Easter Weekend

Since you might have noticed that I'm a little behind on posting, I have yet to do the obligatory Easter re-cap.
 

I'll admit that Easter completely caught me by surprise, and while last year I had candy and Easter toys galore, this year my boys were lucky enough to get 1 book each.

Well that plus some chocolate -  because it isn't Easter without chocolate.

The Easter bunny always leaves his basket on the boys' table for them to find when they wake up.

Nathan had no clue what was going on until I made him peek inside.  After he saw candy and a book - he was sold.

While we had wanted to go to church - it was cold and rainy (as it has been for the past four months) - so we decided to have a family morning "in".

We spent some time together before heading off to our traditional Easter lunch. 

Nathan's first Easter we ended up eating a restaurant right in front of our house and loved it!  We've been back nearly never year.  The boys had a great time.  The best part about this restaurant (or really nearly all restaurants in France) is that the children's menu has items like salmon and ham rather than nuggets and fries. 

After lunch it had stopped raining enough for us to brave the elements and go to an Easter egg hunt.  Nathan had fun, while the rest of us where miserable.

The things we won't do for a little childhood magic, right?

We ended the night Skyping with my parents - while the boys ate too much chocolate. 

What can I say, a perfect little Easter on my side of the ocean.

The following Tuesday when Nathan went back to school - he attended Easter services (he goes to a private Catholic school).  

When I picked him up that afternoon I asked him about his day, mostly because I was curious how the services had been.

He then proceeded to tell me how he had fun at the "spectacle"  {which means "show"}.  Obviously we might have to start taking him to church more often so he doesn't think he's going to a musical production every time he attends.

Dear Noah...

How in the world has it been 15 months already (almost 16)?  Time is flying by and you are no longer my tiny little baby.

I'm trying to savor every last second of your "baby-ness" which I know will be gone all too quickly in the coming months.

You have started "talking" in short one word phrases, although at times it is definitely hard to figure out what you are saying.  My favorite is when you call out to me.  There is something about that tiny little voice saying "mama" that makes my heart melt.

You are unstoppable and love to go everywhere and anywhere.  Your kitchen to try play with things you aren't supposed to is by far your favorite.  Maybe it's because you know that is where the food is.  You love to follow your brother around, although it is mostly to steal his toys when he isn't looking.

You love to stand at his easel and pretend to draw just like he does.  I hope this love and admiration will follow you both throughout your entire lives.

You love to play with cars and trucks - and you adore making the "vroom vroom" noise when you do.  You are a boy's boy.

You love jumping in your crib and the more we tell you to stop, the more you seem to want to do it.  This can only mean trouble in the years ahead.

Somehow in the past few weeks (maybe months) you got two new molars - we didn't even notice!  Now you can truly enjoy your favorite foods - and there are many!  You love to eat!

You are truly such a happy child and your smile and laughter is infectious. 

All (professional) photos are copyright of Alikat Photography in Gilbert, Arizona

Photo Love...

You guys, I have another terrible Mommy Confession to make - there is not a single picture of my second child up in our house - not a single one.

My husband comments on it constantly.  I know it's terrible.
Luckily he is too young to notice.

In order to remedy the situation I decided to get family pictures done.  The sadder truth is that we had no pictures of the four of us all together.

Since we knew we would be back in the States over the holidays, we decided to get them done then.

Our amazing photographer Jennifer suggested taking our pictures at an apple orchard right outside of Phoenix.  I was hesitant at first until we pulled up in the driveway.  The place was amazing!

Of course on the drive over Nathan fell asleep and was a cranky mess for the entire session.  He hates taking pictures anyway, but this was way worse.  Luckily Jennifer kept right up with him and managed to get some amazing shots (like the ones in my previous post here).

When we finally got the preview of our pictures we were so in love.  She was able to capture some amazing family moments.

Who knew my boys were so photogenic.

Now, the only thing left to do is have some of these printed and put up.

There is still hope that there will be some pictures of our "baby" up before the end of the year!

How often do you update the pictures in your home?

All pictures are copyright of Alikat Photography in Gilbert, Arizona.

Dear Nathan...

Dear Nathan,

I know it has been a while since I've written you a letter - ever since Christmas it seems that we have been running non-stop.

You started the ecole maternelle (preschool) in January and it was touch and go for the first couple of weeks.  The adjustment was hard for all of us - but you have truly thrived in your new environment.  There are still some familiar faces from your daycare days, and you get to be reunited with your best friends (and partners in crime) every Wednesday.

You make us laugh every single day and you have become quite the clown.  When your little brother encourages you - there is no stopping the silliness.  Your laughter is infectious and while I would prefer that you settle down and get some things done (like eat your dinner) it is hard to be mad at you when you make us all giggle.

You love to translate for us and it is the funniest thing.  You say everything twice as if you were teaching us new words.

"Le loup, le loup" in English that means wolf".

When you don't know the words in either language you say "in English or French".  It is so amazing to see your mind developing like this.  Sometimes I have to remind myself you are only 3.

You have become a great brother and you have really started enjoying playing with your brother.  Sharing is still difficult but you seem less annoyed and that is a great start.  You love to "read" to your brother and enjoy teaching him.  I hope that this mentor-ship lasts a lifetime.

You are such a winter child and you love the snow.  This love of winter will serve you well as long as we stay in France.

You are an amazing child and it has been so amazing watching you grow these past few months. 

All photos by the amazing Jennifer of Alikat Photography in Gilbert, Arizona

Friday in an Instant

Another Friday in the books!  At least the sunshine came out to greet us today, it was only for a couple of yours but something's something right?

We don't have any big weekend plans.  Nathan has been off school for two weeks and goes back on Monday, which means we'll be laying low.  Luckily we've had enough excitement this week to last us until the next school vacation at the end of April.

LtoR: 1)A typical French breakfast 2) A day at the beach in Montpellier 3) Aquarium penguins 4) First in Flight
5) Brotherly love 6) My cute French town on a gorgeous afternoon 7) A baguette that is nearly as big as Nathan

Luckily, my company's daycare opens up a special section for those the first year pre-school kids to attend on Wednesdays and school vacations.  He absolutely loves going there and it will be rough going back to school after two weeks at the daycare.  They do special activities, play dress-up, go on outings - the best part is that Nathan is reunited with his best friends from daycare.

LtoR: 1)Art by Nathan 2)Firefighter Nathan to the rescue 3) muffins baked by Nathan at daycare 4) My baby is old enough to pick his own bedtime stories.

How was your week?  Any exciting plans for the weekend?

Spontaneity

How has the weather been in your area?  It's been rather schizophrenic around here - days where it is warm and sunny, others cold and rainy, and then snowy.

It's made things a little rough around here, the boys spend more time indoors than out and we've all been going a little stir crazy.

Last Thursday, in the middle of a snow storm, I was about to lose my mind.  The thought of another weekend locked inside was almost too much to bear.

I sent a quick message to my husband to see if he would like to take to the South to get some sunshine.

When we got home that night we booked a hotel and all was set for us to leave on Saturday morning.  We didn't even think twice about it - we were headed down to Montpellier.  We used to do this sort of thing all the time when it was just us and Nathan, but since Noah came into the picture we've been less spontaneous - it felt good to do it again.

Our first stop - the beach!  It was too cold for swimming, but that didn't stop my boys from stripping off their shoes and socks and testing the water.  Noah was a little bit more afraid of the sea than last time, I think the cold sand plus the waves were a little too intimidating and he didn't want to let go of our hands.

We also took the boys down to the carousel and we took them to the aquarium, twice.  We spent time just enjoying the sunshine and our family.

We also took Nathan to his favorite Pirate Restaurant.  This time there was no incident, just a great family time.

It's been nearly three days and all Nathan can talk about is this past weekend.  He keeps asking when we are going to go back to sleep at the "hotel".  Obviously he had a great time.  Not too bad for a last minute trip.

Do you take spontaneous trips or are you more of a planner.

Because it isn't France without a little wine...

Every year when the mail comes in early February I get a little giddy.

It's right around that time of year that our invitations for "Vinidome" arrive.

If you've been following me for a while, you might have remembered my posts about it here and here.

It is a huge wine festival that takes place over four days in my city.  It is so much more than wine, you also have cheese farmers, and bakers and other artisans and it is truly a glimpse into all of the different products that France has to offer.

It is also the only place I can find my favorite French wine that is made by a guy and his son in the south of France.  They are the cutest, and after they finally remember me after three years of being a loyal customer.

Every time we've gone it has been wall to wall people making the experience less than enjoyable.  This year, to beat the crowd we decided to go first thing Sunday morning.

We felt a little odd showing up at a wine event at 10 am on a Sunday with two kids in tow.  I was relieved when I saw other parents loading up their strollers and heading in.  Vive la France, right?

We actually didn't stay very long.  We bought the wine we had been waiting to buy all year, some cheese and some breads.  We wanted to be out of there quickly before the big crowds started arriving.

And while I'm not a connoisseur of wines by any means, I did brave the line to try and "Ice Wine".  The grapes are actually picked when they are frozen and the wine is produced at some sort of crazy temperature.  Supposedly, the right conditions to freeze the grapes happens so rarely that they are only able to produce about 100 bottles every 2 - 3 years.  Or at least this is the story they tell people to justify the 150 euro price tag.

Don't worry, we didn't buy it, but at least I can say I've tasted a fancy schmancy wine.  Cross that off the bucket list.

And while the boys obviously didn't get to drink any wine, they were happy with their juice boxes and cheese samples.

Because it is after all, the little things that make life worth while.