Day 16

Today was a surprisingly productive day, though I really didn't intend for it to be that way!

I woke up, had a simple breakfast of fresh baguette with more of that delicious homemade strawberry jam & hot tea. I brushed my teeth before heading to my room to pick out my outfit for today, which included my new H&M sweater that I got yesterday. After I finished getting ready, I set out to find the big bank of the arrondissement, where I've (almost fully) opened an account. I forgot to take my passport with me, so I'll have to take that back for the final validation.

It was rainy this morning, but the sun decided to show its face today, so I came back for a quick lunch of gnocchi w/ pesto, followed by a baguette slice with goat cheese & honey for dessert. I pulled up my e-mail, and found a message from the French language school I had tested at last week; one of the students had dropped her reservation! I was going to go to a different school & take a placement test, but this e-mail gave me a better outlook on the afternoon. I have to pay tomorrow, and then I can start on Monday!

After my happy discovery, I grabbed my camera & headed back towards the bank. I had passed a huge, beautiful fountain on my way earlier, and the light hitting the water proved irresistible to photograph!

Too pretty!

The bank was located on a street with some very well-known brands, and so I went a little camera-happy & started photographing store-front signs. (To see all of them, check here. The store-front pictures start about 3/4 of the way into the album, but do take your time to enjoy all of my photos thus far!) Before I knew it, I had to turn around & get back to the apartment to put together a snack for the kids.

Today was relatively calm, and the kids behaved well. I think it was the sunshine that helped. They played at the park without a problem, and no old ladies tried to take the kid's scooters, which probably won't happen again, but I won't ever forget that event. At the park, I met up with an au pair girl I'd been introduced to the first weekend I was here, so we chatted while the kids played. Dinner was nothing remarkable, though I need to start finding something other than pasta to feed to the kids...I think they're getting tired of it. (Personally, I really enjoy pasta, so it's not a problem, but I don't want the kids to get bored). The mother of the family arrived first tonight, and she paid me a great compliment by saying that she enjoyed the fact that she walks in to a calm environment with the kids every night; she says it's a sign that I'm good for & good with the kids. What a great way to end a night.

Day 15

This morning, there was no fire alarm alarm clock, which was quite pleasant. Also a pleasant surprise was some home-baked bread in the kitchen, and a jar of strawberry jam that the mother's mother made. Talk about a delicious breakfast!

After my late, light breakfast, the Canadian came by the apartment b/c she left some coats here before she moved out, and afterward, we went to have lunch at a cafe around the corner. Now, the Canadian is gluten intolerant, so she wound up ordering a good looking salad, while I ordered roasted lamb with a mix of roasted tomatoes & eggplant that was wonderful. I've got to find more adjectives to use to describe what I'm eating...there's only so many ways to say something tastes really good, though.

After lunch, the Canadian & I wandered towards my favorite Parisian gelato shop, Amorino. I first discovered this place on my study abroad two years ago, and today it was warm enough to merit a stop so that I could pick up my favorite flavor combination- raspberry, chocolate, & coffee. My gelato disappeared quickly, and soon, this is all that was left:

Mmm...so delicious.

After our ice cream stop, the Canadian & I wandered into the nearby H & M, which just happens to be one of my favorite stores in Atlanta, and it's no different here. Somehow, my shopping buddy walked out without buying anything, though I bought a shawl-necked long sleeve sweater that ties at the waist. My words can't do justice to how cute it is.

The Canadian had to head back to her place, so I wandered back to the apartment, when I noticed this detail on a building I pass every time I head to the metro:

It's hard to tell, but I think it's a man riding either the wind or a wave. I still don't know.

Also along the way, I've passed by a plaque on the outside of a building several times, so I finally took the time to read it, and was pleasantly surprised.

Basically, it says that Gertrude Stein lived there with her brother, Leo Stein, and hosted other writers & artists from 1903-1938.

I got back to the apartment with enough time to actually take a nap, so I seized the opportunity, since there are few times when this apartment is really, truly quiet. I woke up, received the kids from their father, and then we went to the Garden.

I had seated myself, and the kids had gone off to play. Not five minutes after we had gotten there, an old French lady with her granddaughters walked by, and tried to say that the scooter that Eldest had brought with him actually belonged to her granddaughter. Now, my spoken French is still not good, but at that moment, Eldest happened to walk up, and answered the old lady's question about how he got the scooter (as it turns out, it was a birthday present). Up until he answered that question, she was not about to let me keep the scooter that I was in charge of keeping track of. It was all very weird, and confrontation just isn't my thing, so I was a little unsettled, but I was fine after 5 minutes of being weirded out by the situation.

After returning to the apartment, the kids & I played a few rounds of hide & seek (though they call it cache cache), and then I set about making dinner. Tonight, it was sauteed zucchini & tomato with 4 cheese ravioli. There was a small incident when I put Eldest's plate in the microwave & started it before he was out of his seat. He cried, then just stared at his plate for a good 10 minutes, letting everything get cold again. Finally, he started eating, and then the rest of the evening went smoothly. It's funny what makes kids tick, isn't it?

Just for the road, here's one more shot, on the unintentional theme of this post: looking upwards. The stairs going up to the apartment door have this amazing plant life going on...take a look!

Cool, isn't it?

Day 14

When your alarm clock one morning is a fire alarm test, that doesn't really make for a good start to the day. The father of the family came by the apartment as soon as it started to let me know what was going on, so that calmed my fears. I was just glad that the building wasn't burning down, or something like that.

After I had collected myself & had breakfast, the former au pair for the family (the Canadian) invited me to have lunch at her place since our first attempt at lunch didn't work out very well. I took the approximately 20 minute walk to her apartment, and she prepared a nice lunch of sauteed carrots & zucchini, fish, and a wild rice pilaf. After the meal, there was cheese & crackers, then an apple, and then coffee. I wish we could've talked longer, but she had to go to work, so I came back to the apartment & took a nap, which I hardly ever do.

I woke up in time to have a cup of tea before I picked up the kids from school. There's another au pair girl who picks up her kids from the same school as mine, and she's from Louisiana. As usual, I got Youngest first, we waited for Eldest, came by the apartment, dropped off his lunchbag & bookbag, and then headed to the park. Cue meltdown.

I've mentioned that Eldest is into Pokemon cards. We were already on our way to the park, when he decided that it was a huge deal that he bring his cards with him. I said no, because we were already out of the apartment, and at first he just pouted. Then, when he realized that I had said no, he returned inside, though just in the entryway of the building. He kept asking, I kept saying no (deciding to stick to my guns). His father was passing through on church business, & Eldest tried to convince his father to let him go get his cards. Thankfully, the father asked me what I had said, and again, he backed me up, agreeing with how I responded. The father went back upstairs, and then soon, Eldest went upstairs as well, and sat crying at the doorstep. He finally came downstairs with me (the kind secretary offered to keep an eye on Youngest while I went to sort things out w/ Eldest), and we all went to the park, though he was crying all the way.

Once we got to the park, he was still angry, but did get up & move around. Several times, he tried to snatch a snack from the bag I take to the park, but I wasn't about to let that happen. Manners always come first. That's how I was raised, and I'm not about to let up on that. The third time he approached, I think he realized why he didn't get a snack before, and asked politely, though still mad. After that, his evening got much better, and everything went pretty smoothly.

Dinner for the kids was ham tortellini, salad, tomato slices, & yogurt. I just had a salad, but that was because I attended the young adult pizza night that the American Church hosts every other Tuesday. I'm glad I went, because I met two students (one from Illinois, one from Hong Kong/London) who were in the small group I joined, and who happen to live nearby. I got to pizza night late, but it was still a pleasant time, and I'm looking forward to the next one in two weeks.

After pizza night was finished, my two new friends & I walked to the nearby metro stop. Before we parted ways, the one from Illinois mentioned something about the "nuit blanche," which is evidently an all-night art/museum crawl around Paris the first Saturday of October. We all agreed to meet at Les Invalides, and then see what the night has in store. So the Illinoisian (?) hopped on the metro, and Asian/British girl & I walked on, and we eventually both wound up back in our respective apartments.

Day 13

I guess I've got to get used to this whole colder weather thing. It's not easy, coming from the South, where it's still really warm (and sunshiney too, but I'm not going there), to here, where the high today was 59. I'm a mild weather person; not cold (I'm terrible at layering), not hot (though my thin-blooded Southern-ness has allowed me to adapt to the heat).

Language school #1 was full for my French level, so I spent today researching other options here in the city. I've got a short list of about 4 schools, though they're all pretty far out from the apartment. Is that a price I have to pay? Well, yes. Do I want to pay that price? If I want to stay in Paris, I sure do; otherwise, not really. On the bright side, the reduced-hour au pair programs run a lot cheaper per term than their normal x-hours-per-week courses, and the hours are in the morning, which leaves afternoons/evenings free for au pair duties.

Eldest has joined what I've gathered is some sort of chess club at his school, so I picked up Youngest from her class, and we went to the Gardens, even though it was pretty chilly, so that she could play for a bit before we went to pick up her brother. Eldest was slightly sad that he didn't have time to play in the park, but this chess thing is just once a week, so he'll get plenty of playtime the rest of the week.

I mentioned earlier that Eldest is into collecting Pokemon cards. Today, he gave me two more: Ponyta & Dark Raichu. So now, I've got those two, and a Kingler. He's given these to me because they're in English- problem is, I can't decide if he's trying to maintain the purity of his French card collection, or if he's just being genuinely sweet. I find myself hoping that it's the second, though part of me knows that in reality, it's probably the first.

Dinner tonight for the kids was left0ver pasta (w/ ketchup & cheese for Eldest, just cheese for Youngest), more blanched zucchini (still can't figure that one out), & tomato slices, and I had ham tortellini & tomato slices since there wasn't enough leftover pasta for me too. Dessert was vanilla applesauce, and then the kids had cheese as a final course.

Day 12

Another Sunday, another church. Today, it was the American Church in Paris.

I woke up to a quiet apartment, which was, in a way, relaxing. I had breakfast (more pain d'epices & tea), then got ready to head to church. The church is right along the Seine river, which made for a pleasant walk from the metro stop nearby. I got off the metro, and this is what I saw:

Les Invalides: Famous for containing Dead Napoleon Bonaparte, among other things

Now, the weather's not helping this picture any, but this is Les Invalides, a home for war veterans, the French military museum, and a burial ground for some old, dead dudes, one of which happens to be Napoleon Bonaparte.

Before the bottom really dropped out, I scurried on to the church. I walked in, and was welcomed in both French and English, separately. Now, being a preacher's kid (& grandkid, for that matter), churches are no new thing to me, but usually I'm attending with family. Walking into the ACP, I felt a little nervous, but once worship started, I began to feel more comfortable. There was one moment of hesitation (for me) when the pastor asked all the first time visitors to stand up, but I gathered myself and joined the few that were standing.

The service was quite nice, with a familiar feel, and with songs that I actually recognized (which meant more to me than I expected it to!). Also, the interior of the church is beautiful, which never hurts (though it's not a requirement):

They were setting up for a contemporary service, thus the screen

After worship, there was a social time with coffee, so I ventured into the crowd and picked up a cup. I sipped it, soaking in the environment & the people around me, and then got a refill. I was almost done with it when a group of 3 girls came up to me & introduced themselves. One lived in California a while back, came here as an au pair, then got married & has lived outside of Paris for 3 years now (don't worry...I'm not getting any ideas). The other two were Austrailian; one was an au pair, like me, and the other was assisting a man in a wheelchair. We conversed for a while, but breakfast didn't hold me very long, and everyone already had plans, though we agreed to meet next week after the service, so I returned home & had the yummy pizza leftovers.

After lunch, I went to my room and tried to nap but the coffee didn't do me any favors, so I settled on reading some more Sherlock Holmes. The ACP hosts a free concert every Sunday at 5, so I headed out to hear some music after my reading time. The program was good, and included two of my favorite composers, Vivaldi & Handel. When I returned from the concert, the family had all returned, and dinner was in progress, so I greeted everyone, changed out of my Sunday clothes, and joined them for dinner. Tonight, it was veggie soup (carrots, tomatoes, and zucchini) & pasta (with pesto, for me). Dessert was a pear, along with some real brie (the mother brought it back from her visit with the kids to her mom's house), which was absolutely delicious.

Fall is coming, in all its glorious colors :]