Growing up too fast

So yesterday Cailin walks into my bathroom wearing her sandals from last summer. Her little toes are hanging off the front. She says "Look at my sandals Mom!"

"I see, I think those are too small for you though"

Cailin says, "Yeah, you're probably right. These are more for a summer day anyway."

I started dying laughing. I love the things that come out of her mouth sometimes. She sounds so much older than she actually is every once in a while. Plus, where did she become so fashion conscious?

Chase went in for his 6 month appointment the other day. Everything is great but he had to have his circumcision fixed. There had been some bridges of skin that had grown over. It looks like we may have to take him to a urologist and have his circumcision completely redone! I feel so bad for the little guy. I didn't even know a circumcision could be redone. I mean, wasn't there just one foreskin? If we don't get it fixed now, the scar tissue that has formed could mean he has painful erections later in life. Which is horrifying to think about for any guy. Poor thing. We have to wait a little while and see how it heals then see if he'll need further treatment.

Never too late for presents

A couple weekends ago Nana and Poopah came back into town and brought with them Cailin's belated Christmas presents. The first ones are sitting somewhere in some unknown airport and are probably lost of all eternity. Nana brought Cailin an actual outfit from the middle east that little muslim girls wear. Now I don't support the oppression of women in many parts of the world including veiling a woman's face. But Cailin is blissfully unaware of the social injustices and rightfully so. To her, she was just Jasmine from Aladdin and that was just fine by me. She did look awfully cute in her gold and turquoise "princess" dress.

It seems like so many of the blogs are updates on Cailin, I forget to share what's going on with Chase. He is growing like crazy and if he doesn't stop outgrowing clothes, he's going to have to start wearing Cailin's clothes to daycare. He is definitely teething. His two bottom teeth are just lingering right below the skin continually torturing the poor little guy. I'll be so glad when they pop though although I know more will be right behind.

Chase is very good natured and sweet little baby. He is starting to say his "d" sounds so "dada" comes out but it's quickly followed by "da da doi doi dah". I'm still hoping his first word might be "mama" but it's not looking promising. One thing that he is not much of a fan of yet is solid food. We work with him every day to try to get him to eat more baby food and he is just not interested. He much prefers a bottle of milk any day. He is just now 6 months old so I think in the coming months he'll maybe start to enjoy the solids more. Honestly I'm not too worried cause he is obviously getting plenty to eat.

Last weekend we visited Burleson and got to hang out at Uncle Brad's house. Brayden, Cailin, and a friend Allen (who is just about Cailin's age) decided to use Brayden's bed as a trampoline. Needless to say they probably all slept really well that night. We also got a small Christmas celebration since we weren't able to see anyone for Christmas. Grandma took Cailin to Target and let her pick out some toys. It's amazing how decisive Cailin was. She knew what she did want, and what she didn't.

Anyone who has been around Cailin for long enough will probably see her bossy side. I swear she is destined to be a teacher. She loves to be the one to show you how to do something, she's bossy, and very particular. She wants things just a certain way and has little tolerance for anything else. Hmmm...sounds familiar. Of course sometimes she gets a little too bossy and too much attitude and it lands her in timeout but I can see the making of a teacher one day.

Europe Trip

Paris

Ah, adventures in traveling...with a toddler and an infant. It was exciting, exhausting, frustrating, and fantastic all at the same time. We left for the airport on December 19th. Europe was in the midst of one of the worst snow storms in years shutting down airports, highways, and entire cities. Thankfully our flight wasn't cancelled. I was really glad that we hadn't decided to go to London because all British Airways flights were cancelled and most of Europe was in chaos.


We made it to the airport really early only to discover our flight was delayed 3 hours. Not a problem, we thought, at least it's not cancelled. So we spent our time walking around the airport and trying to keep Cailin entertained. In my attempt to keep away the tantrums of a bored child, I bought her some M & M's. Harmless right. Wrong. Needless to say those M & M's made a reappearance. All over Cailin's shirt, pants, and stroller. I ran her to the bathroom to change her clothes and in doing so got chocolately puke all over my own white shirt. I had spare clothes for Cailin but never planned on needing any for myself so I had to buy a lovely overpriced I Love Houston tshirt to wear to Paris, fashion capital of Europe. Lucky me.


The flight to Paris was actually fairly smooth. Chase slept almost the entire time much to the envy of other parents with infants who just looked at us enjoying our books and wine and wondered where they went wrong. Benadryl my friends...that's all I'm saying. : ) Cailin slept about 6 hours, while good for a plane ride, it's about 1/2 of the amount of sleep she usually gets so she wasn't a real happy camper.


We landed in Paris only to find out the Charles De Gaulle airport had only just re-opened 45 minutes before we landed. Due to the severe backup of planes that had been sitting there all night, we had to wait for about 45 minutes for a "parking space". We all tried to remain calm and positive knowing a bed wasn't far away now. Then they couldn't find anyone to attach the jetway to the plane so after another 30 minutes, we got to actually get off the plane. To make a fantastic morning even more delightful, the doors to the jetway leading into the aiport were jammed shut. This was Cailin's last straw. Another 3 tantrums and 20 minutes later we finally left the airplane. Then there was customs and baggage claim to contend with and a pre-arranged driver who never showed up. Or went to the wrong gate but that's a whole other issue. Finally we made it to the apartment with one very exhausted 3 year old. We tried to just rest and put the whole day behind us and try not to hold it against the Parisians who had to this point been very helpful to us.


The next day, Poopah had arrived and we ventured out to see the Eiffel Tower which Cailin calls the Castle.


The Eiffel Tower is absolutely beautiful. It was completely lit up and sparkling on the night Jeff and I went out on our date night. It was extremely cold, probably in the low 30's and sleeting. You can hear the sleet hitting our umbrella in the video.

Chase is wrapped in a Moby wrap that I got so that I didn't have to carry him all the time or always have a stroller. Paris isn't always stroller friendly. There are cobblestone streets, steep stairs, subways with no elevators, and lots and lots of crowds. The wrap was great but Chase didn't like it when he was ready to go to sleep. I thought he would be more comfortable being held by me and sleep while we walked but he much preferred to sleep in the stroller. Oh well.

The first night in Paris we all decided to go see Notre Dame cathedral. It was amazing all lit up. This too was a very cold, windy night and the river, which is normally calm was raging.

Back at the apartment, Cailin occupied herself by dressing up and watching lots and lots of The Little Mermaid.

Chase even joined in watching the cartoons.

A couple days after we arrived, Nana joined us. After a long plane ride, Nana remained a true world traveler and didn't let exhaustion keep her from heading out to see the sites. We visited Arc du Triomphe. It was so cold and windy that day, Chase was not happy about being out. He was still getting used to feeling that kind of cold. Amazing though after a few days, it stopped bothering him and we could go out in freezing temperatures with sleet and snow and he wouldn't complain. Such a little trooper.

The view from the top of the Arc is awesome. It is basically at the center of a circle where the main streets of Paris extend out from it like the spokes on a wheel. I can only imagine how amazing it would be on a clear day and even better in warm weather.

After the Arc, we walked down Champs Elysees avenue, which must be like 5th avenue in New York with all of the high end stores like Louis Vuitton. We stopped at a Cafe and Nana & Poopah had some hot chocolate and for Jeff and I got the Mississippi coffee which was just coffee with lots of the strongest Amaretto we ever had. A little bit of anti-freeze I guess which was good cause it started raining and we had to power walk about 3 blocks back to the subway. Chase was not happy about that.

One night Jeff and I went out on a date night in Paris. We went out on a dinner cruise up and down the river Seine. It went past all the major monuments and was absolutely wonderful. Even though it was sleeting that night and by the time we got there by shoes were soaked we had a blast. It was very elegant and I felt a little under dressed until two people showed up next to us wearing sweatshirts and I felt better, even a little annoyed. I mean come on...sweatshirts!

We had the most amazing food and steak so tender we could cut it with a butter knife.

The food was a lot of traditional French cuisine. We ordered foie gras (duck liver) expecting it to be in patte form. Nope. It was a big ol slab of liver complete with bile ducts and all. It actually tasted really good but the consistency was something to contend with. This is Jeff's face trying to choke it down. I was laughing so hard I could hardly take this picture. Mmmm, filtration systems.

As some of you may know, I'm not a big cheese fan. I'm fine with cheese on stuff like pizza or burgers, things like that but I'm not going to sit there and just gnaw on a piece of cheese. Well the french LOVE their cheese and serve it with everything. One of our courses was of course seasonal cheeses. This is my face (and Jeff's retaliation for the foie gras) and trying to get the cheese down.

The view from the boat as we passed the Eiffel tower again and apparently a minature version of the Statue of Liberty. I guess after France gave us the big version they wanted a mini one for themselves.

Embracing our inner nerds and science teacher souls, Jeff and I trudged through the cold and snow to go see the Curie museum, where Marie Curie discovered radium. Apparently her lab is still is the exact state she left it in minus the deadly radiation. But we'll never get to find out cause after 30 minutes of subway rides and frozen toes, we found the stupid place is under renovations and won't open until sometime in 2011. Thanks Madame Curie. So we just took pictures of the outside.

Louis Pasteur too!

Gas laws anyone???

Okay, enough of that...at least until Belgium but I'm getting ahead of myself. Cailin is now a seasoned traveler and can hop on and off subways like a pro. There was a buzzer that sounds right before the doors close and Cailin was proud to announce that fact each time. Perhaps she should have made sure Poopah was aware of this fact. We had been attempting to board a crowded subway car but couldn't fit the stroller on to it, so Jeff and were going to miss it. Nana and Poopah were already on board and Poopah noticed that we were still on the platform. In his attempt to jump off the subway at the last minute before it took off, he stuck his head out the door to stop the doors from closing. Not his hand or foot even, but his head. This was the appendage he deemed to be the best at preventing the doors from closing. Jeff and I just stood on the platform cracking up watching this as the subway took off with Poopah clutching his head. Don't worry, we made the next subway and met them at our stop, even though we had tears of laughter streaming down our faces.

Chase was a little angel most of the time. He pretty much just rolled with whatever we were doing as long as we remembered how bundled up he was and that he would get hot easily when we were out of the elements.

I had been to Paris before but I never got a chance to see Versailles palace. It is about a 20 minute train ride southwest of Paris and worth every minute. It was so cold that day and windy and snowy I thought we would be one of just a few brainless tourists to brave that weather but no, there were scores of other brainless tourists just like us there. When you only have so many days there you can't waste a single one. We built it up for Cailin telling her it was where princesses lived and that was enough for her.

By this point Chase was used to the cold and as soon as we snuggled him up in his stroller he passed out despite the gale force winds and heavy snow and ice.

Cailin on the other hand...

The garden surrounding the palace are amazing. I can't wait to go back one day in the spring or summer and see them in full bloom.

We bought Cailin a little Marie Antoinette princess doll and she loved it.

This was a huge fireplace with trees instead of measley logs in it. That's my kind of fireplace!

It was a beautiful palace with painted ceilings. Every nook and cranny was adorned with some kind of decoration, it's easy to picture a king living here. It reminded me alot of the places in Rome.

I think this was some kind of ballroom. I heard a tour guide telling some people that all these chandeliers are original. Can't you just picture the lavish parties.

This is the Louis the XIV bed. While being really tall it seemed to small to me. Maybe they were shorter back then or something but if I was an all powerful king of France, I would have had a bigger bed.

This is the Queen's bed.

How about a little more Mermaid!

Merry Christmas everyone!!

The Louvre was our last major site to see in Paris. Chase slept all during the beginning and Cailin slept towards the end so it all worked out with no tantrums!

We had to pay to use the toilet at the Louvre but man it was a fancy toilet store with bathroom attendents, colored toilet paper, souvenirs, and club music.

Cailin was excited to see the crowns since they were for a king and queen. Of course she said they were hers and we just said yes, they are for princess Cailin.

Jeff in front of the Headless Angel

The room with the Mona Lisa was so crowded. It is the most famous work of art there and the biggest attraction, but people seem to camp out in front of it. Take your picture and move on folks!

On Christmas day we hopped the train to Brussels. The train station in Paris was pretty chaotic too with cancelled trains and big crowds. We arrived and thought our train was delayed an hour so we parked it at a cafe. Then Nana went and checked and we then thought it was cancelled. Then all of sudden it wasn't only not cancelled or delayed but boarding and about to leave. Oh crap we thought so we take off running. We mush in with the other crowds of confused, frustrated, and sometimes a little drunk tourists and try to figure out what the hell was going on. We asked a guy where we were supposed to go and he said to go back the way we came because the train was full. This causes more confusion. Poopah walks off and we still hadn't seen Nana in about 20 minutes. We decide to ignore the unhelpful guy and get on the nearest train and hope it's the right one. Thankfully, it was and we find Nana already on the train waiting for us. Poopah shows up, we get on the train and no sooner do we sit down but the train pulls out of the station. Whew! Just in time.

By some twist of luck we end up on the kid car! Even though those children didn't speak English and Cailin didn't speak french, play is a universal language. They kept each other entertained the whole trip.

Brussels

Just when we thought Europe couldn't be any colder we arrived in Brussels with feet of snow blanketing the city. It was difficult to find a taxi to take us to the apartment since it was Christmas day but luckily Jeff was really good at staying composed and getting things done. He secured us a taxi and we made it to the apartment. The apartment we stayed at was awesome. It was huge compared to the tiny place we stayed at in Paris and it had English TV! I've never been so happy to see the BBC. We were on the 3rd floor of the building and our apartment was 3 stories tall with the kitchen on the top floor so our view over the rooftops was breathtaking. We all agreed that one day we must go back during the warm weather to better take advantage of this place. There even was a rooftop terrace that is normally covered in flowers in the summer.

Okay so we got to be nerds again. In Brussels there is a gigantic building sized atom called appropriately the Atomium. You can actually go inside it. We didn't go that far cause it was about a 1/2 mile walk from the subway and there was about 2 feet of snow on the ground so I was satisfied with a picture.

Our last night in Brussels we went to the main tourist area which is the old medieval center. That is what is so amazing about Europe is how old everything is. These building which are hundreds of years old are still in use. People still work and live in them.

We couldn't leave Belgium without having Belgian beer, waffles and chocolate. We went to a really cool restaurant that had a crackling fire as soon as we walked in. We ordered a flight of beer with 5 different kinds of Belgian beer. I have to say each one was more delicious than last. I have to admit though that the waffles tasted like waffles. They sell them everywhere, even in vending machines but I didn't see any difference than the Belgian style waffles you find here in America.

In the medieval center was the Grand Place. They had a spectacular Christmas market going on and a really pretty light show. This plaza dates back to the 1100's and used to be the center of life in Brussels.

Chase and Cailin watching the light show.

Okay so this was really funny. We were on our way back to the subway and a particularly intoxicated and partially naked drunk guy standing in the middle of the street yelling something in some language I didn't understand. I think he had just been kicked out of some bar and wanted everyone to know about it. I'm assuming it was for having one too many pints and getting naked. Eww. But you just can't make up memories like that. Thanks drunk Belgian guy, we toast to you and your inappropriate outburst. And thanks for putting your clothes back on.

Outside a chocolate shop they had a large faux chocolate elephant. The sign says, "Please do not touch my ass" I don't know why but they did. I guess people like to touch the elephant's behind but can you blame them, it's just sitting there. We never technically touched it so they can't get mad : )

Amsterdam

I have to say that I think Amsterdam was my favorite out of the 3 cities. I only got a taste of it, and wiff of it, but it was really cool. We stayed in the old city center where again the buildings are hundreds of years old. If walls could talk...well then you've spent too much time in the coffee shops...but I bet they would have amazing stories to tell.

We rented a really cool houseboat and stayed on a frozen canal. Amsterdam was really really cold. So cold that when we returned to Paris, the 30 degree temperatures felt warm.

Our bedrooms were really bed nooks. They pretty much had room for a bed and that's it but they were so comfy and cozy we really had fun. Cailin was enjoying Nana and Poopah's nook while they watched, you guessed it, The Little Mermaid. Nana and Poopah said you didn't even have to buy anything in the "coffee shops", you could just walk in and get the benefits, so after they had just returned from their night out, you'd think it was the most hilarious movie ever. (Notice Poopah's glasses, it's not a camera trick, they actually have LED lights on them to help you read)

I highly recommend staying on one of these houseboats. It was so comfortable and conveniently located. I admit I wasn't sure about it when Nana first suggested it but I'm glad we went with it.

On our first day in Amsterdam we visited the Heineken brewery and let me tell you we had a blast. Who'd have thought. They put a lot of effort into making it an experience not just a plain boring museum or something.

One of the Heineken horses. I'm not sure what they do now other than just sit there and look pretty but there you go.

Of course they gave us a lesson on how to properly drink a Heineken and Jeff and I were star students answering all of their questions. A+ for us! Yes we are geeks.

Not until you're at least 13 Chase.

Well I wanted him to learn how to properly poor tap a keg and pour a beer. Sorry, Parkinson hands Jeff took this blurry picture.

I told you, it was an experience.

That evening we went to the Anne Frank house. Here is a tip. Buy your ticket online ahead of time. You get to skip the incredibly long line that wraps around the building and basically walk right in. It was the best advice I could have gotten and I'm so glad I followed it. I don't have any pictures but the experience was surreal. To imagine what it must have been like to be confined in those few tiny rooms with no window light for 2 years while Nazi's hunted you must have been a nightmare. And to have been a child the whole time who couldn't play or talk above a faint whisper for fear others may hear you must have been terrible. Makes a person able to deal with our life's issues with a much different perspective.

That night Jeff and I ventured out on our own for a little kid free downtime. Europe in the winter gets dark by 5:30pm, so we had made it to dinner, a bar, and visited the red light district all by 8:00pm. We couldn't think of anything else to do so we went home.

Overall our trip was fantastic. Even though traveling with kids is more exhausting than traveling without them, I wouldn't have changed it for the world. I loved getting to share this experience with them. I know Chase won't remember it at all and Cailin may only have vague memories of it as the years go by, but I hope it will become a part of who they are. I even look forward to future trips with them. Europe was cold and at times confusing but the people there were gracious and friendly and even put up with our bad french pronunciation with a warm smile. I will go back in a second! Our flight home was pretty smooth but Cailin didn't sleep very long so she was pretty beat. I think she also was running a little bit of a fever. And not to out do our previous airport experience, we got to have chocolate vomit again! Thankfully it was as we were landing so we didn't have to deal with it the entire flight. Sorry Air France and the next passenger in seat 23 F.

Thank you Nana and Poopah for coming with us and putting up with the tantrums both young and old. We look forward to our next adventures with you!