Seine-sational

Le Petite Napoleon was born again today as happy go lucky kid, much to our extreme delight. Such is the mercurial nature of a toddler I suppose. The best day yet, weather wise. Low 50s and sunny, absolutely beautiful. The sun inspired an early start (10:00 am) and we headed to the Jardin des Plantes, a beautiful outdoor and indoor bontanical garden only a couple metro stops from our neighborhood. This is one of those spots in Paris that you'd miss in a week long visit here. There's nothing famous about it, like Luxembourg Gardens or other Paris hotspots, but it is equally as compelling and a local favorite. There's a wonderful small zoo, that resembles Lincoln Park Zoo, although this one is 7 Euro a person. Pierce loved it and since it is quite small you can get very close to the animals.

Again the playgrounds at this place were fantastic, perfect for the 2-5 year old set. After a park bench lunch Pierce happily crawled into the stroller for a nap and Mitch and I ate lunch in the nearby Latin Quarter. Against better judgment, Mitch ordered Andouillettes, yes it was the 'suggestion du jour' and yes it sounds and looks like it would be andouille sausage but incased meat here is on an entirely different level. Yuck. And when Mitch says something is nasty, that means the rest of us would get sick right then and there, because this is a man that regularly dines on brain tacos.

The afternoon brought an unexpected delight for Pierce. We took a boat ride on the Seine. Pierce loves to shout "River! Boats!" each and every time we cross the Seine and frequently accompanies this with "Pierce in there!". So we put it altogether and hopped aboard a 'commuter' boat, not the tourist one. No commentary, but great time.

We had a babysitter tonight and indulged in Thai food. When I say indulged I mean it, it was our most expensive meal. It was actually very, very good and a quaint, dare I say romantic setting. Thai food here is like a 40 degree day in Chicago this winter, you know we should have more of them but don't.

Looking forward to more 50s this weekend. Fingers crossed :)