Paris and London…

…in pictures.

Here they are, in all of their unedited glory {like I ever do that anyway…}

If you want to see more pictures {this is for you dad} here’s the link, unfortunately I don’t have time to get them all here on the blog.  Surely there is some sort of shortcut for transferring photos to the blog, but alas, I’ve watched myself become old-fashioned and technically un-savvy with each passing day.  Has this happened to anyone else out there?  Where you have found yourself cutting and pasting and piecing together a hodge-podge of a blog?  {no pun intended…}

Back to the pictures.  Life is moving full speed ahead so we’ll just have to do without a play-by-play.  You’re OK with that right?

Whew.

Oh I guess there were a few funny things worth making note of:

:: the chip :: Do you have one on your Visa card? We don’t which meant we couldn’t rent/check-out any of the cool bicycles around town. This was probably the biggest disappointment of the trip.  We had many conversations that went like this {insert heavy French accent}  You do not have the chip!?  {in a sad American voice} No, we don’t have the chip, what is the chip?  {french accent} You must get the chip!  {this was pretty much true for subway tickets and the bike rentals.}

:: in Paris buy your museum tickets through your hotel :: They won’t charge you extra and you will get to skip to the front of many long, long lines.

:: churches vs. museum :: In Paris entrance into almost all of the churches was free, museums you paid for a ticket. In London you had to pay an arm and a leg to enter into a church or any royal palace, but their museums were free.

:: pictures :: snap away in Paris, you could take pictures anywhere {churches, museums, etc.} Get your photo fix there because in London you can’t take a single picture inside any church or museum.

:: hotels :: we stayed at the San Regis {note, not the St. Regis} in Paris and the Grosvner House Marriott in London and loved the location of both.

:: eurostar train :: we took it from Paris to London which meant we travelled by train through {under?} the London Channel. Pretty darn cool. Just don’t call it the *chunnel* the natives seemed to frown upon it.

:: languages :: Everyone was wonderful about speaking English to us in Paris. We no little or no French and honestly it didn’t come naturally to us at all. I’m much more familiar with Spanish and I’m embarrassed to say how many times I said *gracias* or *adios* while out and about. And yes, in case you were wondering I did wear tennis shoes a couple of days. We were American tourists for sure.

:: cheesy touristy things :: speaking of…yes, we rode on a double-decker bus. Of course we took a river tour on Seine in Paris.

::  packing ::  Honestly it didn’t matter what I wore each day because I lived in my coats.  We packed spring layers and wished we had packed our winter layers.  My boots, which I tossed in at the last minute were lived in almost every day of the trip.

:: Paris hype ::  I’ve always thought it was funny the way people go on and on about Paris and wondered if it would live up to all of the hype.  It did.  I would go back in a second.

:: HRH :: Nope, we didn’t get to see the queen but we did get to have dinner in a palace {Hampton Court} does that count?::

:: dreams :: By the end of our trip both Alex and I were having dreams about tours and museums and paintings and history…now maybe you will too!

Because pictures like these deserve a post of their own.

yes…that’s Alex on the left…

Last weekend our dear friends Aaron and Andrea hosted a redneck barbecue to celebrate Aaron’s 30th birthday.  There are few people we would gladly don mullet wigs, blue eye shadow, neon orange nail polish, tube socks and cowboy boots for.  Heck, we even went to Wal-mart for our hostess gift – a tub of cheese balls.  The theme was a perfect fit for the birthday boy, but I have to admit Alex slipped into costume/character pretty naturally. Perhaps he’s a little more redneck than he lets on…

Can you tell I’m procrastinating?  Man, last week post-vacation I was a woman on a mission, checking to-do’s off my list left and right.  This week I can’t seem to set my mind to anything.  Is it possible for jet-lag to kick-in one week later?

Then in my ongoing effort to always keep us on our toes, I had the genius idea of choosing this week to take away William’s pacifier.  So far naps which were once a two-hour affair have been reduced to 30 minute snoozes and then there’s bedtime and the middle of the night screaming sessions.  Last night Alex and I questioned our *progress* as William slept between us.  Today I’m optimistic, thinking we might have turned a corner.

Summer is staring me in the face and I feel the need to organize everything around the house {I’m itching to get rid of so much *stuff*}, organize our calendar {which might require an excel spreadsheet}, and organize our life {is this even possible?}.  However, it seems each time I try to tackle a project I get distracted or overwhelmed and well, I sort of walk away mid-project.  It’s driving me nuts, however the yard has become the beneficiary of my disorganization.  It’s been so wonderful to spend mornings and afternoons puttering around the yard, planting, pulling weeds, and watering with my little helpers.  There is just nothing better than being home.

In honor of *just one more* minute of procrastination I’ll share a few more photos I’ve collected on my phone in the last month.

…brunch with good friends and five amazing kiddos…

Gosh they’re cute!

Thoughts on mother’s day.

Raising our three boys is no doubt my life’s work, giving me the glorious title of mother.  This responsibility also brings with it an unparalleled beauty and contentment alongside challenges and doubts.

Oh what my children have taught me in such a short span of time.  In what feels like the blink of an eye, we are seven years into our journey.  Time is flying and children are growing no matter how hard I apply the brakes.  It honestly feels like water slipping through my hands.

Being the mother of these three little boys is such an honor.  They are so easy to love and I thank God for them every minute of every day.  I remind myself of this during the temper tantrums, spilled milk and moments of talking back.

I’m not going to lie, this path of motherhood has been a challenge.  This journey has brought with it moments when I have felt utterly alone, experiencing a different version of motherhood than my peers.

Yet even knee-deep in the trenches of motherhood I’m overwhelmed at how privileged I am.  Privileged to love these beautiful souls.  Privileged to be called Mommy.  Privileged to kiss the owies.  And blessed to be the one who prays a silent prayer over each boy as they sleep.  May the Lord bless you and keep you all the days of your life…

I love my children.  They make me laugh and cry, sometimes all at the same time.  They give the best hugs and kisses.  They are wonderful teachers.  They have taught me to relax.  To give into the moment and it’s simplicity.  They have taught me what real joy looks like.

And the joy is huge.  Everyday it is there – even when mixed with our struggles and failures – it is always there, a beacon of hope shining through.

I love Kay Warren’s definition of joy:  joy is the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life, the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be alright, and the determined choice to praise God in every situation.

No it’s not the unicorns and rainbows version of motherhood, but rather the heartbeat of a content and hopeful mother.

Perhaps this is the essence of motherhood?  Maybe life in general?

Raising up these precious souls, is truly a gift from God.  It’s wonderful and hard and beautiful all wrapped up together.

I love that.

_______________________________

Henry’s gift to me:

I love this…he was supposed to draw his favorite thing to do with his mom…this is a picture of us walking home from school {note the little ones in the stroller}.  Henry said he likes our walking time because we get to talk about our days.  I love that boy…

Yesterday Alex was extra helpful and the kids were on their best behavior.  We had brunch with my mom and two grandmas and spent the afternoon together.  There was plenty of sunshine and we were able to eat the dinner Alex prepared outside.  We wrapped up the day with an evening walk and Henry riding his bike alongside.

Oh, and I made Alex take pictures of me and my boys.  It was long overdue.

My day was just what I wanted it to be.

How was your mother’s day?

April in Paris, London in May

I’m not sure how to even begin a post that goes something along the lines of…so we’ve been in Paris and London for the last eleven days…

I know crazy right?  Alex and I couldn’t believe our good fortune as we walked those two cities for miles, went on countless tours, visited museums, ate our weight in cheese and bread and soaked up the beauty of each city.  All of this took place while Nana and Pop-pop watched Henry, Charlie and William.  {Though they assured me the boys were wonderful, I’m sure that they could probably use their own vacation in the near future.}

I’m not the best traveller pre-trip.  I loathe the packing and organizing and the feeling that everything is off schedule before heading out-of-town.  I however, love the feeling of being on our way, when I can settle into vacation mode and soak up everything each trip involves.

Each day was filled to the brim with wonderful memories.  I can’t remember the last time Alex and I have travelled together – without children or friends – accompanying us.  It might sound odd, but this trip allowed for us to address some challenges, gave room for growth, and provided the precious time we needed for good conversations.  The gift of endless hours together allowed us to re-strengthen our relationship and our great life together.

But alas, I’m a homebody at heart and I’m beyond happy that we are home all together again.

I missed my boys, our routines, our life, and yes, even the mundane.  It really is true, there is nothing like getting away to bring some good ‘ol perspective to things.  Obviously we were beyond blessed to experience such an amazing vacation, but even more I’m aware of how blessed I feel to be a mother and wife and of my love for our little family.

And yes, at this point is seems as though all of our photos were taken via my iPhone and instagram…we’re experiencing some major computer issues around these parts.  Seems *someone* has stockpiled a rather large number of photos leaving our current machine waving a white flag of surrender.  We either need to do a major up-grade {to our 3 1/2 year-old mac book pro) or bite the bullet and go new.  If we go new do you have any suggestions or opinions about a desk-top vs. a lap-top?  We’ve only had a lap-top but the mac desktops are less expensive and have more power…

Hopefully we’ll quickly make up our minds computer-wise and I can post the rest of our 1,457 photos…

Oh, and thank you for being patient, I’m slowly returning e-mails and such…and yes, I scheduled a couple of posts while we were away…you know to throw off the house burglars and and such…tricky right?

A boy and his dirt.

We dusted the cobwebs off of our old sandbox and filled it to the brim with new sand and plastic goodies.  I’m hoping that the new sandbox is a good distraction from our vegetable garden since its planting time.

To say that William is thrilled with his *new digs* would be an understatement.  The boy loves his dirt.  He literally spends hours pushing, digging, throwing and sculpting sand.  This makes the rather large amount of sand that has accumulated throughout the house and in our bathtubs worth it.

Rookie League.

We are smack dab in the middle of little league season. Between a practice or two a week, along with two to three games also tossed into the mix, you will most likely find us at the little league fields cheering for Henry.  I’d like to say we actually sit and watch the games but with fans Charlie and William also in attendance it isn’t much of a spectator sport for us just yet.

Henry and his buddy Mark the first baseman.

Henry’s favorite position to play is catcher. 

Charlie.

Charlie and I enjoyed some unexpected and oh so special one on one time together.  I had a few quick errands to run and brought my little buddy with me while the other two boys stayed home with dad.

I don’t know the best way to describe Charlie right now.  His personality is blooming and his skills are coming fast and furious.  That isn’t to say we don’t deal with any delays, but somehow even though he isn’t speaking per say, we can still carry on a conversation.  I always know what he is asking me and he often leads our family in prayer before dinner.  He is a social butterfly and manages to be the favorite buddy of both Henry and William.  He shadows me closely, as I go from kitchen to laundry room, from task to task.  He is quite simply a joy.

During our afternoon together, Charlie dutifully held my hand in the parking lot, followed me closely in the grocery store and of course, he helped to carry our bags to the car. Charlie is such a helper these days.  He is always the first to clear his dishes following a meal, gets a kick out of feeding the dog, and is getting pretty darn good at helping me sort laundry.  The other day while I was cleaning up after dinner I set out the overflowing recycling bin for Henry to take to the garage.  Before Henry was able to do his chore Charlie carried the bin {I have no idea how} to the garage door and rushed back to find me while exclaiming help! help!

Last week we had Charlie’s second school conference.  It was nothing short of amazing to hear his teacher speak of all of the progress he has made over the year.  I asked his teacher Mrs. R. point-blank if this year had gone as expected.  Her response?  Charlie has far exceeded my expectations this year.  He is working at the same level as all of his first-year peers and this year has not only been a good learning experience for him, but he has been good influence for the other students as well.  She went on to say that this Montessori classroom is exactly where he should be. 

I also asked a tough question that I’d been curious about…How did the other parents initially feel about Charlie coming into a mainstream classroom?  Were there grumblings?  Mrs. R. acknowledge that there had been a few concerns expressed, but she said it has been amazing to watch the parents accept Charlie, just as their children have.  She said that many parents come into the classroom to observe their own child but they actually spend more time observing Charlie.  They can’t get over the work he is doing, his focus and accomplishments.  Needless to say, any concerns have been wiped away.  Charlie you are amazing.

As you might imagine I floated out of that conference.  I am so thankful that we decided to give a mainstream classroom a try.  And most of all I am so thankful for the blessings and encouragement of Mrs. R.  She saw Charlie’s potential and he has thrived under her guidance and I know that he will continue to do so next year.  After teaching and loving two of our children we tend think the world of her.

We had visitors the other day…Charlie loved holding baby Jack and couldn’t give him enough kisses. 

On a random note, we decided to do the neck x-ray for Charlie last week.  {It’s commonly recommended for children with DS.}  The results showed that his neck was perfectly normal and we can cross that to-do off of our list.  I had mentioned before that we were going to skip that process, but there are enough activities {gymnastics, etc.} that we would like Charlie to participate in that require it – no exceptions.  Anyhow, what really prompted us to get the x-ray done is our goal to get Charlie going in a hippotherapy program.  We have an exceptional local program and I can’t wait to see our little guy riding high on a horse.  We’ve decided to pursue this type of therapy instead of traditional speech therapy over the summer.  I realize that the connection might seem blurry, but there is some legitimate science that shows a dramatic increase in speech due to hippotherapy.  It has to do with neurons, and working both sides of the brain.  Again, I’m not the one to explain it, but I’ve seen enough positive results and want to give Charlie that opportunity.