Wednesday, January 26, 2011

We're Back from Paris!

Well that was a whirlwind tour!  We took the red eye on the 19th, and except for a little bump in the road (no ticket actually issued for the Husband), we were off and running.  No real sleep on the plane, but Air France gives free wine!  Woo hoo!

We took a cab into the city, and went straight to the Hotel Le Vignon.  And off we went!  We spent the rest of the afternoon walking and walking and walking!  And eating!  And failing miserably in our very very minimal French.  We need to start studying soon!

Over the 6 days we were there we got a good education in all things pastry, wine and food, and even got an idea of where we could live and what kind of schools the kids would attend.  Information overload by all means, but the devil you know is always better than the devil you don't know.

A million thanks to the friends who hosted us for dinner, and a zillion thanks to our friends who rescued us from our second hotel that smelled worse than a marathoners running shoes.  We appreciate your hospitality.

Now off to research all the things that are going to stress me out over the next five months.

Fun fun! 



Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Oh...so not lucky...

I love Grandpa.  And Grandma.  And my most wonderful Husband.  I woke up on Sunday and knew it wasn't going to be a good day.  The sickness had found me.  I just wish to thank those three fantastic individuals for taking care of my children all day, and allowing me the time I needed to heal.  I didn't even see The Girl until bedtime.  That in itself should be noted as THE BEST DAY EVER.  Not that I don't love The Girl, which I of course do, but it's the first day since she was born (over 3 years ago) that I've gone more than 8 daylight hours out of her presence.  Sad that she doesn't "need" me anymore, but still happy that she doesn't.  Very bittersweet.  It is very likely that I'll dwell on that even more when I leave both my babies for the first time Wednesday.  Yowza.  This trip to Paris really is becoming real.



Saturday, January 15, 2011

When it Rains it Pours.

Your day is never going to be good when your 5 year old wakes you up at 430 and tells you he's puked.

Poor kid didn't make it to the bathroom, and wouldn't you know?  Puke ALL OVER the bedroom.  Of course The Girl is still sleeping like a champ 2 feet away, so all I could do was clean up a little and cover the offending areas with towels.

The Husband gets the gold star award for bathing The Boy and getting him settled in our bed.  He then takes everything gross downstairs to wash.  After helping The Boy puke another few times I headed downstairs to see what was taking him so long to start a load of laundry.  The dryer was broken.  REALLY?  We have 3 loads of pukey laundry and no way to do it?  COME ON!

Since we're moving to Paris we are planning on selling our home.  The washer and dryer that came with the home 3 1/2 years ago are probably as old as I am.  And while functional (until now) they are in no way can be viewed as an "asset" when selling our home.  So now it's 530 in the morning and I'm searching Sears, Bray & Scarff and HHGregg for deals.  Luckily lots are to be found, but wouldn't you know, nothing shows as actually in store, with first delivery not available until Tuesday.  No way am I going to be sitting in a laundry mat all weekend doing pukey laundry!

I go upstairs and the poor Boy is still puking every 15 minutes or so, and begging for water.  Anyone who has a kid with the pukes knows that nothing will help until the puking winds down.  It is however very hard to tell your thirsty child he can't have anything to drink.

I put The Husband to sleep next to the boy and tried to nap too.  No chance next to these men.  They both were either thrashing around or whining about something, so I got dressed and headed out the door.

It was my first of 6 trips up and down Route 7 for the day.  Construction traffic is so fun!  I was lucky and found a set of floor models with just a few dings at Bray & Scarff.  Hooray!  The best part was I could take them home in just a few hours.  Fast forward and I had set up and we had installed everything and laundry was happening again!

(I'll skip the parts where we had to haul the old ones out of the house, clean 20 years of dirt dust and cobwebs from the laundry room, bring the washer and dryer home separately in two trips, get someone to help bring the washer in as I couldn't lift it, go back to Bray & Scarff as they hadn't included a water hose, print the installation directions that weren't there, go to the hardware store for a dryer cord, go to Whole Foods for dinner and HE laundry detergent.  Oh, and let's not forget The Boy who's still puking every half hour.) 

The Boy stopped puking around 430.  He downed a glass of Gatorade, and then promptly passed out cold.  He woke up an hour later begging for dinner.  12 hours of hell (and lots and lots of Sesame Street). 

Today he's not eating as much, but is his normal happy bouncing off the walls self.  And we are A LOT poorer.

Now The Husband and I are downing Vitamin C like it's our job.  We are going to Paris in 4 days after all!  I do NOT want to be sick! 

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Paris? Really???

So my most wonderful darling of a Husband recently told me we were moving to Paris. I said, "Paris? Really???" Joy and fear. Elation and fear. Delight and fear. Sense a theme?

The prospect of moving across the ocean (usually we just move across the country or to some random island) with my two almost school aged children and all of our crap is starting to really freak me out. I'm starting this blog with the goal of someday looking back on these first posts and saying, "Wow. Who was that really stressed lady? I am so happy here in my tiny apartment with none of my electronics or lamps!"

Did I mention that none of us speak French?

Right now I'd like to focus on the immediate. We're flying to Paris next Wednesday to meet the Boss People, see where our acquaintances who moved there last year live, and get a general lay of the land. (Oh boy are those guys going to be surprised with how much I plan on leaning on them!) In order to do this Grandma and Grandpa are coming to watch The Boy and The Girl. You haven't met them yet, but they are SAINTS. (Yes, I did yell that last part.) They will have no problems at all as my children are perfect. (I know, starting a blog by lying isn't the greatest, but hey, they are being pretty awesome today.)

The Husband and I however are a different story. I'm not a huge fan of long plane rides, but even less of a fan of red eye flights where I am expected to function as a normal human being the same day I land. Ug. Not looking forward to that! I haven't been to Paris since I was a teenager, and The Husband has never been. I have Guide Books and Phrase Books and iPod apps that have taught me how to say, "I am allergic to MSG" in French. (And that's just about all I know how to say.) I just feel a little bit overwhelmed. We'll see how I feel as we get closer to Departure Day.

As for now, I need to go and make more ridiculously long lists to bombard our friends with.

Thanks for reading!