Wednesday, March 12, 2008

WE HAVE ARRIVED!!

OKAY, I will start by apologizing for the HUGE delay in posting!! 2 Add'l Bags (pak 'n plays), 2 Overweight Bags and 2 Regular 50 lb bags, 2 Strollers, a carryon chuck full of baby food, Big Ziploc Baggies full of formula (I promise, it really is just formula, this is what I had to tell the security man as I got pulled over for this crazy amount of baby stuff!) It was crazy and exhausting, BUT WE MADE IT!!! And to report, the flight was not too bad! The girls did really well! Thanks to an amazing flight attendant, bulkhead seating and Benadryl! Sadie was amazing, she slept for most of it, Samantha had a little bit of a rough time, but it was so funny in the morning as everyone was hitting up the bathroom right by us, they all would pass by and say, "Your babies were amazing, I was worried when I saw you sitting there, but these must be the best babies I've ever flown with! Only a few little peeps!!" So I am very proud of them! Also Thanks to Melo and all of her assistance, too bad Melo and I didn't get any shut eye! We were definetly feeling Jet Lagged when we got here!! But it seems like we have finally adjusted!!

So the reunion with Jake was Fabulous!! It's hard to express how great it was to see him and have him see the girls and get us all reunited again!! I really don't know how military couples do it! The girls seemed maybe a little confused for a minute, but warmed right up!! We were quite the spectacle going through the airport with our mountain of luggage, we had some interesting experiences with the language right off the bat! As we were heading through the cattle herd of Immigration we were being summoned by airport workers but could not understand what they wanted us to do!! So we just stayed where we were feeling stupid, then another worker came up and atleast led us around to where he wanted us to go, it was the beginning of a rude awakening of just how awesome it would be to know French!!! I have got to get studying!

So here are some of the highlights so far!! The apartment itself is great, although there are a few things that are going to take a bit to get used to! I will actually take some pics to show you the funny things and to just show you around the place, I will save that for the next post!

So we got right out and saw some of the sites:

As you can see, it has been pretty cold here and rainy!! I can't imagine how much more fun it will be when it warms up! So far the girls don't seem to mind being bundled up, for the most part anyway!

The Eiffel Tower so far is my Favorite!! I love it so much when it does this glittery light thing!
It does it once every hour or 1/2 hour or so! It is so fun!

Notre Dame

We downloaded these cool podcasts to our IPOD's so it is like a self guided tour, it is good info and it helps you get more out of it!

That is Pont Neuf in the background, from where we are standing there is another awesome view of The Eiffel Tower!

Poor Sadie Janie!! So... since we have been here I think Sadie has got 3 goose eggs and then this one was a real Doozie!! It breaks my heart everytime I look at her! Our apt. has all hard wood floors, which is not ideal for the fact that the girls are learning to walk! This one was a run in with one of the rugs, CARPET BURN!!! This actually looks a lot better than it did at first! I swear I thought she broke her nose, it was so much more swollen and red!! It has been so sad, whenever we get on the metro you can see everyone staring at her racer striped nose and talking about it!! Thank Goodness she is a tough chick!!

This is Samantha already learning to love the Baguette's! Yummy!! I have to give a shout out to the croissants as well, they are my personal favorite!!

So hope that gives you an idea of what we are up to! I will hopefully be able to get some better pics once it warms up! I miss the sunshine!! We are having a great time, there have been some experiences that make me so grateful for the U.S.A.! I can tell it is going to be quite an adventure! That picture of Samantha and the baguette actually was our first and probably last time trying to eat out at a restaraunt!! Jake and I realized this as we looked across the table at each other fighting to keep the babies from falling underneath the table or taking everything on the table with them, or throwing little rocks at the neighboring tables!! You just take things for granted, like walking into a restaraunt and just expecting they would have highchairs, or atleast being able to communicate that we needed some! It might just be that we dont' know the right places to go, but so far it has not been quite as kid-friendly as I had hoped! The metro is awesome, except for all the stairs that we have to hoist the strollers up and down over and over!! It will be interesting to see how Jake and I figure out to get around by ourselves with the girls!! But that just makes it all the more adventurous, memorable and exciting, right?! Thanks to Melo and Eric and how much help they have been! We are so glad to have been able to see everything we have!! I am so glad Jake came first and got things all figured out! The little French he knows he can fake very well!

We miss you all!! And I promise to be on the ball and post often now that we are settled!!

AuRevoir, for now!!

16 comments:

Holli and Billy said...

Yeah! I am so excited everything is working out for the most part. I totally wish I could come visit! The Target pics turned out great, and you will be so excited to see them! Let me know if you want my mom to ship them to you. Can't wait for the next post! Love ya!

La said...

awe-mazing! it looks gorgeous despite the crummy weather. i cannot believe the girls are learning to walk. and last time i saw them they were still learning to sit up. it goes too fast. we miss you guys!

Anonymous said...

Oh I am so happy that you are settled FINALLY! It has been entirely to long! The girls are cuter than ever and they look like they are just "SOO BIG!!!" I am totally looking forward to seeing more pics! Looks like you guys are having a ton of fun though and Jake isn't living it up as a bachelor anymore!!

JC said...

That is great! You guys look like you belong. Too bad you won't stay long enough for the girls to get fluent in French. Tell Jake to say hi to Cosmo. :)

Anonymous said...

Ps...you and your sister look SO MUCH alike!! Way cute!

swampbaby said...

Yay, Daisie! I'm excited for you and your adventure. Keep in touch!

uvtcharl.blogspot.com said...

I am stuck sitting in kansas city at work looking at this amazing adventure and I am so coveting right now. You are making me sin! It looks so much fun and the girls are getting so big! Keep the updates coming!

Daryl and Ashley said...

So sad that I couldn't get together with you and Kim when you were here but when you come back I promise it will happen! I am so jealous how fun is that! What an expierience!

WESTWOOD'S said...

How fun for you. I am glad the flight went well and that you are having a good time.

Kristen said...

Love the pictures! Soooo pretty! Sorry we couldn't talk yesterday! I ended up working after all! How did the "American" resturant finding go? I hope better than the other expeirances! Lets try and IM next week! I should be online on Tuesday and Thursday in the morning. Talk to you soon!

The Mama said...

I am so happy for your reunion with Jake and to see France, wow!!
And,that is so cool that the girls had such a great plane ride!! Can't wait to see more pictures!

S&J Jones Family said...

How fun! You guys look happy to see each other again! I'm happy for you!

Natalie said...

I'm glad things have been going well and that you have settled in. It looks like you're having a fun time and I can't wait to see your future posts!!! I can't believe how big the girls are now!! I also thought I would let you know that Amelia has started crawling. Well hope to chat with you soon. Love ya!!

Adah said...

Long time no talk!! I am so happy you are all together again and look to be having a fun time!! Enjoy everything you can and try not to miss us too much!

Summer said...

It looks amazing! I want to come visit soooo badly. Travis keeps telling me to do it and I admit it is tempting. I just worry about leaving him alone with four kids for longer than a weekend. I can't get over how cute your girls are. You can tell they are Gunnells.

Leslee said...

Okay, that looks like so much fun! I am definitely jealous! And you did a good job on the stroller choice - I love them! I tried to call you before you left. How much did you end up having to pay that guy?