An American Halloween in Paris

Halloween is a sacred holiday in the Stelmach Blundell clan. It marks the eve when, after two previous unremarkable run-ins, Colin and I fell for each other completely and irrevocably. All it took was some face paint, fake blood, and an extremely frizzy wig. Really!

Now that we've got a little one, we (meaning, Colin) are looking forward to candy-filled celebrations of that fateful night. Although Jake is still a bit young for Halloween this year, and although we didn't get to go trick-or-treating (can you imagine knocking on a Parisian's door and begging for sweets? Sacré bleu!), we did honor the day by getting...Breakfast in America.


That image probably does not look all that special to all you folks over in the U.S. of A but for us? after all the cheese and crusty bread and meats cooked in rich sauces? it's like manna from heaven. The guy who thought to open up an authentic American diner in Paris was a genius. Genius. And for us, what better way to pay tribute to Halloween, that most American of contrived American holidays, than to eat pancakes and drink filter coffee?

There was even a jack-o-lantern!


Jake slept through brunch, giving his mom the opportunity to savor her hash browns. Unfortunately, that meant that you could see only the tiniest bit of his costume.


Luckily there's our trusty Bjorn chair back at home to put him in and snap a pic.


Love the feet.

We also took the opportunity to take his October photo. Who knew penguins were oenovores?


He's getting bigger and bigger than that baguette!

Walking around the Jardin du Luxembourg we came across some Parisians getting into the spirit of things.



We didn't know where or why they were running. Maybe they came across this creepy creature?


A close-up of the canine fantom-zombie-vampire-werewolf:


Needless to say, Merlin was not amused.

So that was our Halloween! American goodies, an adorable penguin, and very scary beasties.

Just Because

Although he's a really fun and interesting little guy, sometimes Jake isn't doing anything at all, except being cute.

Witness Jake waking up:



I wish I looked that good in the morning!

Here's an endearingly goofy smile:



And a great view of his little button nose:



Which you can't see when he's wearing his winter suit:



I wish they made these for grown-ups.

On a baby, a bad hair day is just totally awesome:



A mad scientist in the making!

Momma could go on and on, but Jake is SO over it.


(I have a feeling that in about thirteen years I'm going to see that look a LOT.)

Going Bananas

Jake continues to grow big and strong - his pediatrician declared him "exceptionnel" at our last visit - and so the time has come to introduce him to the wide world of solid foods.

He was a bit skeptical at first.


"Mom, that does not look like a bottle."



"What is this spoon?"



"Interesting..."



"Okay..."



"I'm starting to get it now..."



"Mmmm, I find it rather full-bodied, with an excellent finish."



"I did good, didn't I?"

Yes, you did. Bon appétit, le bébé!

Our Little Jacobin

Looks like we may have a budding revolutionary on our hands.

Back in 1789:



Fast forward to 2009:



What could he be militating for?


Liberté?

Egalité?

Fraternité?


Pacifierité!


Phew! That was a close one.

September Round-Up

It's been quite a busy month here at chez Stelmach Blundell (no hyphen). We've had a couple of family visits, settled into our new apartment, and I've officially become a working mom now that the fall semester has started. Luckily we've been taking lots of pictures so here's a big fat blog post to record all this month's happenings and catch you, our dear friends and family, up.

The month of September started with Jacob taking his Frenchness way too seriously and going on a nursing strike.

He won.


It was all well and good, though, because now we can all go out for drinks. Here he is at a café on the Ile Saint-Louis.




His is the one on the left.

While Saturday's a drinking day, he likes to spend his Sundays at the Jardin du Luxembourg where he can get a dose of culture along with the fresh air. Last week we all enjoyed some classical music among the trees.


Merlin's a fan of the Luxembourg Gardens, too, but for different reasons.




So many trees, so little time.


By the end of a walk there some members of the family are pooped. But others know how to take it easy and ride in style.


So much so that sometimes I feel like our own son is way too cool for us! But he doesn't seem to think so.


In fact, he seems to like hanging out with us quite a bit!




He's quite the happy baby, our Jake. And why wouldn't he be, with all his adoring visitors this month?

Like his Bubbie, of course.


Like his Aunt Gillian, naturally.


And let's not forget his Uncle Deniz.


Who also got along famously with Merlin.


And his Granddad and Mom who slaved away building him a crib. (Okay, so maybe it only took five minutes to put together.)


But, you do what you gotta do. Our little boy was getting just way too big for his bassinette.




Much better!

We took the requisite baguette and wine photo at the beginning of this month to chart his growth. You'll notice that the top of the baguette is missing, though, which skews the perspective a bit. That's from Colin chowing down on the way home from the boulangerie.


(Here's the one from August, for comparison's sake.)


Speaking of home, here's our lovely courtyard. Eet eez verrrree Frensh, non?


Okay, now I'm just getting silly. Time to wrap this up. And so I leave you with...


...the unbearable cuteness of baby.