Paris With My Parents!

My parents had the opportunity to come visit us for a couple of weeks.  I was so excited for them to see where I have been living and to show them Paris.  Since they hadn't been here before, we started with a two day bus tour!  It was a perfect introduction to the city.

Waiting for the bus tour to begin in front of Invalides!

Me and my dad on the bus tour!

With mom on the Champs Elysees

Mom and Dad on my balcony before the Easter Service at the American Church 

After church, we went to brunch at a restaurant called La Gare.  It is an old train station!

Fred and Beth were in Paris for the weekend, so they joined us for church and brunch too!

The weekend after Easter, Dustin and I took my parents to London.  We arrived the day after the Royal Wedding....bummer.  :)

We made a stop at Twinings to buy some Royal Wedding tea!

Our first lunch was fish and chips...of course!

Dustin and I rode a Ferris Wheel in Hyde Park.

Mom and Dad in front of the Tower of London

Tower Bridge!

While my parents were checking out the Tower of London, Dustin and I went to see a play in The Globe.

We took a boat to go back to the Tower to pick up my parents!

After a great weekend in London, we took the train back to Paris to cram in a bit more sight-seeing.  One of our stops was, of course, the Louvre. 

We also went to the Orangerie, the museum that holds 8 of Monet's Water Lillies.   

On their last weekend in Paris, mom and dad helped me plant flower boxes on the balcony.  Dad even did the shopping for the dirt by himself!  It was really special to have them there to help with this project.  I will always remember the three of us crowding onto the balcony, with our amazing view, planting together.  :)

Our last hurrah was an evening cruise on the Seine. It was absolutely beautiful and the perfect end to a wonderful visit.

I was really sad to see my parents leave.  It is so much fun when we have visitors, but it is bitter-sweet because we know that eventually they have to leave.  My dad walked me to school the morning they left (I have started teaching at a bilingual preschool...more on that later), and through tears I hugged him and watched him walk away.  I really hate "see-you-laters" like that.  But the two weeks my parents were here were fantastic, and we made memories that will last forever!