Am participating in the #reverb10 writing prompts for end of year. Today’s prompt is “Gift.”  The best gift I had this year was the one I gave myself for my birthday. What I wanted most in the world was to have my farflung boys (and their girlfriends) with us for a week in Paris. I offered to pay part of each’s airfare and we rented a charming 2 bedroom apt in Paris Marais district. The cost of the apt. was less than I would have paid for a decent hotel room for just my honey and I.  Spending time together in Paris included taking a boat ride on the Seine the first night we were all there, a fabulous dinner at one of the city‘s oldest restaurants “La Petite Chaise.” and lots of walking and museum visits. But special highlights were the daily breakfast ritual of one couple going down the street to pick up fresh baguettes and pastries and we’d all have breakfast in our well-equipped little apt. Our last night in Paris was amazing. We all spent the day separately but gathered late day with bottles of wine and cheese and raced across Paris on the Metro to catch sunset opposite the Eiffel Tower. We sat along the Seine eating, drinking and necking! Then we travelled back to a great little crepe restaurant, Breizh Cafe, in the Marais for a fabulous dinner & lots more wine. We even shot a salacious little video of breaking the yolk on on of our crepes. So much laughter, so much joy. The best birthday ever.

Paris is the city of lovers for sure but it’s also a wonderful city for families to spend memory-making time together.  As I said to my sons as our time together ended: “We’ll always have Paris.”