Paris

Parker had such big eyes on his first train ride on the RER to Paris. He called it "Percy"

One of his favorite part of the day: running around for 10 minutes laughing his lungs out and chasing every pigeon around Notre Dame!

I ran with Parker in the stroller around Notre Dame chasing pigeons. Paris is a city of pigeons!

Sorry, I am finally catching up on our blog. Today, we headed into Paris with Katie, Parker, my Mom and I (Dad was sick :(
It was a gorgeous day. We headed to the Eiffel Tower first and walked out on the Trocadero and this is the view. Can't beat it! Magnificent! It is such a breath taking view. I have so many pictures to post. Just don't want to drown every one with them.
After walking around the Eiffel Tower for a while we crossed over the Seine through some small streets and stumbled upon the Saturday market. Such a nice treat to see all the produce, meat, cheese and other french products.
We then went to the Louvre and Parker ran around the Louvre (downstairs). He played the throwing a penny around game and chasing it all over the Louvre. There is a place, below the Louvre (I think it's pictured in the DaVinci Code) where there is an inverted pyramid that goes into the ground. There is a Mac store there where we had to pick up something for my Dad.

We then walked up the Seine towards Notre Dame and found a place that sold us a greek sandwich (gyros with french fries). We then ate our Sandwiches in the little playgrounds around Notre Dame. It was a gorgeous day in Paris. Come and visit!

Parker planning out trip to Paris

When in France do as the French do!

Parker pointing out where to go in Paris

We sat down to plan our day to Paris and Parker wanted to look at the map. He was so cute pointing places to go. I think we would have seen one cemetery and shopping center...

Moules Frites! Mussels and French Fries

Tradition. Can't beat it. Mussels cooked in a wine sauce and french fries. Can't beat it. try it!

Visiting My sister at Nestle

Got Chocolate?

On Friday morning we took a little walk to go see Janelle at work. She works at Nestle in Noisiel. This was one of the first factories to produce chocolate (Menier) read more here on wikipedia, Click Here. Too bad there is no chocolate being made there anymore. But my sister did hook us up with some tokens for the vending machine. On the menu, hot chocolate and chocolate bars! Parker, who has not been drinking the milk here (even spiked with chocolate) drank my hot chocolate. The Marne river goes through the factory and there are really nice buildings. you hear the water rushing through what used to move all the turbines. If only the odor of chocolate remained...

Provins

Built in the 12th Century, this dungeon is the only octagonal Dungeon built on a square base.

On Thursday we drove to Provins a medieval city. We strolled around the small streets and walked through a picturesque city towards the dungeon and church on the hill. We entered the city through the city gates and Parker loved "the tunnel" as he called it.

Foie Gras Pizza

Goose Liver Pizza

My Dad has become quite a good pizza maker. He makes his own dough and tops them with fancy ingredients. Two nights ago, it was pears, figs. May sound weird but you have to try it. It's delicious! Katie ate it and enjoyed every last bite. I am very proud of all the food she has tried.

Panaroma shot of Chateau de Champs

Click on the image above to see the full image and view

Here is a Panaroma shot from the gardens at the chateau de Champs sur Marne.
Imagine it during spring when everything is blooming. Beautiful!

"Menage a Cat"

Due to the Mature content of this post, no pictures will be posted.

We got back from the chateau and saw four cats partaking in inappropriate behavior. Let's just say it was a Menage a cat....

Chateau de Champs sur Marne

Parker's new rain boots getting proper use!

This afternoon, we headed over to the Chateau de Champs sur Marne. A little chateau about 2 miles away from my parents apartment. It was raining a little but we did not mind it at all. It gave Parker a chance to try on his new rain boots. He found so many puddles to splash in. It was gorgeous and no one was there which made it even more special.

Moroccan Hot Dog and Escargot

The Chocolat Escargot

Let's talk melting pot. At lunch we had a hot dog. Not any kind of hot dog. Take a Moroccan sausage called Merguez (mix of Lamb and beef and spices(Paprika and etc..)). Open up a a fresh baguette and lay the merguez inside and you have yourself a nice lunch! In Paris, you can find this American, Morrocan, French sandwich topped with French fries! That becomes a gut bomb!


Are you going to let Katie off easily by voting for her to eat Goose Liver? That is like eating a Filet Mignon at a nice steakhouse. Above, you can see her enjoying her take on a french Escargot. I really don't know where one can find frog legs here but I have seen some snails around my parents little yard...

Lagny sur Marne

Enjoying some fresh croissants and hot chocolate and coffee for the adults.

Parker Running after the pigeons and swans that we were feeding.

Little streets of Lagny

We went to city of Lagny sur marne yesterday. It was a little rainy so we got some croissants at a boulangerie and then went to a cafe to enjoy them with a hot beverage. Yummy! Can't beat fresh out of the oven croissants. There was a little dog next to us at the Cafe, which is very typical in France to bring your dog into the cafe. Parker enjoyed the little dog and tried to feed him some croissant. Afterward we headed down to the river were ducks, swans, and pigeons always gather. We gave them bread and they were very friendly. Katie had to discourage me from trying to get Parker to drop a piece of bread down the swans throat. Parker enjoyed running after them and scaring them away. We will take him into Paris soon and let him run for hours after pigeons. It seemed like he had no concept of the river and thought that he could run on water.

In the afternoon, Katie and I went on a 2 hour walk to go check out our old house. It was very weird seeing all the changes to the streets and houses and neighborhood. We got caught in a downpour but got to see an amazing rainbow that spawned two little lakes along our walk.

Where is Lagny? Here is a link to google maps Click Here

La Raclette

We just finished eating a raclette. You melt raclette cheese in those little trays and then pour it over a warm potatoe and top it with meat (lardons (close to bacon), and cold cut meats). On the side, pickled onions and cornichons. read more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raclette

Walk to feed the ducks

Mom, Katie, Dad and Parker enjoying a windy walk!

Parker: one finger up and saying: "One More time"

We enjoyed a little stroll around the neighborhood today. We took some bread to the ducks. I think Parker ate as much as the ducks. One for me, one for the ducks...
Tomorrow we head into Lagny sur Marne (the city in which I was born). Going to the Marne river which dumps into the Seine, the river that runs through Paris. We are headed into Paris this week as my parents have the week off.

My perfect meal / snack

Today, we went to my parent's church. Parker did very well for being in a total new environment. The little 6 year old Congolese girl that became his friend thought it was pretty cool that he spoke English. She spoke his language... Parker says: You will build block towers so that I can destroy them.
We had a good friend of mine over for lunch, had some great wine that Katie and I both enjoyed, great food and great laughs.

We had such a large lunch that we really didn't have dinner but Katie and I sat down to enjoy a Baguette and some Mousse de Canard au porto (Mousse duck liver with Porto). Take some fresh Baguette, a slice of pate and top it with a Cornichons and you have yourself a perfect snack!
Can't beat it!

Wii Wii night!

Last night, after dinner, we had a little Wii fun. We had lots of great laughs all playing Guitar Hero. Parker even took his shot at holding the guitar. It took me a while but I ended up mastering Michael Jackson's Beat It song. MJ is one of my favorite artists. I even busted out the spin move and a half split. We heard a loud crack when i landed my knee on the floor. I think I almost cracked the laminate floor.
Katie, Janelle, Christophe and I then played a little Mario kart. Katie's thumb was all messed up from the intense pressing!
This was a great way to work off part of the delicious meals we have been eating.

Baby Milo - Who wants one?

France. Fashion capital of the world.
Four years ago on our trip, we brought you the MAN PURSE. This year we bring you: Baby Milo. If you are hip and in your teens, this is the hottest thing on the market. These things were selling like hot pancakes at IHOP at our local Marche!
Do you want your kid to be left behind when the Milo wave starts in the US? I think Not! The wave is coming, so get your shirts now. Do I hear a five hundred in the back of the room?

Parker and the baguette

We took a little walk through the city of Torcy yesterday and walked to the Boulangerie where we bought a Baguette and proceeded to give it to Parker. For all of you out there thinking of visiting France or my parents, the bread is worth it! After my last piece of french bread 4 years ago, I think I grew to like the american take on the french bread but after having some bread here, I must say it is quite different.

We took this shot of Parker because I had the same shot taken of me when I was a young baby in France. I loved that his first reaction was to go for the end of it and bite of a piece of bread.

Today for lunch, Katie and I sat down and ate a piece of baguette with cheese. I must admit, it was more of a spread but for the ones that know me, that is as far as I go in terms of "non melted cheese". Call me phony frenchman!

La Cagoule

I give you the Cagoule!

On our trip to the Marche, we negotiated one of the vendors from 5 Euros down to 4 Euros. I bet Gary could have gotten him down to 1 Euro.
The Cagoule is quite nice because it covers your head and neck (and parker has not figured out how to remove it yet). I remember my entire childhood wearing one of these during the cold months. You can still see the young ones wearing these.

DisneyLand Paris

We had a nice surprise today and were able to go to DisneyLand Paris. The whole clan went since we got free tickets from a friend of Janelle and Christophe. Parker had a blast. His favorite ride was It's a small world and even took a nap on Main Street. The whole family had a great time even though we did small kid rides. The day started out a little rainy then some sunshine and then a small thunderstorm! We got to see and meet lots of characters and my parents, Katie and Parker got to see the parade while my sis and Christophe and I went on to Disney Studio to do the tower of terror ride. it's a scary elevator ride that drops several times.

We had warm crepes for dinner and finally got Parker to taste and somewhat like Nutella. I think I can write a whole blog about the chocolate Parker has been exposed too.
Awesome day with the fam.

Parker's day with Grandma and Grandpa

Our day started at 1am with Parker yelling for "Momma Daddy". He thought it would be a great idea to be awake and play for the next 3 hours. After many attempts to lay him back down, we resorted to bringing him to bed with us. He made up a song about mommy which was pretty cute and made us laugh, than asked for fish, burritos, and hot sauce. Of course it was about 6pm California time. We all finally fell asleep at 4am. Didn't get up till 10am, had brunch and started our day. Parker stayed with Grandma and Grandpa playing games, having tea time, coloring, playing trucks, going outside to eat snow and drinking the old gross water from the birds bath.

Katie and I checked out Janelle and Christophe's CRIB (they are remodeling their home and it looks great). Then the 4 of us went to Carrefour, the equivalent to a Super Walmart but bigger. It was great going down all the aisles and reminiscing about all the food. I will have to post some pictures of this great place. Don't get me wrong, WinCo is still the BOMB! We went to the Marche in Noisiel, an outdoor market near my high school. It was a very diverse crowd. We bought a cagoule, a knit hat that extends down the neck for warmth. We will take a picture of him in it.

We came home for a delicious dinner of Duck Confit with Cassoulet and a Carrot salad. Cookies were for dessert. Parker ate a special treat from Grandma, a mini chocolate ice cream cone. He ate every bite and asked for more. You can see how happy he is in the photo at the top right.

Welcome to France

We made it!!!
10 hours and 40 minutes in the plane - thank you modern medicine for Benadryl.

Parker got some solid sleep while Katie and I held him. Parker did not like sitting in his seat during take off, so we distracted him with new toys, crayons, stickers, chips, and anything else we could think of. Katie almost barfed toward the end of the flight, probably too much flying and not enough fluids. One funny anecdote after we landed was Parker running away from us after we told him to stop and running smack into a thick glass door. He bounced off the door and left a snot mark where he hit. Poor kid. He is fine but we are not sure about the door!

My mom, dad, Janelle, and Christophe came to the airport to pick us up. It is great to be with them.