With Hudson’s second birthday fast approaching, I find myself asked more often: “When are you planning to have a second?” Granted, not everyone starts with the “when” in that sentence. Some start with the “are.” I don’t mind the question from friends; it’s nice to be given permission to turn it around and hear more about their plans, or their reasons for their family’s size. I suppose I’m particularly interested because I don’t have a good answer. All I know right now is that we are having a lot of fun as a family of three with Hudson (who was just a baby yesterday, right?)—and love sleeping through the night.
(Okay, that last bit is maybe a euphemism for the hesitation that surrounds all of the ways parenthood changes you and your day-to-day life, particularly in those early days months.)
Though I’m still working on our Paris travelogue, a few of you have written to ask about where we stayed. The good spots get snapped up fast in the high season, so I don’t want to delay!
As soon as we had our tickets to Paris, I got in touch with the folks at Haven in Paris to see if they had any apartments that would be a good fit for our family. I’d heard nothing but positive things about the agency, and we’d all exchanged emails when I’d first started blogging. (They have a great blog with lots of insights into visiting the city.) We were lucky to find ourselves in a beautiful apartment, new to their listings, in the 6e arrondissement—just a couple of blocks from the Jardin du Luxembourg.
We were excited about the prospect of staying in an apartment (more space), but also a little nervous about leaving the comforts of a hotel (less assistance). We found that the pros far outnumbered any cons. In fact, we were met by a friendly woman at the apartment who welcomed us in, and showed us around (asking us to be careful and considerate), gave us our keys, and some local direction; and she offered to answer any questions throughout our stay.
Hudson had his own room, which was nice not only for us but also for the babysitter we had come for a few evenings. (Of course, Hudson never really adjusted to the time change and woke us up most mornings at 3am anyway, but that’s another story.)
We didn’t get a whole lot of practice on the stove, but it was so nice to have a kitchen for bringing home cheeses, butter, and sausages. And we did make dinner “in” for Hudson on the nights we went out.
The kitchen also had a hidden washer/dryer that we used to come home with clean clothes. Such a treat!
I loved feeling like a local for a few days, passing families on a quiet side street—filled with beautiful, turn-of-the century buildings—and walking through the park on the way to the Seine.
I’d definitely recommend renting an apartment if you’re visiting Paris, particularly if you’re visiting with your family. And Haven in Paris did such a nice job of putting our minds at ease: the apartment was clean, beautiful, and well-stocked (with everything from a hair-dryer to a computer, to a bottle of wine and roses); they were quick to answer our emails and checked in with us right before our trip; and, most importantly, everything they described in the advertisement for the apartment was found to be totally accurate. They have some mind-blowingly gorgeous apartments for rent (for example), so that’s really key.
A far cry from the many nights I spent once at the slightly grimy Young & Happy Hostel in the Latin Quarter years ago! (Though perhaps equal in romance if you count nostalgia.)
For Father’s Day morning, our friends invited us to come along on an Apricot-picking excursion. Mike and Diane Madison, who are the makers of the delicious Yolo Press Olive Oil (here I am, pregnant, with my first bottle–it’s green and spicy!) have an Apricot orchard on Putah Creek and hosted us all on their property (where we even took a dip in the cool creek).
, very few pieces of my fruit made it into my basket; but fortunately Aron was wise enough to grab a dozen or so slightly less ripe specimens, perfect for making a tart.
Hudson was my sous-chef and did all of the taste-tests along the way. I made the same savory pastry dough as the one I used for my mushroom and leek tart. I like the way the cracked pepper in the crust stands up to a sweeter filling. The recipe (here) is quite simple, and you don’t need to use a food processor. This time I used a hand-held pastry blender.
I pre-baked the crust for about 20 or so minutes at 375-degrees in a 9-inch tart pan, and then made the decision to dirty up the food-processor after-all so that I could make an almond paste: about 1/4 cup of almonds to a 1/4 cup of confectioner’s sugar and a little water to get it smooth. I smeared the almond paste on the slightly cooled crust and then added the apricot slices before baking it all another 30 minutes or so (your nose can usually be the guide, but just be sure the edges don’t burn). A little more confectioner’s sugar at the end and it was all set! I’m definitely going to be doing this with a mix of stone fruit this summer, but I loved how this easy tart featured our freshly-picked apricots.
Almost as delicious as the memory of picking apricots on Father’s Day, and looking for crawfish in Putah Creek.
