A Christmas Market in Paris

I'm getting ready to take down all the Christmas decorations. Hey, this is early for me. Usually I wait until February 2nd...it's the day they used to take down the tree in Germany (at least that's what my Grandma told me). February 2nd is Saint Bridget's day, or Candlemas, in the Catholic tradition, and it's know as Imbolc, the celebration of the goddes Brighid and the beginning of spring, in Pagan tradition. I I always figured that was as good a reason as any to leave the decorations up through dark and dreary January. This year I'm doing it early to make room for baby gear - that stuff takes up a lot of space! 

Anyway, taking down the Christmas stuff made me think that now would be a good time to share some pictures from our visit to one of the Christmas markets in Paris. There are quite a few, scattered throughout the city. About a week before Christmas, and a few days before my mom left, we went to the market at Saint-Germain des Pres, in the sixth arrondissement. It had lots of fun gift ideas, as well as yummy things to eat...we bought a few Christmas presents and got crepes for lunch. It was Ian's first outing, and he did great! I wore him in the Baby K'tan (which I'm really enjoying), and he slept the whole time. There wasn't any snow, but it still felt Christmassy with all the decorated booths. If you're ever in Paris in December, you should definitely check out one of the markets!

^^We found scented soaps at this place. It was amazing how many different scents there were! They had a deal that we couldn't resist, so we each picked one out (except for Kevin...he wasn't very interested in scented soap. Go figure). I chose a lilac one - it smells JUST like the flowers (my favorite flowers). 

^^Nougat is really big here. We didn't get any, but it's quite an impressive display!

^^Here there were gingerbread men, breads, and all kinds of cookies and candies. I just love how pretty it all is! France really knows how to do beautiful desserts.

^^This place sold every kind of dried fruit you could think of. They were offering samples, so we stopped to try a few things. The girls love coconut, so we brought home a bag of tiny, dried coconut squares...they didn't last long!

^^This stand sold super cool necklaces that can be bent to make all those funky designs. The guy was really nice and demonstrated on Bea how to wear one as a head band. You can see him in the very first picture on this post...see? Very friendly. We four ladies each got one (again, somehow Kevin managed to restrain himself).

^^We stopped for lunch at this crepe stand. The crepes were yummy, and we enjoyed watching this guy make them (wouldn't you?)! 

^^My mom and Kevin got some mulled wine (a Christmas-time tradition here). I love the choices of cup size!

^^We stopped at this church next to the market. It was built one thousand years ago! It's hard to imagine. It was really beautiful, and I sat down and nursed Ian while the others looked around.

^^A Serena and Grandma selfie on the way home!