Ahhh, Paris!

For the President's Day weekend we headed to Paris.  It is only a 4 hour drive, but we have put it off for a year and a half.  It was time to see the city and enjoy Paris.  Just so nobody gets the impression that it was all chic and Parisian all the time let me state that we 1)Found a "cheap"(cheap and Paris cheap are two different things) place to stay that was kind of like a camping trailer, but with bathroom, kitchen, and heat.  2)We brought our own food and ate in the trailer so as to avoid having to force the kids to eat snails and the such. 3)We also packed a picnic lunch each day to enjoy on the walk.  4)Last of all, we invited our friends.  With the 4 adults and 11 children we guarenteed that the trip would closely resemble a 3 ring circus sure to draw the attention of anyone in the area.  It was an awesome trip! 

 

We were lucky enough to find sun in Paris.  It wasn't really warm, but seeing the sun was a real treat on this trip.  I hear that the sun found Germany too, but really I think that is just a folktale.  Germany isn't really acquainted with the sun. 

 

I have a ton of pictures, for like everywhere we travel I really want to be able to look back and while sitting in Kansas or somewhere remember that there was a time when I saw and experienced Europe.  I didn't include many of the pics, but rather just a few from each of the places we went.

 

 

 

Arc de Triomphe

Sun!  We aren't really used to it.

 

See?  Circus!  10 of the 11 kids.

Why the warriors can't wear clothes I'll never know.

Eiffel Tower, our first glimpse

Davis

 

Eating lunch at a park at the base of the tower.  Pretty great location.  Anya is sleeping on my back.
We had wanted to go to the top, or at least the first or second platform, but the lines were crazy long and there weren't tickets to be reserved. No way we'd be able to keep the kids waiting in line for that long.   Also it would cost about $100 for our family to go to the top, but the lines were really what stopped us. 
 



This was on my bucket list..Kiss my love in front of the Eiffel Tower. 

 

Catacombes de Paris

Creepy!  Underground dumping spot of the bodies when the city cemetaries got too full.  Over 6 million bodies are now located here.  Someone went through and organized the bones.  It was dark and with all the underground tunnels lined with bones, it was a total HIT with the kids.

Jag always on the hunt for the skull with teeth or a lower jaw.

The skulls were often arranged in patterns and crosses.

Sacre-Coeur

A white church on top of a large hill that overlooks the entire city of Paris. 

 

Bagettes while waiting for the metro.

 

Eiffel at Night

They light the Eiffel tower up at night time and each hour on the hour for 5 minutes it sparkes white like a sparkler.

The Barney Family

Church in the Paris Ward

The ward was mostly Asian.  We wore headphones.  Talked to a missionary who was called to the Paris mission, Chinese speaking.  Talk about tough, here live in a foreign country, but you aren't even going to be taught the lanuage of the country so that you can get around.

 

Lots of metro/train riding.  Much better than walking everywhere with the kids.

Noah and Christian
France's transportation was very expensive compared to other places we've been.  They even require children to have a ticket which is unusual and expensive.

 

Notre-Dame

Another great location for lunch.

 

 

Inside Notre-Dame.  Notice the large bells down the center.  It was a packed house for Sunday Mass.

 

Back side of Notre-Dame

 Sainte Chapelle

The chapel was built inside the palace to house the relics collected by St. Louis on his many Crusades.

This is the part for the Palace workers to worship.

The Kings chapel.  EVERY wall was covered in stained glass depicting the creation through the resurrection.  With the stained glass and all the gold that was around it would have been quite a thing to see in the day.  It would have been necessary to wear sunglasses.

 

Louvre

For Brooke.  This is the Code of Hammurabi!  First set of written laws.  It is hard to see the small words carved on it.  I was surprised at how big it was.



Venus de Milo

Mona Lisa

The Louve is massive.  It is a museum inside of a museum.  The building itself is full of amazingly painted ceilings and sculptures. It was impossible to see even a fraction of the exhibits, especially with kids parading around.  Noah pointed out that there were a lot of people that couldn't wear clothes.  It was true.  We decided to hit the "big" attractions and then to go through Egypt because that had the cool mummies and kid pleasing items.

 

Suresues American Cemetary

WWI cemetary in which President Hinkley's brother, Stanford Hinkley, is buried.

We heard great stories about President Hinkley from the little lady that has worked at the cemetary for almost 30 years.  It was a neat experience.  This cemetary is about 5 miles outside of Paris on a hill and has an amazing view of the city.



10/11 kids.  It is fun to hang out with the Barney's.  All of our kids match up with a best buddy in their family.  They also have a 15 year old son.

Just a few more notes from our trip:
*Tolls!  France, grr.  60 euros for us to drive to and from Paris.
*Bathrooms!  Free!  With 15 we tried to make up our toll money in this department.  Especially with 2 newly potty trained toddlers.
*Bakeries.  Not as easy to find as they should be.  Not as numerous as in many other European countries.  Getting an eclair in Paris was also on my bucket list, but we weren't able to find one.  (I'm going to be making up for this in the near future.)  We stopped on our way home at a French grocery and grabbed some, but it wasn't in Paris.
*Weather.  For February we couldn't have asked for better weather.  It was cold, but it was sunny and we didn't have any rain!
*Troubles.  None really.  With every big city you hear of the pick pockets and gypsies etc, but although we saw them (gypsies not pick pocketers) we weren't bothered.  Nobody got their head stuck anywhere.  Where is the excitement in that?  Darin did make a wrong turn on our drive into town and we found a street LINED with the "Ladies" of the night.  Cars were pulling over and they were jumping in.  I was afraid to slow down enough to turn around for fear that a lady would come running over to our van.  What a shocker that would have been for her. 

Valentine Photos

For the grandparents that didn't see these on Facebook.  Pictures from a recent photo session.

 

My sweet little Valentine. 

 

We love you all!

 



It is Expensive to Freeze

I hate to be cold.  I feel like I am freezing all of the time.  In my house and outside.  IN MY HOUSE.  Freezing.  Snow started in December, then by Christmas we were having a heatwave and up to 45.  January comes and the snow and freezing temps start.  Of course Darin was gone for a couple of weeks and it snowed every day.  I shoveled every day.  We even had church cancelled.  Now as February has started it has been raining.  Enough rain that there isn't any snow anywhere.  Everyday rain and lots of wind.  I'd rather it snowed.

 

We heat, or at least try to heat, our house with oil. These are our large oil tanks that are in the basement. We filled the tanks one and a half sections for 1500 euros. It should only be necessary to fill it once a year, but at that price you put on another jacket in your freezing house. We wear layers, keep doors shut, heat only rooms we are in, and turn it down at night. I bake every day to help heat the house, but I have yet to say that my old, drafty, German house is warm and cozy.

 

 

The crazy thing about the Germans is that they always open their windows to "air out the house." I am OK with the airing out, if it is summer. I am not OK with making my house even colder. German houses have radiators and they don't blow air, so it is necessary to open the windows to prevent mold? or illness? or (in my opinion) warmth. I am always amazed to walk by a house that has every.single.window.open. and it is below freezing. Hardy Folks these Deutchers.

This is NOT my house.  My windows are closed.

 

 

 

I guess that is just the price I pay to live in Europe...I know, rough.

 



My Anya

Lotion Anyone?

Queen of screaming tantrums!

The best mommy ever. She is also a very good artist.

The day dad was in charge.  She was warmly dressed at least.

She has lots of hair and sits for a long time and lets me do whatever I like.  It is so much fun for me!
 

 

Her smile usually gets her whatever she wants. 
It doesn't hurt that she knows which brother to go to for each of her different needs and they always cave.

 

 

 

She has a huge vocabulary and a supersized personality.  She is bossy and very funny.  She is in love with all of her brothers when she isn't mad at them.  She is the biggest tease in the house.

I am totally in LOVE with this little girl.

 Everyone in this house is. 

 

He Would Have Freaked Out if I'd Taken a Picture!

Darin was gone for a couple of weeks and while he was gone I took the kids bowling with some friends.  After our first bowling game, Noah, Anya, and I visited with our friends while waiting for the older boys to bowl again.  Noah was playing monkey with his little friend on the bowling ball racks.  After about 5 frames India comes running to us and informs us that Noah's head is stuck.

Stuck!  *Insert the scream of the boy from Christmas story with his tongue stuck to the flag pole* Noah some how got his head up between the 2 rails that hold the bowling balls.  4-5 inches!  That is all the space that the little guy had.  He was tricky and somehow managed a rebirth and got his head up between the rails.  The husband took a calm presence and I freaked out and thought about the lecture that Darin would give me when he heard about this.  We pushed and pulled on Noah's head.  It was impossible without totally removing his ears to get his head down and out.  A kind bystander offered lotion and we greased his entire head up filling his ears.  More pushing and screaming and still nothing. 

Finally we decided that it was time to involve the staff at the alley and most likely the fire department because these were steel poles that his head was stuck in. 

Now a note about Noah.  He hates unwanted attention!  He doesn't want anyone to look at him or talk to him especially when he is in an attention-grabbing situation.  The fact that everyone was looking at him was as much torture as the stuck head.  Now someone said fire department and left to get more people involved.  That was about it for him.

Noah got a look of determination on his greasy little face and said, "I'm coming out."  Then he sucked in all his breath and forced himself UP (we'd already tried this, but his chest/ribs wouldn't fit).  Screaming and determined he crammed his body into the 12 inch space between the top ball rack and the counter top.  I still don't know how he did it.  He was greasy, crying, scared, scraped up, but out. And the fire department could enjoy their Friday night.

Wow!  Everything is better with the Fawcett's.

Later Noah told me that something in his head told him that he shouldn't stick his head in the bars, but he didn't listen.  We have since had a lesson on listening to the voice that tells us not to do stupid things that almost make us live at a bowling alley forever.

The craziest thing of all is that this isn't the first time a Fawcett boy has gotten their head stuck in a place that is way too small.  Christian did it at Noah's age, but between fence bars at a castle in Turkey.  Nothing like seeing a man try to channel their inner Superman and bend some steel.

Anyone want to go bowling?  The Fawett's are sure to bring the fun.

Worms (Vurms)

I am starting to feel like a brat as I whine that I haven't been anywhere except for Christmas markets in two months.  But...insert whine...I haven't been anywhere.  Then Darin reminded me that we went to Worms, pronounced Vurms, and that is somewhere.  My issue is that it is only about an hour from our house, so doesn't that count?!

He says yes.

 

Europe's oldest Jewish cemetary is in Worms.  It was really neat.

A lot of the headstones were half buried and moss covered because they were so old.

The traditional paper and/or rock that is left on the Jewish headstones.

Milestones

 

We had a few major events between November and December that I had forgotten to mention.  These are definitely things that I want to remember. 

Number 1:  No more DIAPERS at our house! 

Because it is winter and I didn't trust her in pants, she ran around in the lovely outfit of undies and leg warmers.  She was so cute.

Number 2:  Jag had his LAST appointment for his hip!

This may be hard to see, but the Left picture is his current X-ray.  The Right picture is the X-ray from a year and a half ago.  When I saw the x-rays this time I clapped.  It looks done.  The doctor pointed out that it isn't shaped quite right, but looks like it is done.  I have seen the entire process from the time he was 2 1/2 and I know that he is done.  I didn't expect perfect, but his hip looks great.  This Dr. hasn't really dealt with Perthes disease, but he'd done some reading.  Jag still has some occasional painful nights, but they have decreased greatly.  We don't have to go to the Dr. again unless he all of a sudden starts having problems or pain.  6 years of hip pains are almost over.

 

 Number 3:  Noah became a READER!

Noah finished our reading book!  After using this book to teach 4 kids to read, I am so glad that there is only one more.   The book works!  The kids are great, but teaching a kid to read is a long, long process.  I am glad for the break.  Noah is an excellent and willing reader.  He didn't have the gap between 'I can read' and 'I am a reader' that some of his brothers had.  We had a party.  That is an N...for Noah.  Lame, but tasty.

Noah showing his brothers how well he reads.  I now have to watch him because he likes to read over my shoulder when I am on the computer.