Paris

So I published these posts wrong and you are supposed to read the London one first. Oops. Oh well. Enjoy.

Next stop: Paris, France
Paris is the most amazing place and I want to go back now. I have never had more fun than I had there and if you ever get the chance then I definitely recommend going. I have so many pictures of our trip and this is the only way I know how to display a lot of them. I know, I'm getting sick of the whole collage thing too. Sorry. I'm still learning how to do this whole blog thing.

Most memorable moments of Paris:

• Getting on the wrong subway.
• Walking for-ev-er with our luggage to our hotel.
• deux huit quarte, (284...our room number)
• Arc de Triomphe
  
• Seeing the Eiffel Tower for the first time
• Realizing the French don't eat until 10 at night.
• Getting food at a little market and being given the evil eye because we were Americans
  
• The Louvre
• Making fun of the art at the museum
• Never having more fun with Robbie than I did that day
• Notre Dame
• Homeless lady
  
• Lighting a candle
  
• Champs de Elysees and trying to remember how to pronounce it the entire time we were there.
• Making out next to the Seine river
• New Years Eve
• Feeling the ground shake and thinking I was going to die
• People sharing their bottles of wine with random passers by to ring in the new year.
• Angry dad pushing people down and almost being in the middle of a fight
• millions of people filling the entire street for miles and miles
• Montmartre Cathedral
• Pickpocketers
• Cemetery....coolest place ever.
• Moulin' Rouge
• Thinking we had the subway system all figured out when we got on the wrong train to go to Versailles.
• Versailles
• Wishing I could live in Versailles
• Pretending to be Marie Antoinette
• Hall of Mirrors
  
• bitterly cold
• Robbie getting sick
• crepes, (Robbie's are better) Sorry Paris.
  
• "Don't get your fingers caught in the door or else you'll turn into a rabbit." (Favorite quote of the trip)
• Getting on the plane and wanting to see my kids so bad but not ready to come home.

Hopefully we can go back again, but if not then I'm so grateful I was able to have that experience. Thank you so much Robbie for that amazing gift. Best husband ever.

London

A few months ago Robbie surprised me with a trip to Europe. I figure I'd better blog about this now before I forget everything that we did. Instead of writing in story form which will make this post never ending, I'm just going to jot down some of the most memorable moments on our trip.

First Stop: London, England

Most memorable moments include:

• Going through customs and the man telling Robbie that he chose the wrong profession because he spoke so quietly.
• Getting on the subway with huge suitcases and Robbie almost not making it on.
• Pulling our luggage through piccadilly circus.
• Ping Pong Chinese restaurant
• Walking through Westminster Abby cathedral.
• Big Ben
• Camera lens breaking.
• Spending 4 hours trying to find a new camera lens.
• Riding on the London eye
• Rain...lots and lots of rain.
• Les Misarble
  
• Trying to walk in heels on cobble stone.
• Riding on the back of someones bike back to our hotel so I wouldn't have to walk in heels anymore.
• Caprese salad...mmmmm.
• Phantom of the Opera
  
• Cricket on television non-stop.
• Quitley, aka quickly
  
• Changing of the guards
• Vintage clothing shop
• Being evacuated of the chunnel station, (still don't know why)
  
• riding the chunnel.

Handsome Pants turns 2

Today my little Sparky turns 2 years old. It's so amazing to me how in just 2 short years one can go from not being able to do a single thing for themselves to walking, talking, eating, going to the bathroom in a potty, (when he feels like it), how to love and knowing who to trust and who not to. Parker has always been such a sweetheart. Here are a few reasons why I love Parker so much.

1. I love how he gets right in my face and says, "mom" then squeezes my cheeks and gives me a kiss.
   
2. I love when he goes to the bathroom and whether he actually goes pee or not he always needs to flush. Or in Parker's case, "shlup".
3. I love, as messy as it is, that I can always count on him to throw all of his food on the ground while he's eating. It's just what he does.
4. I love right before I'll put him down for a nap and he'll lay on my shoulder. He's never been a cuddly guy but I get so much love from him when he does that.
5. I love when he doesn't really want to nap but I'll put him down anyways and he just sits and talks to himself for two hours. He never really cries.
6. I love that he gets into the pantry for "Naks" aka snacks.
7. I love that he loves his daddy so much and can't get enough of him.
8. I love that he loves his brother and that the two of them get along so good, (most of the time).
9. I love when we say prayers and he'll fold his arms for a matter of 5 seconds while we pray and then he runs around the rest of the prayer.
   
10. Mostly I love Parker.
    

Roll 'em over, lay 'em flat, pin his shoulders to the mat!

Let me begin by saying that Brady is a very emotional child... of course we love him none the less. So when we couldn't figure out how to teach him to be tough when things got rough we decided that putting him in wrestling would be the best option. So far a lot of tears have been shed in Brady's eyes due to disappointment. If he doesn't win then the world is over. He gets a lot of this emotionalism from his father. For example:
Sportsmanship video

Wasn't that fun. If you're not sure what you just witnessed, that was little Robbie losing. That's what I have to deal with on a daily basis from Mr. Brady. Thank you Robbie Law for instilling that in our son. Best quality ever.

Last Friday, despite all the tears, we decided to put Brady into his first tournament. Robbie and I were so nervous for him. I was literally shaking. I love my little guy so much and I didn't want him to get hurt physically or emotionally. We located the kid Brady was about to wrestle in the crowd and said, "oh crap." He was so good. Butterflies were building up in our stomachs when it came time for Brady to face his fate. The ref blew the whistle and before you knew it he had taken Brady down. You could hear him start to cry. I felt so bad for him. I wanted to get him out of there so bad. The whistle blew and the first round was over. Brady never let the kid pin him. We called that match quits. The boys shook hands as Brady bawled.
After that we let him watch some other matches just so he could understand that there has to be a winner and a loser and it doesn't matter what the outcome is as long as you try your best.
So after what seemed like an eternity it was time for his second match. The boys shook hands, the whistle blew and bam...Brady took the kid down! Of course not more than 10 seconds later did the kid got on top but something different happened. No tears! It was a miracle. Brady made it through every round without a tear and without ever being on top. I've never been prouder of him. When it was over he had the biggest smile on his face. He was so proud of himself. I think wrestling is going to be a good thing for my guy.