Chasing pigeons is one of Elodie’s favorite activities. Luckily, Paris has no shortage of these pesky feathered friends, and she can partake in this endless game pretty much anywhere. We found the gardens at the Palais Royal to be the best spot so far. Not only is it full of pigeons, but one of the courtyards has black and white striped columns of varying heights strewn throughout it, making it the perfect place for toddlers (but not so good for blind people). Here’s Elodie pretending to be the Queen of France. “Give me some cake to eat! Put it on my tongue!” she exclaims. If she wants to eat or drink something, she sticks out her tongue and points to it.

After Elodie got tired out running around the former palace grounds, we headed to the Jardins des Tuleries where we sat at a delightful open-air cafe and tried to stay warm with hot chocolate. I practiced my French with the waiter and complimented him on the speed of service, to which he responded with something I didn’t understand but had to do with how young he was. Actually, I’m pretty sure he was a grandpa.

Our first week here was all about the joie de vivre, but now we’re starting to settle into the routine of normal life. Daddy goes to the office every morning, while Elodie gets settled for a nap, and I bang out some work. Once the afternoon rolls around, mommy and baby set out for a super fun adventure in Paris! Of course I’ll be sharing those stories with you soon, but now it’s time to go get a crepe for lunch (since we’re out of baguettes).

 

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I think I am going to like living in Paris. It’s only been four days and I’ve already learned how to make a delicious fish dinner. I could be the next Julia Child. We had no idea what “aiglefin” was when we saw it at the Biocoop, our local organic supermarket, but it looked pretty good. We looked it up when we got home and it turns out to be haddock!

We’ve been exploring the city and settling into our cute little apartment these last few days. Last night we put the baby in the Ergo and went out for a moonlit stroll. Up over one bridge, across the canal, and back over another bridge. We peeked into the windows of the adorable bars and restaurants full of pretty people having fun, and started wishing for a babysitter. How lucky we were to have found this spot. Now if we can just get lucky enough to find a nice French nanny we’ll be all set.

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Elodie visited Sacre Coeur, Palais Royal, and the Tuleries for the first time and she adored them all. Chasing the pigeons proved to be endless fun. It’s definitely a different experience being in Paris with a toddler. I’m hoping to find some kid-friendly cafés in the coming days. Let me know if you have any suggestions and if you know any babysitters in Paris.

It was still dark when we arrived in Paris this morning. The sun didn’t come up until after 8. We took a long nap then walked to the Pompidou Centre where we ate croque monsieurs and French onion soup at a cafe near the museum. We wanted to show Elodie the Eiffel Tower but she fell asleep in her stroller. She’ll have to wait until tomorrow to see the tower gleaming in the sunset with dark broiling clouds all around.

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In two short weeks, we’ll be boarding a plane to Paris. We’re moving there for a year! I’m still deciding between continuing Tidepooler, or starting a brand new blog to document the exciting adventure abroad. But I’ll let you know when I figure it out. Until then, have a very merry Christmas and a most happy New Year!

p.s. Just before Halloween I fell and broke my hand. And I took another of my very long blogging breaks. Hopefully that won’t happen again!

Photo: Samantha Fitzgerald

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I love this diagram I found on my friend’s Facebook wall. Have you seen it? Now that I’m a mom I tend to worry a lot more than I used to. A life with no worries = a happy, peaceful life. I’m going to try to not worry so much.

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Since my bike was stolen a few weeks ago, I’ve been eyeing every single cruiser, fixie, road bike, and mountain bike I see. There are a lot of nice looking bikes out there, but one brand has me drooling. Linus bikes are so pretty! There’s a beautiful baby blue one I keep seeing parked on the University of California campus, and yesterday in San Francisco I saw a gorgeous cream one. They start at around $300, and since you really can’t get a decent used bike in the Bay Area for much less than $200, I’d consider them an option. But since I don’t have a nice safe spot to keep it, I wouldn’t dream of getting one yet. Those bastards broke a tree to get to my last bike, a really great Trek hybrid that I owned for less than two months. Let’s just hope it was resold quickly to someone who loves it as much as I did. What kind of bike do you have? Did you buy it new, or on Craigslist?

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I’ve been quiet all week, so just wanted to wish you a happy weekend. We took an overnight trip to Sacramento. My first visit to California’s capital city was a delight. We saw the Capital Building where Elodie thinks the governor lives, took a swim in the Sheraton hotel pool, and explored the frontier town streets of Old Sacramento.

Here’s a photo from a beautiful apartment in Berlin I photographed for Re-Nest this summer. See the rest of the house here.

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I’m a big fan of Disney classics like Snow White and Sleeping Beauty, but with all the pink chiffon and purple metallics, the whole Disney Princess thing has gotten way out of control, don’t you agree? So when I found these super sweet and simple Disney Princess costumes on Etsy I smiled like an impish Tinkerbell. Handmade by Jordan Dene in Brooklyn, they’re cute, affordable, and totally wearable. My little sister wore her Barney costume every day for about two years, and I can see Elodie wearing that adorable Snow White dress all over town. I think it would be a big hit at storytime. After all, dress up should be for every day. What are your kids going to be for Halloween?

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Our first week in Berlin, we went to a flash dinner party known as Diner en Blanc. Like the famous Parisian event, everyone was required to bring their own tables, chairs, food, drinks, and fine china (I’m pretty sure we were the only schmucks with red plastic cups and plates. Next time we’ll bring the Limoges). And of course everyone had to dress in white, which lent the atmosphere an extra special magicality (that’s my new word for magical quality).

No one knew exactly where the dining was going to go down. We met at one of four meeting spots in the city, which were revealed an hour or so before dinnertime via Facebook, and were led to the secret spot. My hunch was correct, our al fresco fete transpired at the Gendarmenmarkt, one of Berlin’s most beautiful squares. We all set up our biergarten tables, folding card tables, and ironing boards-turned-dining tables on the cobbles at the foot of the Berlin Concert Hall. Flanked by the tall domes of twin churches, the posh picnic certainly was a picturesque affair. Everyone was happy (except Elodie when she had to have a diaper change), and when darkness descended, sparklers were lit, floating lanterns flew up into the sky, and the dancing began. I couldn’t imagine a more sensational way to kick off our summer in Berlin. Can’t wait for the next one. Have you ever been to Diner en Blanc or a similar White Nights event? Every city should have one!

Ps. Check out that woman’s scarf in the top photo. She must be French. And I must learn how to wear a scarf like that!

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I need these. But I can’t spend $356 on a pair of boots! What to do?

via Tiny Dallas

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