Christmas windows

We went windows viewing at Printemps and Galleries Lafayette after chinese lesson. The boys told me they enjoyed viewing the windows though I felt that they had outgrown this tradition. They used to look at each window for a long time, catching all the details.

Seb felt that the window displays were full of consumer goods and had lost the magical Christmas feeling like it used to be. There was even a display of EasyJet with its plane and bears dressed as crew members. 

We went into Galleries Lafayette to admire the center decoration. I find it really pretty with all the candies bright balloons.

I told the boys this was the last year but they were keen to come back next year. We shall see.

A letter from Father Christmas

The boys each received a letter from Father Christmas yesterday. Yipee!

A1 read out the letter to A2. Father Christmas mentioned that he got their letters from his elves while he was cutting wood in the forest. ....

The two letters were identical. At the end of the letter, Father Christmas invited them to color the coloring papers he sent and to upload them on LaPoste website with the help of an adult.

Not very authentic but well, still a nice gesture from LaPoste.

The boys spent their time after lunch coloring the image sent by Father Christmas. They intended to hang them on the Christmas tree for Father Christmas.

Christmas windows

Last Sunday after church, we went to admire the window display put up by the Grand Magasins, Galleries Lafayette and Printemps. Galleries' was on a white theme. The boys did not take long to view from one end to the other end. 

We then went into Galleries to look at the center display. The decoration above the bags section were grand. I liked it.

Under the big white Christmas tree was the Chanel stand. Other than Chanel No 5, there were other Chanel number perfume and the whole area smelled so good. There were many people so we did not stay long.

We continued towards Printemps and the boys stayed longer in front of each window. Though it was all about mode with Jimmy Choo cited everywhere, it was still fun for the kids to watch the moving puppets.

We stopped by FNAC to get some Christmas gifts and Seb got the boys a few books.

After that, we went to meet up the boys' nanny, Ah Yi. We catch up once a while. She made the boys apple and pear compote and bought them their favourite snacks, dried prunes and nuts. Too bad the boys could not communicate with her in Chinese. They spoke to her in French. A1 even tried to speak to her in English. Just made me laugh. I explained to him Ah Yi was from China and did not understand english.

That summed up our Sunday in Paris. There were many security guards checking bags at the entrance of every store. The thought that we might be attacked surfaced in my mind but I pushed it aside. We do have to live our lives as normal as possible despite the random violence.

Less of that Christmas magic

A1 and I went to choose the Christmas tree on Saturday when A2 was having his tennis lesson. We chose the tallest tree in the 150-175cm range for 29€. The two boys decorated the tree and I only helped to put the star at the top. They were really happy that Christmas is coming.

2 weeks ago, they each wrote a letter to Father Christmas. But alas, a 8 year old boy told A1 and his friend that the parents are the Father Christmas. A1 had his doubts but his friend and him were assured that Father Christmas exists because both of them had sent their letter to the same address.

Père Noël

1 Rue du Ciel étoilé

Pôle Nord

Note: La Poste (French postal service) takes care of letters addressed to Father Christmas. No stamp needed. We even get a reply from Father Christmas if our letters are sent out in time.

Yesterday, the canteen lady told us that during lunch, A1 had told a table of younger children that Father Christmas did not exist. I found a moment to be alone with him this evening and talked to him. He told me he believed a little that Father Christmas exists. I confirmed his doubt and he was surprised that we were the ones buying the presents. He asked if we went out on 24 Dec night to buy the presents. LOL. I told him that the presents were bought in advance and hidden in the garage.

I explained that a real Father Christmas existed a long time ago. Now, it is tradition for adults to fulfil Father Christmas' job in bringing joy to children. He is a big boy now to know this secret. I told him everyone in the family contributed to his presents. He took everything well. But he mentioned that it was no good to lie to children. That made me smile again. He had promised not to let the cat out of the bag for the younger children including his brother.

Then he went to get the money given by the Tooth Fairy. He wanted to pay me for the presents we bought them over the years. LOL again.

Gee. I am not sure how much he believes in the Tooth Fairy. But that is for another discussion. Christmas is just that little less magical. A2 is not stupid and he hangs out with A1's friends often. I wonder if he has doubts too.

The pop up Jungle book

 I ordered this book from Amazon as I read good reviews about it. I was so excited when I received it. I would like to give it as a Christmas present to my nephew who is taking English in his high school. However, Seb told me that he would be too old to be interested in such books. Maybe I will just keep it for my boys though I felt they are still young and might easily destroy this exquisite and delicate book.

This pop-up Jungle book is AMAZING. I love the engineering of this pop up book. I have no idea paper can be so 3D.

Just look at these pages. They are full of details. I love this book.

We still have a few weeks to Christmas. Maybe I will just change my mind and present it to the boys on Christmas. I am sharing about this book because it is an ideal Christmas present for children.

Christmas day is over.

Christmas 2011 was as usual spent at my in-laws'. This time round, toddler A2 was walking and awared of the happenings around him. He was a curious boy and when his grandfather started the fire at the fireplace, he was looking on nearby. Toddler A1 being the wise one stood at a distance. He does know that fire is hot and dangerous.

This was Christmas eve and we had an elaborate apperitif. Champagne with fingerfood. Toddler A2 had his dinner and was still stuffing himself with cheese cubes, cherry tomatoes and crackers after. We were amazed and afraid that he would suffer a tummy upset.

The next day, we prepared for the feast. Rather, the kids' grandparents. As usual, the grandfather opened up the fresh oysters and laid them up nicely on the silver plate. The grandmother prepared a vegetable starter for Seb among other yummies. One relative brought along his homemade foie gras, spice bread and log cake.

Here is a pic of toddler A2 all dressed up and playing with the TV remote control. I got him new clothes for christmas as he often wore hand-me downs. He is really no longer a baby.

And the presents waiting to be opened. In this family, we opened the presents on the afternoon of christmas as that was when everyone got togather. In France, normally, kids would wake up in the morning and rushed down to the christmas tree looking for the gifts that Santa left behind. Well, we would have to find an explaination on why we are different to toddler A1 soon as this year, he was bombarded with so many stories of Santa Claus. I think he is a big fan of that man now though he avoided one at the garden shop the other day. Yeah, Santa with his huge white beard can look scary to young kids.

And this last pic showed toddler A1 playing with his brother's toy. It is SMARTMAX and is a set of magnetic bars and balls. With imagination, one can build lots of things with it. All the kids at the house were playing with it.
The lunch was great except for a hiccup when toddler A1 threw a big tantrum. Seb and I took turns to be with him. Seb was away from the table most of the time and he mentioned that this was the christmas where he drank the least. Poor father cos' great wine was served.

We stayed in Chartres until Boxing day before heading back home and getting on with the usual routine.

Christmas went and a new year is here already. I sincerely wish everyone a happy new year 2012.

Spectacle at Bercy Village

Just the weekend before christmas, we headed to Bercy Village for a walk. Before having kids, Seb and I used to come here to watch movies with our friends. This place used to be an old warehouse for wine and there is a mini railway track in the middle of the pavement. Now, it has been redevelopped and the 2 rows of warehouses host boutiques and restaurants.

During the month of december, everywhere we went, we came across spectacles and shows. It was lively here as the 4 elfes were trying their best to make their reindeer move forward. They spoke in their elfish language among themselves; they spoke to the reindeer to motivate him to move; they danced; they made music; they bounced around. Finally the reindeer moved.

Everyone was delighted. Children and adults alike.

End year season

In Nov, toddler A2 and I spent 2 weeks in Singapore. We went there for my mum's birthday and though it was a short stay, it was a good trip. I did not tell many friends that I was back because the whole idea was to spend time with my mum. To keep a low profile on that, I shall not put any photos of that trip here.

With christmas coming soon, we had been busy in december. 2 weekends ago, we headed down to Opera area. As a tradition, we brought the kids to view the display windows at Galleries Lafayette. This year's theme was on Rock and Mode. It was not very interesting. Just dolls playing rock instruments in all the display windows. It was so crowded that I left with toddler A2 to shop for christmas gifts. Furthermore, he was in his stroller and could hardly see the window.

We had lunch at the chinese restuarant on the last floor of Galleries Lafayette. After that, we decided to walk around. We crossed the street to avoid the crowd. Printemps was just beside Galleries Lafayette and it was just as crowded.

We walked around the Madeleine area and I dropped by GAP for kids clothes as there was a 30% discount sale that day.

I took pics of chocolates displays during our walk. Christmas is such a big event in France and chocolates are a must. I love the chocolate representation of Santa Claus at the last pic.

Advent calendars

December is already here. Seb was recently in London and I told him to get something for the kids. Among toys, he bought advent calendars.

There are 24 windows on each advent calendar; one for each day of December leading up to Christmas Day. Since the first of december, each evening before sleep time, the kids would open a window corresponding to the day. Inside would be a little message and a small chocolate. After eating the first one, A1 asked "Encore." We told him to be patient and that he was allowed only one a day. A2 shared his chocolate with me. Yeah, he had no choice cos I felt that he was still young for chocolate yet I did not want him to miss out the fun. When I broke the chocolate, he would want to take the big piece. So young and already having notion of big and small.

This advent calendar is a fun one for kids. So the messages are like "Is it snowing yet?", "Have you wrap up your gifts?". When they are older, I will get more meaningful advent calendars.

After Christmas eve, I hope the boys won't think that a chocolate before bed time is normal. Maybe the Christmas presents they receive will make them forget about this advent routine.

X'mas time soon

Galleries Lafayette. I think the Christmas magic is really strong here. I just love the decorations of Galleries Lafayette. And each year, the window displays attracted many kids.

This sunday morning, Seb will bring toddler A1 to view the famous window displays of animated toys. I hope it won't be too crowded as it could be dangerous for kids.

Christmas will be here soon and the weather is really cold this year. We may even experience a white christmas in Paris itself. That's so rare. As usual, we shall spend Christmas in Chartres. Stay tune to see what the babies get for Christmas.

Boxing day

Seb and I spent a good Christmas with Seb's family in Chartres. This year, I had to abstain myself from eating smoked salmon, oysters and unpasterised cheese. Things which I always look forward to feasting during this year end festival. Seb did not even drink any wine as he had to drive us home after the Christmas lunch. That was difficult for him as he saw the good wine passing under his nose.

Today, both of us did not work. Seb's office is closed and his company imposed a day off for everyone. As for my office, today is considered a holiday for us. So though I did not work, I did not have to take a day off like Seb.

We went Paris for a walk. I had prawn dumplings noodle soup at Mirama in Saint Michel. Mirama serves the best dumplings and roasted duck in Paris. Even Angel's colleague who had been to Paris a few times for work agreed with me when we first met a few weeks ago.

After that, we went Carrefour for grocery shopping. At Carrefour, I took the queue reserved for pregnant ladies and handicaps. This was the second time I did that. Most of the time, I joined the normal queue as the priority queue was often just as long as the normal ones. And on both occasions, I heard remarks from people behind me commenting that I was abusing the queue. I had to justify myself by replying that I was more than 3 months pregnant. With my little bump hidden under my winter coat, no one could tell I am 5 months pregnant. At church, without my coat, I was talking to someone new and she thought I was a student in Paris. I guess I should take that as a compliment. Anyway, I just had my monthly check up and baby is doing fine, weighing 550g. That is the most important thing.

Christmas is coming again

I was not keen to get a Christmas tree this year. But when I saw a friend put up photos of her Christmas tree on her facebook, I was tempted to get one. So on sunday morning, we went to Truffaut and got a Christmas tree. It is about 1.1m. This is how it looks after being decorated. I am tired of the decoration and will definitely change them next year. The balls should retire as this would be their 4th annual appearance.

Je ne voulais pas un sapin de noël cette année. Mais quand j’ai vu sur Facebook les photos d’un sapin qu’une copine a acheté, j’ai craqué. Donc, dimanche matin, nous avons allés chez Truffaut afin de chercher un sapin. Il est environ 1.1m. J’ai décidé de changer la décoration l’année prochaine. Les balles sont utilisées depuis quatre ans et c’est l’heure de leur retraites.

On Sunday afternoon, we had Seb's family over for lunch to celebrate Seb's birthday. Our living room was really too small for 10 people after adding in the Christmas tree. But everyone managed to find their place. For entrée, I served vegetarian samosa and Wu-Xiang (bean curd skin pork rolls) that my mom made for me. I had already made a couple of my friends tried mom's wu-xiang and it was always well received. For main dish, it was baked stuffed female duck from Picard. Side dishes were potatoes wedges and buttered french beans. Cheese and cake followed. Everyone was satisfied with lunch and I had to give credit to Picard as it provides fresh, quality frozen food.

Dimanche après midi, nous avons invités la famille pour déjeuner afin de fêter l’anniversaire de Seb. Avec le sapin, notre salon est trop petit pour dix personnes. Heureusement, chacun a pu trouver sa place. Pour l’entrée, il y avait du samossas végétarien et wu-xiang (un sort de nem) fait par ma mère. Tout le monde aime ce que ma mère a fait. J’ai servi une canette farci de chez Picard comme plat principal. Il est accompagné avec des haricots verts et des potatoes. Ensuite, il y avait des fromages et le gâteau. On a bien mangé et je dois avouer que les produits chez Picard sont frais et bon.

As Christmas is round the corner, we have to move our butts this weekend to do Christmas shopping. As usual, it will be another stop at FNAC for books, CDs and games. December is always the month where I have to crack my head to get two gifts for Seb. For his birthday, it was an electrical Italian café maker from Bodum. For Christmas, I subscribed a year's supply of Hi-Fi magazines for him. I may just add in a CD too.

Bientôt, c’est noël. On doit bouger ce weekend et faire notre course de noël. Comme d’hab, on va aller chez FNAC pour les livres, CDs et jouets. Décembre est toujours le mois où je casse ma tête pour trouver les cadeaux de Seb. Pour son anniversaire, c’était un cafetière italienne électrique de chez Bodum. Pour noël, c’est un abonnement d’un magazine Hi-Fi. Peut-être, je vais ajouter un CD en plus.

Strasbourg and Colmar

Seb and I went to Strasbourg by TGV 2 weeks again and we spent 4 days there. Strasbourg is famous for its christmas market though there are many christmas markets in France. Seems like the tradition started from Strasbourg.

The journey took us 2h20min and as we bought the tickets in advance, we travelled by first class. At the price we paid which was similar to second class, these tickets were not exchangable or refundable.

The Strasbourg train station looked newly renovated with an extension from the old building made up of glass. This fusion of old and new complimented each other really well.

During our 4 days, we went to watch a basketball match between Strasbourg team and Toulon team. On this occasion, we took the tram from the uptown to the stadium. We like cities with tram ways. It makes the city looks more ecological and less polluting.

And we saw a Singapore Shop. Looking inside, it was just an Indian bazzar shop.

There were many Chirstmas markets in Strasbourg, each with different themes. This year, some craftmens from Quebec were invited to participate in the Chirstmas market.

Apart of visiting Christmas markets in Strasbourg, we visited the nearby famous city, Colmar. Colmar was also known as the Venise of France. It was a little city full of charm.

We also visited the different area of Strasbourg, like the Petite France.




As it was a very cold week, we had to look for warmth after short walks in the streets.

We visited the Alsacien Musuem and also the History Musuem of Strasbourg. They gave us insights to the lives of the strasbourgeoises in ancient times. We enjoyed the museums a lot.

Each part of France is so different. Strasbourg is in the region Alsace. Alsace itself has its own costume, food culture and language. As it was really near Germany, there were many people speaking German.
I am glad to have finally visited the eastern part of France. I hope to visit the mountains in France for my next short getaway.

Year end festive season

We wish you a merry christmas,
We wish you a merry christmas,
We wish you a merry christmas and a happy new year.

Seb and I are in Chartres to spend our Christmas with our family. The images on the left are what I took today in the uptown of Chartres and in my parents-in-law's place. It is colder here than in Paris and there is a constant fire dancing in the fireplace. The big pumpkin on the garden table is still shining orange since October. There were birds feeding from the bird seeds that we supplied.
In the streets, vendors were selling their fresh oysters from number 0 to number 5 (size of oysters), smoked salmons and foie gras; the essential food for christmas. People were doing their last min shopping for gifts. The most crowded shops were perfume shops and bookstores. I was glad that we had already done our shopping so it was a stroll in the uptown for me today while Seb went swimming. The festive atmosphere was high and bright. There was even a mini carnival with marching band, clowns and pretty little girls on ponies. Everybody was in high spirits.

Tomorrow is christmas eve. We will roast some chestnuts over the fireplace after dinner like what we did today. Life is so peaceful here. It is so pleasant. We are away from the stress of Paris. Je vais profiter de mes journées ici.

I will write again after I receive my christmas gifts. Do click on the image to enlarge it for a better viewing.

Winter 2006

Winter is here. Technically speaking, winter starts on 21 December but it has been rainy and cold in Paris.

In my balcony, I replaced my summer flowers with winter ones (left and right). I have no idea what is their name. I am a novice in gardening and I do not bother to get to know the names of my plants. I do know that the one in the middle is a bruyère and it flowers in winter as you can see. Still, I must say that the greens are growing well under my loving care.

As Christmas is around the corner, we spent last Saturday and today looking for gifts. It was really easy for the kids as a quick stop at Toys 'R Us completed their wishes. For the other half of the family, we went to FNAC to get books and BD (french comic books).

There were so many people at Opera area that while crossing the road from Galleries Lafayette Maison to Printemps, Seb commented that it was like at Orchard Road. That was so true. I was not even able to appreciate the windows displays that Galleries Lafayette and Printemps put up each year for children with toys animations.

I have forgotten how winter is like. This is my fourth winter in France and yet each time, I have to relearn about the cold and get use to it. And with the train strike still going on, we have to walk 15 minutes in the cold to reach the nearest Metro station. I hope that the strike ends soon. I am glad that there is Christmas to warm up winter.

Afternote: the flowers are cyclamen.

Wrapping for X'mas

Each year near the Christmas period, charities will organise gift wrapping services outside boutiques. I signed up to help out Salvation Army to offer my service with the boutique "Modern Man" at Saint Lazare.

Yesterday, I was alone at the counter from 10 am to 1pm. There were a lot of shoppers and they bought things from the shop. However, these people were shopping for themselves. In the end, I only wrapped about seven gifts. As Christmas is still a month away, people usually start shopping next month. I did enjoyed myself as the gifts were easy to wrap. They came in rectangluar boxes. I remembered that last year, I was helping out Red Cross with the similar service at a computer shop. It was really difficult to wrap up a big printer box or those irregular packages like MP3 player.

There is always a money box at the counter. People will give coins for the gift wrapping service. I had seen men donating as much as 10€. I had also seen women who did not buy anything from the shop asking for the wrappers and ribbons; without donating.

Next Saturday, I will be at Saint Lazare again from 10 am to 1 pm. I hope that there will be more shoppers. Wrapping 3 gifts per hour is kinda boring.

Merry Christmas 2004

Bonne fêtes et joyeux noël.
I had a good christmas in Chartres. Nope, it was not snowing yet. In Chartres, there is a high chance that it will snow in January but in Paris, snow never stays long. There is just too much pollution and it warms up the atmosphere. So for my friend who wished me to walk under the snow along Champs Elysee, that is very unlikely. :)

We bought a small real Christmas tree at home. It feels good to have a real one unlike the plastic one back in Singapore. When you walk along the streets, if you look up, you will most likely see sapins of all shapes with their christmas deco and lighting in almost everybody's living room. But too bad most people forgot the real meaning of Christmas. To kids, it is the time to write to Papa Noël to ask for gifts in return for being nice for the whole year. And adults help the kids to write letters and paste pictures from catalogues to send to grandparents, uncles and aunties.

For me, I hope to educate my kids on the correct meaning of christmas. Indeed, it is a time of giving and sharing. Indeed, there was a Santa Claus somewhere up, up north of France who once went around giving presents to nice kids. Still, the beginning started with baby Jesus being born on this day or somewhere near this day. And 25 December is the day to remember about our Lord Jesus who came to live and die for our sins. If you are interested to find out more about this, just search in the internet for an online bible and start reading from the new testaments.

Apart of that, I had a new lambwool scarf, 2 french books I asked for, a thick French-English dictionary, a pair of leather gloves and lots of cold outdoors and warm indoors and from Seb.