The House of the Sun King

The next morning, after a bit of miscommunication that sent B in one direction and the girls and me in another, we finally made it to our meeting spot for our day tour of Versailles.  It is another must-see while in Paris, but somehow we had skipped it all of the previous times we had been, and it was high on my list of things to do.  But the grounds of the Château are so overwhelming that walking them on foot is a monumental task and one that would take ALL day (if not more) and it just wouldn't be as much fun for the kids.  Instead, I booked us on a biking tour!

We grabbed a train to the end of the line and walked a short way to the bike storage to pick out one that was just right for each of us. We set off to the town market to pick up our picnic lunch of a baguette (soooo fresh), some cheese, sliced meats, and a lot of water.  There was a heatwave on after all.

We also found fresh crepes in the market square.

All fueled up and ready for some adventure, we braved the streets of Versailles, dodging cars that seemed to want to run us over and trying not to run over other tourists on the bike paths.  And then suddenly we were in the gardens, and the stress levels subsided immediately.  Wide-open roads loomed before us, and the kids (we had 3 more on tour with us, and they were just our girl's ages) could roam free.  

Our first stop was the building of the Grand Trianon.  Commissioned by Louis XIV (the Sun King) as a familial retreat, he preferred living there to the grand palace.  It was a gorgeous building, but I didn't stop to get many pictures as it reminded me of so many other marble palaces from that age.  But I did take a few of our next stop, the gardens behind the Grand Trianon and next to the Petit Trianon.  This spot is known as The Queens Hamlet and has a pretty compelling and bizarre story. 

Marie Antoinette had this fairytale village built so that she could pretend she was in a small village in the French countryside.  The "townspeople" were all servants, and when she was in residence, they all had to make-believe that they were residents of this small village.  There was a farm where there were actual crops and animals that needed tending, and there were shops and roadside stands that other servants would shop at.  Much of the village was left behind and decay during the Revolution, but it has since been restored to its former state, and now the farm is a place of learning for schoolchildren.

We stopped to feed and pet some of the farm animals...

And we took some time to smell the roses (literally).

Right next door, we toured the Petit Trianon which was commissioned by Louis XV for his mistress, Madame de Pompadour.  At this point, we did a bit of biking around the gorgeous gardens and finally stopped along the grand canal for some lunch.

A bit more bike riding through the estate before braving the streets and dropping our bikes back at their shed...

Back on foot, it was time to head into the Château and get a good look around.  After all, this Palace is one of the most famous in the World, is a UNESCO World Heritage site and just all-around impressive in its stature and history.  What started as Louis the XIII's hunting lodge is now 2,300 rooms spread over 63,154 m2!  There is more history in this building, than I can go into here, but if you want to learn more, it's just a quick Google search, and you will have reading for days.  

First, an obligatory handstand in front of the gates.

The famous Hall of Mirrors.  There are 17 arches filled with 357 mirrors (21 in each arc) that overlook 17 arched windows looking out into the gardens of Versailles.  But that is not the most interesting fact about this room.  The most fascinating thing is that before this room was installed no one in France knew how to make a mirror (and most had never seen one).  To have this room constructed, the King kidnapped several mirror makers from Venice (where all of the master makers were) and had them complete this room for him.

Having walked the length of the palace and having biked much of the gardens, we were ready to call it a day.  We stopped quickly outside the grounds to fill up our water bottles (and our mouths) and hopped the next train back to Paris. 

Still a bit jet-lagged, we grabbed an early dinner and fell into bed at a reasonable hour.  Having no concrete plans for the next morning meant we could get up at our leisure and take the day as it came!

La Vie est Belle

A bit over a year ago B's cousin G, got engaged to a fabulous girl.  Being as they are both Venezuelan Dutch, it came as no surprise when they announced the wedding location as Amsterdam.  Seeing as it is quite a trek to Europe, not to mention a bit costly, we decided that we would make a two-week vacation out of it.  After checking into a few different locations (Greece, Turkey, Germany), we settled on an old favorite - Paris.   We have all been before, and that was one of its selling points.  We could relax and not have to rush to see all of the sights (though we did a fair bit of sightseeing).  It also allowed for an effortless train ride into Amsterdam when we needed to get to the wedding.

We left, appropriately dressed, early on Tuesday morning...

And arrived at our Airbnb about lunchtime the next day.

Jet lagged (we had been up close to 24 hours at this point since sleeping on the plane proved impossible for us all), we hit the streets.  And we walked and walked and walked...We have already seen the Tuilleries and the giant wheel, and we have walked the length of Saint Germain des Prés; we have looked out from the top of the Eiffel tower and have taken silly pictures of it from afar.  But the girls were so young the first time (it was 5 1/2 years ago after all) it was good to reacquaint them with it all again.  And it was an easy way to get some fresh air and reset their body clocks.

She kept awake by doing handstands and running stairs...

And jumping to catch leaves...

Then, suddenly, there it was...

 And I had to recreate the cheesy photo we took the first time.  Now a preteen, she wasn't as enamored of having her picture snapped here, but she did it to please her Mama (and is now glad she has it as a memory).  We couldn't recreate it from the exact same spot because she has grown considerably and we couldn't get the picture with her standing up so high.  But we could do it with Stinkerbell...

We had tickets to the tip-top this time (last time it was closed due to strong winds).  I wasn't so sure how I felt about that, but in the end, I am glad we did it.

 At this point, the girls were running on fumes, so we hopped the Metro (where some of us took a quick nap) and ate dinner at the unheard-of hour of 5 pm.

 Bedtime was early (like 7:30 pm early), and with the aid of some melatonin, we all slept like babies until our wake up call the next morning.  We had a big day ahead of us once again.  And yes, I know I said earlier we were going to relax this time around, but it doesn't mean that we were going to just sit around and eat macarons...

Bits and Bobs

The goings-on in June...

Lol'd when B sent this to me...

This one made the competition team by working hard!

MadHatter started her road to the Jr. Olympics in late May (Districts) and qualified for Regionals in late June.  Notice how tiny our district is (#10).  It is because there are sooooo many talented runners in our area and it is one of the most competitive in the country.

Ominous skies are the norm this time of year.

She got a little overzealous with her licking and her peanut butter ended up in the pool.

 Doggy Ice Cream on a hot day!

 Someone is getting that tooth extracted (bottom left side).  And then she gets braces...

 Waiting out a tornado warning.  In the smallest (but safest) place in the house.

 She is happy to have her bear back.

 Helping me unpack.

The cousins (who live in Mexico) came to visit us!!!

 Good Luck rainbow for Regional track meet.  And how Stinkerbell sits while passing her time at the track.

120 Months

The baby has entered double digits!  How did this happen? 

We awoke early on the day and sang a very quick Happy Birthday as we ran out the door to MadHatter's Regional Qualifiers meet.  Thankfully, she only had one race that day so we only had to stay for the very first race of the day.  To make it easier for Stinkerbell to give up her birthday morning, we brought donuts for all.

We made it home in time for her gymnastics training where she got to spend time doing everything she loved, then present opening and finally dinner at the movie theatre where we saw Aladdin per the birthday girls request. 

Putting to bed a very tired little girl she exclaimed that it was the perfect birthday.

Happy Birthday to the baby -- who is not such a baby anymore.  We are so proud of you and the little lady you are growing into.  Your spirit is infectious, your will unbreakable and that smile lights up the room any time you walk in.  I hope you never lose your love of life, your innocence and may you forever love so hard it hurts.  You are one special little girl and we are so glad you are ours!

Worldly Goods

Due to a lot of unforeseen circumstances, this has been the longest move ever.  And certainly the most challenging.  Let me explain.

Back in October, the girls and I packed up all of their clothing, a few pieces of mine and some random toys/games/craft items that we thought they would like to have for the next few months.  I threw in 6 plates, mugs and sets of utensils to use at the new house and off we headed to our new home in the U.S. while B stayed with the majority (all?) of our things back in Munich.  The idea was simple.  We needed to buy a lot of things anyway - new bedroom furniture for the girls and ourselves (ours was going in the guest room), new living room furniture as the stuff we had would be going in the loft, kitchen table because we didn't own one...you get the picture.  It would allow us to live in two houses until B joined us in Florida a few months later.

We set up home here and learned to live without a lot of things.  But it was getting old not having enough dishes to make it through more than two meals each day.  And the girls were really missing their things.  And I was hating having to rebuy things we already owned just because they were 5,000 miles away.  And the big kicker, B still didn't have a move date!  This was not the way it was supposed to work out.

Finally, we made the decision to send our things home and for B to move into a furnished apartment in Munich until his job was finished there and he could ultimately move home.  So, 7 months after we left everything behind, it was packed up, put in our container and shipped home.  Ironically, it was the fasted shipment we had ever received (a month from door to door).

Leaving Munich!

It's here!  They did have to remove it from the container because it was too big for our streets.

My helpers for the day.

We can't forget this one.  She was a trooper at getting things checked off an in the right spot inside.  I did have to take the job from her when we realized that the packers in Munich might have been the worst we have ever encountered.  From putting the box number on the tape (where is wore off) to not using any paper to pack anything, to having boxes have empty and crushed, it was almost like they let 3 year olds pack us up.  We have a HUGE list of broken and damaged items but at least our things are home.

Now if I could just get out from underneath these boxes (and keep the cats out of them).  Moving with a half-full house presents a whole new set of challenges but I wouldn't trade it!