Thursday, November 26, 2009
Just Having Fun
This time around she was more interested in putting objects into her mouth instead of giggling but it was still cute!
Baby's First Food
I read that avocado makes a great first food for baby due to its texture and creaminess as well as its high nutrient content.
Avocados are often called one of nature's perfect foods because they are said to contain everything a person needs to survive.
I also read that avocado is a wonderful "good fat" food for baby's brain and physical development, and to try an avocado as baby's first food instead of refined cereals.
The Finnish mid-wives might turn up their noses at avocado and press me to feed her boring potato, but something natural that I only need to cut open and scoop out to give to Isabel sounds good to me. Plus what she doesn't eat we will gladly chop up and put in a salad, YUM!.
So here we go....
Avocados are often called one of nature's perfect foods because they are said to contain everything a person needs to survive.
I also read that avocado is a wonderful "good fat" food for baby's brain and physical development, and to try an avocado as baby's first food instead of refined cereals.
The Finnish mid-wives might turn up their noses at avocado and press me to feed her boring potato, but something natural that I only need to cut open and scoop out to give to Isabel sounds good to me. Plus what she doesn't eat we will gladly chop up and put in a salad, YUM!.
So here we go....
Toe Sandwiches
Mommy loves to eat Toe Sandwiches every day, which I guess inspired Isabel to try one to see what all the fuss is about.
Not sure she likes them as much as me, but I catch her every now and again trying to put one in her mouth.
Here she goes....
Wants to try heel first...."hmmm not very tasty"
"Oh, here are these toes I keep hearing Mom talk about"
Caught on video, toe munching fest
Not sure she likes them as much as me, but I catch her every now and again trying to put one in her mouth.
Here she goes....
Wants to try heel first...."hmmm not very tasty"
"Oh, here are these toes I keep hearing Mom talk about"
Caught on video, toe munching fest
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Paris, France - 2nd Time Around
The first time I went to Paris I was a little bit nervous. Not only did I not know ANY French BUT the US was doing the whole silly 'Freedom Fries' thing and I wasn't sure how I would be treated.
When Greg and I first got to Paris in 2005, we were looking around for our hotel on a huge street map. Within 5 minutes a lady came walking up and asked us in French and then quickly in English if we needed help finding our hotel. She pointed us in the right direction (right across the street....yeah we were blind) and every French person we came across was just as friendly and nice!
Same thing the second time around. On the train from Versailles to Paris, Greg was busy putting my suitcase, backpack and his on the train. I had Isabel in the pram and was trying to maneuver how to lift the pram up on the platform, so we could get on. A young kid helped me on and did it with a smile. At our stop, a group of men noticed we might need help and offered to help us. They helped by picking up ALL of our luggage and that started the second trip to Paris off with a bang.
Here are some pictures of us back in 2005...just a couple of kids in love :-)
This time around Greg had to work all day long and so that left Isabel and I to make our way through the city streets without my trusty navigator. I was a little nervous about taking her out in Paris by myself but I decided to head to the Eiffel Tower (as I could see it above all the buildings) and make my way along the Seine.
It was a gorgeous cool and sunny day and I couldn't wait to see Paris again.
It was too long of a walk before we made it to the Eiffel Tower.
I could not get Isabel and the Eiffel Tower in the same shot but I got one of her looking up at it....close enough, right? :-)
Speaking of the Eiffel Tower, we were lucky enough to be there as the ol' tower celebrates its 120th birthday.
To mark the occasion the tower displays a light show for twelve minutes, four times a night(it will do this until December 31st).
We were able to catch this show the last night we were there.After getting to the Eiffel Tower, Isabel was getting hungry and it was a little too cool to open up my jacket and feed her outside, so I scouted out a place that would be nice to have a little snack for both of us.
I was in luck as not too far away was a cute little place that offered dessert, or at least that is what caught my eye. I asked the waitress what she would recommend, the chocolate cake or apple pie? She said chocolate cake and boy was I glad that she recommended that because it wasn't just an ordinary piece of cake it was a cake that had melted chocolate in the middle. YUMMY!
Here Isabel is a little surprised to see her mom licking the plate clean.
After we were both fueled up we headed out along the Seine.
Both Mommy and Isabel were really enjoying being outside in the sun.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Here is a little video clip of Isabel (be sure to push the play button)
I noticed a building that had the French flag on it and thought it would be a good background for a picture....so we would know Isabel was in France.
This gave me an idea of getting Isabel in shots of famous French structures.
Greg laughed when he saw the photos and said Isabel looked like the garden gnome that made its way around famous sites in the movie Amelie, which is rather fitting since Isabel's middle name is Amelie.
Some she was awake for and some of it she wasn't
Here we are at the Louvre Museum.
Some girl came up and was sweet talking Isabel, the French way with their 'ooh la la' and 'coco coco' noises.
Isabel really seemed to like this.
Next it was on to Notre Dame, a beautiful Gothic cathedral.
I believe I read that construction began in 1163 and it wasn't completed until 1345.
Facade, showing the Portal of the Virgin, Portal of the Last Judgment and Portal of St-Anne.
Last time I saw Notre Dame it was at night.
Just about any medieval Gothic cathedral can seem spooky, but a lavish cathedral like Notre Dame can truly make you tremble. It's supposed to, with all those snarling gargoyles perched on rooftops and ledges.
The only downside about Notre Dame at night is that it is closed so we didn't see the inside.
This time I decided it would be nice to see what the inside looked like and so Isabel and I got in line. Thankfully the line moved fast as it was free entrance.
Beautiful stain glass everywhere you looked.
After a viewing inside the sun started to set and I needed to go meet Greg for an early dinner.
I actually found a taxi pretty quickly and we stuffed the pram inside and jumped in to go meet Daddy on the other side of town.
Here is a shot of Daddy looking rather snazzy and sharped dressed.
You can see the Eiffel Tower in the background as the light show was about to start.
As we were walking we found a restaurant that seemed pretty nice and was close to the hotel.
As we walked in I noticed the name of the restaurant was Andrea!
Pretty cool to end our last night in Paris there.
Isabel says goodbye for now or should I say au revoir!
Versailes, France - 2nd Family Trip
Our 2nd family trip was to Versailes & Paris in October.
By now I was dressing Isabel up in this get-up
So when Greg even mentioned the first few letters...Pa, for Paris
My ears quickly perked up and I was pleading 'PLEASE DEAR!'
'HONEY, SWEETIE PIE...PLEASE!'
Greg knows I love Paris, and he knew he would score extra points for taking me on this work trip.
That was the first place we went to when Greg and I were first dating. Greg invited me to his friend's wedding in Finland and when Greg found out that I had not really been to any place other than the states around Texas, much less out of the country. He thought it might be good to see a little bit more than just Finland and decided I needed to see Paris and London on the way to Helsinki.
Thank goodness he checked with me to make sure that I had a passport, because I didn't and it didn't even occur to me that I was going to need one. My rationale..."I am an American, don't they let us into any place we want??" After all we didn't need a passport for Mexico or Canada. HA! so sad. But my how things have changed, as here I am living in Helsinki and making a second trip to Paris.
Greg is not a big fan of Paris (not sure why) so he wanted to check out another city and suggested Versailles. Versailles has the Palace of Versailles, where Kings lived, including King Louis XVI until the French Revolution... you know Marie-Antoinette, "off with her head!"
Sounded good to me and it was a great choice. I was a little nervous about the plane flight because of what happened last time we flew but Isabel was in good spirits and it was all smiles from Isabel and the happy passengers (glad that there wasn't a screaming baby on board)
We stayed at a beautiful hotel called
the Trianon Palace Waldorf Astoria, which was a hop, skip and a jump from the royal grounds.
Here Greg and Isabel are modeling outside the Trianon.
The hotel/palace was really pretty and so were the grounds.
I loved the different colors of the trees and you could really tell autumn was in the air.
Greg loved playing around with Isabel outside, I guess the crisp air and bright colors made Greg fun loving and playful, like the mules my grandmother Memo always talks about when the air in Texas starts to get a little cooler.
After a play in the leaves and trees we decided to head out and about.
Here we are on the street that ran right next to our hotel. LOVED the tree shapes and color, very pristine.
Even though it was a bit chilly, Greg decided to wear the carrier and went without a coat! brr!
Isabel was all bundled up and was kept warm by her Daddy.
The walk into town was really nice.
I loved how clean the city was.
So manicured, so cute and chic.
On Saturday morning the market was open.
I don't know enough French to get me around the market so I just kept quiet but enjoyed people and food watching.
The first time around in France I didn't eat much food, as Greg and I were first dating (back then I also packed a huge suitcase including 8 pairs of black shoes) BUT this time I packed 1 pair of black shoes and took advantage of the pastry situation.
See I can't drink the wine I want, so to make up for it I told myself I deserved several pastries a day and boy was I was excited to eat some pastries!
It looks like Greg was too!
Oh the pastries! Not only were the pastry shops adorable, they would wrap up these delicious treats in a very fancy box. I guess this lessened the blow of spending 5 bucks on a single treat.
BUT OH! I didn't mind the cost at all because these pastries were très bon!
I got something that was creamed filled with powdered sugar on top.
As you can see in the image below, I was wearing Isabel. Well, by the end of my treat the poor little girl had powdered sugar all over her!
Greg got an eclair and it was very yummy too. He is very lucky I let him eat some of his eclair.
We thought about viewing the Palace but the line was LONG and we had a baby that needed a feed and a change. So back to the hotel we went.
Speaking of feeding. If you had told me in 2005, before I met Greg, that I would be in France before the age of 40 I wouldn't have believed you. And if you told me that I would be back in France 4 years later with a baby and would be breastfeeding in public, I would have told you to 'Get Out!' and pushed you like Elaine on Seinfeld!
But here I am breastfeeding Isabel in the carrier as we walked the streets of Versailles....pretty crazy for me! The carrier hid most of what was going on, just looked like a baby sleeping.
We went back to the Hotel around dusk and enjoyed the atmosphere of the hotel. It really was a nice hotel, inside and out. Here are some shots of the interior.
I got some fruity champagne drink (mostly realfruit juice it seemed) and Greg held Isabel so I could relax and enjoy! Thank you sweet hubby!
The next day Greg had a phone conference call, so I decided to go see the royal grounds with Isabel.
Here we are about to say goodbye to Greg and head out.
I went out of our hotel and turned right and not a very long walk later, I arrived at the Petit Trianon, which is a small chateau located on the royal grounds and was Marie Antoinette's sanctuary, a place for her to get away from it all.
It took me awhile to figure out what was different with this pool table.
Ok, I confess I knew something was different but didn't realize it was missing pockets until Greg said something.
I guess this is a billiards table...sounds like an even more boring game without the pockets if you ask me.
Not too far away was the Grand Trianon, which I guess was where the king could get away from it all to relax. Pretty nice place to relax.
The grounds were so beautiful.
In this picture below, you can see the palace in the background.
It really was a big and fancy looking palace. I wished we had the time to actually go in, but with long lines and a baby it was a little hard to make it happen.
Here Greg is out front of the palace with Isabel asleep in the pram.
After a walk around the palace, we had to catch the train to go Paris!
Au Revoir, Versailles
Bonjour, Paris!
By now I was dressing Isabel up in this get-up
So when Greg even mentioned the first few letters...Pa, for Paris
My ears quickly perked up and I was pleading 'PLEASE DEAR!'
'HONEY, SWEETIE PIE...PLEASE!'
Greg knows I love Paris, and he knew he would score extra points for taking me on this work trip.
That was the first place we went to when Greg and I were first dating. Greg invited me to his friend's wedding in Finland and when Greg found out that I had not really been to any place other than the states around Texas, much less out of the country. He thought it might be good to see a little bit more than just Finland and decided I needed to see Paris and London on the way to Helsinki.
Thank goodness he checked with me to make sure that I had a passport, because I didn't and it didn't even occur to me that I was going to need one. My rationale..."I am an American, don't they let us into any place we want??" After all we didn't need a passport for Mexico or Canada. HA! so sad. But my how things have changed, as here I am living in Helsinki and making a second trip to Paris.
Greg is not a big fan of Paris (not sure why) so he wanted to check out another city and suggested Versailles. Versailles has the Palace of Versailles, where Kings lived, including King Louis XVI until the French Revolution... you know Marie-Antoinette, "off with her head!"
Sounded good to me and it was a great choice. I was a little nervous about the plane flight because of what happened last time we flew but Isabel was in good spirits and it was all smiles from Isabel and the happy passengers (glad that there wasn't a screaming baby on board)
We stayed at a beautiful hotel called
the Trianon Palace Waldorf Astoria, which was a hop, skip and a jump from the royal grounds.
Here Greg and Isabel are modeling outside the Trianon.
The hotel/palace was really pretty and so were the grounds.
I loved the different colors of the trees and you could really tell autumn was in the air.
Greg loved playing around with Isabel outside, I guess the crisp air and bright colors made Greg fun loving and playful, like the mules my grandmother Memo always talks about when the air in Texas starts to get a little cooler.
After a play in the leaves and trees we decided to head out and about.
Here we are on the street that ran right next to our hotel. LOVED the tree shapes and color, very pristine.
Even though it was a bit chilly, Greg decided to wear the carrier and went without a coat! brr!
Isabel was all bundled up and was kept warm by her Daddy.
The walk into town was really nice.
I loved how clean the city was.
So manicured, so cute and chic.
On Saturday morning the market was open.
I don't know enough French to get me around the market so I just kept quiet but enjoyed people and food watching.
The first time around in France I didn't eat much food, as Greg and I were first dating (back then I also packed a huge suitcase including 8 pairs of black shoes) BUT this time I packed 1 pair of black shoes and took advantage of the pastry situation.
See I can't drink the wine I want, so to make up for it I told myself I deserved several pastries a day and boy was I was excited to eat some pastries!
It looks like Greg was too!
Oh the pastries! Not only were the pastry shops adorable, they would wrap up these delicious treats in a very fancy box. I guess this lessened the blow of spending 5 bucks on a single treat.
BUT OH! I didn't mind the cost at all because these pastries were très bon!
I got something that was creamed filled with powdered sugar on top.
As you can see in the image below, I was wearing Isabel. Well, by the end of my treat the poor little girl had powdered sugar all over her!
Greg got an eclair and it was very yummy too. He is very lucky I let him eat some of his eclair.
We thought about viewing the Palace but the line was LONG and we had a baby that needed a feed and a change. So back to the hotel we went.
Speaking of feeding. If you had told me in 2005, before I met Greg, that I would be in France before the age of 40 I wouldn't have believed you. And if you told me that I would be back in France 4 years later with a baby and would be breastfeeding in public, I would have told you to 'Get Out!' and pushed you like Elaine on Seinfeld!
But here I am breastfeeding Isabel in the carrier as we walked the streets of Versailles....pretty crazy for me! The carrier hid most of what was going on, just looked like a baby sleeping.
We went back to the Hotel around dusk and enjoyed the atmosphere of the hotel. It really was a nice hotel, inside and out. Here are some shots of the interior.
I got some fruity champagne drink (mostly realfruit juice it seemed) and Greg held Isabel so I could relax and enjoy! Thank you sweet hubby!
The next day Greg had a phone conference call, so I decided to go see the royal grounds with Isabel.
Here we are about to say goodbye to Greg and head out.
I went out of our hotel and turned right and not a very long walk later, I arrived at the Petit Trianon, which is a small chateau located on the royal grounds and was Marie Antoinette's sanctuary, a place for her to get away from it all.
It took me awhile to figure out what was different with this pool table.
Ok, I confess I knew something was different but didn't realize it was missing pockets until Greg said something.I guess this is a billiards table...sounds like an even more boring game without the pockets if you ask me.
Not too far away was the Grand Trianon, which I guess was where the king could get away from it all to relax. Pretty nice place to relax.
The grounds were so beautiful.
In this picture below, you can see the palace in the background.
It really was a big and fancy looking palace. I wished we had the time to actually go in, but with long lines and a baby it was a little hard to make it happen.
Here Greg is out front of the palace with Isabel asleep in the pram.
After a walk around the palace, we had to catch the train to go Paris!
Au Revoir, Versailles
Bonjour, Paris!
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