adventures of an american housewife in the south of france

Dylan’s France

There is nothing quite like experiencing a familiar place through a new set of eyes.  Especially when those eyes belong to a 2 year old boy.

the coolest toddler I know

We had such a great visit with Michael's family, and the highlight was getting to spend 10 days with our sweet nephew Dylan who, at 2 years old, is now his own little person.  My sister-in-law J.J. did a great job of showing Dylan pictures of us and Figgy as well as setting up Skype dates so that Dylan would know who we were before he arrived in France.  He warmed up to us quickly and the highlight of the trip for me was when Dylan requested that Auntie "Nanie" be the one to push his stroller!!  I was honored. Paris and France in general is quite a different experience with a toddler!  I now know where all the best carousels are located, which restaurants serve dinner before 7:30 pm and that there are absolutely no changing tables in any bathroom anywhere.  Dylan did a great job on this trip and opened my eyes to the "other" side of France.  His favorite parts of the trip were: Riding the carousels.  For some reason, the French are obsessed with carousels.  They are everywhere and Dylan loved them!  His favorites were the ones that had options besides just horses to ride.  You can find carousels at the Eiffel Tower, Tuileries, and the Jardins du Luxembourg in Paris.  And in Montpellier they are in the Place de la Comédie and at the Odysseum.

obviously his first pick!

choo choo!

Watching the recycling trucks and pointing out motorcycles.  This kid is all boy!  He loves any sort of truck, bike, crane, or fire engine, with his favorite being the excavator (seriously, I had no idea what that was until this trip).  I think the highlight of Dylan's vacation was watching this cement mixer in action during our walk around Montpellier.

the people operating this mixer thought we were crazy

I've told you before that my family doesn't have a lot of experience with boys (although they do now!) and I quickly learned that to keep boys happy, all it really takes is singing this song and watching the opening sequence of this video.  I kid, but really, Dylan's visit taught me a lot about what toddler boys are into!  Michael and I are still walking around the apartment calling to each other "He's an excavator....his work is more like fun!"  We're pretty into it.  We especially like the breakdown at the 2:04 mark. Chasing pigeons.  After my last post, you guys know how I feel about pigeons.  But because my adorable nephew wanted to watch them, I indulged.  If pigeons weren't such disgusting creatures, it might have been cute.  I much preferred to sit and watch the the ducks with Dylan, which was almost as fun for him, but not quite.

so much better than pigeons

Petting Figaro.  Oh you guys, it was so sweet to see how good Figgy was with Dylan.  He would sit quietly while Dylan pet him, and when Dylan requested, "Mommy turn.  Namah (Grandma) turn.  Tahpa (Grandpa) turn," Fig would wait patiently until everyone was done.  And each night when Dylan gave Fig a hug and kiss and said, "I love you, Figgy," my heart just melted.

me, Dylan, and Fig

Eating French yogurt.  It's official.  This kid is obsessed with French yogurt.  And as one of my friends put it, "well who wouldn't be?!"  He must have gone over to the refrigerator 10 times each day saying "yogurt!"  He gobbled it down in huge spoonfuls and passed out cartons for everyone to try.  I'm wondering how his withdrawal is going....

Bonne Maman Vanilla was his favorite

couldn't be happier!

Of course we also took Dylan to the sites like the Eiffel Tower, Versailles and the Musée D'Orsay, but he showed us that you don't need fancy landmarks to have a good time in France.  Sometimes the fake ones are just as enjoyable.

way more excited about his new "tower" toy than the Louvre that's behind him

Check in next week when I'll be posting J.J.'s tips on traveling internationally with a toddler!    

2 Responses to “Dylan’s France”

  1. nate says:

    I’m getting deja vu for the future… Is that even possible?

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