Paris Journal: Evening Two (Eiffel Tower)

Our first full day in Paris was like a dream.  We had crossed several things (major things) off of our list: the Louvre, the Tulleries Garden, La Musee de l'Orangerie, Berthillon glace, Shakespeare & Co., sun-filled walks over bridges and wanderings along the Seine.  One major list item remained.  And for Ryan, it was near the top of the list, the Eiffel Tower.

After a little rest and planning time at the hotel, we took the metro back to the Opera station.  We had only briefly glimpsed it as we entered the city on our first afternoon.  We figured we could get a better look at the Opera, and then wander our way towards the Eiffel Tower.   But before we could find the entrance to the Opera, I spotted something I knew Ryan would love...the Paris Mac store!  Since there was of course, free wifi there, we spent a long time inside, 'face-timing' with the girls.  On our way back down into the metro, we grabbed coffees (to go---the American sized version from Starbucks) and headed to the Eiffel Tower.
Author's side note: This is one of my only regrets of the trip.  Side-tracked by the Mac store and our hurry to see the tower that night, we never entered the Opera....as in "Phantom of..."  If I weren't so utterly full from beautiful once-in-a-lifetime adventures, I would have cried as we drove away from it on our last day.  

After walking for two or three blocks from the metro stop, 'it' emerged... finally.... from behind the buildings and trees.  We could not have asked for a more beautiful evening for this magical moment.  The air was just slightly crisp, but the sky was filled with warm colors, yellows and pinks..and just a little hazy.

As we walked closer, we tried again and again....at every angle to capture its magnificence.

There were play grounds and parks, gardens, and food stands along the way.  One little side-trip off the path led us to one of our favorite views of the night.   (Ryan's beautiful photography and editing)

We seriously considered going up.  But we knew in advance that one of the elevators was out of order...the line was hours long.  And one of us is not fond of heights at all.  We opted to take a River Cruise instead.  A different kind of city view.

The Eiffel tower sits on the edge of the river.  So we walked underneath the tower, toward the Seine.  We found a sunset cruise that included a light dinner and wine, a "snack cruise." So we bought our tickets and boarded the bateaux mouche.  Squeezed tightly among rows and rows of wooden folding chairs, we found two perfect seats on the upper deck.  Everyone there was happy, of course.  It was really like all the movie versions of a river cruise in Paris.  Kissing and smiling and laughing and contentedly breathing deeply...we glided through the water under exquisite bridges and watched the city slowly light up.

The tower was just beginning to light up when our boat returned.  We had just enough time to skip up the stairs to record the sparkling lights before they were gone.  Apparently, we aren't the only YouTube contributors to think that this event is pretty cool.  You can probably find better videos of this...but here is ours.  Including our delighted laughter.

While Ryan captured that on the ipad, I was capturing this with the camera.

It took us a little too long to find the nearest metro station that night.  Block after block of dark alleys made us both begin to feel a little uneasy in this strange city with its language and culture we did not understand.  But eventually we ducked down into the warmth and familiarity of the metro station and soon we were sitting and swaying on the train, people watching, on our way to our safe and cozy little room.

Happy Birthday, Oreos

Apparently, Oreos are celebrating their 100th birthday.

So.... they are on sale (and specially engraved with a birthday design)....which is convenient, because it's also Ryan's birthday.

And Oreos, (though a rare and dangerous purchase for our family) are essential for Ryan's birthday celebrations.  Almost every year, I create some kind of oreo dessert for my love.

Last year it was in a trifle bowl....

The trifle dessert was really delicious and decadent, but so deep and frozen, it was tricky to serve.  This year...a new creation using my (new) springform pan.  Oreo Ice Cream Pie.   An oreo crust (crushed cookies mixed with melted butter and flattened into the pan), vanilla ice-cream frozen into a round ice-cream cake shape, and topped with cool whip and crushed oreos.  I made up my own version, loosely based on other Oreo cookie cakes and pies found on google.  I also watched this video for added confidence.  Mine wasn't exactly like Gretchen Seigchrists's, but the girls watched her video about 10 times while they 'helped' me make it.  

Tonight, we brought it to El Burrito Loco for our traditional Taco Tuesday dinner.  There was plenty of oreo cake to share. We made sure to only bring one (big) piece home.  They honored Ryan with a sombrero, a song, free fried ice-cream, and (his favorite part)...whipped cream spread on his face.  

Another highlight of the birthday dinner: Maya lost her first tooth.  

Quite a day for celebrating in the Corbin home.  

Happy Birthday Oreos!

And happy birthday to my Love.  I am lucky to be yours.  

(And not just because I really like a good excuse to eat oreos)

“Our love of course seemed to us a miracle. First love always does, the old, old story sung by poets and sneered at by wrinkled of heart. And yet it is a miracle, an unbelievable miracle, just as every springtime of the earth is a miracle.”

"And there was a principle of courtesy: whatever one of us asked the other to do- it was assumed the asker would weight all consequences--the other would do. Thus one might wake the other in the night and ask for a cup of water; and the other would peacefully (and sleepily) fetch it. We, in fact, defined courtesy as 'a cup of water in the night.' And we considered it a very great courtesy to ask for the cup as well as to fetch it."

~Sheldon VanAuken, A Severe Mercy

Some of my favorite themes from a treasured book. And even better than reading the book, is the realization again and again, that for me, it's not just a romantic dream or a deep and unfulfilled spiritual longing. I'm actually lucky enough to have a love just like this.

Ingredients: 1 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined 1 tbsp olive oil 3 cloves garlic, chopped 1/4 cup white wine 14 oz can diced tomatoes, drained 1/2 cup half and half oregano salt and fresh pepper 1 tsp lemon juice 1/4 cup chopped parsley (I added fresh basil and oregano too) 8 oz angel hair pasta (whole wheat, low carb or high fiber) Directions: Boil water for pasta. Cook according to package instructions.Meanwhile, season shrimp with salt and oregano. Cook shrimp and garlic in olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat for about 2 minutes. Add tomatoes, wine, salt and pepper and cook an additional minute. Add half and half and cook 1 more minute.Add lemon juice and parsley and serve over pasta. Divide equally in 4 plates. Now that we are back into the familiar groove of school, I'm still feeling grateful and happy to be a teacher. I love summer, but I think I'd feel lucky in my job even without those three months off every year! Today was just one of those great days. I felt prepared for the day, more organized (than last year), confident in my role, and surrounded by lovable students excited to make music. Maya is loving Kindergarten. She seems to come home every day either exhausted, or incredibly (obnoxiously) hyper....and full of stories. Some stories come out immediately in the car, others just pop up over dinner, or bedtime...or days later. And some of her stories are just for me, conspiratorially whispered into my ear when Ryan is across the room. She finished her last vowel today in class. And with her mixture of Ryan's meticulous perfectionism...and my...distracted, free-spirited...creativity?....it's a challenge sometimes to get all her schoolwork done in timely manner. But, every paper she does finish looks...impeccable. So our new motto is "Do your best, but GET IT DONE!" Sometimes I have to repeat that motto again and again...for me. Just to stay on task. Between the laundry and ironing, the house-cleaning, the dinners and the dishes, the online coursework and reading and communication, the lesson planning, and school paperwork, the Kindergarten papers, and the places to be, the doctors appointments, and the pretend play, the puzzles, and the storybook reading, and the important conversations and times with friends....I get a little...off task at times, running frantically between jobs, never finishing any. And sometimes, I just end up on the couch, bewildered at where to start. Then there's always facebook! :) But this week, the crazy chaos is manageable. And quite fun. I love my new schedule. I miss the faces and the familiar routines, the musical fun, the shared history that my old teaching role provided for so many years. I will cherish my memories, and 'my kids' there forever. But I'm feeling much more settled, more rooted this year, both as a Mother and as a Strings Teacher. I love my days with just Sophie and our Tuesdays with just me and both girls. We go to ballet and gymnastics, and we play together and read and talk all day. I'm pretty lucky. And next weekend, my Love is taking me away for my belated birthday celebration. Two days and one night in Chicago alone. Just the anticipation is a perfectly delightful gift.

"Shrimp cooked with tomatoes, a touch of cream, white wine and a hint of lemon. This pasta dish is so simple to make and is ready in about 15 minutes, perfect for a weeknight meal."


That's what "Gina" said about the Angel Hair with Shrimp and Tomato Sauce, and I need as many perfect weeknight meals as I can get.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 14 oz can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1/2 cup half and half
• oregano
• salt and fresh pepper
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley (I added fresh basil and oregano too)
• 8 oz angel hair pasta (whole wheat, low carb or high fiber)

Directions:

Boil water for pasta. Cook according to package instructions.Meanwhile, season shrimp with salt and oregano. Cook shrimp and garlic in olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat for about 2 minutes. Add tomatoes, wine, salt and pepper and cook an additional minute. Add half and half and cook 1 more minute.Add lemon juice and parsley and serve over pasta. Divide equally in 4 plates.

Now that we are back into the familiar groove of school, I'm still feeling grateful and happy to be a teacher. I love summer, but I think I'd feel lucky in my job even without those three months off every year!

Today was just one of those great days. I felt prepared for the day, more organized (than last year), confident in my role, and surrounded by lovable students excited to make music.

Maya is loving Kindergarten. She seems to come home every day either exhausted, or incredibly (obnoxiously) hyper....and full of stories. Some stories come out immediately in the car, others just pop up over dinner, or bedtime...or days later. And some of her stories are just for me, conspiratorially whispered into my ear when Ryan is across the room. She finished her last vowel today in class. And with her mixture of Ryan's meticulous perfectionism...and my...distracted, free-spirited...creativity?....it's a challenge sometimes to get all her schoolwork done in timely manner. But, every paper she does finish looks...impeccable. So our new motto is "Do your best, but GET IT DONE!"


Sometimes I have to repeat that motto again and again...for me. Just to stay on task. Between the laundry and ironing, the house-cleaning, the dinners and the dishes, the online coursework and reading and communication, the lesson planning, and school paperwork, the Kindergarten papers, and the places to be, the doctors appointments, and the pretend play, the puzzles, and the storybook reading, and the important conversations and times with friends....I get a little...off task at times, running frantically between jobs, never finishing any. And sometimes, I just end up on the couch, bewildered at where to start. Then there's always facebook! :)

But this week, the crazy chaos is manageable. And quite fun. I love my new schedule. I miss the faces and the familiar routines, the musical fun, the shared history that my old teaching role provided for so many years. I will cherish my memories, and 'my kids' there forever. But I'm feeling much more settled, more rooted this year, both as a Mother and as a Strings Teacher. I love my days with just Sophie and our Tuesdays with just me and both girls. We go to ballet and gymnastics, and we play together and read and talk all day. I'm pretty lucky.

And next weekend, my Love is taking me away for my belated birthday celebration. Two days and one night in Chicago alone. Just the anticipation is a perfectly delightful gift.

"I like not only to be loved,..."

"...but also to be told I am loved." ~George Eliot


Before our anniversary dinner, Ryan took me to the one place where he knew he wanted to exchange our gifts. The mysterious and beautiful wooden box he carried over his head made me a little nervous, as we climbed down the slippery rocks to the beach. When we reached the sand, he pulled out a blanket (out of nowhere?) and unfolded it for us to sit upon together and breathe in the beauty of the scene. For a while, we just sat there, holding each other, resting in the quietness of our surroundings and the rare calm that we felt. Our contentment to just be...there...together...was quiet and very real. All our happiest moments seem to be somewhat timeless, I think. Those minutes on the beach seem frozen that way in my memory, timeless.

The surprises inside my treasure chest were wrapped carefully, with little cards explaining the significance of each present. This man knows how to tell me that I am loved. The rocky beach and the disappearing shoreline in front of us became a perfect frame for my new painting.

After twelve years of holding hands, I still love this feeling.
Our hands are only a little more wrinkled and weathered now than when we exchanged these rings nine years ago.
I wonder how many wrinkles will change this picture in fifty years?
What we will face together in those years?
I am more certain today than ever, of how I am lucky to be the one that gets to spend the rest of my years holding his hand.

escape

dreamlike. restful. decadent. crazy fun.

If I had these...

I think I would put them on everything. It could be dangerous...I don't know if I would know when to stop. I just love how they give everything a place and a name.

This is where Ryan's unique personality and my own have been woven together. His love of structure and pattern and predictability is usually at odds with my scattered, unpredictable intensity-for-too-many-things to maintain a lot of order. But labels are one of many things that bring us together. We both treasure the beauty and function of labels.

When we were newlyweds...moving for the first time (from Vermilion, OH back to MI) we had a lot of time to pack. We put everything (except large furniture) into matching plastic bins. No mismatched cardboard for us. We watched for sales and snatched up all the green bins in Sandusky and Vermilion. Ryan created four computer labels for each box with highly detailed lists of all the contents, stating where it should go, and exactly how much it weighed. The scale sat next to the desk, so each box could be weighed before being perfectly labeled on four sides.
It was delightful.

We never get to enjoy such silly pleasures any more. We just have too much stuff...and too little time. We may have lost a little of that enthusiasm too.

But fresh labels still provide a little rush.

I'm so lucky...

...that this man is the father of my children.





...that he picked me...to walk through life with, to spend forever beside, to raise our children together, to grow old with.




...that he is earnest, intelligent, kind, deep, fun, spontaneous, surprising, faithful, wise, romantic, honest, godly, diligent, witty, compassionate, articulate, patient, balanced, forgiving.


...that I get to be the one to kiss him when he wakes up a 'thirty-year-old'.

(I just went into the living room to give him a sleepy birthday kiss as his grandfather's mantel clock chimed midnight)




Though he's always said that he will like being an old man (he really likes handkerchiefs, shoe-polish, going to bed early, Antiques Roadshow, and Mr. Rogers-style-cardigan sweaters), he's a little bit afraid of leaving his 20's forever.

I think this is the first birthday that feels...momentous and intimidating. It's easy for me to say this, since I'm a mere 27...but I really think the 30's aren't so frightening. I love the man that Ryan has become/is becoming. And I love all of his thirty years of life that he now possesses.

In the last year (maybe it's because I'm feeling 'old' too), I've been thinking about the idea that the years we have lived are ours, and though we can't go back...or 'have' them back...we do still have them. Everything that we have gained from them, all the wisdom, experiences, memories, accomplishments, joys, sorrows are irrevocably ours.

My favorite author, Madeleine L'Engle said it nicely, "The great thing about getting older, is that you don't lose all the other ages you've been."

Ryan, I love the years of yours that you've shared with me... as your friend and your wife.
I feel so lucky to have you (and all your years).

Happy Birthday!

Ryan's half day Friday...

Sweet Potato Leaves

1. Cut sweet potatoes into 1/4" slices.
2. Using cookie cutters, make leaves, pumpkins, and acorns. (We used mini-cookie cutters)
3. Spread pieces onto baking sheet sprayed with vegetable oil.
4. Lightly sprinkle 'cookies' with a mixture of cinnamon, sugar, and brown sugar.
5. Bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes... until leaves begin to look slightly crispy.

"Is it cold yet?"

Ryan keeps asking me this every morning.

I could hold on to summer forever...almost. I love the warm sun, warm wind, leaves on the trees, everything is green, the happy illusion of freedom, the beach, the cabin, summer.

But fall is coming. And I think I'm happy about that too.

School has begun. And even in the first day, there were many moments of musical delight. ..those beautiful sounds and happy faces filled with pride and awe that make me remember that what I do is really really fun.

But.

I love the gentle singing and cooing I hear in the baby monitor and the imaginative chatter from across the breakfast table better than all the sweet voices I heard yesterday.

I think I'm going to love my abbreviated schedule.

On a boardwalk lined with sailboats...

...four friends walked towards the lighthouse. It was the summer of 1998. Two of the friends were obnoxiously oblivious to the others. Their eyes flirted as they talked...just as they had for years, but they both knew that tonight was not like all the others evenings they had spent together with friends. Earlier, over the phone, they had finally talked....about all that had been silently growing between them. And now as they walked, occasionally their fingers would 'accidentally' brush together, lingering but never intentionally touching. But as they all leaned against the lighthouse to watch the sun set, the college boy with blue eyes rather timidly grabbed the girl's hand. And she's been madly in love with him ever since.





Earlier this month (or was it last month?), we went back to the Grand Haven boardwalk for a very rare, peaceful, romantic date. It was even better this time, ten years later...dreaming about our future together, talking about our marriage, our children, our disappointments and greatest happinesses. Sometimes, my stomach still flips when he holds my hand.