Paris, Je t'aime

Since I came home from Paris last year I've been dreaming of going back there. And this year my dream came true. This time I got to bring my crazy circus lovely family with me.

It's been three weeks since we got back from Paris. But a day doesn't go without me thinking back to our time there. I couldn't even imagine a better vacation. There were different reasons why it was so great. First and foremost, we went to visit our awesome friends Chris and Kelly.

They let us stay with them and it worked out so well. They also have four kiddos and our kids get along so well. We pretty much did not see nor heard the kids for the whole duration of our stay.

One day Kelly took the girls to the Luxembourg park and let me and Matt escape to the city. We had an amazing time wandering around the city. It was a little rainy and chilly but we still enjoyed it so much.

We took a Seine cruise, had lunch at a cute french cafe, stopped at Laduree to get me some macarons, walked on Champs Elysees and saw a lot of things, though did not go into museums because of outrageously long lines.

I decided that visiting with friends is the best way to do vacations. We thoroughly enjoyed the company. The biggest plus is that after living in Paris for almost two years Chris and Kelly knew the best places to take us to so we would enjoy Paris with our kids.

On the weekend they took us to the chateau Chantilly. The weather cleared up and the chateau was so beautiful. We rented two golf carts and had races around the huge property.

Emma's only wish was to see the Eiffel tower up close. So we did that. We walked around it, rode a carousel and ate some ice cream. On our way back to the car we stopped at the playground and let the girls play for a little bit.

Kelly and I also squeezed in some sewing time in the evenings. I loved sitting with her sewing and talking and making plans for future.

Sometimes with this life I feel so lonely. It seems I don't have friends and I have no one to hang out with. It is partly true and hugely depends on the post/place we are at the moment. But then I also feel so blessed to have friends around the world that are so great and it doesn't matter that we are so far away from each other because I know that we will meet again at some point in the future.

I think that thought of having great friends that know what you go through and that are "in the same boat" as you keeps me going. It keeps me sane in this sometimes very lonely life.

But back to Paris. I am sure you don't want to read my sappy thoughts. Oh, Paris. Such a beautiful city!

Usually Matt doesn't really like family vacations. And I understand him. Vacations with kids are not fun. You cannot really relax. This time around though we both enjoyed it. It was not stressful at all. We would wake up, eat some croissants and then decide what we'd do that day.

The last day we took the girls to the Disneyland. I was reluctant to go as I know Disneyland with a baby means a lot of standing around and waiting. Alyssa did not feel well, she got some kind of a stomach bug a day before and spent the whole day sleeping in the stroller. Katelyn was in a weird mood and was throwing tantrums all day long. So Emma was the only one enjoying the day. Matt did too perhaps.

Our girls did so well throughout the trip that I am kind of excited to take them on more adventures in the future. I feel like I don't have to stress out as much anymore about the flying or trying to entertain them every second of our vacation. They are growing up and with so much traveling they are getting used to all the things that go with it. All in all, we had such a great time and Paris will hold a special place in our hearts. And a huge thank you to Chris and Kelly for showing us around! We miss you guys!