And the winner is...

the door!

Payton had a little run in (literally) with the door. Unfortunately, she was hurt worse than the door! All part of learning to walk, I know, but we had to document her first big "boo-boo"!

She got quite a knot on her forehead, but it was pretty much gone by this morning. All that's left is a nasty bruise! I was trying to get a picture, but she wouldn't hold still!

Her spirits were not diminished at all, however, and she still managed to get in all kinds of trouble!

I need locks and chains for the garbage cans!!! What a little monkey!

Our Easter Sunday

(Here you go, Mary...aren't you proud of me for getting these on here so quickly?)

We had a beautiful Easter Sunday with family and friends. Our day started out with Payton's Easter Basket at home. Then, we were off to church to a wonderful Easter service. I sang in choir, Robb played for the choir, and also played the offertory, so it was a bit busy, but a wonderful service. After church, we went to my parent's house for a fabulous Easter Sunday dinner...with all the works! We were joined by the Heath's, and had such a wonderful time with them. Here are a few pictures from our day.

Payton's Easter basket held these sunglasses...she was thrilled! It's one of her new favorite things, though they are usually on upside down!

Somehow, the Easter dress and glasses just don't quite go together!

I had to include this picture...Payton has recently been especially into "cuddling"...we are loving it!

My two favorite people in the whole world!

Easter Egg Hunt...it took her awhile, but we finally got two eggs in her basket!

Four adorable children! Payton just loves the Heath kids, and the feeling is pretty mutual! Kelly and I were laughing...neither of us had any idea what color scheme we were doing for Easter, but the children matched pretty well!

These two could be dangerous if left alone! They were enjoying everyone's Easter Egg stash!

Payton absolutely loves her Grandpa (and her Nana too!)

Payton's Easter basket from my parent's held this adorable "Little People' Easter train...Payton has really been enjoying it!

She was getting SO tired! She kept laying her head over on her little bunny and saying "Aww." It was so cute!

We hope each of you had as delightful an Easter as we did! Happy Spring!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter from our home to yours! Hope you have a very blessed day!

Payton- 15 months old!

Payton is so full of life! She has officially "figured out" walking, and is EVERYWHERE! Honestly, I've babysat lots and lots of children, and she is as busy a child as I've ever seen! We are enjoying watching her learn and grow with each passing day. Her vocabulary consists of "thank you", "Mama", "Dada (sometimes Daddy), "Nana", "Bye-Bye", and she tries to say "rocky-rocky" while rocking in "her" chair at my mom's house. Such a fun stage in her little life...we are looking forward to "hunting" Easter eggs tomorrow!

Happy Easter, everyone, and may we each remember and reflect on the true reason for Easter.

Shopping and Food in Paris

Well, those of you who know me had to be expecting this post! Shopping in Paris? Heavenly!

For Robb, eating in Paris? Heavenly!

Hope you enjoy a few snapshots of some of our favorites!

The Champs-Elysees is truly the place to see and be seen in Paris. This street hold lots of history in itself. At one end is the Arc de Triomphe (more on that later, but a very famous place!), and on the other end is the Louvre. You can imagine why the Champs-Elysees is the 2nd most expensive real estate in the WORLD, second only to Park Ave. in NYC.

You can see the Arc de Triomphe behind me. The shopping on this street was absolutely fantastic...notice I said the "shopping", not the "buying"! We didn't buy much here, but it really was fun to people-watch and window-shop!

One night, we enjoyed escargot! We were a little nervous about trying it, but we actually loved it! It tasted very much like stuffed mushrooms!

I forgot to take a picture before we started, but here we are, a couple snails into it!

Off to another restaurant for dessert...doesn't the window display say it all?

My huge puchase of the trip...Robb surprised me by having me pick out an Hermes scarf! Hermes is true "couture" French, and I, LOVING scarves, was very excited to have my very own real one!!! It is the perfect kind of scarf--can be worn as a belt, headband, or regular scarf around the neck! (If you look at the pictures of us eating escargot, I am wearing it in my hair).

The very large, flagship Hermes store was very interesting on its own. There is a leather guy there handmaking sadles, bridles, etc. The handbags there are truly for only the very, very wealthy, but it was fun to look!

These flower stands are on every corner, it seems!

One of my favorite children's shops along the Champs-Elysees.

No, this isn't a cathedral...it's a department store!!!! Can you believe it? It is absolutely beautiful...worth going just to see! One of the services this 9-floor store offers is a free personal shopper, so I made an appointment one afternoon and had a blast! I got a beautiful linen dress and shirt, but most of all, had lots of fun with a fashion "expert"!

Shopping at the Galeries Lafayette

The antiques flea market was a fantastic experience! I was wishing I could ship all the furniture home with me!!! I did find a couple of beautiful antique lanterns that would fit in my suitcase, and I haggled till the price was right...so much fun!

This is a different flea market...a small one right by our hotel. It mostly had food, things like that, but was also interesting. We only had a few minutes there, but I did find some smocked dresses for Payton for amazing prices!

Robb snapped this picture, saying it would be me if we lived there! I think it was actually a VENDOR'S car, not a SHOPPER'S!

Need I say more?

Good thing we walked everywhere we went, or we could have gained some serious pounds!

I'm getting hungry just blogging about these pastries! In America, this would be an expensive specialty shop...in Paris, just another cafe on another street corner...amazing!

Notre Dame Cathedral

The first stone of the Notre-Dame Cathedral was laid in 1163 by Pope Alexander III. It took 170 years to complete. It stands on the site of a Roman temple. For me, it was one of those places that you go see because you are "supposed" to see it, but I was so, so glad we did. It is extremely beautiful and impressive. The pictures aren't the greatest--we never were exactly sure if we could take pictures or not, so we tried to just do it discreetly!

One of three main entrances.

This was interesting to me...see the smaller statues in the center of the picture? The heads of these statues were all cut off by the revolutionists during the French Revolution. Later, replicas were made and put back on the statues. During the last century, the real heads (all but 1) were discovered during a nearby excavation. They are now on display in the museum.

The ceiling...amazing that things like this could be built that long ago.

The choir stalls

If you get bored will all the stained glass...sorry! It was my favorite part! This is the famous South Rose window, which is 43 ft. high.

On the "back" of the cathedral are the flying buttresses. They span 50 feet, and are truly spectacular. Pictures truly do not do this place justice.

You can see the buttresses a little better here.