unable to run but we decided to spend the weekend in Paris anyway. It had been a few years since we were last there, and it was a good excuse to be back.

We couldn't quite make our minds up about how to get there and when we finally decided to take the Eurostar, prices had sky-rocketed so we fell back on our original plan to drive there via the Eurotunnel. We were both not very keen on this option because Emily had recently begun being very impatient in the car and we didn't want to have to listen to her moaning for over 3 hours. Still, we didn't want to fly there either, so we decided to risk it.

Turned out we had nothing to worry about. She was perfectly fine getting to Dover, spent the crossing out of the car, and spent the drive from Calais to Paris asleep or blowing us kisses.



We were the last car on board the train so she had ample room to roam.


Once we'd checked in to our hotel, we moved around the furniture in our room (we must be every hotel's favourite guests) to ensure we could actually have a quiet conversation once Emily was asleep. Then we headed out for a stroll down the Champs Élysées and to get some dinner.



This was when reality kicked in. Stupidly, we'd done no "Paris With Toddler" research. Since we'd been before and done all the sights then, and we're not big on much sightseeing anyway - we much prefer to take it easy and just soak up the essence of a place, we figured we'd just chill and let Emily roam around while we do, as we'd do in England. We'd take a few walks, perhaps a boat ride, a spot of shopping, nothing stressful.

It was at this point, looking for a place to have dinner, that we realised that we might be in for an interesting weekend. Most restaurants and brasseries we attempted to have dinner in had no highchairs (and we'd stupidly left our portable booster seat in the hotel room). Emily was looked at as if she was some sort of alien fallen out of the sky. A child in a restaurant?! When we did eventually find somewhere that had a highchair (one without a harness so she spent the entire time climbing out of it), and after I was almost run over by a very rude waiter carrying a tray of empty glasses and got shouted at for being in the way while we waited to be shown to our table, Emily was given stainless steel cutlery, a plate and a glass. And the waiter seemed taken aback when I moved everything away from her.

From where we stood, it seemed like no Parisian had even the slightest concept of an infant. Playgrounds (we found quite a few) include slides, see-saws and monkey bars. Emily loves swings, but there are no swings, anywhere. Signs state that playgrounds are intended for children over four years of age.

Even shopping started out feeling hopeless. In Zara, we tried to get to the first floor. We spotted a lift. Good, this was progress. After what seemed like an eternity waiting for the lift to arrive, it was packed with boxes and clothing rails. There was no way more than one person would fit in there, let alone a buggy. The sales assistant close by looked up, then carried on doing whatever he was doing. We walked out. (We were more successful in other shops, but it was at this point that David looked over to me and, laughing, said "I can actually see the blog post writing itself in your head." He wasn't wrong.)

By the morning of our second day, Emily was bored out of her mind and we were becoming slightly concerned as to how we were going to keep her entertained, and feeling very bad for having brought her all the way there to have no fun whatsoever. I said to David let's find some grass and let her roam around for a while. But there on the grass was a fresh delivery of dog poo. Back to square one.

She was getting increasingly impatient to not be allowed to move around anywhere (remember, she still just crawls!!) until David spotted a sign. There was an Aquarium. We ditched the Eiffel Tower and made a bee line for the aquarium.



I'll tell you all about that in my next post, and I promise it does get more positive after this!

[Read Part II]

How Much Fun Can You Have in a Bathtub?

...Lots, it would seem. And you don't even always need water.

Jokingly, I popped Emily into the bath fully clothed the other day and handed her some of her bath toys. The fact that she was in a place that is usually wet but this time she was dry and fully clothed, seemed to blow her mind just a little. She also found it hilarious.









Sometimes (sometimes!!), it's so easy to keep her entertained!

So Much Love

The other day I came across something I wrote on the 10th February 2011. Emily was 13 days old.

"Being a mummy to this little girl of mine has made me feel complete. It feels like the final piece of the puzzle has been located and firmly put into place. I cannot get enough of the way she looks at me, adoringly, with her big eyes, the way she moves closer to me when I give her kisses because they comfort her and she wants more, the feeling of her breathing softly when she falls asleep on my chest. If I could sit here all day and just look at her, I probably would be fine with it. She's magnificent even when she's crying. So much love, I cannot even begin to put it into words."

I can't say anything's changed. If anything, I love her even more.

Why God Made Little Girls

God made the world with towering trees,
Majestic mountains and restless seas.
Then paused and said, "It needs one more thing...
Someone to laugh and dance and sing.
To walk in the wood and gather flowers...
To commune with nature in quiet hours."

So God made little girls
With laughing eyes and bouncing curls,
With joyful hearts and infectious smiles,
Enchanting ways and feminine wiles.
And when He'd completed the task He'd begun,
He was pleased and proud of the job He'd done.
For the world, when seen through little girl's eyes,
Greatly resembled Paradise.

[Author Unknown]


When Denise and I were young, we shared a room. On the wall was a pretty pink frame with a picture of a little girl and the poem "Why God Made Little Girls." I remember reading it and imagining those majestic mountains and little girls in fields. I remember trying to understand what "feminine wiles" were. This poem had a special place in my heart. It made me feel special.

Years passed, Denise and I moved into separate rooms and didn't want sentimental mush on our cool walls. The poem was forgotten.

Until last week, while trying to think up something different to put on Emily's new bedroom wall, it came back to me. I couldn't remember the name of the poem, so I asked my sister if she remembered it. She didn't but my dad saved the day, and some good news: the frame still exists.

Whether it will be that original frame or an updated version, I will be seeing to it that this poem is on Emily's wall when she moves into it in a few weeks time. Maybe she'll read it in wonder when she's older too and know just how special she is.

[image cred]

Date Night Observations

Last month saw our third date night since Emily was born. My sister kindly babysat and we headed out to the cinema for the first time in 17 months. (Yes, I counted.)

Here are some date night observations:

1. No matter what great outfit you had in mind for date night, it simply will not do on the night and you will go through everything you own, only to turn back to that original outfit reluctantly as nothing else seems to work as well.

2. It is not possible to wear more than one pair of shoes at a go. Yes there are many pretty shoes in that closet that haven't been worn in months and months, but you really will need to just settle on one pair for the night.

3. You feel the need to tell your sister where everything is, forgetting that she already knows all this because she is, in fact, your sister and not a random babysitter.

4. Cinema food doesn't get cheaper 17 months on.

5. The tub of pop corn that you just spent a half a year's savings on will topple over if you hit it with your coat.

6. People will want to sit in those seats you've draped said coat over.

7. Volume levels in the cinema seem shockingly high when you're used to keeping the TV at a sensible volume because the baby's sleeping.

8. Upon your return, the baby will sense that you've been out galavanting and will spend the rest of the night unsettled just to keep you on your toes, and in the hope that you won't dare go out alone again.



Our next date has been scheduled ;)


[image cred]