Get ready guys, because I have a lot of photos from Bordeaux! This was exactly the kind of vacation I love — full of delicious carbs and wine, sunny weather that wasn’t too hot, and just the right amount of sight-seeing.  We had to walk through the Jardin Public to get to the center from where we were staying, and it was such a treat. It was big and green and the kids loved spotting the ducks swimming in the water. There were also some impressive play structures for kids there — one included a carousel that Prim insisted on riding every time we walked through the park. Lark got to take a turn as well on our last full day. Seeing the two of them riding in the little car together (with Daddy close by, of course) was so sweet and made me realize just how big Lark is getting these days. (Ignore that mosquito bite on her forehead — Lark and I were the plat du jour for the French mosquitos, apparently.) We stumbled across a splash pad on the first day while we were out and about exploring. It was pretty hot at this point and we had actually just stopped in at H&M to pick up hats for the girls, (Prim chose hers, if you can’t tell) and had also purchased a swimsuit for Prim. Prim was itching to go in the water as soon as she saw the other kids running around and we figured it was a lucky coincidence that we had this new swimsuit with us, so why not?

She had a great time splashing around, and OMG little girls swimsuits — I defy you to find anything cuter. The house we stayed at happened to be just minutes from the best bakery in Bordeaux — Antone — which I will readily admit was the highlight of the trip for me. If you know me at all, then you know my love for bread and obsession with carbs. We stopped in at the bakery almost every day that we were in Bordeaux to pick up sandwiches, croissants, baguettes, and more. The staff was so friendly and put up with my rusty high school French. One of the workers took a liking to Prim and taught her to order her “chocolatine” in French, while explaining to me that it’s called “pain du chocolat” in the north and “chocolatine” in the south. Prim is still talking about “chocolate tartine” (toddler French, haha), so I think it’s safe to say that the chocolate croissants might have been the high point of her trip as well. Our trip was not short on treats, that’s for sure. We made sure to stop for ice cream more than once, and KC and I would end the night out on the patio at the house after the girls were in bed, drinking wine, eating French cheese, and planning future fantasy home renovations. The south of France is well-known for their oysters, so we of course made sure to partake while there. I love oysters and will take any opportunity to order them. The girls both got to have a small taste of oysters on this trip, though jury’s still out on whether they liked them or not. (Lark was lukewarm on the whole experience, but Prim was pretty into the fact that you got to hold a shell in order to try them.) We took a day trip to Saint-Émilion one day to try some of the local wines. We ended up visiting Cloitre des Cordeliers and trying (ahem, drinking a lot of) their sparkling wine. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: drinking wine when you’re vacationing with small children is the easiest way to feel like you’re actually getting away from your real life.Cloitre des Cordeliers is a great option if you’re visiting Saint-Émilion with kids. You don’t have to make a reservation or take a tour to try their wines (many of the wineries there you have to do both of those things — not so easy with little ones). Plus they have a really nice outdoor garden where you can drink your wine and the kids can run around — win/win. Prim had a little too much fun during our wine excursion. Extra points to KC for dragging her all the way back to the train station backwards so she was out of the direct sun. And hey, when your kids are sleeping on the go you ignore their wonky hat position and just enjoy the peace and quiet, am I right?

We also happened to be in Bordeaux for the first weekend of their bi-annual antique faire. We braved the midday sun and wandered through the rows and rows of goods. If we didn’t have to lug everything on a plane back to the Netherlands and eventually ship it back to the states, we would have surely bought some stuff for our new house!

After walking around in the hot sun for awhile, we stopped for lunch and very large very cold beers (nothing better on a hot day!) The girls got to share some steak-frites and Lark got to try out her new cool persona:  What a teen.

You were so dreamy, Bordeaux! I think we will need to do a whole tour of the south of France someday, because six nights was not nearly long enough.