tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5019088106592409132024-02-20T02:22:12.421+01:00The Cabes In FranceKimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.comBlogger165125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-48024676577951462062011-09-21T16:27:00.000+02:002011-09-21T16:27:59.290+02:00UpdateIt has been almost a month since I have blogged (well, here anyway. But more on that in a minute.). I just realized I never even finished blogging about our cruise. Reader's Digest version- last day was at sea, lots of fun. All in all: great vacation, lots of fun had by all, good food, good times, thumbs up for Carnival, and two thumbs up for vacationing with friends. Nuff' said.<br />
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Now, onto the blogging business. Technically we still "live" in France. But Jacob and I are hanging out at my mom's house in SC while Matthew is back and forth to Brazil for weeks at a time. Since I am not in France, it doesn't make sense to blog under 'Cabes in France'. I have also officially launched my photography business since being back stateside. At first I was trying to blog about the cruise here, then on my new business blog, blog about sessions. My thought was to start a new 'Cabes in OK' blog once we moved to Oklahoma in January. I quickly realized, keeping up two blogs is <u>never</u> going to happen! So, I just decided that my new KimberlyCabePhotography.wordpress.com blog will have to work for both. I will try to do a 'Mine on Monday' post with things going on with my child, my life, etc. And, I have also been trying to write a letter to Jacob for my 'Thoughtful Thursday' posts (can't seem to get it together enough to make that happen every week). The rest of the days will be devoted to posting sneak-peaks and session recaps for clients. If you are on facebook, come check out my business page (Kimberly Cabe Photography), and 'like' me, if you want. It may or may not make my day to see new fans...<br />
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For those of you who have followed all of the Cabe's adventures in France, but decide not to keep following over at the new blog, no hard feelings. I know a lot of you are here because you also live in France, and I can't promise that our adventures in Oklahoma will be as entertaining. Although they might... It has been great meeting so many new friends through this little ol' blog. It humbles/frightens me to see the reader count for each post. This blog has gotten me through a lot of tough times in France, because no matter how horrible a situation, I would think "well, at least this will make for a good blog entry!". I know I have probably shared waaayyyy too much (let's blame most of those posts on the pregnancy hormones), but it was therapeutic to me, and hopefully entertaining for you. I will be back in France for two weeks at the beginning of December to officially close the French chapter of our life. And I plan on doing one last 'good-bye' post after that trip. So, see you in December!<br />
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If you are interested, this will take you to my latest post:<br />
<a href="http://kimberlycabephotography.wordpress.com/2011/09/21/silliness-on-a-dreary-wednesday/">http://kimberlycabephotography.wordpress.com/2011/09/21/silliness-on-a-dreary-wednesday/</a>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-36164550295591873572011-08-24T02:38:00.000+02:002011-08-24T02:38:11.352+02:00The Cruisin Cabes: Part 5Day 6: Sicily<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Hw8DN4G840o4NBIT9HHA0-LvpBQjR-AguFRiFxpPiPo1onB4P3a5pyoB1moz0-7fnOZjEHjjI2B-HLLbDvwHeJK3kpeGvnY4AB0ZxE6j43yjeCm5XggXLm8TlwRVM-33bBmDCAfvO2BR/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-318.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Hw8DN4G840o4NBIT9HHA0-LvpBQjR-AguFRiFxpPiPo1onB4P3a5pyoB1moz0-7fnOZjEHjjI2B-HLLbDvwHeJK3kpeGvnY4AB0ZxE6j43yjeCm5XggXLm8TlwRVM-33bBmDCAfvO2BR/s640/20110703_10+Cruise-318.jpg" width="640" /></a> </div><br />
By this day, we were pretty tired, and would have loved to just stay on the boat. But, we didn't know when we would be back in Sicily, so we decided to take advantage of our last day in Italy! We let Jacob get a good morning nap in, and then set out. There were only a few things I had read about in Messina. Not much of a tourist destination, to say the least. I did want to see the Cathedral in Messina, home to one of the largest astronomical clocks in the world. Unfortunately, I couldn't remember the name, and thought I had written it down, but hadn't. We had maps of the town, but were wandering around aimlessly. We decided to give up and head to the shopping district, because my other goal for Sicily was to find something in the famous Italian leather. A beautiful handbag perhaps...<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAie1TmyaWkkDlFjCWBWy5ytiiT1WqdE3qgNEKV5gqJhDnSh-BO9xBj_UCHtcextE2f5o7QeI26ZlSlMLWNxwheUSXxKYEeuaxXVbqVbNGvAXQN6uqAMsXQcL48lBWmGC_o1inQMULEm7_/s1600/Messina1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAie1TmyaWkkDlFjCWBWy5ytiiT1WqdE3qgNEKV5gqJhDnSh-BO9xBj_UCHtcextE2f5o7QeI26ZlSlMLWNxwheUSXxKYEeuaxXVbqVbNGvAXQN6uqAMsXQcL48lBWmGC_o1inQMULEm7_/s640/Messina1.jpg" width="640" /></a> </div><br />
We had just started down the street and saw a large crowd gathered. We decided to see what was going on and were happily surprised to witness the last 5 minutes of the astronomical clock's amazing noon 'performance'. It was pretty impressive to see all of the moving parts. And hearing Ave Maria booming from the bell tower to the hushed crowds below gave me goosebumps. What luck to have made it just in time!<br />
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<i>Jacob was more impressed with the two, pretty, Italian girls standing off to the right.</i> <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL2p2P1-dM9GFQITJKdlWdzpU_u9koXO8z1x3WCjVOVaJLllglRMHheLlQ0_wXStirylhEKc3CmP5nFWGSK3pUYZmHaWpiLSYWeEpuxeRZySEMhUmA8bZx3BYwNSSthA1U-Ue9KAlZHe9j/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-313.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL2p2P1-dM9GFQITJKdlWdzpU_u9koXO8z1x3WCjVOVaJLllglRMHheLlQ0_wXStirylhEKc3CmP5nFWGSK3pUYZmHaWpiLSYWeEpuxeRZySEMhUmA8bZx3BYwNSSthA1U-Ue9KAlZHe9j/s400/20110703_10+Cruise-313.jpg" width="300" /></a></div> <i> </i><br />
<i>Sorry for the shakey camera work, I was literally running up to the square because I wasn't sure how much longer it would last.</i><br />
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Did I mention how hot it was? Well, it was H.O.T. We pressed on, and Matthew, bless his heart, is such a trooper. He lovingly agreed to walk all the way to the other side of the city to basically go purse shopping. We were also on the look out for some place to eat, but couldn't find anything! It was crazy, there were only stores. We saw a few bars, but they didn't serve food. We finally gave up on the shopping idea, and turned around and started heading back towards the ship, still hoping to find some lunch! We finally found a pizza place, and all of the walking was worth it. It was probably the best pizza I have ever had. Matthew got this HUGE calzone. The cook made a big deal to point out to Matthew that the calzone was shaped like a buffalo's head (the restaurant's logo). Jacob even made friends with a little Italian boy at the next table who came and sat with us and played with Jacob. He didn't speak a word of English, and I tried to ask him his name, but nothing I did (or gestured) made sense to him.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFbmRXc-JM7KMNy0_PoYyf263EDJZGGYeWKRUJ85ZInPrMFbpdzEFF_suP-jnp4KYhi2xBkU46nfMSmU86EGmX56DeTsYW3HCF6CBldC9qIXkRqmaXz_u1bao-rsCVAK3ws3efPNv7l1ur/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-336.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFbmRXc-JM7KMNy0_PoYyf263EDJZGGYeWKRUJ85ZInPrMFbpdzEFF_suP-jnp4KYhi2xBkU46nfMSmU86EGmX56DeTsYW3HCF6CBldC9qIXkRqmaXz_u1bao-rsCVAK3ws3efPNv7l1ur/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-336.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkVPpDHLHY5_T-IOr4nqy2TM6YlyaOaEST9ECQ0lxHLQvkOtaGrENLvcksofETuY6XoL5QbQ21DRGYlJImkYHy7YqBHqQcO0wgzfJPSArwv366tKCLyQ_lLq9sTvsGIZ9RCGS7knF_Q4m5/s1600/Messina2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkVPpDHLHY5_T-IOr4nqy2TM6YlyaOaEST9ECQ0lxHLQvkOtaGrENLvcksofETuY6XoL5QbQ21DRGYlJImkYHy7YqBHqQcO0wgzfJPSArwv366tKCLyQ_lLq9sTvsGIZ9RCGS7knF_Q4m5/s640/Messina2.jpg" width="640" /></a> </div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBeJxJYfiWIElDZRyd8mHscEjm4kFZ71xWwy812K7OS8Vvl7IrNpsjllV-703xWVBkcwPFL967UoVpEOCPOXmzmn_P4u6eqfX8KDe7nss5KCAYEjbd8vsSPZQ5RGq6ba5EVFlWsOzztz2k/s1600/Messina3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBeJxJYfiWIElDZRyd8mHscEjm4kFZ71xWwy812K7OS8Vvl7IrNpsjllV-703xWVBkcwPFL967UoVpEOCPOXmzmn_P4u6eqfX8KDe7nss5KCAYEjbd8vsSPZQ5RGq6ba5EVFlWsOzztz2k/s400/Messina3.jpg" width="400" /></a> </div>We had to be back on the ship early, so it could start the long trek back to Barcelona. That night was the ship's one formal night. It was quite interesting with a very tired baby. Jacob had really had it by this point, and was not too keen on sitting through another dinner. Our sweet waitress kept stopping by and would feed him a few bites or play with him, giving us a chance to actually eat our meal. During dinner, the cruise director came over the intercom to announce that the captain was steering the ship past the volcanic island of Stromboli (I always thought stromboli was just another delicious Italian dish, who knew!). Matthew and I took turns going out onto the deck to see the smoke spewing from the top of this active volcano. Very cool.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZGmzV6XVQXcjtERQlTrQey72ZCtA3-ISh-jT-y27GjJ0Njua1BOnBGoV4HytZYres0THE2kC12Cp-IRuKUTMGVgKMYgwX_2OJxp-W02vYpoO4Tegoa05UR3Hd_qH4i_tMeaG_NdHvWuCJ/s1600/Messina4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZGmzV6XVQXcjtERQlTrQey72ZCtA3-ISh-jT-y27GjJ0Njua1BOnBGoV4HytZYres0THE2kC12Cp-IRuKUTMGVgKMYgwX_2OJxp-W02vYpoO4Tegoa05UR3Hd_qH4i_tMeaG_NdHvWuCJ/s400/Messina4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_AHj-Xr-b5ykHZioXJg9_WRMdP29gjR4Tf1LjIJ5sn4x8m4_B4fPLDHaO77deS0btUZGW_dYIcMXsyXsrX8CeTfrsPJfPNxHNCrTyQyZ-CuorBnl6VcXTUDGtWS4mhfKDVPCVXYgnKYHr/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-369.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_AHj-Xr-b5ykHZioXJg9_WRMdP29gjR4Tf1LjIJ5sn4x8m4_B4fPLDHaO77deS0btUZGW_dYIcMXsyXsrX8CeTfrsPJfPNxHNCrTyQyZ-CuorBnl6VcXTUDGtWS4mhfKDVPCVXYgnKYHr/s400/20110703_10+Cruise-369.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-0CqqHC4lu8kowF_VWalvt0DvMl86pqZtZ0img9GBGaKag9LkpgywFnLnpIFd5DHQ5Fdaoo5edoEGgvSewsOXfHHrCIsl905Ha6gG_3BjCXhVWbvpV1SPy8MgvA8l11U3dBnD6UURjnOh/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-357.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-0CqqHC4lu8kowF_VWalvt0DvMl86pqZtZ0img9GBGaKag9LkpgywFnLnpIFd5DHQ5Fdaoo5edoEGgvSewsOXfHHrCIsl905Ha6gG_3BjCXhVWbvpV1SPy8MgvA8l11U3dBnD6UURjnOh/s640/20110703_10+Cruise-357.jpg" width="640" /></a> </div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK_d2Dgcs6lp80wqj4u9QLs1UZ2ZIHiEB1jcDyAQ_CbE2HkSS6D_FAzUU8WMIM7t20Pshz2PfAU4V4oBY6u1Hfm-dE2dmdUVijEyIovgDzeWdItAKGuBng8gpJ-td3P5Z0Q91wT5KRfoHH/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-360.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK_d2Dgcs6lp80wqj4u9QLs1UZ2ZIHiEB1jcDyAQ_CbE2HkSS6D_FAzUU8WMIM7t20Pshz2PfAU4V4oBY6u1Hfm-dE2dmdUVijEyIovgDzeWdItAKGuBng8gpJ-td3P5Z0Q91wT5KRfoHH/s640/20110703_10+Cruise-360.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-xg-unHuKPiKl8oDFw06G_XePFJ5Y7D4AyBtLGbfGOVwtc3lMfxxgL5UnTq2IQhH6dT10f2XqY_PthSfIouMVWsxxIQJsFUsGVV1HlpkhW7SSUCz-5mlLyn3zqSZLU7Pp4ZPmCkUu2jti/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-364.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-xg-unHuKPiKl8oDFw06G_XePFJ5Y7D4AyBtLGbfGOVwtc3lMfxxgL5UnTq2IQhH6dT10f2XqY_PthSfIouMVWsxxIQJsFUsGVV1HlpkhW7SSUCz-5mlLyn3zqSZLU7Pp4ZPmCkUu2jti/s640/20110703_10+Cruise-364.jpg" width="640" /></a> </div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEfpy-Tf-E9Zsb9rGcowBhEvjatO7MqRGwHwf9adi4qqMo8OTTxH1Z8e-jlZj01haeOj05DTKzXX4jH3ztxIF1RhTrGJ61n3pgw863Sp8wUAC6DVOaM6A_2c49HEsZgvyIlo7CYAqE8Nrs/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-365.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEfpy-Tf-E9Zsb9rGcowBhEvjatO7MqRGwHwf9adi4qqMo8OTTxH1Z8e-jlZj01haeOj05DTKzXX4jH3ztxIF1RhTrGJ61n3pgw863Sp8wUAC6DVOaM6A_2c49HEsZgvyIlo7CYAqE8Nrs/s640/20110703_10+Cruise-365.jpg" width="640" /></a> </div><br />
Earlier in the week, Freddie and Matthew had a 'guy's night' and ate at the ship's steak house and went to the casino. Now it was girl's night! Jen and I met at the adult-only Serenity area after I put Jacob down for bed, and left Matthew reading on our balcony. Since it was only about 8pm, when most normal adults are eating dinner, we had the entire place to ourselves! It was so peaceful. Nothing better than sipping a cocktail, watching the sunset from a hot tub on a cruise ship, and hanging out with a great friend! <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ8Yj0MHMmiSlDrikoSdnhXHCu1cA0bgveK9QWFbr7k3QQp8V7hiLgP0FXeYh0781hckzWJ4o2tgS5_6tLfYoxlSfDD5rhU3pdAeHAhYgz3mBiYowZqOZCHgeW4Zcp4W5P2B8YyClisS-4/s1600/Messina5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ8Yj0MHMmiSlDrikoSdnhXHCu1cA0bgveK9QWFbr7k3QQp8V7hiLgP0FXeYh0781hckzWJ4o2tgS5_6tLfYoxlSfDD5rhU3pdAeHAhYgz3mBiYowZqOZCHgeW4Zcp4W5P2B8YyClisS-4/s640/Messina5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-1141664245813800532011-08-19T01:43:00.000+02:002011-08-19T01:43:21.632+02:00The Cruisin' Cabes: Part 4Day 5: Naples<br />
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I wanted to make sure I had plenty of time to write this post, because this was my favorite day of the cruise! Remember I said at the beginning that we went on the cruise with the Page family? You probably forgot because I haven't mentioned them since! Between all of the busy sightseeing days, Camp Carnival for the Page kids, and lots of quality couple time for Freddie and Jen, we didn't see them very much during the cruise. That is one of the reasons, I was really looking forward to the Naples port day.<br />
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Jen found a company (owned and operated by an American woman) that offered private boats for tours around the island of Capri. We opted for the 3 hour cruise, and since this was the first time Jacob would be on a boat and in a life jacket, I was honestly a little nervous that he would be hot and miserable...thus making all of the adults trapped on the boat with him, miserable as well. Being the awesome parents of three that they are, Freddie and Jen assured us that they could handle anything Jacob threw at them.<br />
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We had to take a ferry from the Naples port to the island of Capri. The plan was to meet our boat captain at 2pm, so we had lots of time in the morning to get a good nap in for Jacob. Because of some miscommunication, we got on a different ferry than Freddie and Jen. Matthew had gotten off the boat that morning to go buy our ferry tickets, and only saw one company (the larger, slower, car ferry boats). After we were already on, Freddie called to say they had found the faster, people-only ferry boat, but unfortunately the one they were waiting in line for had just sold out. They had to wait for the next one, but because ours was slower, we should all arrive about the same time. The boat we were on was hot, and smelly, and the rocking was really getting to Matthew and me. We had planned to eat lunch in Capri, and our empty stomachs were doing somersaults with the boat. I have never wanted to get off a boat so much in my life! Thankfully, the ride wasn't too long, and soon we were off and breathing the fresh, beautiful, Capri air. We found out Freddie and Jen's boat was behind schedule and had time to grab some lunch. I had to order a margherita pizza, since it was invented in Naples!<br />
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Freddie and Jen's ferry was really late getting in, so we ended up meeting the boat captain and getting everything settled while we waited. Our captain was a young Italian- Pierre Paulo, who was born and raised on the island of Capri. Freddie and Jen finally arrived and all of the stress of the sea sickness, heat, and late ferries was forgotten as soon as we got on our beautiful, little, wooden, Italian boat, and cruised out of the Capri port. <br />
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I can't even begin to describe the color of the water. It looks pretty amazing in the pictures, but I don't even think the pictures does it justice. It is simply breathtaking. We cruised around the island and Pierre Paulo told us stories and legends of the different coves, bluffs, and villas dotting the rocky terrain. He also drove the boat into some of the coves and back into the grottoes. Each had its own name and story. They were beautiful. Pierre Paulo also found a great little cove where we could swim, with no one else around! Jacob wasn't quite sure about the water, so I stayed on board while Matthew, Freddie, and Jen swam. Pierre Paulo also gave them goggles so they could swim under this big rock that was in the middle of the cove. There was also a concrete landing at the bottom of some stairs that led up to a villa. They decided to climb onto it and jump off. (Of course Matthew just <i>had</i> to climb out over the rocks so he could jump off something higher.)<br />
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Jacob was warming up to the idea of swimming, so we tried again, and he happily splashed and kicked around in the waters of the Mediterranean. Too bad the poor kid won't remember all of these adventures he has been on. <br />
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All to soon, it was time to get going again so we would have time to make it all the way around the island in time to catch the ferry back to the cruise ship. I really love my son, but if he had been old enough to stay on the ship at Camp Carnival, this would have been the day for that. He was such a trooper and after his swim, slept in my lap the rest of the way. But, if the four of us could have been <i>sans enfants</i>, the cruise around Capri would have been pure heaven. I didn't even get a chance to lounge in the sun on the pillow covered bow of the boat. Maybe next time I find myself on the island of Capri...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRuQzsOtRmiyx6ZC59h1fi_DAPd6NyfMV7ep1kYxoevUFZXFj8Wvhehle_EueuANC2wGNGs2iW5kgDLFKz0RNd55pybdvxekRiy7rj6Apa2wIXEnodiDn6-yZ4yOj1Vg6h6zDHigQL7NwI/s1600/page4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRuQzsOtRmiyx6ZC59h1fi_DAPd6NyfMV7ep1kYxoevUFZXFj8Wvhehle_EueuANC2wGNGs2iW5kgDLFKz0RNd55pybdvxekRiy7rj6Apa2wIXEnodiDn6-yZ4yOj1Vg6h6zDHigQL7NwI/s640/page4.jpg" width="640" /></a> <br />
For the ferry ride back, we all were able to get on the fast ferry, that did a lot less rocking, and by the time Carnival pulled up anchor, we were all hanging out poolside after another glorious day of cruisin'.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-83113790699312376742011-08-07T18:15:00.000+02:002011-08-07T18:15:26.875+02:00The Cruisin' Cabes: Part 3Day 4: Livorno (Pisa)<br />
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After a long, tiring day in Rome, we spent a lazy morning on the ship. We also wanted to make sure Jacob got a good morning nap. As soon as Jacob woke up, we ate a quick lunch on the Lido deck and headed out. That day, the ship was docked in Livorno. From there, the suggested excursions were Pisa (about 30 minutes away) or Florence (about an hour away). We headed to Pisa! To get there, we first had to take the port shuttle to the middle of town. From there, we had to get on the number 1 bus, to the train station. Then, take a train to Pisa. And finally, either walk 30 minutes, or take another bus to the Leaning Tower of Pisa. <br />
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-Port Shuttle- no big deal<br />
-Bus to train station- absolutely PACKED (thank goodness the Pages let us borrow their umbrella stroller for the day, because there is no way we could have gotten on the bus with our big stroller).<br />
-Train to Pisa- we missed the first available train to Pisa by mere minutes, but only had to wait about 5 minutes for the next train.<br />
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<i>Hanging out on the ac, drinking a bottle on a train in Italy. That is how Jacob rolls.</i><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRxh9AbHopF4XdsTyRIFWryEcH6WFx3lxxrkLRjZwEN9w4ZbXVkO2dvsNUl8LVoY7nRPtQ_-P5S1toAc-zY_0NgEgEu_owbD17T04pGfC2e4dahITGNyNrMpf7LlCrc_kZyY4rFYyoQiog/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-137.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRxh9AbHopF4XdsTyRIFWryEcH6WFx3lxxrkLRjZwEN9w4ZbXVkO2dvsNUl8LVoY7nRPtQ_-P5S1toAc-zY_0NgEgEu_owbD17T04pGfC2e4dahITGNyNrMpf7LlCrc_kZyY4rFYyoQiog/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-137.jpg" width="240" /></a><i> </i> </div><br />
-Now, to get to the tower... It was really hot, and the idea of walking 30 minutes didn't really appeal to us. But, then again, after feeling like sardines on the last bus we took, the thought of getting on another bus didn't sound great either. As we were looking at a map trying to weigh our options, we heard some people behind us discussing the price of these 4 person bicycle things. Hmm, interesting. I asked one of the guys (thinking he was the owner), but it turned out that he and a friend had rented two to carry their families and all of their luggage from their hotel to the train station. Now, that they dropped off the wives, kids, and bags, they were looking for some people to help them pedal them back to the rental place (which just happened to be by the tower). We quickly jumped into the deal, and 5 minutes later, with Jacob strapped in between us on the back seat, we were off! (well, we were off at the speed of a slowly pedaling bike). In my mind, I was picturing this gentle ride on a bike path. I was wrong. We were pedaling down the middle of the road. Anyone who has ever driven (or ridden) on a road in Italy, knows how insane the Italians are when you put them behind a wheel. My stomach was in my throat as cars and mopeds wizzed passed us, and the pavement was rushing underneath. I couldn't believe that I was such a careless mother that I didn't even stop to consider the fact that we were completely unprotected in this contraption if we were to be hit, and the little lap belt would do nothing to keep Jacob from falling under... the thought of all that could happen was just too much! I know this was probably a little dramatic, but it honestly scared me. Luckily, there was nothing to fear, we all arrived safe and sound. <br />
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<i>Our bicycles.</i><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi31612NxYbNtJXZA5CRWHSrXmYTq1pCkEmcdqqIqb4SBkWaoaguz0RLCQ7yqvBYGP6CPWs4vImmEmOhhbxXR2tE5Ust16wdYpqrQSSPvfray6AD4BxtbNaAK3oUnG0LjNGDN1ulo2YUR98/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-141.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi31612NxYbNtJXZA5CRWHSrXmYTq1pCkEmcdqqIqb4SBkWaoaguz0RLCQ7yqvBYGP6CPWs4vImmEmOhhbxXR2tE5Ust16wdYpqrQSSPvfray6AD4BxtbNaAK3oUnG0LjNGDN1ulo2YUR98/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-141.jpg" width="320" /></a><i> </i> </div>And there we were! <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgeisXT_whP81M9YN0Jq826vFD4xOlXgaInKzRH-XotWWABDKV8O3yVGVnmkIugop8AsdUfdwfO0x46n6B9hnRE0IJx4VbfZlZC-Rn2QP5WPgwfuEti9EHSNTi_J1HYaCngkAgwApS-gwo/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-143.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgeisXT_whP81M9YN0Jq826vFD4xOlXgaInKzRH-XotWWABDKV8O3yVGVnmkIugop8AsdUfdwfO0x46n6B9hnRE0IJx4VbfZlZC-Rn2QP5WPgwfuEti9EHSNTi_J1HYaCngkAgwApS-gwo/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-143.jpg" width="320" /></a> </div>Standing in front of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. First impressions? It was a lot whiter than I thought from pictures I had seen. After reading some of the signs, we found out it has been recently cleaned. We walked around, took some pictures (including the mandatory 'leaning' pictures), browsed the market, and found a little gelateria for an afternoon snack. Jacob got his first taste of Italian gelato (yogurt flavored). He was a big fan. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyBC4L8y4FuXXrJkFaIqwNXTgPUKPN_EuvlpVtaGZmyFgexDCnhk2N9FhoLBw78TS4UyWId7nPqBRDoFs54RvVZR6QLn8u1X-F28zEhXO_A44Zpco2ZjqS_78wMny0yAyo5MB3hgi8nWgk/s1600/PisaCollage1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyBC4L8y4FuXXrJkFaIqwNXTgPUKPN_EuvlpVtaGZmyFgexDCnhk2N9FhoLBw78TS4UyWId7nPqBRDoFs54RvVZR6QLn8u1X-F28zEhXO_A44Zpco2ZjqS_78wMny0yAyo5MB3hgi8nWgk/s640/PisaCollage1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">By then, it was time to head back to the ship. This time, we opted for a bus back to the train station. Back on the train, back on the bus to the center of town, and then in line for the port shuttle. This is where things got a little dicey. The crowds of people waiting to get on the shuttle were insane. We were in the front of the line and as we were about to get on, the driver motioned for me to go put the stroller in the compartment under the bus. This meant I had to get out of line. Thank goodness Matthew had Jacob, and thank goodness another guy was beside him, and realizing how hard people were shoving, helped Matthew shield Jacob as they moved forward to get onto the bus. Now, I am not usually one to be very aggressive in a crowd, but I quickly realized that after putting the stroller away, I might not get on the bus. I had to push far above my comfort level, but there was no way I wasn't getting on that bus with my baby! Shew! Not a great moment for the human race, it was horrible to see the way people were acting. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Back on the ship, the livin' was easy again. We even had time to hang out at the pool for about an hour before dinner.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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<i>The pool was perfect for Jacob because the water was only a few inches deep around the whole edge. Jacob could crawl around and splash. </i><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/FZtl27M5mKg?hl=en&fs=1" width="425"></iframe>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-72975151856182528942011-08-04T17:38:00.000+02:002011-08-04T17:38:25.239+02:00The Cruisin' Cabes: Part 2<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgifgHruJY30YXhkNsB1m3lhhTU65whth5WgjwZNwx6iswn12CL9cXBu12FfMi02YD5gBBW9U7bquY7hH11dQgSLy705igo-dkbel-4IUmYcJGA2DW0Ei_9ZyNpw8MkMzeyRSZURcDqTx69/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a>So apparently me blogging 'tomorrow' turned into 'next week'. Things have just been too hectic to sit down and blog. But, I have about 30 minutes, so let's see if I can recap a few more of our days at sea.<br />
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To review:<br />
Day 1: Left from Barcelona<br />
Day 2: (or is that officially Day 1?) Monaco<br />
Day 3: Rome<br />
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Rome:<br />
Rome in a day...hmmm... we knew this was impossible, but it was either hit it for one day on the cruise or not get to see it at all. From the minute we found out we were moving to France and started daydreaming trips and vacations in Europe, Rome was at the very top of Matthew's list. The Coliseum more specifically. I did a ton of research and planning to maximize our day in Rome. Matters weren't helped by the fact that the ship docks over an hour from Rome. That is a huge chunk of time taken out of the day. Add on the crowds, the July heat, and taking a 7 month with us... our day in Rome was going to be anything but relaxing. I pre-booked train tickets, and knew that we needed to be in line to get off the ship as soon as we docked at 8am to make sure we got on the port shuttle bus and to the train station in time.<br />
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Tuesday morning we woke up early and took advantage of the {free!} room service and had breakfast brought to the room, so we could eat and get ready at the same time. We were almost ready when Matthew pulled back the curtains to our balcony. I couldn't believe my eyes. It was pitch black outside and pouring down rain. I am talking- torrential downpours. My heart sank. What were we going to do? Walking around Rome in the rain all day with a baby would be miserable! Just as I am contemplating how we could keep Jacob dry, the sky lit up with lightning, followed by huge booms of thunder. That sealed the deal. There was no way I was taking my baby out into lightning. I was so disappointed. We started talking about Matthew going by himself, so at least the day wouldn't be a complete loss. But before we could even make a decision, the rain slowed, the sky began clearing, and we decided to go for it. At this point, we were already behind "schedule". By the time we got off the ship, the shuttle buses were packed and with our big all-terrain stroller there was no way we could get on one. So we started walking. It was about a three mile walk for us to the train station, and I was really worried that we would miss our train. Luckily, the train was delayed, and we got there with just minutes to spare. We found our little train "cabin" and as luck would have it, all the way in Civitavecchia, Italy, we get stuck in a train car with USC Gamecock fans! :) It was really nice to be with people from "home", and they were actually on the Carnival Magic too (after that day we saw them <u>everywhere</u> we went on the ship!). We arrived in Rome and the sightseeing marathon began!<br />
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<i>Waiting for the train to Rome.</i><br />
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<div style="text-align: left;"><i>Rome was the day of stairs. Everywhere we went there were TONS of stairs. </i><br />
<i>Stairs + Big Stroller +Long Day of Sightseeing = Exhausted Parents!</i><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0AXyomclxopGq1rDrOdvEM67mCC7Kua5VlgHwl1PuAm51JmasQHHh7b0EtDjjeDQ9fKgXP0xWoreKI6J2aaTdnEmVMIxUElTWcAVjnhBuQyfpNYZBcWiz0wCN2LZfWO3PIMcjOonsheoq/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0AXyomclxopGq1rDrOdvEM67mCC7Kua5VlgHwl1PuAm51JmasQHHh7b0EtDjjeDQ9fKgXP0xWoreKI6J2aaTdnEmVMIxUElTWcAVjnhBuQyfpNYZBcWiz0wCN2LZfWO3PIMcjOonsheoq/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-7.jpg" width="240" /></a><i> </i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i> </i> </div>Our first stop was <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Pietro_in_Vincoli">Basilica Di San Pietro in Vincoli</a>. </i>This church was first built in 432-440 to house the chains that bound Saint Peter when he was imprisoned in Jerusalem. According to legend, when Pope Leo compared those chains to the chains of St. Peter's final imprisonment in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mamertine_Prison" title="Mamertine Prison">Mamertine Prison</a> in Rome, the two chains miraculously fused together. There is also a Michelangelo sculpture of Moses in the church. </div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Pietro_in_Vincoli#cite_note-1"></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij9cQAkAald7FV10O1o0iNhPW2vZYMhstkpVWGHf4lbkl_qjYcfvnSjO3UDw5nXUivI0aRieKW4On7gLMkNX02G-6-79lriYLgswqMEw1Xp6_X22i9YcTVP8ViOYPIfC4825wuHfjC7aie/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-17.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij9cQAkAald7FV10O1o0iNhPW2vZYMhstkpVWGHf4lbkl_qjYcfvnSjO3UDw5nXUivI0aRieKW4On7gLMkNX02G-6-79lriYLgswqMEw1Xp6_X22i9YcTVP8ViOYPIfC4825wuHfjC7aie/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-17.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfbP_p8o-MdvlqeVgdGZHY4ij3OfRyGhPRVR2Kf5klsfJy-GBVNPu-PGXFa5dIdKNW9igNAC_Gcd3jkPpE0kWf2h4ZeT1i55RZPipAdYnS09xq0ZUMTueZMWpAPD0VfObL17A57nUF2izI/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-18.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfbP_p8o-MdvlqeVgdGZHY4ij3OfRyGhPRVR2Kf5klsfJy-GBVNPu-PGXFa5dIdKNW9igNAC_Gcd3jkPpE0kWf2h4ZeT1i55RZPipAdYnS09xq0ZUMTueZMWpAPD0VfObL17A57nUF2izI/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-18.jpg" width="240" /></a> </div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;">From there, we walked to the Coliseum. We had already toured the inside of the Coliseum in Nimes, France, which is in much better condition (although it is smaller). We just took enough time to walk around a little and take some pictures. Oh, and by the way, by this time the sun was shining! Thank goodness we took the risk and didn't waste the whole day sitting on the ship!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTfp6QQDYWNmYxy7JNt3t3pn6eJ4iqgb44zxpynStqp5ibog47LK67TQ_zxVKSqfEkHsM5k9YVv6Nl3Og7HdMR2g70Xwzrc7YbzMBgDiXWv-Wp_LqAxfStBt7cASpt8eaFeBFUmCaNe5yf/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-51.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTfp6QQDYWNmYxy7JNt3t3pn6eJ4iqgb44zxpynStqp5ibog47LK67TQ_zxVKSqfEkHsM5k9YVv6Nl3Og7HdMR2g70Xwzrc7YbzMBgDiXWv-Wp_LqAxfStBt7cASpt8eaFeBFUmCaNe5yf/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-51.jpg" width="320" /></a> </div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi12CrXko9IUQ2VBs1qAPDX7-1hulEGPg4bnFZdrWRlprXvF7ihio_oEk6_UCmnyUUZSrvvyjmiDm3ICuSzyOr4x4_XQavNWkxXfee6wbmMf2uN-GbcFOy6SixDTncm9CF4V4fVe5D2IbI/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-52.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi12CrXko9IUQ2VBs1qAPDX7-1hulEGPg4bnFZdrWRlprXvF7ihio_oEk6_UCmnyUUZSrvvyjmiDm3ICuSzyOr4x4_XQavNWkxXfee6wbmMf2uN-GbcFOy6SixDTncm9CF4V4fVe5D2IbI/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-52.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
Next, it was back to the metro, to grab a train over to the Vatican. We stopped for lunch at this place Matthew had been told about called <i>Pizzarium. </i>It is the tiniest place. You go in to order, pay for your pizza by weight, but there is no place to sit inside and eat. We got there just before the rush and were able to grab a park bench outside. This pizza is like nothing I have ever seen, and the dough is made using live yeast that the owner traveled all over Italy collecting from little villages. It was amazing! </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ_RdhFHrhmwod49iQx9189YlKEG55ra9NAIUev169n2AfCebiW4niEomhDQ6RJPFvfXg8ulNaTvNxKi9tTpglnW0xrvX3v2kiQ8OGpVDmVRjAviM4cEswqJ0EjAigGYUO1VTcnHuyAPOr/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-57.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ_RdhFHrhmwod49iQx9189YlKEG55ra9NAIUev169n2AfCebiW4niEomhDQ6RJPFvfXg8ulNaTvNxKi9tTpglnW0xrvX3v2kiQ8OGpVDmVRjAviM4cEswqJ0EjAigGYUO1VTcnHuyAPOr/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-57.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAY-qhPGV7_VPmP2dn0OyvxGnUOETzQp1OppgKJJ2h3sgQpXDzX0OOzrkaiU4ILBFRIwkCiXCdJq_3cuNaYxArZRech_x2SeQO2eT_p3Oi6BEfDtHeEVKy28DKCg8yPnUVLElAA_Tu04Lw/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-60.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAY-qhPGV7_VPmP2dn0OyvxGnUOETzQp1OppgKJJ2h3sgQpXDzX0OOzrkaiU4ILBFRIwkCiXCdJq_3cuNaYxArZRech_x2SeQO2eT_p3Oi6BEfDtHeEVKy28DKCg8yPnUVLElAA_Tu04Lw/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-60.jpg" width="240" /></a> </div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div>Re-energized, we headed to the Vatican Museum. Again, I had pre-bought tickets online for the museum, and when we saw the line that wrapped around the building, I was so glad! We still had to wait in line to go through security, but we probably saved ourselves an hour of waiting in line by buying the tickets online. Rick Steves suggests allowing at least 2-3 hours for the museum. We did the speedy gonzales version, and were in and out in an hour and a half! Luckily, Jacob slept through most of it. It was definitely worth the trip to see in person the Sistine Chapel!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCvHPDblQKkeU5ajnVOvaI5hvZez8_XhRr5oV5HtR51XwdwZGf3wd4pLv4mxMSVmdDpGL5AYs2FneRZ6vKdMMDYIpnt9yoy8h_NRlUfuujlDFmzwrfcV2IDax5yr0IPsFpb3aSEQKLvem-/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-82.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCvHPDblQKkeU5ajnVOvaI5hvZez8_XhRr5oV5HtR51XwdwZGf3wd4pLv4mxMSVmdDpGL5AYs2FneRZ6vKdMMDYIpnt9yoy8h_NRlUfuujlDFmzwrfcV2IDax5yr0IPsFpb3aSEQKLvem-/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-82.jpg" width="320" /></a> </div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>It was SO hot!</i><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4wz1W2BR6060Y-HuxQa6KTyWSoAgbbtMVyPg3cFkamqaxvLso2CFHfKUnksgTJKtNgaMFwi0_RYYUkXNeevDRaEB2_VDtZ7Bbn5Ak4PdGjgvq-puAjE0tsQ-GxVV5c1agbRFOjrucSpFL/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-99.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4wz1W2BR6060Y-HuxQa6KTyWSoAgbbtMVyPg3cFkamqaxvLso2CFHfKUnksgTJKtNgaMFwi0_RYYUkXNeevDRaEB2_VDtZ7Bbn5Ak4PdGjgvq-puAjE0tsQ-GxVV5c1agbRFOjrucSpFL/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-99.jpg" width="320" /></a><i> </i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i> </i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>We have pictures of Jacob sleeping his way through Italy.</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmioD0ya6MBPBVGRwBVtnS0l-BSxiwF9A_1G2xLL7w7nFy8GkHHtN2wuhO6d5g3ngsQ8KEbddQHQEP31PFRb4aGu25NGHvQKaafk92JJJgR82vkh9TNFcDJ6LsV0kVbkAFKUDYOCI3huQ8/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-110.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmioD0ya6MBPBVGRwBVtnS0l-BSxiwF9A_1G2xLL7w7nFy8GkHHtN2wuhO6d5g3ngsQ8KEbddQHQEP31PFRb4aGu25NGHvQKaafk92JJJgR82vkh9TNFcDJ6LsV0kVbkAFKUDYOCI3huQ8/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-110.jpg" width="240" /></a><i> </i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i> </i><i> </i></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis5hfpc2-wuaD4GP4gZJVhnd0BdMbuv4gsr0rVwagoOEc58WygboHpY9sOrnbXY0WBkDdXV2enyXfGVgbfk10LJ4l6LWnWdyxx8ZAauwCSajbBBwFdplddtMxMFYBg_-NPLbA9Y8nXOwe2/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-120.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis5hfpc2-wuaD4GP4gZJVhnd0BdMbuv4gsr0rVwagoOEc58WygboHpY9sOrnbXY0WBkDdXV2enyXfGVgbfk10LJ4l6LWnWdyxx8ZAauwCSajbBBwFdplddtMxMFYBg_-NPLbA9Y8nXOwe2/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-120.jpg" width="240" /></a> </div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji9T2lowwbWBmXelQkijynofiOG9br7S5MRStvVf-QTxhQtvOinYQZJJOJe7-m5ZmWWO_O7azZGOed4vsgxh-RpcAVujuea_LBBXM94jywuO4FZU8k9YZ6Uzdh5sw6wIvIMmwtxGJkyNL8/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-126.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji9T2lowwbWBmXelQkijynofiOG9br7S5MRStvVf-QTxhQtvOinYQZJJOJe7-m5ZmWWO_O7azZGOed4vsgxh-RpcAVujuea_LBBXM94jywuO4FZU8k9YZ6Uzdh5sw6wIvIMmwtxGJkyNL8/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-126.jpg" width="240" /></a> </div>After the museum, we had a few other places we wanted to see, but Jacob was getting tired of being in the stroller, and we were pretty tired as well. We decided to go ahead and head back to the ship. We were already a little nervous that we wouldn't make it back to the ship in time. (and they <u>will</u> leave you!) We were really glad that we made that decision, because by the time we got back to the ship Jacob was really tired. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Ok, Rome was a big day, so I will blog more later. Hopefully this time it won't take me a full week to find time again! </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"></div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-38784946410277435932011-07-24T18:15:00.000+02:002011-07-24T18:15:15.031+02:00The Cabes in France...and Spain..and Monaco...and Italy!The last few weeks have been crazy for the Cabe household. July started off great with a 7 day Mediterranean cruise. We drove back to Clermont from Barcelona, and two days later turned around and flew to the US. Since landing in Atlanta, we have been going non-stop. This is the first chance I have had to sit down and blog about our amazing week at sea. So here we go!<br />
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Matthew and I always start planning our next vacation before the current vacation is even over. Last August, while sitting on the beach at Cap d'Agde, we started making plans for summer 2011- our last summer (meaning our last summer vacation) in France. We had so many places left on our 'to see' list! How on earth were we going to decide where to go?! I was about 6 months pregnant at this point, and the thought of spending Matthew's 3 week vacation on a whirlwind driving tour of Europe with a baby did NOT sound appealing! We started throwing around the idea of a cruise. I did a lot of research on cruising with a baby, and everyone had very positive things to say about it. I found a Carnival cruise that left from Barcelona (a 6 hour drive from us), docked at Monaco, Rome, Livorno (Pisa), Naples, and Sicily. Italy (specifically Rome) was high on our list of places to go, so this all sounded perfect. Our good friends, The Pages, decided to join us and were set to go! Jen and I have been talking, planning, and day dreaming about this cruise since we first introduced the idea last fall. I couldn't believe when it was finally time to get on the ship!<br />
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Matthew has a cousin that is living part of the year in Girona, Spain, which is about an hour north of Barcelona. We decided to drive down Saturday morning, spend the night with Jen and Steven, and then drive the last hour Sunday in time to board the ship. Due to lots of construction and horrible traffic, we arrived much later than we wanted, which meant a much-too-short of a visit. We still had a great evening grilling and hanging out on their HUGE terrace overlooking the city of Girona. We had a little bit of time Sunday morning to get a quick walking tour of Girona before getting back in the car.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUUgSH_BQz2kxlzu3gKX9XjYGJ9eeBliQcj0A_yIMUx9HERXF-WBdU27g_0gv7RNL41nMqYD6dqCQPHe12N0jRdH1J7a5VrA39Q5vPoIYfU9C7E_TeTjckuAUoc2mGb9b_4mq6rf2-jWhZ/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUUgSH_BQz2kxlzu3gKX9XjYGJ9eeBliQcj0A_yIMUx9HERXF-WBdU27g_0gv7RNL41nMqYD6dqCQPHe12N0jRdH1J7a5VrA39Q5vPoIYfU9C7E_TeTjckuAUoc2mGb9b_4mq6rf2-jWhZ/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-1.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN7X1eOVY3qTA1mgxhpVcguRO30lbGFcTD3SFWcGe9jngJBHDHHIDAFZZnV2InUNsZ0LJJ8DkmqXPRD5Hrf5abjFtEgtll_1XUBpFRBivMn42Xv2tqKYfllgJU3FZO-qdFumdyrePKhvYZ/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN7X1eOVY3qTA1mgxhpVcguRO30lbGFcTD3SFWcGe9jngJBHDHHIDAFZZnV2InUNsZ0LJJ8DkmqXPRD5Hrf5abjFtEgtll_1XUBpFRBivMn42Xv2tqKYfllgJU3FZO-qdFumdyrePKhvYZ/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-4.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIkpUbAsEshjKfF6yznd2Lhou3SvROerzl-ebm5WJ_ZfReOo60MUypXJLsle8B9qhK1rkU89g7Xstv5qdwfuIE3vqBviacYx-SZ9ScZKMI0FCVRx4xJSjhtCftiDpyK-0SBZlr2aneVfOc/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIkpUbAsEshjKfF6yznd2Lhou3SvROerzl-ebm5WJ_ZfReOo60MUypXJLsle8B9qhK1rkU89g7Xstv5qdwfuIE3vqBviacYx-SZ9ScZKMI0FCVRx4xJSjhtCftiDpyK-0SBZlr2aneVfOc/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-7.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
We found the port in Barcelona really easily. Matthew dropped Jacob, me, and the bags off at our terminal and went to park the car. Jacob and I waited, and waited, and waited for Matthew to come back. He was supposed to be parking in a lot close by, and catching a shuttle bus back. I kept seeing these blue shuttle buses pull in, unload, and leave, with Matthew nowhere to be seen. I finally decided to forget about the crazy roaming charges in Spain and called Matthew on his cell. He hadn't been able to get a bus to stop for him, so he was in the process of running all the way back to the port. Needless to say, by the time we boarded the ship, Matthew was exhausted. No worries though! We were about an hour from setting sail on the Mediterranean! We met up with Freddie and Jen, and stood on the back of the ship as The Carnival Magic pulled away from the dock! <br />
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<i>Waiting for Matthew at the port. We made lots of friends with the porters.</i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5qnG9SnJaXoNmYTWbxasATUxplrTY4pCwcfqp9cXBonaP70T2-9K5KW3OpWuyijhLbpAp8U1aGSiwcAgFNWzldnkkK07Qq07OgHdHpZpFmsdfB5G1S1CHMVnxNGRNfy9qWqP2onxohi6N/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5qnG9SnJaXoNmYTWbxasATUxplrTY4pCwcfqp9cXBonaP70T2-9K5KW3OpWuyijhLbpAp8U1aGSiwcAgFNWzldnkkK07Qq07OgHdHpZpFmsdfB5G1S1CHMVnxNGRNfy9qWqP2onxohi6N/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-10.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><i>Unpacking in the room.</i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7bzJcDX-j9c8AXvQxKcK8Vnh4X-q0WAdUCOIL1SqmhMy6bOK_6LMhZRkjHZLlui_glIeOagbc4g60RWtubkeoNOfpqM2bbqOd9wAwSa4M0dtfxGaSIUVr8FbGMhE2y75Hxskq4jMvKTJV/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7bzJcDX-j9c8AXvQxKcK8Vnh4X-q0WAdUCOIL1SqmhMy6bOK_6LMhZRkjHZLlui_glIeOagbc4g60RWtubkeoNOfpqM2bbqOd9wAwSa4M0dtfxGaSIUVr8FbGMhE2y75Hxskq4jMvKTJV/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-16.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
We had a great first dinner, and after rigging a privacy curtain around Jacob's crib (using a sheet and magnet clips I brought from home), Jacob was sacked out. Matthew and I splurged on a balcony stateroom so that whoever was on nap duty, or for when Jacob went to sleep at night, we wouldn't be stuck in the room trying to be quiet. The balcony was oh-so worth it! It was super relaxing to sit out on our balcony, sip on a cocktail, and glide along the water. <br />
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<i>Fun animal towels for Jacob. Thanks Jose!</i><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHLeNAStymi9D6LZmh-iIIsyFKt2mi16F9CvLTjIkoulY5f0sL3HmxS8C2gxYc2NZRS1wef2H7vehLBF8-_23TLapDJTzrRHVjYYtel6aYP_DBkg9gB67NjWFVYbVZTs45mpVsW02HZwLk/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-21.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHLeNAStymi9D6LZmh-iIIsyFKt2mi16F9CvLTjIkoulY5f0sL3HmxS8C2gxYc2NZRS1wef2H7vehLBF8-_23TLapDJTzrRHVjYYtel6aYP_DBkg9gB67NjWFVYbVZTs45mpVsW02HZwLk/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-21.jpg" width="320" /></a> </div><br />
(This post is getting kind of long, so stay with me while I recap just the first day, and I promise I will give you a break...until tomorrow (I hope) when I will try to add another post).<br />
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The first stop was Monaco. We had visited Monaco when we were in Nice at Christmas with my family. After not being too impressed, we decided to stay on the ship (hoping everyone else got <i>off</i> the ship) and enjoy the pools. Freddie and Matthew did get off for a few hours in the afternoon to play a hand of Black Jack at Casino Royale. Unfortunately, it wasn't exactly the suave James Bond experience they were hoping for. But, it is one more thing they can check off their bucket list. Matthew volunteered to cover Jacob's afternoon nap, and I spent a very relaxing 2 hours at the adult-only "Serenity" pool area, alternating reading and napping in a huge round cabana bed.<br />
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<i>View of Monte Carlo from our balcony.</i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3ghOeDhpnVgIh3DfyuoJlnauGtvs5WmxYGN4QzHGz00LLe3UCRGCPT7y1U03A3kyTQawg_WE6qMRfuTz2s19QO8leylWkf08Liy5X4L0TfFbUzEHGPQNntRNzdpVsmAufzg19YYHT8wt_/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3ghOeDhpnVgIh3DfyuoJlnauGtvs5WmxYGN4QzHGz00LLe3UCRGCPT7y1U03A3kyTQawg_WE6qMRfuTz2s19QO8leylWkf08Liy5X4L0TfFbUzEHGPQNntRNzdpVsmAufzg19YYHT8wt_/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i>Exploring the ship.</i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIQWPV7fGZIQXVmzWQkeuGAr0p3tHYU3UltPk3hkHQKBubyZI7iYaLuctx1Og0YzyNRtFKuiM1nqJGIuyC3bIJXXpo2FDr6W9eYjTo2btipRa13s-keqaYzSF0Q9hRYhJWgsN1D_U4qG4a/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIQWPV7fGZIQXVmzWQkeuGAr0p3tHYU3UltPk3hkHQKBubyZI7iYaLuctx1Og0YzyNRtFKuiM1nqJGIuyC3bIJXXpo2FDr6W9eYjTo2btipRa13s-keqaYzSF0Q9hRYhJWgsN1D_U4qG4a/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-22.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><i> My cabana bed. Love.</i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji_8gsuazfesWKsdF_lhR2Bs_IZ_ZI1F1Hq_T_awKYhyZy0R6e9fcYGHMdbOjgfbo3Ka-rveyWf7-vF9ELk1pmbn97aLQTkXAuFdrcn9YO9CfoXtoH5vjwLGA755T6bOXJ-tImqrCc0b2_/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji_8gsuazfesWKsdF_lhR2Bs_IZ_ZI1F1Hq_T_awKYhyZy0R6e9fcYGHMdbOjgfbo3Ka-rveyWf7-vF9ELk1pmbn97aLQTkXAuFdrcn9YO9CfoXtoH5vjwLGA755T6bOXJ-tImqrCc0b2_/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-27.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><i> View from my cabana bed.</i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisgZL1vBWj-dvdkVq-XNZVN__lvX7J0fiCpYYYjZwOPP10LAgQ76tpjRvTQchvtHaUtPQpIql79k8Q_7zaizNlu972FAqRBS-Nmdl5JiZH1lh-91jULXMKdN1zOLSOiv57maL8xhzAnPLk/s1600/20110703_10+Cruise-28.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisgZL1vBWj-dvdkVq-XNZVN__lvX7J0fiCpYYYjZwOPP10LAgQ76tpjRvTQchvtHaUtPQpIql79k8Q_7zaizNlu972FAqRBS-Nmdl5JiZH1lh-91jULXMKdN1zOLSOiv57maL8xhzAnPLk/s320/20110703_10+Cruise-28.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i> </i><br />
<br />
Ok, see, that wasn't too long. Right? Rome tomorrow!Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-55284571187102882452011-06-20T21:41:00.000+02:002011-06-20T21:41:56.254+02:00Separation AnxietyThere seems to be some separation anxiety in the Cabe household. But apparently I am the one who has it, not Jacob. <br />
<br />
Some of you might know that I am in a cooking group here in Clermont. I don't think I have ever posted a blog about it, not sure why. Anyway, it is a small group of international women who all love to cook. Once a month we meet at someone's house and are introduced to recipes from that woman's country (or husband's country). We start in the morning and cook together a three course meal, and then eat the food for lunch. I am the resident American cook, and have shared recipes for pulled pork barbeque, homemade macaroni and cheese, biscuits, fresh corn salad, peach cobbler... We have another American who is from New Orleans, so she shares a lot of creole cooking. And her husband is of Cuban descent, so we get some good Cuban food thrown in as well. I have also learned to cook Indian, Singaporean, Thai, Bolivian, Russian, and French cuisine. I can honestly say that this cooking group, and the access to so many international women and cuisines, is something I am going to miss the most about living here.<br />
<br />
Back to the separation anxiety. When I hosted l'Atelier Culinaire at my house, it wasn't too hard with Jacob. He wasn't mobile at that point and was content to either be passed from person to person, play on his Baby Einstein mat, and he also helped me out by taking a really long nap that morning. Today's group was meeting at a French woman's home. I had never been there before, so didn't know how newly-crawling-baby-safe it was, and honestly, I just wanted to fully enjoy and participate in the cooking. Not worry about Jacob. <br />
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I called my good friend Jen and asked her to babysit. She had tennis, but could start at 10:30. My next call was to a friend whose daughter is back for the summer after her first year of college. Daniele agreed to cover from 9-10:30. No problem. Right? Yep. Until this morning when I started getting all flustered about the whole situation. What if he starts pitching a fit? He is normally happy-go-lucky, but when he gets upset, he gets UPSET. Even Matthew and I have a hard time calming him down if he really gets going. Would he nap? He is such a creature of habit, would this change in routine throw him for a loop? If he didn't nap, would he really be a terror for these two sweet women who are doing me this huge favor? He is used to being with me everyday, all day. Would he flip out when I walked out the door and didn't come back? These and a million other questions/concerns were running through my mind. As I left my sweet baby in the very capable hands of Daniele, I had to force myself to continue walking to the bus, and not turn around and run back to the apartment. <br />
<br />
About 100 texts later, I was feeling calmer, since apparently Jacob barely noticed I was gone... I got back home around 2:30pm, and Jacob and Jen were happily playing on the floor. I know I was super happy to see him, and I was rewarded with smiles and some snuggles. Based on his 2 hr+ nap this afternoon, I need to find out what Daniele and Jen did to wear him out so much! <br />
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Bottom line. Mom survived. And, Mom had an amazing French meal thrown into the deal (that included boeuf bourguignon and tarte tatin, mmmmm!).Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-51313613910181115522011-06-19T21:04:00.000+02:002011-06-19T21:04:39.939+02:00Matthew's First Father's Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>For Matthew's very first Father's Day, Jacob and I have been scheming for weeks to make sure it was a special one for him. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhgF5qqNVFonHpvsYLt6JmhTNCc-obctjSTcq3dO6u_4F_eQAbMsupLSlBdh8AAyHe-3cOW4h6YM1v6SZXjWtoezXx2gpm94y6NX5ArxTqIe1w24NXqGqwiziY4AG8HY5EF31NVvbu6O9f/s1600/MJhandCollage2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhgF5qqNVFonHpvsYLt6JmhTNCc-obctjSTcq3dO6u_4F_eQAbMsupLSlBdh8AAyHe-3cOW4h6YM1v6SZXjWtoezXx2gpm94y6NX5ArxTqIe1w24NXqGqwiziY4AG8HY5EF31NVvbu6O9f/s400/MJhandCollage2.jpg" width="400" /></a> </div><br />
The festivities started Saturday morning when I told Matthew we had to leave the apartment by 9am. I told him to pack a bag with a swimsuit and hiking boots (not that he would need either, but I needed to make sure he really had no idea where we were headed!). I plugged the address in the GPS and told him to just start driving. We drove about 40 minutes to town called Thiers. Thiers is famous for their knife making. We went there last year and bought a set of steak knifes with our initial engraved in them. Matthew took our friends (and Jacob's godparents) back there when they visited us last summer. But Saturday we had something special planned for Matthew. First, let me say that Matthew has an addiction to two things: watches and pocket knives. He also seems to have a curse when it comes to these two things. I can't tell you how many watches he has lost or had stolen. He also seems to really enjoy giving away his pocket knives- like at airport security checkpoints, courthouses, or even an Atlanta Braves game. <br />
<br />
Anyway, back to Saturday. Awhile ago, another American Michelin expat posted on facebook pictures of a day she spent in Thiers making her own knife. As soon as I heard about it, I just knew I had to take Matthew. The program has only been open since April, and basically you call and make a reservation, show up, and are given a guide who shows you how to make your own pocket knife (kids can make a butter knife). I made two reservations, but planned on Matthew making both knives- one for him and one he could give Jacob sometime in the (distant) future. There was a little bit of concern that the noise would bother Jacob, but since he fell asleep amidst the hammering and belt sanders, apparently it wasn't an issue for him!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUlK-FBMQzP8yTYnJq8pT-Pkwy0SR2kX_yXOvohpoWtGvNR7vCWBZlz6W0PW34Ao4sGHv0NWHQg3zKYzWivlXwM7P4m1E9p5WZiDUNf80rXhikzKEVBwG5xJsF9keeb3iAO9p_Upg_4eeu/s1600/20110618+FathersDay+087.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUlK-FBMQzP8yTYnJq8pT-Pkwy0SR2kX_yXOvohpoWtGvNR7vCWBZlz6W0PW34Ao4sGHv0NWHQg3zKYzWivlXwM7P4m1E9p5WZiDUNf80rXhikzKEVBwG5xJsF9keeb3iAO9p_Upg_4eeu/s320/20110618+FathersDay+087.JPG" width="240" /></a> </div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/kBvawMbl81E" width="560"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">It was a really cool experience. I highly recommend it to anyone living in or visiting the Auvergne.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihT0HY-j1J4HmIyVhUm-qWTwAC5rRWMdivVLK_rrPx7F44ytaZbqQDEOcIrLxQIAhm4_tSx2_r_GHsdQiOMd205Y5Hx5EMpdgFkLyfL-D5K7ZNs_jnROrgH3FBOOZMK9tyr2u3QJrETvZg/s1600/20110618+FathersDay+088.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihT0HY-j1J4HmIyVhUm-qWTwAC5rRWMdivVLK_rrPx7F44ytaZbqQDEOcIrLxQIAhm4_tSx2_r_GHsdQiOMd205Y5Hx5EMpdgFkLyfL-D5K7ZNs_jnROrgH3FBOOZMK9tyr2u3QJrETvZg/s400/20110618+FathersDay+088.JPG" width="300" /></a> </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">We ate a great lunch at the same little restaurant we ate at last year, and then headed home. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>I really hate this photo of me, but Matthew thinks it is just hilarious. He loves how my facial expression and Jacob's are just alike. Like mother, like son, apparently.</i> </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCaz1MPuO0UmhQGKkCfZnHpLLypTSbrCBukKXiHkFuvd8vzBPe05AvO6cd-FdDOmXrjeKilxgCCea7FjBCMODbCCcFooP2o9jfz5GNKygGfZXSwHie5BE-DrCiCqMszmesBjlML_M8GjhU/s1600/20110618+FathersDay+093.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCaz1MPuO0UmhQGKkCfZnHpLLypTSbrCBukKXiHkFuvd8vzBPe05AvO6cd-FdDOmXrjeKilxgCCea7FjBCMODbCCcFooP2o9jfz5GNKygGfZXSwHie5BE-DrCiCqMszmesBjlML_M8GjhU/s320/20110618+FathersDay+093.JPG" width="320" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLfLPyrNIRIqZ3B1W2En38DZVJpAe40avmKonpXkXQam7kKw06W4Mh-Qlav-YR4Z2CARtnOppQXrrZL9_LM76zymk6PkfDRY4E43iMswRua-VP3Os5HSL3V5I6xlEsh1gEwNXUmkiMHCOS/s1600/P1010999.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Saturday night, after putting Jacob to bed, I made Matthew a special dinner. <span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="fr"><span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations">Grilled côte de bœuf (steak), </span></span><span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="fr"><span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations">homard entier (whole lobster, that I made Matthew stick in the pot because I just couldn't bear to do it!), haricots verts (green beans), and, um, homemade bacon lover's macaroni and cheese (sorry, no french translation for that!). I also attempted for the first time to make Matthew's favorite- Key Lime Pie. Although graham crackers for the crust don't exist in France, and neither do key limes. All in all, it turned out pretty good though.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="fr"><span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="fr"><span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations">This morning, I offered to let Matthew sleep in, but he couldn't go back to sleep. So our little family was up early. After nursing Jacob, I handed him off to make Matthew the Father's Day breakfast (do you see a theme developing for the weekend?) that I had planned on serving him in bed. Caramelized onion, bacon, and Gruyere Frittata with homemade biscuits were on the menu. Oh, and some of the most beautiful strawberries that we picked up at the Saturday market in Thiers. Jacob and I also gave Matthew a framed picture and a picture/poem I made for him.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="fr"><span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh54g67d4OWDTcEm_HsVrQ-ljwjZx-uOgLYotxZgDHrSzyt_pHkRIMo331IguFxS5hnEvP7GefssgQdX8Ysj-iCz1C1F4M2I4uaS5_aY08piIceLJ8wQfU1mfkOy62_TARhqMs2Bir1qp9B/s1600/JM2011_2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh54g67d4OWDTcEm_HsVrQ-ljwjZx-uOgLYotxZgDHrSzyt_pHkRIMo331IguFxS5hnEvP7GefssgQdX8Ysj-iCz1C1F4M2I4uaS5_aY08piIceLJ8wQfU1mfkOy62_TARhqMs2Bir1qp9B/s400/JM2011_2.jpg" width="400" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhgF5qqNVFonHpvsYLt6JmhTNCc-obctjSTcq3dO6u_4F_eQAbMsupLSlBdh8AAyHe-3cOW4h6YM1v6SZXjWtoezXx2gpm94y6NX5ArxTqIe1w24NXqGqwiziY4AG8HY5EF31NVvbu6O9f/s1600/MJhandCollage2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"> <span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="fr"><span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="fr"><span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations">Today has been a wonderfully lazy Sunday. I love my little family, and I love Jacob's most awesome daddy. Happy Father's Day Matthew!</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="fr"><span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="fr"><span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations"><i>Watching TV with Daddy.</i></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLfLPyrNIRIqZ3B1W2En38DZVJpAe40avmKonpXkXQam7kKw06W4Mh-Qlav-YR4Z2CARtnOppQXrrZL9_LM76zymk6PkfDRY4E43iMswRua-VP3Os5HSL3V5I6xlEsh1gEwNXUmkiMHCOS/s1600/P1010999.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLfLPyrNIRIqZ3B1W2En38DZVJpAe40avmKonpXkXQam7kKw06W4Mh-Qlav-YR4Z2CARtnOppQXrrZL9_LM76zymk6PkfDRY4E43iMswRua-VP3Os5HSL3V5I6xlEsh1gEwNXUmkiMHCOS/s320/P1010999.JPG" width="320" /></a><span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="fr"><span class="hps" title="Click for alternate translations"><i> </i></span></span></div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-34741435543972590662011-06-15T14:47:00.001+02:002011-06-15T14:47:48.574+02:00Wordless Wednesday: Talk to the Hand<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEkHolLx79jgKPfsDYKIHEohv1Xa1p9aSB_of1Yq-HA50X1hg7siZmDA6P4u_TVezfh6Yb_SIIEQSlNII_iuTs2saGJZ6qQ24tUs_wGt_FPzmOGeNcpQuAvDutkWNRAW_J8Q0UOyotgEbt/s1600/20110614+JacobKitchen-40b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEkHolLx79jgKPfsDYKIHEohv1Xa1p9aSB_of1Yq-HA50X1hg7siZmDA6P4u_TVezfh6Yb_SIIEQSlNII_iuTs2saGJZ6qQ24tUs_wGt_FPzmOGeNcpQuAvDutkWNRAW_J8Q0UOyotgEbt/s640/20110614+JacobKitchen-40b.jpg" width="427" /></a></div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-26138725298609909882011-06-11T10:03:00.000+02:002011-06-11T10:03:44.708+02:006 Years of Bliss<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7m8R1zqw2I33St9CSCoigFgBsIHthbY6WW3TxaVDZJUKLdZUax3zwLe3esqdyoKhNGdZRmSplY8ZdyTLk8j5uTOifzg7HiwybT15EdlMcrN1ZbHayUXkNrxaJooWSyXB6m0jpV2Eog_Hb/s1600/K%2526M+237.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7m8R1zqw2I33St9CSCoigFgBsIHthbY6WW3TxaVDZJUKLdZUax3zwLe3esqdyoKhNGdZRmSplY8ZdyTLk8j5uTOifzg7HiwybT15EdlMcrN1ZbHayUXkNrxaJooWSyXB6m0jpV2Eog_Hb/s640/K%2526M+237.jpg" width="640" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT4f-6tm_cFOkwXrhsnBZtuHEC_yMdOYVBnmwCnh-VLXOwPVNIrur7W2dj1Xik8U3OdXPlCL1A5EGIcY9fIawWCUffrnq8Y0Wi_sLUhD3Y1qmQSxEy-Fxv5PLl7dn7u6jx-RsgFFgHDFEi/s1600/page1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><br />
Six years ago I married my Prince Charming. But the title of this blog is actually misleading, because the six years we dated were pretty great too! That's right, twelve years together. Matthew and I are high school sweethearts. I knew from the moment I met Matthew that I was ruined for all other guys.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT4f-6tm_cFOkwXrhsnBZtuHEC_yMdOYVBnmwCnh-VLXOwPVNIrur7W2dj1Xik8U3OdXPlCL1A5EGIcY9fIawWCUffrnq8Y0Wi_sLUhD3Y1qmQSxEy-Fxv5PLl7dn7u6jx-RsgFFgHDFEi/s1600/page1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT4f-6tm_cFOkwXrhsnBZtuHEC_yMdOYVBnmwCnh-VLXOwPVNIrur7W2dj1Xik8U3OdXPlCL1A5EGIcY9fIawWCUffrnq8Y0Wi_sLUhD3Y1qmQSxEy-Fxv5PLl7dn7u6jx-RsgFFgHDFEi/s640/page1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
We met because my grandparents owned a lake house on Lake Burton in Rabun County, Georgia- where Matthew lived. My sister, a friend, and I were hanging out on the dock one day when a small Boston Whaler zipped past our dock. We thought it was a guy we had met at the local marina the weekend before, so we waved him down. The boat made a u-turn and pulled up. We were a little surprised to find that the two guys were complete strangers. I became fast friends with the owner of the boat, David. Labor Day weekend 1998, David invited me to go to his church's 'Boat Church'. I was completely smitten with a certain friend of David's, whom they all called 'Cabe'. As the last official weekend of the summer, and the last weekend of Boat Church for the year, the tradition was to throw the youth choir, and eventually the preacher, off the pontoon boat at the end of the service. 'Cabe' successfully tossed several others off the boat before turning to me. He scooped me up in his arms (swoon...) and leaped off the boat. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP9IFQ7U_d2DVa-1gj7xIFp7Q_uirsU_HOn8gHB1Lz3Eq4D1_K5REJWliGUJkaeFHzfuz3yGFSVk7h_1fSGK-xnDYfdYXkwOm2JYKWooU82bbzEKUET0J7qkYIhNjU-geV2aCB8HYkue3u/s1600/page2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP9IFQ7U_d2DVa-1gj7xIFp7Q_uirsU_HOn8gHB1Lz3Eq4D1_K5REJWliGUJkaeFHzfuz3yGFSVk7h_1fSGK-xnDYfdYXkwOm2JYKWooU82bbzEKUET0J7qkYIhNjU-geV2aCB8HYkue3u/s640/page2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
<i>(quick side note- Matthew actually had a girlfriend during that fateful Labor Day weekend, so it wasn't until the following summer that we started dating...)</i><br />
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<i>(another not-so-quick side note- When I was little, my family lived in Rabun County too. My mom and Matthew's mom were both members of the Junior Women's Club. They swear we must have played together. We keep waiting/hoping for a picture to turn up of us together as babies...</i>)<br />
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We actually got married <u>on</u> our 6 year 'dating anniversary'. We decided on June 11 as our official anniversary because we went on our very first date (with the now Mr. and Mrs. Matthew Funk) on June 10 (we played putt-putt in Helen, GA and then went to a restaurant where I ordered the grilled cheese and a water because it was the cheapest thing on the menu. $3, if I remember correctly. But I digress...) and on June 12 decided to officially be a couple. We split the difference and chose June 11 as our anniversary. When we got engaged in 2004, I knew I wanted a June wedding the following year. June 11 just happened to fall on a Saturday, and we knew it was meant to be! <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx-Z89e3nvuyTtnnS4uSMe7YfM8nVk-md1xDjeC23e9yFYa-wwjlbGxhdial_bhJcWA4UW9UXQLN7g3maFO6uTYYtmlEdvGYAnccMndaIxoxSYPTz-kvs2eIKFv0ZDQ7P6FpzoYD7xv4c1/s1600/page4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx-Z89e3nvuyTtnnS4uSMe7YfM8nVk-md1xDjeC23e9yFYa-wwjlbGxhdial_bhJcWA4UW9UXQLN7g3maFO6uTYYtmlEdvGYAnccMndaIxoxSYPTz-kvs2eIKFv0ZDQ7P6FpzoYD7xv4c1/s640/page4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
I have truly been blessed with an amazing husband and an amazing marriage. Matthew gets all of the credit for keeping things running as smoothly as they do. I will fully admit that I have a {slight} tendency to pout. Matthew has a wonderful way of diffusing a situation, and is {normally} the first to concede/apologize/compromise after a disagreement. I love Matthew for his heart. I love him for his intelligence. I love him for his sense of adventure. I even love him for his stubbornness, and his need to be <u>way</u> above average at <i>whatever</i> he is doing. I love the way he loves his family. I love the way he loves me. I love the way he loves Jacob. I have always been amazed at the person that he is. But seeing Matthew as a father is simply beautiful. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYC5iEcxy_tXN_mzhyNwx1hKVOBL8F1ef3ssCDKv9J37N-Rwiyd0-qB_U_oNXQqmZunHa3TX04EvosRoepaHTBACpbjlKh55Be-Kp1rS8YriqWBA5lyYuhQXhL2yH-JOG_f1DzP6aQA7o-/s1600/page5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYC5iEcxy_tXN_mzhyNwx1hKVOBL8F1ef3ssCDKv9J37N-Rwiyd0-qB_U_oNXQqmZunHa3TX04EvosRoepaHTBACpbjlKh55Be-Kp1rS8YriqWBA5lyYuhQXhL2yH-JOG_f1DzP6aQA7o-/s640/page5.jpg" width="640" /></a> </div><br />
Matthew is my favorite.<br />
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Happy Anniversary Matthew! I love you!Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-44158784086150111772011-06-08T21:28:00.000+02:002011-06-08T21:28:49.485+02:00Normandy Weekend: Day 4(Don't worry, this is the last one!)<br />
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After such a busy schedule the last 3 days, we had a lazy Sunday morning in our hotel room. We ate breakfast in the restaurant at the hotel and then came back upstairs and put Jacob down for a nap. While Jacob napped, we packed up and then relaxed in the room.<br />
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We had to be back in Clermont for a Matthew to go to a work dinner, so our only stop on Sunday was to the <a href="http://www.vinci-closluce.com/en/decouvrir-le-clos-luce/l-histoire-du-lieu/">Château du Clos Lucé</a>. This is where Leondardo da Vinci spent the last 3 years of his life. The chateau itself is beautiful, but simple (actually one of my favorites that we have visited- beautiful brick walls and exposed wood beams is much more my style then some of the over-the-top fancy smancy chateaus). Matthew is completely intrigued by Leondardo da Vinci, and so this was perfect for him. The best thing about our visit started once we finished touring the house and headed out to the gardens. It was like Disneyland for geeks, er, I mean, engineers. In the basement of the house they had a ton of da Vinci's sketches, along with models that had been created based on his drawings. In the park, they really brought da Vinci's visions to life! There were life size replications of da Vinci's flying machine, a spinning tank, Archimedes screw, a bridge that swung on hinges, a multi-barreled cannon (that kids could crank and a recording of shots would ring out while smoke billowed out the ends!). There was also a double decker bridge that da Vinci designed after the plague. His idea was that better traffic circulation would improve the health of the cities. By offering two different levels, pedestrians could use the upper level, while carts driven by animals and often carrying waste would be below on the bottom level. The guy was just brilliant. Can you imagine what he would have been able to accomplish if he was alive today?<br />
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We really could have spent all day wandering around the park and playing with the models, but we still had a three hour drive ahead of us, so it was back in the car! If you are planning a trip to the Loire Valley, or like us, just passing through, I highly, highly, highly recommend making this one of your stops. There were a ton of kids running around, and they all had some sort of scavenger hunt/activity booklet thing given to them by the chateau. Or even without kids, if you or your husband is a geek, shoot!... I mean, engineer... it is well worth the stop. My brain doesn't work like Matthew's, but I still found it fascinating. Although, I didn't take time to analyze each drawing and the mechanics of each model (like Matthew did), or even take time to fully grasp the information on the signs. Such as this on the double-decker bridge sign: "In the rule of harmonious proportion...the height of the rectangle is equal to the diagonal of the square of the base..."<br />
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Ok, so that concludes our Normandy weekend! It was a really great road trip. I loved spending so much quality time as a family and soaking up some history while we were at it! Sadly, this was our last trip in France. We leave in July, and except for our cruise the first week of July, we have no more trips planned. There are so many more places we have left on our "to-do" list. (sigh) Maybe one day we will get to come back.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/cemIG8Ax4S8" width="425"></iframe></div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-18889544545188419262011-06-08T08:00:00.001+02:002011-06-08T08:00:06.894+02:00Normandy Weekend: Day 3Saturday morning we woke up to gray skies. We just prayed the rain would hold off long enough for us to visit Omaha Beach and the American Cemetery. The plan was to head to the Loire Valley after those two stops, so after breakfast we packed up. Poor Jacob was so tired after two days of no naps, he fell asleep on the bed while we packed. <br />
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We arrived in the little village where the code-named 'Omaha Beach' is located. The place was packed! Being the anniversary weekend of the D-Day landings, WWII history enthusiasts were out in all of their costumed glory. There were TONS of US Army Jeeps (all owned and driven by French people), people in full combat gear, and a little bit of everything in between... Since we were expecting rain any minute, we bypassed the mock military camp that was set up in a field and the military paraphernalia flea market, and walked straight down to the beach. The wind was just insane! Jacob was snug inside the Moby wrap, and with the hood covering his face and the roar of the ocean (just like on his white noise 'Sleep Sheep'), he was asleep in no time. While he snoozed, we walked along the beach, and read on our Kindle the story of the Americans landing on the beach (Kindle + Rick Steves is a great combo when sightseeing!). About 100 pictures later, we were walking back up the hill to where all of the festivities were going on. We stopped in the flea market and found a guy that was custom stamping US dog tags. We decided it would be neat for Jacob to have one as a little souvenir from our trip. I have to admit though, with each stamp into the metal, I wanted to tell the guy to stop. I know this is probably horrible, but as a mom, I hope Jacob never has real dog tags. If he chooses a military life, of course I will be supportive, and definitely proud of him. But, the thought of <u>my</u> baby fighting in a war.... Especially after three days of reliving the sacrifices of so many Americans (most of them just <i>boys</i>), the thought of Jacob being in harms way makes my heart start pounding. <br />
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Once back in the car, we headed to the American Cemetery. The cemetery is located on a bluff overlooking Omaha Beach. The land was given to the US by France and contains the remains of over 9,000 Americans, most of whom were killed during the Normandy invasions. There were some soldiers whose family wanted to bury them back in the US. It is quite emotional to stare out at the thousands of gleaming white crosses.<br />
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Raindrops started falling while we were walking around the cemetery, so we headed back to the car. This was the last stop in our tour of Normandy. We drove the 3 1/2 hours south, back to the Loire Valley. By the time we got to our hotel, the temperature had changed more than 20 degrees! I think the lady at the hotel thought we were crazy to be dressed in jeans and long sleeves. We quickly changed into our bathing suits and headed to the little hotel pool. The water was too cold for swimming, but we let Jacob stand on the first step and get get his toes wet. Except for some grunting noises, he didn't seem to mind the cold water. <br />
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The hotel was really tiny, only 6 rooms, but it was a perfect set-up for us. The room was huge, with a king size bed (well, two twins put together) and a sitting area complete with couch, table, and chairs. There was also a large entryway, and the room had a door that closed it off from the entryway. We were able to put Jacob's crib in the entryway, and after we put him to bed we could close the door to our room. We had stopped and bought some of Normandy's famous Camembert cheese and fresh bread before leaving Normandy. Matthew found a store close by and bought some wine and dessert. We put Jacob to bed and were able to open the balcony door which gave us a view of the village and a little of the countryside. As much as we love French restaurants, our little make-shift room picnic was just perfect. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Z6BJJlp8AI8" width="425"></iframe></div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-41689662068719709462011-06-07T08:00:00.001+02:002011-06-07T08:00:07.793+02:00Normandy Weekend: Day 2Friday morning we woke up, and we were all pretty tired! Jacob woke up several times throughout the night, and since there wasn't any insulation between our rooms, we heard every grunt, every coo, every time he rolled over... Luckily, he put himself back to sleep each time, but it still left us all with dark circles under our eyes. We had to shake it off though, because we had a big day planned!<br />
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After a simple, but yummy breakfast downstairs (with some of THE BEST strawberry yogurt EVER), we got back in the car (much to Jacob's dismay) and headed to Caen. Our first stop of the day was the large Memorial Museum in Caen. The museum is really well done, and isn't just limited to WWII. It starts after WWI, and they even have a wing dedicated to the Cold War. Beware though, strollers are not allowed. They did have a daycare center for children under 11, but since we were there right in the middle of Jacob's first nap time, I was worried he would be a terror for the adults in charge. Instead, we decided to put him in the Baby Bjorn. Like everything in Normandy, there were a ton of people, and the museum got very crowded at places. It is a must-see though if you are in the area.<br />
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Our next stop was Arromanches-les-Bains. Here, you can see "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mulberry_harbour">Port Winston</a>", a temporary harbor built by the English to unload cargo onto the beaches. We first stopped for some "feesh and cheeps" at a little restaurant recommended in the Rick Steve's guidebook. The restaurant was packed and while we waited for a table, I snuck off to the bathroom leaving Matthew by himself. Unfortunately, while I was waiting in line, Matthew was seated and left to deal with the stroller by himself (French restaurants are notorious for putting tables so close together that even the waiters can barely squeeze through). He got some dirty looks by the people who had to move out of the way for him to get to our table. After a quick lunch, it was time for some sightseeing. It was <i>extremely</i> windy, but we braved the weather to walk down to the waterfront. <br />
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Next stop on the itinerary was <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pointe_du_Hoc">Pointe du Hoc</a>. If you are a fan of the movie <i>The Longest Day</i>, then this would be a must see sight. It was at these 100 ft tall cliffs that 300 handpicked US Army Rangers attempted to scale the vertical cliffs (using grappling hooks shot by rockets, and ladders from the London fire departments). The Rangers only had 30 minutes to make it to the top (while being shot at!) before the tide would come in and wash them away. Only about a third of the Rangers survived the assault. <br />
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For dinner, we headed into a nearby fishing village and found a little crêpe restaurant. Then it was back to the b&b and bedtime for all of us!<br />
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</div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-66675437422514605482011-06-06T10:01:00.000+02:002011-06-06T10:01:47.179+02:00Normandy Weekend: Day 1We just got back from a wonderful long weekend (gotta love those French holidays that fall on Thursdays, and the 'faire le pont' day on Friday!). We decided for the long weekend to make the trip back to Normandy. We spent a long weekend there last year with friends, but didn't get to visit any of the D-Day beaches or museums. We felt we would be unpatriotic if we let our time in France go by without taking time to visit the beaches.<br />
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It is about a 7 hour drive from Clermont to the area of Normandy where I found a b&b. We decided to break the trip up and stop at a chateau in the Loire Valley. We chose the <a href="http://www.chenonceau.com/">Château de Chenonceau</a> because, well, because I saw a really pretty picture of it in my <u>Frommer's France</u> book! It is said to be a lot of visitors' favorite chateau in all of France, so I figured if we were only going to visit one, then it would be a good one. We arrived in the little village right at lunch time and since most restaurants stop serving lunch at 2:00pm, we decided to go ahead and eat. Again, trusty <u>Frommer's</u> directed us to a little restaurant that was a short walk from the chateau's parking lot. This was the first time we had attempted to take Jacob with us to a French restaurant. The French love their food, and a meal is never something to be rushed. I was a little anxious about how Jacob would do- especially after just having spent 3 hours strapped in his car seat. He was awesome! Whew! He was completely fascinated by everything going on around him. It also helps that he is now eating a lunch meal, so I could feed him a bite, eat a little myself, feed him, etc. We had an amazing 4 course meal, and Jacob was completely content the entire time. After all of that food, thank goodness we didn't plan to get right back in the car. The day was beautiful, and walking through a chateau and its impressive gardens was just the ticket. The chateau was really pretty, but super crowded! <br />
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After about an hour, we decided to go ahead and hit the road again. The bed and breakfast I found in Normandy is part of a working dairy farm. It is in the middle of nowhere, which just happens to be very close to Omaha Beach. When we drove up the tree lined drive, our jaws dropped. The main house was enclosed by a stone wall that surrounded it and several other buildings. <a href="http://www.manoir-hermerel.com/versionanglaise/accueil.html">The Ferme Manoir de l'Hermerel</a> cows provide milk that is used to make Normandy's famous Camembert cheese. Yum! We had to wait about 30 minutes when we arrived because we couldn't find the owner! Finally she arrived and showed us to our room(s). I booked a room with a small adjoining children's room for Jacob, thinking he (and we) would sleep better if he wasn't in the same room as us. It was almost 8:00 (an hour after his normal bedtime) by the time we got settled in the room. We did bath and fed him his bottle, but since the sun doesn't set until about 10:00pm, his room was really bright. He had a really hard time falling asleep. Matthew left to go find something to bring back for us to eat for dinner. Jacob finally fell asleep a little after 9, just as Matthew got back. We ate sitting on the bed, and went to bed early ourselves, ready for a big day in Normandy the next day!<br />
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(Blogger has told me that I have exceeded my uploaded picture space... boo! So, I put all of the pictures from Day 1 in a slideshow and uploaded it to YouTube.)<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ZKzVQAjclNs" width="425"></iframe></div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-76817395286990388082011-06-01T20:40:00.000+02:002011-06-01T20:40:57.683+02:00Wordless (well, almost...) WednesdayWe leave tomorrow for Normandy, so I don't have time for a full post. I wanted to share this though. This afternoon, Jacob and I were walking home from downtown and he was cracking up! He was a total giggle box for no apparent reason. I tried to capture it with my camera phone, but of course as soon as the camera came out, the giggling calmed down. Still pretty cute though.<br />
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(oh, and it was cold, so I was walking really quickly. Sorry for the shaky camera.)<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Mf170qwzV-0" width="425"></iframe></div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-27826079500613760172011-05-30T21:56:00.000+02:002011-05-30T21:56:37.524+02:00Jacob's Attempt to Crawl<div style="text-align: left;">Learning to crawl is hard work! </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/CNWK8RCGQKU" width="560"></iframe></div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-57934005815864296102011-05-28T11:31:00.001+02:002011-05-28T12:51:34.604+02:00Bébé Nageur<div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5767690048/" title="20110528 Bebe Nageur-5b by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="20110528 Bebe Nageur-5b" height="340" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2568/5767690048_bd3b757c61.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Today was the day! I have been waiting for 6 whole months for today! The day that Jacob was old enough to go to the bébé nageur (baby swimmers) class! Technically the class I have been waiting for is a Wednesday morning class at Royatonic, the pool where my aquagym class is. However, for his first time, I wanted Matthew with me in case it turned out to be a complete failure. The main pool in Chamalieres has a bébé nageur class on Saturday mornings. Perfect! The first step was convincing Matthew to come with me. In France, guys aren't allowed to wear board short type swim suits. At Royatonic, there is a sign that shows what suits are acceptable: the tiny biker short looking ones, the short suit ones I call 'J Crew bathing suits', or the ever popular Speedo. Matthew agreed to wear the 'J Crew' shorts, which on anyone else wouldn't be <i>that</i> short, but have you seen my husband? In his 6'4" frame, most of that height is in his legs. More specifically in his thighs. So the shorts are <i>really</i> short on him. he he.<br />
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Teeny tiny shorts in hand, we headed to the pool this morning. I had Jacob already dressed in his swim diaper and swim shorts, and I had my suit under my clothes, so getting ready in the locker room was easy. Then we went to put our stuff in a locker and realized we needed a euro piece. Neither one of us had any money. We were all set to just take Matthew's wallet with us to the pool area and risk leaving the locker unlocked. As I headed to the women's showers (yeah, you have to take a shower before getting into the pool), I see Matthew head over to ask a janitor about the locker situation. Jacob and I shower, and walk through the wading pool (to get off any remaining dirt from your feet before you can get into the pools) and wait for Matthew to come out of the guy's shower side. We wait. And we wait. And we wait.<br />
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I was starting to think that Matthew went back out to the front desk to ask for a euro piece or the little member card to put in the locker. After several more minutes, Matthew <u>finally</u> emerges from the showers...<br />
In a Speedo!!!! I am talking, full-on, banana hammock!!! Bwah haha! Apparently at <i>this</i> pool, guys can only wear the little biker shorts or a Speedo (even though all the lifeguards are definitely sporting their Baywatch red swim shorts). The look on Matthew's face was priceless! (Sorry babe!) I thought at first Matthew had to buy the Speedo, but no, the janitor guy gave him one to wear. Ewwww!<br />
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So at this point Matthew couldn't get into the water fast enough. But oops, we forgot to bring the little piece of paper saying we had paid for the baby swim class. So Matthew had to walk back across the pool area, back through the showers, back to the locker room, and then back to the pool. <br />
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I tried my very best to convince Matthew to let me take a picture, but he refused. The only pictures allowed were ones where he is completely submerged in water. Shoot!<br />
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I don't think Jacob knew what to think about the whole pool thing. He had his serious, deep thinking, furrowed brow face on most of the time. The few times he did crack a smile was when a cute little girl baby in a bikini would "swim" past. I think he definitely enjoyed himself though. He got really tired towards the end (at that point it was already 30 minutes past his normal nap time), and the final straw was when a ball Matthew was playing with under the water, popped up, splashing both Jacob and me right in the face. Other than that, I would consider the baby swim class a success! I have to get a 'certificate medicale' and proof of vaccinations, before I can go to the Royatonic class. We don't have that many weeks left here, but I definitely want to take him. I have only been able to find one class in Greenville that has a class for babies this small. I don't know why- it is great!<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5767688578/" title="BebeNageurCollage by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="BebeNageurCollage" height="650" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5029/5767688578_e1c3b3248f.jpg" width="650" /></a> </div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/e_llG4GbiT8?hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/e_llG4GbiT8?hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-40552081908989202162011-05-24T11:13:00.000+02:002011-05-24T11:13:39.435+02:00Jacob is 6 Months Old!<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5749828667/" title="JacobEyes2 (1 of 1) by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="JacobEyes2 (1 of 1)" height="333" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3597/5749828667_3c905d9b87.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><br />
Today Jacob is 6 months old! Wow. Where has the time gone?! There were times during the first 3, colicky months when I thought some nights would never end. But here we are! Jacob has always been a sweet baby, but when he was suffering from colic and reflux, there were times that he just seemed miserable. Now, he is a happy, giggling, fun baby. It is amazing to see his little personality emerge. I think Matthew and I are going to have quite the little clown on our hands. It is hard to describe with words, but there are times that he acts downright silly, and then will close his eyes, fall backwards, and giggle at himself! One of my favorite new 'skills' of his is when he reaches out his arms for me or Matthew. My goodness! It melts my heart every time. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5749833133/" title="20110522 Jacob6mths -24c by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="20110522 Jacob6mths -24c" height="334" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3655/5749833133_99b050fd8b.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Speaking of skills, Jacob is working hard on sitting on his own. Every day it seems he can sit just a little bit longer before toppling over. Jacob can now roll from his back to his stomach, and as of yesterday- can now consistently roll from his stomach to his back. This is an important milestone for us! He has been able to roll onto his stomach for a little over a month now. The problem is, once there, he gets very upset and fusses...cries...screams... until you go flip him back over (only to roll back onto his stomach 10 seconds later...). This is not my idea of a fun game. And the times where I decided to leave him fussing to see if he would figure it out for himself (or figure out that being on his stomach isn't fun, and would stop rolling over), I find him face down in a puddle of spit-up (no Mother-of-the-Year awards for me!). Fortunately, this hasn't affected his sleeping. We were really worried that if he rolled over in his crib, he wouldn't be able to go back to sleep until we came in and rolled him back over. Most mornings we find him still on his back, but there have been mornings where we go to wake him up and he is sleeping peacefully on his stomach.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">And speaking of sleeping. Praise the Lord, Jacob has become such a great sleeper! It took him about 3 days to re-adjust after flying back to France, but since then (knock on wood) he has been sleeping through the night. 7pm- 7am. Wow. I still can't believe it. AND, remember all of those blogs on the napping issues? Jacob now takes 2 naps of 1 1/2 hours (sometimes 2 hours, or longer!). This has been the greatest change to our days. I now can plan our days because I know what time he will go down for a nap. I know how long he will sleep, which means I know when he needs to go down for the next nap. Ironically, this type of scheduling has been the biggest source of freedom for me! </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Let's talk a little bit more about scheduling. When Jacob was first born I made up some charts to keep track of when he ate, which side I started feeding him on, and how long he ate on each side. I also kept track of how many wet and poopie diapers he had (sounds silly, but everyone who has breastfed knows that diaper 'output' is the best way to gauge whether the baby is getting enough milk). After Day 13 and the 6 hours straight of crying, and the research I did on colic being diagnosed by a baby that cries for more than 3 hours/day, for more than 3 days/week, for more than 3 weeks, I decided I needed a more detailed chart to keep track of really how much he was crying. All moms know that 5 minutes of crying can feel like an hour sometimes! So my 24-hour chart was born. I have received a lot of flack about my charts, but they have also come in really handy when Jacob was finally diagnosed with reflux. More recently, they have helped me find the 'sweet spot' when it comes to Jacob's naps. I will never forget the look I got when I pulled out my charts after spending the night in the ER with Jacob. The ER doctor looked at the charts, looked at us, and asked (in French) "Um, where are you from? That must be an American thing, I have never seen that in France." Nope, not an American thing, just a Kim thing. I admit that I am a little addicted to my charts. Here are some examples. It really puts things into perspective when I look at what our days were like then and now. Just fyi- blue=sleeping, green=eating, red=crying, and the red stars are when he spit-up A LOT. There are a lot more colors/symbols, but I won't bore you (well, bore you any <i>more</i> than I already have). Can I just say how satisfying it is to color in all the blue after a full night of sleep? Or after a long nap. Kind of the like the feeling I get when I get to cross something off a to-do list. Sometimes when I make lists, I will even write things I have already finished, just so I can cross them off. I know I am a dork, but I also know I am not the only one that does this. ;)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5750296103/" title="JacobCharts by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="JacobCharts" height="252" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3635/5750296103_121cbc44f8.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">So, anyway. My baby is 6 months old today. My sweet, funny, adorably chubby, cuddly (sometimes), light of my life. I love you Jacob! I love being your mommy. I love your sweet smiles and giggles. I love your chubby cheeks (that <u>everyone</u> comments on). I love your beautiful blue eyes. And I love how happy you are when you see me first thing in the morning, after each nap, or even when I have just left the room for a second and come back. It is amazing how you can make my heart melt one minute, and the next I feel like my heart might burst it is so full of love for you. Happy half birthday! </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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</div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-66084535676090819772011-05-20T14:59:00.000+02:002011-05-20T14:59:50.617+02:00Adventures in Baby FoodJacob has started eating 'solids'. From the get-go, I knew I wanted to make homemade baby food for him. I am not working in France, so I have the time. And anything I make at home has to be better than the stuff in jars, right? My mom bought me the book <u>Super Baby Food</u> (kind of like every pregnant woman reads <u>What to Expect When You Are Expecting</u>, anyone who wants to make homemade baby food reads <u>Super Baby Food</u>). We started off with the traditional infant rice cereal. Jacob had his first cereal when we were in the US. Our pediatrician had given us the go ahead after his 4 month check-up, but we waited until we were in the US with Matthew's family. After missing Christmas, we thought it would be fun for them to witness at least one of Jacob's milestones. He did really well. I don't know how much he actually ate the first time because a lot of it ended up on his bib, but for his very first time- he did great. A few weeks later I added in Infant oatmeal to his diet, mostly just for some variety for his taste buds. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5739366505/" title="20110406 Clayton 006-tile by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="20110406 Clayton 006-tile" height="168" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5223/5739366505_bd6097c651.jpg" width="500" /></a> </div><br />
After his 5 month check-up, the pediatrician told us to start introducing vegetables during his lunch meal. This is where things got a little confusing because everything our pediatrician told us was completely opposite from what I had read in my book, and what I had seen online. Even on US websites, no one seems to agree on what foods to start with, what foods for what ages, etc. One thing everyone does seem to agree on is waiting 3-5 days before introducing a new food (to allow allergies to show themselves, and then you can easily eliminate the culprit from the diet). Our pediatrician told us to pick 5 vegetables (she gave us a list of recommended ones) and for 15 days rotate through the 5- giving a new one each day. Hmmm... should I follow the advice of our doctor? Or go with the 3-5 day wait rule that is the norm in the US (especially since Matthew had food allergies when he was young)? Better safe than sorry, so slowly but surely we are introducing new foods to him. <br />
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Food #1: Avocados. These are a super food. They are not only one of the most nutrient-dense foods, but are high in iron, folate. potassium, vitamin E, and magnesium. Shew! AND, there is no preparation. Scoop some out, mash it up, mix in a little breast milk to thin it just a tad, and voila! (oh, and if you don't feel like freezing the rest, you can mix up a little guacamole for Mom and Dad). :) Feeding Jacob avocado was pretty anti-climatic. From his facial expressions you couldn't even tell that he was eating something different. I thought after eating the bland rice cereal and oatmeal, the avocado would be a welcome change. He did eat it all up like a champ, and was opening his mouth and leaning forward for the spoon. So I guess that means he liked it!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5739370299/" title="JacobSolids -2 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="JacobSolids -2" height="334" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3241/5739370299_7aac6c6672.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5739925902/" title="JacobSolids -4 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="JacobSolids -4" height="334" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2139/5739925902_9df6a336ed.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><br />
Food #2: Sweet Potatoes. Another super food. Preparation is pretty simple too. Poke some holes in them, throw them in the oven until they are fork tender, scoop out the flesh and puree. The only extra step is to strain the puree because the fibers that don't puree could be a choking hazard. I cooked up a bunch of these, and froze them into cubes. Jacob is a big fan of these, and the orange color makes them a whole lot prettier than most baby food!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5739929916/" title="20110520 BabyFood -25 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="20110520 BabyFood -25" height="334" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2579/5739929916_ab16caaca2.jpg" width="500" /></a> </div><br />
Food #3: Green Beans. Jacob gets green beans for the first time on Sunday. Since Matthew took the day off today, we headed out to enjoy one of our favorite things to do when living in France- <i>faire les courses. </i>Our first stop was the butcher, then the boulangerie, then the fruit/vegetable market. I stocked up on green beans and peaches (Jacob gets those in about 2 weeks, but I thought I could go ahead and make/freeze them). I also couldn't resist buying some artichokes that were bigger than Jacob's head! I can't wait to dig into those. Anyway, back to the green beans. A friend here let me borrow her baby cooker. It is so simple to use, and you can steam veggies and puree them in the same pot! Unfortunately, the amounts I was attempting to cook and puree was just too much for the baby cooker. I finally had to ditch the cooker and pull out my big pressure cooker and immersion blender. One piece of advice I did take from our pediatrician was to add a little potato when cooking the green beans. She told us it would help with flavor and help combine everything into a better texture. But does that mean if he doesn't react to the green beans, then we are good-to-go with potatoes as well???<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5739936896/" title="20110520 BabyFood -3-tileb by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="20110520 BabyFood -3-tileb" height="500" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2050/5739936896_d5026fbd0b.jpg" width="374" /></a> </div><br />
Next up on the schedule are bananas, carrots, winter squash (I think I am going to do pumpkin because I already have some frozen pumpkin puree in the freezer that I need to use before we leave in July...), pears, peaches, and applesauce. One of my biggest goals is to "clear" foods that I might be able to find on the cruise we are going on in July. I really don't want to have to lug a ton of jarred foods onto the ship, so I am hoping I can find some of the foods he has already eaten on board (ie avocados at the sushi bar!). I love meal time with Jacob and I can't wait until I can really cook for him. For now, I will have to settle for cooking/pureeing/freezing for him! Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-32539365998059174452011-05-02T09:07:00.000+02:002011-05-02T09:07:19.086+02:00Jacob's First Trip to the US!On April 1 Matthew, Jacob, and I boarded a plane to take Jacob to the US for the first time!!! I was giddy the whole cab ride to the airport, and it didn't even phase me that it was barely 5am! I was a little nervous about how Jacob would do on the 9 1/2 hour flight from Paris to Atlanta. After doing great on the short flight from Clermont-Ferrand to Paris, I relaxed a little. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"> <i>The 'before' picture, sitting in the Paris Airport.</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5676542225/" title="2011_04 004 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_04 004" height="375" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5302/5676542225_70a432a253.jpg" width="500" /></a></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br />
</i></div><i></i>The timing of the flights worked out really well with Jacob's eating schedule, so that I could feed him during take-off in hopes of avoiding any pressure change/ear problems. We were lucky enough to be given bulk-head seats and a baby bassinet that hooked onto the wall in front of our seats. Not so luckily, there was another baby beside us. The poor baby and his mom had started in India with a 10-hour flight to Paris, then the 9 1/2 hour flight to Atlanta, and then they would finish with a 4 hour drive to their home in Charlotte. The 9 month old baby screamed pretty much the entire flight. Even with the screaming right beside him, Jacob still managed to sleep some. And when he wasn't sleeping, he still did great. Matthew and I took turns standing and walking with Jacob whenever possible to keep him content. Jacob was amazing, and had all of the French flight attendants on our Air France flight wrapped around his little finger. :) We couldn't have asked for the trip to go any smoother!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5677109750/" title="2011_04 010 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_04 010" height="500" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5227/5677109750_9ff1f5cf50.jpg" width="375" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5676553907/" title="2011_04 014 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_04 014" height="375" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5022/5676553907_3d6f93a68a.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5677106584/" title="2011_04 005 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_04 005" height="375" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5230/5677106584_bfee3e4de9.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><br />
My mom, grandmother, and grandfather met us at the airport in Atlanta. It was so great to see their smiling faces waiting by the baggage carousel!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5677201636/" title="2011_04 019 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_04 019" height="500" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5143/5677201636_9d2b37a9ef.jpg" width="375" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5677191478/" title="2011_04 017 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_04 017" height="500" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5101/5677191478_24a61533bf.jpg" width="375" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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After a really rough night (9 1/2 hour flight + 6 hour time difference + first time not sleeping in his own crib = very confused/grumpy baby- all. night. long.), Matthew's brother, Mike met us in Atlanta to help drive us to Clayton (we had too many bags to fit in my mom's CRV!). Since Mike and Matthew's parents never made it to France for Christmas, this was the first time Jacob got to meet his Uncle Mike.<br />
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We drove up to Matthew's parents' house in Northeast Georgia to some very impatient grandparents who have been dying to love on this little boy since November 24!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5677225774/" title="2011_04 032 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_04 032" height="375" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5023/5677225774_26cce5c47b.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5677230716/" title="2011_04 035 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_04 035" height="375" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5301/5677230716_0eaa623136.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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And the family love didn't stop there! Matthew's grandmother, uncle, and his uncle's wife all drove down from Kentucky to meet Jacob. I would say they drove down to see <u>us</u>, but we all know who they really came to see! Sunday, Matthew's other grandmother, another uncle, his wife, and their 3 children came over for lunch. I have waited so long for Jacob to be surrounded by family! It was such a great feeling to see all of the love they have for him.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><i>Jacob with his great-grandmother and second cousins.</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5678532481/" title="2011_04 093 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_04 093" height="375" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5263/5678532481_5278399be4.jpg" width="500" /></a></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i> </i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Sunday afternoon we drove out to the lake to visit with some of our closest friends (in fact, David is the one responsible for introducing Matthew and I!). I only wish we had more time to visit with David and Betsy.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5679093890/" title="2011_04 098 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_04 098" height="375" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5028/5679093890_a46f0e8834.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">What a great first weekend back home. We spent almost 4 weeks in the US, so there is lots more to come! </div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-66714932561491793552011-03-25T14:17:00.000+01:002011-03-25T14:17:48.896+01:00Oh Happy Day!This is definitely a happy dance kind of day! First of all, it is a beautiful day. Not a cloud in the sky, and high near 70! ahhhh... One of those days that literally takes your breath away.<br />
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My day started off great with a baby that slept from 6:30pm last night until 5:00am this morning, ate, and then went back to sleep! Go Jacob!<br />
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Then, my amazing husband took the day off so that I could take a 'mommy mental health day'. After I fed Jacob this morning, I headed up the hill to the thermal spa in Royat. After enjoying an aquagym class, I went to the naturally heated outdoor pool and laid in sun in one of the massage jet pools. Ah-mazing!<br />
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I got back to the apartment just in time to feed Jacob his next meal, then Matthew and I packed up a picnic and headed to a nearby park. Jacob was even kind enough to fall asleep in his carseat so that Matthew and I could enjoy our picnic and even nap for a few minutes ourselves in the sunshine.<br />
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(oh, and did I mention that this time next week we will be on a plane headed to the US?!? <u>Definitely </u>a happy dance kind of day!) <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5558558976/" title="2011_03 351 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_03 351" height="500" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5308/5558558976_86ee8a6703.jpg" width="334" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5558557396/" title="2011_03 348 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_03 348" height="334" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5268/5558557396_5193461d7c.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5557976853/" title="2011_03 357 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_03 357" height="334" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5091/5557976853_cafeeba59a.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Tummy Time in the great outdoors!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5558561352/" title="2011_03 359 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_03 359" height="334" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5146/5558561352_ef1f9e76d2.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Nap Time in the great outdoors!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5557981075/" title="2011_03 362 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_03 362" height="500" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5309/5557981075_c845f50b88.jpg" width="334" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">No French picnic would be complete without some treats from a patisserie (well, actually I don't know if the French take things like this on picnics, but these Americans sure do!)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5557982507/" title="2011_03 364 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_03 364" height="334" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5176/5557982507_4a56de5b29.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5557985363/" title="2011_03 373 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_03 373" height="500" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5068/5557985363_9e332207ec.jpg" width="334" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Baby toes in the grass!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5558569876/" title="2011_03 378 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_03 378" height="334" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5053/5558569876_69665f54ff.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-66002319879676068502011-03-24T10:24:00.000+01:002011-03-24T10:24:02.930+01:00Jacob Rolling Over...Almost<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5554938811/" title="2011_03 298b by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_03 298b" height="333" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5171/5554938811_0892264d92.jpg" width="500" /></a> </div><br />
Before I lose half my readers, let me assure you, I understand this post will probably bore most of you to tears. A baby <i>almost</i> rolling over isn't exactly entertaining. I get that. The only reason that I am posting these videos is because we live in France. Our families live in the US. I already feel guilty enough that they are missing so much of Jacob's first months of life, but when he reaches (almost) milestones, I feel really bad that they (and by 'they' I am mostly talking about the grandmas) don't get to see it in person. <br />
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So, without further ado (for those of you who are still reading this), here is Jacob <i>almost</i> rolling over! <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/RmTUAyT7KIA" title="YouTube video player" width="480"></iframe></div><br />
He is oh-so close!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/4l6UDxG4A9w" title="YouTube video player" width="480"></iframe> </div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-69552629344362384532011-03-13T17:45:00.000+01:002011-03-13T17:45:48.948+01:00Tummy Time!<div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5522621587/" title="2011_03 117 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_03 117" height="334" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5051/5522621587_9572f4de12.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><br />
Jacob used to HATE to be on his stomach. Because he was colicky, the last thing I wanted to do was <i>anything </i>that made him cry more! We didn't do a lot of tummy time the first three months, and have been working hard the last month to make up for it. I have found the best place to do it is on our bed. I can lie down facing him and that seems to make it more tolerable.<br />
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Here is some video of our tummy time this morning. And PS- I don't know what I hate more- my normal voice, or my 'mommy' voice....<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/D8EYZBmZZRQ" title="YouTube video player" width="480"></iframe></div><br />
Ok, so after a quick clean-up, we were back in action (well after Jacbo rested for a little bit. Tummy time is hard work!). <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/A5NF7FMCyIA" title="YouTube video player" width="480"></iframe></div><br />
Now to show off his new trick. He figured out that if he face plants into the bed and pushes his legs he can move forward! Crawling, here we come!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/PymZ6vGTVcc" title="YouTube video player" width="480"></iframe> </div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-65204889625933343182011-03-06T13:19:00.000+01:002011-03-06T13:19:11.559+01:00Jacob's First GigglesWithin just the last few days, Jacob has started giggling. It might be one of the sweetest sounds I have ever heard. Matthew had him really going, but as soon as I ran to get the video camera, he was already calming down. We managed to capture a few giggles though.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/fdwSrjdbcnM" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-501908810659240913.post-59216755925598200962011-03-03T08:48:00.000+01:002011-03-03T08:48:22.131+01:00100 Days!<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5493939456/" title="2011_03 083 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_03 083" height="334" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5092/5493939456_1f52b1919a.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><br />
Today, Jacob is 100 days old. In some ways, it seems like just yesterday that he was born. But other days, November 24 feels like a million years ago. Either way, Matthew and I can't imagine our lives without him!<br />
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To start this post off, I want to say that Jacob is a sweet, smiling, cooing baby. But, it hasn't been all smiles the last 100 days. It is hard for me to admit that. As a new mom, I had this idea of what life would be like after Jacob would be born. I was prepared for the sleepless nights and the fatigue. I had even prepared myself for the hormonal roller coaster after giving birth. Even for the possibility of having postpartum depression. I had read all the books, and was prepared with a plan for getting Jacob on a feeding and sleeping schedule. I was <i>not</i> prepared for all of the crying.<br />
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Jacob cried. A lot. It all started on Day 13. I will remember that day forever. He cried for 6 hours. Thank goodness my mom was still here at that point so we could all take breaks. He was inconsolable. The only way to stop him from screaming hysterically was to walk/sway/bounce/etc with him. But even then, if you stopped moving for a second, he would start up again. I was frantically searching online, and everything came back 'colic'. The worst part was, there was absolutely nothing I could do to help him. The only advice was to take breaks and keep in mind that it is usually over by 3 months. When you are at Day 13 and the experts are saying you will be dealing with this until at least Day 60... Ahhh! At this point I started crying and cursing France. Not that it was France's fault, but the idea of my mom leaving and Matthew and I being here alone to deal with a baby that cried for hours on end, it was more than I could handle. <br />
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Luckily, Day 13 was the worst of it. He continued to cry everyday, but not for 6 hours. Unfortunately for Matthew, Jacob's worst time of day started about 6:00 pm every night. Just in time for Matthew to get home from work. I was usually pretty worn out by the time he got home, so as soon as he walked in the door, a screaming baby was thrust into his arms. Don't get me wrong, we had some good days, but those were the exception. And we did have good moments during the day where I would see glimpses of my smiling, happy baby. But a lot of the time Jacob just seemed miserable. He was fatigued, he had gas pains, and was just generally unhappy. What a horrible feeling as a mom to not be able to console your baby. Some days, I don't know who cried more, Jacob or me. <br />
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Around 8 weeks we finally went to see our pediatrician to see if there was anything she could do to help us. In addition, Jacob had started spitting up a lot. She sent us for an ultrasound of his stomach to rule out something called pyloric stenosis. That was ruled out, but the ultrasound did show all of the gas in his tummy. I had already changed my diet drastically weeks before to cut out the top foods known to cause gas for breastfed babies, but it hadn't helped. The pediatrician prescribed some medicine for reflux, but it definitely didn't made a huge difference.<br />
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As we neared the 3 month mark, we could see definite improvements with Jacob. He and I had finally started getting into a nap routine, and when he napped well, it made a huge difference in his disposition. Matthew and I prayed that we were finally turning the 'colic corner'. The reflux medicine also finally started making a difference, which helped with his night time sleeping. A well rested baby makes all the difference!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5493940938/" title="2011_03 057b by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="2011_03 057b" height="640" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5180/5493940938_4f15fbc77f_z.jpg" width="427" /></a> </div><br />
Now we are at Day 100. I can honestly say, we have a different baby than we had at Day 13! He smiles and coos all the time. He loves to 'talk' to us. He has so many cute facial expressions, and he seems to be a little shy. He will giggle at us, but then lower his head and just look up at you with his eyes, or he will hide his face behind his chubby little fists. My goodness, he is so cute! (I know all moms must think their babies are cute, but I'm just saying- my baby is positively adorable!) Matthew and I have always loved Jacob, but we are really <i>enjoying</i> him now. He is a joy to be around, and so much fun to play with. We sometimes just want to pinch ourselves when we are out and Jacob is sitting quietly playing in his stroller. A month ago, if he woke up while we were at the store, it was a race to get the pacifier back in, and whoever was pushing him would have to take off at a faster pace around the store to get that rolling motion back, in order to get him to sleep. It is no wonder that I dropped all but 5 of my pregnancy pounds within the first 8 weeks since I was constantly walking and bouncing with Jacob. Matthew and I started using it as a workout routine and would do dips and lunges around the living room. (That is fine at 4 in the afternoon. Having to bounce and sway for hours on end at 3 in the morning is a different story!)<br />
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To all those soon-to-be moms out there, I don't want to scare you, but I do want to warn you. I feel like no one really talks about how much babies cry. Everyone I knew seemed to have such 'easy' babies. Constantly posting smiling pictures of their babies on facebook and making comments about how happy and sweet their newborns were. It wasn't until I would post some comment on facebook or mention something to friends that everyone seemed to respond that their babies did in fact cry a lot too, and that the first three months are really, really hard. Knowing I wasn't the only one made me feel so much better. I can't tell you how much time I spent on my phone at 3:00am, googling 'why does my newborn cry so much?', only to find message board after message board with hundreds of moms describing the same situation. It was still hard trying to accept the mind set of just 'getting through' the first three months. I wanted to enjoy every moment. Everyone tells you how quickly the time goes by, and I didn't want to wish away the newborn stage. I just had to drastically change my expectations of what I could get done in a day. My <u>only</u> priority was keeping him calm and getting him to sleep as much as possible. Housework, sleep, and daily showers went out the window!<br />
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I think the most important thing is to have a good support system around you. Especially if you have a colicky baby. I had so many friends here offer to help, but I think pride got in my way. And, for me, it is harder to call on friends than family to help. I finally gave in and accepted an offer from my friend Jen to come help. Bless her sweet heart, she helped me clean my apartment while Jacob napped. When he woke up, she took care of him so I could keep cleaning. What a blessing a clean apartment is! <br />
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So, all of my friends that are pregnant right now (and there are a lot of you out there!), please, please, please don't hesitate to call me if you need a hand. There is no shame in asking for help (it took me awhile to figure that out). And I just told you how much my baby cried, so I have no problem holding a screaming newborn. I have an arsenal of baby-soothing techniques that I have accumulated over the last 100 days! <br />
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Right now, I am going to cuddle with my sweet, 100 day old, baby boy, and enjoy all the smiles and giggles he has for me.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60185521@N03/5493346065/" title="D20_9649 by KimberlyCabePhotography, on Flickr"><img alt="D20_9649" height="640" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5214/5493346065_d46d65b5a4_z.jpg" width="428" /></a> </div>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02433299322996815711noreply@blogger.com3