I ran home afterwards and fed Miriam. We had lunch there and
gave Miriam a bath. She pooped out luckily at home. We were so blessed about
that sort of thing. For the most part things just went smoothly for us—shelter
from the storm, luck with poo, that sort of thing. J
After that
we unfortunately wasted time going to the Monoprix, where it was recommended
that we look for souvenirs. It was not conveniently located, and was a total
bust for the stuff there.
Our date was so fun though. We walked past Notre Dame and along the Seine.
We kind of went all out on pastries the last couple of days there. In all fairness though, forty dollars didn't buy as many Parisian pastries as one might expect. But wow they were incredible! Yeah, this was our breakfast. Clearly we were all about being healthy on our vacation. :)
We walked
to the Palace, which was needless to say impressive. So completely over the top
ornate to put it mildly. The main palace was huge and the Hall of Mirrors was
beautiful. Louis the XIV’s bedroom was so ridiculously ornate it was almost
ugly. Also, who needs a bust of themselves in their bedroom?
We had
lunch in the outside in an alcove to stay out of the wind. It was COLD that
day! Fortunately they had a little train to take us out to the Grand and Petit
Trianon. Marie Antoinette and the Madam de Pompadour. The wife and the mistress
had their own estates. So ridiculous. There was also a whole village behind the
states was cute and quaint. I couldn’t help but thinking it was completely
natural that the French would revolt after the needless expenditure on all of
that. Also, I couldn’t help but compare it to King Noah in the Book of Mormon.
It was beautiful though.
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The next
day we got up early caught the train to the airport and headed home. The plane
ride felt weird because we landed at about the same time that we left. We saw
Miriam and kids and Dad at the airport. It was so good to see Ellie again. We
came home that night and was so exhausted. I am not made to stay up for 30
hours at a time. All in all though, it was an incredible trip—we loved it!
Here are the emails from Miriam about what Ellie was up to while we were gone:
4/16/12 Dear Kylee, John and Lynette,
How was your flight???
Ellie is the best. We love having her here already. After you left,
the girls had some more lunch and Johnny went down for a nap. Ellie ate all
her pasta salad-- what a good girl!
Then we put shoes on (Ellie promptly put on her Sunday shoes) so we could go
outside and swing. Don't worry, we put on her regular shoes.
:) And soon after that the shoes came off anyway so they could play in
the sand. I'm glad you sent flip flops!
They had a fun time playing together-- it's natural and easy for them to get
along. And they both made me sand oatmeal as my "treat".
We then came in for naps (without fuss, I might add), so like you said Kylee,
Ellie asked for the scripture story about darkness and we read two other
stories, too. She wanted to wear one of Anna's diapers because apparently
it's the same kind she used to wear (Luvs). I hope you don't mind that I
obliged. :)
She went down to bed super easy and I think she's just been reading in bed ever
since. She hasn't opened the door at all. In 40 minutes Marc comes
home so I think I'll go in to get Ellie and have the kids help me make
dinner.
Ellie really is a delight and we are lucky to have her here!
I hope your trip is going well so far! No serious hiccups, I hope?
I look forward to talking with you, and I'll make sure we're close enough to
the computer tomorrow between 12 - 1 our time, 8 - 9 your time so that we are
available to do a video chat. Or if you'd prefer a different time, just
e-mail me and we'll do that!
Take care,
Miriam
4/20/12 Hey
Kylee,
I talked to Grandma. They got home last
night. They both have a cold and need rest. She said she's done a
little laundry, but needed to lie down after a batch. She's frustrated to
be sick because she got the cold two weeks ago and thought she was through with
it earlier, but the 26-hour day of travel must have been what brought it
back. Grandpa also got the cold 2 weeks ago, and he saw the doctor
onboard. The doctor said he didn't have pneumonia, but it looked like it
could be bronchitis, so the doctor gave him 3 nebulizer treatments and that
helped. Grandma said he still has a bad cough, but fortunately he slept
really well last night-- 12 hours-- and they're just taking it easy
today. If they're not doing much better over the weekend, they'll go in
to see a doctor Monday morning.
As far as their trip, they said it was really
interesting. She said she wished she could put the Eiffel Tower right up
next to the tallest building in Dubais (the tallest building the world),
because apparently it is twice as tall. She also thought it was
interesting how barren the mountains were-- not a spot of green anywhere.
Most everywhere was dry desert-- the rainfall around Dubais is only 5-6 inches
a year-- but it is quite the metropolis in the middle of all that.
I asked if we could come visit her, but she said
we should stay away while they have a cough. So we'll have to see in a few
days.
Let me tell you in more detail how things are
going here, since it's hard to get a sense for it over video chat. I
honestly think things are going as well as could be expected for all of
us. It's different, of course, with Ellie here (especially for Ellie!),
but it works really well I think. In their 4 1/2 days together, there
have only been two grabby squabbles over a toy (the baby doll of
course!). I think that's pretty amazing. And we resolved them
quickly, by finding the other doll. Anna and Ellie are always talking to
each other and playing with toys or pretending to be a family with their
babies. Johnny tags along pretty well, too. It works.
This was a Joy School week, which is the busier
of every other week for me, since next week I have no lessons to prepare and
Anna goes to my friend's house for preschool. I kept things super
simple-- we just played a few games and painted one day, made Oobleck and
colored the next, and made cookies and played with play dough the third.
I noticed Ellie had the most fun with hands-on activities-- coloring a picture
wasn't as engaging. She loves to cut paper into small squares with kid
scissors. She tried to eat the blue play dough though. :) And
almost the first thing she did when the Oobleck came out was to stick her foot
in it-- so funny! Anyway, I think she had fun during Joy School, but was
much quieter than usual. So that's the main reason I wouldn't want to
send her to preschool next week. I'm sure she'd be happier and more
comfortable here with me and Johnny.
Did I say Anna and Ellie play well
together? It really is great. Anna, however, is a bit bossy.
:) She says, "Ellie, we don't put that much water in our cups"
or "Ellie, eat a bite of corn first" while she isn't exactly the
pillar of dinner-eating herself. So I'm trying to curb the bossy
comments-- I'm afraid she's just like I was at her age. Anna has even
come up with a nickname for Ellie-- "Elle." Ellie is super
patient and sweet and willing to go along with Anna's whims. But I'm
happy to see it go the other way, too. Ellie has some cute ideas with
mothering the baby dolls-- they often tell me to be quiet so I won't wake the
babies, all snugly tucked into beds upstairs with curtains drawn.
Ellie likes to wear dresses and Anna's clothes
in general, which I guess could be a bickering point for Anna, but except in
some cases with pajamas, it isn't an issue at all. So Ellie has fun
picking out a play dress and wearing some slip-on black Sunday shoes around.
We fix her hair in elastics and clippies and she looks oh so girly.
:)
Her favorite thing to do outside is to play in
the sandbox. I am hoping we'll get some warmer/sunnier weather soon to
allow for more time doing that. It's kind of chilly in the morning and
evening, and naps are just in the wrong time of day-- right when the sun comes
out so nice. Oh well, we've still been out there a lot anyway. I
just keep them warm enough.
In case you're curious about the poo situation
:) , every time she's had poo, she's started off in her diaper before finishing
on the potty. Of course I don't mind a bit, but for your information,
that is the status of the poo.
Ellie is funny, sweet, mild and
even-tempered. We love having her with us. It's always exciting to
go say good morning to her with Anna and Johnny and again after her nap.
She is so well behaved and sweet-- you've trained her well!
So there you go-- a little more information to
hopefully satisfy your curiosity as a parent. :) Again I'll say, I
think things are going as well as could be expected, or perhaps in some ways
better. I've been taking a lot of pictures so the kids can remember this
time together, so I'll e-mail them to you as we go.
Take care and safe travels! And by the
way, I forgot to ask how John's presentation at the conference went. Did
it go well? We are thinking of and praying for you daily. I hope
you continue to get around safely and have fun.
Love,
Miriam
P.S.-- send more pictures if you can-- Ellie
sure loved seeing you. And how's the food???
4/20/12
Last night was
pretty. Marc mowed the lawn and we just played outside. The
creation on the bench was Anna and Ellie's "birthday cake" for
me. They even sang. :)
4/23/12
Kylee,
Sorry about that e-mail yesterday. I just
reread it and feel like an idiot-- I guess it was kind of a rough morning with
the kids-- lots of tears and stuff-- and I was frustrated. I think
Sundays are always harder with kids-- getting everybody ready and out the door
on time, trying to keep them happy during the long stake conference meeting,
naps being off, and dinner/house preparations to be made. After church,
all the kids got a wonderful nap and I got everything ready for dinner then, so
it worked out great. David and Patti weren't able to come-- Marc got a
text from David that they're sick-- and Grandma and Grandpa were still sick, so
it was just Kayla and Cortney and Joe. We had a good time.
Anyway, I am sorry again for the e-mail.
Today would be great to do a video chat if you're available. Everyone's
happy and doing good. It's nice to have a day with nowhere to go and no
one to see! What a difference that makes for these sweet kids!
I called Grandma this morning to ask how they're
doing. She said that yesterday she had a fever and was achy, but today
she feels better and Grandpa is doing better, too. They're both going to
take it easy today and not do much, but they don't think there's any cause for
going to the doctor.
We love you. Talk to you soon, we hope!
4/23/12
Dear Aunt Kylee and Uncle John,
We want to talk to you. And we were drinking water with a
straw. And we were having a
lot of fun with our water. And
we were having lunch with Mommy and me and Ellie. And we were watching Chip and Dale and
Starfall. And we played
outside. We played in the
sand. And we got very dirty
from the sand. And I made a
volcano. And I made a hole
in the volcano. And I had a
lot of fun in the sandbox.
Ellie’s turn:
And we had so much fun. And we had lots of fun and we got all
sandy and we’ll talk to you later. Bye.
Anna’s turn:
And Ellie had a little turn because
she wanted to. And now it’s my turn. And I wanted to have a long turn
first. And I had a lot of
fun writing a letter to you. I
love you.
-Anna
4/24/12
I hope we can
talk today with the kids, but if not, let me tell you a few funny things and
ask some questions.
First, what the heck? Lynette, your eye
looks awful! What happened, in more detail? I am so sorry-- it
looks very painful.
Second, I don't have any flight information for
your return trip, but I know you arrive at the airport at 2:05. Would you
mind sending me the itinerary, or at least your flight number and whatever city
you'll travel to Salt Lake from? Some time today or tomorrow, whenever
you get the chance.
Ellie said the blessing for breakfast this
morning. It went something like this: "Dear Heavenly Father, thank
thee for this day... Please help us to not kill the house.... And we can
buy new sippy cups... In the name of Jesus Christ, amen." Oh, what
goes on in their heads? I chuckled during that prayer.
Johnny spilled his entire bowl of cereal near
the beginning of breakfast in style-- it was everywhere, in every crevice, and
dripping from somewhere beneath his booster seat onto the floor for a couple
minutes. Nice. Best part was the repeat spill a few minutes
later. But I tell you what, my kitchen isclean. I've mopped
and swept and wiped so much, it just sparkles. So you'd never know!!
Anna and Ellie are REALLY loving the
straws. They've learned to blow bubbles in their water and have all sorts
of fun. So... sorry.
We love you! I'll try to keep my phone
with me today so I hear it in case you call. Sorry again about
yesterday-- I realized at the end of the day that the reason I missed all calls
in was because it was on vibrate and too far away to hear. I love
technology.
Take care, Parisians, and we'll talk later!
