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Ahhhh…the August vacation has begun.  The month where the French take 3 weeks off, sometimes the whole month!  Usually Ryan has 3 weeks in a row of vacation, but this year Ryan has to travel to Barcelona next week so his vacation is broken up a little.  We’ve had some crazy weather this summer where some days the high is only 70 and the morning is only around 60 degrees.  Other days are 95 degrees.  Yesterday we decided to go to Lac Chambon which is about 30 minutes from our apartment.

Lac Chambon is great….there is a beach area, with a shallow kids pool behind it and a playground next to the pool.  There is also a trail around the entire lake and of course boat rentals etc.  We didn’t get to enjoy everything there as we only spent the morning at the lake but the kids had a great time in the sand and water.  There is a restaurant right near the beach area overlooking the lake and we enjoyed a nice outdoor lunch before heading home for nap time.

We’ll definitely be taking another trip to the lake when Ryan returns from tire testing in Barcelona!

 

Little Miss Makenna is known for her very outgoing personality, and her glasses.  For those of you who don’t know, Makenna has had glasses since she was 6 months old.  I took her to her 6 month checkup and the pediatrician noticed a speck on Makenna’s pupil and thought it could be a cataract so I took her straight to the ophthalmologist later that day.  Thankfully we found out she did not have a cataract, but a small piece of her iris is stuck to her pupil.  It is nothing to worry about and it doesn’t affect her vision, but because of that appointment we found out that she was very farsighted in her right eye.  Makenna needed glasses and at first it was very hard for Ryan and I to see our little baby wearing glasses, but we were happy that she had no serious problems and we quickly got used to seeing her with her new accessory.  Because she got them so young, they really have become a part of who Makenna is and it is odd for us to see her without them!

In France, babies are recommended to have their vision checked between 6 and 9 months.  Our pediatrician recommended a different ophthalmologist than the one we have been taking Makenna to, so we scheduled an appointment for both Makenna and Reese with the new doctor.  The interesting, and sometimes difficult, thing about these appointments in France is that patients need to buy medication at the pharmacy to dilate their eyes on their own before they go to the doctor.  This is not an easy task with a baby/toddler, but somehow after some wrestling and screaming I get the job done.  The appointment went great and we had good news for both kids: Reese’s vision is fine and Makenna needed to switch to a lower prescription!  We still don’t know how long she will need glasses for but it could be the rest of her childhood.

We went to the optician to order new lenses, and I was told that Makenna’s frames were getting too small for her and she needed new frames.  Big girl glasses.  I wasn’t quite ready for my little girl to move on from her “baby” frames….but Makenna was so excited to pick out new glasses.  She tried on all kinds of frames and had fun looking in the mirror and making faces, and she finally chose a pair that are clear with pink flowers.

Makenna loves her new glasses and she looks so grown up wearing them!

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Once again I am very behind on updating our blog!  At the end of June, after Ryan had traveled quite a bit for the 24 hour race in Le Mans, we took a trip to Disney for some family fun.  Of course, nothing goes as smoothly as planned and Ryan was feeling really sick the morning we were supposed to leave…but he was a trooper and made it through the weekend.

We took advantage of a promotion and stayed at a Disney hotel, Hotel New York, which turned out to work in our favor especially since we could enter the park at 8am versus 10am.  One morning we got to the park early and went on several rides before the park officially opened, which saved us a lot of time later in the day and was definitely helpful with 2 young kids!  It was also really nice that they have a “baby switch” option for families with babies where one parent can go on the ride with the older child and when the ride stops the child stays on and gets to go again with the other parent.  Thankfully we didn’t have to wait for too long on most of the rides, but it was really nice that Makenna was able to go on the rides two times in a row!  The other morning we entered the park early to have breakfast with the Disney characters.  We thought it would be a good way for Makenna to see her favorite characters and get their autographs without having to wait in long lines in the park.  Although there were 5 characters there, only 2 of them were the main characters and the other 3 were from Winnie the Pooh.  Makenna enjoyed seeing them too, but for the amount of money we spent we were expecting to see Donald, Goofy, Minnie etc.  Ryan doesn’t usually complain, but he said something to the restaurant manager and we received passes to meet the characters that were outside and skip the line.

What made our trip even more special was that our Brazilian neighbors/friends joined us and Makenna was able to have fun with her best friend Elis.  The girls wore matching outfits with personalized shirts that I ordered from the US (Reese even had a matching onesie) with their names, an Eiffel Tower and Minnie face.  It was kind of funny because at the Disney parks in the US a lot of people wear personalized shirts, but I think we were the only ones wearing them at Disney Paris!  The girls had a great time going on the rides and playing together.  When we went to the Princess Pavillion to meet Princess Aurora, the girls changed into their “costumes” and Elis dressed as Anna from Frozen and Makenna dressed as Tinkerbell.  It was so cute!

While Makenna enjoyed most things about Disney, I don’t think she’ll ever forget our dinner at Rainforest Cafe.  I think the large moving elephant and the fake storm that occurred while we were eating were a bit much for a 3 year old!  She constantly talks about how she was scared of the elephant, and that she saw a (fake) crocodile outside.

I haven’t been to Disney World in Florida since I was really young so I don’t remember it, but I read that Disney Paris is small compared to the parks in the US.  I was happy with the size of the park here, because with 2 small children Disney can be very tiring!  I didn’t feel like our Disney trip here was too tiring and we got to go on a good amount of the rides, see a show and the parade, and of course stop to enjoy some ice cream and do some shopping.

We had a great few days at Disney and the best part was seeing how happy Makenna was.  She did not want to leave!  I’m so glad we got to experience our first Disney trip together at Disney Paris and hopefully we will make another trip to Disney in the US when Reese is old enough.  Until then, Makenna will be talking about her trip (quite often she will randomly bring up Disney memories!) and we’ll be doing the hot dog dance with the Mickey on tv.

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Makenna has attended a dance class on Wednesdays since September and she recently had the end of year dance recital, called a “spectacle” in French.  I had been anticipating this night all year since parents aren’t able to stay and watch the dance class.  I would always ask Makenna to show me what she did in class but she wouldn’t show us much, so I couldn’t wait to see what she had learned.

The recital was at a local gymnasium at 8:30 in the evening.  For one, that was pretty late already for a 3 year old since she is normally in bed before 8.  For two, like most places in France, there was no air conditioning…and that whole week had been around 95….and our seats were high up in this giant room with little ventilation.  I’m not sure how nobody passed out but we probably lost about 2 pounds from the amount we were sweating.  Me and another American mother thought that the teacher said as soon as the girls were done dancing we could pick them up from the left of the stage, so I just kept thinking we only had to get through maybe a half hour and then we can be on our way to putting Makenna and Reese to bed.  Makenna’s group was the 2nd performance and they wore Princess Aurora dresses and danced to a song from Sleeping Beauty.  There was one little boy, Maxime, in their class so he was the prince.  Makenna had a thing for Maxime all year and would get excited every time she saw him, so I almost lost it during the recital when the kids broke off into 2’s to dance together and Makenna was paired with Maxime!  I was really impressed with the performance and Makenna did a great job, of course it was an emotional moment for Ryan and I.  Well I guess the instructions for after the performance were lost in translation because when me and the other American mom went to get our girls we were told we had to wait until the half time break…..which didn’t happen until 10pm!  This is typical in France, I should have expected it to be a late night.  Ryan, Reese and I were so hot we finally had to go wait outside until we could pick up Makenna.

Ryan bought Makenna a dozen roses and she was so excited about her flowers that she had to show everyone we passed by.  We were so surprised at how well both her and Reese did staying up late and dealing with the heat.  Next year we will be prepared and remember to get seats as low as possible and bring lots of water!

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In a day where Walmart and Target, or even Amazon, have taken over with one-stop convenient shopping, it can be really refreshing shopping the old fashioned way.

Makenna’s dance class is in the neighboring town of Chamalières and I love walking around the small town center.  You can literally go from shop to shop to purchase your food (and desserts) for the week and then pick up some flowers from the flower shop before you stop at the pharmacy.  There is a boulangerie for bread and pastries, a macaron shop, a wine shop, a shop for prepared food, a market with in-season fruits and vegetables, a fish shop, a butcher and a cafe to stop for a drink after you’ve finished your shopping.  Of course there’s a hair salon and a bank, so all of your bases are covered.

I love the charm of seeing people walking around, usually the “regulars” who make their boulangerie run on Wednesday morning or those who stop at the market several times a week for fresh produce.  I, myself, have become a Wednesday morning regular who stops at the boulangerie for multi-grain bread, and usually a treat for Makenna, and then a coffee before I have to pick Makenna up from her class.  I do miss the convenience of the big box stores, but I’ll soak up this small town shopping while I can!

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We recently returned from one of our best vacations where we visited the islands of Crete and Santorini.  Vacations usually are not very relaxing and can be somewhat stressful when traveling with a little one, not to mention 2….but somehow this trip went really well and we even got to relax!

We found a direct flight from Lyon to Crete, so we stayed in Lyon the night before our flight and headed out the next morning.  Aegean Airlines was really nice and provided “junior pilot kits” for both kids including a pacifier clip, baby on board sticker, baby wipes, and a coloring book for Makenna.  This was Reese’s first flight and we took a photo with the pilot which was nice to have as we did that with Makenna for her first flight, too.

The first part of our vacation was spent at an all-inclusive resort about 30 minutes from Heraklion.  It was beautiful and had about 5 different pools, including a shallow pool that had a pirate ship playground in it.  The beach was across the street, but we spent most of our time at the pool.  This was Reese’s first time in a pool and he had fun splashing and kicking his feet.  Our room had a patio area which connected to one of the pool and bar areas, and the bar was about 50 ft from our room which was very convenient at night after we put the kids to bed!   The amphitheater where they had evening entertainment was also about 20 ft from our room so although it was convenient, it was a bit loud when we were trying to get the kids to sleep.  But after several vacations with a baby we’ve learned to adapt, so a few nights we decided to keep the kids up late and watch the shows (and let Makenna dance at the “mini disco”).  We were even lucky enough to get the kids to sleep and enjoy some time to ourselves on our patio, which was a blessing as we very rarely get time away from the kids!

While we spent most of our time in Crete relaxing, we ventured off the resort a little to experience some of the culture.  One of the days we were there it rained and was too cold to swim, so we rented a car and drove to Heraklion to do some shopping.  One of the first things we noticed is they had the fish pedicure spas everywhere!  After doing some shopping we stopped for lunch, and I had to find a restaurant with my favorite Greek food, dolmades.  We had a great meal starting with dolmades, pita and tzaziki and then lamb kabob and lamb chops.

The next morning we took the car and visited the ruins of the Palace of Knossos.  It was interesting to see, but most of it has been destroyed and some has been restored so we weren’t seeing much of the “authentic” palace….and as Ryan said, it was mostly just rocks haha.  We were told the princess room is a bit of a mystery because it is always 78 degrees inside, no matter what time of year!

Another afternoon we decided to walk around the town, Analipsi, outside the resort.  We walked along the boardwalk and saw a tiny little church on the beach which was the iconic white building with a blue domed roof.  Then we stopped at a little restaurant to try Greek coffee and an appetizer of dakos (bread) with feta and tomato which is like their version of bruschetta.  I fell in love with Greek coffee, which led to me buying 3 bags of their coffee and a briki (a small pot they use to heat the coffee on the stove).  Before heading back to the resort, we walked down a few side streets and got a little glimpse of Greek life, including elderly women wearing black and head coverings sitting outside socializing.

After some relaxation in Crete, we took the high speed ferry to spend 2 nights in Santorini.  We stayed at an apartment hotel in Fira with gorgeous views of the caldera and the homes and businesses built into the cliff side.  After checking in, we had lunch and then took a bus to Oia where we did some shopping and took in the beautiful views that define Santorini.  We found it funny that there were cats walking around everywhere!  Then we enjoyed a delicious seafood dinner outside while watching the catamarans (and the pirate ships that Makenna loved).

The next morning we started the day off right by going out for a Greek coffee and then some frozen yogurt.  We walked around Fira and then went to lunch at one of the best places we ate on our trip.  We chose several small plates, including grilled octopus, mushrooms marinated in white wine, and fennel pie.  In the afternoon we went on a 5 hour catamaran sunset cruise.  We were nervous to take a toddler and a baby on a boat, especially for 5 hours, but it was one of the best experiences we’ve had!  The cruise was just us and another couple and 4 crew members who were so nice.  We started off with some drinks and appetizers and headed to see the red beach where the cliff side is red.  Ryan jumped in the water and Makenna followed after him, but only lasted about a minute because the water was really cold!  Then we stopped at the white beach followed by the black beach which was black because the rocks were all covered with lava from a volcano eruption long ago.  We passed the volcano and then went to the hot springs.  I really wanted to experience the hot springs even though I’m not a good swimmer and I’m always scared of what’s in the water.  The hot springs are very shallow so the boat couldn’t get too close, so I had to swim about 100 ft.  They must have felt bad that my swimming ability is lacking, as they gave me flippers and a pool noodle to swim!  Of course it started raining when I was about to jump in but that didn’t stop me.  The water outside of the hot springs was really cold, and I was scared of under-water creatures, so I swam as fast as I could while Ryan and the kids watched in amusement.  I finally reached the hot springs but they weren’t that hot, and it was raining, so it wasn’t long before I headed back to the boat.  It was worth it, though!  The crew fired up the grill and started to prepare our dinner and then we were off again to take in the views of Santorini by boat.  While we were waiting for our dinner, one of the crew members was playing with Makenna and it was so sweet.  He was telling us that he has a young son back in Athens where he is from, but he was missing him because he comes to Crete for 6 months to work.  Most of the other people we talked to working at the restaurants, transportation etc are in the same situation and while they are paid more there I imagine it must be so hard to be away from family 6 months out of the year.  After we had a nice dinner we sailed some more and were given champagne while we watched the sunset.  It was such a nice experience and we were amazed at how well both of the kids were the entire trip.

The next day we had more Greek coffee and more frozen yogurt before we had to get back on the ferry to Crete.  After staying overnight, we flew home the next morning and had another smooth flight with a toddler and a baby.  We are so blessed that we were able to visit another part of Europe and have an enjoyable vacation with our 2 little ones!

One of the funny, and sometimes frustrating, things about living in France is our “American” names.  Whether its the way our names are pronounced, written or misunderstood over the phone, we have adopted our “French” names.

Ryan doesn’t have many problems with his name, although it has sometimes been written as Rayan.

I, however, have become Cait (or sometimes Kate).  Caitlin is difficult for the French to say, and forget about trying to spell it.  I’ve had a few times where I’ve spelled my name over the phone and it has been really botched (my accent doesn’t help).  Put that together with trying to spell our last name and it really gets interesting….I once received a piece of mail addressed to Aitlin Pawoowlowski.

I can’t even begin to list the different ways Makenna’s name has been pronounced.  The French usually emphasize every syllable, and saying the letter a like “aah” instead of “uh”.

Reese is pronounced “Reeze” here, and most French people say “oh, like the show Malcolm in the Middle!” when I tell them his name (I didn’t even know there was a character named Reese on that show until someone here said that).  Some people think I’m saying Louis (loo-ees) when I say his name.  I usually have to say his name and then spell it for them to understand.

Not only are our first names difficult, but the name Pawlowski is definitely not French.  In Poland, our last name is pronounced with the Ws sounding like Vs and most people here pronounce it that way too.

My poor children will probably have to relearn their names when we move back.  But for now I will enjoy hearing the French pronunciations of Makenna and Reese, and I’ll embrace my alter ego Cait.

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The weather is starting to warm up here so we have really been trying to soak it up.  Last year the spring was pretty cold and rainy the majority of the time, it didn’t really get nice until June, so we are thankful we have had some nice weather!  Ryan has still been traveling quite a bit but he has taken a few days off to spend with us.  We have had afternoon drinks sitting outside of cafes, had lunch on our balcony, and planted flowers that Makenna waters every day.

On one of the beautiful days here me and the kids met up with some of the other Americans at Jardin Lecoq for lunch.  The kids loved having a picnic and playing!  Although the school day is longer here, the kids have a 2 hour lunch so they are able to spend time with their family or go to the park for a little while which is nice.

Reese recently turned 7 months old….time is flying by way too fast!  I am not ready for my baby to grow up yet!  He has truly filled my heart with love.  Makenna has been such a great big sister to him and is starting to pay more attention to him by showing him his toys, filling up the diaper basket, helping me give him a bath, wiping his face or making him laugh.  Reese has 4 teeth already (Makenna didn’t have any until she was almost a year old!) and is sitting up on his own.

Every Wednesday Makenna go to her dance class and lately they have been practicing for their “spectacle” (recital).  It will be at the end of June and she said they have been wearing pink princess dresses during class so I can’t wait to see what they have been doing!

Now we begin our countdown to our next vacation….1 month to go!

 

We were so happy for Claire, Damien and Nathan to visit us and meet Reese for the first time.  Unfortunately, Ryan had to work over the weekend so he wasn’t with us (you know your husband travels a lot when your toddler asks “where’s daddy? at work in Italy or Spain?”).

We decided to check out a restaurant in town that has a child play area.  But of course, like most places in France, it wasn’t quite “kid-friendly”….the play room was on the 2nd floor but you couldn’t order any food or drinks up there.  We noticed they had an elevator…but it only went straight to the 3rd floor and didn’t stop at the 2nd floor, so we had to carry our strollers up a long flight of steps.  I do have to give them credit for having a play room though, as that is the only restaurant in this city that has one.  Makenna and Nathan had a great time playing with the toys.

Makenna just loves Damien and always wants to hold his hand or play with him when we see them.  It is so sweet being able to share these moments with my best friend from college; it is hard to believe we both have children now and I’m living a few hours away from her!

I neglected our blog in January in February because I was 1 of 3 things: lazy, tired, or Ryan was traveling and I had to hold down the fort.  Ryan traveled a LOT the last 2 months (he was gone 15 of the 28 days in February!) and I was definitely ready for a break by the end of the month.  But we were able to fit in some fun things so here’s a recap of what we did:

In January we had a few days of snow, and although the snow doesn’t usually stick here in town, my friend Sheryl had enough snow in her backyard to invite the kids over to play!  Ryan was traveling at the time so it was nice to have something to do and Sheryl and her husband Tom made sure Makenna enjoyed her first time playing in the snow.  Tom helped Makenna make a snowman and then I showed her how to go sledding down the small hill in their yard.

On another snowy day in January, we had a Moms & Babies meetup and it was our last time meeting with my friend Gillian and her son Benjamin as they were moving to another area in France.  Makenna has played with Benjamin at these meetups since we arrived here in Clermont Ferrand, so it was sad to say goodbye to one of her first friends.  At the end we took a group photo of us 4 moms and our kids who have become friends over the last couple years- Gillian, myself, and Jena are all from the US and were all pregnant with our 2nd child at the same time!  Sarah is from the UK and now she is pregnant with her 2nd baby as well.  It’s a great little group and as we all gradually move on to the next chapter in our lives I will be thankful for these mom and baby friendships!

With the winter weather we had, we found the library to be a great way to get out of the house and do something fun with Makenna.  She has her own library card and loves to pick out books to take home.  Most of the books are in French but there is a tiny section of English books (although we usually choose the French ones).

Ryan and I ended the month by going on a date to an ASM rugby match.  It was interesting to see how the game is played and how the stadium is different than football stadiums in the US.  Here, we could stand along the edge of the field and be pretty close to the action.  The match is also much shorter than a football game.  We enjoyed a few drinks (I even had a glass of champagne….only in France do you drink champagne at a sporting event) and then headed back to our babies.

One of the best ways to start the month of February is to find a babysitter and go to the huge annual wine fair, Vinidome.  With over 360 wineries sampling several of their wines, you can drink A LOT for free if you have ticket (which is easy to come by).  Luckily there are a few booths in between that have some food!  Some people walk out of Vinidome with cases and cases of wine.  Ryan and I only left with 4 bottles (and some macarons), but it was a nice date and we really enjoyed our wine samples.  (and after a friend told me about some wine she found in pretty bottles I went back….on a Monday at 10am….with my 5 month old while my toddler was with the nanny.  C’est la vie en France!)

We also celebrated the birthday of our Brazilian neighbor’s daughter who has become like a big sister to Makenna.  There was lots of Brazilian food and desserts and we had a great time!

Valentine’s Day brought about another France memory to treasure.  In France, it isn’t a very commercial holiday like in the US and it is just celebrated by couples.  My mom sent over “Frozen” themed Valentine’s Day cards and Makenna gave them out to some of her friends including the twin boys who she shares a nanny with.  We explained to them how kids celebrate Valentine’s Day in the US and they thought it was so neat!  The following week when I brought Makenna to the nanny there was a little gift left there for her from the mother of the twins.  It was a heart pouch with a heart bracelet and heart hair clips, and a note from the boys, Nathan and Maël.

February also marked the start of Reese eating solid foods.  This picture shows how much he enjoyed it.

Ryan and I were lucky enough to go on another date (thanks to our Brazilian neighbor) and we went to dinner at one of the restaurants that has been on my list to try.  We enjoyed a nice meal of duck and admired how pretty the main square looks at night (we very rarely are out past the kids’ early bedtime).

This time of year also includes the annual film festival held in Clermont Ferrand.  It is very popular and includes films from all over the world.  During the film festival, there are several food trucks that are serving food just a short walk from our apartment, so we got dinner from them one night.  This year I thought the poster for the event was really pretty so I wanted to buy one and frame it.  Ryan went to the sales office and got a hand drawn version, but I really wanted the actual poster.  I was talking to my local café owner friend and he told me he had one and would give it to me but it was really big.  I said I didn’t mind because it could look nice framed somewhere in our home when we move back.  When he gave it to me I was shocked at how big it is, it is probably the size of our queen-sized bed!  He must’ve thought I will change my mind when we move home because the next day he gave me a small version which is around 8×11.  We’ll see which one makes the cut!

I thought the last 2 months have been a little mundane, but after sitting down to write this post they were quite eventful!  Now I am ready for spring.