Notre Dame Bell Towers

There was no doubt in the girls' mind that they would be climbing the towers of Notre Dame. Having never done this before, it was a new adventure for even Mommy and Daddy.

The views were spectacular! Why didn't we do this on previous trips?

Imitating the gargoyles - hey, it is all part of the mission!

They made it to the very top with no complaints! Whoop! Whoop!

Notre Dame

Next stop: Notre Dame! Of course the girls know of this place. It's where Quasimodo lives.

From the outside of the cathedral, the girls searched for Point Zero (the official center of Paris), counted the number of Biblical Kings (mistaken as kings of France, and thus beheaded, during the French Revolution) and Saint Denis (legend had it, after he was beheaded, Saint Denis picked up his own head and walked a few miles before calling it quits).

The inside of the cathedral was particularly stunning this time of the year, all decorated for Christmas.

And the rose window is just as difficult to photograph as always.

Purty. There is something so peaceful about being in a grand old cathedral. So many stories it must hold!

Wordless Wednesday

Sainte-Chapelle

Our first tourist site is Sainte-Chapelle (a favorite of Mommy's). There is no doubt that the stained glass windows of this church are impressive. It's so pretty that it's difficult to photograph and do it any justice.

Needless to say, the girls were in aww.

The girls' mission is to explore the chapel and uncover secret reminders of both King Louis IX (fleur-de-lys) and his mother (castile). They quickly became experts on spotting the symbols in every little piece of decor around the chapel.

Mission Paris

And we're off! The girls are so excited about our trip, and who can blame them? To add to the fun, we found a book called "Mission Paris" which looks so much fun! The girls will be trained on how to become a secret agent. Their assignment: Travel to Paris and perform a list of under cover missions. The girls have been given code names too. Addie is Special Agent Penguin. Ellie is Special Agent Huff-A-Lump 29. Daddy and Mommy are their case officers, and we go by the code names Cookie Monster and Frenchie. If the girls can collect 100 points, then they're qualify for a Special Agent Certificate!

Do you think the girls have what it takes to become a SIA Special Agent?

Preparing for Paris

To help get the family into the right mode for our upcoming trip to Paris, we decided to take French lessons. The girls really enjoy the classes and the teacher seems to think they have a natural talent for languages. I hope so. I would love to have them know at least one other language. We'll be continuing taking classes because I happen to think it's in important skill to have. Some day maybe we'll be able to speak French together, like a secret language of sorts.

As for me, I had completely forgotten how much I enjoy speaking French. I love it. It's been quite some time since I've spoken, but my understanding is decent. The speaking is slow, but with more practice that will improve. I think I like it so much that I'll continue lessons of some sort even after our trip.

As the trip approaches, it made me smile to stumble upon this gem. Addie drew about her excitement for our trip to Paris. She included the things she's most excited about - The Eiffel Tower and the bear she will find on Bussi Island. You may be wondering what Bussi Island is. Stay tuned...

Smarty Pants Dance

(from February)

Clean House

Feels so good.

Daddy's Whistle

As much as I wish I could whistle (and since I can't, it's frustrating that this technique doesn't work for me), I have to admit that Daddy's method of getting the girls to come to him is brilliant.

Ellie's Guitar Lessons

I'm so impressed with how well Ellie is doing with her guitar lessons. Check out this sheet of music and then watch the video below. This was taken only an hour or two after she was first given this new song to play. I have never been one to know how to read music, so of course I'm impressed when I see my daughters doing it!