Day 2 in Montreal

Today's weather was again nicer than anticipated so we got to eat breakfast in the garden again. We got a lovely fruit and yogurt salad today and a frittata with veggies and bacon. Perfect start to the day!

We took the metro to the Marche Atwater, one of Montreal's major farmers markets. (Random aside: When we got off the metro we looked at some street signs and looked at a map to make sure we headed down the street in the right direction. then we simultaneously made references to Dora the Explorer. What can I say? we have a two year old.) Anyway, part of the market is outdoor stalls, part is indoors. We were searching for picnic components to take with us. We bought a tray of locally-grown strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries (which turned out to be some of the best berries I've ever had), a loaf of artisan bread, and two cheeses from a fromagerie: Conte 3 ans and Epoisses Perriere. The first was an aged hard cheese that had a texture like Parmesan but a flavor somewhat milder; reminded me a bit of Gouda. Quite a complex flavor. The second was a soft runny cheese that we spread on slices of bread. I thought I didn't care for soft cheeses very much but this one was great.

We got the pain grains anciens on the left.

The fruit stall. Everything looked so delicious!

We hopped back on the metro to head toward Mont Royal, a big hill (which you hear referred to as a mountain) right in the middle of the city. You can drive to the top but we opted to hike. There is a trail that zigzags up the side of the hill or you can take some stairs as a shortcut. We mostly walked so add another mile or two to our walking total for this trip. We were more than ready to enjoy our bread, cheese, and berries when we found a bench near the top.

There are nicer paths but we took a few shortcuts on steeper, rougher trails like this one.

The view from the summit is worth all exertion to get there.

We were tired when we reached the bottom again. I'm not in bad shape these days and my legs felt a little shaky! So after a brief stop at a coffee shop we headed back to our B&B for a late afternoon rest. So nice. Just stopping to relax in the middle of the day almost never happens at home.

We jumped on the metro once again in the late afternoon (getting our money's worth for our 3 day pass!) and headed downtown to get some street food and see a movie. We found a stall selling poutine, which is the quintessential Montreal food. French fries topped with cheese curds topped with brown gravy. Pretty tasty. Salty, as you might expect. Good for a quick bite when you have further plans. Then we found a theater (took some looking, it was inside a sort of mall that didn't look anything like a theater from the outside) and saw The Great Gatsby. Good movie. Makes me want to read the book again cause it's been, oh, seventeen years or so. Pretty sure I remembered about 1% of the storyline.

You'll be shocked to hear that we ate dessert after the movie. Wonderful pieces of chocolate cake from a patisserie IN THE MALL. American malls have Mrs. Field's chain store cookies, Québécois malls have real pastry shops. Sweet!

And that was day 2. :-)

 

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What I Did on my Summer Vacation (or, Day 1 in Montreal)

Note: This was written Thursday night but published Friday morning because of Internet trouble at our B&B.

If you will be bored by lots of details about our time in Montreal, you might want to tune out for the next few blog posts. When Zach and I took a trip to France and Italy six years ago, we bought a little journal and every night I wrote what we had done, where we had eaten, etc. We have enjoyed reading it since then and reliving those wonderful memories. So I want to do the same thing for this trip, only via the blog.

The weather was unexpectedly nice this morning so we got to have breakfast in the back garden. It is like a little secret garden, surrounded by tall walls. Delicious food: French toast with freshly-made raspberry jam and fresh fruit. Not too heavy, leaving us feeling perfectly entitled to stop for a mid-morning pastry.

The mid-morning pastry: brioche de chocolat valhrona

olive + gourmando was a place we had read about online and it did not disappoint. It was kind of hard to choose what to get. Gee, maybe we'll have to go back.

I will know what a snickers square tastes like by the end of this trip.

After successfully purchasing metro passes and navigating the subway, we spent the first half of our day in Vieux Montreal, the old city. Narrow, cobbled streets and beautiful buildings everywhere. We will probably go back there for dinner once or twice because there were so many amazing looking restaurants.

Hard to believe we're not in Europe!

In the picture above you are looking down at Vieux Port (the old port) and that's where we headed next. A science festival is happening there this weekend so we might go back; they were setting things up today and some of the exhibits look entertaining. We grabbed a small lunch at a food court near the science museum and decided to take a boat tour. Well worth it--I feel like I have a much better sense of how the city is laid out now, at least the side along the St. Laurence river. We got to see some container ships being unloaded and learn about Montreal's advantages and disadvantages as a port city. Call me a nerd if you like but I found all that kind of interesting.

The tour boat

A cute couple on the tour boat. Who then went downstairs because they didn't want to get sunburned.

Cool cube-y apartments. They were built for the 1967 Worlds Fair if I remember aright.

I thought Austin might like a close-up of a container ship that was passing by.

After the tour we headed up Boulevard St Laurent, which is sort of at the heart of the cultural life of Montreal. Theaters, restaurants, bars, shops, etc. go on for blocks. We stumbled across not one but two more festivals while in that area. First, the Francofolies, which I believe is a celebration of francophone culture in Montreal. There was one band playing and we saw several stages--I bet that place will be packed this weekend. Second, a festival of murals. Walls were being painted as we walked by.

And a car.

We ate dinner on a little street off of Blvd. St. Laurent that was just beautiful. Charming buildings that absolutely reminded me of Paris and a little fountain that was right behind me as we ate on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant. The restaurant was a French place called Le Square. We had asparagus gratin for our entree (which means appetizer in French), then Zach had a pork chop with honey mustard sauce and ratatouille while I had tilapia with mango-pineapple sauce. Oh, and they served wonderful bread that they got from a bakery right around the corner.

Fancy plating! But a few bites are missing...we dove in so eagerly that I forgot I wanted to take a picture first.

Our last stop was another place we'd read about online, Juliette et Chocolat. (Can you tell how much research involving coffee and sweets we did prior to the trip?) Their menu was full of incredibly decadent chocolatey goodness. I had a trifle with brownie bites, whipped cream, caramel, and a little cup of chocolate sauce I could pour on at will. Zach had a brownie with ice cream and the same sauce. Wow. That's another spot that I have a feeling will get a return visit from us.

Mmmmm

So, overall impressions of Montreal after our first full day? It's a beautiful city where old and new live side by side. The population is quite diverse...it is interesting to hear people of all ethnic backgrounds speaking French around you. There is a large population of young, hipster-ish types. I felt welcome everywhere we went despite our weak language skills; people kindly spoke English to us after an initial French greeting. I like this city!

Boy are we worn out, though. We must have walked four or five miles today, maybe more. I am so glad we splurged on lodgings with an enormous bathtub. I think it's calling my name.

 

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We're Off!

Thanks to our amazing parents (who are brave enough to take on our four kids), Zach and I are headed to Montreal today! It's an 11th anniversary trip; we were a little too busy with newborns last summer to take a trip for the more traditionally-celebrated 10 year mark. Why Montreal? I've wanted to visit ever since high school French class, it's international without being overseas, and well, it just looks like a fun place to visit.

In the five years since Austin was born, I have only spent two nights away from my kids (not counting nights in the hospital because they hardly qualify as a vacation). It is not that I am against leaving my kids with someone else so I can spend concentrated time with Zach, but rather the logistics of willing babysitters (family) living hundreds of miles away. But we decided months back that we wanted to make this a priority. Our marriage is a priority. We love love love our kids but having four of them so young has made for a crazy year. So we saved our pennies, made arrangements with the grandparents, and now it's time to go!

Saying goodbye to the kids this morning was emotional, as I knew it would be. Austin was so sweet, he said he hoped we would have fun and assured us that he would have fun. Esther was pretty sleepy this morning and I doubt she really processed what was happening, but I got a sweet I love you from her last night and that's enough. Joshua and Jude gave me some snuggles this morning. Little moments to treasure while we're away. This is the farthest physical distance that has ever existed between me and my kids and it's bringing out a lot of mixed feelings. Every kid I saw in the airports made me think of my own. Part of me is embracing this freedom with Zach, enjoying how carefree one can be on a trip like this, and then thoughts of the kids pop into my head and I miss them so much. I guess this is all to be expected; I am not going to let myself feel guilty about this, though.

****Insert here hours-long interlude of air travel which is really too boring to write about****

Aaand we're here in Montreal! We made it through customs, hopped in a cab, and the first thing I saw as we left the airport was...Walmart. Seriously. (Shaking head.) I came all the way to Canada to see Walmart? Okay, maybe I should back up and say one cool thing about the hours of travel. As the plane was descending into Montreal we got a great bird's eye view of several areas we've read about like Mont Royal and the Olympic Stadium. So I'll think of that as my first Montreal memory instead.

We are staying in a bed and breakfast in the Verdun neighborhood of Montreal. We wandered around a bit before choosing a restaurant for dinner and it is most definitely a neighborhood, not full of tourists at all. Houses, apartments, sketchy-looking convenience stores, a surprising number of secondhand shops, some restaurants. It reminds me of Paris and New York at the same time.

We chose to eat at a place called Woodland Pizza because we saw people eating delicious looking Italian food through the window. In my opinion, walking into a restaurant in a foreign country is perhaps the most uncomfortable part of foreign travel. (I've done an incredibly small amount of international travel, mind you.) The person who greets you doesn't yet know you're not comfortable with the language so you get asked something in that language which you do your best to process and respond appropriately, but invariably your deer-in-the-headlights look reveals your foreign identity. And then (fortunately for me in the places I've visited) they smile and start speaking English. Our server tonight was quite kind; she and the bartender even gave Zach some tips on getting around in the area while he paid. But man, I wish I remembered my high school French.

Our room at the B&B is beautiful and happens to be the only thing I have a picture of tonight.

Hmm, wonder what time we'll wake up tomorrow without kids around? I'm excited to find out empirically rather than hypothetically. :-)

 

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Texas Fun

If you didn't catch it in my last post, we are in Texas right now, in the middle of a nearly month-long trip to visit both families PLUS Zach and I are taking an anniversary trip in the middle of it all! It has been a great trip so far...even after almost 2000 miles in the car together.

Let's start with some stereotypical Texas sights: livestock.

On Saturday Becky organized a little family reunion of sorts...we got to visit with extended family that I haven't seen in a few years.

The kids, especially Austin, LOVED playing with Zach's cousin Faith.

Us + Gran and Pops + Uncle Heath

Esther adores her Pops and he adores her right back.

A baby (sorry, don't know who) attempts a little coloring.

The finished product. Haha, just kidding...Austin has colored many pictures like this one from his newest coloring book. He is developing a distinct style. Love it.

All four pretending the cots are mountains.

Making soft-serve with Gran. Mmm, Blue Bell ice cream.

Joshua learns how to make breakfast pizza.

Gran and Pops have lots of books for our little bookworms.

When packing for a big trip, don't forget to take your children. ;-)

Hard at work. Esther had the biggest grin on her face!

Kind of blurry, but this perfectly captures the mood when we went to a hibachi restaurant. Austin watched with glee, Esther frowned, covered her ears, and snuggled with Gran or Daddy through the whole meal.

Getting ready to go to the Rangers game

At the game

Next stop for me and Zach: Montreal!

 

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Eleven

Eleven years ago I woke up early with a sense of happy anticipation. I spent the morning preparing with family and friends, then at 3pm I married my best friend.

This morning I also woke up early with a sense of anticipation, with my beloved in the bed next to me. We spent a short time preparing, then at 8am we ran a 5k together! The Joe's Run in Fort Worth was my second race and Zach's first. We got cheered on by our kids and parents, ran the whole thing, and crossed the finish line together in 33:29. Together...our favorite way to do most things.

Cheered on by the kids just past the halfway point

The race had a parrot mascot who actually ran the race. He took time to pose with our kids, though.

Post-race picture. What a cute couple!

Life with Zach is not much like I thought it would be eleven years ago. It is so much better.

 

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Sweet sleepyheads

These babies have been asleep a loooong time and I should probably get them up but I'm going to sit in this peaceful room and blog about them instead. :-)

Joshua

Jude

Endings

Three of my four children experienced a significant ending of one sort or another this week. First Austin's Pre-K4 class completed the year with a pizza party on Monday and a graduation program on Wednesday. I got, if not exactly emotional, at least reflective when I saw his backpack on the floor near the front door Monday afternoon. He dropped it when he came in and took off his shoes, and it struck me that I need to find a new home for it. Picking it up and hanging it in its usual spot on the doorknob of our coat closet is no longer the right thing to do because I won't be sending a child out the door to school any more. Possibly ever. Wow.

An aside...I've been wondering how much Austin really understands about what it means to be homeschooled; after all, we've done some math and phonics at home this year even as he's gone to preschool three mornings a week. Would he think that hybrid will continue? But Mrs. McCullough, his teacher, told me when other children went next door to visit his school's kindergarten class, he matter-of-factly said that he'll have school at home with Mommy next year. So he gets it, I think.

I am so satisfied with our decision to send him to Seeds of Faith this past year, though. He made huge strides in his writing and coloring, and he made lots of little buddies...I hope we can maintain those friendships. Wednesday's program was cute, as nearly all programs involving eleven four and five year olds are.

Singing "I am a promise" with their capital Ps.

The second ending is of an entirely different sort. This morning I nursed Joshua and Jude for the last time. I'll admit, I cried a little bit. I was somewhat sad when Austin and Esther stopped nursing but they seemed ready; Joshua and Jude on the other hand have seemed to depend on their morning feeding quite a bit. And knowing that they are my last babies, the last little ones who will depend on me in such a physical way...gosh, I'm crying again. The twins are not snugglers so breastfeeding them has provided a few minutes of snuggly time each day that I treasure.

So why stop? The primary reason is that Zach and I are taking a just-us trip in two and a half weeks so weaning has long been a goal prior to our departure. And they are thirteen months old. My goal with all the kids was to nurse them to a year and I did it with all four. But it's still hard to give up.

Don't Let the Door Hit You...

The twins spent some time playing with the front door this morning. Amazingly, no one got injured, and we caught it on video. I believe Joshua is on the left for those of you keeping track.

Close

As in, close to walking. Joshua, at least, is very close to walking. He pulls up on everything, scoots around the edges of his playard, and tonight did this:

Fun. Scary. Mostly fun. :-)

Getting a Little Crazy Around Here

I've been feeling a little crazy lately. And it's not the kids' behavior or Zach's schedule or any particular set of circumstances. It's crazy ideas I've had (and carried out) while Zach has been out of town this weekend and last.

Weekend #1--Zach took Austin to Houston on a 48-hour trip to celebrate Grannie Hardy's 100th birthday. Taking the whole family would have been expensive and stressful so I stayed home with the three littlest.

So Saturday I decided to change the sheets on my bed, and since I got going on that early in the day I figured it was a good time to wash the mattress pad, pillow covers, and pillows. Then I decided to rotate the mattress because it had been a long while since it was done. Then I decided, as long as I was heaving around the heavy top mattress, I might as well experiment with a new location for the bed. Been wanting to do that for awhile. So I took advantage of the twins' morning nap and did it.

Hey, one thing leads to another.

Before (Picture from 2007...pre-kids...I don't bother with throw pillows
and other non-essentials anymore)

After (Picture from today...yep it's a bit messy...on top of everything
else I'm working on a bunch of Women's Club of IUP paperwork, hence
piles on the ironing board)

I really like the new room arrangement! We're not sure we'll keep it when the weather turns cold again next winter (might be chillier in our bed against an exterior wall) but for now it's lovely to have a change.

Weekend #2--Zach has been in West Virginia since Thursday; he comes back late tomorrow evening. Knowing this trip would take him and our family car away for four days and knowing therefore that we would not be going anywhere for four whole days, I decided to potty train Esther. Yeah, home by myself with Austin and the twins.

Background: we made a potty training attempt in January. A completely unsuccessful attempt. By the middle of day four, when we were having just as many accidents as the beginning of day one, we decided to give up. So I was understandably a little nervous going into this second attempt, but determined to see it through. I used some new strategies that a MOPS mommy told me about and prayed a lot.

And...SUCCESS! Most of day one (Thursday) was pretty rough, but things started to click in the evening and since yesterday Esther has had only one accident. Today she even took herself off to the bathroom completely independently a few times and was finished before I realized where she was. Hooray!

So...Zach has one more out-of-town weekend this month. What craziness should I get into next?
:-)