It's a Dog's Life!

Hi All, Katie the Cocker Spaniel here.

My mom said she's been neglectful of her blog as of late.

(what is a blog?  is that something I can eat?????)

She has been more than a little stressed with trying to sell our house and trying to find a new place for us all to live,

and said that her blog has sadly fallen by the wayside.

So I thought I'd pop in as her special guest blogger to say

"Woof"!

And to show you what my idea of the perfect day looks like................

Stretched out in my wicker chaise lounge in the sunroom.........................

(ooops, does this pose make my belly look fat???)

 Seriously, I think it's true when they say the camera adds 10 pounds!!!

 Now if only my mom could take a cue from me, and just chill out for awhile, we'd be all set!

 Oh, I forgot to add that a perfect day also includes lots of tummy rubs:)!

Hopefully my mom will be back soon, talking about her usual favorite stuff like glitter, paint, and thrift shopping......................

Woof, y'all!

More Adventures in Paris

Bonjour Mes Amis!

I apologize for being missing in action for the past two weeks!  I promised you that I'd share more photos of our trip in May to Paris, and I've not forgotten!  Of course, life gets in the way, we've been going crazy with selling our house, trying to figure out details like where we will live, etc, etc.  Let me tell you, it is not fun, and I've been more than a little stressed, to say the least!  But, I will save all of that for another time.  For now, let's just talk about the fun stuff, Paris!

Of course it's not a proper trip to Paris without a visit to the Eiffel Tower!

It was a glorious warm and sunny day the day we were there.

On our last trip to Paris, we climbed to the top. But this time, we decided it was much easier to enjoy the view down at ground level!

 Notice that large round ball suspended from the center? We couldn't figure out what that was til we got closer.  I swore that it looked like a giant tennis ball, and I was right!

I didn't get a shot of it, but in one of the park areas at the base of the tower, a tennis match was being broadcast on a large screen, and several hundred people were watching from the lawn.

 Oh, you can get a glimpse of the screen to the right of hubby! (above)

 And a shot I snapped while standing underneath the tower!

 Just look at all those roses!  They weren't fragrant, but they were oh so pretty!

Next lets visit another favorite of ours, Luxembourg Gardens.  The gardens are a short walk from our hotel, and a very popular spot, especially on the weekend.  It was Sunday when we visited, and the park was full of sun bathers, runners, picnickers, and people just relaxing and having fun people watching.

 First off, the park is huge (over 56 acres) and very impressive!  

The amazing building you see here was built in 1612, and was the palace of Marie de Medici, widow of King Henry IV.

Now days it's owned by the French Senate.

Gorgeous urns, statues and flowers are everywhere.

 I love the tranquility of this shaded pool and fountain.

 The large pond, below is always full of toy remote control sail boats, that young children race.

 I was loving all of the pink foxglove, behind me.

Thanks for joining me on my little tour!

Hope you have a great week!

A Visit to Versailles

Bonjour Mes Amis,

How is your week going so far?

Today I wanted to share with you our trip to Versailles.  Hard to believe we were there a week ago today!

This was our third trip there, and let me tell you, the place is amazing!

Versailles is just a short 30 minute train ride from Paris, making it super easy to reach.

If you ever have the opportunity to visit, go!

But be prepared for lines, very long, long lines!

 We thought we were being oh so smart and bought our tickets on line.  We figured that would cut our wait time to get in.  Well, weren't we in for a surprise when we got there and found this?  Yikes!  Yes, that is the line for people who already have their tickets!

We later heard that Tuesday is not the day to go!  It wasn't nearly that busy on our previous visits.  If we hadn't already paid for our tickets, we seriously would have hopped right back on the train for Paris!

 Thank goodness it wasn't raining or anything, as we stood outside waiting to enter for nearly 2 hours!

 And once inside, it was elbow to elbow.  Geez, you would think a place this huge couldn't possibly become crowded, but it does!

Can you believe that it's more than 721,000 square feet, and 700 rooms???

 I snapped so many pics, I'll let the photos do most of the talking.

 To say the palace is sumptuous is putting it mildly.  No surface was left bare and unadorned.  The ceilings were amazing!

Below is the chapel.

 It was so crowded that I had a hard time getting some good shots.

Below is a painting of the young Louis XVI.

Just look at that amazing wallpaper, which actually is fabric!

of t

 I was drooling over the chandeliers!

 One of the most fabulous rooms in the palace is the Hall of Mirrors.
Note the crowds?

 How would you like to clean all of those chandeliers??

 At the time it was built, most people didn't even own a mirror. They were a rare luxury item.

So to have a huge room lined with floor to ceiling mirrors was unheard of.

 Imagine waking up in this bed, below.

 Marie Antoinette's bedroom, below.

Did you know that the queen had to give birth in front of the public?

Yes, that's right!  As was the custom of French royalty back in the day, public births were a way to prove the new baby was actually of royal blood.  Can you imagine????

 Below is the Hall of Battles.  Huge paintings depicting French wars lined the enormous room.

   

A goofy picture of me, below.

 The grounds were equally amazing, and provided a welcome relief from the crowds inside!

Lots of fountains.

 The Orangerie, below, was one of my favorite gardens.

Amazing topiaries, huge potted lemon and orange trees, and perfectly groomed grass.

 I can only imagine the work involved maintaining it all!

 Thanks for joining me on my little tour.  Hope you aren't getting tired of my trip pics, I have more to share in future posts!

Au revior!