Family of the Week

Last week at preschool, Alaina had her chance to tell everyone about her family in a "family of the week presentation".   I remember doing this with Ethan, but I wasn't quite sure how Alaina would do, since she is so much more shy (remember, for the first few months of the year, the teachers didn't even know if she could talk!)  We made a poster together a few weeks ago--she picked a bunch of pictures and stickers to decorate it with.  We practiced multiple times--and she was actually so excited about the presentation.

On the big day, she was very proud and introduced each picture joyfully (though also quite quietly). The cutest part was at the end, friends got to ask questions, and she was able to call on them when they raised their hands.   Really quite cute.

We ended the presentation by reading one of her favorite storied, called "Parts" by Ted Arnold.  A great self-confidence booster for sure.  We are lucky to have such a great preschool.
  

Spring Break Part 2-Paris

So, as previously mentioned, Jason could not get off the official week of spring break.   But he was able to get the week after.   Thanks to the website "Scott's Cheap Flights" I found a killer deal on a nonstop flight to Paris, so we decided to check it out.   I had never been there before, and it was definitely on my "bucket list".

We had a wonderful trip!   The kids did great with the time change and better with the food than I expected.   We also completely lucked out with the weather (about time, since we have had some pretty rough weather on recent trips!).  Spring was in full force, with flowers blooming and trees budding,  we really could not have timed it better.

We spent 5 nights in Paris and saw more than I expected--the kids did a great job keeping up and we averaged 10 miles of walking a day.

On the first day, we were able to meet up with Jeremy--who was in Paris on business, which was pretty cool.  We saw the Notre Dame with him, and took a boat tour on the Seine.  

  
We got a museum pass in Paris and took advantage of seeing many museums.   The Louve was overwhelming and overcrowded, but we kinda felt like we had to visit for at least a short while.   We followed it with a ferris wheel ride for the kids, and a climb to the top of the Arc d'triumph.

 

A hilight was a trip up the eiffel tower at sunset.   The elevators up are attached to the side--a fun ride.  

Jason and I loved the Musee d'Orsay, which is an old Parisian train station.  Ethan and I  also climbed to the top of the Sacre Coeur.

  

On Wednesday, we took a day trip to Versailles.   Unfortunately, the French rail workers decided to strike that day, so our train was delayed and rerouted.   The kids were amazed at the amount of gold at the palace, and I loved the gardens, which were even more immense than I realized.   The place made me want to revisit my European history textbook from high school!

 

Our final day in Paris was almost 80 degrees, and we spent the better part of the day at the Luxembourg gardens, where the kids got to run around, see a puppet show, play with wooden boats, and have a picnic.  


 

The following day we headed out to the coast, with a stop at Monet's house and gardens along the way.   The gardens were absolutely breathtaking--I could not believe how much was in bloom so early in the season--and the sites of so many famous Monet painting looked virtually unchanged form 100 years ago.

 

Ww chose Dol-en-Bretagne as our home for our two nights in the countryside, and it turned out to be a great base.   The apartment we rented was right on the main strip of town, and staurday morning we awoke to a lovely farmers market right outside our door!  

After picking up some lunch items (and breakfast treats, including some delicious homemade yogurt), we headed to the nearby Mont St. Michele.   Jason had always wanted to check this place out, (though, admittedly, I had never heard of it), and I am glad we made the track.   It is a mystical island, accessible by bridge or on foot in low tide, and reminded me a lot of hogwarts' castle from Harry Potter.  Surely JK Rowling must have gotten inspiration from it!   It started back in the 700s and was added to throughout the years--so historical, just breathtaking.  In the afternoon, we headed to the nearby walled city of St.Malo, which was also very nice and had a really nice beach.

Sadly, the next day,we had to head back to SF.   A great trip though, we sure felt like we got away!

Spring Break Part 1-Chicago

The kids and I just spent 5 days in Chicago (Jason was stuck at work).   We had a nice time with my dad, and were able to meet his new girlfriend, Christa.   Christa is a very sweet person and quite an accomplished musician--she plays the harp.   Dad met her on a hiking trip.   They seem to get along great, and it is really nice to see him so happy.

Anyhow, the Chicago weather was a bit chillier than last year when we visited.  On Tuesday morning, Alaina woke me up by squealing, "Mom look out the window."   The ground was covered in about 2 inches of snow!   Enough to make a snowman.

The snowman didn't last, but Alaina sure got a kick out of it.

The kids had a lot of fun playing with their cousin Zachary, who is talking up a storm.   It was the first time that he could really play "with" them, so that was a treat.  We also got to celebrate Dad's 69th birthday!

We also visited out friends the Kurinsky's (forgot to snap a picture :( ), whose kids are getting big, and of course, went up to Wisconsin to see extended family.   My grandma looks great at almost 95, and she enjoyed seeing the kids again--it had been since July.   We joined Aunt Judith and my Dad's cousins for lunch.   A highlight was meeting Kris and Rod's granddaughter Paisley, who at 1 year old, out-behaved my children by a mile.

On our last day in Chicago it was a bit more seasonably warm, so we headed downtown and walked to the kids new favorite--Maggie Daley Park.   After plenty of romping around for the kids, we introduced Christa to The Berghoff for lunch, before catching the train back to Park Ridge.

Spring Celebrations

We celebrated 2 holidays this weekend: Passover and Easter.


On Friday, Ethan went to a flashlight egg hunt, which he deemed a "total bust", after only collecting 3 eggs.   Alaina had better luck at an egg hunt on Saturday.  

We also enjoyed coloring easter eggs.




Saturday night we did Passover-Eileen prepared most of the food, although Jason smoked a brisket which turned out delicious.

 

Today, the kids found their Easter baskets (after we briefly played an April fools joke on Ethan, suggesting he didn't get one this year).

 

 We had our neighbors over for an Easter brunch and another egg hunt.  The weather was beautiful and we were able to eat outside.   Afterwards we took a nice hike, and saw lots of blooming wildflowers.   A beautiful day!