Across the Pond...: September 2013

What was I thinking?!

Okay, I know what I was thinking... I'll plan a fun trip for the family at the end of the summer so that we'll all have something to look forward to when we come back to the UK. (And, maybe - just maybe - the kids won't feel as sad to say good-bye to their friends and family in California.)

What I did NOT think about was what the week between our arrival back in the UK and our departure to Paris would be like. I did not think it would be like this...

Thursday: Red-eye back to the States. No one sleeps.
Friday: First night back in the UK. Everyone is jetlagged. Lane cries almost all night. No one sleeps.
Saturday: Lane is upset over lack of sleep the night before. She lies awake from 10pm to 4am (as do I).
Sunday: Repeat Saturday scenario.
Monday: Lane finally gets a bit more sleep, but is still up from 10pm to 2am.
Tuesday: Everyone is finally asleep! Neighbors alarm goes off at midnight. Police are called. John and I are wide awake for over an hour.
Wednesday: Ryan gets up in the middle of the night with a temperature of 103F.
Thursday (eve of our departure): We are all packed. We have no idea whether Ryan will be able to travel. We have contingency plan for just one of us to travel with Lane to Paris. I barely sleep stressing about what the weekend will look like.
Friday 5:30am - Ryan wakes up fever free. We all decide to go to Paris. We are out the door at 6:15am!

But I digress....

Now that the scene is set, though, you will understand why Paris was a fun adventure... but also influenced heavily by the fact the four of us were exhausted when we arrived. We were all a little (understatement) cranky. So, we did our best to keep it simple.

We arrived on Friday, dropped of our things and headed straight to the Eiffel Tower. We were really pleased with our family room at the Renaissance L'Arc de Triomphe (yay - Marriot points put to good use!) and our fantastic location near a main metro stop. The day was beautiful and we headed straight up the stairs of the tower (over 600 of them!) to the second floor. From there, we took the elevator to the top! A very fun experience!

On Saturday, we spent some time (as several friends had recommended) at Luxembourg Gardens with the kids. They loved the playground and the boats. We walked to a fantastic cafe nearby for lunch, where we sampled escargot and then followed with our travelling tradition - gelato. We visited Notre Dame, did our souvenir shopping, and called it a day.

On Sunday, we thought we'd visit the Louvre. Apparently, so did everyone else in Paris. As the line had an estimated three hour wait, we moved on and visited Musee de L'Orangerie. Perfect... quick line, small museum and the kids got to see a major piece of art (Monet's Water Lilies). Another nice cafe lunch, then we headed back toward our hotel. We headed to the top of L'Arc de Triomphe (more amazing views) then were on our way to the Eurostar!

It was quick, but it was a nice overview. The Eurostar was fun, and fairly easy to navigate. The weather was gorgeous, so I'm glad we made the trip happen. Did we cover all of Paris? By no means, but we had a nice highlights tour and the kids will certainly remember it!

Eurostar to Paris

Heading up the Eiffel Tower

At the top!

Eiffel Tower

Enjoying our room at Renaissance L'Arc de Triomphe

Luxembourg Gardens

Boats

Escargot

Gelato

The Louvre

Point Zero

Today I sat at my desk on a grey and rainy autumn day, cleaning out my inbox, clearing off my desk and FINALLY getting through all of our pictures from our trip to California this summer. Wow - were we all that tan only four short weeks ago?

There is a reason it's taken me so long to go through those pictures and update this blog. It was a crazy trip. This year, more than last, I felt like we were racing around and, quite frankly, just trying to get too much done!

Now, we certainly had some nice times to relax. John and I thoroughly enjoyed our two nights alone at the Westlake Four Seasons and there were plenty of quiet times in Ludwigland. Yet, I still felt overwhelmed by shopping that needed to be done, appointments that needed to be kept (including four dental cleanings, two annual check-ups, three visits to the eye doctor and a trip to Children's Hospital) and friends & family to see. As intentional as I tried to be, a lot of it seemed to go screaming by in a blur.

It's nice, though, to look back at these pictures and see all of the fun we had!

The kids really enjoyed the time with their cousins and friends. (And the transition back to the UK was tough for Lane this year. Clearly her best friends remain in the States. For Ryan, though, we are seeing his most precious friendships forming here.)

The weather was gorgeous. Even though we didn't have as many sunny mornings in Malibu as last year, it was still wonderfully warm.

The times we had with smaller groups of friends were our favorites... families visiting us in Malibu, intimate dinners out, lazy evenings in Palm Springs. As much as we love seeing everybody, these gatherings tend to suit us the best. We'll have to be more deliberate about getting everyone in, but in smaller doses, next year!